Barf For An Older Dog

[Malamum]

Indy is going to be turning 10 this year and has been fed BARF since he was about a year old.

Recently he has started to baulk at things with bones such as his chicken wings. He eventually eats them but takes his sweet time about it and spends a lot of time licking them first.

He's been to the vet to have his teeth checked (they put him under and did a full dental check) and there are no breakages and no specific problems but the vet did say his teeth have worn down a fair bit and he's worn a lot of the enamel off so it may be painful for him to eat bones now and that there is not much we can do about it.

I bought a meat mallet and have been trying to bash the shit out the chicken wings first but that doesn't seem to be making too much difference.

I bough him some of the Billinghurst BARF patties with the thought of switching him to those but he's turning his nose up at them and won't eat them.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do for him going forward?

Also do you think the bones in chicken backs are denser and harder than in the wings or less so?

[Fiasco]

I feed Chase, my 14 week Golden, a raw diet and sometimes finds he is not enthusiastic about pieces that have bones it in either. To keep up his calcium, I get some ground bone mince from the butcher for about $2 per kilo. It's basically just minced chicken meat with a ground up chicken carcus. Some butchers will do it for you while you wait, depending how fine you want it ground I mix some fruit and veg in mine then divide into servings and freeze the portions until I need them. Maybe Indy will like it too but i guess that's kind of similar to the BARF diet. You could try getting some fresh mince meat that he likes amd purchasing ground bone on its own separately and mix them together? Good luck

[SchnauzerMax]

Indy is going to be turning 10 this year and has been fed BARF since he was about a year old.

Recently he has started to baulk at things with bones such as his chicken wings. He eventually eats them but takes his sweet time about it and spends a lot of time licking them first.

He's been to the vet to have his teeth checked (they put him under and did a full dental check) and there are no breakages and no specific problems but the vet did say his teeth have worn down a fair bit and he's worn a lot of the enamel off so it may be painful for him to eat bones now and that there is not much we can do about it.

I bought a meat mallet and have been trying to bash the shit out the chicken wings first but that doesn't seem to be making too much difference.

I bough him some of the Billinghurst BARF patties with the thought of switching him to those but he's turning his nose up at them and won't eat them.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do for him going forward?

Also do you think the bones in chicken backs are denser and harder than in the wings or less so?

There are different brands of BARF with quite different textures. There's one that I think the Guide Dogs use (can't remember the name - Canine Country????) that has different formulas based on age. It apparently has a more attractive texture than Dr B's. It might be a better fit for Indy?

[divinemissmillie]

Indy is going to be turning 10 this year and has been fed BARF since he was about a year old.

Recently he has started to baulk at things with bones such as his chicken wings. He eventually eats them but takes his sweet time about it and spends a lot of time licking them first.

He's been to the vet to have his teeth checked (they put him under and did a full dental check) and there are no breakages and no specific problems but the vet did say his teeth have worn down a fair bit and he's worn a lot of the enamel off so it may be painful for him to eat bones now and that there is not much we can do about it.

I bought a meat mallet and have been trying to bash the shit out the chicken wings first but that doesn't seem to be making too much difference.

I bough him some of the Billinghurst BARF patties with the thought of switching him to those but he's turning his nose up at them and won't eat them.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do for him going forward?

Also do you think the bones in chicken backs are denser and harder than in the wings or less so?

There are different brands of BARF with quite different textures. There's one that I think the Guide Dogs use (can't remember the name - Canine Country????) that has different formulas based on age. It apparently has a more attractive texture than Dr B's. It might be a better fit for Indy?

I used to get Billinghurst's patties, too and found them too finely minced, and therefore pretty sloppy when they were thawed out. I now buy Canine Country patties - they are more coarse in texture and you can actually see the veges in it. My 13-year-old Border Terrier happily eats them.

[FlissPrideaux]

I used to get Billinghurst's patties, too and found them too finely minced, and therefore pretty sloppy when they were thawed out. I now buy Canine Country patties - they are more coarse in texture and you can actually see the veges in it. My 13-year-old Border Terrier happily eats them.

I agree Canine country is excellent.. My butcher also minces carcasses for me, so Alf gets all the benefit and I do give him wing tips and necks and he loves those - just not wings or a hunk of carcass

[cazxxz]

Have you tried other bones?

The 10+ year old malamute I live with loves salmon heads, spines and tails.

[Boronia]

Buy an electric meat mincer and mince up turkey necks, my lot get them mixed with vegie slops (+ ACV, fish oil, ginger, mustard, herbs, orange ,bananas, apples). They are doing well on this. (I also add a tiny amt of Vit E powder)

Try giving Indy a turkey neck instead of the chicken wing, he may get enthusiastic with that instead.

Here is a mincer, good price if no-one else bids on it :-D http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-Heavy-Duty-Electric-Meat-Grinder-Mincer-Reverse-Sausage-adapter-Food-pusher-/200699288397?pt=AU_SmallKitchenAppliances&hash=item2eba9c1b4d

Edited January 12, 2012 by Boronia

[Malamum]

Thanks for the tips everyone.

I'll give the Canine Country patties a try and I'll see if I can get some minced carcasses from the butcher too. Getting a mincer and doing it myself was a last resort (due to to the time factor) but I'll do it for him if I have to.

In the meantime our other dog can eat the Billinhurst patties as she doesn't seem to have a problem with them, but she will eat anything. :laugh:

[megan_]

I'd go for ground bones instead of the patties, just my opinion. I only feed my dogs human grade meat as it is inspected for pests

[Malamum]

I'm not that keen on patties either to tell the truth as I like to know what I'm feeding them.

I gave him a chicken back last night which I'd bashed with the meat mallet and then cut up a bit and he seemed to eat that easy enough. I think I'll just stick to backs and necks and not give him wings going forward. If he starts to look like he is struggling with those then I guess buying a meat mincer is the answer.

[ari.g]

I give my 12yr old boxer chicken frames. He doesn't seem as interested in the wings and I thought they might be too hard for him to eat. I also buy minced chicken frames for him for dinner. If you have a Lenards near you they usually sell it reasonably cheap. I get 10kg for $10.

[Red Fox]

Most butchers will mince up wings (or whatever else you like), bones and all for no extra cost.

Just order what you would normally feed but have it minced up.