This is a specific conversation about Raw dog food — what to know before you start — ask about yours and get one honest answer for your exact situation.
inparticular.ai
A Malamute in a high-rise flat on raw — that's a specific situation worth thinking through carefully, because the hygiene side is real and not something to brush past. Raw feeding done well can be excellent for a big working breed like yours, but done badly it creates nutritional gaps that cause genuine harm over time, and the difference is balance and sourcing. Before I point you anywhere, tell me: is this your first time feeding raw, and are you looking for a ready-made complete option or were you planning to put meals together yourself?
First time feeding raw. I'd rather buy something ready-made — I don't have much prep space and I'm worried about handling raw meat on kitchen surfaces in a small flat.
inparticular.ai
That's exactly the right instinct for your setup. What are you currently feeding him, and how is he doing on it — coat, energy, digestion? And roughly how much does he weigh? Malamutes vary a lot, anywhere from 25kg to well over 40kg, and that changes how much we're talking about per day.
He's on dry kibble at the moment, coat's a bit dull and he's itchy quite a bit. He weighs around 35kg. I've heard raw can help with that.
inparticular.ai
It genuinely can — a dull coat and persistent itching in a Malamute is often linked to poor fat quality in kibble, and raw feeding with good omega balance tends to make a visible difference within a few weeks. For your situation — no garden, limited prep space, hygiene concerns indoors — I'd steer you toward frozen complete nuggets rather than chubs or whole pieces. They're portioned, low mess, and nutritionally balanced so you're not having to add anything. The one I'd recommend is Natures Menu Country Hunter 100% Raw Nuggets in the chicken or turkey variety. They're fully complete, frozen in small nuggets you just weigh out and defrost in a bowl in the fridge overnight — no surface contact, no mess. At 35kg he'll need around 700g a day split across two meals. The bags come in 1kg, so it's easy to manage storage even in a small freezer.
That sounds manageable. Is there anything I need to do differently because we're indoors all the time — like, does he need to eat somewhere specific, and what about bones?
inparticular.ai
Good questions. For feeding indoors, a silicone or stainless mat under his bowl makes cleanup straightforward — Malamutes can be messy eaters. Wash the bowl with hot soapy water after each meal, and if he ever leaves food, pick it up within 20 minutes. On bones: the Country Hunter nuggets are boneless and complete, so you don't need to add raw meaty bones for nutrition. If you want to give him something to chew — which a Malamute absolutely will need — dried natural chews like beef trachea or deer antlers are a much cleaner option indoors than raw bones. Keeps the hygiene manageable without missing out on that mental stimulation.
Really helpful, thank you. I'll give the Natures Menu nuggets a try.
inparticular.ai
I think you'll see a difference in his coat within four to six weeks. Transition gradually over about ten days — start with 20% raw mixed into his current kibble and increase slowly, or his digestion will complain. If the itching doesn't improve after six weeks on raw, it's worth looking at whether there's an underlying allergy rather than just diet quality, but a lot of Malamutes do really well once they're off low-grade kibble fats. Good luck with him.
