those who make their own dog food
- Thread starter Fach
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macska
Cathlete
I make my own dog food. Usually it is some meat (mainly chicken) veggies, some starch and good fat. Today my miniature poodle Lucy had an egg for breakfast, then some chicken breast, oatmeal, broccoli and carrot mix for the rest of the days two meals. It actually came form the chicken soup I made for everybody. For her I mixed some already cooked oatmeal in. She loves it. Also, chicken with brown rice, and veggies is on her favorite list. She does not like potato, but pasta, rice, oatmeal is good. She basically eats what we eat, that is mostly chicken breast, lots of veggies, and some rice/pasta/oatmeal. I don't think you can go wrong with these. Sometimes I add some flaxseed, or fish oil. She is a very healthy 12 years old poodle. She nibbles on dry food sometimes.
I tend to make a lot of home made soups, so it is very easy for me to just scoop out some soup, and add whatever I think is missing to that. She eats all veggies, so it is not a problem. She does not like fish, but lean beef, pork are also on her favorite list.
So, do you think she is spoiled?
I tend to make a lot of home made soups, so it is very easy for me to just scoop out some soup, and add whatever I think is missing to that. She eats all veggies, so it is not a problem. She does not like fish, but lean beef, pork are also on her favorite list.
So, do you think she is spoiled?
I also cook my own dog's food. Basically the same as your other reply. Today I made stew beef with mixed veggies and brown rice some garlic and a capful of oil. Other days it is chicken. I also sometimes grate raw carrots into his food. A vet suggested that you can always put in frozen veggies if you are in a rush. I usually cook a few meals at a time, put them in individual containers and take out each meal as needed. My dog is so happy with this and he never has stomach upsets any more. I ran this by my vet and his reply was how great my dog looks and how healthy he is. It is my own opinion that we have been sold a bill of goods by the pet food industry and vets really get very little training in nutrition.
hiitdogs
Cathlete
The "balanced diet" claim of the pet food industry always cracks me up. Essentially, they are making us believe that a highly processed food of questionable ingredients is superior to a varied diet of fresh foods.
I am not sure how we keep buying into this claim. Just from a common sense point of view. How is it, that we as humans survive when we feed our kids, we don't weigh all the macronutrients or only feed our kids a exactly "balanced" diet of exactly the same every day. It would be like feeding our kids one kind of cereal day in, day out and claiming this is better for humans than a varied diet of fresh ingredients.
Now, technically the kibble that we are feeding our dogs has a exact balance of macronutrients (protein, carbs, fat). The problem is, that it doesn't work that way. For the calculation of pet food manufactures, they are only required to use crude protein, which doesn't take into consideration the biological value and the digestability.
The biological value depends on the composition of amino acids that the protein is made up of (i.e Eggs are 100, fish meal is 92, beef 78, wheat gluten 40).
Digestability is the extent to which the gi tract can absorb it, one source maybe 70 % digestible, the other 90 %. Some proteins (like those in hair) are less digestible because they are harder or even impossible for the body to break down
However, crude protein makes no differentiation, all proteins are the same in the calculation for pet food manufacturers. So depending on the ingredients the "balance" of nutrients may not be what the lable says. And in fact it may be quite unbalanced!
Not only that but the processing will increase the loss of nutrients, vitamins, minerals. To make up for that pet food manufacturers will add a number of synthetic or isolated vitamins. If that doesn't get destroyed through heat processing, through interactions with other substances, or simply by exposure to air during storage.
That all being said, I don't think we need to become animal nutrionists to feed our pets a varied diet of fresh food. It balances itself out over time, just as it does when we eat a whole variety of fresh, unprocessed foods.
A couple of things to keep in mind. If you feed raw meat only without bones it can throw of the calcium : phosphorus ratio. So just throwing a piece of raw meat every day won't do the trick.
You can feed the meat but then you need to supplement with raw bones, chicken necks, turkey necks, etc every other day. About 30 % of my dog's diet is raw, meaty bones.
About 1/3 of the other food is veggies and grains (oatmeal, rice, millet, etc) and 2/3 meat. I cook the grains and veggies and add the raw meat. Here is a thread that gives you kind of an idea of what I feed my dogs.
http://69.0.137.118/dc/dcboard.php?..._id=379713&mesg_id=379713&listing_type=search
Check out http://www.dogaware.com/dogfeeding.html, it gives you a pretty good idea of what to feed.
