Moose Bones For The Dog

[BigSlapper]

Had the butcher cut up and provide me with all the big bones from our last moose. Still a bit of meat on them.
Any tips or secrets on prep (raw or?) before watching the hound lose his mind? ... thawing a few right now.

Cheers
/BigSlapper

[decker9]

We always cut up our bones and feed them raw. Usually in 4”-5” lengths so they have to work at getting the marrow.

Iv heard that cooked/boiled bones can splinter, but not 100% sure.

[RyoTHC]

Raw!

I have a 6ft deep freezer I keep all my bones and grouse carcasses and fish remains from the year that feeds my two dogs for the duration almost ! From fish broths to grouse minus legs and breast! Moose knuckles you name it.

[LBM]

We always cut up our bones and feed them raw. Usually in 4”-5” lengths so they have to work at getting the marrow.

Iv heard that cooked/boiled bones can splinter, but not 100% sure.
I have had raw ones splinter as well so just keep an eye on them, i remove them if show signs of cracking etc. have had a few operations removing
stuff from stomach/intestines of the dogs.

[Ubertuber]

We always give raw meat/trim and bones to our dogs. Moose rib bones are gone in about 5 minutes, knuckles last a lot longer.

[Rob Chipman]

Raw.

The size of the bone can be an issue with the dog, depending on the size of the dog, *maybe*, I *think*. Here's why. I've got a Border Collie. She gets every bone I can give her. For moose bones she just eats through 85% of things like the scapula, but the femur? She can't even begin to crack that. I bandsaw them and she cleans out the marrow and cleans off the bone. If she was bigger I might worry about her cracking her teeth on a bone that big if I hadn't sawn it (trying to get the marrow) , but it's not a problem for me. If you've got a big boy? I dunno. Might be a problem. Wolves do that, but you'd have to ask a vet how many times he treats wolves with cracked teeth. Might be hard to get good intel on that.

I've been feeding 100% raw for years, and the meat she gets is also raw and either game or a steer if I'm butchering that. Works great, but since that's all she's ever know anything like rib bones or small ones that she can break? They completely disapear and turn into little whit hard turds outside that don't stink. Fantastic system and great for their coats.

She even gets the big knuckle bones. Sometimes I split big ones with the axe and she cleans them out too.

[Sitkaspruce]

We simmer them as the raw gives her the shits. Simmer until the marrow is soft, then cool and feed. Don't boil them, just simmer until just cooked. No issues with splinters, even with deer bones.

Cheers

SS

[BigSlapper]

Good stuff peeps - thanks .... fed Gunnar (my 80lb Drahthaar) a 8" piece of raw moose femur over an hour ago. Bugger is style out in the backyard chewing on it! .... and growling at me when I open the back door to check - he's not giving it up anytime soon!...LOL

[walks with deer]

Had the butcher cut up and provide me with all the big bones from our last moose. Still a bit of meat on them.
Any tips or secrets on prep (raw or?) before watching the hound lose his mind? ... thawing a few right now.

Cheers
/BigSlapper

When i am done cutting i let them chew once i say ok..
They watch me cut and wait for a treat...never had them touch unless i said okay...my wife is a great dog trainer.

[Dash]

Raw.

The size of the bone can be an issue with the dog, depending on the size of the dog, *maybe*, I *think*. Here's why. I've got a Border Collie. She gets every bone I can give her. For moose bones she just eats through 85% of things like the scapula, but the femur? She can't even begin to crack that. I bandsaw them and she cleans out the marrow and cleans off the bone. If she was bigger I might worry about her cracking her teeth on a bone that big if I hadn't sawn it (trying to get the marrow) , but it's not a problem for me. If you've got a big boy? I dunno. Might be a problem. Wolves do that, but you'd have to ask a vet how many times he treats wolves with cracked teeth. Might be hard to get good intel on that.

I've been feeding 100% raw for years, and the meat she gets is also raw and either game or a steer if I'm butchering that. Works great, but since that's all she's ever know anything like rib bones or small ones that she can break? They completely disapear and turn into little whit hard turds outside that don't stink. Fantastic system and great for their coats.

She even gets the big knuckle bones. Sometimes I split big ones with the axe and she cleans them out too.

This.

Feed raw 100%. Cooked bones will splinter. They can still get pieces/splinters off raw bones but they tend to digest better than cooked bones. Observe how your dog chews his bones. Some dogs will use the sides of their back teeth to gnaw on the bones from the side or their front ones to nibble etc. If your dog is a big chomper and they have a bone small enough they can work to their back teeth and try and chomp down on, they risk cracking their molars. This is a particular concern for the weight bearing bones of large animals. Because my lab does this I only give him large cut bones, knuckle bones (moose if i have it, or cow from the butcher) or deer ribs (haven't tried moose yet). Bones from smaller game (i.e, anything smaller than a small sheep) isn't usually of any concern.

