Wisdom Panel Results

A couple weeks ago, I found a super cheap (see here) Wisdom Panel Insights dog DNA test, which I promptly used on Neeko.  I received the results today.

Neeko's Results

According to the Wisdom Panel, Neeko is 25 percent GSD, 25 percent Alaskan Malamute, 12.5 percent Siberian Husky, and 37.5 percent unknown.

Edited to add photo of PDF File.

Not really that surprising, although I would like to know how she wound up so tall.  I'm very curious as to the results of the 37.5% unknown. 

Free Meat!!

The "network" I work for has an online bulletin board/classifieds, accessible by employees only. A couple of weeks ago, I posted asking for freezer burnt meat, but didn't get any hits. Yesterday, one of the ladies I work with (the same one who found the post for Neeko's litter) pointed out a post to me. It was titled "To the person looking for meat for their dogs."
It was an employee who works north, who saw my post a couple of weeks ago, and had some meat for me. I contacted her immediately.
I just picked up over 20 lbs of ground venison and over 20 lbs of venison roasts, all frozen solid! It was free, save the cost in gas for a 50 mile round trip, which was, at most, $8. 40 lbs of grass-fed, free range, high Omega 3 goodness for $8!!!!




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Sourcing Meat

One of the challenges that most raw feeders face who don't possess unlimited funds face is sourcing affordable/reasonably priced meat for their dogs.  This is particularly true for those who have large or multiple dogs.

Bruce weighs about 93 lbs, and Neeko weighs about 82 lbs.  I feed approximately 150 lbs of meat a month.  While I have some decent sources, others out their are far better than myself at sourcing their dog's meat.

I am a member of an Indianapolis based co-op, Raw Paws, which I order from monthly.  I also order from My Pet Carnivore, and purchase meat at ethnic and traditional grocery stores.

I try to keep my boneless meats at less than $2 per pound.  My next co-op order, which I will pick up next Friday, consists of, amongst other things, beef heart, sheep heart, beef tongue, boneless beef trim, and boneless goat trim.  I get all of these for less than $2 per pound.  I can also get beef and pork heart and tongue at Saraga, a nearby ethnic grocery, for about $2.49 per pound, which I will do I have to.  I can also easily get beef heart for $1.79 per pound at Archer's, which I occasionally do.

I do sometimes spend more than my goal of $2 per pound, particularly if I am in desperate need of meat, or if it is a new/exotic protein.  I bought clearance, organic ground bison today at Kroger for $4.49 per pound.  More than I like to pay, but they have never had bison. 

I make up for it with steals.  I purchased 4 packages of chicken gizzards/hearts at Walmart yesterday for 0.79 per pound.  I know bigger cuts are ideal, but it's inexpensive meaty meat.

Marsh will often have their pork shoulders on sale for 0.99 per pound.  While these do contain bone, they are largely meat, so I consider this a steal as well.

For bone-in meats, I try to keep my price less the $1 per pound.  Most of Neeko and Bruce's bone-in meat is in the form of Gold Leaf chicken leg quarters which I get a Walmart for 0.59 per pound.  I occasionally order and feed duck and turkey necks from MPC, for variety.  These are more than my goal of $1 per pound.  I also occasionally purchase sale or mark down turkey wings and drumsticks for variety and bone.

I do splurge occasionally on bone-in meats, for variety.  My next co-op order contains some rabbit quarters and halves, and these were $2.75 per pound.

Organ meat I try to keep less than $2 per pound, as well.  This does not pose any difficulties.  I can get beef and chicken liver at a traditional grocery store, and beef and pork kidneys at Saraga.  I occasionally feed beef pancreas, which is a bit more expensive.

One thing I need to do more of in sourcing meat is post on Craigslist.  I have done it once, and was given 12 lbs of venison steaks, 3 lbs of ground venison, and 8 lbs of beef roast.  Venison is ideal, because it is "organic" and grass fed, which equates to desirable Omega 3 levels.

