Raw Dog Food For Beginners - Our Guide On Switching to Raw Feeding for Dogs Transitioning to Raw Food There are a few ways to transition your dog from a kibble/wet food diet to a raw food diet, the method you choose should be best suited to your dog and circumstances, you should take into consideration the age of your pet and how sensitive they are to dietary changes. The Straight Swap This is the most common transition to raw for most dogs, simply feed your dog their normal diet one day then change over and feed them raw the next day. The Slow Transition This is the most suitable transition for dogs who have sensitivities or senior dogs. You can slow transition over a few days or weeks depending how sensitive your pet is. The most common slow transition is over a week. All you need to do is take a portion of your dogs normal food out of their allowance and replace this with the raw food. Increase the amount of raw you feed daily until you are eventually feeding all raw. The Fresh Food Swap This is another suitable transition for dogs who have sensitivities or senior dogs. You simply replace their food gradually day by day with lightly cooked foods, this allows your dog to get used to the food then gradually introduce raw to the lightly cooked foods until you are feeding all raw. Which Protein should I start with? This is a very common question and unless you have knowledge of raw feeding we always recommend starting with the pre-made complete meals and gaining experience before going down the DIY route. If your dog is ok with chicken or turkey we recommend starting with these light meats, if they don't agree with these proteins try something you know they can tolerate. Start with a mince that has 10% bone and for dogs who are sensitive it is also a good idea to avoid mince including offal until they are content with the initial change. We recommend feeding single proteins each week when starting on raw, until you have tried all the proteins available, by doing this you will notice any changes in your pet and pick up on any protein intolerances which you will be able to avoid later down the line. We recommend raw feeding for a month before introducing raw bones to your pet, this allows their stomach time to adjust to the changes and enables them to digest the raw food better. If your dog gets an upset tummy during their transition to raw don't give up, take a step or two back and try a slower transition, its likely your pet just needs more time to adjust, some proteins may not be suitable which is why we recommend the one protein per week. Changing to a raw diet can take a bit of trial & error. As per any pet feeding GUIDELINE, this Raw Feeding Guide for Dogs, is a guideline only and you should monitor your pets body condition to determine whether you should feed more or less. See out Body condition scoring chart above. Percentages should be increased or decreased depending on your pets activity level & metabolism. For example Spayed/Neutered dogs or Senior Dogs normally will require less food than an Active/Working Dog.
