Whats are you guys take on raising rabbits to feed dogs ?
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Whats are you guys take on raising rabbits to feed dogs ?
As a sole source of food, don't do it.Quote:
Originally Posted by montycash
Rabbits are supplemental feeding animals only. They do not have enough body fat to keep a dog alive as a sole source of meat.
You can use them occasionally, but not as the primary (or sole) prey item.
Chicken is your best bet for a cheap way to do that.
Jack
Rabbits eat quite a bit as well. And as Jack says, there's not alot of fat on them.
Not per se, but the fat content does go up in pen fed rabbits, especially meat rabbits. I am not saying it is as fat content as chicken, but it is not like the rabbit just shot in the bushes.
When I was a kid we skinned deer that deer meat was very lean, almost no fat. The hunter has changed over the years, it is popular, it is a sport, where big horns are more important than big hams. To get big horns the deer are fed certain things. I have several friends that spend weeks and months on feed plots, feed hundreds of pounds of corn to get the that set of horns. In turn the deer eat a certain diet, do not have to roam and forage as the food is plentiful right up under that deer stand. Thus, the deer we are killing today have a higher fat content than the deer I skinned as a kid.
Rabbits the same. It is a fattier rabbit in a pen than in the bushes. I know a few people who use them as a 'whole prey' feed method. It is not the compete diet but it is a good source. It can go either way, it can be a staple and supplement with other fats, or it can be the supplement to the other staple. Either way, still better than 99% of the bags out there. EWO
I'm trying to go raw without going broke and 40lbs of chicken is $40 and I got 12-14 dogs ranging from low 30s to high 40s one or two 50lbs
If you are feeding straight from the grocery store RAW can be expensive and is a lot of pre-work, work to feed and post work. I have fed both ways and combinations of the two for years. RAW gets more and more difficult as the number of dogs go up. It can be tough. And it can get expensive.
My first experience was when it was raw instead of RAW. I rented from a guy who was a butcher by trade and also processed deer meat in the winter. I got five gallon buckets of everything every day. There was no rhyme nor reason to my feeding raw, whatever was coming out of the bucket as I passed that particular dog is what he ate. It was not the best diet but it was free, and free ain't bad when feeding dogs. I later moved and it was back to bags.
After that I searched out local butchers, local hunters, and local processors. A lot of the stuff they consider throw away is perfect for the RAW diet, especially the hunters and deer processors. Even if one lived in the city or the suburbs it would be worth the drive to the country once or twice a week/month to load up. Loading up on the cheap is the really important part when the number of dogs go up.
Buying straight from the grocery store can be costly. I buy the stuff about to go bad and I buy scraps from my local butcher. That is pretty much the bulk of what I buy. Starting next week I will start loading up on the deer meat as gun season starts here. Like most things one has to be creative and innovative when feeding RAW, especially when feeding a bunch of dogs. The rices and veggies and such are pretty much the same cost across the board, but with the veggies I hit the local farmers/gardens, they always seem to have collards/greens left over for free to real cheap picking.
If nothing else a reader can figure out I am rather cheap and I apply that to feeding the dogs as well. I do the best I can but I am always looking for an angle to shave some pennies when I can. A little more effort in the pre-work area can make the cost of feeding be reduced some, and sometimes dramatically. EWO
cornish cross chickens, theyre ready 8 weeks after hatching...... build a couple chicken tractors.... and figure out a system that produces enough birds to feed your dogs consistantly throughout the year......... maybe raise a cow or 2, meat all year for your family & your dogs......
im flirting with the idea of buying a couple sheep letting them procreate, raising some cattle along with a bunch of chickens, and than having a 1 day slaughterfest to last the year.... and start over again....
WHERE THE HELL DO YOU LIVE AT, $40 FOR 40LBS OF CHICKEN ($1.00 A LB.) THAT'S CRAZY. THE MOST I'VE EVER PAID FOR A 40LB. BOX OF LEG QUARTERS IS, I BELIEVE 24.99 BUT I MOSTLY GET THEM FOR 19.99 NOWADAYS.Quote:
Originally Posted by montycash
If I were going to feed something that in turn would be fed to the dogs it would be chickens. As close to free range as possible, not that free range and organic factors all that much for me, but a chicken can find something to eat as he roams. Feed bill for the chickens would be reduced vs. having them pen raised. If I had enough space and land with grass I would feed sheep, as they eat the least and grow the fastest in comparison to cows/goats/pigs, etc..
For me, the time investment involved is where I would fall short. After working a ton of hours during the week, it is tough enough to fit everything else is as well, and adding feeding or raising something else would be a stretch. Time is the reason I search out the butchers and deer processors in out area. For me it works out better that way. I seldom buy cases of chicken anymore and when I do buy by the case it is usually chicken backs. They are cheap, and fatty, with some bones material as well. They are not the ideal 'meat meal' but they are cost effective and are an easy feed in the dark, as I do not prepare a perfectly balanced meal every day. Some nights when it is late and dark I just cruise thru the dogs and toss out a few backs or quarters as I walk thru.
I have been back and forth with RAW over the years and the time involved (based on the number of dogs) has always been the constraint. Even when I used bags it was only a few days a week. The dogs I have now have seldom seen bag food and a couple look at me like, "You gott'a be kdding me, right?". But they get the hint. Everyone's situation is different and there are always adjustments along the way. It is finding that happy median that makes it work for each individual. EWO
i live in the islands and you would think cause i live in the islands i would have more access to butchers and chicken farms and so forth i really don't its pretty sad but ill see with this other store and chicken back i might go for the 40lbs for $40 i have a 6yr old stud dog and i got my 8 yr old female that i really want to get at least 4 more breeding's out of her so ill bite the bullet and put them on the raw diet. Everything else ill have to work with the dog food witch im just really tired of using
Quote:
Originally Posted by montycash
Islands you say fish should be in abundance, That's what I would try as my primary source, while rotating chicken and other proteins....Just a thought..
Sam...
That's a great deal, that's pretty much $.50 a pound. Can't beat that, what's your location so I can rack up. Lol.Quote:
Originally Posted by bigpopdog
yeah no shit i need to know where he shops.....
The leg quarters here in NC go on sale lots of times for $0.59 to $0.79/lb, and that is in the grocery store per pack so I can imagine buying by the case may save a few pennies. Walmart sells a 10lb. bag of quarters for $6.90 (daily) and has lots of sales for $5.90 which works out to $0.59/lb. It is the stock up time if you are feeding RAW.
Once a person goes RAW I think the very next purchase should be a large deep freezer to take advantage of sales as they pop up. $0.29/lb is meaningless if there is no where to put it. For me feeding RAW forces me to be a opportunistic shopper. I check the Wednesday sales ads in the paper and hit any store that works for me on my hour commute home.
I get a scrap box from the local butcher and a month or so go there was about 1/4 rib eye loin in the bottom. I cut it up for the dogs. They had rib eyes that night and I ate a bologna sandwich. At times RAW is not all that it is cracked up to be. LOL. EWO
And not to bogart the thread but I just got an update in my email chicken quarters are $0.59 a pound at Food Lion this weekend (ten pound bags). Go to the BARF website. Scroll to your area where there are local suppliers but they are high. But what is there are local co-ops who buy together in bulk to save money and that is a viable option. The next thing is there are email alerts to let all know about pending sales, bulk discounts and lots of times people who clean out their freezers.
One must be opportunistic to make the RAW feeding work. It can be cheaper than high end bag food but I try to make it as cheap as possible to offset the time it takes to shop, store, prepare and clean up afterwards. A self justification if you will. EWO