Turkey Bone And Marrow

Turkey plants bone out meat for people and are left with necks, racks and frames that still carry some meat. Raw and freeze-dried pet food makers grind meat and bone together to a set size.^11,12,13

1. 01 // Source Necks and frames The bony carcass left after deboning, with meat still clinging. Meat yield runs 5 to 70% depending on the part.
2. 02 // Process Ground together Meat and bone go through the grinder together, and the marrow inside the bone comes along with them.
3. 03 // Process Sized fine Makers grind to a set particle size. One brand's specification is 1/8 inch, and it recalled lots ground at 1/4 inch.
4. 04 // Output Frozen raw grind A wet, gritty grind mixed with muscle meat and organs, then frozen without cooking.

1. 01

   Supplies missing calcium

   Boneless meat is short on calcium and long on phosphorus. Four puppies fed unsupplemented boneless raw meat developed bone disease, and two were euthanized.⁴

2. 02

   Calcium and phosphorus together

   Dried raw bone runs about 22% calcium and 10% phosphorus, roughly 2 to 1, so it corrects meat's phosphorus surplus instead of adding to it.^1,4

How much No maker publishes the bone share; one turkey recipe says only that meat, organs, marrow and bone together make up 95%.¹³

1. Brands say

   Bone is a natural source of calcium

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Plain arithmetic: dried raw bone is about 22% calcium. Getting the amount right is the hard part. In 95 home bone-and-raw rations, 10% supplied under a quarter of the recommended calcium.^1,3

2. Owners say

   Bone in the diet firms up the stool

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   No study has fed raw ground bone and scored the stool. The nearest is a 6-beagle trial where rendered meat and bone meal at 24% of a dry diet raised fecal dry matter from about 32% to 36%.⁶

3. Brands say

   Marrow adds extra nutrition

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Marrow is mostly fat: in red deer, fat made up 53 to 83% of it. No one has analyzed turkey marrow in pet food, and a raw turkey recipe already runs at 10% fat or more.^7,13

4. Owners say

   Bone and marrow support healthy joints

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   No study links dietary bone to joint health in dogs. Even purified glucosamine with chondroitin did not beat placebo in a 2023 randomized, blinded trial in dogs with hip arthritis.⁸

5. Owners say

   Bone in raw food keeps teeth clean

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Chewing whole beef bones cut calculus by 65 to 90% within 14 days in a 12-beagle trial. Ground bone is swallowed with the meat, never chewed, so that scraping never happens.⁹