I feed my boys a raw diet based on the Prey Model feeding design (See links in the left hand column for information on a raw diet for dogs). In the search to expand the variety that I can feed them, it is possible for a raw diet to get expensive. As I am a grad student (ie. working on a limited budget), I strive to keep things as inexpensive as I can. It's pretty manageable, really. I average around $2/lb, and with the price of meat in this area, that is a lot higher than many other places in the world. Gio, my 40lb boy, eats about 1lb per day. Romeo, the light-weight at 15lb, eats about 1/4lb per day. So roughly $2.50 per day, give or take.
Part of my strategy to keep prices low is to take advantage of stores that offer discounts on meats that are approaching their "Best By" dates. There is an Extra Foods in my neighborhood that sticks wonderful little 50% off stickers on meat that is a day before their marked date. You've got to fight off all the other people, but by going to the store at just the right time on the right day, you can get away with a pretty good haul!
Today I was able to make off with 4 packs of turkey wings and 1 pack of boneless turkey thighs, all for half price. I also picked up two big packs of pork side ribs that were on sale. Yum Yum!
The boys LOVE shopping days ...
"Oooh! Ma got pressies for us!"Look at all those wonderful pink stickers!
And the boys are always sure to "help" me package everything up for storing.
"Ma is a pretty good hunter. But we stick close by, just in case something tries to make a run for it!"The finished product, ready for the freezer.
Unfortunately for the puppers, nothing tried to run away while I was bagging things up this time. Their guarding efforts were in vain. They may look sad now, but they will be eager to try, try again next shopping day!
"Quick, look sad. Maybe she will let us lick off the counter."
Unfortunately for the puppers, nothing tried to run away while I was bagging things up this time. Their guarding efforts were in vain. They may look sad now, but they will be eager to try, try again next shopping day!
"Quick, look sad. Maybe she will let us lick off the counter."
6 comments:
Your Ma sure is a mighty hunter. She got all kinds of good stuff. Hope you join dogs with blogs.
Essex & Deacon
We do a very similar thing - buy cheaper cuts in bulk and freeze in batches. The only thing is to remember to take tomorrow's food out of the freezer before bedtime - and to put it very high, out of reach! I enjoyed the links to the raw feeding sites, thanks. Gus n Jake
My Mom feeds raw also! I like your blog and thanks for your nice comment about my vest!
Woof!
CHAMP
Wow, those are some good buys. My mom has tried to get me to eat raw marrow bones many times....but I just don't like them raw, so what she does is just microwave them for 1 minute, that way they smell good and they still have have all that yummy marrow inside them which I spend hours trying to get out.
Mom says she knows what it's like to work on a budget...she finished her PhD (what ever that is) four years ago and still remembers the struggles she had from back then. She says you deserve a super shopper award!
Oh, sorry about deleting a message, some thing weird happened!!!
Hey Reilly,
Careful with those marrow bones. They are often called "wreck bones" as they do a really good job at wrecking dog teeth. Tell your mom never to give you a bone that comes from a weight baring bone of a large animal, like the marrow bones from cows. They are way too hard for our teeth and can cause lots of damage. Also, never microwave a bone. Heating it changes the chemical composition of the bone, altering the digestibility and making it VERY dangerous for us to digest. Heated, cooked, smoked, etc. bones can wreak havoc on our intestines.
Woah, great score!!! We found whole, fresh jack mac at the market the other day on "clean your own" special... BONUS!
;o)
M & I
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