# Bacon?



## straw (Jun 17, 2013)

Venice has been on raw for about 8 weeks now. I haven't introduced organ meats yet, which is something I want to do soon, and almost all of her emails have bone in them. I've been wanting to add more boneless meats for a few weeks now.

We had some bad storms here recently that resulted in a lot of power outages, especially in rural areas. We lost power at our cottage for about 5 days, and as a result, everything in the fridge and freezer thawed out. My dad was cleaning out the freezer the other day and brought me down a bunch of meat. None of it smells off, but none of my family is brave enough to eat it so Venice gets it! A whack of boneless chicken thighs, and a whole lot of bacon.

Aside from being super fatty, is there anything wrong with feeding bacon? It's plain, not maple or hickory or smoked or anything. I don't think I'd feed like a half pound at once since that's a lot of fat to handle, but giving her a few strips in a meal, or as a bedtime snack, or even chopped up into training treats? I don't want it to go to waste.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

it is a cured product.....much as i hate seeing anything go to waste ...i'd not recommend feeding bacon.


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## Liz (Sep 27, 2010)

Bacon could cause some issues with how it is processed. I would not feed and like Magicre I hate to waste any meat. 

Liz


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## SuperPug (Mar 5, 2013)

I love bacon and I'm sure my dog would as well. But all that grease, more fat than meat and sometimes even added flavoring/spices will not agree with her insides.


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## Kat (Jul 12, 2011)

That really sucks, nothing worse than wasting something. However like everyone else has said I would not feed it.


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## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

Nitrates being the worse


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## straw (Jun 17, 2013)

Okay, thanks for your input guys.  This forum is always so helpful and so quick to respond.


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## Belles Mom (Jun 24, 2011)

I do feed some bacon. It is venison burger with 10% pork bacon. One pound of venison burger will last five labs 1-2 meals.... (it is an addition to other raw foods), so it is a very small amount. Maybe take the bacon, freeze it and add a strip in here and there. The nitrates are a bummer, but the fat is o.k....at least for my high energy Labs.


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## Dude and Bucks Mamma (May 14, 2011)

I feed a small piece or two once in a while when we're making the occasional bacon meal for ourselves but would never feed it regularly and no more than a tiny amount at once.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

We feed pork belly though, never had a problem with the fat to meat ratio, it is the way dogs derive energy after all... But in it's cured state it is no bueno... Nitrates, and nitrites... Blech gives me a headache, I'd hate to do that to my dog.


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## JayJayisme (Aug 2, 2009)

What's with all the fat phobia in this forum nowadays? Dogs need lots of animal fat. That is where they get their energy and plenty of raw feeders here and elsewhere have cured all sorts of skin and hair conditions by adding raw animal fat to their otherwise raw diet. I buy suet from my butcher and feed it to my dogs with their meaty bones. They love it and thrive on it. 

If you are only feeding your dogs lean raw meat and bones you are slowly starving them to death and depriving them of very valuable nutrients. Protein, fat, and carbohydrates are the three macronutrients that food provides. Carnivores don't need carbs but in lieu of those, they absolutely need plenty of fat with their protein. Please don't fear animal fat. It's good for dogs and people too. 

As for bacon, I only worry about the salt content in it with regards to my dogs. There's just too much salt in bacon to consider feeding it as a meal. But I do feed it as a treat in small amounts or use it as training treats. They love it!

Fear not the fat! :biggrin:


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## LilasMom (Mar 10, 2012)

JayJayisme said:


> What's with all the fat phobia in this forum nowadays? Dogs need lots of animal fat. That is where they get their energy and plenty of raw feeders here and elsewhere have cured all sorts of skin and hair conditions by adding raw animal fat to their otherwise raw diet. I buy suet from my butcher and feed it to my dogs with their meaty bones. They love it and thrive on it.
> 
> If you are only feeding your dogs lean raw meat and bones you are slowly starving them to death and depriving them of very valuable nutrients. *Protein, fat, and carbohydrates are the three macronutrients that food provides. *Carnivores don't need carbs but in lieu of those, they absolutely need plenty of fat with their protein. Please don't fear animal fat. It's good for dogs and people too.
> 
> ...


