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| Bailey in "field trial" condition - December 2010 |
On the Yahoo Vizsla Talk group lately there has been much talk about the supplement called: Satin Balls.
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| A Skinny Bailey. |
We make Satin Balls and feed them to Bailey during field-trial season. He gets very thin from all the running he does. Satin Balls help keep the energy level and weight there.
Here is some information shared on the Yahoo group lately that I am passing on:
Satin Balls - Original Recipe
Ingredients
10 pounds hamburger meat [the cheapest kind]
1 lg. box of Total cereal
1 lg. box oatmeal
1 jar of wheat germ
A 1/4 cup veg oil
A 1/4 cup of unsulfured molasses
10 raw eggs AND shells
10 envelopes of unflavored gelatin
A pinch of salt
10 pounds of ground beef and other ingredients ready for mixing
After about ten minutes of mixing created this dog meatloaf
Ingredients
10 pounds hamburger meat [the cheapest kind]
1 lg. box of Total cereal
1 lg. box oatmeal
1 jar of wheat germ
A 1/4 cup veg oil
A 1/4 cup of unsulfured molasses
10 raw eggs AND shells
10 envelopes of unflavored gelatin
A pinch of salt
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| Quart-size freezer bags with 9 balls each |
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| 50 four-inch Satin Balls are made out of 10 pounds of beef |
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| With my couple of Vizslas, clean up is easy! |
Per the information received after having the Satin Balls recipe checked by several vets/labs:
Satin Balls is a total canine diet. It can be fed by itself or as a supplement, for however long you wish. My dogs have been on Satin Balls for over a year; the only time that I have fed it alone is when I had a sick dog needing to be built up or an underweight dog that I plan on showing.
The only problem with feeding it by itself is figuring out the amount. It will put weight on a dog in a few days...that's why it is so great to feed just before a show. If you have a dog that is in good weight, but you just want to build coat/endurance, you would have to figure out how much to feed (cal per kg), or you would end up with a fat dog in a very short time.
At one point, I let (my dog) eat as much as she wanted, just to see how much she would consume. I never got to that point! After a pound pack, she was still looking for more, so I stopped. I have been told a dog will stop eating when full on it, and that you can then gauge the amount needed to maintain weight!
I just find that per the pocketbook and ease, my dogs do very well on it as a supplement. I give about a 1/4 pound each night to maintain beautiful coats, energy level, and a full appetite...no picky eaters here.
Just don't try to hide it in the kibble...they will make a mess throwing out the kibble, digging for the Satin Balls!
My dogs have never gotten sick on Satin balls...not even when I am at a show and feed only that. I feed less kibble, so I saves money there. There is also less stool to pick up as the dogs are able to digest all of the Satin Balls.
I have been playing with the recipe. I now use the Knox Joint Gelatin instead of the plain Knox unflavored gelatin. Since this is high in vit C and protein, and is good for the joints, it would be good for the dogs. They don't seem to mind the added flavor.
I am also adding Flaxseed oil. They probably don't need the added oil, but so far I have not seen it hurt anything.
Fix some up and let your dogs enjoy. They will love you forever and forever!"
(Great Dane owner)
In response to a question about feeding young dogs satin balls:
Satin Balls are a supplement to a regular diet designed to add weight to under weight dogs. Satin Balls are NOT a full spectrum diet in and of themselves.
For all the thin Vizslas out there, Satin Balls do work.
But don't feed too many! Don't want your Vizsla to be mistaken for a dachshund.
6 comments:
Just adopted a vizsla from the pound. She's a bit thin in my opinion so I'm going to make the Satin Balls for her.
Thanks for the great recipe!!
Thank you so much for posting this recipe!! My vizsla is looking a little thin (because he is in constant motion) and my nosy neighbors have started a campaign to get us in trouble with Animal Control. Animal Control can't site us because there is nothing wrong with the dog so they keep making us take him to the vet to be weighed. I would love to put a little weight on him so the neighbors leave us alone but he hates calorie supplements and eggs and peanut butter in his food aren't doing a thing. These look perfect! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!
My V just turned two years old, and I'm tired of hearing people ask me if I feed him. He gets tons of exercise but he is a finicky eater. We've tried all sorts of different diets, with little sustainable weight gain. One of the problems is that he has a sensitive stomach; he'll get sick for a couple of days and not eat anything, causing weight loss, and causing us to start back from square one. You mentioned that your dogs have not gotten sick from eating the satin balls; my only (perhaps stupid question) is do you cook them? If not, do you freeze and thaw a day or so before feeding? Thanks so much; can't wait to give these a try!
Do you cook them? Freeze and thaw a day or so before feeding?
A healthy Vizsla is thin with well-developed muscle structure. Raw and frozen is how we did it. Now as 7 and 8 year old Vizslas they are still thin but we keep it that way. I have an issue with overweight dogs.
I was just scolded online by a stranger because of my skinny guy. He's only five months old!
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