Raw Feeding Update

One of the questions I get asked the most on twitter is "What do you feed them?!" The simple answer is raw!
I first wrote about putting Lily onto raw in February 2015, which is linked here, and since that post 4 out of 5 of our pack is now raw fed, this post will mostly be explaining what raw and supplements I feed the dachshunds, Lily & Sev.

Why Did I Choose Raw?

I moved Lil's onto raw almost 2 years ago after trying a ridiculous amount of brands, both kibble and wet due to her issues with her coat and skin. When we took Lily on she was very skinny and her coat dull and lack lustre, often is was getting quite patchy and flaky in places, this resulted in numerous vet visits, creams and special shampoo but to no avail, so after much research I decided to move her onto raw!
Within weeks her coat improved and was no longer dry, she was at a healthy weight and didn't poo anywhere near as much!

Since then we've moved Isla onto raw and Sev and Ava came to us already being fed a mixture of raw and kibble, we've even bought a second dog food specific chest freezer!

What Do I Feed?

The dachshunds have a mixture, they are fed twice a day each of them gets about 20g of Barking Heads Fat Dog Slim kibble (which they don't really need due to their main meal being the raw in the  evening. but they like it and it is low fat and natural so no complaints form me! 

For their main evening meal they currently have Nutriment - one 500g tub will last my two and Isla the GSP for two days. But I do occasionally buy Natural Instinct as a treat, the dogs will happily eat either :).
Twice a week I like to give mine a either a Nature's Menu chicken wing, duck wing or half of a duck neck. I give these as they are brilliant for teeth cleaning and both of mine can be trusted to chew them sensibly (I wouldn't advise giving these if your dog bolts their dinner down and doesn't chew. My two are always closely supervised whilst eating wings/necks!).
I also give mine scrambled eggs and dehydrated sprats as part of their meal as an occasional treat which they both love!

(apologies for photo quality, these are iPhone snaps that i've taken over the passed month)

Supplements?

I'm also a very big fan of supplements; my two take various depending on what their needs are at the time, but currently Isla, Lily and Sev are taking Dorwest's Omega Star oil, Sev and Isla have been on this since it's first trial in May and their coats have never looked better, Sev's coat stays soft and shiny and i've found it rarely tangles since he's been taking it. Would highly recommend this and it's definitely the best oil i've tried.
Lily is currently having a scoop of Lintbells "Yumega Boost" powder in her pm feed which is and old favourite of mine, i've written and in depth post about this which is linked here. Lily gets thinning watched in her coat during the winter so she's back on this to encourage coat growth.
And lastly they have a scoop of Seahorse Atlantic "Kelp Care" this is another coat/skin product, Lily takes it as it helps with pigmentation (Lily loves to sunbathe which can lighten the coat in chocolates!) Sev has it because it has numerous health benefits such as joint care, immune care and as mentioned previously coat care!

If you're unsure about raw the main brands that sell it, Nutriment/Natures Menu/Natural Instinct have nutritional advisors that have been very helpful to us in the past! I've also found a group on Facebook "Raw Fed Dachshunds UK" which is a very friendly and informative group!

Hope this has helped answer some questions, if theres anything else anyone would like me to answer, please feel to tweet me! :)
Thank you for reading,
Jaime, Lily & Sev xo