There's always risks from feeding bones of any kind so it's always best to observe if possible. Especially for the first couple of times.

[mastercaster]

I feed deer, elk, and moose ribs as well as deer legs, scapulas, knuckles, and pieces of the spine AND always frozen to my griff 4-5 times per week. I do not thaw them out because they slow down a bit when they're frozen. She's four so she has been feeding on leg bones long enough that the ones she does splinter to get at the marrow she will never eat,,,,just leaves the shards behind.

Once a leg bone gets whittled down to almost nothing I take it away, Unlike the DD mentioned above I can take any bone away from her ant time I choose even though she's probably think WTF! haha

Leg bones start like this:

https://i.imgur.com/oJCrhCZ.jpg

Usually take them away when they look like this:

https://i.imgur.com/JLTUcGC.jpg

Usually

usually take them w

[GEF]

Beware! Raw moose meat will give your dog tape worms .Learned that the hard way.Moose tape worms are there as a natural defence against wolf population .They only manifest in K9 not humans .Have a chat with your vet.If you cook them lightly than you kill the eggs but not enough to make the bones brittle.
My poor dog was dragging his ass on the pavement and it looked like spaghetti coming out his butt .

[mastercaster]

Beware! Raw moose meat will give your dog tape worms .Learned that the hard way.Moose tape worms are there as a natural defence against wolf population .They only manifest in K9 not humans .Have a chat with your vet.If you cook them lightly than you kill the eggs but not enough to make the bones brittle.
My poor dog was dragging his ass on the pavement and it looked like spaghetti coming out his butt .

I would imagine that everyone who is feeding their dog moose bones/meat is taking it out of the freezer. Not only does cooking kill tape worms BUT so does freezing. Have had no issues at all the last 4 years that I've had my griff.

My dog never gets any fresh off the animal bones,,,,everyone is frozen whether it's deer, elk, or moose. I don't even bother to thaw them because I find she takes a little more time to devour them that way.

[Redthies]

They watch me cut and wait for a treat...never had them touch unless i said okay...my wife is a great dog trainer.

Mine too. Both our dogs that she trained (Labrador and Weimaraner) have been excellent dogs. I just don’t have the time to work with them enough when they are young. We are looking at getting another Weim soon, and now that my wife has her CORE and a 20 gauge O/U, I will bet the next dog is even better at bird work than the one we have now (who is an upland savant).

[IronNoggin]

Not only does cooking kill tape worms BUT so does freezing. Have had no issues at all the last 4 years that I've had my griff.

You've either been damn lucky, or have one hell of a freezer:

"Freeze meat for as long as seven to 10 days and fish for at least 24 hours in a freezer with a temperature of -31 F (-35C) to kill tapeworm eggs and larvae."

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/tapeworm/symptoms-causes/syc-20378174

The vast majority of domestic freezers will not reach those temperatures btw.


I don't even bother to thaw them because I find she takes a little more time to devour them that way.

You are doing her a large disservice by taking a hell of a risk regarding broken teeth. Might want to rethink that.

Nog

[Rob Chipman]

GEF wrote:

"My poor dog was dragging his ass on the pavement and it looked like spaghetti coming out his butt ."

This is HBC. Without pics it didn't happen :-)

[mastercaster]

You've either been damn lucky, or have one hell of a freezer:

"Freeze meat for as long as seven to 10 days and fish for at least 24 hours in a freezer with a temperature of -31 F (-35C) to kill tapeworm eggs and larvae."

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/tapeworm/symptoms-causes/syc-20378174

The vast majority of domestic freezers will not reach those temperatures btw.



You are doing her a large disservice by taking a hell of a risk regarding broken teeth. Might want to rethink that.

Nog

Yes, you can kill tape worm eggs and larvae in a week to ten days at a super cold temperature but you can also kill them in a regular freezer, as well, just as long as they've been in there a sufficient amount of time according to several vets and raw food for dogs advocates and distributors I've spoken to.

I'm also not the least bit worried about parasites/worms because my dog is given a deworming agent that's part of her tick and flea medication that she gets all year round. But just the same, none of the moose I or other friends have shot that I've used the ribs and knuckles from for my dog have had the very visible tape worm larva in the meat. It's very easy to spot them.

Also, the bones I have in my freezer have been in there quite awhile,,,,some for up to a year or more. Most years I'm usually still working on the previous year's moose, elk, and deer bones of shot animals. One freezer is just used for them and the trimmings for my dog.

Large bred dogs also have no issues eating frozen meat either,,,, not that there's much meat on the bones I give my dog as seen in the photo I posted above. At my dog's last annual checkup a month ago the vet said my dog's teeth are in perfect condition. She said to just keep brushing her teeth and giving her the ribs and bones and I shouldn't have any major issues with her teeth.