# Small dogs on raw?



## seashells (Oct 11, 2012)

Who here has a little dog that eats raw? I'm thinking about incorporating raw into my pom's diet. My cats are already half raw-fed (and would be all raw-fed if they weren't so picky) but for whatever reason I'd been hesitant to do the same with Tyrion. 

I just wanted to hear some experiences from other people with tiny dogs and how they did/are doing on their raw. Especially if there are any other pom owners here!

Tyrion has some itchy dry skin issues, despite already being on grain-free food. Think the raw might help with that? It did seem to improve slightly once I got him on grain-free.


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## Scarlett_O' (May 19, 2011)

My Dixi is only 8lbs...she eats raw just as well as my 17, 40, 47 and 60 pound dogs(along with 2 cats)! :thumb:

She eats anything and everything offered to her(or at least tries her hardest!LOL) Chicken, turkey, beef, pork, venison, beef, emu, sardines, lamb, goat, elk, and game birds(and Im sure Im missing a couple things) have all been fed and devoured by her! 

I HIGHLY suggest going for it...if I only had her and the cats, and even one more dog she would live on red meats and game birds alone....I some times think of the amazing meats I could buy if I didnt feed 10-15lbs a day!!!LOL :lol:


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## kathylcsw (Jul 31, 2011)

I have an 8 lb Toy Fox Terrier and a 9 lb Jack Russell Terrier who are raw fed. The TFT has been raw fed since I brought him home at 8 weeks old. My JRT has been partial raw since 4 months old and all raw since 6 1/2 months old. The JRT turned 1 year old on June 1 and the TFT will be 1 on 10/29. They are both doing great and eat beef, pork, chicken, deer, turkey, duck, tripe, eggs, and goat. I will be adding lamb in the next few weeks. They can gnaw through chicken legs and pork ribs with no problem. I have no doubt that your pom will do great as well.


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## seashells (Oct 11, 2012)

Thanks guys! He's already tried to nab the cats' raw a few times, so I expect he'll take to it well.


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## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

My little 7 pounder eats raw and he LOVES IT!


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## sozzle (May 18, 2011)

Oh my god Sprocket, you're not feeding human legs again are you?????!!!


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## zontee (Oct 12, 2012)

i breed and show english toy spaniels and i have been a raw feeder for 5 years and my little guys love it. i feed mostly ground food and for bones i give them chicken anything. i also have my butcher cut up bones into smaller peices for me. he even cuts up pigs feet for me. one thing i do that makes raw feeding easyer for small dogs is freezee it in ice cube trays so its convienient and easy to get the right amount without useing fridge space of worring about it going bad


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## seashells (Oct 11, 2012)

zontee said:


> i breed and show english toy spaniels and i have been a raw feeder for 5 years and my little guys love it. i feed mostly ground food and for bones i give them chicken anything. i also have my butcher cut up bones into smaller peices for me. he even cuts up pigs feet for me. one thing i do that makes raw feeding easyer for small dogs is freezee it in ice cube trays so its convienient and easy to get the right amount without useing fridge space of worring about it going bad


Thanks! I'll probably be going with the premades (Primal most likely) since that's worked really well for my cats. I have a good system with their food where I usually portion out a week's portion at a time into little containers for each meal and store them in the fridge to defrost.


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## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

sozzle said:


> Oh my god Sprocket, you're not feeding human legs again are you?????!!!


:rofl:

NO! Its a deer leg


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## Noodlesmadison (Sep 18, 2011)

Of course! I have a shih tzu and I feed my inlaws dog (a little poodle) raw when she stays here (she eat PREmade raw at her home and pmr here)
They are 10 times healthier.... there should be no hesitation with them
The only thing I do different is chop up the bones for my shih tzu because she has terrible/lacking teeth and doesn't like to chew.

EDIT: Can I Just say that I think Premade is overpriced and just a waste of money UNLESS you use it on vacation or a living situation. But if you can feed real meat, why not? I have all these bags of premade that I got when my store closed and I would NEVER pay for that. It's too expensive and has all this crap in it! I give Noodles Premade when I go on vacation and my mom watches her. But that's the only time.
I give her Stella and Cheweys as a treat before bedtime NOT as a meal


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## trikerdon (May 14, 2011)

My dog is about 20 lbs and has been eating raw for awhile now. She eats everything and I buy her stuff at the same stores I buy mine. She does great with everything 
One thing about feeding a small dog raw it doesn't cost us an arm and a leg to feed them.


