Cost Effective/w benefits when switching to raw

[Duetsche_Doggen]

I've been feeding Thor Earthborn Holistic for about a month now at first he LOVED and doing great on it. Small "odorless" stools, shiney coat, etc. However now for the past two weeks he seems to have lost interest. I put the food out and he doesn't eat it. Which is fine if he doesn't eat it right away although it would really help with my cleaning schedule......Anyway last night I noticed he was drinking more water than usual little concerned I put him in his crate to take a break. So then I give up around 2 am to check on him and there's vomit everywhere. As of right now I am restricting the food, however I'm debating about going back to raw again. The reasons I stopped the first time was that he started losing interest as well as some weight, then of course with the move.

So with that in mind right now I am debating about feeding raw again, I think I still have the link Ruth gave me I have to check again. If not Ruth do you main posting it again? As of right now I spend about $150 a month in food just for Thor in kibble. I feel as though I have a little bit more understanding than I did before on feeding raw so I'm willing to give it a try again. Just curious how much everyone else fairs out with the raw feeding budget? What does your dogs diet mostly consist of?

 

[angelbears]

Most everyone that I know says that raw is cheaper compared to high end kibble. Not sure what the prices are like where your at but I feed for about a dollar a pound. We feed chicken, pork, beef, turkey, duck, fish, tripe. This weekend I found, reduced turkey breast and wings for .59, I was able to score about 35lbs.

You don't pay taxes on raw meat, you do on kibble for us that is 8.00 per 100.00

 

[Duetsche_Doggen]

Do you buy from the butcher or just go to the grocery store? A dollar a pound is quite good. I pay $50 for a 28 lb bag of food.

 

[Oak Hill Farm]

A lot of times at the grocery or wholesale stores you can find whole chickens for around 50 cents a pound. and I always stock up on birds after holidays!

 

[angelbears]

Here is a link where someone just broke down the cost between raw and orijen.

http://dogfoodchat.com/forum/raw-feeding/16121-cost-feeding-pmr-vs-orijen.html

Living in Houston I have a lot of options. About 1/3 comes from a meat wholesaler, 1/3 from ethnic markets and the other 1/3 from the grocery store. I found butchers to be higher than the others.

 

[Duetsche_Doggen]

Bird was easy for me to find since its everywhere, but the issue I had as with other stuff like the ground hamburger, I feed pork ribs a few times, eggs, he didn't like fish......Fed organs a few times and I mean very few....because it was so hard to find.

Angelbears the raw food she found was cheap! Very good!

 

[angelbears]

Can you find beef, pork, lamb heart? If you can find that it will cut your cost drastically and it is great for your dog. I get pork picnics and ribs, chicken, turkeys and fish at local grocery stores for less than 1.00 a pound. Watch the ads. At least every other week there is a meat that I can get for under 1.00 a pound.

 

[Duetsche_Doggen]

Beef is the most expensive here usually $2 and some change, have not seen lamb heart/nor pork. OK I need to move where you are LOL!!! That is so cheap its unbelivable. Unless I can find someone that sells raw food in bulk I'm really no better off than paying for kibble.

 

[ruthcatrin]

DD remind me later and when I get home and I'll post links.

But if I ordered ONLY from her, the pre-ground meat/bone/organ beef mixture, my cost including shipping is just under $3 a pound. Comparing her prices on things like whole turkey wings to what I can get locally, even after adding in shipping cost her prices are ofter the same or better than what I can get locally at non-sale prices. On the other hand I live in NY state and everything costs more here. Local sale prices are often closer to what Angel listed, and for somethings the grocers/butchers will order case packs of things at reduced prices for you if you ask. You'll need a freezer.....cause the only way to make it work is to buy in bulk. Try to rotate the protein source every couple days or week or so, that might help keep him interested.

 

[Duetsche_Doggen]

Thanks Ruth,

I still have my deep freezer of almost 10 years hoping it doesn't decide to konk out on me when I want to feed raw again. The lack of variety I did is pitiful but I can't find anything else. Hamburger at a store is 3.99lb, and where I'm at I don't have any specialty meats.

 

[ruthcatrin]

Yah, in comparison to ground burger her meat mixture is way cheaper, especially since I don't have to also source organs to balance it. Try googling 'hare today gone tomorrow in PA' and you might find her site that way, otherwise I'll post it later. I'll also repost the yahoo group link to the raw feeders supplies group, bet there's someone closer to you.

