# Allergic to chicken?



## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

I'm back to where I started. Well, not exactly. I'll try to explain.

Bridget has been eaten raw chicken only for well over a month. Bathrooms have been small and overall energy less. Stool remained solid unless I fed her too much. She put on a little weight, grew a little and is still way under. I slowly worked her up from 12oz's a day to 16oz's a day with increase problems whenever I did so. Besides the overall lack of energy the junk around her eye keep increasing. So here what I decided to do since I couldn't find turkey necks anywhere in my city.

I found some really awesome ribs for only 2 dollars a pound. I fed her those for about 4 days before I noticed a huge change. Any day she eat ribs I saw less eye junk. My first pack was enhanced so I gave it away and found another source that sold ribs that weren't. I fed her a pound of these in 1 day. No problems and no eye junk the next day. 

The price of the ribs don't bother me at all. It is only a little more expensive than my new found grain feed chicken at 1.39 pound. I do worry about her not having enough meat from the ribs or a too close to meat to bone ratio. Or even the fact that maybe she would not get what she needed if I cut out the chicken. 

So again, I turn back to the experts. Even though overall I think I've been a poor student in my attempt to help my dog out.


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## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

It really depends on the dog! I rarely feed chicken, only in a pinch will I do it at all..They feed those buggers grain mixed with soy and my dogs don't do well on grains, hence the raw diet to begin with... It's possible she could be intolerant to what they feed them. If she's doing better on pork so be it!


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

whiteleo said:


> It really depends on the dog! I rarely feed chicken, only in a pinch will I do it at all..They feed those buggers grain mixed with soy and my dogs don't do well on grains, hence the raw diet to begin with... It's possible she could be intolerant to what they feed them. If she's doing better on pork so be it!


Thank you Whitelo. After I posted I picked the dog up and stepped on the scale. It is against my doctors orders and hurt a bit but I did it. OMG  she is way underweight...A little under 43 pounds now. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Don't want to picnic. Maybe feeding her a pound of pork will help her gain weight. I would love to move to 2 pounds but that would be a sudden change.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Was the chicken enhanced? She could be reacting to the broth they often pump it up with.


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## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

Pork will be more nutritious for her as it is considered a red meat. You cannot only feed her pork ribs, I would find some pork shoulder roasts and add in a tiny, tiny amount sandwiched between two bone meals and if her poo is good, slowly increase the amount of the boneless pork, still sandwich between bone meals until she can handle a meal of boneless with no poo issues!


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

xellil said:


> Was the chicken enhanced? She could be reacting to the broth they often pump it up with.


Nope. Package says no hormones or added ingredients of any kind. It even said not enhanced. However it was young chicken and not 100% grain fed like what I brought today. Thinking maybe keep on ribs for 5 days or so and watch her. Then slowly add the chicken back in.

I'm just a little worried about her treats. Considering trying beef treats since I don't have access to any raw pork treats and really don't know how to make them.

For the record she has already been tested for every problem the vet could think of related to weight. Blood test and stool. I'll post the names later. They all returned normal. The next step was the special vet diet which sent me running to raw. Over 10 pounds lost since then.

Edit. Not typing on tablet anymore lol. Way to long. I will grab some roast for some bone sandwiches. 

What about fat? I've been trimming it off.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Yikes. Maybe the ribs will be better for her. You're not using storebought treats, are you? If so, alot of those are poisoning dogs right now.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

xellil said:


> Yikes. Maybe the ribs will be better for her. You're not using storebought treats, are you? If so, alot of those are poisoning dogs right now.


Not made in China and nothing on that list. I posted my raw chicken nugget essentials meal. It is listed as food but I fed it like a treat.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Ah, good. it would be nice if something could be pinpointed as causing her to be sick like that. I'm really sorry she's lost so much weight.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

xellil said:


> Ah, good. it would be nice if something could be pinpointed as causing her to be sick like that. I'm really sorry she's lost so much weight.


Sick? Besides eye junk and a lack of being able to handle a lot of chicken I have not seen any problems. I just want to safely give her weight. Forgot about the lack of energy but that might be because she isn't eating nearly enough?

Dog diets can not always be this confusing.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Well, you said she has a lack of energy. When my dogs have a lack of energy, it means they are sick. But I'm glad it's not the same with her.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

i think this has more to do with feeding chicken for an entire month without progression.


