A BARF Diary.

[DennyK]

Re-read Kymythy Schultze's book over the last few days and saw a couple of remarks about fat content - I think on this or the other BARF thread Rhona had asked about the irritant potential of fat, because I'd posted that I avoided too much in case it set Paddy's colitis off.

According to Kymmy, fat is good so long as it's kept in balance with the prey model.  She doesn't refer to proportions though - although as I said in other post - don't see too many fat rabbits in the wild!

On keeping the cost down, I did a quick trot round Tesco fresh and frozen meat last week to compare lamb mince prices.  There were four choices:

1.  Fresh organic.  Sorry Paddy: can't afford this for me, so not getting it for you.

2.  Fresh ordinary - about 25% fat.

3.  Frozen Tesco branded bags - about 3kg bag - about 22% fat and same level of protein as the fresh ordinary;

4.  Frozen Tesco "Value" bags - about 40% fat and lower protein than other frozen (unsurprisingly) mince.

When I've used up my current meat in the freezer, I'm going to replace it with the Tesco branded frozen variety - also has the advantage of being that "free flow" stuff - so it's not frozen in a great big clump, all separated in the bag.  Will make serving it straight from the bag an easy reality....

Denise

[Tommo]

are the amp freeflow 1kg bags not cheaper?

[Annette]

are the amp freeflow 1kg bags not cheaper?

Yes!

[Tommo]

Well this thread has been and still is brilliant. My two are wolfing down everything that's put in front of them. Got a huge bag of lamb ribs and chicken bits and a few small marrow bones today. Chicken bones are crunched down no probs. Not tried the lamb ribs yet, but I'm expecting the same reaction. Pilchards, in tomato sauce, were really savoured today. Phoebe licked hers clean first before eating them.
More to the point its a lot cheaper too. A mate who happens to be a butcher does help a bit. 

[ladylola]

Tried sasha again with a chicken wing today. she held it in her mouth for ages.then burried it behind a cushion, finally she dropped it on the kitchen floor. would not eat it.also found the breast of lamb in asda so i cut a chunk complete with ribs and gave her that, she shot off with it, it was quite a large piece. I gave ellie her first chicken wing in her crate she was so excited. tucked in with great relish but she was growling all the time she was eating it. she polished it off. Sasha came back 5 mins later minus the lamb.as i was so busy watching ellie in case she choked, i didn't see where sasha took her lamb. surely she couldn't eat it  that quick could she. it was quite a big piece. I have looked allover to see if she has hidden it, but nothing. just hope she didn't bury it in my bed. They had the rabbit block for tea and loved that. they also like anything minced. I tried her on a rabbit from the butchers she wouldn't eat that either, I ended up cooking it, she ate it then. still will probalbly get there in the end. little 

[Tommo]

Sorry, asking another question again. I read somewhere on here that there was a photo posted of the correct breast of lamb to ask for. I got a load of lamb ribs connected to the breast bone? Fair ammount of meat on them but not as much as I thought there might be.They're still eating them though.

[Penel]

all of the above are breast of lamb complete with bones - the top one has more meat on it...

[Rhona W]

Ooo Penel. I've just spent ages (well minutes!  ) searching for your other photos and you beat me to it!

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=20311.75

[Tommo]

Mine, well the lambs  , didnt look like that. More like the ribs sticking out of the Nevada desert.Almost a complete rib cage. I take it that all lamb bones are ok. It was obviously the back bone that they were attached to. Lamb anatomy was never my strongpoint.

[Penel]

Sorry Rhona 

Yup all lamb bones are ok, but remember the meatier the better... too much bone could cause constipation.  Backbone is pretty hard so might not be one to give a new raw eater straight away.

[Rhona W]

Mine, well the lambs  , didnt look like that. More like the ribs sticking out of the Nevada desert.Almost a complete rib cage. I take it that all lamb bones are ok. It was obviously the back bone that they were attached to. Lamb anatomy was never my strongpoint.

The ones I get are like that. Sometimes there is more meat on them than others. I have started to buy pork ribs from Sainsburys and they have a mixture of boney lamb ribs and meaty pork ones.
They have the neck for a recreational bone. 

[Tommo]

Thanks once again. Bit late to get the back bone off them, they've eaten most of it. Got some necks too, with lots of meat on them. So pork is ok?

[Rhona W]

So pork is ok?

Yes. 

[happydog]

BARF Day 26
I took Fern for a stress free visit to the vets today, just to weigh her. The comments from the farmers wife that she was looking 'painfully thin' after only the first week on a BARF diet had got me paranoid that Fern was losing rather than gaining weight. Which weighing in a 11.25Kg on day 1., she cannot afford to do. I upped her food after that conversation and she has been having 400g of AMP mince, veg and a chicken wing most days. I alternate this with heart chunks, poultry necks, sardines and egg (two tins  of cheap Asda sardines in tomato sauce), but always with raw whizzed veggies and most times a chicken wing to finish. She seems quite happy on this and, touch wood has not been sick through overeating or looked bloated.

The extra treats have been mainly very tiny pieces of liver cake -due to the (deliberately) dwindling stocks of coloured chopped hide chews, milky bones and Bonios. She has a pigs ear once or twice a week and the odd scraps of cooked left overs.(No mashed potato though it has a 'loosening effect' ifkwim  )

Anyway...... Fern now weighs 11.90Kg  . I am delighted. She is looking really good and is  very happy with her new food. I am still working through the original freezer load but have bought some more AMP working dog green tripe blocks(doG they STINK!!!) to help her put on a bit of weight. The chicken wings have now run out and I have replaced them with a pack of tiny chicken legs. I am not going to give her lamb, pork or beef bones for a while as I am still trying to get the poo consitency right by juggling the veg/bone ratios. She had a touch of the proverbials after I tried her with raw pigs liver the other week and then I overdid it with the bone which meant lots of tiny hard poos  . Best to get the bowel function on a even keel before I introduce anything new methinks.

I shall now reduce the amount I feed slightly so she doesn't get too fat. She is as lively and energetic as she ever was, but slightly more focussed when out on walks. Her recall is better.  It seems that it is not only children who suffer from hyperactivity when fed highly processed diets. This is one aspect of BARF feeding that I hadn't expected and it has come as a pleasant surprise.

[Penel]