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## domika (Jul 15, 2012)

I feed a premade to my 12lb dog. He has transitioned well, we've been on 100% premade for about 2 months. Much healthier, maintaining a more desireable weight. I don't think the premade I feed is a waste of money as I can afford it and there is 0% produce.

I'm a bit hard pressed for time so premade makes is easy, which is a great thing when my hubby feeds Rosco. Right now, it's working great.


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## seashells (Oct 11, 2012)

Noodlesmadison said:


> EDIT: Can I Just say that I think Premade is overpriced and just a waste of money UNLESS you use it on vacation or a living situation. But if you can feed real meat, why not? I have all these bags of premade that I got when my store closed and I would NEVER pay for that. It's too expensive and has all this crap in it! I give Noodles Premade when I go on vacation and my mom watches her. But that's the only time.
> I give her Stella and Cheweys as a treat before bedtime NOT as a meal


For me it's a matter of time and convenience. I already prepare all my family's meals from scratch while also working full-time, so preparing food for three animals from scratch on top of that ended up being a bit too much. Especially as someone who otherwise doesn't buy or prepare any meat at all. On top of that, last time I looked into doing PMR I found I had no good source of organ meats or whole prey anywhere nearby, and would have to drive an hour to get them. Or have them shipped...which was more expensive than just buying premade.

I don't really consider it overpriced. I know it's much more expensive than preparing it myself, but I figure I'm paying for someone else's time (and the cost to ship frozen food) so I don't think it's unreasonable. I totally understand if other people don't want to do it for that reason, but it's just what works best for me, and I figure it's still significantly better than feeding him nothing but kibble. Especially since I'm very selective about the companies I buy from. I'm giving him the best I can personally, currently offer. If I thought the premade was actually _bad_ for him, that'd be different. But so far I'm pretty happy with how my cats have done on it. They've never been healthier. If it doesn't work for Tyrion, I'll try something else. 
And like the above two said, when you're feeding a tiny dog, the cost is far less of a big deal. Tyrion's only 4lbs (and will likely be 5-6 lbs max when full grown) so he doesn't eat much at all.


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## CoverTune (Dec 20, 2011)

Pre-made raw is definitely still miles ahead of kibble! That said, I have found that it doesn't take me any longer to prep a prey model meal, than a pre-made one.. I still have to weigh out both.

My dogs are 13lbs and 3.5lbs (and currently we're also living with my mum's 3lb'er as well). My two have been eating prey model since the beginning of December 2011, my mum's since this spring. Everyone is doing well.

Best of luck with your little one!


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## nickiklaus (Dec 10, 2011)

Noodlesmadison said:


> Of course! I have a shih tzu and I feed my inlaws dog (a little poodle) raw when she stays here (she eat PREmade raw at her home and pmr here)
> They are 10 times healthier.... there should be no hesitation with them
> The only thing I do different is chop up the bones for my shih tzu because she has terrible/lacking teeth and doesn't like to chew.
> 
> ...


What brand of premade raw has ''crap'' in it? i read the ingredients for barfworld and ian billignhurst oens and they seem fine?


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## CorgiPaws (Mar 31, 2009)

nickiklaus said:


> What brand of premade raw has ''crap'' in it? i read the ingredients for barfworld and ian billignhurst oens and they seem fine?


What most raw feeders mean by statements like this is that since dogs are really carnivores, any and all plant matter is fairly useless to them, thus making them "crap." That said, not all pre mades are created equal and here are some that really have great meat content. Unfortunately a lot of the more popular brands have a LOT of veggies. 

Back to the point, I have a smallish Corgi ~18lbs that is fed PMR.


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## Kat (Jul 12, 2011)

My best friend has two papillons, one is 4 pounds, one is 5.5 pounds, both raw fed.


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## autumngemini88 (Nov 12, 2012)

I have two little ones 6lbs, and 13lbs, and both are doing great! Love it. 

One thing is those 2 get hungry a lot more often than my GSD. So most days I have to feed them 2x a day.


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