[iLoveEnzo]

I'm curiousing how much the antiseptic and nutrition that a dry food contain? I saw some owners who give their dog raw diet, but I'm worry about the virus. Dose any owner home made dog food for them? How is your dog likes the food? Could you share some easy recipe please？Thank you

 

[AmberSunrise]

Before going to raw, I home-cooked my dogs food.
It was basically a stew (a rabbit example follows)

Cut up rabbit and throw in crockpot with water to cover
Add:
Selection of greens (lettuce, kale, turnip greens etc)
Selection of veggies (carrots, beans, celery whatever I had)
perhaps a grain or starch (rice, oats, barley or potatoes)

I would add olive oil and freshly chopped garlic, and perhaps an egg or two with shells.

Cook until done, and cool off (depending on crock pot could be 4 - 8 hours)

Serve with cottage cheese, or yogurt and supplements (vitamins, pro-biotics, etc)

I varied the greens, meat and veggies to help ensure a variety. I did not use tomatoes, peas or corn but that was a personal preference.

 

[iLoveEnzo]

Before going to raw, I home-cooked my dogs food.
It was basically a stew (a rabbit example follows)

Cut up rabbit and throw in crockpot with water to cover
Add:
Selection of greens (lettuce, kale, turnip greens etc)
Selection of veggies (carrots, beans, celery whatever I had)
perhaps a grain or starch (rice, oats, barley or potatoes)

I would add olive oil and freshly chopped garlic, and perhaps an egg or two with shells.

Cook until done, and cool off (depending on crock pot could be 4 - 8 hours)

Serve with cottage cheese, or yogurt and supplements (vitamins, pro-biotics, etc)

I varied the greens, meat and veggies to help ensure a variety. I did not use tomatoes, peas or corn but that was a personal preference.

:--big_grin:thanks a lot, I will try the recipe tomorrow~~~~

 

[Penny & Maggie's Mom]

Please do some research as to home feeding. Balances of calcium/phosphorous are very important if not feeding a diet including bones. And NEVER feed cooked bones. There are premade raw diets and also The Honest Kitchen which is a dehydrated raw that you reconstitute with water and is a total complete diet.

 

[MurphyTeller]

I did a doggie stew for years and years - got to be just too much time - I'd spend 5-6 hours every other sunday cooking for them and while they loved it - it just wasn't easy to keep up with...I'd start with two chickens in a huge pot and boil them into broth (2-4 hours depending on how big the chickens were, then I'd debone the chicken, reserve the broth for the stew base. Cook a couple of pounds of lentils (1-2 hours) and some barley or rice, then add spinich, carrots, beans, peas, a dozen eggs, coconut oil, etc typically I added another 3-4 pounds of ground beef, ground lamb, venison, whatever I had my hands on or was on sale - I'd end up with this massive amount of dog food and I'd aim for fifteen two quart sized containers for the freezer. We'd go through about 1/2 of one every day, so I'd have to remember to take one out of the freezer in time for the next meal. When I had two dogs eating the stew I was going through 2 quarts a day - sometimes more.

Price-wise it was less expensive than raw, about the same as kibble. If i did it again (it's possible) I think I'd start with a premix that I add meat to - something like the honest kitchen preference (http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/products/preference.shtml)

You have to be SO careful about the balances of nutrients - particularly calcium and phosphorous - but if you have the time it's worth the effort. I'd suggest seeking out a nutritionist and getting a better idea of what your dog needs to thrive.

I still make stew every once in a while for the dogs - and always keep some in the freezer just in case - but I'm much happier (and less stressed) with a commercially prepared raw or dehydrated diet now - plus it travels so much easier than the stew - packing individual serving tupperware for every meal - keeping it cold....it wasn't easy.

Erica

 

[MurphyTeller]

btw: for what it's worth, I did seek out a nutritionist when I started home-cooking. My recipe wasn't high enough protein for my agility dogs, I also added more fat than what would be typical in an average commercial diet. On one hand my dog got a very custom diet - it was perfectly suited for him. But dog #2 needed different things in different amounts - so that further complicated things - adding more protein for one dog was easy - but then it was one needed less fat in the winter, one needed more, we needed a more biologically available fat and more vegetable based protein...my dogs change so much between what they are training on and in (field, agility, obedience) or what they're getting for exercise (lots of swimming or pack walks or couch potatoes one week).

