# Raw food for dogs - chicken...



## RedGex (Dec 29, 2007)

I'm considering putting my dogs on raw food, or at least giving them some.
But after a lifetime of having it drilled in to me dogs shouldn't have chicken bones, I'm having a difficult time convincing myself they wouldn't bite them in half and make them sharp, or get them lodged in their throat etc. Bigger bones for them to gnaw on I feel ok about, but are chicken wings and chicken carcasses really totally safe? I have two small dogs - cavaliers.


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## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

As long as they're raw, bones are OK. It's the cooking process that makes them brittle so they splinter when the dog bites them.


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

Like Eileen says raw uncooked chicken bones are totally safe, it's cooked bones that splinter. I feed my Greyhounds & Lurcher chicken wings every now & again & they love them :2thumb:. Tesco sell a big pack for about £2 & i get one of these for them.


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## RedGex (Dec 29, 2007)

Thanks, so the whole bones out the wings won't get stuck if they swallw them whole?? because if my dog can fit it in his mouth he will often just swallow it whole :gasp:


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## Ssthisto (Aug 31, 2006)

RedGex said:


> Thanks, so the whole bones out the wings won't get stuck if they swallw them whole?? because if my dog can fit it in his mouth he will often just swallow it whole :gasp:


If you're going to give raw bones, give them bones big enough they can't just inhale them - they've got to chew.

For example, if you're offering chicken wings, hold one end of the wing so he's got to gnaw at the other end and can't just swallow the lot in one go.


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

If concerned you can always use a mallet and break them a little before hand. Use a bag, pop them in, take out the stresses for the day on the wings and then feed the dogs. Please buy the bio bags that break down though if you are going to do this.


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## rubberbiscuit (Jan 5, 2009)

I worried about this too but my Chihuahuas love chicken wings! I just have to make sure Im sitting comfortably coz I end up sat on the floor for ages with a wing in each hand!! Takes the dogs forever to chew them..


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## bollocklegs (Sep 19, 2009)

i wouldnt even risk it !!


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## abandonallhope (Jun 19, 2009)

I feed mine raw chickens every now and again and have never had an issue, just keep an eye on them. It's actually quite funny watching my dobie chow down on a whole chicken.


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## urbanhippie (Mar 20, 2009)

corny girl said:


> Like Eileen says raw uncooked chicken bones are totally safe, it's cooked bones that splinter. I feed my Greyhounds & Lurcher chicken wings every now & again & they love them :2thumb:. Tesco sell a big pack for about £2 & i get one of these for them.


Is this ok to give as a treat style thing? I feed greyhound and lurcher food on a daily basis, but I could add these in on occasion.


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

you can buy chicken wings SO chesply from your local butcher..

p.s OP dont worry about your doggys struggling with bones, my 5 cats manage it, one of which has no teeth!


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## JulieNoob (Jul 9, 2008)

All of my dogs - 3 big and one very small all eat raw chicken wings very regularly as part of their usual diet


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## RedGex (Dec 29, 2007)

Thanks for all the replies, feeling a bit braver about trying it now. Think I may restrict them to vet opening times at first though....!!


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## exoticareps (Jan 26, 2011)

*Bones*

All my three dogs are on raw diet and some dried. The majority of their food is raw. My bulldog has been fed raw since four months old. He has been vet checked regular and they say he is perfect, size. strong etc. hope this helps.

sharon x​


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## jeweled lady (Aug 25, 2009)

urbanhippie said:


> Is this ok to give as a treat style thing? I feed greyhound and lurcher food on a daily basis, but I could add these in on occasion.


Yes you can but it is best to not mix dried with raw as you are unbalancing their diet. Why not go over to the natural diet. That means raw meat and some chicken wings and raw meaty red meat bones. Bones and meat are required for the natural diet, this gives the correct calcium and phosperus ratio. Also some raw veg can be added.
Any dog going onto the BARF diet will not be visiting the vets so often because your dog will be much healthier.


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## aidanbeckey (Apr 9, 2009)

i feed my dog raw tripe. it sticks like hell but he loves it. won't even eat the odd tin when i run out he would rather starve. he's coat is fantatsic to and i put it down to the tripe full of goodness except........the smell


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

urbanhippie said:


> Is this ok to give as a treat style thing? I feed greyhound and lurcher food on a daily basis, but I could add these in on occasion.



