Green Tripe: Canine Superfood?

You know how you hear about all of those perfect foods that can sustain human life because they contain every nutrient we need for health, like bee pollen or spirulina? Mmmm delicious. Dust for breaky again. Well green tripe is the doggy equivalent of this, except it’s more like if chocolate was the most nutritious food you could buy in the sense that they absolutely lose their minds for it. T H E Y  L O V E  I T.

I’m not suggesting you should feed your dog tripe and nothing else, but I think it definitely is the closest thing to a genuine doggy “superfood” and a fantastic addition to a homemade diet. If you can handle the smell…

So about that smell… The “green” part of green tripe is very important. I’m not talking about the bleached white honeycomb looking stuff you see at the butcher. There is very little nutritional value left in that. Green tripe is the untreated stomach lining of ruminant animals, named for the greeny-brown residue of the grasses these animals consume that is left behind. This residue means that green tripe is absolutely teeming with digestive enzymes and good bacteria. TEEMING.

Green tripe keeps your dog’s gut health in check by increasing the microbiota population of probiotics, aka “good bacteria,” and ensuring the equilibrium of good to bad bacteria is achieved and maintained. This equilibrium can help to stifle the proliferation of bacteria borne illnesses like Salmonella, e.coli and even urinary tract infections.

The loads of digestive enzymes found in green tripe facilitate more efficient digestion, which means food is processed without digestive distress, and in a manner that makes for optimal nutrient absorption.

It also contains at least 7 amino acids, healthy fats, a near perfect ratio of calcium to phosphorus (this is the ratio we work to maintain by offering the correct balance of muscle meat to bone in the diet), and the optimum balance of omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids.

And of course, as per usual, I love it because it’s a sustainable option. It is a nutritious waste product that is collateral damage from the meat industry, and thus consuming it reduces the impact that feeding my dog has on the Earth. It’s win win.

The hardest part about feeding green tripe is finding it. Butchers aren’t allowed to sell it because it is untreated, so you may need to go underground to locate a fresh source. I know of one business in Victoria that (legally) sells it in the little muffins pictured above, and you can buy it in a semi-processed form from most major pet stores. Otherwise, ask around your local farmers and see if any can point you in the right direction.

I know I write a lot about dogs but tripe is also an excellent addition to your cat’s diet too, which is why we include it in both our dog and cat Essential Blends.