We switched our 2 boys to raw from kibble about 6 months ago. The switch came because we were simply exhausted from walking them 3 times a day because they had loose stool (we don't have fenced in yard, so we need to walk them to go to the bathroom). Our vet recommended more fiber in their diet to help with loose stool. This intuitively just didn't resonate with us. Basenji are one of the most ancient breeds of dog… why on earth would more fiber be a solution to their problem (I know the theoretical why, but logically it was counter-intuitive)? We read many sources or literature on the raw diet and thought this would be a good switch for them. Again, they are an ancient breed so moving toward raw foods seemed appropriate and logical. It took that about a month for them to get really accustomed to eating raw chicken quarters, rabbit halves or pork shoulders but now they have no problem gulping their meal right down, bone and all (for those of you who don't feed raw, gulping is a normal behavior and bone is an essential part of the diet). Their digestion issues have vanished and we've even seen marked improvement in their destructive behavior. Two super happy boys now, two super happy Basenji owners!!
Rotating food
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I noticed when I was at the pet store earlier, that they have frozen raw foods from Nature's Variety.
I wondered how well it works to do a raw diet at one meal and doing dry kibble for the other meal (in the same day)? I feel like I should be incorporating more into Kananga's diet and not using one thing for every meal.
Has anyone read anything bad about Nature's Variety Raw? I've used their dry kibble for awhile now and it has been an excellent brand thus far.
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One the primary reasons why this came to mind was concerns over dehydration since I only use dry kibble for his diet. I thought perhaps using canned or raw food as one of his meals each day could help prevent future illnesses.
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My mom uses their raw medallions with her dogs and they do well on it but she has one that will only eat them if they are warmed to at least room temp.
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I think I may give the raw medallions a try. I was just making sure there's no harm feeding him dry kibble (same brand, rabbit formula) in the morning and the raw chicken/turkey medallions in the evening.
I do know, however, that it's best not to mix both in the same meal.
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I rotate frozen raw, 1 week duck, 1 week chicken and maybe 1 week lamb or beef. I also rotate any canned or dry.
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I think I may give the raw medallions a try. I was just making sure there's no harm feeding him dry kibble (same brand, rabbit formula) in the morning and the raw chicken/turkey medallions in the evening.
I do know, however, that it's best not to mix both in the same meal.
That's what I've been doing the past several of months without any issue. I feed kibble in the morning and medallions of various protein sources (beef, chicken, rabbit or venison) in the evening. I'm in the process of switching over to a raw meaty bones in the evening but planning to keep the kibble still in the morning for now.
Edit: And I am using Nature's Variety medallions and patties (I think that's what they're called) at the moment. I've also used Prairie medallions too.
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That's what I've been doing the past several of months without any issue. I feed kibble in the morning and medallions of various protein sources (beef, chicken, rabbit or venison) in the evening. I'm in the process of switching over to a raw meaty bones in the evening but planning to keep the kibble still in the morning for now.
Edit: And I am using Nature's Variety medallions and patties (I think that's what they're called) at the moment. I've also used Prairie medallions too.
Thanks for the input.
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Out of curiosity, how many medallions did you use in a meal? I've read that 6-8oz should be allocated daily for around a 20lbs dog. So I'm thinking 3 medallions for his meal, which i'll serve him at dinner (kibble in the morning). He also get's a very small portion of kibble before bedtime to keep food in his stomach.
This is strictly his winter diet. I'll probably up the portion in the summer when he's more active.
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My mom uses 2-3 medallions per dog, it sort of depends on the calorie needs of the dog. There is a lot of adjusting based on look and feel of the dog.
She also feeds a kibble meal in the morning and uses the medallions as only one meal a day.
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Ah ok.
I actually did some browsing on their site and they have this nifty calculator:
http://www.naturesvariety.com/feedguide
This was perfect to start with as a baseline since I'll still be using their Instinct dry kibble. Gave me a portion of dry and raw to feed each day, but i'll use it as a baseline to start with and adjust as needed.
It recommended 3.1oz of raw and 1/2 cup dry per day (I put in average activity and 22lbs).
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Kananga approves.
Local pet store that I go to carries all of the frozen raw diets offered by Nature's Variety. It's nice to have a good selection to possibly rotate proteins.
I thawed out 3 medallions and it only took Kananga 20-30 seconds to realize this was yummy food. He's a big fan of this but hopefully he'll still like his dry kibble.
