# Tendon



## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

i can get beef tendon...is that something i can feed the dogs, especially the malia?

isn't that a source of chondroitin?


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Is it attached to anything? I'm sure it's got good glucosamine/choindron in it - I just never have heard of tendon all by itself.


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## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

Would it be similar to a bull penis (raw bully stick). I feed bull penis, dogs like it but it's chewy


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

found it at my korean grocer...beef tendon....frozen but not dried or dehydrated..just tendon.


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

Sprocket said:


> Would it be similar to a bull penis (raw bully stick). I feed bull penis, dogs like it but it's chewy


On a scale of 1 - 10, how wrong is it that I TOTALLY want to go out and get some bull penises for my dogs just for the "ick" factor/shock value?

...you people have ruined me.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

i believe if you do a search for 'tobi'...you'll see pics of tobi eating penis and testicles....it's very cool in a strange and bizarre serial killer lorena bobbit kind of way.


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

magicre said:


> i believe if you do a search for 'tobi'...you'll see pics of tobi eating penis and testicles....it's very cool in a strange and bizarre serial killer lorena bobbit kind of way.



Well, apparently "strange and bizarre serial killer lorena bobbit kind of way" is my thing now. :noidea: :biggrin:


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## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

BoxerParty said:


> On a scale of 1 - 10, how wrong is it that I TOTALLY want to go out and get some bull penises for my dogs just for the "ick" factor/shock value?
> 
> ...you people have ruined me.


Well blame it on Tobi cause I bought them after seeing his pictures. I was curious! Now...not so much! They are so gross to touch! Ewwwwww all slimy and slippery but hard and the dogs chew them like gum.


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## Sprocket (Oct 4, 2011)

BoxerParty said:


> Well, apparently "strange and bizarre serial killer lorena bobbit kind of way" is my thing now. :noidea: :biggrin:


You aren't so different from the rest of us


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

BoxerParty said:


> Well, apparently "strange and bizarre serial killer lorena bobbit kind of way" is my thing now. :noidea: :biggrin:


welcome to the underground.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

ok...now that we've established we're all bloodthirsty.....

can i feed tendon as a treat or as a meal?

it's not attached to anything.....i've eaten at my chinese restaurant...cooked, it's lovely.

but i'd be feeding it raw.


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

Sprocket said:


> I was curious! Now...not so much! They are so gross to touch! Ewwwwww all slimy and slippery but hard...



...That's what she said. :lol:

:rofl:



(I SWEAR I'm not drunk you guys...I'm just punchy tonight.)


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

magicre said:


> ok...now that we've established we're all bloodthirsty.....
> 
> can i feed tendon as a treat or as a meal?
> 
> ...




I see absolutely no reason why you couldn't. I'd feed it.


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## Ania's Mommy (Feb 8, 2009)

I'd treat it like chicken feet. So, more like a supplement to a meal rather than a full meal. However...

I only feed one meal a day. If I fed more than one meal, AND I had a little dog, I might feed tendon as one of the daily meals.

Also, I still have nightmares about Tobi nomming the bull bits...


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## dustinshaw98 (Feb 22, 2012)

magicre said:


> i can get beef tendon...is that something i can feed the dogs, especially the malia?
> 
> isn't that a source of chondroitin?


What's chondroitin?


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

dustinshaw98 said:


> What's chondroitin?


Essential for joint health in dogs. The parts of an animal that are normally not eaten by humans are full of it (because people don't like ligaments and tendons) - feet, for example.



> Chondroitin is a molecule that occurs naturally in the body. It is a major component of cartilage -- the tough, connective tissue that cushions the joints. Commercial chondroitin is derived from natural sources, such as shark and bovine cartilage, or synthetic production. Chondroitin helps keep cartilage healthy by absorbing fluid (particularly water) into the connective tissue. It may also block enzymes that break down cartilage, and it provides the building blocks for the body to produce new cartilage


Chondroitin


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## NewYorkDogue (Sep 27, 2011)

Hmmm. Well, to slake the curiosity of all, I think you should give it a go. I can't imagine it would be soft enough to chew through very well; maybe more of an extended chew. 

Sounds nutritious, though.

BTW, my dog loves a good bull penis... but testicles? Were they raw or dehydrated? Haven't come across them at my local pet shop...


