# Meat/Bones for the Dogs



## Itchysmom

I am wondering if these have to be cooked before giving them to the dogs. When I have enough goats to butcher I am planning on using some of the meat and bones for the dogs. When I buy beef bones at the store, they get them raw. Someone told me I should boil them first, but my dogs like them raw. I ususally feed cooked meat. Which way is better for the dogs?

If I feed the meat raw, will this make them agressive to my live goats?


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## Mon Reve Farm

I can't remember where I saw this but they said you shouldn't boil bones before giving them to dogs. They recommended freezing them for a week to kill any potential bacteria. Thaw in fridge then give to dogs.


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## toth boer goats

I would "not" recommend feeding raw goat meat to dogs...they will like the taste and may make your goat herd a smorgasbord..... I usually don't like even feeding cooked goat... to the dogs........ I fear them eying the goats and creating a problem...this is my opinion.... :wink:


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## lissablack

You should never feed cooked bones to a dog, cooking makes them more brittle and they can splinter more easily and injure the dog internally. Raw bones are okay. I feed my dog raw goat all the time. Of course I don't let her near my goats, but she clearly doesn't think they are food. (She thinks they are toys.) My dogs have never been that bright, but once when there was a cat-killed dead gopher in my yard that the cat had partly eaten, the dogs didn't even recognize that as food. They thought is was a toy.

On the subject of bacteria, do you see the stuff your dogs put in their mouths outside? Ick. What I wouldn't let them do it bury bones to dig up and eat later when they have moldered in the ground a long time.

Jan


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## freedomstarfarm

lissablack said:


> You should never feed cooked bones to a dog, cooking makes them more brittle and they can splinter more easily and injure the dog internally. Raw bones are okay. I feed my dog raw goat all the time. Of course I don't let her near my goats, but she clearly doesn't think they are food. (She thinks they are toys.) My dogs have never been that bright, but once when there was a cat-killed dead gopher in my yard that the cat had partly eaten, the dogs didn't even recognize that as food. They thought is was a toy.
> 
> On the subject of bacteria, do you see the stuff your dogs put in their mouths outside? Ick. What I wouldn't let them do it bury bones to dig up and eat later when they have moldered in the ground a long time.
> 
> Jan


 :thumbup: 
Never feed ant type of cooked bones to dogs!


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## Dani-1995

My dogs never get cooked bones. On the rare occasion they get a bone its raw and I make sure they can't get it lodged in their throats. I usually don't give them bones because if we have them they're cooked and if not they are too small for my dog... he's a decent size and I worry he might swallow one. Like others have said, cooked bones splinter easier and cause internal injury.


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## Steve

I have had many dogs in my life,they all got cooked bones.I never seen a problem with it.I have seen bones get stuck in the roof of their mouths.Seen sticks stuck there too.Your dogs might like them raw.No need to change if they are eating them up.


I would think it to be a personal choice.Then again it is a dog not a human.


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## potentialfarm

We've discovered that 2 of our dogs (we have 3 big dogs) tend to get um...intestinal issues (out of either end) when the bones/meat scraps are cooked. Thinking it's because their stomachs were meant to digest raw bone/meat? We try to make a decent portion of their diet based around stuff we grow. I think it's healthier for them, and it definitely helps with the dog food expense.
They get raw beef/pork/chicken: skin/bones/meat scraps. We don't have a problem w/agression towards the livestock. I don't think they associate the live creature w/the food.
Actually, one dog acts as a surrogate "mom" to the piglets. He cleans their faces & they snuggle w/him.


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## Itchysmom

Thanks for your inputs!

I have never cooked bones for the dogs..they like them raw. Even when they chew them down to nubs, I have never had a problem. 

I just figured that feeding them raw meat saves time for me! I have yet to feed them raw meat of any kind. Usually it is left over meat that I have already cooked. Guess I will ponder on it a bit more. It will be another year or so before I have goat meat anyway!


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## freedomstarfarm

Mine get raw bones fro the market some times and I have fed them raw dog diet premade from the pet store of rabbit, buffalo and also chicken. 
They run around the yard with my free range chickens and I have never had a problem. They should never be allowed to associate the meat with the source... Don't butcher the goat infront of them and then give them some. Other than that there should be no worries about association.


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## toth boer goats

> Thanks for your inputs!


Your welcome.... :thumb:


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## luvmyherd

lissablack said:


> she clearly doesn't think they are food. (She thinks they are toys.)


LOL, that sounds like our Tiffany. She is nearly 14. Three years ago she was going down hill fast. Before having her put down; we decided to put her on a whole (bone, fat, meat, entrails) raw diet. She rallied and has had three more great years. She is slowing down again now but needless to say; I am a big advocate of feeding raw. When we get a new puppy there will be no processed dog food.
I would not recommend this for all dogs as they have different temperments, but Tiffany loves butchering days; be it rabbit, chicken or goat. I was a little take aback when I saw her with Chevon's head in her mouth but I got over it.


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## EstellaMA

My dogs eat a raw diet of primarily rabbit and chicken, I recently added goat to the menu. There are house rabbit pets that they ignore and I've been known to give the dogs a whole rabbit, skin and fur intact and not bled out with no problems towards the house rabbits. My dogs prefer it frozen and partially thawed, so there is never any sign of life. I give it frozen solid straight from the freezer on occasion. Just to keep them busy for a while on those slow, boring days I have a strict policy of them sitting and waiting till bowls are placed and I give them the ok to move to bowls and eat...even back when they had a processed dog kibble. I'm alpha and I don't like being mobbed for food


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