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## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

I think the eye goobers you are seeing are common as she is now using her jaws much more to crunch and chew bones which will increase tear duct production, thus causing them to cleanse...I would suggest going to pork next but chicken may be alright to come back to as you may never have fed her enough..Chicken is always a food to go to when you want a dog to lose weight, which is why when transitioning dogs to rawthey will most likely lose some lbs. Hope this helps..


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## JayJayisme (Aug 2, 2009)

bridget246 said:


> What about fat? I've been trimming it off.


Don't trim the fat off. It's an essential macronutrient. Your dog is only getting protein and it is starving. Google "rabbit starvation" for a glimpse into this condition. I add extra fat to my dog's meaty bones. Please read this thread for more info on the importance of dietary fat...

http://dogfoodchat.com/forum/raw-feeding/13217-upon-further-review.html


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

JayJayisme said:


> Don't trim the fat off. It's an essential macronutrient. Your dog is only getting protein and it is starving. Google "rabbit starvation" for a glimpse into this condition. I add extra fat to my dog's meaty bones. Please read this thread for more info on the importance of dietary fat...
> 
> http://dogfoodchat.com/forum/raw-feeding/13217-upon-further-review.html


We were just discussing that. When I started the raw diet I could have swore I read to trim off skin and fat. I will for sure feed her the pieces with the most fat tomorrow.



whiteleo said:


> I think the eye goobers you are seeing are common as she is now using her jaws much more to crunch and chew bones which will increase tear duct production, thus causing them to cleanse...I would suggest going to pork next but chicken may be alright to come back to as you may never have fed her enough..Chicken is always a food to go to when you want a dog to lose weight, which is why when transitioning dogs to rawthey will most likely lose some lbs. Hope this helps..


I will try it again. Not getting rid of my chicken. I hate eye goobers. But it is good to know that they are normal. This stuff is so hard to google.



magicre said:


> i think this has more to do with feeding chicken for an entire month without progression.


Yea... well I kind of lost sight of the diet plan. At first I was so worried about raw meat that it was hard to adjust. I could not ever find turkey necks. How long before I start with thumb sized liver and or beef? What about raw egg with the shell? Is it fine to give her eggs too now? 



xellil said:


> Well, you said she has a lack of energy. When my dogs have a lack of energy, it means they are sick. But I'm glad it's not the same with her.


To say I wasn't worried would be a serious lie. I can't sleep. I don't want to lose Bridget. Not only that but so many people will blame me for it. I don't think I could face them again. Words couldn't express how many people I've made upset with the raw diet and trying to do more than what is "normal" to do with a dog. They eat and sleep only, right? Anything else and I'm just causing trouble sums up what I've been told. The latest suggestion was to feed her some double cheeseburgers. They did and it fatten their dog right up... This added to the normal stress of worry is enough to make someone crazy. Only time I hear things like what you guys tell me is at my favorite dog shop whose manager specialist in dog diets. Most others don't back me in the slightest and seeing Bridget not getting better add fuel to their argument. My own voice makes me wonder if I'm failing her.


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## JayJayisme (Aug 2, 2009)

bridget246 said:


> We were just discussing that. When I started the raw diet I could have swore I read to trim off skin and fat. I will for sure feed her the pieces with the most fat tomorrow.


You probably did read that. It is common advice given to new raw feeders when their pet is having a difficulty with the transition and is producing too many loose stools. But once they are transitioned, they need fat. As you said, "Bridget has been eaten raw chicken only for well over a month. Bathrooms have been small and overall energy less. Stool remained solid unless I fed her too much." 

So yes, sounds like the transition went well but now it's time to add the fat into her food which will help with her weight and energy levels. She has little in her diet to convert into energy right now if all she eats is lean meat and bone. Fat ought to do the trick. Please let us know how it goes.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

bridget246 said:


> To say I wasn't worried would be a serious lie. I can't sleep. I don't want to lose Bridget. Not only that but so many people will blame me for it. I don't think I could face them again. Words couldn't express how many people I've made upset with the raw diet and trying to do more than what is "normal" to do with a dog. They eat and sleep only, right? Anything else and I'm just causing trouble sums up what I've been told. The latest suggestion was to feed her some double cheeseburgers. They did and i fatten their dog right up... This added to the normal stress of worry is enough to make someone crazy. Only time I hear things like what you guys tell me is at my favorite dog shop whose manager specialist in dog diets. Most others don't back me in the slightest and seeing Bridget not getting better add fuel to their argument. My own voice makes me wonder if I'm failing her.


