Meat maiden fed to dog (4)
I believe the answer is:
lamb
'meat' is the definition.
(I know that lamb is a type of meat)
'maiden fed to dog' is the wordplay.
'maiden' becomes 'm' (cricket abbreviation).
'fed to' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'dog' becomes 'lab' (short for labrador).
'm' going within 'lab' is 'LAMB'.
(Other definitions for lamb that I've seen before include "Young farm animal" , "author?" , "Writer" , "Youngster" , "Noted essayist - symbol of innocence" .)