Hi all --

I know a fair number of forum members suppliment their fur balls food with a liitle cooked chicken. I know I do. I "think" that the most popular method of preparing the chicken is to boil it, and the most popular cut is the chicken breast.

For Snickers and Snoopy I use Chicken Thighs that I bake (skin on) and the remove the skin, drain excess fat off of and process in my food processor till it's a finely ground. They love it that way, and have developed amazingly talented tongues that can separate the chicken from the Kibble with unbelievable accuracy!

I wonder though (as I am getting ready to go shopping and their chicken is on my list) what the reason is for boiling -- what does it do that's better for the dogs - and why breast meat as opposed to thigh meat?

Thanks for your insights.

Boiling just makes it more rubbery, so that if you are using if for training treats, it doesn't crumble and fall apart as much. Baked is fine if youa re feeding it as "food"... just bake it without the skin to reduce the fat content.

And the fat content is what makes thighs a not-so-good idea. Thighs, even without skin, have much more fat in the meat than breast meat does. That's why it isn't as "dry" as breast meat. Extra fat isn't good for dogs, and especially in little dogs, can cause pancreatitis. So if you HAVE to feed thighs, remove the skin and all visible fat, then cook it on a grate so that the fat falls away from the meat. But chicken breast (cooked without the skin) is the healthiest choice. (for people too!:biggrin1

 

Thanks Karen! I knew someone would have an answer that made sense. I wasn't aware that any excess animal fat wasn't good for the little guys. So I guess it's boneless and skinless from now on!

 

Ours also get it grilled! We cut it in little bite size pieces and put in a baggie for training treats and sometimes some gets added to the kibble. When we have baked sweet potatoes, if there is any leftover we let it get cold in the fridge and then cut it in small pieces for treats. They love it!

 

I was turned onto a recipe from Brady's mom. I crock pot chicken breasts, add chicken stock and freeze dried veggies. It is so easy and the pups love it!

 

I have a recipe for Lizzie from Sabine. It calls for chicken thigh and breast. I grind it up in the food processor and then bake it. I read somewhere, and I cannot remember where-?Pitcairns book?- that you retain more nutrients grinding it before cooking as there is more surface area and it bakes faster.

 

Tillie is drooling over these posts... poor girl hasn't had chicken in over a year... one of her many allergies... poor thing, I always feel SO guilty when we get a rotiserrie chicken and the smell fills up the house with yumminess.... and she looks at me with those eyes... sniff, sniff. poor dog.

 

I like boiling because it gets more of the fat out, is faster, and cleanup is easier.

 

I also boil chicken breasts for Bess and Max. They both love chicken.