Hi Green Spotters! Raw feeding doesn't have to be expensive or difficult. It's not all-or-nothing either. How great is that?! Read on for our tips and options on feeding raw on a budget.
All Raw
Frozen raw food will almost always be more economical than freeze-dried raw. When feeding a completely raw diet, many households, especially those with medium and large size dogs, opt for bulk sizes of frozen raw food. Companies make bulk sizes of 8lbs to 20lbs to make their food more budget friendly. Another thing to consider when feeding raw food is how much your dog or cat will eat. This is difficult to know at first. For example, my own dog eats 7-8oz of raw food a day, to maintain a nice weight... but the brand he eats recommends 17oz of food a day for his weight! That's a large difference both in amount consumed and the cost of his daily food! Because raw food is very digestible (especially compared to a kibble diet) many dogs and cats will need to eat less raw than their previous kibble amount (kibble is less digestible). One of our team members can help you select a brand within your budget. Sometimes feeding all raw food is out of a person's budget, and we totally understand that. Here's the cool part: it doesn't have to be all-or-nothing when it comes to feeding raw, to still get benefits from the food...
Raw + Another Food
For tight budgets, multiple dog households, big dogs, dogs that have issues keeping weight on, and very very active dogs, one of the following options may be a good fit!
Raw + Dehydrated Mix
Especially for dogs who have issues keeping weight on (sight hounds, some older pets, very very active dogs), adding raw to a dehydrated food mix can be a good solution. Firstly, if your dog or cat is loosing weight quickly, please contact your veterinarian to clear your pet medically. Back to food now... Dehydrated mixes come in complete meals and "base mixes" that contain only veggies, only grains, or a mix of veg and grains. Adding either of these types of dehydrated mixes to your pet's raw diet can help keep your extra-lean pet at a healthier weight.
Raw + Kibble
Adding raw to kibble gives some of the benefits of a full raw with (typically) some cost savings. This can be a good solution for tight budgets, large dogs, and multi-pet households. Adding raw to kibble gives some of the benefits of a fully raw diet while balancing your budget. Remember that raw food and kibble digest at different rates - raw food digests much more quickly in the body than kibble does! It's ok to feed raw and kibble in the same meal, but if your dog or cat seems sensitive to this, consider feeding one meal raw and one meal of kibble per day.
You Might Be Surprised!
If you're interested in feeding raw, it's worth looking at prices per ounce within a few brands. If you're already feeding premium kibble, you may be surprised that raw can cost the same or less as the kibble you currently feed. Here are a few brand calculators for your use to help estimate how much raw food your pet may eat a day. Keep in mind that the amount your pet needs daily can vary from the calculator estimation depending on your pet's energy level, stage in life, metabolism, and more (as seen in our example above!) Below are just a few of the brands we carry. Visit with a team member at our store for more information on each brand we carry. We can also help you find food that fits your pet and budget.
Steve's Real Food Calculator
Northwest Naturals Calculator
Small Batch Amounts to Feed
Primal Pet Foods Calculator
Thanks for joining us, Green Spotters! Look for our next RAWgust blog entry soon!
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The Green Spot is a woman-owned, family-owned pet supply shop in Aksarben, Omaha Nebraska. Your Spot for nutrition education, self-service dog washes, dog and cat nail trims, pet food deals, inclusive community events, and more! Thanks for supporting our local shop; it keeps our local economy healthy and provides jobs to local Omaha residents like yourself! See you at our Spot, you and your pack are always welcome.
- Jessica & Whitney
Owners, The Green Spot Omaha
72nd & Pacific, just across from the old Bed Bath and Beyond in the Shoppes at Aksarben Village