Fat is very important for both humans and pets, but actually humans do not actually need carbohydrates for energy. Look up something called a ketosis diet, it is pretty interesting. It is a high fat, moderate protein, low carb diet. Things like grains and potatoes are really not good for us. Turns into sugar. But fat is definitely important (plain piece of toast with raise blood sugar more than buttered toast).


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## JayJayisme (Aug 2, 2009)

LilasMom said:


> Fat is very important for both humans and pets, but actually humans do not actually need carbohydrates for energy. Look up something called a ketosis diet, it is pretty interesting. It is a high fat, moderate protein, low carb diet. Things like grains and potatoes are really not good for us. Turns into sugar. But fat is definitely important (plain piece of toast with raise blood sugar more than buttered toast).


I agree. I eat Paleo myself. The only carbs in my diet come from whole fruits and vegetables. This way of eating has changed my life for the better just as PMR did for my pups.


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## LilasMom (Mar 10, 2012)

JayJayisme said:


> I agree. I eat Paleo myself. The only carbs in my diet come from whole fruits and vegetables. This way of eating has changed my life for the better just as PMR did for my pups.


Same! It actually cured my dandruff and my impulsive spending for some reason. I truly think that for both humans, dogs, cats, etc the best way of eating is the way it had been done for so many hundreds of years before. It is only in recent times that both people and pets have been eating terribly, causing cancers, diabetes, heart disease, etc. They sure as hell didn't have pizza dough and burger buns back in the good ol' days then lol.


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## SuperPug (Mar 5, 2013)

I see only 1 post, mine, saying anything about fat content. And reason being, is because I have a pug. Give her too much fat....and yeah. She need's mostly lean meats with the small amount of fat that is beneficial to her. There is no "fat phobia" on this forum. Don't read into a few posts too much.


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## Jan Fred (Jul 23, 2013)

> Bacon could cause some issues with how it is processed. I would not feed and like Magicre I hate to waste any meat.


 I agree, and also, it is not good for fat dogs it can lead to obesity.


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## LilasMom (Mar 10, 2012)

Jan Fred said:


> I agree, and also, it is not good for fat dogs it can lead to obesity.


Fat doesn't necessarily create fat. Too much of anything will put pounds on a dog. Even overweight dogs need fat in their diet.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

Jan Fred said:


> I agree, and also, it is not good for fat dogs it can lead to obesity.


Carbs will load up a dogs weight faster than fat, look at cow feed lots, put grain into them and they gain hundreds of pounds in weeks instead of months... It's also why many farmers still throw some grain at them for the last few weeks to get that nice fatty marbling on the meat lol

I love fats for me and my dog, he gets a ton of it, mostly pork and beef fats, with lean venison cuts. Fats also aid in the absorbtion of many nutrients.


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## LilasMom (Mar 10, 2012)

Tobi said:


> Carbs will load up a dogs weight faster than fat, look at cow feed lots, put grain into them and they gain hundreds of pounds in weeks instead of months... It's also why many farmers still throw some grain at them for the last few weeks to get that nice fatty marbling on the meat lol
> 
> I love fats for me and my dog, he gets a ton of it, mostly pork and beef fats, with lean venison cuts. Fats also aid in the absorbtion of many nutrients.


Lol all that talk of marbling has me craving ribeye


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## JayJayisme (Aug 2, 2009)

SuperPug said:


> I see only 1 post, mine, saying anything about fat content. And reason being, is because I have a pug. Give her too much fat....and yeah. She need's mostly lean meats with the small amount of fat that is beneficial to her. There is no "fat phobia" on this forum. Don't read into a few posts too much.


I wasn't referring to this thread exclusively. I've just seen a number of anti-fat comments the past few months when a year or so ago everyone was extolling the virtues of animal fat in the PMR diet. I'd hate to see an anti-fat sentiment start to grow in this forum because nothing could be farther from the truth.


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