# Are turkey necks/giblets safe for feeding to my dog?



## Macy m

Just peeped and put the turkey in the oven for my human family, but I don't want to use the turkey neck or giblets. Throwing them away seems like such a waste to me. So, I was wondering if they were safe to feed to my Siberian? I started reading but I'm still on the fence about it. Input please!


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## Keechak

My dogs get turkey necks whole and raw all the time, they love them.


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## Losech

They are excellent! I love it when I can find turkey necks and gizzards. My dogs love them. They are very nutricious as far as poultry goes.


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## Kathyy

Turkey necks are one of Maxwell's very favorite bony meats. He likes the rest of the giblets raw as well. 

Oddly my mighty raw fed dog cannot digest whole cooked gizzard. He gets a tummy ache after a couple days and up it comes.


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## Macy m

Thanks everyone! I tried reading some more about it online but all of them just said that the necks are very bony and are more of a choking hazard than anything. Figuring some of the answers I was getting weren't from experience or of much knowledge, That's when I turned to the forum for some more input. (more dog savvy people than yahoo answers) should I cut it up at all or just let her go at it as a chunk? She isn't a fast eater so I think she'll be ok with the whole thing. 


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## Little Wise Owl

Our dogs LOVE turkey necks and giblets. In fact, we buy them separately for the sole purpose of feeding them to the dogs. 

I don't give Charlie necks only because she's so small and they're typically large. She's also a gulper and tries to ingest the entire neck in one bite. Our GSD gets the necks whole and chomps through them with no issue. I've also read (via DogAware.com) that you can chops them up into chunks if you think your dog might do better with smaller pieces.


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## Iceweasel

The necks are boney but the bones aren't sharp. I don't give them to my Rat Terrier since he might swallow them whole but my larger dog (who actually chews) loves them. Bones in general scare me so that's all the bones they get these days. I've seen too many sharp pieces in the poop for my comfort level.


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## taquitos

Iceweasel said:


> The necks are boney but the bones aren't sharp. I don't give them to my Rat Terrier since he might swallow them whole but my larger dog (who actually chews) loves them. Bones in general scare me so that's all the bones they get these days. I've seen too many sharp pieces in the poop for my comfort level.


Not to derail the thread, but shards of bone in poop is very common in dogs who are just starting to eat RMBs. Usually if they are fed regularly, the dog's stomach acids become strong and break down the bones to powder. My dog started off with some shards and after about a month of being on raw, I stopped seeing shards completely. He does not get any shards anymore and he's been on raw for over a year now


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## Iceweasel

Could be true but I've seen some big pieces from both dogs and a raw food diet is too expensive for me for two dogs.


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## Kyllobernese

I have never fed turkey necks but I do feed my Doberman bones I get from the killing plant. They are mainly the ball and socket joints so are more gristle than bone. However, when they get to the size of a golf ball, I usually take them away but on several occasions she has swallowed them. They must digest as I have never seen her pass any bone.


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## Iceweasel

I heard of a guy who's Lab swallowed a trailer hitch ball while screwing around with it. It came out missing the chrome.


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## taquitos

Iceweasel said:


> Could be true but I've seen some big pieces from both dogs and a raw food diet is too expensive for me for two dogs.


Yeah it can def get expensive for larger dogs and multiple dog homes


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## Macy m

I know to never give a dog or cat any cooked poultry bones, but are all uncooked bones ok? When feeding percentages of raw with commercial food (pure balance grain free) I mainly stick to boneless meats and fats. I'm fairly new to raw feedings and I wish to stick with it as must as possible while it fits in the budget. I've seen the effects of a terrible big commercial food (iams, beniful, kibble sand bits, ect) diet and will never go back. I'm super appreciating everyone's replies! Every little bit helps!! 


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## Macy m

Also does it help get a dog to chew the neck more if it's frozen? I'm just pondering ways to make sure she doesn't try to just swallow the thing whole.


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## Kathyy

Uncooked bones that aren't the leg bones of large animals like beef, bison, elk and moose can all be fine. The bony bit must be large enough so the dog respects it and doesn't swallow it whole although there are small bony meats like chicken feet that most dogs seem to have a good time chomping up small as they are. If you feed something super bony and the dog eats the whole thing the dog will be dealing with concrete poop which is horrible so something like whole pork/beef/lamb neck or even racks of ribs may not work. 

I'd clamp a vise grip on the neck to see how it goes. Max is a medium sized dog with a head that is smaller than some dogs and the 16+ ounce necks we see here get chewed up very thoroughly, absolutely no way he could swallow the whole thing. Freezing works for a lot of dogs too. I'd freeze it solid and let it sit out until the outside was softened up a little though. Don't really want it to stick to his tongue and he can get a better grip on it.

After seeing the amazing things Sassy managed to swallow then poop I am not concerned about a few fragments of bone. A very brave person once picked up a fresh bit of excreted bone and reported that it was very flexible, not sharp at all. Sassy pooped out a ball joint of a ham, good sized knotted rag, stryro/plastic wrap from cup o noodles, large shard of corningware casserole and even at the age of 16 years old and very ill she stole cooked chicken bones from right under my nose and they didn't appear in her poop. A JRT swallowed a gopher whole and likely still alive like a snake with only enough tooth work to get it down and I never saw so much as a tooth in his poop. I don't intend to make any of those items part of my dogs' diet and hope none of it happens again but dogs do have very tough GIT!


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## Macy m

So I gave the turkey neck to Kalani and.....she wouldn't touch it!? Licked the blood off and then just stared at it. Lol all that concern for absolutely nothing!


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## Kathyy

Send it over here. Max rarely gets turkey neck and it is one of his very favorite bony meats

Too bad, all that research and she decided it wasn't food after all!


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## Macy m

She wouldn't even eat the giblets. I tried cutting them up too and she wouldn't even give it a second sniff :/ so I put it out side for the ferrel cats. Ate up all of the beef trimmings though haha 


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