I would say, you won't need to weigh every morsel of food that goes in your pets' mouth. I don't stress over it, I don't weigh every morsel that goes in my kids' mouth either, nor do I think I need to. However, if you are very detail oriented and rather get the recipes and exact recommendations, I would recommend Dr. Pitcairn's book "The Complete Guide to Natural Health for Cats and Dogs". It has recipes and lots of good information.
Don't worry about feeding a balanced diet with EVERY meal.
Carola
I am not sure how we keep buying into this claim. Just from a common sense point of view. How is it, that we as humans survive when we feed our kids, we don't weigh all the macronutrients or only feed our kids a exactly "balanced" diet of exactly the same every day. It would be like feeding our kids one kind of cereal day in, day out and claiming this is better for humans than a varied diet of fresh ingredients.
Now, technically the kibble that we are feeding our dogs has a exact balance of macronutrients (protein, carbs, fat). The problem is, that it doesn't work that way. For the calculation of pet food manufactures, they are only required to use crude protein, which doesn't take into consideration the biological value and the digestability.
The biological value depends on the composition of amino acids that the protein is made up of (i.e Eggs are 100, fish meal is 92, beef 78, wheat gluten 40).
Digestability is the extent to which the gi tract can absorb it, one source maybe 70 % digestible, the other 90 %. Some proteins (like those in hair) are less digestible because they are harder or even impossible for the body to break down
However, crude protein makes no differentiation, all proteins are the same in the calculation for pet food manufacturers. So depending on the ingredients the "balance" of nutrients may not be what the lable says. And in fact it may be quite unbalanced!
Not only that but the processing will increase the loss of nutrients, vitamins, minerals. To make up for that pet food manufacturers will add a number of synthetic or isolated vitamins. If that doesn't get destroyed through heat processing, through interactions with other substances, or simply by exposure to air during storage.
That all being said, I don't think we need to become animal nutrionists to feed our pets a varied diet of fresh food. It balances itself out over time, just as it does when we eat a whole variety of fresh, unprocessed foods.
A couple of things to keep in mind. If you feed raw meat only without bones it can throw of the calcium : phosphorus ratio. So just throwing a piece of raw meat every day won't do the trick.
You can feed the meat but then you need to supplement with raw bones, chicken necks, turkey necks, etc every other day. About 30 % of my dog's diet is raw, meaty bones.
About 1/3 of the other food is veggies and grains (oatmeal, rice, millet, etc) and 2/3 meat. I cook the grains and veggies and add the raw meat. Here is a thread that gives you kind of an idea of what I feed my dogs.
http://69.0.137.118/dc/dcboard.php?..._id=379713&mesg_id=379713&listing_type=search
Check out http://www.dogaware.com/dogfeeding.html, it gives you a pretty good idea of what to feed.
I would say, you won't need to weigh every morsel of food that goes in your pets' mouth. I don't stress over it, I don't weigh every morsel that goes in my kids' mouth either, nor do I think I need to. However, if you are very detail oriented and rather get the recipes and exact recommendations, I would recommend Dr. Pitcairn's book "The Complete Guide to Natural Health for Cats and Dogs". It has recipes and lots of good information.
Don't worry about feeding a balanced diet with EVERY meal.
Carola
I really appreciate the responses. Thank you! I have been feeding much the same way as you guys have. The only difference is I have not added oatmeal. I just plain didn't think about it. Do you cook it first? Dumb question, but worth asking.
I cannot feed raw foods as my sheltie has a very sensetive stomach. All meats given to my dogs are cooked. I cannot give bones. Believe me when I say he would be sick as a "dog" LOL
I cannot feed raw foods as my sheltie has a very sensetive stomach. All meats given to my dogs are cooked. I cannot give bones. Believe me when I say he would be sick as a "dog" LOL
hiitdogs
Cathlete
>I really appreciate the responses. Thank you! I have been
>feeding much the same way as you guys have. The only
>difference is I have not added oatmeal. I just plain didn't
>think about it. Do you cook it first? Dumb question, but worth
>asking.
>
>I cannot feed raw foods as my sheltie has a very sensetive
>stomach. All meats given to my dogs are cooked. I cannot give
>bones. Believe me when I say he would be sick as a "dog" LOL
>
>
Yup, you cook the oatmeal, if you put any veggies in, you should cook them for a few minutes.
