The World's Best Dog Food

Tank is liking what he sees (and smells)

Yes, this is a recipe for dog food - for canned dog food no less.  And I must add it looks so good in a jar that I have been tempted to turn it into people food.  The dogs REALLY love it and it is good for them - it has to be better for them than commercial dog food. Basically I can (put in jars actually) all the scraps of meat that are left over from processing all the deer, goat, and elk meat harvested during the fall.

In the old days we used to put some of these meat scraps into the burger, and inevitably while eating burger at a later date you'd get the occasional off taste or strip of sinew in the teeth.  By feeding the slightly 'off' smelling, bloody, dirty, or whatever, scraps to the dogs you are making the best use of a valuable resource.  And you are making your own burger so much better - all it takes is one pack of bad burger or deer meat to destroy the family trust in tasty wild game.  Turning iffy scraps into dog food means there is no guilt about wasting meat.

Up until this year I used to feed the scraps raw to the dogs.  But our new dog Tank will not eat meat raw (go figure).  So I have started to can it.  And I think it works out a lot better because now the frozen dog food does not take up freezer space.  The canned dog food is much more convenient too.

Anyway here is the recipe:

Needed:
large canner (I have 2 'American' brand canners)
Canning jars and lids (for convenience I have been using quart jars)

For every 2 pounds of scraps figure on one quart jar (a quart equals 2 pints and a 'pints a pound the world round').  My canner fits 7 quart jars on the bottom or 14 pounds of meat.  Today after filling up 14 quart jars I still had a couple of pounds of meat leftover.  So I filled some 1/2 pint jars to fit in the top of the canner.

Ingredients:
Meat scraps
Tap water

Process:
The process is pretty simple.  Stuff all the jars up to about an inch from the top with meat.  I then add a little water to each jar (so it looks about 1/2 filled).  Then I wipe the rims and put on the lids.  I boil the lids in water first.  Then put on the rings and fill the canner.  Check your canner directions for details.  Then can for 1 1/2 hours at 10 pounds pressure.

Pretty easy and your dogs will love you.

Patrick

Packaged up and well-labelled scraps from the freezer

I un-package all the scraps into a cooler and then fill the jars

Jars all stuffed with meat scraps

Finished product - 14 quart jars and 6 half pint jars