Raw and Kibble..

Boston eats kibble and raw. We rotate between grain -free kibble (orijen, solid gold batm, legacy, evo, etc..), which he'll have for dinner. And most days he gets NV raw for breakfast. He loves it. As long as you don't feed the raw and kibble in the same meal* you shouldn't have any issues. Boston, has never had stomach upset from having raw and kibble in the same day, and he absolutely loves the raw.

*kibble and raw digest at different rates. Raw is digested very quickly, while kibble can take quite a long time. If you feed them together, there is a possibility that the raw's digestion rate will slow down allowing more chances for bacteria to accumulate, etc.....so to be on the safe side feed kibble and raw at separate meals.  

 Whatever you do don't ask this question on a raw feeding egroup....Trust me! :)

That said, I feed Neiko raw and kibble with no problems at all. I even add them in the same meal sometimes. 

Jewlieee

 Whatever you do don't ask this question on a raw feeding egroup....Trust me! :)

That is why I ask the guru's of this nutrition board! Lol!!

Right now I usually feed Maze once a day (her choice) and her weight is fine.

But my main concern is she still licks obsessively on some parts of her body. Mostly her paws and tummy. So she's still having a reaction to something in her food. What I have no idea as I've removed the poultry, grain and by-products from her diet so I'm hoping by adding something to her meals, it'll help with her licking and maybe her ears...

ETA: So is feeding raw and kibble in the same meal a personal preference? Or in the end does it depend on what the dog can handle? 

List

Boston eats kibble and raw. We rotate between grain -free kibble (orijen, solid gold batm, legacy, evo, etc..), which he'll have for dinner. And most days he gets NV raw for breakfast. He loves it. As long as you don't feed the raw and kibble in the same meal* you shouldn't have any issues. Boston, has never had stomach upset from having raw and kibble in the same day, and he absolutely loves the raw.

 

*kibble and raw digest at different rates. Raw is digested very quickly, while kibble can take quite a long time. If you feed them together, there is a possibility that the raw's digestion rate will slow down allowing more chances for bacteria to accumulate, etc.....so to be on the safe side feed kibble and raw at separate meals.  

I feed them in the same meal too and nothing bad has ever happened. But I doubt adding raw to your dog's diet will miraculously cure the itching- that sounds like an allergy. Most doggy allergies are environmental, not food. You might be able to help her by going completely raw and adding salmon body oil- the potatoes in the evo might be pushing her body into an inflammatory state.

 Would the complete raw diet also help with her fur falling out on her ears? There's no cause that I can see and the skin isn't inflamed or raw or anything?

I guess I could try going complete raw for a trial and see if it helps.. Are the feeding instructions any different then feeding kibble? 

I am currently feeding mostly raw with a third of a cup of kibble at the beginning of dinner for "working for his meal" purposes (harder to work for bits of a chicken quarter or pork shoulder ) and from what I have been able to find out, mixing the two in a meal is ok... 

 If the hair is falling out on her ears, she needs to see a vet. That sounds fungal. Emma's on all raw, and she still itches. Environmental issues play a HUGE part.

I know she needs to see a vet. But I can't afford it till the end of the month. I was just hoping I could do something to help now.. 

 Is it on the ear tips? Is it flaky as well as losing hair? Is it red, at all? Do you have a picture? Is there any smell?

I'm "ok" at figuring out what's on a dog's skin (because I have the Queen Of Skin Issues sleeping next to me, and several foster dogs had skin issues like sarcoptic mange ew), but Callie is FANTASTIC at it.  There's likely something you can do for her little ears to help them out, until you can get her to a vet.

The bald spots are near her head where her ears flop over. I'll get a picture tomorrow when I have better light. But there's no smell, no irritation or redness and no flaking but the skin is a little dry. It looks like her fur is just falling out.. I thought it might be from scratching when her ear infection flares up but I never catch her scratching at them... 

Email Callie. If you're not seeing her scratch them, it's probably not from scratching. It sounds like there's something going on, there. 

Oh yeah! why didn't I think to ask Callie! Geez I feel smart now..Lol. 

Callie is FULL of knowledge on all sorts of skin issues. The reason I think of her so fast is because she's helped me SO MUCH with Emma's issues. She's the one who nudged me into cooking for her, and the one who kept suggesting homeopathics. She's told me of all sorts of immune supplements, and she even sent Emma a bottle of White Flower Oil when her back hurt. Emma is LOTS better off because of her.