Opinions on feeding legs and thighs

SubieNChevy · 10-02-2009, 08:44 AM

I've read that you shouldn't feed your dog chicken legs and thighs because the bones could crack their teeth. What's everyone's opinion on this?

Our dogs have done very well with these type of bones but I don't want to do anything that might harm their teeth. We've only been feeding raw for about 2mo. now and I am amazed at the results. We will never go back.

Also, I'd like to get some suggestions on what to expect poop wise. It seems like our dogs either poop out light crumbly poop (which I am guessing is from the bone) or diarrhea poop. What can I do to get some normal poop out of them?

TIA

ioreks_mom · 10-02-2009, 08:55 AM

i feed chicken legs and thighs all the time. i think that the concern comes with very small dogs. generally, though, a chicken is not so big that their weight bearing bones will be too hard. feeding weight bearing bones can cause problems when it is something like a cow or a pig. i don't feed either of those, but some people give them as recreational chews.

as for the consistency of the poop - you should make sure that you are trying to do 80% meat, 10% organs (1/2 of it should be liver), and 10% bone. too much bone makes the crumbly poops (like you said) and too much meat gives dark loose stools. i find that feeding a whole chicken over 4 days (we buy 6 lb chickens - 1.5 lbs/day for 4 days) really works out well for us. if you have only meat then you should add 1/2 tsp of finely ground egg shells (i do them in the coffee grinder) for every 1 lb of meat.

good luck with it all. if you have any questions there are tons of very knowledgeable people on this forum. they have really, really helped me! i have only been feeding raw since december and, like you, i will never go back. we are actually switching our puppy to raw as soon as his kibbles are done, next week sometime. welcome to the forum!

SubieNChevy · 10-02-2009, 11:02 AM

Thanks for your response. Our dogs are about 50lbs a piece and eat those chicken bones like they're nothing. I really just needed some reassurance that what we are doing is ok for our dogs.

We are doing our best to make sure we meet that 80% meat, 10% organ and bone requirements. I think now that we are use to the whole raw feeding thing it might take a little time to tweak the menu to perfection. We do add some eggs and egg shells to their ground beef at times. I've also heard that pumpkin can be good for constipation and aids in digestion. We haven't tried that yet. Do you have any opinions on that?

Before raw our dogs were suffering from what the vet kept saying was environmental allergies. Their ears were always filled with liquid. They scratched them so much that the inside looked like raw meat and the outside hair was disappearing. Raw feeding was my last ditch effort to help them before we started giving them shots. I am so excited to see that in just 2mo. not only are their ears 100% healed, hair and all, but their coat is beautiful. They feel soft and their breath is no longer stinky. I'm just so amazed.

RBark · 10-02-2009, 11:21 AM

The legs and bones you should not be feeding your animals are weight bearing bones. They are often called Wrecker Bones, because they wreck your dog's teeth. Deer legs, Cow legs, Horse legs, etc etc are all pretty bad. The bones are very dense in those since, obviously, they support thousands of pounds of body weight.

RedyreRottweilers · 10-02-2009, 11:23 AM

I regularly feed my dogs chicken leg quarters. I prefer not to feed them when they have been separated into legs and thighs, the pieces are then too small for my dogs.

Dry crumbly poop means a lot of bone, and the dog could use more bulk in the diet. So you can add some canned plain pumpkin, or some steamed green beans, etc for more bulk in the diet to help with this.

These things will also help somewhat with a looser stool, but if you are having this on a regular basis, I would recommend you get a Digestive Enhancer for your dog. I use the one from Nature's Farmacy, but there are several types out there.

SubieNChevy · 10-02-2009, 11:43 AM

I'm gonna try the canned pumpkin and see if that helps because I mostly see the dry crumbly poop.

What about a probiotic like yogurt or kefir? Would that be good?

RedyreRottweilers · 10-02-2009, 11:52 AM

The microbial levels in yoghurt etc are not high enough to help a dog who is having any issues.

Get a digestive enhancer. You will NOT be sorry. I will not be without it!, and I have been a raw feeder for coming up on 20 years.

SubieNChevy · 10-02-2009, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedyreRottweilers

The microbial levels in yoghurt etc are not high enough to help a dog who is having any issues.

Get a digestive enhancer. You will NOT be sorry. I will not be without it!, and I have been a raw feeder for coming up on 20 years.

I will look into a digestive enhancer! Thanks!

phoebespeople · 10-02-2009, 12:40 PM

Pheobe gets chicken legs and thighs all the time. She never really fully crunches them, she just breaks the bone in a few places and swallows them nearly whole. Nine hours later she has dry little poops, completely digested.

One thing I notice that improves digestion is giving her a marrow bone to chew on for an hour or so, either before or after a meal. The physical act of chewing and gnawing on bones for long periods of time gets the digestive enzymes flowing in the mouth and stomach and keeps their teeth clean and helps to fully digest food.

Green tripe is the thing for good bacteria for dogs. Many dogs are lactose intolerant, so yogurt, or any dairy, might do more harm than good. We also give pheobe pumpkin, either alone or with her vegitable puree, and it definitely helps when she has runny poops.

SubieNChevy · 10-02-2009, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phoebespeople

Pheobe gets chicken legs and thighs all the time. She never really fully crunches them, she just breaks the bone in a few places and swallows them nearly whole. Nine hours later she has dry little poops, completely digested.

One thing I notice that improves digestion is giving her a marrow bone to chew on for an hour or so, either before or after a meal. The physical act of chewing and gnawing on bones for long periods of time gets the digestive enzymes flowing in the mouth and stomach and keeps their teeth clean and helps to fully digest food.

Green tripe is the thing for good bacteria for dogs. Many dogs are lactose intolerant, so yogurt, or any dairy, might do more harm than good. We also give pheobe pumpkin, either alone or with her vegitable puree, and it definitely helps when she has runny poops.

That reminds me of another question. Sorry I'm full of them I guess

What exactly is green tripe? I've seen cow tripe in the store, would this do?

phoebespeople · 10-02-2009, 01:12 PM

Good question. Green tripe is the raw, unprocessed, stomach of beef or lamb usually, with the residue of the stomach contents still in it. It can be whole or ground, and it smells really bad to us, but your dog will love it! Grocery store tripe is washed, cleaned, bleached, and has no nutritional value. Green tripe is so valuable because the bacteria and microbes in it do the same for dogs what yogurt does for humans.

SubieNChevy · 10-02-2009, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phoebespeople

Good question. Green tripe is the raw, unprocessed, stomach of beef or lamb usually, with the residue of the stomach contents still in it. It can be whole or ground, and it smells really bad to us, but your dog will love it! Grocery store tripe is washed, cleaned, bleached, and has no nutritional value. Green tripe is so valuable because the bacteria and microbes in it do the same for dogs what yogurt does for humans.

Ahhh I see. Thanks so much for the tips. I found that they sell the canned green tripe at some pet stores near me. I would think that frozen would be better?

HersheyPup · 10-02-2009, 10:08 PM

I feed lots of raw chicken legs and thighs...have never had a problem except maybe the dogs urp up the knuckle end once in a LONG wihile. They go crazy when they smell raw chicken, even if it's not for them! LOL..

My three favorite things about raw is sparkling white teeth, small poop and shiny coats! I also feed kibble, btw, but still the dogs benefit greatly from even a partial raw diet.