# Hi everyone!



## butcherfour (Oct 26, 2010)

I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Emily. I am a mom, wife, nurse, and raw feeder residing in beautiful Southern California! I have 2 dogs, a 7 yo labrador and an almost 2 yo doberman. I started raw after exhausting every avenue for feeding with Max, the dobie. We had 1 1/2 years of diarrhea, flaky (yet greasy) skin, staph outbreaks all over, and just like a human fed junk food, he was malnourished and skinny despite eating more than an appropriate amount of calories. It was heartbreaking. This is my heart dog.

I had alot of guidance from the good people over at dobermantalk and during research stumbled upon this site. I read through hours and hours of old posts and finally jumped in with Max cold turkey. From the 2nd day on he has had tiny, firm poops a few times a day (this is significant because he used to have 5-6 pudding like poops a day). His coat has been rapidly improving, he has gained a little muscle weight, and he is better behaved even though he has more energy! I can't say enough good things about raw. I even switched my lab, Scout, even though she had no obvious issues and always had a stomach of steel. It's early on for her and she is still in the chicken stage but I know she will benefit from raw also.

So I just wanted to thank this community. Even though you might not realize it, there are people reading this info. They might not post often like me, but, they are benefiting from the informative posts. To those of you who post frequently, thanks for taking the time. It is much appreciated.

Here are a few pics of my doberboy.



Snack time!










NomNom!










ChompChomp!











"I can still hunt squirrels while eating."











He's an excellent chewer. He eats all kinds of meat that I can find. But loves chicken and marrow guts (they are a treat) the most.


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## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

LOVE the pictures. He is gorgeous. I am glad everything is working out. :smile:


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

it's nice to know that this forum...was able to help you when you needed help the most...

i know it did for me....and now my dogs are doing great...

your dobie looks awesome.....


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## Jodysmom (Jan 9, 2010)

My experience with feeding dog kibble is very similar to yours. Isn't it great to not have to worry about why your dog has diarrhea and what could be causing it? I spent way too many hours researching kibble, illness, and allergies.


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## hbwright (Jul 14, 2010)

You picked TWO awesome forums to help you. Max is a georgous boy and deserves the best food. I know people will argue that dobes are not a sensitive tummy breed but you can't convince me. All of mine have had sensitive bellies. Raw has been the best I've ever tried.


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## werecatrising (Oct 15, 2010)

Yay- another dobie lover! Max is beautiful!


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Hello and welcome!!! Glad to have you here and it's awesome that you've switched to raw! Your pup is handsome!


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## luvMyBRT (Mar 8, 2010)

What a great story about how raw changed your Dobie's life! Wonderful! Great pics. Your boy is just gorgeous! :biggrin:


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## Ania's Mommy (Feb 8, 2009)

THank you so much for posting that! I'm so happy that you made the switch, and your handsome doberboy is doing so well.

I think we tend to loose sight of how many dogs transition to raw without a hitch. As a casual observer to this forum, it may appear that nearly everyone experiences difficulty in the beginning. BUt I think that many more dogs have smooth transitions than don't (my dog included). We just don't hear about them. It's kind of like comment cards; Most people just write their complaints, and few ever write compliments.

So THANK YOU for your story. Hopefully other casual observers will be inspired by it.

And your dog is GORGEOUS!


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## Northwoods10 (Nov 22, 2010)

Wow, what a great change raw has made for your dogs! And great pictures!!


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## Khan (Jan 17, 2010)

That's great to hear!! 
I love the picture of him "Showing Off" what he's eating!!


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## Lin (Nov 4, 2010)

He's just beautiful! My favorite picture is when he's hunting and eating simultaneously.

I'm fairly new here, too, and I couldn't agree with you more about the information and the support to be found in this community. So, welcome aboard, from one newbie to another.


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## spookychick13 (Jan 26, 2010)

Great pics!

I love dobies, I have a soft spot for them.


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## CorgiPaws (Mar 31, 2009)

Welcome to the forum! 
I'm so glad that raw has helped your dobie, and that you found some useful info here. It's a pretty nifty group of people, if I do say so myself!!
Your boy is very handsome, than you for sharing the pics! I hope lots of people contemplating the switch read your thread, and that it nudges them in the right direction!:biggrin:

Welcome to the dark side!!! lol


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## schtuffy (May 17, 2010)

AWESOME pics! Beautiful dog!! :smile:


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## butcherfour (Oct 26, 2010)

Thank you to everyone for your words of encouragement! We have had no big issues and lots of success feeding raw. It took awhile for my hubby to come around but he's totally on board now. I am a vegetarian of 15 years and I have only cooked meat on Thanksgiving throughout those years. My kids are primarily veg by choice, so the husband only got meat when eating in a restaurant. He complained that the freezers are full of meat but he doesn't get any! I offered him the pig feet and liver and he turned it down! Well, don't ever say I didn't try!

Anyway, I forgot pics of the labby. So here she is....Scout!











MMmmm...chicken backs!




















I thought this one was cool...nice teeth!











By the way, all the dogs on this forum are gorgeous. So many breeds I love!


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## butcherfour (Oct 26, 2010)

Last but not least...the obligatory holiday pics!


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## SamWu1 (Oct 15, 2010)

Good nutrition has medicinal properties, I've pondered countless times to feed kibble for its convenience but it just seemed ridiculous.

My new foster girl was on the cheapest of the cheapest when she was in the shelter. She's now weaning on whole cut-up chicken and red meat and organs is on next week's menu. Congrats.


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## mischiefgrrl (Oct 28, 2010)

Awesome! It's nice to see another vegetarian on here too!

My Aussie also jumped right into the raw diet. He's had diarrhea twice and that was from too much liver. I don't consider that to be a horror story because he got that from other diets too. I home cooked his food before which was wonderful for a long time until he had to go on antibiotics after being attacked by a neighbors dog. For a solid year after that I just couldn't get him back to normal. It was non-stop skin infections, biting, smelly, greasy, flaky and bald on half of his body. He's still bald around his bunghole and the base of his tail but it's getting better. His teeth are gorgeous and he doesn't stink!

Love the holiday pics! You have some very beauitful, happy and healthy pups!


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## schtuffy (May 17, 2010)

Now if only I could get Louis to let me put a Santa hat and reindeer antlers on him...jealous!


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## JayJayisme (Aug 2, 2009)

Props to you, as a vegetarian, for recognizing and embracing the fact that not all of nature's creatures are able to thrive on the diet you choose for yourself. I know many vegans and vegetarians choose their diet partially because of the disagreeable way livestock is raised and butchered for consumption and they often maintain this conviction at the expense of their dog's and cat's health. It's not always an easy choice but when you bring a carnivore into the house, you have to do what's ultimately right for the animal. Congrats for doing what is right for Max and Scout!

I'm in So Cal too. If you're a price-shopper and stumble on any killer meat deals, post 'em up! I do on occasion when I find a real good deal.

Welcome to the forum!


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Great photos! Lovely and lucky dogs!!! Glad you joined up here :biggrin:


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