I have to chime in again, and mention to everyone how easy feeding raw has been for me. There are a few different types of raw I give to my dogs:
1) Nature's Variety pre-made frozen medallions. Has veggies, raw meat, bone and offal all mixed into pre-shaped round medallions. This makes it unbelievably easy to feed. I keep the bag frozen in the freezer, and take maybe 6-8 medallions out at a time (I have 3 dogs), and put them in a ziploc tupperware designated for raw meat, and put them in the fridge to defrost. I will defrost them in the evening so they are ready the next day, and I do about 2 days worth at a time. The bag costs about $15 and has 48 pieces, so it lasts me all month combined with the other foods I feed below. I probebly spend about $40-50 a month on dog food. You can get larger sizes for bigger dogs, I am unsure of the cost.
Here's a picture:
And a link to thier site:
http://www.naturesvariety.com/
2)I will buy "bulk" meats ground with bone and offal packaged into small airtight packages, keep them in the freezer, and defrost one at a time (again, 1 package will last me a couple days). I keep the defrosted meat in another ziplock tupperware. I can pretty much get any meat I feel like
.
3)I buy regular ground beef or bison from the grocery store and make this recipe called "Satin Balls" which helps my skinny dog beef up a little. I just omit the grain from the recipe.
http://www.njboxers.com/satin-balls-recipe.htm.
4)Once a week I "fast" them to help them digest any bone pieces in thier gut. For this day they get semi-cooked eggs, with shell, and some veggies pulped. I also give them some Salmon oil to help with thier coats and I will try the alfalfa powder as well.
I make sure I wash my hands, cutlery, and counter tops after feeding the dogs, and the containers I keep the meat in go through the dishwater frequently. But honestly, if you cook with raw meat then you already know how to keep your kitchen clean, and there is nothing else to worry about.
This site has been helpful, but there are lots of websites out there on BARF diet.
http://www.njboxers.com/faqs.htm
HTH
-Diana