# Denatured Meat ?



## TanktheMastiff (Mar 24, 2013)

I saw on FB someone mention "denatured meat" for dogs at a fraction of what I usually pay.. What's everyone's opinion on this ? I mean, if it's not safe for me to eat why would I feed it to my best friend ?


----------



## naturalfeddogs (Jan 6, 2011)

It's not safe for us to eat raw meat, but dogs are fine with it. They are designed to handle it.


----------



## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Denatured is the addition of 'contaminants' to the food to stop people from eating the meat. Companies like NV add charcoal to their raw diets. I personally wouldn't buy denatured meat for my dogs either. I wonder what this company uses to denature their meat.


----------



## TanktheMastiff (Mar 24, 2013)

Naturalfeddogs, I understand humans weren't designed to eat raw.. But isn't denatured meat, meat that's been rejected by the USDA ? In theory meaning it's not safe ? I probable pay on average $1.50 pound for meat for Tank the Mastiff, while denatured meat only cost on average .30 cents a pound ?! The price alone should throw up a red flag. I'd love to hear from someone who feeds denatured meat and get the real scoop.


----------



## naturalfeddogs (Jan 6, 2011)

That's what I thought too. Just "reject" meat. That it seems would be fine for dogs considering other stuff they sometimes can and do eat, but MollyWoppy mentioned contaminates added. So, if that's the case no I wouldn't feed any. I'm not sure now exactly whats up with the whole denatured thing.


----------



## Gally (Jan 28, 2012)

"According to USDA regulations, beef that leaves a USDA plant that is not intended for human consumption must be denatured. Denaturing agents can vary a great deal from the simple charcoal additive to a cocktail of different chemicals and dyes. Charcoal has become a favorite of pet-food companies since it can still be classified as "All Natural". There are many forms of charcoal used every day for beneficial purposes (i.e., activated charcoal found in home water filtration systems or fish tank breathers to filter out impurities and toxins), but those same properties may ultimately effect absorption of supplements and medications administered with those foods. Regardless, debates on whether or not charcoal is benign, helpful or harmful miss the point altogether--the very fact that it is present is often times the real cause for alarm. 
Some items are very difficult to get from USDA plants without denaturing agents such as charcoal. The most common is raw, green tripe. Most inspectors are not satisfied with letting tripe leave a facility even if its stomach contents have not been removed, though others see this as sufficient guard against this item finding its way back into the human food supply. The presence of charcoal in tripe, while not uncommon, is the exception that proves the rule. Clean, healthy, pathogen-free and properly-handled beef is the easiest item to acquire from a USDA plant, but if the beef has been condemned for being diseased, dying or down, then it will be denatured."

https://www.mypetcarnivore.com/inde...r-you-a-your-pet-carnivore&Itemid=144&lang=en


----------



## bett (Mar 15, 2012)

if i won't eat it, they won't get it.


----------



## Chocx2 (Nov 16, 2009)

I only feed my pet what I would eat, there is a reason why they won't put it in the human food chain. Sometimes its just because the processing plant made a mess of the mean and it won't look pretty at the grocery store, other times its animals that died and picked up for dog food and animal feed, why take a chance


----------



## Sgrecco (Jan 29, 2014)

I volunteer at an outdoor educational ranch where we have wolves, cougars, foxes and such. We get all the day old meat from Wal-Mart and grocery stores to feed our animals there. As a way to say thank you, the owner of the ranch gives me meat (when she can) to feed my pup. I have to get the organ meat and such on my own, but it drastically reduces the cost of going to the store myself and buying all the meat. When she isn't able to supply me my meat, I purchase meat from a local farm that butchers their downed cows (cows that had broken legs, broken back, too large of calf, having twins, twisted stomach, bad feet, fatty liver, stubborn and wont get up and walking cows that did not get on the trailer at the human consumption plant). Here's their link Big Dan's Trucking, Inc | Altura, MN 55910 They are required by law to denature the meat meaning they add a liquid denaturant so that it deters people from consuming it. It's not toxic AT ALL to the dog and is moreso used as a coloring indicator that the meat is not specifically butchered fro dogs. I get the meat at about .30 -.50 /lb and I've never had an issue with the meat. It looks like the meat you would get at the grocery store, as you can't see the charcoal on a lot of it. This is the same meat that a lot of dog food companies use for their kibble. The difference is that they cook the meant and process it further, leaving out the nutritional value of the raw meat. I buy the raw product that has not been processed and my dogs love the heck out of it!


----------



## Sgrecco (Jan 29, 2014)

Correction to my previous post as the "edit post" function isn't working....They use the coloring indicator to show that the meat is for dog use ONLY. You could technically eat the meat but a downed cow isn't considered consumable by humans, for whatever reason, so the USDA requires them to label this meat. Sure, they could put a sticker on the bag but that wouldn't stop people from purchasing the cheaper meat for their own use. So they need to add some sort of coloring or additive that people wouldn't want to eat. Charcoal is the best thing because it's not absorbed by the body and is eliminated in the dog's waste. Plus there is such a small amount on the meat, you can't even tell it there.


----------

