BARF DIET

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I found the charming illustration above in an old children's book from 1935 and it seemed so appropriate for a BARF page! I'm sure that's what many dogs would ask for if they could: more bones and more meat (raw, of course!).

I started feeding the BARF ("Bones and Raw Food" or "Biologically Appropriate Raw Food") diet, based on Dr. Ian Billinghurst's Give Your Dog A Bone, in November 1997. All my dogs have been on the diet for at least two years and are doing wonderfully well. I will never go back to feeding commercial, processed dog food.

The photo below shows my two year old Whippet, Niles. Niles (Chartwell's Blue Nile CR, LCM) was raised entirely on a raw food diet and you can see the results in his shiny coat and well-developed musculature. Niles is my first BARF-reared puppy and I am really pleased with his health, physical development and performance in the field.
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Photo by Shot On Site

The most important point that needs to be made if you are interested in the BARF or other raw food diet is that you have to do your research before you start your dogs on it. I spent about 2 years researching and talking to people about the raw food diet before I felt comfortable making the change. It is not simply a case of throwing your dog some raw chicken or turkey. The raw diet requires a real commitment of time to learn about the proper way to feed your dogs and a total change in your way of thinking about your dogs' diet. Christie Keith, who has been feeding her Deerhounds a raw diet far longer than anyone else I know, has written an excellent article on the dangers of raw feeding without doing your homework first, entitled Natural Diet: DON'T "Just Do It". If you have done your research and decide to try a raw diet, you will see the rewards in the overall health and vigor of your dogs. One of the comments I hear all the time is that feeding a raw diet must be very expensive and very time consuming. Nothing could be further from the truth. I purchase organic meat in bulk from a poultry wholesaler at extremely reasonable prices (around 25-35 cents per pound for chicken backs and necks and 40-50 cents per pound for turkey necks). Feeding my dogs their evening veggie meal (4 days a week) takes no more than 30 minutes from start to finish- from chopping and processing the vegetables and offal, adding supplements and feeding the dogs to cleaning their bowls and the food processor. And this is for six dogs, four of them Scottish Deerhounds! Once you have been feeding the raw diet for a while, it is little more difficult than pouring kibble into a bowl. It's not true that you need a degree in nutrition to feed your dogs yourself. You can do it and there is a tremendous sense of satisfaction and achievement in seeing your dogs thrive on a diet you choose and make for them, knowing the quality of the ingredients. With the help of the following books (all of which I highly recommend you purchase and read), you will have the basic information you need to begin feeding raw. These titles can be purchased from Dogwise.

These books should give you a good, basic foundation from which to start. Dr. Billinghurst's books can also be purchased at a discount from the Ridgeback Corner Flea Market and your purchase will benefit Ridgeback rescue. Click on the link below to go to the Flea Market:

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Here are some excellent websites to visit as well. I would recommend starting with the BARF FAQ by Jane Johnson, owner of the BARF discussion list. It answers better than I can the most common questions about feeding a raw diet to your dogs.

There are many BARF and raw food discussion lists on the Internet now. They are a wonderful resource for answering questions and getting moral support when you start feeding raw, but are not a substitute for reading the above mentioned books. Listed below are a few of the most popular lists. You can subscribe to any of these through the Onelist website.

*What do my own dogs eat on a typical day? In the morning, they get their raw meaty bones (RMBs). For the Deerhounds, this is chicken backs or turkey necks. The amount may differ for each dog, depending on their age, weight, whether or not they are actively competing in coursing trials or race meets, or the time of year. The neat thing about the BARF diet is that it is individually tailored to each dog's specific needs. The Whippets eat chicken necks, or occasionally chicken wings. They all get occasional Cornish game hens or beef oxtails. In the evening, usually four days a week, they eat a veggie mix of ground raw vegetables (almost any vegetables may be in the mix, saving onions and potatoes; I try to give them a wide variety). Added to the ground veggies will be one of the following: offal (beef heart mainly, but sometimes chicken liver) or canned sardines. Sometimes I add yogurt or kefir, occasionally cottage cheese, although I try to limit the amount of dairy they eat. Twice a week they get organic brown eggs in their food. Every couple of weeks I substitute a fruit meal for the veggie meal, which they enjoy tremendously.  Some evenings I feed them a second RMB meal. They are fasted two evenings a week. I add various supplements to their veggie meals, not necessarily all of them every meal. These would include kelp, alfalfa, ground flax seed, apple cider vinegar, cod liver oil and vitamins C, E, and B complex, along with digestive enzymes. Other supplements might be added on an as-needed basis for each individual dog. Wherever and whenever possible, I buy certified organic foods. They are never fed grains.

*This description is not meant to substitute for doing the necessary reading and research which is an absolutely essential first step.

Happy BARFing!

Ellen Bonacarti
chartwll@idt.net

Rory Niles

This BARF - Bones and Raw Food - for Dogs & Cats site owned by Ellen Bonacarti.

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