# Feeding raw in lieu of femur bones once a week?



## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

We feed a dry kibble, and though have an interest in the raw diet it's just not feasible right now. 

We buy raw femur bones (which I know are mostly bone) from the butcher and feed a chunk each week. The end pieces they eat in whole. 

Would it be advisible or not recommended to swap things up now and again and offer (maybe even in addition to the weekly femur bone) to offer something else that has more meat? If so - what would be recommended?

thanks


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## phgsd (Jun 6, 2004)

Personally, I would not feed femurs or other weight bearing bones from a large animal...they are super dense and can do major damage to your dog's teeth. 

You could go with chicken leg quarters - they are easy to find, easy to eat, and have a decent amount of meat on them. You could offer pork ribs, any kind of heart, any turkey or chicken...pork or beef...really anything you can find, I just don't feed weight bearing bones from animals such as cows, pigs, deer, etc.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

I wasn't looking for advice on the femurs but thank you...we've fed them for many years and ours dogs have gorgeous teeth and no damage at all. When we feed them to fosters with crappy teeth, it cleans the tartar right off. 

Will give the chicken quarters a shot, thanks!


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## Jax's Mom (Apr 2, 2010)

I'd like to know too, because I do it


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

hmmmm- bought a big bag of chicken quarters today. Only 59 cents/lb. Since I'll only be feeding them once a week or so as an occasional treat, I put them in bags of 3 (1 for each dog) and froze them. Can I feed them frozen like the femur bones, or should I thaw them first?


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## Jax's Mom (Apr 2, 2010)

I thaw them in a sink full of hot water. The frozen bones tend to cut their gums.


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## Rott-n-GSDs (Jul 7, 2010)

Jax's Mom said:


> I thaw them in a sink full of hot water. The frozen bones tend to cut their gums.


I have never heard this, and have fed frozen chicken leg quarters without issue.


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

Mine get necks, backs, and leg quarters occasionally as a treat and they are always frozen. I've never noticed bleeding though I'm sure it's possible probably not a huge deal.


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## Lin (Jul 3, 2007)

Rerun said:


> Can I feed them frozen like the femur bones, or should I thaw them first?


Either is fine. With the bags of chicken quarters, check that they aren't in a sodium brine and if so you might want to rinse them off first. 

I also get pork ribs from Kroger constantly, the 10lb boxes are really cheap. Not as cheap as chicken quarters, but its another one of my staples.


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## Isabella (Apr 27, 2010)

Lin said:


> I also get pork ribs from Kroger constantly, the 10lb boxes are really cheap. Not as cheap as chicken quarters, but its another one of my staples.


So how do you feed ribs - do you give them a slab or do you cut the individual ribs? Aren't rib bones way too small??


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Giving femur bones or rib bones should be considered "recreational chewing" not part of the raw diet or meal.
And they generally are not consumed as a chicken leg 1/4 or other chicken part. 
Beef bones are dense and I never give them as RMB's as part of a raw diet. Pork is also harder and I'll give them as long as they aren't too large. The only pork I give are chops with bones and the neck bones. Very seldom do I ever give ribs and do so with caution. I get a wide variety of meat in the co-op I'm in sometimes I pitch bones that I know my dogs may have issues with.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

The dense bone from the femur of a large animal , cow, is not what the dog would be eating . You can buy knee caps separtely . Great source of chewing recreation and chondroitin . Ribs are ideal, bovine or lamb . Turkey necks will do the same job.
I feed my dogs frozen chicken carcass and have no problems with gums. Many asian stores will have pork riblets - pork ribs cut into approximately one to two inch cubes . In my neighbourhood I can get them for 99cents a pound. 
Also pork necks -- excellent choice , I get them for 69cents a pound. Don't have them cut because they tend to cut them and create sharp pointy ends. Let the dog crunch and crush them . Pork necks can be nice and meaty.

Carmen
Carmspack Working German Shepherd Dogs


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## Rott-n-GSDs (Jul 7, 2010)

onyx'girl said:


> Giving femur bones or rib bones should be considered "recreational chewing" not part of the raw diet or meal.
> And they generally are not consumed as a chicken leg 1/4 or other chicken part.


My dogs get pork ribs as a regular part of their raw diet and eat them with no difficulty whatsoever. While the chicken leg quarters are consumed faster, the pork ribs are still eaten relatively quickly and with no struggle. There is certainly nothing left afterwards.

To answer the question about how to feed, mine have gotten them both ways: individual ribs and racks of ribs. When feeding individual ribs, I make sure they are nice and meaty so they aren't super small.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Sorry, thought it was clear - we give the femur bones as simply a bonus to the dogs. It's strictly a treat and it keeps their teeth sparkling white. We buy the entire femur, and the butcher cuts them into 4 - 6 inch sections. These femurs are huge compared to what one finds in the grocery store marked "marrow bones." As such, the end pieces are HUGE and they will cut them off and then half them. The end pieces get consumed 100% in the course of the day, while the marrow bones of course are just licked clean inside and out.

But yes, the end pieces of the femur they do consume.


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## Lin (Jul 3, 2007)

Isabella said:


> So how do you feed ribs - do you give them a slab or do you cut the individual ribs? Aren't rib bones way too small??


Too small? Absolutely not. A pork rib is a far cry larger than a chicken rib, and I feel whole chickens regularly.

I feed half a slab at a time.

As for not being fully consumed... I've never had any pork ribs left by a dog. In fact they have an easier time on the pork ribs than some turkey parts.


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