# Italian Sausage?



## GSDTrain (Apr 21, 2008)

is it ok to feed dogs raw italian sausage?

I have a friend that feeds raw and recently got italian sausage for her dogs but had second thoughts about it and is wondering if it ok to feed it to them. I feed Ivy RAW but have never given her italian sausage of any sort, cooked or raw.

Any information would be greatly appriciated!

Thanks!


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## MayzieGSD (Aug 28, 2006)

I do not feed raw personally, but I would think that italian sausage would be too high in fat. Hopefully others will chime in here


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

I would feed it in small amounts. Might be too spicy to be used as a whole meal.


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

I wouldn't. Sausage almost always contains fennel, which falls into the onion family -- more than small amounts can be toxic. If it's spicy sausage, it will contain red pepper, which isn't probably great for your pup's stomach. Sweet sausage contains little, if any, red pepper. 

If it's good quality sausage, it will be made from decent quality pork, so it will be fatty, but not overly so. But unless you know exactly where it's from, and it has an ingredients list, that will be hard to tell. It may also contain wine (which in raw sausage means it's still alcoholic, which you *definitely* do not want to feed to your dog.)

I'd have to read the ingredients list and use my judgement. At best, I'd add a bit here and there to a meal. I'd NEVER give it as a full meal. Without an ingredients list, I would not feed it to my dogs.


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

Fat is good for dogs. It provides energy.

If a dog is overweight you just feed LESS fat.


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## Mandalay (Apr 21, 2008)

Sausage is usually very greasy when cooking, which means there is so much fat in it...plus the seasonings are just not "normal" for a dog...dont find many sausages running around in the wild.









I just dont think I would risk it.


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

If it's made with Pork - pork is very fatty to begin with.

Again - dogs need fat so I wouldn't rule it out based on that. I'd want to know (if possible) what went into making the sausage (spices, sugars, etc) but I would probably still use it - just in moderation.


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## nathalie1977 (Sep 4, 2006)

> Originally Posted By: Mandalaydont find many sausages running around in the wild.


Then what's this?


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## brt (Sep 16, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Lauri & The GangI would feed it in small amounts. Might be too spicy to be used as a whole meal.


I never fed it raw but italian sausage comes in different varieties. The hot variety is too spicy for me. I prefer the sweet kind and my dogs always enjoyed it in my spaghetti sauce.


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## sprzybyl (May 15, 2008)

is anyone else concerned with raw pork? Correct me if I am wrong, but i believe it is more likely to contain parasites and/ or bacteria. If that's the case, see if you can find chicken or turkey sausage instead. it will have less fat and less buggies in it (raw).


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## GSDTrain (Apr 21, 2008)

ok, thanks for all the great info. I will make sure I tell her. Its better to be safe then sorry.

here is a link to the sausage she bought, it includes the ingredients too: https://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/store...TakeoutMainView

Here is the pic of the sausage, just in case you need it:









Thanks Again


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

Great photo Nat!

A lot of raw feeders use hot dogs for treats. Sausage may be just as "healthy"







Or not. 

It really depends. If it's something that comes from a deli, is wrapped in white paper, and you don't know what the heck is in it (unless the deli manager can give you an ingredients list. They often can), I wouldn't feed it. 

But I know that when we've made sausage with my mom, it's pretty healthy stuff, and I wouldn't hesitate to feed it to my dogs -- actually, I'd feel far more confident feeding it to my dogs than most brands of hot dogs, which, frankly, I find pretty scary.

It just sort of depends. As Lauri keeps pointing out, dogs need fat. And sausage is made with pork shoulder, pork loin, or lean pork butt, which is exactly what we feed our dogs normally. We just toss in some grated hard cheeses -- Romano, parmesan, asiago (salty, but they add a bit of calcium, and not enough to worry about), olive oil and some herbs like parsley, rosemary, and basil (nice anti-inflammatories), and black pepper (nothing dogs need, but nothing that will harm them), fennel and garlic (these need to be watched), and other ingredients that MIGHT need to be monitored. 

Italian sausage is pretty simple. It's not necessarily bizarre and scary food. But I feed raw to my dog because I want to know exactly what he's eating. So an ingredients list is required reading for me before I feed him anything. 

So, that's what I recommend.


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## GSDTrain (Apr 21, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: sprzybylis anyone else concerned with raw pork? Correct me if I am wrong, but i believe it is more likely to contain parasites and/ or bacteria. If that's the case, see if you can find chicken or turkey sausage instead. it will have less fat and less buggies in it (raw).


i've never heard that before, I feed Ivy raw pork sometimes and have never had any problems. I haven't had any problems with any other meats (turkey, chicken etc.) either. what i do know is that pork is on the fattier side but have never heard of it containing parasite.


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

Is the Kielbasa what is being served? That's POLISH sausage -- a whole other sausage entirely (said the Italian woman).










And as noted on the webpage:



> Quote:
> Fully Cooked. Heat & Eat.


This stuff isn't much different than a turkey & beef hot dog (no offense to our Polish members), but probably with better quality of meat (I'm hoping). It has different flavorings, but it's processed in much the same way with 1/2 the fat. I wouldn't feed it for a meal, but if you're inclined to give hot dogs for treats, you could feed this.


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## Mandalay (Apr 21, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Nat
> 
> 
> > Originally Posted By: Mandalaydont find many sausages running around in the wild.
> ...


 mmmm..."DINNER!!" say the GSDs


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## Mandalay (Apr 21, 2008)

Oh Kielbasa? I was envisioning breakfast sausage. Jimmy Dean and the like. I dont think Kiebasa has nearly as many spicy seasonings.


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## GSDTrain (Apr 21, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: 3K9MomIs the Kielbasa what is being served? That's POLISH sausage -- a whole other sausage entirely (said the Italian woman).


sorry, i was just going off of what she told me!!


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## SunCzarina (Nov 24, 2000)

It's precooked and my dogs love to be thrown a raw piece. However, it's much better eaten by humans! 

Recipe from my aunts Polish husband - Boil it for 10 minutes then stick it in a crock pot with 1 cup of brown sugar, 1 cup of ketchup and 1/4 cup of Jack Daniels. Cook it for a few hours.


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

Do you drink the Jack or does it go into the crock pot?


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## balakai (Feb 9, 2005)

Ooooh, Jenn, that sounds good! I've got to write that down!!

~Kristin


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## SunCzarina (Nov 24, 2000)

Thanks, it's very good and always a hit as a potluck dish.


> Originally Posted By: 3K9MomDo you drink the Jack or does it go into the crock pot?










, it goes in the pot!


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## LJsMom (Jan 6, 2008)

Another crockpot kielbasa recipe -

3 lb. kielbasa cut up
1 12 oz jar chili sauce
3 T hot sauce
1 T dry mustard
2 T ground cinnamon
2 t nutmeg
1 32 oz jar grape jelly

Mix together and simmer in crockpot for a few hours.


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