Sourcing meat has almost become a hobby for me, something I find fun.  As I have said before, RAW is almost as fun for me as it is for my dogs!!

Creek Stomping

It has been very hot, all weekend. On Saturday, we took the dogs to a creek to play, which is accessible by a short hike through some woods. We all had a great time. Bruce actually willingly went into the water, though not very deep.

He prefers to stay dry as much as possible.

Neeko gets as wet as she possibly can, and always manages to find new toys.

 My sweet, pretty girl.

Shake it out!!

This might be the coolest tree, ever.  I don't know what forces of nature made it grow like this.

It's a Rough Life...

Says Bruce.



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It's the Little Things

Such as discovering that when you order beef tongue from your co-op, which comes frozen, that they are not frozen together in a 10 lb chunk of tongue, but individually frozen in little bags!!!  YAY!!

Raw "Kongs"

See the updated post!

I sometimes order beef trachea from My Pet Carnivore.  A Facebook friend of mine, who works at the same hospital as me, gave me the idea of stuffing a trachea, then freezing solid for a completely edible, raw, "Kong" type meal.  I took the idea and ran with it.

I chose to use ground green tripe.

The ingredients

Ground Green Tripe

One beef trachea, halved

The trachea, on the counter. 












The trachea was partially thawed when I started.  I thawed the green tripe, so that I could scoop it into the trachea.  Unfortunately, the center of the tripe container was still solid.  I dumped the entire container into a ziploc, so that I could scoop from the outside.  I made a mess.  And had to use my hands to handle the tripe.  Nastiness.  Even after washing my hands several times, the smell of green tripe lingered.  I have some green tripe chunks that I ordered from my co-op, frozen together that need broken down.  When I get around to doing that, I am definitely wearing gloves.

The finished product.  I stuffed these fairly tightly, leaving an inch or two at the ends of the trachea, to prevent overflow while freezing.  I put these in large ziploc bags, and froze solid.  I gave them to Neeko and Bruce on Saturday morning for breakfast.  They were a hit, and lasted about 25 minutes, which is pretty good, especially for Bruce.

Neeko wasn't thrilled about being made to "wait" prior to being allowed to consume her breakfast.  She is giving me her equivalent of the stink eye here.

 Mean old mommy that I am, I made her wait some more once she laid down and got comfortable.  This time she wouldn't even look at me.

 I neglected to tell Bruce to wait after placing his on the ground.  Needless to say, he tore right in.  Sorry for the terrible picture quality, but I had to include a pic of my boy.

I will be making these again. 

Raw is almost as fun for me as it is for them!

Score!!!

I have been contemplating doing a Wisdom Panel DNA analysis on Neeko.  She is very unique looking, and we don't know what her heritage is.  I'm quite certain she has German Shepherd in her.  The rest?  Possibly Alaskan Malamute, Collie, Great Pyrenees, wolf, bear, etc.  It's unknown to us.  This test has a user send in two cheek swabs and uses it's database of 170 dog breeds to provide owners with some idea as to their mutt's heritage.  It can provide breed information for >50%, >25%, and >12.5%.

I have seen these kits at various retail stores for $70-$80, and online for about $50, typically.

I was at my local grocery store today, and walked by the "Reduced for Quick Sale" table, and stopped to take a look.  This is what I saw, and obviously purchased, as the background is my couch.

I picked it up, thinking it was odd to be in a grocery store (not Walmart), and flipped it over.  This is what I saw...

I almost squealed out loud, and then choked, causing me to gasp and cough a couple times, drawing the attention of nearby shoppers.  I quickly put it in my cart, covering it with my loaf of bread.

I am pretty sure that this was mis-marked, but am super excited to have found it. 

I will be swabbing Neeko's cheeks before dinner this evening, and mailing them out tomorrow.  According to the literature enclosed, my DNA report will be available within three weeks.  Once I get the report results, I will share them here, and on my two dog forums.

