What type of liver is best for dogs? Expert Advice

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Is beef liver good for dogs?

Yes, beef liver is good for dogs as their main meal or snacks. They can be served raw, cooked or in jerky form.

The benefits of beef liver for dogs include:

What If Your Dog Doesn’t Like Raw Liver?

Try these options to get your dog to eat liver.

  • Grind it and mix with other meats. Disguising it can help!
  • Feed a “whole prey” grind – available at many raw food suppliers. These contain ground-up whole animals … muscle meat, bone, and organs. (And because they came from the whole animal, they’re in the right proportions.)
  • Lightly sear the outside of the liver in a hot pan with a little fat. Just enough to change the texture but not cook it through.
  • Make dehydrated treats. Dehydrating temperatures are low (145F). They don’t really “cook” the liver … so it loses fewer nutrients.

    • How much liver to give depends on whether you’re feeding any other organ meats. In raw feeding, the idea is to feed the same ratio of body parts that’s in the whole prey. In wild animals, organs (including skin) are up to about 25% of body weight.

    So … if you were feeding lots of other organ meats … you could give varied organs up to about 25% of your dog’s diet. If you’re only feeding one organ (liver) … feed it as 5-10% of your dog’s diet, by weight.

    But be careful! If your dog hasn’t had liver before … don’t add this amount all at once!

    If your dog’s not used to eating liver, start slowly. Because liver’s so rich in nutrients, it can cause tummy upset or loose stool. So ease him into liver-feeding gradually!

    Start with about ½ Tbsp a few times a week for a medium sized dog. Keep an eye on his reaction. If you hear tummy gurgling or see loose stools, feed a bit less liver until his digestive system adapts.

    What Kind of Liver Is Best for Dogs?

    Like any source of protein, it’s best if you can procure grass-fed and/or pasture-raised sources of liver, but if not, other types of liver are still healthy food options.

    Liver from chicken, beef, pork, or lamb are all good choices for your dog. Yet. you should probably avoid liver from wild game, such as deer or turkey since you can’t guarantee its quality. It may be infected with parasites or toxins that could make the liver unsafe for your dog.

    Stick to farm animals, preferably from high-quality sources, when you’re buying liver for your dog (and for yourself).

    Can Dogs Eat Liver? YES! 4 Reasons Why From a Nutrition Expert

    While organ meat may seem a little icky, it’s full of nutrients and dogs absolutely love it, so it’s not hard to get them to eat this delicious and nutritious treat.

    Liver isn’t really all that different from other meat when you think about it, other than being super high in nutrients.

    If you think you can stomach it, try taste-testing a little sample for yourself while cooking up a batch for your dog (just make sure you’re using human-grade liver meat)

    In this post, I’ll explain everything you need to know about cooking liver for dogs, including the health benefits, what kind of liver is best, and how much to feed your pup.