March is National Kidney Month! To celebrate we are going to learn all about kidney! What is a kidney anyway?! Why might you want to feed kidney? How do you add kidney to your carnivore’s diet? Answers to these questions & more to come!
What Are Kidneys?
Okay, so kidneys are an organ that help to detoxify the body. To help us understand what the kidneys do, here is a list of helpful things to know about what 
kidneys do in the body:
- Kidneys help to remove waste & extra liquid from the body by making it into urine.
- Kidneys also help control blood pressure by controlling fluid levels in the body & creating hormones.
- The kidneys are also responsible for creating the hormone that tells the bone marrow to create red blood cells. Red blood cells help transport oxygen throughout the body.
- Kidneys also help to regulate the body’s pH level. Which is essential for a healthy body!
Those are the main highlights of what our kidneys do for us & what they do for our pet carnivores. The kidneys have many other important functions as well! Remember that for raw feeding purposes, kidney is in the secreting organ family.
Why Feed Kidney?
Why might you want to add kidney to your pet’s diet? Well, the nutrients found in a kidney can help to nourish your pet’s kidneys! This is the thought of like, cures like. Let’s take a quick look at some of the nutrients found in both Beef & Pork Kidney.
Feeding some extra kidney can help to keep your pets’ kidneys in tip-top shape & functioning well!
The Traditional Chinese Medicine View:
According to the Traditions of Chinese Medicine Beef Kidney is warming with a sweet flavor. Meanwhile, Pork Kidney is considered neutral with a salty flavor. Both Beef & Pork Kidney are thought to tonify Yang & Jing. Yang is helpful for pets that have a tendency to be cold, weak & not very active. Jing is a type of energy found in TCM.
In addition, winter is considered the season of the kidneys in TCM. So, it can be especially effective to add some extra kidney to your pet’s diet in the winter months. Thought it is helpful year-round.
Adding Kidney to Your Carnivores Diet:
Remember all of our Ground Whole options do contain the kidney of the animal used for the grind. However, you may be interested in adding some extra kidney to your pet’s diet. Perhaps for kidney support, variety or just for fun, adding kidney is a great 
idea! How do you add kidney to your pets’ diet? You can easily thaw the kidney, portion it into smaller amounts & then refreeze it. Then you are ready to add bits of kidney to your pets’ meals when the mood strikes!
Remember, kidney is an organ which means that too much could cause temporary digestive upset. So, introduce it slowly. As with all fresh foods, it is a good idea to feed a variety of different kinds of kidney. As you can tell from the graph above, both Beef & Pork Kidney are a little different. So, if you are able, it is a good idea to rotate between the two to offer optimal kideny support!
Conclusion:
The kidneys are a vital organ that help with detoxification, hormone creation, red blood cell creation, blood pressure regulation & much more! Feeding kidney to your pet is fun, easy & can help to support your pet’s kidney health as well!
Resources:
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/169449/nutrients
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/168270/nutrients
http://chinesenutrition.org/browse.asp?category=Meathttps://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/why-organ-meat-is-important-for-the-raw-fed-dog/
https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/mistake-raw-feeders-make-with-organ-meats/
https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/?s=kidney&_ga=2.187233128.1513304826.1676568467-8576097.1676568466
https://www.kidney.org/kidneydisease/top-5-jobs-kidneys-do
Hey there. My name is Rilla Banks. I have a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Wellingtin, who I have been raw feeding since about 2015. I am constantly on the lookout for natural ways to improve his life. I love to research all things dogs & I am happy to share my finding with you!