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## BearMurphy (Feb 29, 2012)

this might be a stupid question but does the bull penis come fully drained? I heard some bully sticks you can buy aren't drained and smell more...that's why i'm asking.....this is a weird conversation


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## Liz (Sep 27, 2010)

Hi Re, we feed it as a treat. I don't count it in their food allowance as it doesn't seem to be calorie dense.


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## Ania's Mommy (Feb 8, 2009)

I understand what you're saying, Liz. And I agree; tendons would not be a very calorie dense food. However, for a little dog especially, it would take up a lot of tummy real estate. That's why I would feed it as I described above. 

So, yes. If you sub ONE of your daily meals with tendon, the total amount of "nutrient rich / calorie dense" food would go down a bit for the day. But I don't see this as an issue on occasion, unless you have an underweight dog. Plus you'd still be feeding "real" food that day in your other meal(s). So it's not like they're deprived. Although, I bet Bubba would tell you otherwise....


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

@ania's mommy......i agree. when we feed feet or maybe this tendon as a treat, it's taking up valuable real estate.

i doubt highly if either dog will lose any sleep over having a chicken foot, beef tendon meal once a week. 

it's not as if they're skinny dogs....

@ BearMurphy....i have no idea about whether or not a bull's penis comes drained. Lordie, i would hope so....i do know that when i buy the dried version, most of them smell like urine because i try to get them as natural as possible....

then again, pork kidney has that pee smell, too....more so than any other kidney i feed

i'll see if i can get tobi to answer this one.


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## BearMurphy (Feb 29, 2012)

yeah i think pork kidney's stink too but I never noticed it with beef.....thought I had a bad batch the first time i bought them....at least pork kidney goes down quick!


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## shellbell (Sep 24, 2011)

I notice the smell of beef kidneys. It is not overpowering or anything, but for some reason I find it worse than the smell of tripe.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

BearMurphy said:


> this might be a stupid question but does the bull penis come fully drained? I heard some bully sticks you can buy aren't drained and smell more...that's why i'm asking.....this is a weird conversation



Depends on where you get it, i was there when the bull penis i got for tobi was killed, they just tossed it in a box, never was drained :lol: They aren`t stinky raw, however when you dehydrate them they become stinky. It also depends on how they were dried, and how much they were dried, more dry = less stinky, less dry = more stinky! :thumb:

Re, I`ve fed beef tendon, Achilles etc and Tobi loves them. Extremely hard for them to chew the consistency of the pizzle imo. Took Tobi about 1/2 hour to get the full length Achilles down. There are a few other tendons, one attaches to the head, and back, the others aren't quite as big as those 2. Good find btw! 

http://dogfoodchat.com/forum/raw-feeding/5504-raw-picture-thread-30.html#post135495

Here is the link to that for those of you that were wondering :lol:


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

BearMurphy said:


> yeah i think pork kidney's stink too but I never noticed it with beef.....thought I had a bad batch the first time i bought them....at least pork kidney goes down quick!


i notice it with beef and lamb and goat, but not like pork. pork wins for stinkiest kidneys.


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

Tobi said:


> Depends on where you get it, i was there when the bull penis i got for tobi was killed, they just tossed it in a box, never was drained :lol: They aren`t stinky raw, however when you dehydrate them they become stinky. It also depends on how they were dried, and how much they were dried, more dry = less stinky, less dry = more stinky! :thumb:
> 
> Re, I`ve fed beef tendon, Achilles etc and Tobi loves them. Extremely hard for them to chew the consistency of the pizzle imo. Took Tobi about 1/2 hour to get the full length Achilles down. There are a few other tendons, one attaches to the head, and back, the others aren't quite as big as those 2. Good find btw!
> 
> ...


I've never seen a bull penis raw, naked, chopped off, and in the flesh before and can now say I hope to never see one again. That was disgusting and probably the size of one or two of my dogs. I enjoy a little gross factor more than the average chick but that was seriously ewwww.....uke:


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Donna Little said:


> I've never seen a bull penis raw, naked, chopped off, and in the flesh before and can now say I hope to never see one again. That was disgusting and probably the size of one or two of my dogs. I enjoy a little gross factor more than the average chick but that was seriously ewwww.....uke:


i don't know how I missed that when it was posted. I bet it was alot harder for some of the men here to look at that than the women! And of course Tobi's dad is so devoted he watched him eat one.


