It’s now time to talk about transitioning your companion to raw food. You must look at your companion as an individual. Each is different thus some may easily transition to raw while others take months to fully transition. It is most ideal to start your companion out on raw as young as possible. Many breeders for example nowadays are weaning their kittens, puppies and baby ferrets to raw. 

 

There are two methods you can use:

Method #1: Cold Turkey

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Although yes you can feed cold turkey, this method involves stopping all commercial food including kibble and canned food and replacing with an almost balanced raw meal. In this method feed 80% muscle meat, 5% liver (note this is half the normal organ recommendation) and 10% bone for two weeks. This can help avoid stomach upset due to the richness of the organ meats. If there is no upset after 2 weeks you can feed the full organ recommendation.

 

If you are transitioning an adult dog, cat or ferret especially one that has been fed a kibble diet most of its life and refuses to transition using the cold turkey  method, using a high quality canned food is your best transitioning tool. It is recommended you transition over a 7-10 day period. If your companion eats a kibble based diet, now would be the time to transition to a canned food. Canned food is getting closer to raw feeding as it contains more meat, less carbohydrates, is full of moisture and easier to digest. Over this time period you will want to use 25% of the new food to 75% old food the first day, continue this for a bit, then move into 50% new and 50% old food. In a few days, transition to 75% new food, 25% old food. Than finally on the 7th to10th day your companion should be consuming 100% raw.

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*Note: DO NOT transition to raw by mixing with kibble. Kibble and raw food digest at varying rates and can cause digestive upset. Furthermore commercial food which is loaded with carbohydrates reduces the stomach acid preventing the animal from effectively neutralizing and destroying bacteria.

 

Sounds easy right? Unfortunately, cats and more so ferrets for example can be very resistant to change as well as older companions. While come companions will immediately relish raw food, some take much longer.

 

*Note: DO NOT practice tough love with your cat or ferret. Cats and ferrets are prone to developing fatty liver disease which can ultimately lead to death if they do not eat for more than 24 hours.

 

There are many factors that may affect transitioning your companion to raw. It heavily can come down to personal preference of your companion.

 

Texture

Some companions are finicky when it comes to texture. If your companion has previously been on a kibble diet it may be strange to eat a food that isn’t dry, hard and crunchy. If your companion was previously on wet or canned food, eating food that isn’t one conglomerate texture, was a mixture of chucky and soft or one mixture with a gravy may be strange.

 

Flavor

Some companions may have difficulty transitioning to raw due to flavor. Wet and commercially produced dry foods often have added flavors or are sprayed with animal fats to make it appealing to our companions. Raw food is like a salad compared to kibble or wet food which is more like fast food. Often starting with a protein source that your companion likes may be a first step for companions that are picky with taste. Some companions will eat liver but prefers it to be chicken versus say venison. Every animal is different so one protein may be savored by your cat, while the dog absolutely hates it.

 

Size

Depending on what your companion is used to the chunks may be foreign to them. You may have to experiment with different sized chunks of meat, organs and bones.

 

Mixtures

Some companions simply do not like certain combinations of ingredients. Some may even not like a combination say of raw eggs mixed with sardines, but will happily eat them separate on their own. It may take some trial and error to figure out what your companion does and doesn’t like.

 

Temperature

Temperature especially in cats can make transitioning a challenge. Cats often like warm moist foods. Some companions will eat their food after it’s been served right out of the freezer, some will prefer it right from the fridge, others need it served at room temperature (which is closest to their naturally served diets) One thing never to do is microwave the food. Microwaving and for that matter cooking can easily denature and destroy essential nutrients raw foods provide.

Furthermore it can create hot spots which can burn your companions mouth.

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Location

Some animals feel too much in the open. Raw meat is a novel item for your companion especially for those fed a commercial diet previously so they may feel competition if you have other companions. Serving meals to your companion in a separate room or in a carrier/crate can help ease your companion’s anxiety.

 

Serving Bowl/Surface

Deep bowls can bother cats because their whiskers are being compromised. Providing a bowl that is shallow and large, even serving on a plate is ideal for cats.

 

Some companions don’t even like using a bowl. Some will want to eat right on the floor often times on the carpet as it will provide more grip than a laminate kitchen floor that may cause their food to slip and slide around. Try serving food on an old towel or a textured rubber mat.

 

Other Animals

Based on observations of animal behavior, other companions in your household can influence eating behaviors. In some cases, other companions can be distracting to your companion and inhibit meal consumption. In other cases, other companions can appear to be competition and induce your companions to quickly consume their meal or hoard their food. Remember especially in the beginning you are providing a new novel food especially compared to a kibble diet.

 

At times you may just have to be creative with serving your companions food in the beginning as they get used to a raw species appropriate diet.