Feeding dogs wild game

[Sanchez]

The Oregon State Police have told me it is OK to feed game to your dog.

In the USA it is estimated 30 to 40 % of the store bought food gets wasted. I do way, way better than that on game meat (maybe 98 %), but if I loose a package in the bottom of the freezer it is not a crime.

 

[robtattoo]

I do have another anecdotal opinion.... i'm lucky that I get to hunt private land hogs, pretty much year round, I only need 3 deer sized critters a year to keep myself self sufficient for my meat (I don't eat store bought, let than maybe 3lb of bacon a year) so any excess pigs that I cull get ground for my dogs too. I have a grinder tough enough to take all but the biggest bones, so I grind those up with the meat.
It's not all my dogs eat, but wild game constitutes probably 3 meals a week, plus treats.
The hogs need killing anyway & I can only eat so much (mi esposo is a vaginatarian) so it seems like a good use of a nuisance resource.

 

[atfrith]

Anybody cut their femur bones down or dehydrate them before giving it to the dog? I've been giving them to my girlfriend's lab whole and just keep an eye on him, but she sometimes worries about it splintering.

Needless to say, i am his best friend now. Plus i give him all the sheds i find.

Yup. I cut them in half or thirds. But as the Vet posted below you, some dogs should probably not be given bones. We only give raw bones to our Dogs (never cooked), and only while we are on the couch relaxing for the night and can keep an eye on them. The first sound of a bone cracking or splintering and I take them away (retire them to the trash). They typically only get a couple 20 min sessions out of a bone before I toss them. We also only give them femurs or other sturdy bones, nothing they could easily devour.

 

[Tony Trietch]

When we discovered worms in our dogs turds the first thing the vet asked was if we gave them raw venison. Oops. Maybe freezing it would kill them, or maybe your dogs are tougher than mine.

My dogs see the vet regularly and have never seen any parasites,

 

[Bear_Hunter]

Probably not much a dog can get from eating wild raw game except trichinosis from bears (plus a couple other species but can't recall which). Though I've heard it doesn't affect dogs as bad as humans. My pup will get salmon skin from a cooked fillet or the juice from canned bear/salmon poured over kibble.

 

[TxxAgg]

Hahaha

 

[Kjackgold]

I normally give the dog some of the scraps. Front legs or scraps while cutting it up. I do not usually save scraps or freeze them but i dont know why not. Seems like a good plan if you have the freezer space. I sure the dog will be happy.

 

[willidru]

Scraps and bones for my lab. Her energy goes through the roof when she gets raw game meat. Also helps that it aligns with duck season and it’s time for her to work.

 

[Trekenc]

I feed my dog venison. Why would you not? I have lost three dogs to cancer. One was from diamond dog food which there was a national class action suit where they were paying for dogs they killed (I never pursued a payment). The others I dont doubt had somthing to do with the food. You think they are putting choice ingredients in dry food? Ha. If game numbers are high enough to shoot enough for me, my family and the dog. Heck yea.

 

[Trial153]

Yes, my hounds get a hot mash of meat, fish and everything else once or more a week when I am running them hard. I grind every scrap of meat and fat, freeze it in five pound blocks, the goes in hot pot of mash..

Nothing will keep hard running dogs up like meat and fat.

 

[Ocnandmtns]

If I shoot a creature I want every possible bit of it to be used well and won’t let a bit of it go into a landfill. So my priorities with any meat are 1) me and my family, 2) my dog 3) back to nature. So my dog gets bullet/arrow damaged meat, silver skin trimmings, some bones and organ meat I don’t eat, etc and anything I don’t want to feed to him I take back to the woods for the scavengers.