I'm not even close to being an expert in raw feeding, but I think there are lots of folks here who are and will be able to find your solution. I know it's hard to watch your dog lose weight with other people telling you to feed her cheeseburgers. 

It's MUCH easier to defend this diet to others when a dog is doing great. The fat thing is a great idea.

This is where I diverge, even though I don't know what I'm doing very much, with the opinion that fat and organs should not be included at the first - I think alot of dogs would do fine on them. Some dogs don't. But alot of them do. 

My dogs ate full fat and organs right from the first. Hopefully, if you add fat in (and if she's got good stools I would try organs also) that will help. 

When I started PMR here, no one told me to cut off the fat. So i didn't and everything was fine. Now it seems new folks get that advice and maybe it's not the solution for every dog, or even most dogs.

I was told not to include organs, but i did because of my dog with constipation. i just gave it to both dogs and neither had problems with it.


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## werecatrising (Oct 15, 2010)

I feel for you, Bridget. For awhile I was wondering if I was doing the right thing with Quinn, He was so skinny. I got tired of having random strangers comment on it. He is still thin, but improving. It takes time. Darla was easy, but it's been over a year and I am finally getting a grasp on what works for Quinn. I'm sure once you get some more variety in Bridget's diet the weight will start improving.


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## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

Yeah, some dogs just don't transition easy. Bishop was really easy, Tess was non-stop diarrhea for a month, even with bony chicken. Mostly my fault, but still, man was she a sensitive dog. Willow the hound has an iron stomach.

Fat is SO important for a dog. I never trim anything anymore unless their meal is going to be 75% fat- then I trim some off and feed it on a day when I give turkey necks or something.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

1. i'm the one who started the 'upon further review' thread. 

it was a valuable lesson, to be sure.
my dogs, however, were being fed raw for ten months. so they got fat, just not enough.

2. in the beginning, depending on how your dog transitions, determines how little or how much fat to include.

i think you're getting confused....beginnings are just that....if your dog has loose stools or cannon butt, then ease back off the skin and fat until stools stabilise and then increase slowly until they are on a full fat diet. they get their energy from fat.

3. eye goobers are normal. especially if they are clear. i get them. everyone gets them. the ones to worry about are the ones that are yellow, crusty or green.

whiteleo is correct about tear duct production. after a complicated bone, my pug has increased goobers and it's two years. they are clear, so i don't worry.

4. believe me, i get it. i am the poster child for losing sight.

turkey wings will do or turkey breast. 

and you've just got to stop getting ahead of yourself.

there is a progression for a reason....chicken, turkey, pork, fish, beef, organs. 

the richer the food, the less you give in the beginning. and no. it is not fine to give eggs. eggs are for after beef. beef hearts and any other richy rich muscle is for after organs....

slow and steady.

i think you should tell your own voice to shut up. it's confusing the issues, as are people who know nothing about raw feeding. nothing.

because if you don't feed raw, you can't speak about it. hold up your hands, put them over your ears, and say lalalalalala....to yourself when you are in self doubt and to your ahem, well meaning friends.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

xellil said:


> I'm not even close to being an expert in raw feeding, but I think there are lots of folks here who are and will be able to find your solution. I know it's hard to watch your dog lose weight with other people telling you to feed her cheeseburgers.
> 
> It's MUCH easier to defend this diet to others when a dog is doing great. The fat thing is a great idea.
> 
> ...


i think, for most, dogs just do.

and, for the most part, the people who come here do so because 

a. they have a problem
b. they want to share a problem they did have to help other people.
c. etc. 

most dogs transition great. i read the yahoo group raw feeding whatever it's called with their 23,500 members and i'm jealous when a dog starts out and is given beef to start, even though this group also recommends chicken to start because of its digestibility.

they even deal with the stools differently, which i am beginning to agree with....other than sustained cannon butt, loose stools straighten themselves out....

so you did right. whether you knew it or not.....and if you were afraid, you didn't let on...

so many of us do it wrong. we overfeed right out of the gate....i think that's the biggest reason dogs have trouble. too much, too soon is another reason.

in your case, know thy dog applies, don't you think?

instead of feeding pumpkin to your constipated dog, you fed liver....i would never have thought of that.

course, i had the opposite problem LOL


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

magicre said:


> i think, for most, dogs just do.
> 
> and, for the most part, the people who come here do so because
> 
> ...