I am always on the hunt for a bargain.  This one was 2.5% of retail price.



Got Fur?

I brushed Neeko for a few minutes yesterday evening.  Bruce is a year round shedder, but Neeko blows coat in the Spring, and hardly sheds at all the rest of the year.  I noticed yesterday that her shoulders and hips appeared to be molting.  I wish I had taken a picture of what that looked like.  The following picture is only a small amount of the massive quantities of fur that I got off of her.  It was ridiculous.  I still had my work scrubs on, and they went from blue to white/blond.

My Pet Carnivore Order

I am fortunate enough to live about 20 minutes away from the My Pet Carnivore warehouse.  They are a raw feeding supplier, small company, and ridiculously nice people.  I picked up an order today, and decided to share my goodies.  MPC, www.rawpaws.org, and ethnic groceries are where I get most of my meat.

Beef trachea, a good natural source of chondroitin.  I plan on cutting these in half, then filling with goodies and freezing.  A completely edible, raw "Kong."

Lamb is pretty expensive around here.  I was able to get these lamb hearts for less than $3 lb.  My dogs appreciate the variety of sources, I'm sure.  Quite obviously, hearts are one of my favorite meaty-meats.  Very rich, and typically much less expensive than other sources of red meat.

I'm such an awesome photographer...but this is whole ground beaver. It was fairly pricey, but how often will my dogs get the opportunity to try this delicacy?  Supposedly, dogs love it.

Whole ground chicken, whole ground young beef, and Tripe Supermix.  I really don't feed alot of ground, but these make for easy ways to add a couple extra ounces of food, or an easy breakfast.  My dogs love them, especially the Tripe varieties.

Beef spleen chunks.  Nastiest stuff ever. 'Nuff said.  But an important "other" organ.

These items are just a few of many things I have ordered from MPC.  Needless to say, Neeko and Bruce pestered me nonstop while unloading.





Downtown Dog Walk-Indy Dog Friendly

Every Sunday evening, unless it's raining, there is an organized dog walk in downtown Indianapolis.  The walkers stop at dog-friendly restaurants when the weather is nice enough.  We try to attend at least once a month, and last night Neeko and I went.  This walk has it's own Facebook page, and is on www.meetup.com.  It is organized and ran by Rob Hansen, owner of Seigfreid Academy.  He is an awesome dog trainer.  Neeko went through three levels of obedience with him, and Bruce completed basic obedience.  Luckily for all involved, he is generous with his wisdom, and will share helpful tips when asked.

 Just a few shots from the downtown canal walk, which is where we walked last evening.  We walked the length of it, stopping at Creation Cafe for refreshments.  I myself enjoyed a Bell's Oberon.  I would have loved to have had more than one.

Here is Seigfreid, namesake of the Seigfreid Academy, waiting while holding a homemade chicken cheese scone in his mouth.  Notice the dog water bowl in front of him, brought out by the staff at Creations Cafe.

Unfortunately most of the pictures that I took of the dogs also have their owners in them, and I do not want to post these photos without consent.

The only other doggie photo without the owner's face visible.  This is Tess, and she totally posed for me :-)

 While walking, Neeko decided to show the world what a rebel she is, by not only getting in the canal (five or six times) but by flaunting it right next to the NO SWIMMING notice.

She obviously read the notice, and decided to get out of the water, for the time being.

Happy, wet puppy.  In her defense, it was fairly warm out, and she has LOADS of fur.

Easy Raw Snacks

I will individually freeze small raw goodies, then place in a baggie for a quick, easy snack. When frozen on a parchment lined cookie pan, they do not stick together, and can individually pulled from the baggie.



Shown here is chicken feet. I also do gizzards and hearts, and small chunks of meaty meat.

This is also how I portion liver and kidney, which my dogs will only eat frozen.

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Oink

My girl, this morning, near the end of what started as a 3.5 lb pork shoulder.



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