Chicken back and beef scraps

Switching back to Raw (actually it's cooked)

Getting a good source for chicken and beef scraps is becoming so hard. I used to have a steady supply before but now I haven't been able to get as much as I usually do. Infact the butchers where I usually get chicken Necks and chicken back from, I had to hound them for 2 days before I was able to get some. And it still isn't enough to last 2 weeks. They said by next week they will be having steady supply, I really hope so. I was able to get only 5kg of Chicken backs and 5kg of beef scraps. After i divided it I only had enough for 9 days.

Shadow had his check up today and was weighed...38kg yay!!!! He has put on 7kg I'm really happy. 4kg to go and he will be back to his old self. Since he's on beef scraps and chicken I'm hoping he will add the 4kg in 2 weeks. Let's see how it goes

barcaboi:
royal canine made me win my 1st gift ever too

Were you at the dog walk too? Congrats on your new litter.

GodsFavour1:
Wow...

I've always been a canine lover due to their loyalty and high sense of knowing when things are outta line,coz they always tend to look into your eye for an "approval"..
But reading SHADOW's dairy is a new feeling entirely to the canine world..your keen details and bond is UNIQUE...

#nowiMissmyFirstCanine.
#ShadowthaDestroyer. *thumbsUp*

Thanks

pelummy50:
Sorry where do u stay cos I need shadow for my female German Shepherd on heat

Sorry for replying late. I'm sure you have already found a mate for your dog. I really don't know if I'm ready for the hassle of mating shadow. Because of all my cats I can't allow any female dog stay over at my house.

Aside from commercial dog food not containing much protein, what really frustrates me is most times you find that the pet stores have run out of stock of a particular brand. A month ago I bought josera puppy, when it was almost done I went back to buy and they don't have and obviously don't know when they would get new stock. I have decided to go back to my chicken and beef scraps. The butchers where I get them from only had very little so i also went to shoprite and got some from there. I would say I spend about 6000-8000 on chicken Necks, chicken backs and beef scraps and that lasts me for a month. Way cheaper than any good dog food brand

This is so sad. I hate seeing things like this. I have some dry food my dogs refused to eat. You can come get it if you want. It's not much but it should last for probably a week or two. The tail looks horrible and I'm very sure whoever you take it to would suggest to cut the whole thing off. If you find a vet who can treat the tail let me know and I'll help towards the bill.

Prodeegee:
nice one, infact i read on a couple of articles that dogs dont even need carbs atall.

Yes according to what I read their stomach acids are able to digest raw meat and bones. Their wolf cousins are carnivores afterall

castroevans:
Yea, very soon my schedule won't be tight and that would give me an ample time to get a pet. I'm also thinking of having an African grey parrot. Lol. quote author=blasiangurl85 post=43298784]

Thank you. Your dog's are so cute. Shame you had to give them out. But I understand. It's better they are in a good home where they can be cared for properly.Sheep is my first samoyed/Eskimo spitz type dog and yes they are so much fun to have. Everyone who sees her just falls in love with her.

You know I actually got a parrot for my son but ended up releasing it. I just felt so guilty keeping it caged.

miremoses:
ya!I've seen it..u really doin a great work ..having a dog esp a large breed z same with tranin a child...cont..

You are right having a dog is similar to having a child. You are responsible for them and it's a big commitment

wunmi590:


Wanted shadow to mate my zara who is on heat presently, but the distance is far, and am currently not at home, am in Akwa-ibom, so zara is with my fiancee enjoying herself.

Though we have gotten a stud for her very close to my fiancee place in Ibadan, which she would be going there tomorrow, to spend 5days.

My greetings to shadow the destroyer

Shadow says Hello I wonder how they would have been together since you said she's a bit aggressive. Shadow hasn't really shown any aggression towards other dogs but he can be a bully. Good luck with Zara. Keep us updated

miremoses:
mummy shadow?update us with what shadow is up to now

Just did a new post with pics

The evolution of The Destroyer

Desert (chicken)after food. Look how he sits patiently that's the one thing he's VERY good at, sitting patiently waiting for food

