Raw for puppy - concerns

I agree with JoanneF, vets aren't knowledgeable with raw feeding and even those who know it can be balanced may worry that the owners won't 'do it right', which is understandable.

I've no experience of rearing puppies onto raw, but my advice would be to gradually introduce small amounts of liver and other offal, a larger variety of proteins (e.g. lamb, rabbit, fish), and some 'whole bones' such as chicken wings or carcasses (the latter are excellent for tooth cleaning). Raw eggs, including the shell, can be a good addition (chicken eggs don't agree with my lad's digestion so he gets raw quail eggs), and the odd tin of oily fish such as sardines.

Some people like to add fruit and veg, others don't - if you do, it should ideally be either lightly steamed or thoroughly pureed. You can also get powdered supplements like SmartBarf. Strictly speaking they should't be needed, but can give peace of mind, like multivitamins for humans.

Ratios to aim for are 80% muscle meat, 10% bone, 5% liver and 5% other offal. Dogs vary though - the general rule is if their poos are too soft, reduce offal and increase bone, and if they are too firm, vice versa. Build up the offal, particularly liver, gradually or you may live to regret it! Some dogs can have an occasional liver meal, others have to have their liver spread across the week to prevent runny bums.

You can also get 'complete' raw blends, the drawbacks being that they don't contain whole bone and that the composition might not agree with your dog. But they might work great for yours!

 

It's usually recommended that you don't combine raw and kibble. The logic is that kibble interferes with the digestion of raw food - more details here: https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/can-you-mix-raw-dog-food-with-kibble/ Note that they say that you can combine them if you add a probiotic or apple cider vinegar.

Having said that, plenty of people do combine them, either in separate meals or in the same meal, without any problems at all. Remember that even human dietary advice seems to change year to year and even month to month, so raw feeding isn't yet anywhere near being an exact diet.

Why would you want to combine them? I think it's unlikely that combining them would be more balanced overall than a good varied raw diet.

I do use kibble as rewards - along with all sorts of odds and ends like pizza crusts and Stilton rind. Though the latter are best avoided for a young pup!