Here are two recipes that I really like:
1 cup brown rice (or 2 1/4 cooked)
1 cup ground meat (= 1/2 lb)
1 cup cooked beans
1 TBSP oil (I use either salmon oil or Halo Dream Coat)
1 tsp bonemeal
1 TBSP Missing Link Supplement or Wysong Call of the Wild
1 garlic clove (crushed or minced)
This yields about 4 to 5 cups with 250 kcal per cup
You can substitue the rice as follows, either
2 cups rolled oats + 4 cups of water (= 4 cups cooked)
1 cup bulgur + 2 cups water (= 2 1/2 cups cooked)
1 cup millet + 3 cups water (= 3 cups cooked)
1 cup barley + 3 cups water (= 3 cups cooked)
The other one is Doggie Oats
5 cups raw rolled oats (= 11 cups cooked)
6 cups (= 3 lbs) ground meat
1/4 cup oil
1 cup cooked/blanched veggies (it's best grated)
4 - 5 TBSP Missing Link or Call of the Wild
4 tsp ground bonemeal (if your ground meat contains ground bones, like many frozen dog meats (Bravo, Oma's Pride, Nature's Logic do) you can omit the bonemeal
This should yield about 18 to 19 cups with 230 kcal each
You can refrigerate it for up to 3 days, or freeze it and use it as you need.
As to how much to feed, small dogs need about 4 cups per day, medium 6 cups, depending or how active your dog is, you will need to feed a little less or a little more.
Hope this helps.
Carola
>feeding much the same way as you guys have. The only
>difference is I have not added oatmeal. I just plain didn't
>think about it. Do you cook it first? Dumb question, but worth
>asking.
>
>I cannot feed raw foods as my sheltie has a very sensetive
>stomach. All meats given to my dogs are cooked. I cannot give
>bones. Believe me when I say he would be sick as a "dog" LOL
>
>
Yup, you cook the oatmeal, if you put any veggies in, you should cook them for a few minutes.
Here are two recipes that I really like:
1 cup brown rice (or 2 1/4 cooked)
1 cup ground meat (= 1/2 lb)
1 cup cooked beans
1 TBSP oil (I use either salmon oil or Halo Dream Coat)
1 tsp bonemeal
1 TBSP Missing Link Supplement or Wysong Call of the Wild
1 garlic clove (crushed or minced)
This yields about 4 to 5 cups with 250 kcal per cup
You can substitue the rice as follows, either
2 cups rolled oats + 4 cups of water (= 4 cups cooked)
1 cup bulgur + 2 cups water (= 2 1/2 cups cooked)
1 cup millet + 3 cups water (= 3 cups cooked)
1 cup barley + 3 cups water (= 3 cups cooked)
The other one is Doggie Oats
5 cups raw rolled oats (= 11 cups cooked)
6 cups (= 3 lbs) ground meat
1/4 cup oil
1 cup cooked/blanched veggies (it's best grated)
4 - 5 TBSP Missing Link or Call of the Wild
4 tsp ground bonemeal (if your ground meat contains ground bones, like many frozen dog meats (Bravo, Oma's Pride, Nature's Logic do) you can omit the bonemeal
This should yield about 18 to 19 cups with 230 kcal each
You can refrigerate it for up to 3 days, or freeze it and use it as you need.
As to how much to feed, small dogs need about 4 cups per day, medium 6 cups, depending or how active your dog is, you will need to feed a little less or a little more.
Hope this helps.
Carola
I know some Boxer folks who feed do home cooked diets.
Here's a link to one owners home cooking site. There should be a link at the top called "Cooking for Dogs". http://boxerlife.com/
I don't regularly home cook for my dog, but I make his "Mac 'n Mac" recipe on occasion.
Here's a link to one owners home cooking site. There should be a link at the top called "Cooking for Dogs". http://boxerlife.com/
I don't regularly home cook for my dog, but I make his "Mac 'n Mac" recipe on occasion.
Great information. Thank you very much! The only thing I seem to be missing is the supplements. I will visit the vet today and see what they have available.
