Help! Ran out of kibble - what should I replace it with?

[Maggie Mul]

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Morning Everyone,

In Saudi, we have very limited choice of dry puppy food. I order Canagan grain free online and Maggie tolerates it when it is mixed with some chicken or some wet food. We have run out and my next order will not arrive until Monday. In the meantime, the only substitute I can find is Pedigree Vital for adult dogs, chicken and vegetable. Maggie won't touch it, even if it is mixed with peanut butter, yogurt, or chicken!! She is on 2 meals a day and she still has another 5 days until her usual canagan arrives. If she will not eat this Pedigree stuff, what should I give her for her meals? Any advice? Many thanks!!

 

[JoanneF]

Raw? Chicken wings, mince, fish? You should freeze anything from the salmon/trout family for 48 hours in case of parasites, it is also a good idea to freeze beef as cattle can have a disease of the uterus which can cross contaminate other parts of the carcass in the butchering process.

 

[Maggie Mul]

Raw? Chicken wings, mince, fish? You should freeze anything from the salmon/trout family for 48 hours in case of parasites, it is also a good idea to freeze beef as cattle can have a disease of the uterus which can cross contaminate other parts of the carcass in the butchering process.

Should I mix it rice or something? I was thinking more of what to replace the kibble part with, to bulk up the meal, so to speak. I left her with a frozen kong this morning which will hopefully fill her up a bit!!

 

[JoanneF]

No need for rice. Ideally a raw diet is 80% muscle meat with the remainder being bone and organ meat but you don't need to be exact every day and if it is only for a short period you don't have to worry. @excuseme is a raw guru and @JudyN also has a lot of experience so may have more advice - especially if she likes it, you may find this turns out to be a longer term plan than you thought!

 

[JudyN]

Yep, as Joanne says, there's no need to add any carbs at all. Remember that raw meat will contain a lot more water than kibble, which will give a feeling of 'bulk' - when I had Jasper on top-grade kibble (which didn't contain any rice or other filler) the amount I had to feed was so little the poor lad ate it in the blink of an eye and thought he was being starved! And gnawing on a bone will make the meal last longer which also helps with feeling fuller.

You can add veg though - ideally this should be either lightly cooked or really, really well pureed to make it easier for the dog to digest (if I give J pieces of raw carrot they come out the other end so unchanged I could rinse them off and feed them again). The raw feeding fraternity can't agree on whether veg is needed or not but it's not going to do any harm and may add a few nutrients.

If you want to go down this line, I'm happy to give more detail - just ask. I think @excuseme has recommended a book on raw feeding to - I would hunt it down but need to walk Jasper and haven't even brushed my teeth yet!

 

[excuseme]

What type of dog do you have, is she large or small?
Maggie will be fine on chicken and wet alone, our dogs tummies do not need to be "bulked out". I'm sure she will come to no great harm if she is on short rations for a few days,
As you have mentioned "grain free", will Maggie eat raw carrots or fresh cooked sweet potatoes, veg of any kind, raw or lightly steamed. (with no added salt).
Are you able to get any raw bones so that she can spend time gnawing on something without getting too fat!

 

[Maggie Mul]

Yep, as Joanne says, there's no need to add any carbs at all. Remember that raw meat will contain a lot more water than kibble, which will give a feeling of 'bulk' - when I had Jasper on top-grade kibble (which didn't contain any rice or other filler) the amount I had to feed was so little the poor lad ate it in the blink of an eye and thought he was being starved! And gnawing on a bone will make the meal last longer which also helps with feeling fuller.

You can add veg though - ideally this should be either lightly cooked or really, really well pureed to make it easier for the dog to digest (if I give J pieces of raw carrot they come out the other end so unchanged I could rinse them off and feed them again). The raw feeding fraternity can't agree on whether veg is needed or not but it's not going to do any harm and may add a few nutrients.

If you want to go down this line, I'm happy to give more detail - just ask. I think @excuseme has recommended a book on raw feeding to - I would hunt it down but need to walk Jasper and haven't even brushed my teeth yet!

Thank you both @JudyN and @JoanneF

 

[excuseme]

@JudyN
I was writing my reply when yours came up. (I am so slow on the computer)

I have just read Judy's post.
The little book is;"Honeys Natural Feeding Handbook for Dogs". It's easy to read and understand and can be purchased from Amazon for as little as 1p. You can also register online with the "Honeys" website and order the book for no charge at all, it is FREE, Honeys do not send any further emails trying to sell you their products.

 

[Maggie Mul]

What type of dog do you have, is she large or small?
Maggie will be fine on chicken and wet alone, our dogs tummies do not need to be "bulked out". I'm sure she will come to no great harm if she is on short rations for a few days,
As you have mentioned "grain free", will Maggie eat raw carrots or fresh cooked sweet potatoes, veg of any kind, raw or lightly steamed. (with no added salt).
Are you able to get any raw bones so that she can spend time gnawing on something without getting too fat!

Maggie is havanese/shihzu mix. I will try and add some cooked veggies as you suggested. I don't know very much about different types of diets for dogs, so have never tried this before. Sorry for my ignorance but what kind of raw bones can she have?

 

[excuseme]

Maggie can have absolutely any type of raw bones,this includes chicken, just try to avoid the weight bearing bones (leg bones) of bigger animals, they are reported to chip /break dogs teeth. NEVER feed cooked bones!

 

[millymojo1]

Maggie is havanese/shihzu mix. I will try and add some cooked veggies as you suggested. I don't know very much about different types of diets for dogs, so have never tried this before. Sorry for my ignorance but what kind of raw bones can she have?

It’s also advisable not to give chicken and turkey wings whole because of the shape - they can get wedged at the back of the throat.

 

[Blissfullyunaware]

If she will not eat this Pedigree stuff, what should I give her for her meals?[/Q
Nothing, she's obviously not hungry lol

 

[excuseme]

I have never heard of a dog choking on a chicken or turkey wing because of its shape before!
Our dogs can choke on anything, kibble too!!
I have never heard that advice before, we learn something new every day, anything is possible.

 

[millymojo1]

I have never heard of a dog choking on a chicken or turkey wing because of its shape before!
Our dogs can choke on anything, kibble too!!
I have never heard that advice before, we learn something new every day, anything is possible.

I’ve read about it on a few raw suppliers websites. Apparently it’s the shape and the fact they’re hinged and some dogs will just try to gulp them down whole without biting into them first. So now I break or cut them in half. Don’t think my dog would gulp, but don’t want to take the risk.