Yes that's fine. I feed mine on a complete biscuit but every now & again i give them a couple of chicken wings with it :2thumb:.


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

corny girl said:


> Yes that's fine. I feed mine on a complete biscuit but every now & again i give them a couple of chicken wings with it :2thumb:.


Yeah, think of it like feeding a child processed food/freezer meals everyday. Feeding them just one healthier meal has be be of benefit. Of course feeding them more healthy meals than once in a while obviously would be most beneficial.


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## corny girl (Aug 30, 2009)

Kare said:


> Yeah, think of it like feeding a child processed food/freezer meals everyday. Feeding them just one healthier meal has be be of benefit. Of course feeding them more healthy meals than once in a while obviously would be most beneficial.



I would dearly love to feed a BARF diet but having 6 dogs it would be more expensive than it is now (i buy my food from Batleys so dirt cheap). Can feed 6 dogs for a month for approx £40-45 :2thumb:.


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## dizzylynn (Jul 30, 2010)

I would cook it but thats me, what about fillets just big chunks of fillets, chop them up and freeze what you dont use that day, cook them in oven.


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## cloggers (Mar 13, 2010)

you can't cook the bones, they splinter when cooked. A woman came on the park yesterday with her dog and started feeding Ozzy and a bunch of other dogs cooked chicken, it was only after another dog nearly choked on a bone (large bone, smaller dog) that she said they were wings and not breast :whip:


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## kellogg (Aug 15, 2010)

Raw chicken bones are perfectly fine for your dog to eat  my staff is on a full raw diet and he adores chicken in any form!


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## dizzylynn (Jul 30, 2010)

kellogg said:


> Raw chicken bones are perfectly fine for your dog to eat  my staff is on a full raw diet and he adores chicken in any form!


 
Think I am paraniod with raw meat. will start to try some small things out, with both dogs. Westies are usually sensitive so its going to be a long process finding whats right for her.


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## dizzylynn (Jul 30, 2010)

My only main concern is my older dog, has a habbit of just wolving it down and not chewing, so would have to try and find bigger joints so she has no choice but to chew and sit for a while eating it, also with my puppy (west highland terrier) 13 weeks old is it to soon to add a few pieces a week in to her diet, I am not doing the full on barf diet, just add a few pieces a week as a treat/supplement, would give them that on its own and leave dry food till the evening or the other way round. Whats yoru advice for the puppy, Bess is 5 years old now and she is a medium dog but is tall like a big whippet/small grayhound, slightly bigger built.


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

My advice
If they can eat solids they can eat raw and have a full raw diet
If you realise how healthy raw feeding is I don't why continue to pay MORE for a less healthy diet and feed any kibble at all
....but that's just my advice.


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## Evilshiddenclaws (May 25, 2010)

i'm resurrecting threads today, just found this while searching for threads on the BARF diet.

the puppy i'm getting later this year will hopefully be on this raw food diet so i'm doing as much research now before i make up my mind, for me money is the issue and although i would much rather feed nothing but raw food i might not be able to afford it, i'm trying to find suppliers i can buy from that wont cost me an arm and a leg!!

does anyone have any suggestions for me?? i live in the scottish borders.


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

I've recently changed my 3 Smooth Coat Chihuahuas & my Boston Terrier over to BARF. I was worried about the bone topic, but after watching my lot demolish chicken wings, any fears soon left me. I currently feed them a raw pet mince from the butchers, chicken wings, bits of grated raw veg, & am hoping a friend who's husband hunts with a Harris hawk will have a suplus rabbit for me to try my dogs on soon.


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## Rubarb (Dec 5, 2010)

Best bet is local farmers or butchers for cheap raw meat. My pup gets complete kibble in the morning and offel/bones for dinner. We have lots of farms here so can get some of the offcut bits and pieces really cheap (chicken necks ect) its always worth asking


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## RedGex (Dec 29, 2007)

My fear of feeding raw has also evaporated after watching my dogs demolish bones, they do seem to know it needs chewing!

They get beef chunks, chicken, tripe, heart, liver, rabbit/pheasant bits. Our greyhound actually turned his nose up at a leg pheasant until he thought I was about to take it off him lol, then he wolfed it down but he normally chews!


