Raw feeding a Bloodhound puppy safely

A six-month-old Bloodhound on raw is a project worth getting right — giant breed puppies are genuinely one of the higher-risk groups when it comes to raw feeding, because too much calcium, too little, or the wrong calcium-to-phosphorus ratio during rapid bone growth can cause skeletal problems that show up months later and can't be undone. Raw feeding done well can be excellent, but done badly it creates nutritional gaps that cause real harm over time, and the difference is balance and sourcing. Before I point you anywhere: have you fed raw before, and are you looking for a complete ready-made option or planning to build meals yourself from components?

Your instinct to be nervous is correct, and it's a good sign you're asking before starting rather than after. At 35kg and still in a growth phase, a Bloodhound's skeletal development is under real stress — her bones are laying down density fast and the margin for error with DIY raw at this stage is thin. The calcium-to-phosphorus ratio needs to sit around 1.2:1 to 1.4:1, and if you're building meals from muscle meat, organ, and raw meaty bones without weighing everything precisely and rotating proteins carefully, it's very easy to get it wrong. I'd strongly recommend starting with a nutritionally complete raw food rather than DIY — not forever, but until she's past 18 months and her growth plates have closed. What does she currently weigh, and how are you feeding her — once or twice a day?

The loose stools on kibble are common with Bloodhounds — they can be sensitive to high-starch diets, and the switch to raw often genuinely helps digestion. Given her size, age, and what you've described, the product I'd point you to is Natures Menu Country Hunter Complete Puppy Raw Nuggets. It's a complete, BARF-formulated raw food that meets FEDIAF nutritional guidelines for growth, which matters enormously here. The calcium and phosphorus levels are set for puppies and they're consistent batch to batch — you're not guessing. It comes in frozen nugget format so portioning is straightforward, and the protein sources are named, single-origin meats which makes it easier to identify any sensitivity. For a 35kg Bloodhound still growing, you'd be feeding around 700–800g per day split across two meals, so budget accordingly. It's available on Amazon UK with Prime delivery, which helps when you're getting through volume like this.

Genuinely complete as-is — that's the point of choosing a product that meets FEDIAF growth standards rather than a raw mix that's labelled 'complementary.' Don't add raw meaty bones, calcium supplements, or extra liver on top of it. People do this thinking they're improving things and they tip the mineral balance in exactly the wrong direction. The one thing worth discussing with your vet is a joint supplement — not because the food is lacking, but because giant breeds like Bloodhounds have higher lifetime joint risk and starting fish oil or a glucosamine supplement early is reasonable prevention. But for the core diet, feed it as directed, transition gradually over about a week mixing it into the kibble, and watch her stools — they should firm up noticeably within a couple of weeks.

Good call. Check the puppy-specific version — Country Hunter do adult ranges too and the nutritional profile is different, so make sure the packaging says puppy or 'for growth.' Once she's past 18 months and a vet confirms her growth plates are closed, you can revisit DIY raw if you want to — by then you'll know her sensitivities, she'll be much more robust, and the stakes are lower. For now, let the formulated product do the heavy lifting and focus on getting her transition right.