Lies We've Been Told About Chicken
White, dark, skin and what does air chilled even mean?
Happy Valentines Day! We hope you enjoyed some QT with your cuties. Today we are going to cover some myths commonly held about chicken. There are some pet influencers that even bash on chicken. But we love chicken. It’s cheap, easy, and dogs love it.
In America people often default to chicken breast — because that’s what we’ve been told is “healthiest.” It’s low in fat and high in protein, but it’s actually one of the least nutritious cuts.
Dark meat > breast
Chicken breast is high in protein and lean. Sounds great, right? But dark meat (thighs, drumsticks) has significantly more zinc, copper, iron, and B vitamins. These nutrients matter for your dog’s coat, immune system, and energy.
Healthy dogs rely on fat as their primary energy source, not carbs. So the extra fat in dark meat isn’t a problem…it’s actually good for them. Even the skin is fine for most dogs. See our post on fats for more info.
Dark meat is also usually cheaper.
Liver is a multivitamin
If you’re not feeding liver, you’re leaving out one of the most nutrient-dense foods. Chicken liver is packed with vitamin A, B12, iron, copper, and zinc.
Quick note: chicken liver is actually better for regular use than beef liver. Beef liver is high in copper, so great in small amounts, but it’s easy to overdo. Chicken liver gives you a nutritional punch with a wider margin of safety.
Still, a little goes a long way. A few ounces of liver a week for most dogs is plenty.
“Pasture raised” vs “free range” vs “conventional”
These labels are confusing on purpose. Here’s what they actually mean:
Conventional: Chickens are raised indoors, often in crowded conditions. Usually processed with water chilling. Unfortunately the chicken absorbs water and chemicals during processing.
Free range: Chickens are required to have “access” to the outdoors. In practice, this can mean a small door at the end of a warehouse.
Pasture raised: From reputable producers, pasture raised chickens are usually the most nutritious. They are more expensive, but the price is due to how the animals are treated. Some studies show better fatty acid profile, higher levels in certain nutrients, and generally a cleaner product. To learn more read our post on chicken and eggs.
Air Chilled: Most conventional chicken is water chilled after processing (dunked in chlorinated water baths with thousands of other birds). The chicken can absorb some of this water as it’s being chilled. Air chilled chicken is cooled with cold air instead of liquid, a much cleaner process in our opinion.
What should you buy?
Honestly? Whatever is in your budget. Pasture raised, air chilled is ideal, but conventional dark meat is still way better than no real food at all.
Here’s our go-to for Cedric and Edith:
We use dark meat (thighs or drumsticks) most of the time, often with skin on.
For some of our special occasion recipes like “fried” chicken tenders and chicken pawrmesan, breast works better.
When we can: Pasture raised and air chilled (Costco has great deals on air chilled chicken.)
That’s it for this week.
All the best,
Joelle and R.A.