# Chain supermarket giving me expired meats! Need advice on what to take/give pup



## Mog (Aug 10, 2012)

Hey all,

I'm really excited! I stopped at the grocery store after work to pick up a few things and figured I'd stop and talk to someone behind the meat counter and see what they did with their expired meats. He told me that they throw them out daily and then showed me a cart with 45lbs or so of meat in it an said if I wanted it, to take it! :happyboogie:And he said I can stop in every day and take whatever I wanted! So I just spent an hour and a half cutting up meat, bagging it and tossing it the freezer 

I have a few questions though that I'm hoping someone more experienced in BARF diets could answer.

1. I have 3 lbs of chop meat that are dark brown, but only a very slight smell. From what I've read, as long as it's not rancid, it would be fine for the pup? 

2. I have about 20 lbs of pork. In the cart was a boston pork roast and a "pork picnic"??? The roast had a small bone and the picnic had a huge bone. I cut the meat off and bagged them as recreational bones. Are these types of bones (pork) okay for the pup when he gets bigger? Are there any bones I should avoid?

3. I have a 20 lbs of beef... A boneless beef roast, boneless bottom roast and a top round sirlon. I cut 2 lbs of the beef roast up for training treats and the rest into small bite size pieces; maybe inch cube. I'm going to start the pup off on chicken and eventually add other protein sources gradually to see how he handles them. Do you guys cut the pieces up small or leave them in big chunks?

4. I was going to use beef and pork hearts as my main MM due to the price... but if I can get this much MM for free, is there any reason to get the heart? Are there any nutritional benefits compared to beef and pork roasts? I'm placing an order with the supplier I found and was going to order a box of beef and a box of pork hearts, but they come in 60lb box's at just about $60 a box... 

5. There was also a 1 lb sealed package of pork tenderloin, but it says teriyaki flavored... I'm guessing that wouldn't be good for a pup? Also, there were some "Italian flavored" pork sausages. If I can use them great, but I don't want to get pup sick. Should I leave anything that's "flavored" and only take "clean" meat?

I don't think the person who gave me the meat was a manager, so I'm not going to push it and only take the meat when he's there  Don't want to ruin a good thing! I just bought a 15 cf freezer for the pup's food, but if this keeps up, may take the money I saved and buy another! 

Thanks for your help and advice!


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I also get past sale date meat, and do not feed anything that is seasoned. I freeze it all, sorting it in my freezer by bone content. Now and then I thaw something that is really off, and I toss it, but for the most part, all is fine to feed the dogs. I don't feed the dense bones, especially beef. 
As far as hearts go, I like to feed lamb hearts. I don't think I'd order beef or pork because my dogs eat those proteins often...seldom do they get lamb(duck or other 'exotic' would be better than the same ol' same ol')
Count your blessings with this! It is amazing how much is thrown out at grocery stores. Feed America is supposed to be utilizing the service, but many communities won't do it because of the hassle to pick up/store/sort. And then some stores are so efficient in their ordering, they seldom have any rendered meat.


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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

Lucky you!!

I would not use anything that has been spiced or coated. 

The roasts, you could cut them into chunks (BIG chunks that the pup will need to chew). Which of the bones you leave meat on will depend on the type and how hard they are. Beef bones can be very hard, but, except for the leg/ham bones, most pork is edible. Same with lamb. Actually the large bones are probably safer for him now than when his jaws are stronger. Even if you use them as recreational bones I would leave some meat on them. 

Hope that helps.


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## Mog (Aug 10, 2012)

Thanks Jane,

Before this, beef and pork was going to be out of my price range except a real good sale here and there. The hearts ranged from 78-98 cents a pound and was the cheapest MM I could get. For me, finances are a huge issue. 
But if if I get lucky and this continues, I'll have more beef and pork than I know what to do with. I'll have to "take care of" the guy giving me the meat  So then I'll look into lamb heart, not sure if my supplier can get it. 

Tomorrow morning I'm placing a large order:
1. Chicken necks - 80lbs
2. Chicken thighs - 40lbs
3. Chicken liver - 40lbs
4. Chicken leg quarters - 40lbs
5. Turkey necks - 30lbs
6. pork necks - 30lbs
7. Beef liver - 40lbs
8. Beef Kidney - 40lbs
9. Tripe - 10lbs

The distributor doesn't have any decent priced chicken MM, so I'll have to look for breast/split breasts on sale. What else can I use for chicken MM that might not be too high on price? Can I use leg quarters and necks as RMB and MM? I want to feed pup chicken for the first two weeks and then start introducing new proteins. 

Since I want to keep the pup on chicken for the first couple of weeks... I have a question about the OM... In this order, there is 100lbs! That's over 4 years worth! lmao I'd like to cut it down to one and save a lot of freezer space. If you had to choose, what would you pick? Should I get the chicken and maybe one of the others... the beef liver or Kidney?

Sorry about the questions, but have to place the order first thing in the am and want to clear up any questions I have so I don't order something I don't need/won't have room for.

Thanks!


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## Mog (Aug 10, 2012)

Thanks Lisa,

I already cut the beef roasts into 1" cubes. The pork I left in big steak slices. After cutting up 3 lbs of beef into tiny treat sizes and the other beef into cubes, I was done  So I'll end up cutting those into bigger pieces he has to chew on. Any any future meat I'll cut into bigger pieces. I was worried about him trying to swallow big pieces whole and choking.

