Last Updated on June 20, 2024 by Michelle
It seemed so weird… but when I saw a company selling them as dog treats, I started wondering how to dehydrate chicken feet for Bixby.
First of all I spent many weeks researching this, even talking to the owner of a raw dog food company. (Catch the fun conversation on Episode 7 of Season 3 on my podcast: Simple Doesn’t Mean Easy.)
Are dehydrated chicken feet good for dogs?
I learned that chicken feet are high in glucosamine, which I had been buying for him in pill form for years to help with his hip pain. As I’m working at incorporating more real food, and not as worried about convenience, with my own diet, I was intrigued that I could treat Bixby daily with something he would long for, and look forward to, and also feed him real, whole food instead of making him take a pill.
Are dehydrated chicken feet safe?
Even after the days of dehydrating (yes, warning, it’s not fast), and being assured by experts that chicken feet would be really GOOD for Bixby, I was kinda terrified giving him his first one. I watched every one of his happy crunches and bites closely, worried he would choke.
I quickly learned my fears were unfounded. He not only did GREAT with his first chicken foot, they immediately became his favorite treat ever, still today, years later.
In the beginning, I did cut off all the toenails before dehydrating the feet, using my gardening sheers. Some folks say this is imperative but Bixby has been eating the feet with the nails ever since that first batch, with no problem. But if your dog is small, not-so-healthy, or you’re just not so sure (as I wasn’t), feel free to remove the nails. It only takes a minute if you have good sheers.
How long does it take to dehydrate chicken feet in a dehydrator?
It takes about 48 hours for chicken feet to be “done” in the dehydrator.
I did defrost bags of frozen feet, from our last meat bird dispatch, to make my first batch, and they may have been slightly frozen still which would have added to the time of course.
You’ll know your feet are “done” and ready for storage when they have no flexibility or juiciness in the padded parts and the skin. They will be very hard and dry. Once they’re all dry, take the chicken feet out of your dehydrator and let them cool completely.
At what temperature do you dehydrate chicken feet?
You want to dehydrate your chicken feet at 150 F for roughly 48 hrs. I can fit 2 dozen feet in my dehydrator, using only every other tray, since the feet are so thick.
How long do dehydrated chicken feet last?
- I love these chicken feet from my favorite raw food company who also offer many other amazing functional treats.
- And these chicken feet are great. I will often toss on an extra bag of feet when I’m ordering Bixby’s dog food from here, so I reach the free-shipping level.
How to Dehydrate Chicken Feet
- Wash feet
- Clip nails (or remove them all together) with garden sheers, if you prefer. (optional)
- Line dehydrator trays with feet.
- Run dehydrator at 150 degrees for roughly 48 hours.
- Remove feet when they are hard and dry and there is no flexibility or juiciness in the padded parts or the skin.
- Let feet thoroughly cool well/air dry.
- Store in glass jars with sealed lids or mylar bags or storage buckets.
More of Bixby’s Favorites
More Details About Pets on the Homestead:
Training your dog to be chicken friendly
When your dog gets sprayed by a skunk
Lies the pet food industry is feeding us (podcast)
5 things you need to know about raising barn kittens
Dog training & great dog products
Who teaches us more than he teaches the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds in the sky? Job 35:11
Pin this for later!
Click on the image below to pin this post.
Find out why SoulyRested was considered to be one of the One of the Top Homesteading Blogs.
Glance at my Resource Page if you’d like to get a glimpse of all the supplies I use and recommend for everything from gardening, to homeschooling, to chicken care, to nature journaling, to maple syrup making.
I’d love to connect!
To find me in some other neck of the woods, just click any (or every!) icon below:
Ok I learned a LOT with from this… I had no clue at all about the glucosamine. I love finding out about ways to help my pet eat healthier and how to incorporate items that have natural healing properties or that benefit a pet holistically.
Okay, you do you, I say gross 😂
I had no idea you could dehydrate their feet.
This is very interesting. At first I thought the chicken feet were for humans, and I was a little scared haha. But I’ve been wanting to find more natural alternatives to feed my dogs since the increase in cancer and other illnesses from commercial dog food.
Okay, I may be considered a weird one here, but chicken feet are a great addition to bone broth for humans! Would dehydrating them negate the nutritional value?
Have you only fed Bixby dried ones?
I’m sure you could use dry ones in broth, but I use them right out of my freezer for making our own broth… no need to go to the 2-day process of dehydrating them for that.