I admit, I was very lucky. I fed Rebel so much he gained 9 pounds in less than two weeks, fat, organs, and all and he never got diarrhea. He was getting 4 pounds of food a day, where now he gets 1. 

And yes, i do think we overcomplicate things. It is one thing I really miss about Bill. I was dithering around, worrying about everything, and he said it's simple.

Get some chicken
feed some chicken.

kind of put it in perspective for me - this isn't supposed to be difficult. I think we see here more of the dogs that have issues, and not so much the dogs that don't. So it starts to feel like we have to be so very careful, and cut off every scrap of fat, and cut our organs under a microscope but that's only ofter months of no organs at all, in order to not cause diarrhea. 

And you are right, maybe we shouldn't worry so much about loose stools - of course Snorkels wouldn't have a loose stool with a gun to her head, but Rebel did. And some mornings there was diarrhea by the back door (even though the only time he had true "cannon butt" was with too much salmon). I just pretty much ignored it all and it resolved itself. And frankly it's because i'm pretty lazy. I don't want to spend a bunch of time cutting skin and fat off. 

I spend alot of time figuring out how to get Snorkels TO poop, and not kill her with too much organ and I don't know anyone else that has to do that.

you, of course, had a much more difficult time. I think most people who ran into your problems would have thrown up their hands and quit. I'm pretty sure I would have. It's wonderful that you didn't, so you can tell people there is a light at the end of the tunnel if their dog is having issues.

And you are right - we need to know our dogs.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

So Bridget was fed too little out the gate with an owner who cut too much fat. I thought at a glance she gained a little but no... That's muscle I saw with nothing under it. 

I still don't know when to add the next protein. Haven't seen a problem with pork and chicken were not problems at all if I'm understanding everything. She has been fine on raw since day 1 and was never fine on kibble. No matter what brand of kibble I tried.

I will be happy to see the weight. I'd love 9 pounds a week for a week or two. Though I have my doubts Bridget ever gaining that much weight.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

bridget246 said:


> So Bridget was fed too little out the gate with an owner who cut too much fat. I thought at a glance she gained a little but no... That's muscle I saw with nothing under it.
> 
> I still don't know when to add the next protein. Haven't seen a problem with pork and chicken were not problems at all if I'm understanding everything. She has been fine on raw since day 1 and was never fine on kibble. No matter what brand of kibble I tried.
> 
> I will be happy to see the weight. I'd love 9 pounds a week for a week or two. Though I have my doubts Bridget ever gaining that much weight.


this is my recommendation - take it for what it's worth - don't worry about what you are feeding her. She's not had any problems with diarrhea, right? I would feed her whatever you want. Give her some beef and fish and whatever else. It sounds like bridget may be one of the many dogs with a garbage gut and can handle new stuff easily.

And throw some liver in there, too. But do only one new thing a day so if something happens you know what it is. And if her stools get a little loose, don't worry about it. Just add some more bone. And if she's not having issues, raise the amount of food.

but like I say, I threw everything but the kitchen sink at my dogs and they didn't have any problems (except salmon). 

No Bridget probably wouldn't gain nine pounds in a week. Rebel, bless his little heart, has a very slow metabolism. But, I bet she can get headed in the right direction.

Frankly, the lack of energy you talk about is what concerns me. Maybe she's just flat not getting enough calories.

Oh, and one more thing - since I don't cut anything off my dog's food, skin or fat, I always try to keep chicken necks or heads or feet or something bony around. If I see a little loose stool, I throw Rebel something bony. Plus, the heads and feet have lots of glucosamine and choindroin in them.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

xellil said:


> I admit, I was very lucky. I fed Rebel so much he gained 9 pounds in less than two weeks, fat, organs, and all and he never got diarrhea. He was getting 4 pounds of food a day, where now he gets 1.
> 
> And yes, i do think we overcomplicate things. It is one thing I really miss about Bill. I was dithering around, worrying about everything, and he said it's simple.
> 
> ...


hey, i hear this well. if not for bill, i'd not be feeding raw, especially after following some generic advice not suitable for my dogs.

there ARE things we need to know, like overfeeding can cause the runs....and not always do we know to back off how much we feed....

the KISS principle is definitely in play here....