Shawa fish mixed with dry food was a success. Clean plates

The Protein Diet

Everyone has what works for them. I know some people will say a diet of protein and carbs is what's best for dogs. That's what my vet told me as well. But I did my own independent research and concluded that a high protein diet is better.(this is just my opinion) From what I know about high protein diet it can be used in 2 ways. To loose weight (example is atkins diet) but it is also effective in building muscle mass(any professional body builder will tell you the secret to building muscle is a high protein diet). A diet high in carbohydrates will definitely make anyone or animal add weight and fast. But the weight gain is mostly body fat not actual muscle. That is why i choose to feed shadow a high protein diet because like i said earlier I'm interested in building muscle mass not body fat. Carbs are full of calories but they are empty calories which means they do not provide any nutrition. I did notice shadow gain more weight when he was on his protein diet. But he didn't look fat or even plump. Infact I remember telling the vet when he came for his bi-weekly visit after i started the all chicken diet that I'm sure shadow has lost weight because I thought he was looking a bit slim only to realise he gained 4kg in 2 weeks. I had to tell them to double check. And ended reducing his portions because I didn't want his weight gain to be too much. I use a raw food calculator that is based on the dogs weight. Its calculated at 2% of the dogs weight to maintain his weight or 3-4% of the dogs weight if you want the dog to gain weight. I was using the 2-3% ratio and still noticed significant weight gain in shadow. At his heaviest weight I was feeding shadow 1kg of Chicken a day. I broke it down into 2 feedings of 500grams morning and evening. Im very strict with his feeding and feed him 6am and 6pm. When I was feeding him 3 times it was 6am, 12noon and 6pm. The chicken was a mix of Chicken Necks and chicken back, beef scraps whenever its available. I was boiling the chicken because he refused to eat it raw. I know a lot of people are obsessed with getting their dogs fat but I'm the opposite. I want a dog thats fit and healthy. I have always monitored and compared shadows weight with the growth chart. I know it is only a guideline but i use it to make sure we are on track. Right now I'm still on josera dog food because I still can't get chicken. I got very little from shoprite this week but it's not enough for him to be fed only chicken so I'm just giving it to him as a snack after meal time. I also tried mixing the shawa fish with the dry food and he ate it all up Can't wait to go back to chicken.

N.B aside from chicken, shadows other best food is amala. I have caught my son's nanny giving him amala several times and boy does he slurp the stuff. I constantly tell her not to disrupt his feeding schedule but once in a while i see her sneaking to give him his favourite amala in between meals. Oh well no harm in him enjoying our local delicacy

castroevans:
Nice write up I must say. I love dogs a lot, once owned two samoeyed and a rott. The experience I had with the rot wasn't too cool as it was lazy and sluggish. It's only active when it comes to food and after that it hibernates, ended up giving it out. Also gave out my samo when my job became hectic (2years ago). Out of the dogs, I really really miss Ella (samo), she was just soooooo sensitive, intelligent and smart and the only person she disliked was my girlfriend. Anyway that's the past.
Used to like German Shepherd but don't know why I had a change of mind maybe cus we once had it wen I was still a teenager. Looking forward to having a Dobberman as I heard they are also very intelligent and yes also gonna have a samo.

Madam, I going to follow this thread cus it is quite insightful

Thank you. Your dog's are so cute. Shame you had to give them out. But I understand. It's better they are in a good home where they can be cared for properly.Sheep is my first samoyed/Eskimo spitz type dog and yes they are so much fun to have. Everyone who sees her just falls in love with her.

Prodeegee:

i stand to be corrected but i think excess protein is stored in the body as fats, inshort, any form of calories in excess is stored as fat in the body.

The key to raw feeding is what blasiangurl uses, the weight factor. she uses a particular qty/kg as regards to the dogs body weight.

I'm doing a post on his protein diet to explain why I believe it's better than carbs

Endy10:
When I initially saw this post, I wanted to skip but got pushed by something to read, and I have to say I'm happy I did. The writing is so well constructed and each detail about shadow easy to comprehend. I've definitely learnt something from this dairy and I hope to learn more because I'll keep on reading. I plan on being a proud dog owner like you someday, and I pray I get a dog as beautiful asas shadow. More power to your elbow

Thank you. I'm really glad to see there are people who are benefiting from this post. I had wanted to do it for a while but never got round to it.

ambient:
blasiangurl85 i so admire your gsd ooooo so cute.i have always insit that i must get my dog from this bobbysaxy anytime am ready because he always have good dogs regardless of any controversy associated with him.

Thanks, yes I will agree with you he has good dogs

blackboy:
Bobbysax is lucky to have you as one of his customers and to noted that Shadow was bought from him. The best PR any company/kennel can have.
Your story about show is one of the best if not the best , thanks to everyone's contribution and your excellent writing/communication skills. I have learnt n still learning

Thank you I'm still learning as well. It's really been a wonderful experience with Shadow the Destroyer

Seun:

Counter-intuitively, a high protein diet is actually not good for weight gain. Many owners of fat dogs have said that their dogs lost weight after they switched to a raw diet. When I tried to fatten my dog with a raw diet, it didn't work. Once he ate a certain amount, he would start rejecting food. Which is embarrassing (and very funny, really) when the food in question is a juicy piece of Orobo chicken lap. Raw food is not fattening.

