raw foods: Well done -- excellent choice. Sorry but to the people trying to put her off, thousands of us feed raw diet for our dogs including bone and we have fit healthy dogs and would NEVER swap back to kibble. I do not push raw onto people if they don't want to know, but I think it is wrong to come on here and try and put people off of raw when they have not asked for advice on kibble. How do you know what nutrients your dog is getting with kibble -- you don't. Try reading through some of this stuff and also join the yahoo raw feeding group. Read as much as you can and then start with one protein source preferably chicken as that is light. Go from there. Possibly join other forums to ask questions. http://www.rawfed.com/ (RawFed) http://www.rawlearning.com/ (Jane Anderson's Raw Learning Site) http://rawfeddogs.net/ (Raw Fed Dogs) http://www.rawmeatybones.com/ (Raw Meaty Bones) http://canine-carnivore.com/feeding-your鈥?/a> (Feeding Your Dog a S.A.R.F./Raw Prey Model Diet) http://rawfed.com/myths/preymodel.html (Raw Prey Model Diet Vs. BARF Diet) http://community.livejournal.com/rawdogs鈥?/a> (Raw Dogs Livejournal Community, excellent raw feeding information on the profile page and overall helpful community for raw feeding questions.) http://www.rawfed.com/myths/index.html (Myths About Raw Feeding) Great choice and good luck. By the way - do we as people count every bit of food we eat for the nutrients we are getting. No. We just give a good balanced diet. Same for your dog, and at least we know what they are getting. No offence to anyone feeding kibble, it just annoys me when people start coming out with silly things about raw when they obviously know nothing about it. The one thing I would say is that it really should be kibble OR raw and not both. Sorry Bernese. The ph balance in the stomach has to be different to digest both and it puts a strain on organs to have both. Incidentally, the environment needed to digest raw meat is the natual canine one. It is altered to digest kibble, and kibble DOES NOT clean teeth. Ripping meat from bone does.|||Gguys, please do not answer questions where you obviously know very little about the subject. Many people on this section feed raw because dogs do not have stomachs like humans - they SURVIVE on raw meat in the wild and a prey diet is actually the best thing you can give a dog. GSDs, like any other breed do very well on a raw diet. I would recommend looking up the BARF diet, start with this website: http://www.barfworld.com/ There's a lot of information on raw feeding there. I would recommend doing it slowly, to let your dogs stomach get used to a new food - as you would if you were swapping brands, a gradual introduction will prevent diarrhea or The Pukes :P Your best option is to ask local butchers or farmers if you could buy in bulk to save you money, else buy organic meat from a market. I would honestly reccommend a raw diet (even though I have always fed home cooked - I don't like touching raw meat, but I'm going to eventually suck it up and switch to raw!) as everyone that switches to raw notices a dramatic improvement in their dogs health, and it's always great to know exactly what your dog is eating. All the best, good luck with your GSD - they're such lovely dogs! Edit: Lorraine that's fine, I just knew some people that do that. Will remove that from my answer so it doesn't confuse any future readers! Very interesting to know that the ph balance causes problems though, thanks|||Great choice. Lorraine has already given you plenty of great links, nothing more I can add to her answer. Raw feeding is how dogs should eat, it's not new, it's not a fad, it is what nature intended and what many people are now realising and going back to basics with. #|||Okay I have a 7 month old rottie and he's about 21 inches and weights about 80 pounds probably a few more pounds now but around 80 I've been feeding him raw (the prey model of raw though) ever since he was 5 months ols I bought him the most expensive food ever from orijen to solid gold to blue buffalo to acana besically if it was really good for him I bought it with all the grade A foods I was told his poop would be rock solid but from when he was 3 months to 5 months he had diarhea it was better and worse but it was never hard so I researched the diet thoroughly and its really not that complicated u feed them 3-4% of their adult weight as puppys and once full grown its only2% you have to balance it out so its aroud 15% bone 5% organs 75% meat 5%fruits and veggies once you calculate how much you need its simple I spend about $40 on probably 1 1/2 months of food (I'm feeding chicken currently) and you have to freeze and thaw as he uses usually I freeze all but 1 chicken cut that one and when I have only 1 days worth I thaw another and so on. But usually you can find a lot of really good deals you just have to look at supermarkets and little shops for food oh and also you can just switch as you please when you feed chicken only give chicken and then stop all together and give him wats next its simple just research it well and good luck :) Btw his poop now is SOLID lol Oh yea and during the holiday season turkey is such a great idea its huge and usually really cheap Just give it a go|||Hi! Perhaps no subject causes more controversy among dog owners than the merits or risks of feeding a raw food diet. On either side of the fence, you'll find supporters who believe strongly that theirs is the best way to properly nourish our pets. But is raw food the right food? It depends on whom you ask. The popularity of raw food diets--especially those that are prepared and sold online or in stores--has been rising in recent years. Owners say that raw food keeps their dogs healthier and happier, more energetic and promotes longer life. Click the link below for more information. Hope this helps. Thank you!|||Why? Dog food is most appropriate for any dog, as long as it's good quality. Feeding your dog raw food may cause all kind of different issues especially if it's different all the time.|||No, a good brand of dog food, and NO Bones, raw food may contain things that you don't want to feed your dog such as worms, prions and bacterium... Unless you are going to feed him people quality raw meat, don't do it. Do you know exactly what nutrients your dog needs and in what quantity? And are you going to make certain that he gets the hard crunchy things he needs to prevent dental problems without giving him bones? a good brand of dog food please.|||i dont recommend that for any dog since raw foods have all kinds of illnesses in them. There system isn't used to eat raw food like when they were wild dog. I have a german shepperd and I will never think of giving it raw food!! I really think it's a bad idea, no matter what breed of dog it is