Erica

 

[AmberSunrise]

Here are a few links if you are concerned about the calcium/phosphorus ratios. The experts do not agree completely; I prefer Dr Pitcairn's guidelines which also state a preference for vegetables providing these minerals as opposed to bones ..

http://www.drpitcairn.com/pdfs/calcium.pdf
http://www.lowchensaustralia.com/breeding/calcium.htm

 

[iLoveEnzo]

I did a doggie stew for years and years - got to be just too much time - I'd spend 5-6 hours every other sunday cooking for them and while they loved it - it just wasn't easy to keep up with...I'd start with two chickens in a huge pot and boil them into broth (2-4 hours depending on how big the chickens were, then I'd debone the chicken, reserve the broth for the stew base. Cook a couple of pounds of lentils (1-2 hours) and some barley or rice, then add spinich, carrots, beans, peas, a dozen eggs, coconut oil, etc typically I added another 3-4 pounds of ground beef, ground lamb, venison, whatever I had my hands on or was on sale - I'd end up with this massive amount of dog food and I'd aim for fifteen two quart sized containers for the freezer. We'd go through about 1/2 of one every day, so I'd have to remember to take one out of the freezer in time for the next meal. When I had two dogs eating the stew I was going through 2 quarts a day - sometimes more.

Price-wise it was less expensive than raw, about the same as kibble. If i did it again (it's possible) I think I'd start with a premix that I add meat to - something like the honest kitchen preference (http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/products/preference.shtml)

You have to be SO careful about the balances of nutrients - particularly calcium and phosphorous - but if you have the time it's worth the effort. I'd suggest seeking out a nutritionist and getting a better idea of what your dog needs to thrive.

I still make stew every once in a while for the dogs - and always keep some in the freezer just in case - but I'm much happier (and less stressed) with a commercially prepared raw or dehydrated diet now - plus it travels so much easier than the stew - packing individual serving tupperware for every meal - keeping it cold....it wasn't easy.

Erica

i have mid-term this week,so didn't check my post. Thank you for sharing. it looks like not easy to do because of the balance of nutrition. however, i want to try two weeks and to see if i can keep doing it

 

[iLoveEnzo]

Here are a few links if you are concerned about the calcium/phosphorus ratios. The experts do not agree completely; I prefer Dr Pitcairn's guidelines which also state a preference for vegetables providing these minerals as opposed to bones ..

http://www.drpitcairn.com/pdfs/calcium.pdf
http://www.lowchensaustralia.com/breeding/calcium.htm

:--big_grin:thank you, i will go for look

 

[pt83]

My previous dog Iris didn't like dried kibble at all since day 1. She didn't want to eat at all when I first got her. I thought probably the stress made her doesn't want to eat. Tried to wet the food, and she did eat just a bit, not up to the feeding guide on the bag. My friend told me to just leave the food and she will eat eventually when she's hungry, and she didn't even touch them all day.. not even a bite or two. I thought she was sick, but she didn't.
Switched to cooked homemade food, and she ate them hungrily. Gave her chicken/beef/pork with vegetables and vitamin supplements (calcium, etc). I also gave her many kind of fruits (oranges, banana, etc - for some reason she didn't like star fruit).
She had a big appetite that we thought now she would eat her kibble. Nope. Tried different brands from cheap ones to super premium ones. No luck. My sister even bought Eukanuba dressing sauce. to pour on top of the kibble. No luck still. She just doesn't like dried kibble. Period.
If you decide to give your dog a homemade food, please also check the list of food that are harmful for dogs.

 

[Goldilocks]

Please do some research as to home feeding. Balances of calcium/phosphorous are very important if not feeding a diet including bones. And NEVER feed cooked bones. There are premade raw diets and also The Honest Kitchen which is a dehydrated raw that you reconstitute with water and is a total complete diet.

I completely agree with Penny & Maggie's mom. You need to do your research before you embark on a home made diet for your dog. A poorly designed home made diet is much worse for your dog than kibble. It is extremely important to make sure you balance the calcium in the diet as well as make sure you feed organ meat at least weekly. Variety is also very important. If you leave any component of the diet out, your dog will suffer nutritional imbalances. If you feed the same home made diet day in and day out, your dog will suffer nutritional imbalances.

