That is great. It is so much cheaper than pre packaged treats and you know exactly what he is eating. Great job.

 

I got a dehydrator recently to make treats for my dogs. I have a ton of ground mat from Craigslist so I made ground beef jerky. It turned out pretty well and the dogs love it. It is a great way to use up ground meats. Your chicken jerky looks good too. I will have to try some of that too.

 

Thanks! They love them, even when I dip them in a little ACV. It is a lot cheaper too. I payed about $4.50 dollars for the chicken breast at central market for about 10-15 dollars worth of happy hips.

I wish I had a dehydrator. I would dehydrate so many things, like apples and mango (for me of course!).

Do you guys think it would work with darker meats? Like turkey or emu?

 

Yea, it would work. You can do any boneless meat. We have a dehydrator and I just dehydrated some calf liver last week and it was a hit!

 

Well, it's all your fault. I bought some chicken breast at the supermarket this afternoon. Going to have a go at making your chicken jerky. I think all the neighbour hood pups will really get off on it, it'll be nice for them to have a change anyway. Hope I don't burn it, I'm famous for that.

 

You can dehydrate pretty much any meat. Just remember that the higher the fat content the longer it takes to dehydrate.

 

I've done that before, with chicken and venison. They end up having slightly different textures, the venison is always a bit more chewy and harder to break into pieces.

 

It is really hard to burn. Check on it every hour or so and it should be fine.

I just ordered some emu from my co-op so I will try to do some strips with that and take pics.

 

Anyone who has an Aldi's ... (Hopefully this is at other locations than Texas, but I bought a dehydrator there for only 20 bucks on sale yesterday. Dog treats here I come!!! : )

 

Could I do heart in the oven ,anyone explain to me how ,betsy is the greediest dog!,I'm trying hard to train her basics she can do a lot but is very food motivated and I don't like using shop bought treats ,if I keep giving her the treats she's going to explode!,karen

 

Lol Betsy sounds just like Jack! He will do anything for food. I am sure heart would work too, it just might be a little smellier because it is so rich. I have some beef heart in the freezer, I might try that this week.

 

I will give it a go because at the rate she's going she will soon look like a blown up fury balloon with tiny little legs dangling down !,so what heat setting do you think I should use ?,I have a fan assisted gas oven lol,karen

 

I did it at 200 degrees fahrenheit for a few hours. The time will vary though on the thickness of the meat.

 

Well I cut the heart really thin and cooked it for an hour ,it did stick a bit to the baking tray lol,but it baked well ,and she loves it,thanks for the advice,karen

 

I made some chicken jerky on Sunday too. I'm not sure if I overcooked it or not, but the pups love it.
Funny how I absolutely detest cooking for humans, but can somehow motivate myself to do it for the animals.....

 

I am so going to try this, sounds so easy which is what I like.

 

i finally made some too the other day. Thanks for the motivation!

 

Seriously, all the dogs absolutely adore the chicken jerky. It was almost worth the effort
It's their high value treat now. Mol learnt to file her nails on sandpaper in one lesson thanks to these treats.
I'm waiting for chicken breast to go on sale and I'll make up another batch.

 

Yay! I am so happy these worked out for everyone. I am doing thin slices of beef heart tonight and a small amount of organ to try out. I think it is beef thymus, it is pink and spongy. The bag just said "gland" lol, I don't know why I didn't write out the full name.

 

Beef heart worked great. When it cut it into slices it stays chewy like a jerky which they like a lot better than cubes that are crunchier. Cubes are a quick treat but the strips take a few more seconds to eat, I can see them savoring the flavor lol. The gland did not work. After almost five hours it was still oily and still moist.

They had emu for the first time last night and they love it, even Lila, which is surprising since she hates quail. It seems to be a very rich meat, which is something she loves. I may have to make some emu strips.

 

How long did you cook the beef heart for? I've got a couple of pork hearts in the freezer that I might give a go.
Bought some more chicken breast today as the dogs have hoovered through the batch I made last week.

 

my mom taught me how to make jerky like this, she used to make venison jerky for my dad and his freinds when they were together.

i make some for the dogs, unseasoned, then make some for myself! makes a good snack if your on a diet!
i like to hang my meat from the rack and have a cookie sheet on the rack below to catch any drippings, that way you dont have to struggle with it sticking to the pan

 

Did liver and the dogs love it! They will do almost anything for it! Does not last long.

 

I just put a batch of beef lung in the oven tonight. I like to put a layer of parchment paper on the cookie sheet. Keeps it from sticking and soaks up any moisture so it doesn't cook onto the cookie sheet.

I had to be very careful how much chicken jerkey and dehydrated liver I gave my dogs for treats when I made them. Gave them really bad gas and even runny stool. The beef lung isn't as rich and is easier on their tummies. For us, at least.

Thanks for motivating me to make more dehydrated treats. I've got to make some room in the freezer. Hunting season coming up and the guys are going to be #%$$&@ at me if there is no room for deer meat. lol

 

I recently tried pork and that has to be "my" favorite so far for texture. I like to use them as small treats, so i break them up into pieces and the pork has broken the best so far. It's isn't brittle like beef and chicken have been and isn't chewy and over flexible like the venison, breaks easy without leaving crumbs.

 

It seems this chicken strips is an interesting and my dog loves to eat chicken and since she loves to eat chicken hopefully she will like it too. I will make this later and we'll see how she response to this food.