Feeding Your Pet: Can Puppies Eat Cooked Chicken?

As a dog owner, you want your pup to grow into a strong, healthy dog with a good immune system. That means feeding your puppy with healthy food that promotes his health and growth, keeping in mind that puppies need a lot of energy as they are highly active. For that, natural dog foods like chicken, beef,and vegetable products are the best for the growth of your Puppy.

Is chicken Safe for My Puppy?

While chicken is one of the most affordable and readily available ingredients in puppy food, most people are hesitant to try it due to obvious safety concerns. Some sources also advise against feeding raw chicken to your dog because of the risk of Salmonella and other bacterial infections.

If you are trying to avoid feeding your puppy on raw chicken, consider cooking it first. That will not only make it easy for your puppy to chew and digest the food, but it will also kill most bacteria that the raw chicken may contain. This article will tell you everything about feeding your growing puppy with cooked chicken instead of commercial dog kibbles.

Can I Feed My Dog Cooked Thighs?

Considering most commercial dog food brands have chicken as one of the main ingredients, a puppy of any age will love the smell of home-cooked thighs or breasts. While you shouldn’t necessarily feed it to him daily, cooking chicken thighs is safe for your puppy if done right.

To start feeding your dog on cooked chicken, you need to wait until your puppy is at least eight weeks old or 12 weeks for some puppies. That’s the age that puppies start to cut their permanent teeth that they need to chew food that gives them resistance. You can consult breed specific literature or your vet about portion size, which mainly depends on the breed, age, growth rate and size of your puppy.

Feeding Your Puppy Cooked Thighs

Puppies of all ages will enjoy cooked chicken thighs when cooked plain in little or no fat, without any seasoning like pepper, onions, garlic or salt. Boiling the meat is the best way to prepare your chicken thighs for the puppy as it eliminates bacteria that spread food-borne illnesses that raw meat may contain. That makes the meat relatively safe for your pup compared to raw meat.

As boiling time varies, it’s important to cut the thighs in the middle before feeding your puppy to ensure that there are no pink pigments visible. You’ll also want to remove the bone from the chicken, even though dogs can eat raw chicken bones. That’s because cooked bones splinters easily, making it dangerous for your pet as they can cause gastro-intestinal raptures.

After preparing the boiled chicken thighs, offer them to your puppy with a small amount of normal food like cooked rice, vegetable scraps such as boiled carrots or pumpkin. For instance, one recipe may have two or three thighs, ½ cup of green beans, two carrots and a cup of rice. You can also include one sweet potato and peanut butter or apple slices in your recipe, but you should ensure that your dog is completely comfortable with his food. Moreover, you need to consider a few other factors before serving chicken thighs to your pup:

• Allergies – While chicken is one of the main ingredients used in dog food for both the commercial feeds and raw diets, it ranks among the top ingredients that cause dog allergies. Some dogs can also have allergic reactions towards dairy, beef, eggs, wheat, pork, fish, rabbit and soy.
• Dietary Needs – Just like any other growing animal, puppies utilize a lot of energy during their normal activities. For that, you should ensure that the food your puppy eats supplies him with all the necessary nutrients for growth and general body health. If you are not sure what exactly to include in your recipe with chicken meat, you can consider asking your veterinarian for advice.

Can Boiled Chicken Give My Dog Diarrhea?

Several factors may contribute to the sudden onset of diarrhea with your puppy. Often, your growing dog will start to diarrhea due to stress, scavenging behavior, parasitic and bacterial infections or a sudden change in diet. Your puppy may also suffer from chronic diarrhea if it has an allergic reaction or dietary intolerances towards chicken. Aside from allergies, your puppy may get diarrhea if it’s suffering from gastrointestinal issues, cancer, inflammatory bowel or Irritable Bowel Syndrome. These health issues need a consultation with your vet and might even prescribe some medication for it.

Can I Feed My Dog Cooked Chicken Thighs Without Boiling?

Aside from boiling, you can also cook chicken thighs for your puppy in the oven. Here’s how you can do it:

• Preheat your oven for cooking your chicken thighs at 350⁰ The chicken will cook slowly at this temperature and won’t dry out.
• Slice your thighs to allow them to cook evenly and faster.
• Coat the chicken thighs with olive oil to ensure they don’t stick or burn.
• Bake the chicken thighs until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. The time varies depending on the thickness of the thighs, but you should check the temperature after every 20 minutes. For that, you should insert your cooking thermometer into the thickest thigh.
• Remove the chicken on the oven and place it on a dish to cool.
• Service it according to your puppy’s food portion with vegetables and other foods. You can also serve it as a homemade treat.

Is Cooked Chicken Healthy For My Puppy?

Technically, there are numerous benefits of feeding cooked chicken your puppy. It’s not only easy to digest but it also a safer alternative to both raw food diets and commercially processed dog food.  However, you shouldn’t feed a growing dog a large amount of chicken regularly. That’s because chicken contains a high amount of Omega-6 fatty acids which are known to cause chronic inflammation to your dog. That said, the chicken should account for less than a quarter of your puppy’s diet if you want the dog to grow healthy with a properly functioning immune system.