Is Organ Meat Good For Dogs?

If you’re feeding you’re dog a BARF diet, they probably have organ meat in their diet. The BARF diet consists of 80 muscle meat, 10% bone & organ meat, and 10% fruit and vegetables. Organ meat is an important part of your dog’s diet, despite only being in 10% of it. 

Why Do Dogs Need Organ Meat? 

Organ meat is densely packed with vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids! 

• B1 helps tissues in the body function properly
• B2 helps the body break down carbohydrates, fats, and proteins to produce energy
• B6 plays a significant role in the creation of red blood cells and neurotransmitters
• B12 is important because it keeps blood cells healthy
• Folic acid is used by the body to manufacture DNA.

Organ meat has minerals, such as iron, copper, phosphorus, iodine, and magnesium. It also contains other vitamins such as A, D, E, and K.

Another great thing about organ meat in our dog’s diet is all the essential fatty acids, EPA, and DHA. They benefit brain health, heart health, manage arthritis and maintain healthy skin/coat.

What Organ Meats Are Good For Dogs 

Organic Source of Vitamin D

Vitamin D is often regarded as the most important vitamin and regulates numerous functions within the body. A lack of vitamin D in a system can lead to autoimmune diseases, muscle weakness, fractures, and common cancers. 

This is a large risk for dogs who don’t get enough sun exposure. 

But, no worries.Organ meat contains a high amount of vitamin D, meaning that it’s a natural supplement! 

Feeding your dog organ meat at least 1-2 times a week could make a HUGE difference in your dog’s overall health. Especially, during the winter when the sun isn’t as present.

Is Liver Safe For My Dog To Eat?

The purpose of the liver is to neutralize toxins or other chemicals that enter the body.

Some are wary about feeding dogs liver because there is a possibility that there are harmful bacteria from when the animal was still alive.Fortunately, dogs have highly acidic stomachs so it’s not harmful to them.

Dog bellies are better for combatting bacteria than those of humans because they can kill the bacteria much more efficiently.

They also have a much shorter digestive tract than humans. The organ meat has less time to rot in your dog’s digestive system will be quickly be killed by your dog’s stomach acid. So for humans, there is a small risk when eating animal liver, but for dogs, there is practically no risk at all.

Because of the iron contents found in the liver, your dog will have improved oxygen transportation helping them battle fatigue. The liver is also very nutrient-rich and has a high volume of Vitamin A which helps with digestion. 

Is Heart Safe For My Dog to Eat?

An animal’s heart has nutrients that are great for your dog’s health. 

For example, beef heart is a concentrated source of Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), an enzyme that helps with regulating the heart's rhythm and aids the basic functioning of cells. 

The heart also contains phosphorus, zinc, selenium, and essential amino acids that your dog needs. One of the important amino acids the heart provides for your dog is Taurine. This important to include in your dog’s diet if they are unable to produce it on their own, like Golden Retrievers.

What About Chicken Gizzards For My Dog? 

Chicken gizzards are an organ that is in the digestive tract. They are fed to dogs because they are packed with protein, iron, minerals, cartilage, and vitamins. 

So much in such a small organ! 

Some dog owners even give their dogs chicken gizzards. There are a lot of recipes online and we found one for dehydrating them for treats! 

Whole And Balanced Diet?

If you are trying to make your own raw dog food meals at home, it takes a lot of knowledge of nutrition and anatomy to provide the correct nutrients. This method isn’t preferred because there are risks of an unbalanced diet.  

This is why we recommend our subscription service for our raw dog food!

Commercially made raw dog food is great because it saves you time and offers the proper nutrition your dog needs to grow healthy and strong. Dog food companies need to meet AAFCO requirements of providing the right amount of nutrition. 

At Cali Raw, we take it a step further! We guarantee that your dog will be getting the correct amount of each type of nutrient to strive and prosper by adding more than enough but not too much.

If your dog is getting too much of one vitamin/mineral (and not enough of another) it can lead to serious health issues. For example, if your dog was getting too much vitamin D, it could develop kidney stones and have abdominal pains.

Unless you are highly knowledgeable about nutrition, this is a risk you take if you decide to prepare your raw meals.

Cali Raw has James Pendergast, a very renowned pet nutritionist, working behind the scenes on our raw dog food formulas. James knows all the ins and outs of dog nutrition which is why our raw food is the best option on the market for a whole and balanced diet. He created a great recipe that will allow your dog to have the best chance of achieving optimal health.