Can Dogs Eat Chicken Hearts, Gizzards, and Liver?
Yes, dogs can eat chicken hearts, gizzards, and liver. In fact, these organs are specifically included in most homemade and raw diets for dogs.
How much chicken hearts, gizzards, and liver can you give your dog?
Chicken hearts, gizzards, and liver are all very rich in one way or another. Hearts and gizzards are higher in fat than many meats. Liver is low in calories but it is still made up of about 35 percent fats. It’s also very high in vitamin A. As part of your dog’s regular diet, chicken hearts, gizzards, and liver should not make up more than 5-10 percent of your dog’s daily meals. Eating too much of these foods can lead to loose stools.
As a treat, hearts, gizzards, and liver should be given sparingly. Most dogs love these foods but a little goes a long way. Some retailers and vendors sell them air-dried or dehydrated, as treats. It’s best not to let your dog gorge on too many at one time.
Preparing chicken hearts, gizzards, and livers for your dog
If you feed your dog a raw diet, you should follow the regular directions for including hearts, gizzards, and livers in his diet.
If you make homemade food for your dog, make food to use as a topper, or mix some into his regular kibble, it’s best to lightly simmer organ meats like chicken hearts, gizzards, and livers. Just add a little water to them in a pot and cook over a low heat for a few minutes. You can chop them first or after you remove them from the pot before you add them to your dog’s meal. Be sure to include the juice/water from the pot in your dog’s meal. It will be tasty and include any nutrients that have cooked out.
You can also bake chicken hearts, gizzards, and liver on a low heat in the oven. Many trainers and dog show people bake small pieces of liver to use as rewards in the show ring. Your house will definitely smell like liver but your dog will love these treats.
Can Dogs Eat Raw Chicken Gizzards?
Dogs can eat raw chicken gizzards. It’s safe and healthy to feed your dog chicken gizzards raw or frozen.
In fact, depending on your dog, you might not even need to cut them up and many dogs love chicken gizzards raw. Interestingly, chicken gizzards are more nutritious when served raw to your dog. Gizzards have glucosamine and cartilage, gizzards are also a good source of vitamin B12, protein, iron, and zinc, which makes them a nutritious food for your dog.
If you do serve frozen gizzards to your dog, make sure to slice them up before serving. This will keep dogs from swallowing it whole, so they don’t choke.
Is Chicken Stomach Good for Dog?
Chicken stomachs are good snacks for your dog. You can share some crispy chicken stomachs with your four-legged pet during training or walks. Chicken stomachs are low in calories and fat, making them perfect supplements to your dog’s balanced diet. Also, chicken stomachs contain essential nutrients and proteins.
Two ways to prepare chicken gizzards for your dog
Commercially prepared dog foods have been recalled and brought under scrutiny for the ingredients used. Because of this, many dog owners are looking at alternative methods of feeding their pets. So many dog diets exist that it can be confusing as to what you can feed your dog. Chicken is an inexpensive meat source thats frequently used in dog food. Some parts of the chicken are prime, some are not so prime.
Australian veterinarian Ian Billinghurst, who says dogs wouuld be healthier if they followed the diet of their predecessors in the wild, maintains that raw chicken necks are soft enough for most dogs to chew and digest. Pet owners nervous about feeding neck bones, can grind meat or purchase it already ground. According to Natural Dog Health Remedies, chicken neck bones become too brittle once they are cooked and should only be served raw. Brittle bones can cause numerous problems, ranging from choking to stomach and intestinal issues. Raw chicken necks provide calcium and act as a tooth brush to keep your dog’s teeth clean. If you choose to feed raw chicken necks as part of your dog’s diet, select necks from chicken raised without antibiotics or hormones. The necks should make up no more than 30 percent to 50 percent of your dog’s nutritional intake.
You can serve chicken livers raw or cooked. These nutrient-dense organs provide protein, B vitamins, vitamin A, zinc, iron, niacin, copper and phosphorus. Chicken livers are a good source of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, and amino acids vital to your dog’s health. Feed small amounts daily or every other day.
Chicken hearts share many of the same benefits as livers, although they are less dense in nutrients by comparison. The heart of the chicken is a lean protein that contains fatty acids and vitamin A along with iron and B vitamins. Because they also contain taurine, chicken hearts are good for your dog’s heart. Serve chicken hearts cooked or raw as part of your dogs dinner or as an occasional treat.
While many veterinarians are supportive of pet owners feeding chicken hearts, livers or necks, each dog has specific nutritional needs based on breed, age and health. Consult your vet before feeding any these chicken parts to your dog. The VetInfo website warns that dogs who are fed chicken livers as more than 5 percent of their overall diet can suffer from loose stools or overdose of vitamin A. Bone spurs and deformities, stiffness, weak muscles, upset stomach and weight loss are symptoms of vitamin A overdosing. A dog that eats chicken heart as more than 5 percent of his overall diet is at risk for loose stools. Small dogs and puppies are not good candidates for feeding chicken necks, as they can easily choke on them.
Based in Las Vegas, Sandy Vigil has been a writer and educator since 1980. She taught high school and middle school English and drama for 11 years. Vigil holds a Master of Science in teaching from Nova Southeastern University and a Bachelor of Arts in secondary English education from the University of Central Oklahoma.