I can get chicken necks for less than a $1 a lb if I order a case from the butcher.

Other stuff varies, my goal this summer is to hit the local farmers markets and see if I can find local goat and poultry and rabbit. That way I don't have to plan quite so far ahead....

 

[Chuma]

I feel lucky now... I am friends with a lady who owns a catering business and she gave me her extra card to a restaurant supply store. I buy chicken quarters for .58cents/lb and next time I go I plan on buying pork picnics for .79cents/lb. The quality of their meats is much better than the grocery store also, the chicken only contains 2% retained water where as the grocery stores chicken quarters contain 15% water/sodium solution(also costs more).
I will also pick up clearance meat at the grocery store if I find it for a decent price but it doesn't make up much of the diet. I'll get fish here and there but I give my dog salmon oil which in the long run is only costing cents a day since I bought a big container of it for $40.

My hens produce more eggs than I can eat or sell so they are a big part of the diet as well otherwise the fridge would only contain eggs. The cost of the hens was about $13 a month for feed but that is going down because my catering friend is giving me all their veggie scraps.

For me feeding raw is much cheaper than buying premium kibble.

 

[Aplatitsin]

Can't wait to to get my pup on raw

 

[Duetsche_Doggen]

Thanks Ruth I found the link. I also found a butcher shop the prices she was offering were not bad for the price, but my issue is still organs and meats. Right now the only think they have in stock is RMB.

PS left work to meet someone about that stupid tree stump that still there, but thats another story. HOwever Thor is feeling better today I haven't given him the kibble and gave him a ham bone I'd been saving in the freezer. He loved it. I also found some chicken quarters, pork, and ground deer, along with some freezer burnt for flavor. I'm going to start him small tonight and work my way up. The lady says she won't get anything until Monday however I have enough to hold me over.

 

[ruthcatrin]

Glad you found it, for any one else: https://www.hare-today.com/

Also: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/CarnivoreFeed-Supplier/ this is a yahoo group where raw suppliers and co-ops "advertise" and list their stock etc. Basically you go up and say "I'm in such and so area and looking for XYZ" and anyone who covers that area responds, plus they periodically update or list new locations and the like.

Even if you source base meats locally and just order organs from a supplier its not to bad, your shipping shouldn't be to much more than mine is.

 

[mightymastiffs]

Glad you found it, for any one else: https://www.hare-today.com/

Great link! Thanks..

I tried finding similar a while ago but ended up sticking with my local farmers market for the organ meat and also whole chickens complete w/ organs.

The prices on her site are alright, not all that great but the selection is outstanding!

 

[mightymastiffs]

Can't wait to to get my pup on raw

What are you waiting for? I know he is thinking of a nice drumstick right now... Haha

 

[ruthcatrin]

Great link! Thanks.........

The prices on her site are alright, not all that great but the selection is outstanding!

Welcome! Alot of the price difference depends on what you have locally. Here for example prices tend to be higher than elsewhere, which makes her prices much closer. Plus she offers EVERYTHING, ok not literally, but she's got a huge selection of meats and organs. I mostly use her to fill in the gaps, make sure I stay stocked on organs, and I keep a few packages of her beef meat/organ/bone mixture on hand for easy meals. Base meats I can mostly get locally, but even then, some things she's very compareable on. Shipping can add alot to the cost if you're not all that close, but if you're within a couple state radius.....well, shipping works out to about $0.60 a pound for me if I order the biggest boxfull.

---------- Post added at 10:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:48 PM ----------

Oh, and don't forget Craigslist, I got several whole birds, and several roasts for free last month because they were freezer burnt. Its about time to relist my 'free unwanted meat' add again.....

 

[ruthcatrin]

Oh, and don't forget Craigslist, I got several whole birds, and several roasts for free last month because they were freezer burnt. Its about time to relist my 'free unwanted meat' add again.....

 

[Duetsche_Doggen]

OH yeah forgot about craigslist....I made Thor's switch last night after cleaning out the chest freezer. He's so messy with it though ugh! However I am glad he's doing better today.

Also found a tube of ground deer, but of course Thor didn't eat it. He's so picky I can't stand it. I would love to get food from the hunters but can't because of his picky butt.