Canning Your Own Dog Food
It is pretty easy to make and can your own dog food. You can use any kind meat you want, beef, chicken, venison, elk, fish, I have even used ham. I dont do a lot of ham, and the ones I do are what we raised, butchered and cured ourselves so I know they dont have a lot of salt or nitrites. Most of the time I will use the older meat when we put a new beef in the freezer, I will use last years meat. And if I have some meat that is a little freezer burned I will use it. You can also get chicken hearts and livers form the store to use.
I try to keep the ratios 60% meat, 20% vegetables, and 20 % grains.
You can use most any vegetables except onions, corn and garlic.
Your grains can be rice, wheat, quinoa, oats,beans, and barley. I mostly use rice since it is easy to come by and fairly inexpensive. The grains need to be cooked before canning.
I have seen some people who cook everything then grind it all together before canning. I dont like doing this since the FDA doesnt recommend canning high density foods like that since you cant be sure the center gets hot enough. If you are wanting to grind everything together you can just cook it like a meatloaf then put in the freezer.
When canning dog food I try to follow the same rules as canning people food. I use to do a lot of stuff not recommended by the FDA, and I do still a few things. But as I learn more and more,for some things I just figure there isnt any point in taking a chance.
Canning Cat Food
Second The Foods Your Dog Can Eat
There are actually lots of yum, nutritious human foods your dog can eat in moderation. But foods like turkey, sweet potato, blueberries, strawberries, carrots, oatmeal and so many more are on the menu. Check out the American Kennel Clubs list and be sure to check with your vet before adding any ingredient to your dogs diet. The American Kennel Club chief veterinary officer warns dog owners that it is always a good idea to introduce a new food item slowly into a dogs diet. If your pup hasnt had any of these foods before, prepare and add them incrementally to your dogs current diet to see if she tolerates them. .
Is It Cheaper To Make Your Own Dog Food
Its possible to cut down on food costs for your pet when you feed your pup home-cooked meals. Especially if you are making the switch from expensive high-end dog food or lots of pricey canned dog food. You can take your dogs diet from better to best in this way.
Also, a lot of the ingredients you will use are likely a part of your familys diet or at least they should be! Things like broccoli, ground turkey, and sweet potato are easy to acquire and also make a pretty tasty meal for humans!
The price of store-bought dog food varies greatly, and some high-end varieties go for double the cost of others.
On average, commercial dog food will run you about $3-6 a day to feed your dog.
Comparatively, homemade dog food on average will cost about $3-8 for a day of meals.
Naturally, the price of your homemade dog food will increase if you shop for organic ingredients. So, making your pets food at home doesnt come out to be the cheapest option, but it is competitive to moderate to high-end dog food prices.
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What Kind Of Homemade Snacks Can You Make A Dog
- Peanut butter: Rascal has his own dedicated jar of peanut butter. He loves a traditional Kong but you can also mold and freeze peanut butter in any shape for a quick frozen treat. When the jar is almost finished I break out my peanut butter spoon.
- Greek Yogurt Ice Cream: In the summer we blend up unflavored Greek yogurt, fresh berries, and peanut butter. Place a spoonful or two into a silicone cupcake pan and freeze for a few hours. These make for a great dog ice cream.
- Dehydrated Sweet Potatoes: Rascal’s favorite easy treat. We love bringing these over to family and friends’ houses so Rascal always has a healthy treat on hand.
At The End Of 2019 During Our Yearly Vet Check We Received The Horrible News That Our Dog Was In Stage 4 Kidney Failure
Honestly, I was in total shock, how did we miss this?! He is with me all day, every day!! He just seemed like he was dealing with some symptoms of old age frequent urination, sometimes excessive water drinking, and I would notice occasionally that he would have a mild case of diarrhea. It definitely didnt feel like life threatening symptoms to us! As much as the diagnosis was a shock, the price tag of the prescription diet that we were told he would need to eat for the remainder of his life was pretty horrifying too! When I asked our vet how long we had left with him the prognosis wasn’t good, 3-6 months maybe 9 if we were lucky. We had to wait 6 weeks for a follow up blood panel to really know what kind of timeline we were looking at.
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Why Do Dogs Need Homemade Food
Makers of commercial dog food products may want you to believe otherwise, but feeding your dog with homemade food is actually good for him.
