The carnage

On the raw feeding front, things are going pretty well. Both dogs converted over, cold turkey, very well. I read stories on the various groups about the conversion process and what to expect. While dogs get acclimatized to eating bones, they will hack up undigested pieces. Also, runny stools can be common. We have been just fine on the poop front here - I am amazed though at the little amount of poop there is. I used to joke that my boys ate 4 cups of food a day and pooped out 7 cups. Now the amount of waste compared to the volume they are eating is amazing. They are really utilizing the majority of the food they are eating. Water drinking has also declined. I used to fill their dish every day when it got low. Now I just dump out what is in there and fill it with fresh water every night.

Mal took to the raw meat like a champ. No sniffing, no lollygagging, he just laid down and laid into his meat and bones right from day one like he had been waiting his whole life for these meals. He did hack up a very small amount, about a tablespoon, of small, bony bits, the first two nights. There has been nothing since then.

Cosmo loves the meat and bones but was a bit more tentative than Mally. Cosmo is a kind of clueless kind of dog. He was very interested but puzzled by the meals. He works hard but he is a much slower eater than Mally. The first time he stood holding a chicken quarter by the skin for about 3 minutes, just bemused, trying to figure out what to do. Mal will down two chicken quarters in the time that Cosmo finishes half of his first one. He only hacked up the tablespoon of bony bits once and had loose poop once.

Both boys are very well behaved. I take blankets out and spread them out for them to eat on. They know just who's spot is who's and they stay right on them eating.

I will say that this is all disgusting and grosses me out immensely. I am considering buying beef hearts, pork feet, tails and necks and whole rabbits to add variety to their diets.