Raw Food Diet for my German Shepherd

My daughter was an intern at a wolf preserve. She knows quite a bit about canines, and has let her huskies chomp on turkey bones when they have visited. She said that bird bones usually are discouraged, but doesn't quite know why, since dogs will eat them in the wild. And I did keep a Great Dane which would inhale whole chicken quarters with no ill effects.

She also mentioned that dogs adapted to be able to digest carbs, unlike wolves, which are pure carnivores. Bread, potato chips, etc., not raw things are fine. Essentially, most human kitchen scraps.

Pantypants has his on a raw diet. Dunno if he still reads the forum. I'll e-mail him if you want

@Zmokin poultry bones are fine if consumed raw. Some remove them but, it's cooked poultry that poses more risk in that aspect. Same goes for beef and pork. Be aware of the potential risk with large dense bones causing tooth fractures. Antlers are an excellent way for the primal canine to clean their teeth as well as providing them good minerals and vitamins naturally. 

Better yet if you can get an in with a farmer/rancher or processing plant. You want the freshest available. If you want more info I can put you in contact with some real good peeps for advise. Butcher would be okay but, likely more costly. 

I had an Aussie once that i found gnawing on a turtle in my backyard.  Her mouth was bloody.  Upon close inspection, the turtle was fine, tucked up tight in it's shell.  The blood was from cuts in my dog's gums from the sharp edges of the turtle shell.  Well, my backyard is fenced and I didn't know where the turtle came from.  The shell looked wild ( signs of older damage scars on the shell) but, never the less, I went door to door to all of my neighbors with fence next to mine and to their next doors as well, no one was missing a pet turtle.  I'm guessing some kid found it in the wild, caught it, and dropped it over my fence knowing I had dogs.  I think it was likely the kids right behind my house, but I didn't make any accusations.  I just took the turtle and drove to the nearest wilderness pond near my home.  Let the turtle go at the edge of the water.  He sat there for awhile.  But then when i moved, he quickly swam out and down under cover of the plant life growing along the shoreline.  sure looked like he knew where home was and he was there again.

A good friend of mine I grew up with and served in the USN and now is an Army Veterinarian has strong opinions on this and one of the only things we disagree on. It is primal for a canine to eat this way. But, the most important thing is the source (disease free, antibiotic free & Non GMO). What did you end up deciding?  For the record we use Blue and it's been absolutely wonderful. We could see immediate results in her coat and gait and keeps her physique athletic. 

Blue Buffalo wilderness is our go to dog food as a back up too.

Also depending on the size of your dog you can go for a pre-made like JJ funds, bravo, Steves real food, etc. when we go on vacation and either board the dogs or have someone watch we use a pre-made since it's as easy as a kibble diet. 

If you plan on buying in bulk 40lb blocks, you need to figure out how you're going to thaw, separate and portion out for the week. I picked up some big plastic bins to thaw out the frozen parts for 24 hours and then separated into weeks worth of portions so it was easy to thaw and prepare. 

i will say that rhe first month or two will be a bit overwhelming as you figure out your process, but it will soon become second nature. Soon you will be looking at lists of random parts wondering what it is and order it to just try it  

i will never forget the day that I got 60lbs of beef hearts. Lol. My wife hasn't looked at me the same since the day she walked in on my cutting up giant beef hearts. Hahaha.