I must say that since I have been making 'real' food for my dogs they enjoy dinner more and my sheltie doesn't vomit as often.It's actually pretty rare now. [FYI shelties are notorious for sensitive tummies]
I must say that since I have been making 'real' food for my dogs they enjoy dinner more and my sheltie doesn't vomit as often.It's actually pretty rare now. [FYI shelties are notorious for sensitive tummies]
janiejoey
Cathlete
I started Molly on fresh fruit and vegies and only by meat for her, not us. On top of that I give her brown rice, oatmeal,pasta, potatoes, or beans. When I give her eggs, I clean out the egg shell and dry it out, then put it through the coffee grinder. In every meal I sprinkle some of it on her food, to make sure she gets enough calcium.
I started her on this way of eating slowly, and she has been on it ever since. It surprises me, but sometimes, she is not as hungry some days, and skips a meal. But I guess it's OK because she looks healthy and happy. I feel I'm providing her with the best food ever.
Janie
The idea is to die young as late as possible
www.picturetrail.com/janiejoey
I started her on this way of eating slowly, and she has been on it ever since. It surprises me, but sometimes, she is not as hungry some days, and skips a meal. But I guess it's OK because she looks healthy and happy. I feel I'm providing her with the best food ever.
Janie
The idea is to die young as late as possible
www.picturetrail.com/janiejoey
hiitdogs
Cathlete
The dried eggshells is a great substitute for bonemeal!
You can get bonemeal at www.vitaminshoppe.com, many healthfood stores carry it too. Just make sure to not use the bonemeal that you can buy at garden supply stores.
I get mine at http://www.solidgoldhealth.com/products/showproduct.php?id=26&code=514
The Missing Link supplement is available at many pet food stores, I buy mine online, even with the shipping it's much cheaper than anywhere else http://www.kvvet.com/KVVet/productr...alse&mscssid=0734AF3076AA941EBA0EDE923748EF71
Another company that carries great supplements is Berte's Naturals. If you dog has a sensitive digestive system I would recommend Berte's Zymes or Berte's Digestion Blend. The website is www.b-naturals.com (but I think their website is down), so might want to check http://www.barfershoppe.com/supplements1.htm
Hope this helps.
Carola
You can get bonemeal at www.vitaminshoppe.com, many healthfood stores carry it too. Just make sure to not use the bonemeal that you can buy at garden supply stores.
I get mine at http://www.solidgoldhealth.com/products/showproduct.php?id=26&code=514
The Missing Link supplement is available at many pet food stores, I buy mine online, even with the shipping it's much cheaper than anywhere else http://www.kvvet.com/KVVet/productr...alse&mscssid=0734AF3076AA941EBA0EDE923748EF71
Another company that carries great supplements is Berte's Naturals. If you dog has a sensitive digestive system I would recommend Berte's Zymes or Berte's Digestion Blend. The website is www.b-naturals.com (but I think their website is down), so might want to check http://www.barfershoppe.com/supplements1.htm
Hope this helps.
Carola
Have to ask. Has anyone had success cooking for their cats? This has been a major challenge in our house and I have surrendered and started buying Fancy Feast again after almost going broke (and feeling rejected) buying premium canned cat food. Also nobody is giving up their kibble which at least is a premium food. Also I want to suggest Dr. Martin Goldstein's book which I think is called Natural Healing for Animals. His discussion of commercial pet food is literally disgusting.
hiitdogs
Cathlete
>Thanks Carola. Youre a gem!
Thanks
Forgot to mention, a lot of time I will also make them eggs (scrambled or boiled) or add the egg whites in a carton (redi eggs or something like that) to their food. Also just plain yogurt or cottage cheese every once in a while, supplies beneficial bacteria (acidophilus, etc.) especially for sensitive stomachs. And canned salmon with brown rice and veggies.
also try green tripe, you can buy it frozen or canned, it smells soooooo awful, I have to put a clip on my nose every time I make it but it is really good for them.
Carola
Thanks
Forgot to mention, a lot of time I will also make them eggs (scrambled or boiled) or add the egg whites in a carton (redi eggs or something like that) to their food. Also just plain yogurt or cottage cheese every once in a while, supplies beneficial bacteria (acidophilus, etc.) especially for sensitive stomachs. And canned salmon with brown rice and veggies.
also try green tripe, you can buy it frozen or canned, it smells soooooo awful, I have to put a clip on my nose every time I make it but it is really good for them.
Carola