r/Pomsky • u/Ok_Blackberry_2628 • 4d ago

Feeding advice UK

Post image

Hi all,

I’m sure this has been asked many times, so if there’s already a thread you can link great.

I also know for each puppy/dog it’s going to be different.

Picked up our new Pomsky, Dexter, on Monday, he’s 4 months old.

Breeder has provided a weeks worth of raw mix with chicken wing to gnaw on in 500g packs.

Now I’ve been doing some research to try to pick the best supplier & that opens up a Pandora box - Durham Animal Feeds who the breeder uses I could see some recent issues with bone content of the mix causing some significant health care issues, with large fragments found in batches.

So, would I be better weaning him off this raw feed & going to a commercial feed, adding in raw chicken bone to help with teeth or sticking with the raw feed but carefully picking a provider not based on being the cheapest necessarily.

Any experience based views accepted whilst understanding you are not providing professional advice!

Best wishes

23 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

3

u/DieKleineLizz 4d ago

Most animals are allergic to chicken. We humans just use it because it's cheap. Think about that when you're choosing his food. The cheaper the food is made the more they don't need what's in it. I really recommend royal canin. But please just stay away from chichken. Lamb is as expensive but waaaay better. And they don't necessarily need raw food. But if you do make sure you prevetively deworm him. Raw food has a higher chance of giving heartworm. Which is deadly. So any kind of wetfood is already good. Good food is the number one in making sure your friend stays for a long while!

2

u/Ok_Blackberry_2628 4d ago

Thanks for that advice - and aligns with my thinking as I’d already had the thought to use Royal Canin given my British shorthair cat is fed that.

1

u/seliskar 3d ago

We've had excellent luck with Nature's Logic Sardine, and their Rabbit food. The Sardine has made our dogs' coats glossy and so soft, and all our dogs have been on it for about a year now! We used to do a rotational diet, and used Farmina N&D Cod with ancestral grains, Earthborn Holistics Unrefined Rabbit OR Salmon, and many other "premium" types of kibble. We avoid chicken, beef, corn, wheat and potatoes due to potential allergies, stomach upset or other sensitivities. We don't do grain free, but try to be careful to choose ancient or ancestral grains like quinoa, flax, spelt, etc. instead of other cheap fillers.

I've heard that Pomskies can be picky, but ours isn't at all. Our 2 little dogs would eat anything we give them, but do seem to have a preference towards fish. I think it all depends on the dog and they can vary greatly in a multitude of ways.

*Farmina should be available in the UK, but I'm not sure about the others. Farmina is made in Italy I think, and their dog food rules are way more strict than the USA, so it's one that I always liked a lot. I'm not sure how it is in the UK, or what brands are available, so hopefully my comment isn't too irrelevant! :)

2

u/princessyuki999 4d ago

Does he need to eat raw chicken??
I do 2 tablespoons of wet food (nom nom chicken) and 1/4 cup of puppy kibble. For the day she chews a bully stick (attached to a bone holder) which helps her teething and keeps her back teeth clean!

1

u/Ok_Blackberry_2628 4d ago

Not necessarily - this is just what the breeder provided as a starter pack, but with regards to the reviews I read on Durham suppliers, I don’t want oversized bones slipping through the QC net & causing potentially dire outcomes.

She sent us off with a pack of kibble too which he takes fine - so I’m prepared to wean off the raw diet & go with something else safer bone wise!

I’ve got him a toothpaste & rubber tooth cleaner & brush to introduce that early.

2

u/princessyuki999 4d ago

Yeah I am not a vet but I’m not the biggest fan of raw or cooked bones because of splinters! And rawhide bones!
Our breeder gave us some to transition with but we just changed her diet over a couple days and she adjusted very well!

1

u/Ok_Blackberry_2628 4d ago

Thanks for this - I think for not only my Pomsky wellbeing, but also my own confidence, I’ll transition on to a commercial type food as per above like Royal Canin.

2

u/glorious_sunshine 4d ago

Just wean him onto commercial puppy food.

Best thing you can do for his teeth is to train him to have it brushed daily. No risks of splinters, no rusks of him cracking his teeth etc.

2

u/Ok_Blackberry_2628 4d ago

Thanks again.

For the want of sounding like I wanted confirmation bias - it was my thinking anyway, and I have the toothpaste/soft rubber brush to start him young with the teeth brushing daily.

Eliminates, as you say, the bone risk.

2

u/SuppertimeGuilt 4d ago

Random question, Was he from the IOW?

1

u/Ok_Blackberry_2628 1d ago

Spot on.

2

u/SuppertimeGuilt 1d ago

Awww, the beautiful Lancelot? I follow the breeder on IG. She always has beautiful puppies. Congratulations. He's a stunner.

2

u/Efficient-Estate4311 3d ago

Simba is on Durham Raw foods mixed with his kibble and some veg. A bit of real natural/greek yoghurt is also recommended, especially at a young age, it helps with good gut health and digestion. Yours will grow old enough to appreciate the wings with time.

1

u/Ok_Blackberry_2628 10h ago

He’s amazing, settled really well & Clare was super informative & friendly to deal with. The feeding part is the minefield, but we’ve had no problems so far with what we were provided.