Perhaps the most obvious benefit is that you can personally choose the ingredients to be used in the dog food. This is very critical if your dog has allergies, or you just want to spare him from consuming certain ingredients.
You can also be assured that the food you are giving him is 100% safe. In times when dog food recalls due to possible contamination have become a very common occurrence, you will have peace of mind knowing that the food your dog is eating wont make him sick.
It is also possible to save time and effort when you prepare your dogs food. Preparing foods in large branches would let you do so, as you would be able to freeze smaller portions which you can feed to your dog later on.
Of course, you get to benefit from preparing your dogs food, too. While preparation may take up time, you can save a lot of money in the long run especially if you buy ingredients in bulk.
How Much You Need To Feed Your Pooch
This is something I hate determining because, of course, my dog is going to beg for food and act like hes starving even after he sneakily devours the cat food.
So how do you know your poochs pouch is full?
Canine Journal has a great graphic to help you determine your dogs needs.
However, youll want to double-check with your vet to make sure your dog is getting everything it needs.
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How Do You Make Your Own Dog Food
Before making a choice as to whether making your own dog food is cheaper than buying it, its important to know what ingredients and supplies are needed to make dog food. Whats great about homemade dog food is that it can be personalized just to you and your dogs needs. So, while exact ingredients will vary, dog food made at home typically contains some combination of cooked protein, vegetables, and whole grains.
Note that just like commercially-produced dog food, homemade dog food must have certain nutrients in order for your dog to maintain a healthy, balanced diet. Popular, nutrient-dense proteins often used in homemade dog foods are ground lean beef, turkey, and lentils. Among the vegetables you might use are broccoli, carrots, and sweet potatoes. And some of the whole grains that are commonly found in dog food made at home are brown rice, oatmeal, and quinoa. Fruits, herbs, and healthy fats should also be added in moderation in dog food.
If you want to obtain more facts in relation to dog food concerns, do check out our guide regarding your dogs tolerance for spicy food just so youre better informed before chucking that chili his way.
Start With A Good Recipe
Many dog food recipes fall short in certain nutrients, especially iron, copper, calcium, and zinc. Even some recipes created by veterinarians don’t measure up. The University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine tested 200 recipes, many written by vets. The researchers found most of the recipes were short on some essential nutrients.
The best way to make sure a recipe has what it takes is to choose one created by an expert with training in dog nutrition, says Jennifer Larsen, DVM, PhD. That might be a certified pet nutritionist or a PhD-trained animal nutritionist with experience making pet food. Your vet should be able to point you in the right direction.
Your pet needs protein , fat and carbohydrates . They also need calcium , and essential fatty acids .
And if that’s not enough to consider, if your dog has a health problem, they may need a special diet. You may need a pet nutrition expert to create custom recipes.
Continued
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Using The Wrong Ingredients
Dogs might love to try almost any food, but there are plenty of ingredients that are toxic to dogs . Unfortunately, many of these ingredients are also staples in human food. You might know that your dog cant have chocolate, for example, but did you know that grapes are at least as dangerous? What about garlic or onions? You cant start cooking for your dog until youre aware of all of the things that he or she cannot eat.
Unfortunately, youll also need to remember that even the right ingredients can be bad if they arent given in moderation. There are already reports of heart disease in dogs that have grain-free diets, for example, with the possibility that the legume-heavy nature of such diets can do the damage. If youre going to cook for your dog, then, youll need to keep up with exactly what he or she needs.
Should You Cook Your Dogs Food
Is cooking dog food at home really better for your pup? While there may be claims made to that effect, theres no hard scientific evidence to support it.
Owners are told by many sources that homemade food is superior to commercial products. However, there is no proof to support this claim, says Dr. Larsen.
Larsen cautions dog owners to be aware of fearmongering within the pet food industry. This is often driven by myths about ingredient quality. While there are no scientifically-supported benefits to homemade diets, whole ingredient-based diets are better in the long term. Commercial foods are made to be complete and balanced, adds Dr. Bartges, albeit not the most exciting of meals.
Think of it as eating the same highly processed food for every meal, day after day, for years, he affirms.
