Trying to start raw feeding

[Ollie]

Well, yesterday we went to the store to look into what is available for cats. There seems to be a few specialty stores, and pet stores that carry raw in my area but mostly for dogs. Anyway the local store gave us some samples to try of Primal for felines and Stella and Chewy's freeze dried packets. There was also the choice of Natures Variety, but it is a cat and dog formula. So right now I was not worrying about figuring out if Oliver has an allergy to anything, just switch him to raw, then try to eliminate or change proteins, and see what changes happen. Mostly I thinking of feeding raw to eliminate softer poops and clear up his skin irritation issues, and to keep him healthy of course. So the pet sore said you can feed raw one meal and not the other, leave kibble out in between, no worries.....well I though raw and dried did not mix? I did read you can mix wet canned food and raw together, that you could start all at once or slowly. I picked up the kibble and decided to put just raw down and see what he would do. I choose turkey because that is what the protein has been in his canned food. He took one sniff and walked away. So I added some of his food on top. He ate the top layer lol. After he finished that little bit he walked away so I added some more of his food to the raw. Later he came back and at more of his old stuff and a little of the raw. I did not put the kibble back out. This morning I gave him his regular portion of wet canned and some more raw with his food mixed in. He at the whole thing! But phew he has been farting up a storm!! So after all that detail my question is, is there a better meat to start with! Should I be concerned about the foods that have salmon mixed in? Is beef a concern( it's beef heart and liver) There is rabbit available but not in the trial pack and venison would have to be ordered in. Should I stick to one protein and not trial too many flavours at once? Can you switch brands of raw without having to slowly introduce it like you have to with canned foods? Has anyone used the freeze dried stuff? I think its kind of weird to get raw freeze dried, seems unnatural.

 

[assibassi]

I have tried Freeze dried and mine go nuts over it.
I started the Raw with Chicken and Turkey. One of my cats i think cant have turkey, so i mixed Chicken with Beef and have been since. They do well on it. I do have supplement that i put in my Raw though, for the Vitamins and taurine and bones and stuff that they need.
Natures Variety has some good Raw for Cats as well, but it was too pricey for me, I have 3 Cats. So i do the Raw ground with supplements. Once in a while I have the Freeze Dried ( stella and chew or what its called ) and no you dont have to slowly introduce those kind , they just chow it up.

Keep doing the Can food with mixing in raw. Its supposed to be 1/3 of raw in the beginning and after a few days start adding more ... half and half and then after a week go more ...

 

[zoinks]

I would start out with one meat (turkey, chicken, beef) and go from there. Those are usually the most affordable. I wouldn't mix it up too much at first as they might have a reaction to something and it will be difficult to pinpoint what it was (eg. one of mine has a poultry allergy)

One of my cats gets "raw" raw and the other freeze dried Stella & Chewy's. He does great on the Stella & Chewy's . It seems to have all the benefits of raw but without taking up the freezer space / preparation time. I would recommend it, if your cat likes it. The reason my guy is on freeze dried is that he seems to much prefer it to the ground up raw I make up for the other guy.

I don't think you should be worried about beef or salmon. These freeze dried foods are made to be nutritionally balanced. If you are making it from scratch its a different story. Sounds like you are doing well with the introduction. Try to get him eating more and more as time goes on. Tuna water I have found can also help tempt them to eat it. It is just a big switch from kibble as the smell is not the same.

I don't know if it is available in Canada but Rad Cat is a frozen ground raw you can buy in a tub which my guys like.

I have read some sources too that says no raw and kibble at the same time. I think if your pet wasnt sure about raw they would just eat kibble, be full and less likely to try it. I think it also is digested at different rates and can cause upset tummy. When we went raw we removed the kibble completely.

 

[Ollie]

I would start out with one meat (turkey, chicken, beef) and go from there. Those are usually the most affordable. I wouldn't mix it up too much at first as they might have a reaction to something and it will be difficult to pinpoint what it was (eg. one of mine has a poultry allergy)

One of my cats gets "raw" raw and the other freeze dried Stella & Chewy's. He does great on the Stella & Chewy's . It seems to have all the benefits of raw but without taking up the freezer space / preparation time. I would recommend it, if your cat likes it. The reason my guy is on freeze dried is that he seems to much prefer it to the ground up raw I make up for the other guy.

I don't think you should be worried about beef or salmon. These freeze dried foods are made to be nutritionally balanced. If you are making it from scratch its a different story. Sounds like you are doing well with the introduction. Try to get him eating more and more as time goes on. Tuna water I have found can also help tempt them to eat it. It is just a big switch from kibble as the smell is not the same.

I don't know if it is available in Canada but Rad Cat is a frozen ground raw you can buy in a tub which my guys like.

I have read some sources too that says no raw and kibble at the same time. I think if your pet wasnt sure about raw they would just eat kibble, be full and less likely to try it. I think it also is digested at different rates and can cause upset tummy. When we went raw we removed the kibble completely.

