Question:
http://www.urbancarnivore.com/index.cfm
i thought this looked quite interesting


Answer:
Looks like another convenient way to feed your dog a raw diet without having to chop up bones and organs yourself


Answer:
Cool. Nature's Variety does something similar too. You can buy freeze dried, frozen or kibble.


Answer:
There seems to be a trend towards raw diets and there are lots of these brands marketing pre-chopped, pre-mixed diets in a container that you just have to defrost and feed. I guess there's really no excuse for choosing kibble over a raw diet except for the mess of raw meat all over the floor and also the cost involved with the prepared stuff. If you mixed the diet yourself, I hear it's quite cheap


Answer:
Really? I was trying to price out the food for my cats and it was going to cost about $5 a day. The other thing I was worried about is how to keep the feeding area clean. I watched a 20/20 episode once about salmonella. This woman was very careful about keeping her prep area clean and when they put the UV light in the kitchen she had contaminated almost everything!! I also have a cat who likes to run away and hide with his food...I think it's part of his wild side. Maybe we need a thread on raw diets. I know that Alison feeds raw to her dogs and really likes the diet.


Answer:
There are a few Yahoo groups dealing with raw food diets and most of them have members who sell animal parts in bulk for quite cheap because raw diets consist mainly of raw meaty bones, not the expensive cuts of meat that humans eat. Turkey and chicken necks are popular, as are chicken backs and wings. Also organ meat is cheap, especially if you buy in bulk from a butcher or Asian supermarket.
Also, when feeding raw food, the quantity of food is less than when feeding kibble. According to this raw feeding calculator, Keesha (approx. 14lbs) should need 0.35lbs or 5.6 ounces of food a day. There's some debate about the ratio of meat to veggies, the raw feeding group in Toronto feels that the ratio should be 80:20 while Dr. Ian Billinghurst recommends 60:40. There's really no cut and dry method of feeding raw.
Candice, are you worried about contaminating the kitchen or having the cats eat food that contains salmonella? I cook raw meat almost everyday and I use the same cutting board for meat and veggies (it's wooden, doesn't harbour bacteria like plastic does), I just make sure the board is clean throughly dry before using it again. With making a raw diet for your pets, you only need to prepare the ingredients once a week and freeze the mix into portions to be defrosted and fed later on.
I don't think bacteria from hiding food is too big of an issue, unless you had a baby in the house that crawls on the floor or someone in your household plans to eat off the floor I'm a bit squeamish about finding half eaten, raw bones around the house too, lol! The first time I gave the girls a raw turkey neck, they wanted to take it back to their bed and chew on it so I made them eat it out on the balcony.


Answer:
Cj, I am worried about contaminating their feeding area. I'm going to start a raw diet thread so I can get some suggestions/info.