Once you’ve decided to make the transition to feeding raw dog food, you may be asking yourself:
Most larger pet store franchises, like Petco and PetSmart, are beginning to carry commercial raw dog food brands or fresh cooked diets. Though, I’ve found that the smaller, locally owned pet stores are better choices for finding a larger variety of premade raw dog food. If you feed commercial raw dog food, check with the local pet stores nearest you. If you’re pet store has a freezer section, there’s a good chance they stock it. Larger chain pet stores may carry raw pet food depending on the location as well.
Some grocery store chains have freezers in their pet food aisles and carry a limited amount of commercial raw pet food. Aside from the pet aisles, grabbing regular human grade meat is a great option for your dog. However, depending on the number of dogs you own and their size, sourcing meat from your grocery store may not be the most financially viable option. It’s also not the best option when looking for deals, savings, and buying meat in bulk. If you feed plants in your dog’s diet then buying herbs, fruits and vegetables from your local grocer is usually a smart idea. Another tip is to shop at ethnic grocery stores and food markets. Ethnic grocers tend to carry more organ and offal products along with exotic meats.
Warehouse clubs are retails stores that sell a wide variety of merchandise that typically require customers to buy in large or wholesale quantities. These clubs are attractive not only for bargain hunters, but for raw feeders! They’re able to keep prices low due to the basic format of the stores (you’re essentially shopping in a warehouse). Some may even require customers to pay annual membership fees to shop. These stores are a great option when looking for deals on meat on buying meat in bulk.
4. Big Box Discount Stores, Warehouse Clubs, & Wholesalers
Sam’s Club – Offers three levels of membership (Sam’s Plus, Sam’s Business, and Sam’s Savings) for individuals and businesses starting at $45 – $100 a year.Costco Wholesale – Offers three levels of membership (Executive, Business, and Gold Star memberships) for individuals and businesses starting at $55 – $110 a year.BJs Wholesale Club – Offers two levels of membership (Personal and BJ’s rewards memberships) for individuals and businesses starting at $50 – $100 a year.Restaurant Depot – Restaurant Depot is a wholesale food service supplier. Membership is free but you must show a valid reseller’s permit (business license) or tax-exempt certificate (for a nonprofit organization) and proof that you’re authorized to purchase for that business or organization. If you don’t qualify, do you have any friends or family members that do? If so, go along with them on some shopping trips to stock up on meat.Boxed – Think of boxed like an online warehouse. They offer the same bulk products but deliver them directly to your door. Depending on your location meat and/or produce may or may not be available through boxed. But it’s worth checking out.
Sourcing meat from local farmers is another fantastic option. Not only is it important to support local farms, but local meat is often fresher since it doesn’t have to travel as far to get to your dog’s belly. Local farmers are a great choice when looking for higher quality meats like grass fed, organic, free range, and certified human meats to name a few. Additionally, local farms usually have options for buying in bulk. I’ve seen many farms offer up a whole cow for purchase. They’re even a great source for organs and other raw offal for your dog (liver, heart, kidney, lungs, etc.). And they can be a fantastic option for local produce as well if you include plant material in your dog’s diet.
If so, you’ve hit the raw feeding jackpot. Talk about free, high quality meat. Deer, duck, quail, rabbit and other wild animals are perfect foods for your kitchen carnivore. These animals eat a natural diet and will generally have a superior nutrient profile. Plus, they’re likely grain, antibiotic, and hormone free!
Organ meat for raw dog food from grocery stores
It’s fairly easy to find chicken liver, beef liver, turkey liver and sometimes calf liver in local grocery stores and big chain retailers like Walmart. But it can be a little more tricky to figure out where to buy the other organs.
Although, I noticed beef sweetbreads at a Publix store once before. (Sweetbread is a name for the thymus or pancreas.)
It pays to shop around and depends a little on how well stocked your particular local grocery stores are.
How I Buy RAW FOOD in Bulk for My Dogs
Your dog deserves the best! But it can be hard to find the best raw meat for dogs at an affordable price. so where should you start? …
My husband and I can’t say the word “chores” without our dogs running to the door so they can help!
We’re lucky to be able to raise some of our own farm animals for food (for ourselves and our pets). But we count on butchers to process our ducks, chickens, goats and sheep.
Beef is a large part of most raw feeding programs, including ours. We’re not able to raise beef, just as most raw feeders probably can’t raise their own pet food. But we have a wonderful farm near us for organic grass-fed beef and raw milk.
They’ve used many different butchers over the years for their slaughtering. Farmers can’t slaughter their own animals so they use custom processing services. This is when a butcher shop does the slaughtering and cutting for them.
The farmer typically offers a quarter, half or whole animal. The customer pays the farmer the agreed price per pound of hanging weight. The farmer then pays the butcher for cutting and slaughter costs.
If you can do it this way, you’ll likely find the total of these two payments is much less than other sources. They’re much cheaper per pound than retail cuts, commercial frozen raw … or buying through raw pet food brokers.
So, how can you find a farmer to sell you their meat? Start by checking …
This can get you some names of farms, and sometimes, referrals. Online raw feeding forums may also be helpful.
Check your state Department of Agriculture too; some states offer directories of farmers. For example, MN Grown is a division of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. They offer advertising to their members for an extra fee.