When introducing raw does it matter if I sample different brands? Primal seems to mix more than one protein in their blends, and we have been given 4 different flavours to try along with 4 packets of Stella and chews. I tried primal turkey first since it was the protein he was already eating in his canned form, and at least a single protein. There is also pheasant, beef and salmon and chicken and salmon. I'll have to go buy more of the single flavour in order to stick with one flavour for a week. And the sample didn't include rabbit or venison, which I'm eager to try. I heard salmon is a common allergy? Lots of people say poultry too....
I haven't seen Rad Cat, just Primal, nature variety, Bravo ( seems more like a dog food) and one other one I've never heard of....and then freeze dried ones. I guess I just need to take it slow and see how he reacts to each. He does run to his bowl for his kibble only to find it gone :arghh: Good news is 24 hours after trying raw he has no runs

 

[assibassi]

yay to no Runs !!!!!!

 

[zoinks]

When introducing raw does it matter if I sample different brands? Primal seems to mix more than one protein in their blends, and we have been given 4 different flavours to try along with 4 packets of Stella and chews. I tried primal turkey first since it was the protein he was already eating in his canned form, and at least a single protein. There is also pheasant, beef and salmon and chicken and salmon. I'll have to go buy more of the single flavour in order to stick with one flavour for a week. And the sample didn't include rabbit or venison, which I'm eager to try. I heard salmon is a common allergy? Lots of people say poultry too....
I haven't seen Rad Cat, just Primal, nature variety, Bravo ( seems more like a dog food) and one other one I've never heard of....and then freeze dried ones. I guess I just need to take it slow and see how he reacts to each. He does run to his bowl for his kibble only to find it gone :arghh: Good news is 24 hours after trying raw he has no runs

Oh yeah the raw really helps fast with runny poop issues, it's really amazing. I know some members on here who aren't 100% raw and just feed enough to keep the poop firm.

Re: all of the different samples, I'm not sure. With stella & chewy's I rotate the different flavors so they don't get bored but when I started out I went with one and introduced new flavors/brands as time goes on. With my two they are pretty fussy and like to recognize the smell of what they are eating and they like routine.

Once you find something that works you might not need to keep trying other samples and other brands until you have to. Go with what works and then try rotating others in for some variation.

About the allergies, poultry is one that I have seen quite a lot. Not sure about salmon. Some cats seem sensitive to beef. I do know that the most hypoallergenic meats are things like rabbit, venison, kangaroo but I wouldn't move onto those until you need to (ie. your cat has a reaction to the common and cheapest ones like chicken)

For stella & chewy's, Dippy likes the chicken, chicken & salmon and heavenly herring. He didn't like the turkey. He also doesn't seem to like primal much and i found primal quite annoying to rehydrate compared to Stella & Chewys.

Hope this helps

 

[Ollie]

The primal I got frozen so it's super easy! Haven't tried the freeze dried Stella stuff yet. Thanks for all the info!

 

[zoinks]

Aah I thought it was freeze dried primal which is a pain. Haven't tried frozen primal actually!

Keep us updated on how the switchover is going

 

[MollysMom]

Would you ever be interested in making your own?

Just a thought, but if you are trying to pin it down due to allergies and the pre-made stuff has different ingredients in every different brand...

Might be worth a thought to use the Better in The Raw powder mix and do trial and error by mixing in whichever type of meat you want. That way you can try just one type of meat, and know that it is the only variable. It's widely available in Canada, it's made in BC actually. We use it, and have been very impressed.

 

[Ollie]

Hmmm it's a stretch to think about raw but making it myself? Yuck. But I would if I had to! First step is to try this. I guess with better in the raw you just add the supplement to raw meat? Do you need to do a blend of meat and organs? Do you need to grind bones? I'm so hoping this helps, but I will do what is needed to make him not look so irritated and stop soft poop problems. I think this is going to work re: soft poops, skin issues might be trial and error. He is still adjusting to not eating whenever he wants. He runs to the bowl and is shocked to find no kibble. I appreciate all he comments and suggestions! I'm going to google better in the raw so I'm informed.

 

[MollysMom]

Hmmm it's a stretch to think about raw but making it myself? Yuck. But I would if I had to! First step is to try this. I guess with better in the raw you just add the supplement to raw meat? Do you need to do a blend of meat and organs? Do you need to grind bones? I'm so hoping this helps, but I will do what is needed to make him not look so irritated and stop soft poop problems. I think this is going to work re: soft poops, skin issues might be trial and error. He is still adjusting to not eating whenever he wants. He runs to the bowl and is shocked to find no kibble. I appreciate all he comments and suggestions! I'm going to google better in the raw so I'm informed.

Yes, you just need water, muscle meat, and the mix to make their food that way. I had no problems getting mine to eat it, they took to it right away. No organs or bones needed!