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## Ania's Mommy (Feb 8, 2009)

I was thinking about this thread as I was driving home from work tonight (because I think about a lot of random shiz while I drive such as animal parts. I could have driven off the road when visuals of Tobi eating the bull bits crept into my mind and I actually cringed). I had a little epiphany.

I've noticed that when people come to this forum with an overweight dog or one who's always hungry, the suggestion is made to feed some lightly cooked green beans or something similar in order to make them feel full. I guess the theory is that you are filling a tummy, but are adding little to no calories. 

So I thought: why not feed chicken feet or tendons instead!?!?! It's more species appropriate, you get some added benefit from the chondroitin, and it sticks with the ol' prey model raw plan. Plus, I bet most dogs would rather eat a nasty chicken paw than green beens.

Me likey.


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

Ania's Mommy said:


> I was thinking about this thread as I was driving home from work tonight (because I think about a lot of random shiz while I drive such as animal parts. I could have driven off the road when visuals of Tobi eating the bull bits crept into my mind and I actually cringed). I had a little epiphany.
> 
> I've noticed that when people come to this forum with an overweight dog or one who's always hungry, the suggestion is made to feed some lightly cooked green beans or something similar in order to make them feel full. I guess the theory is that you are filling a tummy, but are adding little to no calories.
> 
> ...



Good idea - I'd only be concerned that the added bone would result in some pretty dry poops...


That being said, I tossed each of my pups a chicken foot when I bought them last week, just for fun (not part of their "rations" for the day). They were happy


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## Ania's Mommy (Feb 8, 2009)

Very good point. You could decrease the amount of bone feed in a meal in order to compensate. Or just go with the tendon. 

But I think that in most of these cases, it's sort of a temporary thing. I mean, eventually a chubby dog will get used to eating less. And eventually the "always hungry" dog's sad/starving eyes will stop working on the owner. Oh, wait. THAT doesn't ever happen. :becky:


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Ania's Mommy said:


> I mean, eventually a chubby dog will get used to eating less. And eventually the "always hungry" dog's sad/starving eyes will stop working on the owner. Oh, wait. THAT doesn't ever happen. :becky:


I laughed out loud when I read that.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

when you have smallish dogs, believe it or not, that extra chicken foot or beef tendon can put weight on, not take weight off.

it's hard when you have dogs who don't run 10 miles a day or get as much exercise as other dogs....so the food real estate goes up in value, no matter what you feed.

my vet thinks both malia and bubba are overweight....i don't see it but i know bubba weighs more than kat's pug....built like a little truck driver he is...and malia still has her pouch....even tho from above, both dogs indent and watching bubba walk is pure muscle....

but he's a pug and too much is too much for him...he starts that breathing and panting and they don't self regulate.

malia is 12 and she gets tired after a mile, be it on the treadmill or outside....doesn't matter which.

so i don't know how to feed big without both dogs getting big.....the gorge and fast...

and i don't know how often i can feed feet and tendons without adjusting the other food they get.

i would love to go to one meal a day but i don't know how to do that....

i read on other forums about giving each dog a half of a turkey or whatever....feed big and i can just see bubba gulping it down...and then vomiting everywhere...

i know this isn't the thread for it....but how does one start feeding big? and once a day?

because, xellil, that little stunt snorkels pulled scared the hell out of me...my dogs get one emu rib or one venison rib or one pork rib....and though bubba has not choked yet....who knows with him?


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

My guys get a chicken foot here and there and they love it as a midday snack. They all got one the other day to help with the not-so-firm poop from organ meat and they were happy little campers! Didn't help Madison though because she just covered a 4 ft area with runny poop a few minutes ago. She's outside right now airing out and hopefully finishing up with anything that's left inside her. 
Repeat after me, "I love my dogs, I love my dogs, I love my dogs....." hwell:


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Donna Little said:


> My guys get a chicken foot here and there and they love it as a midday snack. They all got one the other day to help with the not-so-firm poop from organ meat and they were happy little campers! Didn't help Madison though because she just covered a 4 ft area with runny poop a few minutes ago. She's outside right now airing out and hopefully finishing up with anything that's left inside her.
> Repeat after me, "I love my dogs, I love my dogs, I love my dogs....." hwell:


Oh no! Is the organ meat still doing that???

you love your dogs


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

re, I don't know if this would work with your dogs but the turkey necks and lambsheads I feed Snorkels are totally frozen. That way she can still chew awhile but not get alot of meat off. 