The secret to weight gain is the same for cows, chickens, human beings, and dogs: starchy food. It's so easy to digest and full of calories. Our family dogs are the fattest and yet most hyper-active dogs I have ever seen. Their staple food is rice and shawa fish, cooked and mixed up. I've also read that feeding a lot of puppy food to an adult dog can lead to weight gain, because puppy food is very rich, so you're on the right track.

Yes you are right, raw food isn't fattening at all. It just builds muscle mass which is what I want. Carbs like you said are full of calories but they are just empty calories. And for Mr Destroyer who is already so hyper giving him carbs would just make him super hyper. I might try this shawa fish and see if he likes it. Maybe I can mix it with the dry food.

Not quite there yet but definitely looking much better.

The Road to recovery

It's been really hard getting Shadow back to his normal weight. Loosing almost 10kg in 2 weeks was very drastic and scary. As he started getting better and I noticed his appetite was coming back, I didn't want to over load him with food. I started gradually giving him little food and then increasing the amount everyday. Unfortunately the butchers where I get chicken for shadow are having problems with their cold room so i have been unable to continue with his high protein diet. I opted to buy josera puppy food ( since technically at one year he's still considered a puppy). I mix it with can food and he seems to like this combo so far. It'll have to do for now. I have noticed he has definitely put on weight. I'm actually anxious to know how much but I'll have to wait till the month end because thats when he gets weighed by the vet. Feeding him chicken, aside from being better for dogs was/is actually cheaper than buying commercial dog food. I spend almost half of what i am spending right now when I buy chicken for him. Its more work though, in terms of preparing and storing it but definitely worth it. Ever since the he fractured his leg and tick fever i stopped walking shadow. I think I'll resume next week. I'm sure it's going to be "fun" walking him again after a while.

bonetalk:
I will follow this thread to the end. I'm learning a lot

Thanks

Saw this picture on instagram and it really made me laugh because it's so true. I'm sure there are others who feel the same way

miremoses:
truth be told madam...ur dog(shadow)really looks like an imported gsd...he looks superb a d I know ur doing a great work in taking care of this gentle giants..kudos

Thanks he ain't no gentle giant though

EddyNumerouno:
You've got 6 cats and 3 dogs and your house isn't a warzone

I had a female Doberman (foxy) and a male rott (rogers) that managed to kill everything except my hedgehog. Every kill was a hit back to back, from the turkeys, neighbour's cats, goats and my monkey (bonzo)...story for another day.

The funny part is they made it impossible to stay mad at them for long. They weren't savages, very obedient but their prey drive was off the charts. How do you get your dogs and cats to cohabit without any incident?
CC blasiangurl85 prodeegee

Haha nope, no warzone here. All my cats have been raised with dogs so they are able to cohabit without any problem. It's important to introduce them together at a very young age and even encourage them to feed together so it helps the bonding process.

Mckandre:
thank God m not alone. It seems its a common threat among GSDs.

Hahaha I think so. It's really annoying

This dog is looooong!!!!! Is it normal for German Shepherd's to be this long?

Back to being friends again

Shadow nearly attacked my nephew

A week ago my nephew came to stay with me for a while. He has always been around shadow from the very first day i got shadow. To my surprise as soon as I let my nephew through the gate shadow just jumped on him barking and I don't know if he would have bitten him because I immediately pulled him down and told my nephew to go inside. Shadow was still growling and barking but I managed to hold him down until my nephew was safe inside.
First of all I know I don't really have the power to hold him down. A dog is 3 times stronger than a human of the same weight. All I know is the adrenaline pumping through my blood just made me hold on to him without letting go. Infact I wasn't holding him I just wrapped myself around him. After the ordeal was over I was physically shaking because I didn't really know if he would have attacked i.e bitten my nephew or if he was bluffing. The next thing shadow did was to sit right at my front and offer me his paw to shake as if to say "hey wassup? Didn't I do good? give me a high five!". I just ignored him and walked away.
The next day shadow saw my nephew and did absolutely nothing. Its like whatever happened the night before was a fluke. Was it because it was dark and Shadow didn't recognise him? But I thought dogs recognise more with scent. Or was he just testing himself to see how my nephew would react? They are back to being friends. Its a big relief for me because I was even scared to let my nephew close to shadow but he wasn't scared. He was actually curious to know why shadow behaved that way.
This experience did show me something, even though shadow was barking and fighting to get free from me when I held him down, he never once tried to bite me. He only struggled and kept howling/growling. At least I know my dog won't turn on me. Very important when one has such a big dog. Shadow can clearly knock me down if he wants to. But he didn't, at least I may not be alpha yet but maybe there's hope