What chicken to give dogs

Can Dogs Eat Chicken?

NOTE: Always check with your veterinarian first before giving your dog any new foods, especially people foods. What might be OK for one dog might not be good for your dog, depending on multiple factors, such as their age, health history, health conditions, and diet. Dogs on prescription diets should not be fed any food or treats outside the diet.

Chicken is a nutritious protein source for humans and dogs alike. Its a popular ingredient in dog food, and there are plenty of chicken-flavored dog treats and toys to choose from.

But while dogs can eat chicken, youll want to be careful about how much you give themand how its prepared. As with any new food that finds its way into your dogs bowl, moderation is key. Heres what to know.

Is Chicken Good for Dogs?

Chicken can be a healthy food for dogs if prepared correctly. Its an excellent source of protein and contains several nutrients that can help maintain your dog's overall health, including vitamin B6, vitamin B3, and zinc.

Just be sure any chicken fed to your dog is cooked thoroughly to avoid the risk of salmonella and other foodborne illnesses. Watch out for extra ingredients that might make them sick, like garlic and onions, and remove any bones because they can cause choking or digestive issues.

Can Dogs Eat Raw Chicken?

Do not feed your dog raw chicken. Raw chicken is known to harbor unsafe bacteria like salmonella and E. coli, which can make your dog very sick. Ensure the chicken is thoroughly cooked before sharing it with your dog.

What Chicken Products Can Dogs Eat?

There are several ways to prepare chicken, and not all of them are a good choice for our four-legged friends. Plain, boiled chicken is generally considered safe. But fried chicken and chicken thats been prepared with seasonings such as garlic, onions, or high-fat ingredients like cream or oil should be avoided.

Boiled Chicken

Boiled chicken is a good option to feed your dog. In fact, boiled chicken and rice is a common remedy for dogs with digestive issues, and your vet might recommend feeding this if your pup is vomiting or has diarrhea.

Fried Chicken

A tiny piece of fried chicken probably wont make your dog sick, but its certainly not a healthy option for your pup. Fried chicken made with oil can cause digestive upset, and eating high-fat food can cause a painful condition called pancreatitis. Fried chicken can also contain seasonings that are toxic to dogs, including onion and garlic.

Chicken Nuggets

Your pooch probably wont get sick if he snags one of your kiddos chicken nuggets from the floor, but its not a good idea to give your dog these as a regular treat. Chicken nuggetsespecially if theyre friedare not a healthy snack for dogs.

Chicken Feet

Unfortunately, your dog should also steer clear of chicken feet, as both the raw and cooked kinds can cause digestive issues. Just like any other type of raw meat, uncooked chicken feet carry the risk of harmful bacteria like salmonella that can make your dog very sick.

Cooked chicken feet dont have the same risk of bacteria, but the bones can splinter and cause tears or obstructions in your dogs digestive system.

Chicken Broth

Dogs can have chicken broth as long as it doesnt contain any harmful added ingredients. But onion and garlic are both common additives found in canned chicken broth andagainthese are toxic to dogs. But plain, low-sodium chicken broth (or homemade broth!) can make a nice addition in their dog food bowl when given in small amounts.

Can Dogs Eat Chicken Bones?

Do not let your dog eat chicken bones, as they can cause serious internal problems. Though theyre small, chicken bones can be serious choking hazards for dogs who ingest them.

Even if your dog doesnt choke, the bone can easily splinter and, as they move through your dogs digestive system, those tiny sharp-edged pieces can cut your dogs stomach and intestines. This can potentially cause ruptures, blockages, and infections that all require serious medical attention.

If your dog likes having something to gnaw on, skip the chicken bones and opt for a safer alternative, like a chicken-flavored chew bone or another chew toy.

What To Do if Your Dog Eats a Chicken Bone

If your dog eats a chicken bone, try to get it out of their mouth (as long as you can do it without distressing them further or getting bitten). Try offering another treat to get them to drop the bone.

If your pup ends up swallowing it, watch them carefully. If the bone appears to be stuck in their throat, this is an emergency and should be addressed ASAP. Take your dog to the vet immediately.

If you suspect your pooch has eaten a chicken bone, watch for signs of distress. If they display any of these symptoms, take your dog to the vet as quickly as possible:

If your dog is acting normal, its OK to keep monitoring them closely from home. Always call your vet if you have concerns about your pets health.

Can Dogs Be Allergic to Chicken?

Protein sources such as chicken (or beef, dairy, egg, lamb, and fish) are some of the most common causes of allergies in dogs.

Most of the time, dog food allergies affect the skin and coat, though they can also cause vomiting or diarrhea. Symptoms that may indicate your dog has a chicken allergy include:

Its possible for dogs to develop a food allergy at any point in their lifeso if Fido is suddenly scratching after he eats his regular chicken and rice kibble, you may want to try an elimination diet to see if something in his food is causing it.

How Much Chicken Should You Feed Your Dog?

Chicken is a common ingredient in commercial dog food and treats, so its safe to feed your pup chicken as a treat or occasional food topper. Just be sure its thoroughly cooked and unseasoned.

As with any new ingredient, moderation is key! Once your pup gets used to eating fresh chicken in small amounts, you can use the following as a guide to feeding your dog chicken. Generally speaking, your dog should have about 1/41/3 cup of meat protein per 20 pounds of body weight each day.