Honest Kitchen is a great product especially if you are starting out with home made/raw. I have been a long time user of the product. However, it is currently unavailable in Canada as new paperwork requirements came into effect in June 2009 to get it through customs and this paperwork was not submitted by Honest Kitchen in San Francisco. No one knows when it will be available for sale in Canada again.:no:

 

[Jax's Mom]

My pups will NOT eat plain kibble. Once a week I cook ground beef, add some chicken hearts, usually add either sweet potatoe/and or rice, and add whatever frozen veggies I have, usually mixed. I sometimes add baked chicken chopped up. I store in a large container, and heat it up each feed time and add to dry and mix it up.

 

[Kirby'sMom]

After problems AGAIN with premium dog food, I'm starting to cook for Kirby and Cosmo. Thanks for the info and I will check out the websites listed here. I also found three websites that I've been looking at:
www.dogaware.com , www.b-naturals.com , and www.susanwynn.com . The boys love the food I've made for them this week and their diahrrea and vomiting went away immediately. (Can't convince me it wasn't the last bag of Blue Buffalo I bought!!) I just worry if they're getting enough or the right amounts of nutrients.

 

[Kirby'sMom]

Here is a good site if considering raw, which may be easier than cooking all the time.
www.thewholedog.org . Interesting reading. What do you all think?

 

[Katie and Paddy's Mum]

I just had to save this thread as the information contained within is so valuable. Just wanted to thank those that contributed.
Home-cooking is where I strive to go next and I have been digesting all information I can find and I have to say - this one thread alone helps me enormously. It is so hard to navigate through everything on line at times. But this forum is truly a wonderful area for me to go to find good advice by concerned dog-parents.
Thanks again!

 

[Sultan's mother]

I've been cooking for my goldens since the melamine in pet food scare. Basically, I try to keep each meal at 25-30% protein in each meal with vegies and grains for the rest. So for breakfast - oatmeal with cottage cheese or oatmeal with a boiled egg along with a banana or apple. A midday snack could be bread or boiled potato and warm Lactaid milk. Dinner is ground beef or lamb or poultry with brown rice, spinach/baby carrots/peas/broccoli. They do get good quality store bought treats but would be equally happy with carrots, asparagus spears or sweet peppers - but those aren't easy to carry on a walk. Plus Thornes vitamins and minerals.

 

[Bender]

I used to do the Pitcairn recipes and found them way, way too much work. Raw is honestly so much simpler to deal with! Just did a weeks worth of cooked for the sick puppy and had flashbacks of how much of a pain it was.

And it's really hard to find balanced recipes for it too, trust me, I looked and looked, most are 'to be added to kibble' or they say they're balanced but have no calcium at all (like beef, rice and veggies).

Lana

 

[Penny & Maggie's Mom]

I've been cooking for my goldens since the melamine in pet food scare. Basically, I try to keep each meal at 25-30% protein in each meal with vegies and grains for the rest. So for breakfast - oatmeal with cottage cheese or oatmeal with a boiled egg along with a banana or apple. A midday snack could be bread or boiled potato and warm Lactaid milk. Dinner is ground beef or lamb or poultry with brown rice, spinach/baby carrots/peas/broccoli. They do get good quality store bought treats but would be equally happy with carrots, asparagus spears or sweet peppers - but those aren't easy to carry on a walk. Plus Thornes vitamins and minerals.

Are they getting calcium supplements or raw bone? This is very very important and in a balanced ratio.

 

[diana_D]

I feed raw because it is way easier, but even a home cooked diet could be balanced by adding a calcium supplement in case you do not feed raw bones. PetPhos Grand Chien for instance would be a solution for those who are not comfortable offering bones to their dogs.

While some veggies contain calcium, I am not sure if dogs can break down nutrients from veggies as easily as they do from a raw diet. Also some vitamins are destroyed by cooking...

I cook once in a while for Emma and she adores a cooked meal

 

[Penny & Maggie's Mom]

I feed raw because it is way easier, but even a home cooked diet could be balanced by adding a calcium supplement in case you do not feed raw bones. PetPhos Grand Chien for instance would be a solution for those who are not comfortable offering bones to their dogs.

While some veggies contain calcium, I am not sure if dogs can break down nutrients from veggies as easily as they do from a raw diet. Also some vitamins are destroyed by cooking...

I cook once in a while for Emma and she adores a cooked meal

And many people use ground eggshell. However, all calcium supps need to be added in the right amount.