Of course, that's hard to measure since she has so few teeth - maybe a dog with a mouthful of teeth would still be able to bite off alot of meat.

And the other thing - when snorkels works and works at a bone, she has actually lost weight even though several times she has eaten more at one sitting than she normally eats in a day. Just the act of working on the bone is a huge exerciser. You know about her obesity so that was also a big concern of mine at first.


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

xellil said:


> Oh no! Is the organ meat still doing that???
> 
> you love your dogs


It's the gift that keeps on giving...


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

xellil said:


> re, I don't know if this would work with your dogs but the turkey necks and lambsheads I feed Snorkels are totally frozen. That way she can still chew awhile but not get alot of meat off.
> 
> Of course, that's hard to measure since she has so few teeth - maybe a dog with a mouthful of teeth would still be able to bite off alot of meat.
> 
> And the other thing - when snorkels works and works at a bone, she has actually lost weight even though several times she has eaten more at one sitting than she normally eats in a day. Just the act of working on the bone is a huge exerciser. You know about her obesity so that was also a big concern of mine at first.


both of my dogs can ingest turkey necks. i don't feed them anymore, because it's a lot of bone for little work and time. bubba has some serious jaw strength now.

and malia always did have jaw strength. now it's just more so. 

i am getting whole lambs' necks, if the order actually goes through....and that's a work out. i've yet to find heads...

but i'm now re thinking beef ribs, though they are thicker than venison or goat or lamb or pork ribs....and i'm even rethinking those.

i simply don't know how you went through this and still stay as sane as you are, relatively speaking LOL

it really threw me, xellil.....


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

Donna Little said:


> My guys get a chicken foot here and there and they love it as a midday snack. They all got one the other day to help with the not-so-firm poop from organ meat and they were happy little campers! Didn't help Madison though because she just covered a 4 ft area with runny poop a few minutes ago. She's outside right now airing out and hopefully finishing up with anything that's left inside her.
> Repeat after me, "I love my dogs, I love my dogs, I love my dogs....." hwell:




Can you keep her in an ex-pen with a tarp underneath? Yikes. Hope Miss Madison is on the mend soon!


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

magicre said:


> both of my dogs can ingest turkey necks. i don't feed them anymore, because it's a lot of bone for little work and time. bubba has some serious jaw strength now.
> 
> and malia always did have jaw strength. now it's just more so.
> 
> ...


I'm so sorry to hear that - it did kind of throw me a little, also. I am also thinking I won't give rib bones, but then I am thinking -why not? She's eaten them a hundred times. They are wider and thicker than the venison ribs. If your dogs have done fine on them in the past, I would keep feeding them. I probably won't giver her a beef rib right off, but I am thinking I will before too long. They are just too good a teeth cleaner to quit feeding.

Both of your dogs obviously have alot more meat-eating power than Snorkels does! She can eat a turkey neck but it takes 2-3 days.

I do like the fact that I've found a place to buy lambshead and hogshead. It's a store that caters to the Hispanic population, and I found chicken feet there yesterday. 

Don't let what happened to snorkels change the way you feed your dogs. If you had given them the same venison ribs they would have been fine, as they have teeth to chew them up. 

What about the bison ribs? I'm going to see if i can find those.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

magicre said:


> when you have smallish dogs, believe it or not, that extra chicken foot or beef tendon can put weight on, not take weight off.
> 
> it's hard when you have dogs who don't run 10 miles a day or get as much exercise as other dogs....so the food real estate goes up in value, no matter what you feed.
> 
> ...


Re, ya just gotta do it, we do it, and we were feeding twice a day since raw, 2-3 months in we decided that it was too much work to feed him and break down his meals so small since he'd just swallow it down... don't give into the "hungry eyes" and weigh out their meals for the day feed them at variable times throughout the day so they don't get into a hunger puke schedule. we feed between 6am-midnight-2am... just depends on how late i'm up and when i decide :lol:

Gorge fasting you start out feeding once a day, and get progressively bigger and bigger and then you fast them for a day or two depending upon the quantity that they ate, from what i've read and learned it's something you only want to do after a dog has been transitioned for quite some time. (as you probably know). 