9 pounds? LOL


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

bridget246 said:


> So Bridget was fed too little out the gate with an owner who cut too much fat. I thought at a glance she gained a little but no... That's muscle I saw with nothing under it.
> 
> I still don't know when to add the next protein. Haven't seen a problem with pork and chicken were not problems at all if I'm understanding everything. She has been fine on raw since day 1 and was never fine on kibble. No matter what brand of kibble I tried.
> 
> I will be happy to see the weight. I'd love 9 pounds a week for a week or two. Though I have my doubts Bridget ever gaining that much weight.


no problems at all?


shoot. listen to xellil.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Yep, and sometimes it's something just as simple as reducing the amount of food.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

Alright. I did a few test on this issue. I'm pretty sure chicken is giving me problems. After too much chicken I get mushy stool and sometimes bones in the stool. Last night she ate 2 chicken backs and 1 chicken quarter along with some pork and organs. Keeping in mind that this meal was smaller than the meal she had the last 3 nights. Sure enough, she had mushy stool in the morning. 

The last 3 days I've been feeding her chicken backs, thighs and legs. I would combine turkey necks with boneless pork. Or pork ribs with boneless pork and a chicken thigh, leg. She was eating a little over 3 pounds a day without a single problem. I ran out of my turkey and pork ribs so I gave the chicken backs a chance to be the only bone combine with the quarter for a little more meat. It didn't work. Anything more than say 16oz's of chicken in her diet and she has problems. This isn't true for pork or turkey.




whiteleo said:


> It really depends on the dog! I rarely feed chicken, only in a pinch will I do it at all..They feed those buggers grain mixed with soy and my dogs don't do well on grains, hence the raw diet to begin with... It's possible she could be intolerant to what they feed them. If she's doing better on pork so be it!


Thinking this post is dead on. The chickens claim to be only grain feed but who knows if that is actually true. I'm still going to feed chicken because I believe it is a great source of protein. I just keep it in some amounts. Though she might get even more intolerant to it. I don't know. I hate guessing games with the health of an animal.

Oh, I forgot to add the real test start today. I'm going to pick up some meat that some other dog owner never came back for at the butcher. It is super cheap so I can't complain. They have all the meat wrapped up and frozen for me. It will be beef, lamb, pork and venison. They aren't promising that they kept anything separate. It was just the scraps they had left over after they made all of their daily cuts. Raw feeders love the scraps so they keep it around for them instead of throwing it out and that way they can make a little profit off it.


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## Dude and Bucks Mamma (May 14, 2011)

If you think the chicken is what is causing the problems then I wouldn't feed it to her at all for a while. While it IS a good source of protein, it isn't nearly as good as pork, beef, venison, etc. 

If the problem is still there even after you have stopped feeding chicken for a few weeks, then you know it wasn't the chicken. We don't feed Buck chicken because he drops weight like crazy. 

As far as the fat goes, I too would agree to stop trimming the fat off of her meals. Buck lost the hair around his eyes and some of the hair on his ears and started getting really bad eye boogers. I added more fat to his diet. His eye boogers are slowly disappearing, he doesn't seem as itchy as he was and I am eagerly awaiting hair growth. I think it's easy for us to forget to make sure they get enough fat.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

Dude and Bucks Mamma said:


> If you think the chicken is what is causing the problems then I wouldn't feed it to her at all for a while. While it IS a good source of protein, it isn't nearly as good as pork, beef, venison, etc.
> 
> If the problem is still there even after you have stopped feeding chicken for a few weeks, then you know it wasn't the chicken. We don't feed Buck chicken because he drops weight like crazy.
> 
> As far as the fat goes, I too would agree to stop trimming the fat off of her meals. Buck lost the hair around his eyes and some of the hair on his ears and started getting really bad eye boogers. I added more fat to his diet. His eye boogers are slowly disappearing, he doesn't seem as itchy as he was and I am eagerly awaiting hair growth. I think it's easy for us to forget to make sure they get enough fat.


I didn't trim off the fat. I trimmed off all the skin and any attached organs. I provided the organs myself so I can measure how much Bridget was getting. I didn't see the issue at all in much smaller amounts. But in large amounts of chicken it was very clear. I might have actually been taking off the fat at the start of this thread. I feel like I've came a long way since then.


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

When my dogs were too skinny, they had VERY low energy. As soon as I increased their food to put more weight on them, they got their energy back - literally overnight. 

