How to you separate your raw meals?

[koobe]

Okay this sounds silly, but I would like to know how you separate your meals.

Since I am in the transition, and I have also brought commercial raw meals, this what I do.

I make a week's portion with chicken, then I mix it really well. Then I put it into baby food jars, assuming each jar has equal share of liver, other organs, and bones.

I make a weeks portion with quail too. Then I also put the commercial raw I have in baby food jars too.

In this way, I can randomly take a jar and assume it is balanced. Then the kitties can have different meat every day.

I know I cannot guarantee that each jar of food is balanced, is there a better way of doing it when I also have commercial raw in the game?

When I get rid of my commercial raw, is there a better way of doing it?

Please share

 

[auntie crazy]

Sounds to me like you're grinding your food? Your plan is perfectly sensible and you can continue using it even when you remove the commercial products. Meals don't have to be exactly balanced every time; as long as the cat gets everything it needs over a week's time, you're good to go.

I feed frankenprey/whole prey, so my methods are distinctly different... there is no mixing at all involved. But I think you have my weekly plan already.

 

[furryfriends50]

I never repeat the same meat two days in a row. They know and will try punish me for that.

I don't feed them balanced meals every day, they get balanced over a period of three days. Sundays they each get a sardine or two.

The meals I do are put into large gallon ziplocs (as thats the only thing that you can fit 5 lbs of meat into). Liver and kidney are cut into pieces so each cat gets 2 pieces a day - they sometimes get three, it depends how the days work out. The meat is cut into large pieces so a piece of meat is all a cat needs a day.

 

[koobe]

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

Sounds to me like you're grinding your food? Your plan is perfectly sensible and you can continue using it even when you remove the commercial products. Meals don't have to be exactly balanced every time; as long as the cat gets everything it needs over a week's time, you're good to go.

I feed frankenprey/whole prey, so my methods are distinctly different... there is no mixing at all involved. But I think you have my weekly plan already.

Actually I am not grinding my food. I cut all into small chunks and just mix well.

I saw your weekly plan, so how do you label them? Do you make a month's portion at a time? Would you mind telling me?

 

[auntie crazy]

Originally Posted by koobe

Actually I am not grinding my food. I cut all into small chunks and just mix well.

I saw your weekly plan, so how do you label them? Do you make a month's portion at a time? Would you mind telling me?

I don't "make" anything, Koobe, since each product is served separately. Turkey drumsticks and chicken leg quarters serve as a whole meal, and they are packed in 1 quart freezer bags, one to a bag. Liver, beef, kidney, pork, gizzards, chicken breasts and hearts are cut if they need to be, weighed and packed in sandwich bags, which are then packed in the 1 quart freezer bags, two to a bag, and labeled. Chicken wings and ribs are cut and weighed, packed in the freezer bags (one meal per bag) and labeled.

I shop whenever I'm getting low on something. Sometimes, but not always, I'll buy a month's worth of whatever it is I'm shopping for. I'm pretty low key on this part.... I kinda shop for the kitties the same way I shop for myself.

The only part of their feeding I'm strict on is the schedule, which, for those who haven't seen it before, is here:

Breakfast is about 9ozs of:
Monday, Wednesday & Friday = chicken or beef heart
Tuesday and Saturday = beef round
Thursday and Sunday = pork loin

Lunch is the bone-in, liver and organ meals:\t
Monday and Saturday = about 12oz of chicken wings
Wednesday = about 12oz of chicken ribs
Tuesday and Friday = 4.5ozs of liver and 4.5oz of chicken gizzards
Thursday and Sunday = 4.5ozs of kidney and 4.5oz of chicken breast

Dinner:
Monday = about 9ozs of chicken breast
Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday = a chicken leg quarter
Wednesday, Friday and Sunday = a turkey drumstick

Once a week, they share a single 3.75oz can of sardines and every couple of weeks, they get a whole mouse apiece or share a couple dozen live crickets or an egg or two.

 

[goldenkitty45]

I only use the stew beef now as an "extra" to a spoonful of canned - they are not on all raw.

I take the stew beef and cut the bigger pieces up into more cat bite-size pieces. Then take what I would give to each of them with their food and put it in individual small plastic sandwich bags. These are then put into a larger freezer bags and labeled with the date (and CAT on it). When I give them a package, I take one out, thaw it overnight and serve it the next day for their supper.

Works out well for me.

 

[koobe]

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

I don't "make" anything, Koobe, since each product is served separately. Turkey drumsticks and chicken leg quarters serve as a whole meal, and they are packed in 1 quart freezer bags, one to a bag. Liver, beef, kidney, pork, gizzards, chicken breasts and hearts are cut if they need to be, weighed and packed in sandwich bags, which are then packed in the 1 quart freezer bags, two to a bag, and labeled. Chicken wings and ribs are cut and weighed, packed in the freezer bags (one meal per bag) and labeled.

I shop whenever I'm getting low on something. Sometimes, but not always, I'll buy a month's worth of whatever it is I'm shopping for. I'm pretty low key on this part.... I kinda shop for the kitties the same way I shop for myself.

The only part of their feeding I'm strict on is the schedule, which, for those who haven't seen it before, is here:

Breakfast is about 9ozs of:
Monday, Wednesday & Friday = chicken or beef heart
Tuesday and Saturday = beef round
Thursday and Sunday = pork loin

Lunch is the bone-in, liver and organ meals:\t
Monday and Saturday = about 12oz of chicken wings
Wednesday = about 12oz of chicken ribs
Tuesday and Friday = 4.5ozs of liver and 4.5oz of chicken gizzards
Thursday and Sunday = 4.5ozs of kidney and 4.5oz of chicken breast

Dinner:
Monday = about 9ozs of chicken breast
Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday = a chicken leg quarter
Wednesday, Friday and Sunday = a turkey drumstick

Once a week, they share a single 3.75oz can of sardines and every couple of weeks, they get a whole mouse apiece or share a couple dozen live crickets or an egg or two.