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

Evilshiddenclaws said:


> i'm resurrecting threads today, just found this while searching for threads on the BARF diet.
> 
> the puppy i'm getting later this year will hopefully be on this raw food diet so i'm doing as much research now before i make up my mind, for me money is the issue and although i would much rather feed nothing but raw food i might not be able to afford it, i'm trying to find suppliers i can buy from that wont cost me an arm and a leg!!
> 
> does anyone have any suggestions for me?? i live in the scottish borders.


Feeding my German Shepherd I spent less money feeding meat than I did feeding James Wellbeloved. 

I was living in deepest darkest Cornwall when I made the change, so that may effect the price I paid for kibble verses Raw however I have heard many say the same as I found.


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## RedGex (Dec 29, 2007)

I'm trying to get in touch with one of the raw suppliers now I'm going to need a lot - who does anyone else use,/recommend? Does anyone get deliveries to North Yorkshire? I've not had any replies yet re: delivery :S


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## Evilshiddenclaws (May 25, 2010)

Kare said:


> Feeding my German Shepherd I spent less money feeding meat than I did feeding James Wellbeloved.
> 
> I was living in deepest darkest Cornwall when I made the change, so that may effect the price I paid for kibble verses Raw however I have heard many say the same as I found.


it'll all depend on who i can get things from, bones i can get for free from my butcher but the rest of it might be a bit pricey, i have til august so i should be able to find a reliable source by then.


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## jeweled lady (Aug 25, 2009)

Have you tried landywoods.co.uk? very reasonable if you have mutiple dog household!


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

Zoo-Man said:


> I've recently changed my 3 Smooth Coat Chihuahuas & my Boston Terrier over to BARF. I was worried about the bone topic, but after watching my lot demolish chicken wings, any fears soon left me. I currently feed them a raw pet mince from the butchers, chicken wings, bits of grated raw veg, & am hoping a friend who's husband hunts with a Harris hawk will have a suplus rabbit for me to try my dogs on soon.



Colin...

I get an order from Durham Animal Feeds every month, if you want anything I can let you know when the delivery day is and you can tag it onto the order (not this month though as it was delivered today)

Durham Animal Feeds :: DAF Petfood - DAF Frozen Foods


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

RedGex said:


> I'm trying to get in touch with one of the raw suppliers now I'm going to need a lot - who does anyone else use,/recommend? Does anyone get deliveries to North Yorkshire? I've not had any replies yet re: delivery :S



Durham deliver to most areas although there's a delivery price limit of about £45. The lamb ribs and bag of beef bones are great value, but things like chicken carcasses are quite expensive. 

Delivery schedule is Durham Animal Feeds :: DAF Petfood - Distribution


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

Meko said:


> Colin...
> 
> I get an order from Durham Animal Feeds every month, if you want anything I can let you know when the delivery day is and you can tag it onto the order (not this month though as it was delivered today)
> 
> Durham Animal Feeds :: DAF Petfood - DAF Frozen Foods


Aww thanks mate. I'll have a look & let you know : victory:


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## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

Natural Frozen Pet Foods - Prize Choice - The Natural Food for Healthy Animals are worth looking at. I buy their foods but I go past a shop that does it cheaper as long as you buy 12 packs and that is good enough for us.


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## Evilshiddenclaws (May 25, 2010)

jeweled lady said:


> Have you tried landywoods.co.uk? very reasonable if you have mutiple dog household!


i checked them but they don't deliver to me, i'm up in scotland



Kare said:


> Natural Frozen Pet Foods - Prize Choice - The Natural Food for Healthy Animals are worth looking at. I buy their foods but I go past a shop that does it cheaper as long as you buy 12 packs and that is good enough for us.


I used to buy things directly from Prize Choice but they tend to be a little expensive. I've possibly found a couple places cheaper, need to do more digging


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## RedGex (Dec 29, 2007)

Thanks looks good, i'll drop them a message 



Meko said:


> Durham deliver to most areas although there's a delivery price limit of about £45. The lamb ribs and bag of beef bones are great value, but things like chicken carcasses are quite expensive.
> 
> Delivery schedule is Durham Animal Feeds :: DAF Petfood - Distribution


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## RedGex (Dec 29, 2007)

Just wanted to update on this... got my first order from Durham Animal Feeds a couple of weeks ago - they were brilliant, great communication, helpful and food is great. Good job I picked up a new freezer in time though...!

Thanks Meko : victory:


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