If you think the chicken is giving her trouble, nix it. You can always add it back later. 

My advice for weight gain is to feed her more meals (I'm feeding 3x/day), which will allow you to increase her rations without upsetting her stomach to the same degree. Then bump her up to as much food as it takes to put weight on her - for my dogs it's 4% of predicted adult weight. 

My raw feeding vet also suggested adding potatoes or yams to each meal - controversial among this crowd, perhaps, but it hasn't hurt and might have helped.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

BoxerParty said:


> When my dogs were too skinny, they had VERY low energy. As soon as I increased their food to put more weight on them, they got their energy back - literally overnight.
> 
> If you think the chicken is giving her trouble, nix it. You can always add it back later.
> 
> ...


well, you won't get controversy from me. hell, i fed barf for a few months. 

out of curiousity, what was his reasoning for giving yams? for weight gain? or was there another reason?


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

BoxerParty said:


> When my dogs were too skinny, they had VERY low energy. As soon as I increased their food to put more weight on them, they got their energy back - literally overnight.
> 
> If you think the chicken is giving her trouble, nix it. You can always add it back later.
> 
> ...


Your vet suggested that because he believes that the dog needs carbs. Racing grey hounds might need it with their raw diets. But for our pet, carbs just make them harder to control. It is like feeding a kid sugar. Of course if anyone happens to be feeding cooked meat then all my advice goes out the window. If you take the nutrition out through cooking then your going to have to climb a mountain of chaos trying to get them all back. I doubt feeding the potatoes are hurting anything. 

Since I switched away from chicken I haven't seen another stool. She looks fine. Acts fine. No straining. Which I don't have a problem with. Just been looking forward to seeing that first stool because I think I might have fed a little too much bone trying to clear up the mush she was producing.


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## frogdog (Aug 10, 2011)

I'm sure you've been referred to this site How to Get Started | Prey Model Raw but when I started I visited regularly and followed to the "T". I was fortunate and really had no problems with Yogi at all. 

Seems to me but maybe I'm wrong that you are not following a true guide line...feeding chicken for a month. I recommend taking reference to the link I posted...may help.

When Yogi started raw and was eating chicken only...he dropped weight fast.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

frogdog said:


> I'm sure you've been referred to this site How to Get Started | Prey Model Raw but when I started I visited regularly and followed to the "T". I was fortunate and really had no problems with Yogi at all.
> 
> Seems to me but maybe I'm wrong that you are not following a true guide line...feeding chicken for a month. I recommend taking reference to the link I posted...may help.
> 
> When Yogi started raw and was eating chicken only...he dropped weight fast.


Ran into a ton of pit falls with the chicken that really slowed my forward progress. I had to make my own guidelines to follow.


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## frogdog (Aug 10, 2011)

I know some do not do well on chicken and have to continue longer or choose another protein...such as: turkey or quail.
You may need to drop chicken all together...some do not feed at all...once I've fed the remainder in my freezer I'm going to decrease the amount.


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## bridget246 (Oct 26, 2011)

frogdog said:


> I know some do not do well on chicken and have to continue longer or choose another protein...such as: turkey or quail.
> You may need to drop chicken all together...some do not feed at all...once I've fed the remainder in my freezer I'm going to decrease the amount.


Yea, turkey was a much better start for us. I ran out and my supplier ran out. They are giving me my own case next Friday. I went from Turkey, to pork to boneless pork to beef. I skipped fish for now because my fish guy kept selling out before I got there and his prices on salmon aren't cheap. I believe I'll also have to let it freeze for a few weeks before feeding it. Caught a ton of legal fish this past weekend but I just don't have the space to store them yet. I have to get myself another freezer.


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

magicre said:


> well, you won't get controversy from me. hell, i fed barf for a few months.
> 
> out of curiousity, what was his reasoning for giving yams? for weight gain? or was there another reason?


Yup, for weight gain. Yams are well tolerated by most dogs, in her experience, and it's an easy way to add calories without causing the stomach upset that feeding a whole bunch of additional meat can cause. Her position is that dogs do not require vegetables, but that she's open to using them in the diet when it's indicated.

An average-sized yam is about 200 calories, so when I was feeding 4x/day, I could easily add 800 calories to their diet every day without causing the kind of cannon butt that would serve as a cautionary tale for generations.


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