#1 – Buy in Bulk
Most long-time raw feeders have a giant freezer dedicated to raw meat, regardless of how many dogs they have. This is because buying meat in bulk is much cheaper than buying a few meals at a time. It also allows you to shop for sales and stock up when the price is right. With enough space, you can get a variety of different meats. A big freezer also separates the dog food from the people food, allowing for better organization.
#2 – Organize
Even if you buy in bulk, organizing is going to make your life a lot easier. This means that you can break down into meat types or individual meals. For example, if I buy 40 pounds each of chicken backs, beef liver, and pork muscle meat, I can either package individual meals in baggies or containers or I can package the meats in baggies or containers. Then every day I can pull out a packaged meal and feed as is, or I can pull out smaller containers of thawed meat and assemble at mealtime. Either way, it makes thawing and storage much easier.
#3 – Find a Supplier
One of the great benefits of raw feeding is that it cuts down cost, but this only happens when done craftily. If you’re going to a local, high-end grocery store you’re probably spending as much or more on food as you would quality kibble. But finding butchers or grocery stores that will order meat in bulk for you can save you great amounts of money. More often than not, you’d be surprised at how easy it is to find a place that will order 30-40 pound boxes of various types of meat. If you can find a supplier, you’ll be at an advantage. If you have friends that feed raw, you can try to place even bigger orders for a lower cost at the same time.