• First Basenji's

    Glad the chicken is in THEIR bed, not mine! Haha.
    Nice sharing pups. And yes, Maya has such dainty nails.


  • Ok, I have to admit I've never (intentionally) given my dogs raw chicken. Is there any concern for salmonella poisoning, or do you just make sure it's very well washed? Inquiring minds want to know…. 🙂


  • "Dogs can shed salmonella through their feces even when they eat dry kibble, but because a healthy dog normally can digest their food quickly without allowing bacteria to settle, they usually do not get salmonella poisoning. Since normal, healthy dogs without other serious health concerns are able to do this, typically they do not get salmonella poisoning from raw meats, like humans can.

    However, if a healthy dog eats something that has spoiled then there may be a problem. Just like humans, eating something that has been left out for a long period of time, or has spoiled, can poison dogs. Even the healthiest dogs can get poisoned in these types of conditions.

    While every dog is different and can be in more danger of getting salmonella poisoning than other dogs, it is always best to check with your veterinarian about these issues. If you're worried about what you should or should not be giving your dog to eat then the best thing to do is go over it with a medical professional. He should be able to tell you if your dog may be more susceptible to attaining salmonella poisoning then other dogs because of a certain health condition you may be unaware of. If ever you're in doubt, it's always best to avoid feeding your dog something you're unsure of, just to be on the safe side."

    Source: http://www.brighthub.com/health/diet-nutrition/articles/36013.aspx


  • I only give them human quality raw food 🙂

    The way i look at it, wild dogs dont have their food cooked and they eat raw bones for every meal. Its the most natural way of feeding a dog and IMO the best diet for them. I dont leave them unattended with bones, but have never had an issue of anyone getting bones stuck or anything. We can sometimes be a bit overprotective of our dogs I think, basenjis especially are so close to being wild that I think they should be able to eat things like this. But of course, its for each owner to decide 🙂


  • @Maya:

    I only give them human quality raw food 🙂

    The way i look at it, wild dogs dont have their food cooked and they eat raw bones for every meal. Its the most natural way of feeding a dog and IMO the best diet for them. I dont leave them unattended with bones, but have never had an issue of anyone getting bones stuck or anything. We can sometimes be a bit overprotective of our dogs I think, basenjis especially are so close to being wild that I think they should be able to eat things like this. But of course, its for each owner to decide 🙂

    That's true, however, when in the wild they also don't have nice flooring and furniture to worry about when they have diarrhea. 😉

  • Houston

    My dogs eat raw meats inside, I have a large double bed size sheet I lay out and they sit on it until I get them their foods.
    They know not to leave this sheet with their food, I do feed Moses in his crate, just pile his foodbowl with all the meat and he eats in there.
    So far…off and on 10+ yrs of feeding raw to my dogs, we have had only two incidents with diarrhea..but it is the same as if my children get sick..you just clean up and move on.
    The pluses, I feel, with the raw diet superceeds the slight potential of the diarrhea.

    But you are right Nerdy..in the wild nobody would do this for them..haha.


  • We have started to give Malaika a couple of raw chicken wings a week and she loves them.
    I am a bit afraid when we give them as it is not something i have done before with any of our Dogs. She swallows realy big pieces with bones in and i'm scared she will either choke or the bones will stay undigested somewhere.
    After speaking to other owners i do feel it is a good food for them.


  • If you Google the subject of dogs and raw bones there have been incidents of dogs getting raw bone pieces stuck in the intestines and needing surgery.


  • @Basenjimamma:

    My dogs all get raw chicken bones for their meals, unless I have something else boney being served.
    The two smaller dogs, the dachshund and the min. schnauzer/yorkie mix gets the chicken back or a thigh, maybe a few wings..Moses on the other hand gets two-three chicken legs (drumsticks, big ones)..

    The only problem I have seen is the dachshund, he inhales his food, thus not chew it enough..so I always stand over him and make sure he takes his time.
    Otis loved it as well when he lived here..he would get the backs, the thighs or the wings, I always saved the biggest pieces to Moses, as his mouth/teeth are larger.
    Now however Otis is on kibble..:(, I bet he misses his mama's "uncooking".
    As long as the bones are not cooked they are flexible and crunchable by a canines jaw/teeth, once cooked the bones change into brittle and shard like instead..not good.

    I stopped adding/feeding Buddy kibble. Hopefully Otis is getting a least high quality.


  • @nobarkus:

    If you Google the subject of dogs and raw bones there have been incidents of dogs getting raw bone pieces stuck in the intestines and needing surgery.

