liver

I would feed liver about once or twice a week.

Mine usually get beef liver once a week and chicken liver once or twice a week, and chicken hearts once or twice a week, then fish the other nights.

Too much liver can cause vitaminosis. Liver contains vitamin A and when fed in large amounts *can* cause vitamin A toxicity. Cats are more sensitive to this than dogs, but just be aware that it is a possibility.
[linkhttp://dels.nas.edu/banr/cd_dog_vit.html]http://dels.nas.edu/banr/cd_dog_vit.html[/link]
 
 

Renee, in your experience, would you suggest that this is less of problem for a wolf in the wild, since they end up only eating a sizable kill every 2 to 3 weeks, sometimes? A one time overload of vitamin A is not too much of a problem if that's all the A for the month? I still don't know enough but is it also possible that wolf's metabolism differs from the domesticated dog because of it's eating pattern and, for example, the wolf's ability to intake 20 pounds of food? Could this affect the timing of their digestion and the varying levels of ph? I do know from reading about wolf digestion that their scat from one meal changes over time, with hide-wrapped bones coming out last.

You are correct in assuming that the wolf's digestion is different to a degree. They (wolves) are designed to gorge and fast, so they can consume more food less often and can still recieve an average nutrient requirement.
Vitamin A is a fat-soluable vitamin, so it doesn't get excreted in the urine like, say, vitamin C, which is a water soluable vitamin. This is the reason that care should be considered when feeding to much of any food with a high concentration of fat soluable vitamins. They build up in the liver and tissues, causing problems. With wolves, there feeding *habits* prevent overload on the liver. The body has time to absorb and utilize the vitamins and minerals they are consuming before eating again.
Our "dogs" eat daily, and they bodies are not used to fasting for days, although they can survive, they can build up toxins from excess fat soluable vitamins. Also, they don't have a huge territory to patrol and don't get near the same exercise as a wolf would, which would also help to use up the excess vitamins.

Thanks, Renee. I was thinking along those lines but I would rather refer to your experience and knowledge, which dwarfs my own.

How large is your dog? my "balanced recipes" for feeding a large dog call for less than 6 oz. of liver per week. Feeding liver every day, especially on top of kibble, which often contains liver, will definitely cause nutritional problems in the long run. How about feeding other foods instead of liver-- canned salmon, bones and all, is a terrific addition to any dog's diet. Eggs. Beef heart. Green tripe. Cooked meats.