Raw feeding service

[marietta]

So I came across this raw feeding service called We Feed Raw. I’m looking for ways to make feeding my ferrets and my dog easier. My husband and I have decided we want to start trying to have kids but I’m wondering if I am going to be able to keep up with all the work raw feeding entails. So that is where this service would come in. I have looked into it a bit and it seems like it would work for my dog but I’m not so sure about the ferrets. I wanted to run it by you guys and see what you think. I’m concerned about the fact that they mix the meat and organs together because the meal plan you guys came up with is all separated. So the website is WeFeedRaw.com. I also have a couple emails from them with more information I can post if you would like. Thanks.

[raynebc]

Their FAQ says their meal plans are 80% meat, 10% organ meat (half of which is liver) and 10% edible bone. This looks good, but my main concern is that the recommended diet on the forum here is that 10% of the meat be heart muscle. It's not obvious to me if their cat meal plans offer enough heart to meet this requirement, so it's probably best to email them about that. I'd assume the bone in cat meal plans are more likely to have bone sizes suitable for a ferret.

[LindaM]

Looks just like grinds to me. So I'm gonna just throw in my two-cents when it comes to grinds the way I always do.

A). Call or email the company and get a good idea of at least the rough ratio percentages in their mixes, Muscle, Bone, Heart, and Organs.
B). Not all grinds are equal, not all are balanced. Grinds that say they are Whole Ground Animal or have a ratio of 65-70% muscle, 10-15% bone, 10% heart, and 10% organs (either half or whole amount of liver) are considered balanced.
C). Ferrets who are so inclined, CAN and WILL overeat and become overweight, so keep an eye out.
D). Nasty for teeth, it will lead to plaque and tartar build-up, so you need to brush several times a week to prevent that happening. If you offer 4+ Frankenprey or Whole Prey bone-in meals during the week, it should be okay, but still check teeth.
E). If you are feeding both grinds and other Frankenprey meals, they need to be balanced together using the Alternative Meal Balancing Chart: holisticferretforum.com/natural-diet/raw-diet-the-meat-of-the-site/balancing-frankenprey-with-alternative-meals/
F). Do not use grinds that are less than 95% meat-based if at all possible, meaning only up to 5% indigestibles.

Overall, the company is unknown to me and I personally would be more inclined ordering off somewhere like Hare Today. But definitely carefully read through the products, I see plenty of unbalanced grinds, eg. just muscle or just muscle+heart+organ ones. And they do sell some normal Frankenprey chunks too, but some of those could remove some of the ease you're wanting, as you'd still need to process and portion before freezing.

[Sherry]

When you email, ask if they are "whole animal grinds". And ask what that entails. Example, Carnivora here in Canada skins, beheads, removes the digestive tract, and then the entire animal is ground up. That's it. For grinds, those are the ideal. The company you have referred to appears to be whole animal grinds, but you do need to double check.

[lyles]

Correct me if there is a cheaper service out there, but I've been using Hare Today.

I like it because I know how much to feed Alice and I can select any meat and type I want and then I portion it out in baby jars at home, which makes it easy since they are 4oz. (I fill them around half way).