Did that thread get deleted? I just tried to respond and it said it was gone. Anyway, this is what I was writing, I definitely think it applies to this topic as well...
Here's a calculator on how much to feed when you do raw:
http://www.raw4dogs.com/calculate.htm. Essentially it is 2% of the dog's body weight if they are fat, 2.5-3% to maintain weight, and some hunting dogs may need 4-5%. My Lacy hovers around 30 pounds, on average we hunt every other week, and she gets about one pound a day.
Do not grind up or cook the meat in any way. Just chop it down to edible portions and throw it in the kennels. Cooking leaches nutritional value. And you don't want to grind it up because you need whole bones. They need chewable, digestible bones - like those found in poultry and fish as well as the neck bones and ribs of larger animals - for calcium and other important nutrients.
But never feed a dog *cooked* chicken or fish bones. That is when they can splinter and cause internal damage. It is like putting clay in a kiln, it starts out soft and pliable but turns brittle when cooked. Bones are the same way, they are actually moist when they are raw but cooking dries them out.
I do know people that feed a little bit of hide, it can help slough out intestinal worms, but I don't think there is any special nutritional value in it. Dogs will eat the heck out of heads too, brains and eyeballs and all. They do need organ meat, especially liver, but kidneys are good for variety.
The basic premise is to feed whatever the dogs would find in the wild. As hunters, it should be especially cheap and easy to provide that type of diet. All the leftovers from your own kills, your friends, your family, your taxidermist... anything that the people don't want, the dogs will love. But I feed primarily chicken quarters from the grocery store and it is still far cheaper than the kibble I used to buy.
Krystal, it's funny you mentioned road kill, cause I've heard some crazy stories about that. Honestly, if the animal just got hit, it's a great idea. You won't pay a dime, you're cleaning up the roadways and the dogs certainly don't care. But there is no way I have the stomach for that!
