Raw Chicken

Salmonella! and E Coli! and Intestinal Punctures! Oh my!

For nearly one year I have been feeding raw chicken, safely. No bacterias. No injuries. No digestive upset. Just happy dogs with the cleanest teeth and firmest poops.

*NEVER feed COOKED bones!

Tsuki and her chicken leg:


Raw chicken parts are the easiest way to transition into a raw diet. Chicken bones are phenomenal - they are soft enough so that they bend easily, and break well for the dog to digest.
The bone itself is a nutritious stool firmer. The inside of a chicken bone (marrow) is rich in nutrients and surprisingly porous.

(click to enlarge)

Most of the horror stories surrounding chicken bones are caused by COOKED chicken bones. When fed RAW, the bones are a lot softer and can easily be crushed and digested. Raw meaty bones (RMB) are not only great for maintaining oral health, it also provides essential nutrients such as essential fatty acids (EFA's), fat soluble vitamins, enzymes, and the mineral content is in perfect balance (ie, Calcium to Phosphorous ratio).

According to Dr. Billinghurst, raw chicken bones contain the highest essential fatty acid content out of all animal bones and is considered to carry the most nutritional value. He recommends raw chicken necks and wings for puppies or beginners as they are soft and safe, and the meat to bone ratio are perfect. (Read: Give Your Dog a Bone)

Cooking the bones on the other hand changes the entire chemical composition of the bone making it hard and brittle, and can easily splinter and kill a dog (especially chicken bones). Not only are cooked bones dangerous, they are also of very little nutritional value as the essential nutrients mentioned above are lost through the cooking process. Further more, minerals in bones are made unavailable through cooking, and can actually cause calcium deposits in joints (arthritis), and calcification of soft tissues & organs. Same thing goes for calcium supplements and calcium added in commercial diets.


I personally believe feeding your dog is management of risk. Doesn't matter what kind of diet you choose to feed your dog, there are always risks (be it from choking, nutrient imbalance, cancer causing preservatives, and so on). Can a dog die from eating raw chicken bones? I guess anything is possible, but dogs have also chocked and suffocated to death due to inhaling kibbles. There is no one way of feeding your dog, and as long as you have done your research and is comfortable feeding what you're feeding, you are doing the best to your ability and for your dog.
Tsuki, my 18lb female Shiba Inu, is also comfortable with our feeding system:

(a note on safe handling: Bones will maintain optimum freshness for 2-3 days under refrigeration after completely thawed. Always monitor your pet when feeding raw bones. Keep raw bones frozen until ready to use. Keep raw bones separate from other foods. Wash all work surfaces including cutting boards, utensils and hands after handling raw bones. Keep raw meats and poultry away from children. Chicken Raw Meaty Bones should always be fed under the supervision of a human being so as to ensure your pet does not consume their bone(s) too quickly.)