Auntie Crazy,

That works really well for complete raw feeding and fully grown cats. I will have to think about my feeding schedule too. Right now, I do not really have any, I just take a jar or two and mixed with canned food, to let them eat alone.

 

[koobe]

Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

I only use the stew beef now as an "extra" to a spoonful of canned - they are not on all raw.

I take the stew beef and cut the bigger pieces up into more cat bite-size pieces. Then take what I would give to each of them with their food and put it in individual small plastic sandwich bags. These are then put into a larger freezer bags and labeled with the date (and CAT on it). When I give them a package, I take one out, thaw it overnight and serve it the next day for their supper.

Works out well for me.

Hi GoldenKitty,
Are you giving your cats any dry food? How do you determine how much dry, how much wet and how much raw? I have 2 kitties, and I have been told kitties will stop eating when they are full. So right now, I just throw a plate of food and see if there is any left overs.

 

[sharky]

just a note live feeding is illegal in many areas... so one might want to check local laws...

 

[auntie crazy]

Originally Posted by sharky

just a note live feeding is illegal in many areas... so one might want to check local laws...

Considering how cruel it is to the "food", I should think so! No one I have ever talked to has ever considered such a thing; I can't imagine that Koobe is contemplating it, either. *shudder*

Koobe, with the schedule you've outlined (both here and in other correspondence), I see nothing wrong with your jar idea. You can even continue using it when you run out of canned.

Hmmm, how small are you cutting the pieces?

 

[jack31]

I feed (usually) 3 bone in meals a week and 4 meat only meals a week, the bone in meals falling on Mon, Wed and Fri. But minus the bone-- the meal is complete another words each baggy I made has a days worth of liver and kidney in it--not very much a day. I do this for two reasons one, my boys weren't fond of larger pieces of liver uncooked, and two I feel more comfortable feeding a balanced meal everyda--less stressful for me personally.

I buy what is on sale and prepare meal bags when I have free time on the weekends. If country pork ribs are .99/lb I'm gonna buy $20 even if they go right in the freezer until I have time to package them. Right now I have chicken split breasts with ribs in the freezer, a whole chicken, chicken thighs, duck wings, and maybe some venison that needs packaged. I also have turkey, chicken, pork, venison, quail and pheasant packaged already for meals. I can get my organs any time for about $1/lb I usually use pork kidney and beef or pork liver--the boys don't like beef kidney, go figure.

Leslie

 

[koobe]

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

Koobe, with the schedule you've outlined (both here and in other correspondence), I see nothing wrong with your jar idea. You can even continue using it when you run out of canned.

Hmmm, how small are you cutting the pieces?

Auntie Crazy, you always ask the right questions.
I cut the pieces into about half of my pinky nail size. Cheetah has been swallowing them, while Panther has been chewing them. I wanted to cut it into big pieces, but Panther is already eating very slow, if I cut them into bigger pieces, then Panther will eat even slower.

For the bones, I cut them into about 1/2 -3/4 inch in length.

 

[koobe]

Originally Posted by Jack31

I feed (usually) 3 bone in meals a week and 4 meat only meals a week, the bone in meals falling on Mon, Wed and Fri. But minus the bone-- the meal is complete another words each baggy I made has a days worth of liver and kidney in it--not very much a day. I do this for two reasons one, my boys weren't fond of larger pieces of liver uncooked, and two I feel more comfortable feeding a balanced meal everyda--less stressful for me personally.

I buy what is on sale and prepare meal bags when I have free time on the weekends. If country pork ribs are .99/lb I'm gonna buy $20 even if they go right in the freezer until I have time to package them. Right now I have chicken split breasts with ribs in the freezer, a whole chicken, chicken thighs, duck wings, and maybe some venison that needs packaged. I also have turkey, chicken, pork, venison, quail and pheasant packaged already for meals. I can get my organs any time for about $1/lb I usually use pork kidney and beef or pork liver--the boys don't like beef kidney, go figure.

Leslie

Wow Leslie, you do have a lot of different meat for your kitties. Right now, I am only accessible to chicken, pork, beef, quail, lamb. I gave them some beef in baby food form before, but Panther had a reaction, I can't tell if it is caused by beef, that is why I will have to try beef later. I have lamb and turkey in commercial raw, but I would rather prepare my own.

I bought a pork liver one time, and it was WAY TOO MUCH to make meals with. Even when I buy 1 lb of chicken liver, it is still too much. I will have to get a bigger freezer, oh, and a bigger house....!

 

[sharky]

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

Considering how cruel it is to the "food", I should think so! No one I have ever talked to has ever considered such a thing; I can't imagine that Koobe is contemplating it, either. *shudder*

Koobe, with the schedule you've outlined (both here and in other correspondence), I see nothing wrong with your jar idea. You can even continue using it when you run out of canned.

Hmmm, how small are you cutting the pieces?

I was noting the crickets you feed ... personally I cant get past what most pet stores feed crickets ... I have one who will only eat freshly live raw ( lucky for me she is the one who goes out at times to hunt her own thus no law issues here

 

[auntie crazy]

Originally Posted by koobe

Auntie Crazy, you always ask the right questions.
I cut the pieces into about half of my pinky nail size. Cheetah has been swallowing them, while Panther has been chewing them. I wanted to cut it into big pieces, but Panther is already eating very slow, if I cut them into bigger pieces, then Panther will eat even slower.

For the bones, I cut them into about 1/2 -3/4 inch in length.

Well, then, Koobe, I'd say you're good to go for now.