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Raw Diet Basics
Raw Meaty Bones
Muscle Meat
Organ Meat
Veggie Mush
Benefits
Drawbacks
Getting Started
Premade vs DIY
How Much to Feed
Feeding a Raw Diet
Grinding
Recreational Bones
Planning Orders
Finding Sources
Supplies & Tools
Helpful Tips
Organ
Meats - the
basic organs meats are the liver, kidneys and brains of the animal.
These should be fed in small amounts - especially the liver - as they are
very rich and can cause stomach upset in some dogs.
The organ meat we use most frequently is liver. We use mostly beef liver for the most part and sometimes get hold of bison and turkey livers.
The beef liver we buy comes whole from our supplier. Here's a picture of a whole beef liver:
They
are easy to process when whole as the outer skin makes it easy to slice
them up. I use a basic, sharp
butcher knife and a small kitchen scissors (if necessary).
You want the knife long enough and tall enough to go through the
whole liver. I use the
cheapest plastic zip-close bags I can find.
And I use an electronic scale. (Note: It helps to have
the bags already opened before you start.
When your hands are wet it can be hard to pull the bags open.
Here's a picture of the supplies I use to process the liver:
Liver is one of the few items I actually weigh and package accordingly. I put 2 days worth of liver in each bag. I use a small bowl to stand the plastic bag up in. It makes it easier to drop the liver in the bag. I put the bowl and the plastic bag on the scale and then reset it. I then cut up the liver into slabs or chunks and drop them in the bag.
Here's a picture of the liver being cut and weighed:
Once I have the desired amount in that bag I take it out of the bowl, place it off to the side, put in a new bag and reset the scale. I continue until the liver is finished.
Here I have 2 bags ready to seal and the liver is half gone:
(I
usually put a couple extra ounces in the bag instead of the EXACT 2 day
amount. That way if someone
needs to be increased, I have enough in the bag. If not, I divide the
extra couple ounces among the 6 dogs and it’s hardly noticeable.
2 ounces divided by 6 dogs is less than half an ounce extra per
dog.
Once all the liver is bagged I roll the bags to remove the excess air and seal them:
I then place 3-4 bags of liver into a small garbage bag (this helps cut down on the leaking into the bottom of the freezer) and then stack them in the freezer.
Here the bags of liver are stacked inside the garbage bag:
Since
I use the cheap zip-close bags I don’t bother cleaning or reusing them.
I just throw them out when I’m finished with them and buy new
ones.
If
you have a hard time handling the liver you can slightly freeze it.
You may have to saw through it a little more than the unfrozen
stuff but it can be easier to handle.
Feel free to email me at info@rawdogranch.com if you have any questions!