Feeding whole raw animals

[Bushriver]

Sorry if this topic may upset some people, but I have been feeding raw as much as possible. Living where and how we do, with off grid power and very limited cold storage I do have to use a kibble at times. I have been considering "hunting" for the dogs food. Such as wild duck, rabbits and roo. The ducks and rabbits I was planning on feeding whole, just plucking and skinning. What are the risks of worms or disease? I'm assuming it would be a fairly balanced meal as this would be as close to a dogs natural diet as you can get. I also feed eggs and goats milk. I can easily add some oils and fruit and veg. 

[Guest crazydoglady99]

I'm  not sure if they would need to be frozen at -19° or lower beforehand to kill off any parasites? (Or if that only applies to lamb offal)

 

There's got to be a way of visually inspecting for it though - because  they do it with wild caught rabbits.

[W T]

hydatid worms shouldn't be a problem in ducks and rabbits, so freezing shouldn't be required (WHO states minus 20 deg C for 2 days - I do this for roadkill), however pending on how you hunt (bow, traps, birdshot) birdshot can be a problem and can cause lead poisoning.

[Dogsfevr]

You would certainly want to watch Roo ,they are full of worms 

[W T]

2 hours ago, Dogsfevr said:

You would certainly want to watch Roo ,they are full of worms 

it is actually not too bad, from all the roadkill (I only take wallabies and roos) I butchered, only one had hydatid cysts  - I prepare portion with bones, tendons, meat and offal (I take the offal only if it is a fresh kill) and freeze it for at least a week and check that the temperature is lower than minus 20 deg C).  I understand that this is not an option for the OP (no cold storage).

Re legality: You would also need a licence for hunting roos as they are natives conversely to ducks and rabbits.

Re hydatid: most of the basic de-wormers (the ones with praziquantel) work also for hydatid worms,  and if you feed raw, a more stringent de-worming regime is advisable anyway.

 

Eta:

@Bushriver : if you only skin them without gutting, your really have to feed them immediately to your dogs! Otherwise the carcass starts rotting immediately.

 

Edited March 24, 2018 by W T
clarification

[Bushriver]

Thanks for the advice. Yes I would plan to only kill enough in one day to feed that day (if that makes sense?). I was thinking that the content of the guts and organs would make it a balanced meal. 

[Scottsmum]

@Bushriver - it's worth looking at "prey model raw" to get a grasp on feeding whole carcasses.

 

No advice from me re: parasite control

[Kirislin]

I found a fresh roadkill bunny a few months ago and took it home, left it in the freezer for about 3-4 days and then gave it whole to my Italian Greyhound. She’d never even seen anything like it. She danced around it for about 20 minutes before plucking up the courage to lick it. She eventually licked a hole in it and proceeded to eat it. I then shared it amongst all 4 dogs and they ate everything! Bones, fur, guts, eyeballs, the lot. There wasn’t a trace of that bunny left.  I’d love to get more fresh food for them like that.

[W T]

13 hours ago, Bushriver said:

Thanks for the advice. Yes I would plan to only kill enough in one day to feed that day (if that makes sense?). I was thinking that the content of the guts and organs would make it a balanced meal. 

yes, as long as it is the gut from a herbivore (gut from a carnivore has a much higher risk of germs / bugs / parasites that are infectious for dogs) and as long as it is really fresh. However, once the organism / animal is dead, the gut becomes septic in a very short time, and pending on the injury that caused the death and if you wait too long, matter from the gut might leak into offal and muscle tissue contaminating it.

[Scottsmum]

9 hours ago, Kirislin said:

I found a fresh roadkill bunny a few months ago and took it home, left it in the freezer for about 3-4 days and then gave it whole to my Italian Greyhound. She’d never even seen anything like it. She danced around it for about 20 minutes before plucking up the courage to lick it. She eventually licked a hole in it and proceeded to eat it. I then shared it amongst all 4 dogs and they ate everything! Bones, fur, guts, eyeballs, the lot. There wasn’t a trace of that bunny left.  I’d love to get more fresh food for them like that.

There's a girl in SA breeding meat rabbits for her raw food business. I'm sure if you hunted around you'd find someone local doing similar.