Raw Rabbit Meat for Dogs

[The_Dutchess]

My dog has kidney disease, and it is recommended to feed a raw diet. I will be having extra babies and I want to try feeding rabbit meat. Has anyone fed raw rabbit to their dog? At what age do you butcher for a small dog? How do you feed it? Do you remove the entrails and bones?

 

[C T bunnies]

They are several post on what they use and how they so it I waiting to start breeding when they are old enough I will be useing meat and organs and bone Iwill also be using other things besides rabbit beef pork deer elk ect. If you are going to use just rabbit you will need to get fat from someplace rabbit is very lean.

 

[Bad Habit]

my shih tzu cross will ONLY eat fresh rabbit meat. It has to be warm from butchering still or he won't touch it. I just give him scraps when I am butchering.

You're going to have to play around and see what works best for HER. Every dog is different in what they like, how much they'll eat, etc.

 

[caroline]

If you are going to use just rabbit you will need to get fat from someplace rabbit is very lean.[/quote

I have read this several places and, at least with my rabbits [I raise standard Rex], this is not my experience. My rabbits have plenty of fat, both internally around their organs and in the little pads on their backs, and I feed 2 large LGDs who are about 100 lbs each. The dogs get other meat occasionally but most days they each get a half of a rabbit, somewhere between 3-5 lbs for each dog. They get everything, skin, bones, organs, etc. Sometimes they leave the stomach and/or the pelt. I guess it depends upon how hungry they are

The older one has been eating this way for 4 years and the younger one for his whole life. The vet says that they are both very health and so I have stopped worrying about the prognostications that dogs will "die" from only eating rabbit.

 

[Zass]

My dogs get grain-free kibble, raw rabbit, and the fat and organ meats from anything my husband brings home. Not usually raw.
Like caroline, my rabbits also frequently have a lot of fat.

The dogs are nice and lean though. The newf needs to stay lean for the continued health of his joints, and the old pitbull needs to stay lean because he has arthritis and it's just easier on his legs to move a lighter dog.

Rabbit is a good meat for that, and I've noticed that they feel more full and content for longer when allowed to eat the meat and bones, than they feel when fed the kibble.

 

[Dood]

Mine are now on a forage based diet and those under 16 weeks are VERY lean with practically no internal fat compared to when I was only feeding pellets. Remember rabbits have almost no fat hidden in muscle (AKA "marbling") unlike most other livestock

Also skin and brains are very fatty so if offering "prey model" you shouldn't need to worry about a lack of lipids in a mostly rabbit diet, however, if you are not giving these parts then adding a tablespoon of fat (oil, lard) per 8oz of raw would be prudent.

I also add fish oil (NOT cod liver oil) and vitamin E to their meals.

 

[akane]

Mine developed dry skin and itchy ears from more than 60% rabbit in the diet. Even if they don't show symptoms not every nutrient is found in the right amount in one prey animal and most certainly not rabbit. They should get some meat from other animals. Mine are mostly whole rabbit, venison muscle meat, chicken organs, and various beef. Maybe once a week a piece of chicken with bone in muscle meat instead of just organs. Wings make a good snack when my larger dogs are being annoying.

 

[Wild Vitality]

My little guy is raw fed. He's a coondog mix and weighs 23#. I'll admit that my feeding style is very relaxed. I don't measure anything. He gets any kits that don't make it, heads and feet when I butcher, chicken heads, feet and necks when I butcher, free range eggs from my chickens, groundhogs, raccoon and squirrel from a trapper friend of mine, mice, bird bits and wild rabbit parts that my cat leaves on the kitchen floor for him many mornings, and bones from cows, pigs and deer when those come around. He has his own freezer, and I try to rotate his proteins.

My goal this winter is to raise enough rabbits above my personal needs and ability to sell rabbit meat to be able to offer him whole prey model fryers. Being so small, a fryer is enough for 2 or 3 days for him. This is why I'm looking at acquiring a trio of Dutch just for him. I'd like single serving sized fryers to offer him. I feel like full sized fryers are put to better use either sold to my meat customers or eaten myself. On butcher days, 2 rabbit heads seems to be a good sized meal, while 3 heads has him looking a bit swollen. He also gets the feet, but those are more like toys that become snacks.