Put that way, feeding your dogs a variety of whole foods makes a lot of sense. In fact, there are a multitude of reasons why you might want to prepare homemade foods for your dog, according to Dr. Larsen and Dr. Bartges.
These include gaining control over your dogs diet, appeasing picky eaters, combatting food intolerance issues, concern over food recalls, or simply for the bond-building joy of preparing a home-cooked meal for your dog.
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Is Homemade Dog Food Good For Dogs
While I am not a vet, and I certainly cant speak for all animals I can tell you that switching to homemade dog food made a world of difference for Rascal. We had a very unique case with him and his food allergies, but we have also seen other positive changes.
On traditional dog food, Rascal was lethargic, he shed in abundance and his appetite was mediocre. Since the dog food switch, he has been energetic, focused and calmer. On a traditional diet we were vacuuming at least once a day but now 1-2 a week. We no longer have to coax Rascal into mealtime and have finally developed a great eating schedule.
Is Homemade Food Better For Dogs
Though dogs are our closest domestic companions and have evolved with humans over the centuries, they still have different nutritional needs than us. They are omnivores, meaning that they can eat a varied diet of both meat and plants. Dogs need this variety in their standard meals wont be able to thrive on just meat alone.
The benefits of homemade dog food:
- Its fresh and customizable
- It can be great for the picky pup that wont eat kibble
- Its a great way to supplement your dogs diet
- It can add great variety to a meal plan
Homemade dog food can be a great way to provide for your pet with special nutritional needs, get creative in the kitchen, and treat your furry pal to the best. However, it will take a mindful approach to ensure your dogs nutritional needs are met.
Enough with the appetizers, lets get to the ground beef of it all: the recipes!
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If Youd Prefer Dry Food
My family has always fed our dogs dry food, which seems so boring, but my mom says she does it because its easier for her, and she can free feed.
If youre stuck on dry food, heres a recipe:
- 2.5 cups of whole wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons of flaxseed oil
- 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter
- ½ cup of pureed cauliflower
- ½ cup of pureed zucchini
- ½ cup of pureed green beans
In total, $14.91 will yield about 30 cups, which would feed a large dog for more than a week.
A hearty shoutout goes to Best Bully Sticks for this yummy recipe! Youll find how to put this together there.
Ingredients Needed For This Homemade Dog Food Recipe:
This DIY dog food made at home is filled with rich protein, vegetables, and healthy grains. Heres what youll need:
- Coconut oil provides a variety of health benefits for dogs, such as improving the skin and coat, increasing energy, aiding digestion, and reducing allergic reactions, just to name a few. And just like us, your dog needs healthy fats in their diet.
- Ground turkey will add necessary protein to your dogs diet, as well as important vitamins and minerals.
- Veggies this homemade dog food recipe uses a mix of zucchini, spinach and carrots. All are safe for dogs and will provide your baby with a variety of nutrients.
- Turmeric a dog-safe seasoning that also provides antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties.
- Egg for extra protein and nutrients.
- Rice a complex carb that provides energy and aids in gastrointestinal function.
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Giving My Dog A Multivitamin Will Cover Any Gaps In His Nutrition
Many dog owners believe that giving their dog a multivitamin is enough to fill any nutritional gaps left by their homemade dog food recipes. While a multivitamin may help to supplement your dogs nutrition, there are too many multivitamins out there so it can be difficult to choose the one that will provide the right balance of nutrients. Your dogs nutritional needs vary depending on his size, age, breed and sex so the multivitamin that works for one dog might not work for another. Plus, the nutrients in multivitamins are less biologically valuable than the nutrients in fresh, wholesome foods.
How Much And When Should You Feed Your Dog
This will vary from dog to dog, but a general rule of thumb is for every 10 lbs your dog weighs they should be fed roughly 1 cup of prepared food.
For our 80 lb Hooch, that means 2 meals a day each containing 4 cups of food. It is important to note that, dogs with kidney problems often feel better when fed several small meals throughout the dayrather than just one or two large meals, so you may find that you need to adjust your feeding schedule as time goes on accordingly to keep your pup comfy!
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Get The Latest Recipes Right In Your Inbox:
Keep your dog healthy and fit with this easy peasy homemade recipe its cheaper than store-bought and chockfull of fresh veggies!
I never thought I would be one of those dog owners who made homemade human food for their pups. