Does this sound okay to feed?

I know I have made a million post in here...

I have two mini dachshunds and they have recently started eating the NV Raw --- they act like they are starving so I'm going to give this a try and see if it will help keep them full through out the day.

Right now they only eat once a day at about 5pm (I have tried several times a day to get them to eat morning/night and they wouldn't) but since I've switched them to the raw they love dinner time.

I'm going to give my male (who weighs 17lbs) 2.5 medallions in the morning with 2.5 medallions in the evening along with some yogurt or fruit/veggie.

I'm going to give my female (who weighs 12lbs -- but needs to lose about 3lbs) 1.5 medallions in the morning with 1.5 medallions in the evening along with some yogurt or fruit/veggie.

As a special treat they get pig noses, etc and when they get those I cut back on their food if it was a fairly large item they ate. Is this okay to do?

Also, I'm considering giving them kibble two times a week to help with keeping their teeth clean. My male will chew the snot out of anything I give him hard but my female is afraid she might hurt her jaw. She is very prissy and doesn't like to do anything that requires effort.

If you have any suggestions or ideas I would love to hear them.

Thanks!

-Ashley

It sounds fine and lots of people will also say that their dogs are savages on raw.

You dont need to feed kibble to keep their teeth clean- I'd give them RMB's or brush their teeth for that.

They get their teeth cleaned as needed by the vet and brushed at home as well --- but it isn't something they like. With the NV already having the ground up RMB's I wasn't sure about giving them more. How often should I give the RMB's and how much?

Uhm, maybe someone else can chime in with that. My dogs rarely get them as they are food hounds. If they get regular cleanings by the vet and you crush their teeth, i wouldn't worry too much about how clean their teeth are. It sounds like you're on it.

It seems like their teeth get dirty quick so I'm trying to do things to prevent that because I don't like the idea of them having to get their teeth cleaned all the time by the vet.

Ok, but kibble won't really help that. How often do you brush their teeth?

buddy'sparents is right. the misconception that dry kibble keeps a dog's teeth clean is a myth.

I give Wrigley my own raw mix and he gets arorund 3/4 cup in the morning and 3/4 cup at night (he is 16lbs) he still acts like he is always starving! I would say I give him around 2 RMB's per week at random--I brush his teath each time he gets a bath (so appox every 2-3 weeks)--I have had people comment on how nice his teeth are so so far so good

When they are bathed --- twice a month.

I'm going to try the RMB and see if that helps --- I don't know why I didn't think of this before since I feed raw. Doh!

You may find that a full raw diet even with ground bones keeps their teeth cleaner. Part of why knawing on a raw bone cleans a dogs teeth are enzymes, and those enzymes are their no matter if the bone is ground or whole

They are on a full raw diet --- they are on NV raw medallions.

What I would do... ( not necisarily what you SHOULD do)
I would buy some chicken leg quarters with backs attached ( clearly has the meat and bone needed for a daily feeding for your gang) and I would substitue every few days. The backs are wonderful scrubbers for teeth. By just giving extra, for example, Chicken or turkey necks, along with the medallions you will most likely end up with "powder or cement poop" Since the medallions have more than everything your dogs need in a day in them just adding more bone would not be the greatest idea.
However, just eating the chicken leg/back one day wont hurt them by them missing out on the stuff that the medallions have ( just be sure to add some offal to that little "treat")
Hope that wasnt too confusing... Sorry I babbled.

My dogs will not eat offal --- I will just use chicken backs every now and then (maybe 2 times a week) and see how that works.

Will this cause stool problems?

TTT

In the meantime I have been searching for chicken backs/necks and can't find any at all. I did find some turkey necks tonight --- how often can they have the turkey necks? Should the base of what I feed be chicken necks or can they have wings as well?

Also, I've noticed over the past few days that their stool is very hard and small and it seems like they are having a hard time passing it sometimes. What is the cause of this and what can I do to fix it.

Thanks so much!

Too much bone, up the meat a bit or lower the bone a bit.

yup too much bone.
Can you grind up offal and make it a paste that they wouldnt notice they are eating?? Its quite important to the balance of the diet.
I wouldnt add wings to the turkey necks, perhaps breast but no more bone thats for sure.

You can also freeze the organ meat. I think it's the texture that some dogs don't like. Kai has no problem eating his liversicles.

Chicken backs are way too boney. I wouldn't use backs or necks as a base. You need something with more meat. I would just get a whole chicken and hack that up.

If you are worried about too much bone- give them recreational bones- ones that are harder that they can't really eat. Marrow bones, knuckle bones, etc. The action of chewing on them will keep their teeth clean. Dry kibble isn't going to do it. I think you'll find that most dogs with bad teeth are fed dry kibble.

Depends on the dog, but those big weight bearing marrow bones can chip and break teeth. So be cautious.

Yes, you have to monitor them. Only Gunnar in my house can get them to the point where he's cracking pieces off- at that point I take them away.