Whole Chickens/Cornish Game Hens: How Much Bone do you Remove?

[aprilprey]

Disclosure: tried the search function...came up with zip.  Thus the the new post.

I think I am going to start using whole chickens for Dr. Pierson's recipe.   Two reasons:

1. Whole chickens are cheaper per lb. as a general rule, and

2. Whole chickens are less processed/handled, thus less risk of salmonella - those bag 'o wings, thighs, etc...are usually the worst offenders in terms of contamination and recalls.

Yeah, yeah, I know salmonella in cats in not the end of the world, but you are underestimating what a neurotic spazzy freak I am - I don't want to be freaking out over Dexter's gut health if I can help it.

I have Cornish hens for the next batch $2.00 a lb - yay.  Would you try and stick to Dr. Pierson's "remove 20%-25% of the bone by removing maybe...the spine and maybe chop some off the drumstick bone?

I know that Dr. Becker's book has one using whole chickens with no bone removal at all.  Dexter is a very normal pooper thus far...no signs of constipation at all.  I remove bone like Dr. P says....

What do you guys do if you use whole birds?

 

[ldg]

mschauer put a table together: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/263570/composition-of-proteins-bone-skin-fat

Whole chickens are 32% bone

Cornish Hens are 39% bone

To get to the approximate 7% - 8% bone content, you need to remove a lot more than 20 - 25%

Her recipe uses thighs, which are 15% bone.

 

[peaches08]

I'm not much help with recipes, but the catnutrition site (similar to Dr. P's recipe) says to use chicken thighs and remove 20-25% bone or use whole chickens. As far as Cornish hens...I got nothing. What an awesome price though!

 

[ldg]

FYI, for those who feed solely HT meats (which are whole ground animal sans guts), some kitties gets constipated. Sally ( mrsgreenjeens ) adds an organ mix (that is 25% or 50% secreting organs) - I think 1 pound per each 2 pound chub? :dk: Hopefully she'll see this.

 

[ldg]

Actually, I remember there was a thread where mschauer walked someone through how much meat was needed to add to her whole ground chicken... but I don't know how to find it.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

FYI, for those who feed solely HT meats (which are whole ground animal sans guts), some kitties gets constipated. Sally (@mrsgreenjeens) adds an organ mix (that is 25% or 50% secreting organs) - I think 1 pound per each 2 pound chub?

Hopefully she'll see this.

Actually, I add 1 lb of the organ mix (which is liver/hearts and gizzards) to 3 1/3 lbs of ground turkey necks and drums, because I felt that grind was really high in bones...something over 20%.  Now I am going to start adding 1 lb of ground boneless turkey thigh into the mix and only 1/2 lb of organ mix, because I want to get that bones % down more.  (Of course, I'm adding in supplements!)  And, thanks to LDG, glandulars that I can just sprinkle over the top (in powder form)

 

[aprilprey]

mschauer put a table together: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/263570/composition-of-proteins-bone-skin-fat

Whole chickens are 32% bone

Cornish Hens are 39% bone

To get to the approximate 7% - 8% bone content, you need to remove a lot more than 20 - 25%

Her recipe uses thighs, which are 15% bone.

Thanks so much.  I am sure I have seen this before, but mind like a sieve and all that.  Really appreciate your efforts.  If only I could remember half the stuff my brain processes in a day, THAT would be a huge improvement.

 

[ldg]

:lol3: We'd all be the smartest people in the world if we could remember everything we'd ever heard and read!