• Extra-small dog (220 pounds) = About 1 tablespoon cooked, unseasoned chicken

• Small dog (2130 pounds) = 2 tablespoons cooked, unseasoned chicken

• Medium dog (3150 pounds) = Up to 1/4 cup cooked, unseasoned chicken

• Large dog (5190 pounds) = About 1/3 cup cooked, unseasoned chicken

• Extra-large dog (91+ pounds) = About 1/2 cup cooked, unseasoned chicken

• Examples:Newfoundlands,Bernese Mountain Dogs,SaintBernards,Great Pyrenees

If your dog experiences digestive upset or other discomfort after chowing down on chicken, stop feeding it to them and call your vet.

Featured Image: Adobe/bit24

WRITTEN BY

April Saylor

Freelance Writer

Can Dogs Eat Chicken?

Considering how many dog foods contain chicken as an ingredient, its a safe bet that you can feed your dog chicken. In fact, its a good source of protein, and cooked chicken can even be substituted for or added to his regular meal.

Most sources recommend against raw chicken, due to the risk of salmonella or bacterial infections, although the movement toward raw food, including raw chicken and raw chicken bones, is growing. But if youre not sure about raw food diets, any unseasoned roasted, poached, grilled, or baked chicken can be served on its own, mixed with your dogs regular meal, or served as a treat. You can even mix it with a healthy grain, and a vegetable such as string beans or other vegetables safe for dogs, for a special homemade dinner.

There are two things to be aware of before serving your dog chicken.

• Some dogs are allergic to chicken, and it ranks among the top 10 allergy-inducing ingredients. The most common allergens are beef, dairy, wheat, egg, chicken, lamb, soy, pork, rabbit, and fish.
• Be sure to take cooked chicken off the bone. Cooked chicken bones splinter easily, which can cause choking or a gastrointestinal tract puncture

If youve determined that your dog happily and healthily eats chicken, go ahead and let them enjoy it. And, just for fun, try these homemade, vet-approved chicken recipes for dogs: a yummy mini omelette or frozen chicken treat.

Learn more about human foods your dog can and cant eat.

How To Bake or Roast A Whole Chicken For Dogs

Another way that you can cook chicken for your dog is by baking it. Many of the steps are similar to that of boiling the chicken, as listed below.

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit

2. Get 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts. Use a silicone mat or a non-stick spray on a cooking tray. Place the breasts on the tray.

Youll want three chicken breasts, a cooking tray, and a non-stick agent. The first step should be to add the non-stick agent to the bottom of the cooking tray.

Your chicken can then be placed on the baking tray with no additional seasonings added to them.

2. Add the tray of chicken breasts to your preheated oven then bake for 20-30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

The oven should be pre-heated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Once it reaches that temperature, you can place your chicken in the oven and let it bake for 20-30 minutes.

Keep in mind that smaller pieces of chicken will finish sooner than larger pieces of chicken and may need to be removed first.

3. Remove the chicken breasts. Cut into the center and confirm its fully cooked (no pink meat).

4. Let cool for 10-15 minutes then shred the chicken.

Just like with boiling, youll want to shred the chicken for your dogs to eat a lot easier. Youll also want to let the chicken cool for 10-15 minutes.

5. Add the baked shredded chicken to plain boiled white rice and give it to your dog.

So how much should you feed your dog for each meal? To answer that well need to dive in and do some quick calorie math.

Lets use my dog Ella as an example. Shes a chihuahua mix that weighs 11 pounds. She eats 1/4 cup of dry food twice a day.

We use Taste of the Wild which has about 360 calories per cup. The average cup of dry dog food has about 400 calories so this example should work for just about anyone.

So, back to Ella, she eats 1/2 a cup a day of dry food which is about 180 calories (200 on average for most dry foods).

One 3.5 ounce boiled chicken breast has 284 calories. We made 3 in the example above so thats 852 calories of cooked chicken.

A 1/2 cup of cooked white rice boiled in chicken broth has about 113 calories. In our example above we boiled 2 cups of dry rice which usually turns into 3 times that cooked or 6 cups of cooked rice.

6 cups of rice boiled in broth come out to about 678 calories.

678 calories of rice mixed with 852 calories of shredded chicken come out to 1530 total calories.

So, if I was trying to match how much Ella would need at each meal so she isnt gaining or losing weight Id need to figure out 180 calories of chicken and rice for each meal.

Based on the numbers above the 1530 calories of chicken and rice would provide about 8.5 meals. Lets be indulgent and call it 8 so she gets a bit more. She is sick in this example.

Finally, to feed your dog based on the example in this article use the following table. Its based on the rough number that a dog needs about 25 calories of food per pound of body weight per day. If you want to really nail down a number you can use the complicated formulas in this article (or just use 25).

Note Its likely your dog weights something in between these numbers. Simply use the 5-pound row to add in how much it should be. The same thing goes if your dog weighs over 100 pounds. Again, these are rough numbers for a small time frame. In the long run, youll learn the actual amount by seeing if they are slowly gaining weight over time (or losing it). Then you can add in an extra 1/4 cup or remove it as needed.

FAQ

Can you bake chicken for dogs?

Yes, baking or roasting chicken is one of the easiest and safest ways to cook food for your dog. When combined with rice or cooked sweet potato you have the perfect meal for pups with sore tummies or just for dogs that want a healthy, whole food less processed option.

My name is Ken and Im one of the staff writers at Petloverguy.com. Ive cared for pets most of my life starting with hamsters, turtles, and snakes. Then moving up to parakeets, guinea pigs, and even ducks.I currently live with two yorkies and a chihuahua mix.