I left quite a bit of meat on the both bones and will do so on any that I get in the future. I just thought they would be too big for him now and his puppy teeth. Good to know I can give them to him as recreational now. Why do you say they are better for him now, than when his jaws are stronger? Just curious... 

I'll toss the seasoned meat and not take any more home. I was just so excited when the counter guy handed me a cart full of expired meat. I just grabbed some bags at the register and bagged them at the car, never looked at what he actually gave me 

And I do count my blessings... I really want to give our pup the best raw diet I can and getting good quality meat for free is a tremendous help! I live on cereal most of the time, he'll be eating a lot better than me! lol


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## Mog (Aug 10, 2012)

Forgot to add to my order in the morning:

1. Chicken backs - 40lbs
2. Pork heart - 50lbs

At what age can a pup start eating chicken backs?

So that's 440lbs of meat! 360 if I drop the beef liver and kidney.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

That is a ton of food! Too much liver...you will have that lasting forever. I usually only order one box of turkey necks. 
I get two big totes of past sale date meat every two weeks. This consists of what the grocery sells, along with chicken and beef liver & some fish. I get about 30# of green tripe along with 10# of lamb hearts once a month. All that food is a months supply to feed three adult GSD's and over fills my freezer with some left over. 
As far as age, an 8 week old pup should be able to devour backs ok, but I think I'd wait til about 12 and continue to feed necks/legs/thighs. The backs have small sharp bones and the pup needs to learn to eat slow so those go down in smaller bits. 
I never fed backs until recently, I found a small grocery store that sells them for 29 cents a #....so I stop in on Friday's and buy up their supply(4-5 packages) That would be a few days of rmbs.


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## Mog (Aug 10, 2012)

Thanks Jane,

By any chance did you mix up necks and backs? I thought that necks were the first thing a pup could eat, which is why I was going to order 80lbs of them. And when you said the backs have small bones and the pup needs to learn to east slow, so they go down, sort of makes me think you meant necks first and then backs at 12 weeks.

I'm only ordering one box of turkey necks... they only come in 30lb boxes from the distributor I'm getting them from. 

I wish the livers would come in smaller sizes, would like to mix them up... 100lbs is way too much, I know 

Thanks again for your time and help! 

Alex


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Liver is so cheap, no reason to buy it in bulk. Try to stay with calves liver or other protein vs chicken liver. 
Yes, the chicken or turkey necks should be fed first, then go to the larger chicken rmb's. I really think you are over ordering, but if you have freezer space, go for it! 
The one thing I really don't like to feed is pork neck bones. They are very sharp/dense and a young pup won't easily eat or digest it. My dogs will even barf up chunks of bone now and then when I feed them. I get them often in my totes, because my source has bulldogs and saves the smaller/softer bones for her own dogs. They don't grind either(she grinds all her food for her dogs)
I'd scratch those off your list at this time....your pup won't be able to eat them for awhile.


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## Mog (Aug 10, 2012)

Thanks.

I know a few things that I'm ordering, he won't be able to eat for a while. I just wanted to get and package 6 months of food... so for example, his first month will just consist of chicken necks and turkey necks, then the 2nd will be necks and backs, then the 3rd will be thighs and legs, then the 4th month will be a mix of all. Since you said the pork necks are sharp/dense, I'll drop them. I should have plenty of pork MM.

I plan on ordering tomorrow morning and picking up Friday after work and spending the rest of the night packaging and putting them in the freezer. I figured if I take the time all at once and have his meals made for 6 months, it saves me a lot of time down the road. I just bought a 15 cubic foot freezer, just for Maximus's food  (thanks to my tax return) So I have plenty of storage space. And honestly, if I get lucky and continue to get the expired food, I'm considering adding a 13 cf freezer. For the money I'm saving, it would be nice to have a years worth of food on hand and prepped and not have to worry about it! Not that I would buy full price food for Max, but just the meat I picked up today was $150 worth retail. I could easily make the $300 back for the freezer in a month getting expired food. Lately it seems "s**t happens" quite often... so knowing the pup has quality food for a while is one less thing that I have to worry about.

I've never seen liver in the grocery stores, but I haven't really had an urge to look for it until now  When you say calf liver, you mean regular beef, or is there a difference?

Okay, so here's the modified list: 

1. Chicken necks - 80lbs
2. Chicken backs - 40lbs
3. Chicken thighs - 40lbs
4. Chicken leg quarters - 40lbs
5. Turkey necks - 30lbs
6. Pork heart - 50 lbs - Not sure if this is necessary as long as I get a lot of pork MM from the grocery store. Will check to see if they can get Lamb Heart instead.
7. Beef liver - 40lbs
8. Tripe - 20lbs
9. Either Tilapia or Whiting fillets - 10lbs to see if Maximus likes them or not.

Thanks again for everyones help! I feel a lot more comfortable about ordering now.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Calf liver is a bit more in price than beef liver, but is better. And when they(beef) are grain fed, there are more holes in the liver than if grass fed. Remember the liver is a filter.

Tripe is something I feed daily and I go through a 2# container every 5 days for my three dogs.
Fish isn't favored, I either feed it semi-frozen or disguised. Though they love canned sardines or mackeral.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

You guys are sooooo lucky. When I lived closer to the NC state line I used to dip into NC because you could get just out of date meats. In SC they force it to all be discarded (at least that has been my experience....bummer...used to get great deals that way..all I can say is out of date chicken noooooo it gets nasty nasty fast)


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