Anyone fed raw moose?!?

[RaYne]

Has anyone fed raw Moose? My neighbour.. (yeah the one I don't like.. haha) brought over a moose roast and there is noway in heck I'm eating it. LMAO

So I was thinking about giving it to Bubba and Lola for 'christmas dinner'. Ok or no?

[bogwog]

I used to feed our last dog moose all the time. We got scrap meat free from the local game cutter when we were up north. We also fed elk, bison and whatever else he had. Its very low in fat. You should look for any tape worm cysts in it if you intend to feed it raw. They look like little white beads and are easy to spot. You can just cut them out if there are any, they only seem to be bad in certain years. Freezing will kill them. You might want to try them on a bit first though, anything new could upset their tummies. My dog sure loved it!!

[Scott_B]

I havent, but would if i did! I've fed deer with success.

[RaYne]

Awesome thanks!

My neighbour hunts so this moose was killed and prepared by him. Should be ok since he's been eating it. He just had too much for just him and his wife.

It is frozen too so any nasties should be dead then but I'm going to cut it up and 'cube' it. Lola doesn't chew at all when I give her raw so it needs to be small bite sized pieces.

Good point too about trying them on a small amount.. Bubba has a super sensitive tummy. I figured that since moose is lean that it probably wouldn't bother him but better safe than sorry.

[Scott_B]

Originally Posted by RaYne

Awesome thanks!

My neighbour hunts so this moose was killed and prepared by him. Should be ok since he's been eating it. He just had too much for just him and his wife.

It is frozen too so any nasties should be dead then but I'm going to cut it up and 'cube' it. Lola doesn't chew at all when I give her raw so it needs to be small bite sized pieces.

Good point too about trying them on a small amount.. Bubba has a super sensitive tummy. I figured that since moose is lean that it probably wouldn't bother him but better safe than sorry.

I wouldnt worry about the no chewing. Have you watched any of the vids I've posted with Rosco eating? Most dogs dont chew their food. When you give them a big chunk of meat, they'll rip and tear chunks off, or chomp down to get peices of meat and swallow them whole. For humans, the digestion starts in our mouth my chewing & grinding things up. Not so for dogs. They can handle gulping large peices. I understand it can be a bit un nerving to watch them do it, but you get used to it. Its also what helps in the teeth cleaning. That ripping, tearing and gnawing through the meat scrubs the teeth nicely

Good luck!

[RaYne]

No I haven't seen any of the vids. I'm stuck with dial-up, no high speed available here.

Lola doesn't rip, tear or gnaw. It goes in her mouth and down the hatch. LOL I see what you mean though, no harm to her to swallow a chunk of meat. But what about meats with the bone in? If I give her a chicken/turkey leg/neck for example I have to hold it for her so she will chew pieces off. Otherwise she just swallows it too. Bubba on the other hand will lay down and chew his, even if it's just a small chicken wing.

They love raw.. I wish I was in a better state financially to switch them completely over to it. For now they just get it occasionally.

[technodoll]

rayne, try giving the little one bone-in meats (like a big chicken leg) frozen, or semi-frozen. it really does slow them down and make them chew!

another trick is to feed them something bigger than their mouths, ie a whole small chicken or one cut in half length-wise - feed frozen or semi-frozen for an even better workout. since you have biiiig doggies, you need to feed them appropriately-sized pieces. while a cocker or a lab might be content with a chicken leg, a saint might need a while small chicken

thank goodness for sales (i never buy anything full-price) and a little bit of raw is better than none at all, you're doing good

[Scott_B]

I have a vid of Rosco when he was much smaller eating a chicken 1/4. It was litterly, chomp, crunch, gulp. I find as time goes by and depending on what he eats, sometimes he takes his time, other times he doesnt. This is totally normal. But you have to do what you feeel most comfortable with.

[RaYne]

Thanks for the semi-frozen tip.. I have to try that next time.

Well I decided to try feeding the moose this morning.. Let me tell you preping it was nasty. I'm not squeemish when it comes to raw meat but this was just nasty.. it was super bloody and by the time I was finished cutting it up the counter top looked like I had slaughtered it myself. LOL Other than the mess it was nice and lean.. but did have a slight gamey smell.

Lola went to town, she loved it. She dove in her bowl without a second thought. Bubba on the other hand refused to eat it. He picked up one piece at a time and spit it out on the floor. He looked at me as if to say 'What the heck are you trying to feed me?!' hahaha Apparently he doesn't like the gamey taste either.. So he ended up with kibble, which he happily ate. I still have some left so as long as Lola doesn't get an upset tummy she can have the rest.

[Scott_B]

Glad it went ok! Was there any bone in this meal or was it strickly meat?

I found the deer meat "gamey" smelling as well, and rabbit even worse. But Rosco loves it all! I have two frozen rabbits I've yet to feed. Cant wait though!

[bogwog]

Glad at least one of your pups liked it I know what you mean about nasty, I used to cut up buckets of scrap all fall and freeze them. yeeuukkyy!! Sure helped the budget though. Later on there was more competition for scraps and bones when a couple of dog team owners moved into the area. Luckily we moved into town around then and a bison meat place opened about a block away. They didn't have a lot of scrap but great bones!

[RaYne]

Scott_B, I just fed the meat. The chunk I had said 'hind leg' on the package. There was a partial bone in it but since it was the leg I figured it was too thick.

I also found out the neighbour took the moose to a butcher and didn't do it himself. I also told him I fed it to Lola.. he wasn't too pleased. hahaha

Oh and I mentioned to my hubby about feeding whole rabbits. He was slightly grossed out so I don't see me feeding those anytime soon. LMAO

Thanks for the tip on the bison bones. There is a place not too far from me that breed them for meat. I'll have to see about getting some legs bones.