    Im sure you could find incidents of dogs choking on kibble though :rolleyes: I dont judge by what I can find on the internet, I do what i feel is right for my dog and others are free to do what they want. I wouldnt tell anyone else how to feed their dogs and I hope no one would criticise how I feed mine 🙂

    And we have 12 dogs all fed a majority raw diet and never had any problems with diarrhea.

    ETA: Just done a very quick google search and have found countless pages about dogs of all sizes and ages choking on kibble.


  • @Maya:

    Im sure you could find incidents of dogs choking on kibble though :rolleyes: I dont judge by what I can find on the internet, I do what i feel is right for my dog and others are free to do what they want. I wouldnt tell anyone else how to feed their dogs and I hope no one would criticise how I feed mine 🙂

    And we have 12 dogs all fed a majority raw diet and never had any problems with diarrhea.

    ETA: Just done a very quick google search and have found countless pages about dogs of all sizes and ages choking on kibble.

    There's no criticizing or telling anyone not to feed raw bones just an awareness of the potential. A dog can choke on sticks, rocks, socks, food, toys or bones.

  • Houston

    I stopped adding/feeding Buddy kibble. Hopefully Otis is getting a least high quality.

    I told her a to feed him Blue Buffalo wilderness, it is grainfree and a good quality food easily obtainable at all the big box petstores.


  • @Basenjimamma:

    I told her a to feed him Blue Buffalo wilderness, it is grainfree and a good quality food easily obtainable at all the big box petstores.

    I was looking at Blue Buffalo at Pet Smart yesterday and it looks pretty good.


  • @nobarkus:

    There's no criticizing or telling anyone not to feed raw bones just an awareness of the potential. A dog can choke on sticks, rocks, socks, food, toys or bones.

    I didnt mean that there was 🙂 But there is the potential of a dog choking on many things like you say, including kibble and bones (though one website i found actually said that there are more cases of dogs choking on kibble than raw bones!!!) which can be increased with a dog that eats very quickly! But if we all got that paranoid about these things we'd end up having nothing to feed our dogs :eek: 😃


  • @Maya:

    I didnt mean that there was 🙂 But there is the potential of a dog choking on many things like you say, including kibble and bones (though one website i found actually said that there are more cases of dogs choking on kibble than raw bones!!!) which can be increased with a dog that eats very quickly! But if we all got that paranoid about these things we'd end up having nothing to feed our dogs :eek: 😃

    Dogs like to just wolf their food down without chewing and kibble, especially if a smaller dog were to swallow a large dog size kibble would certainly choke. Heck I clogged a sink one time with cat kibble. :o

  • First Basenji's

    At the Animals Taiwan compound where I used to volunteer, feeding time consisted mainly of raw chicken, except for the dogs who had issues. Lots of those street strays arrived skinny and malnourished, and the diet got them back into shape super fast. Many were in pure ecstasy after having to pick through garbage for so long. Raw chicken was cheaper than kibble, and really helped their teeth too. The sound of collective gnashing was always fun… ngggargg nggargh ngargh.


  • I feed a raw diet including chicken but I never give mine chicken bones from long lived chicken. The chicken mostly sold for consumption still have comparatively soft leg bones. Free range chicken are often sold at a later stage when they have fully matured bones and I would never feed free range or mature chicken for that reason.

    So far I've never had salmonella infection in my dogs (that's in over 60 years!).


  • I forgot to say how much I enjoyed the pictures - keep them coming!


  • @Patty:

    I feed a raw diet including chicken but I never give mine chicken bones from long lived chicken. The chicken mostly sold for consumption still have comparatively soft leg bones. Free range chicken are often sold at a later stage when they have fully matured bones and I would never feed free range or mature chicken for that reason.

    So far I've never had salmonella infection in my dogs (that's in over 60 years!).

    Long lived chicken? I did not know chicken was sold in stages. So they wait longer on the free range than the confined chickens? I'm getting chicken educated here.


  • @nobarkus:

    Long lived chicken? I did not know chicken was sold in stages. So they wait longer on the free range than the confined chickens? I'm getting chicken educated here.

    It's amazing what you can learn. I'm glad you posted the pics Jess, it's sparked some interesting discussion.
    I had a bit of a google and discovered a tip that may be useful for Dogs that eat the chicken a bit too quickly, especialy puppies. The article suggested holding the meat whilst the dog chews. This would also be useful for retaining ownership of the meal (not that i would fancy chewing on a raw chicken wing :D)

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