I hope that helped a little? :thumb:


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

Tobi said:


> Re, ya just gotta do it, we do it, and we were feeding twice a day since raw, 2-3 months in we decided that it was too much work to feed him and break down his meals so small since he'd just swallow it down... don't give into the "hungry eyes" and weigh out their meals for the day feed them at variable times throughout the day so they don't get into a hunger puke schedule. we feed between 6am-midnight-2am... just depends on how late i'm up and when i decide :lol:
> 
> Gorge fasting you start out feeding once a day, and get progressively bigger and bigger and then you fast them for a day or two depending upon the quantity that they ate, from what i've read and learned it's something you only want to do after a dog has been transitioned for quite some time. (as you probably know).
> 
> I hope that helped a little? :thumb:


it helps, but nothing helps with the physiological make up of a pug. i don't worry about malia. i have a feeling she would self regulate.

but bubba has a mouth wider than his throat, so he horks alot.

plus, you've got tobi. how much does he eat?

bubba weighs 22 lbs...walks a mile a day so he eats under six ounces a day.


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## BoxerParty (Nov 9, 2011)

magicre said:


> it helps, but nothing helps with the physiological make up of a pug. i don't worry about malia. i have a feeling she would self regulate.
> 
> but bubba has a mouth wider than his throat, so he horks alot.
> 
> ...



If you want to feed once a day, you could do a slow transition to the larger meal-

If Bubba is eating 6 oz per day in 2 meals, I assume that's 3oz/meal.

You could shift to 2.5oz at one meal and 3.5oz at the other, then 2oz/4oz, then 1.5oz/4.5oz, and so on until he is eating one meal.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

Of course Rebel eats alot more, but I feed him three times a day. Twice he day he may get one or two ounces, and then once a day i give him a big meal.

It IS really difficult when a dog is eating just a few ounces a day. And there's no way I would feed Snorkels only once. She might just go insane. I suspect Bubba might be similar.

But, sometimes I do just give her 1/4 ounce at night if she eats a big meal in the afternoon. I think maybe it's the ritual of eating rather than the food itself that makes her happy.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

magicre said:


> it helps, but nothing helps with the physiological make up of a pug. i don't worry about malia. i have a feeling she would self regulate.
> 
> but bubba has a mouth wider than his throat, so he horks alot.
> 
> ...



Ya, that's true that he could try to eat too much too fast, but feeding once a day allows for larger peices which he'd have to work at more, and you could also feed them frozen to teach him that he's gotta work at it a bit more as well.

Tobi eats between 1lb, and 3-4 lbs per day, depending on how much i work him out. at 60lbs and his 2% he would eat 1.2lbs ish. :smile:


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

Tobi said:


> Ya, that's true that he could try to eat too much too fast, but feeding once a day allows for larger peices which he'd have to work at more, and you could also feed them frozen to teach him that he's gotta work at it a bit more as well.
> 
> Tobi eats between 1lb, and 3-4 lbs per day, depending on how much i work him out. at 60lbs and his 2% he would eat 1.2lbs ish. :smile:


yah, you could throw a half of a chicken at him or four or five attached beef ribs and he'd be fine.

what we're going to do is what you suggested....

today, he had 2 oz and she had 3.

this afternoon, he'll get 4 and she will get 5.

we'll do that for a week or so and then start giving snacks for brekkie and more for dinner....and probably the best time for them to eat their one meal will be either late morning or afternoon.

i just can't afford for him to get any heavier. we have him about 3 lbs over his ideal weight on purpose because of his barrel chest.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

magicre said:


> yah, you could throw a half of a chicken at him or four or five attached beef ribs and he'd be fine.
> 
> what we're going to do is what you suggested....
> 
> ...


:thumb: awesome, i can't wait to hear about how it goes! who knows, they just might like eating one big ol' meal a day :lol: 

Mine is so bored with Venison i think he'd rather eat a toilet seat than what he has on his plate... we hiked and worked like hell today, and he came home and snuffed his venison heart...


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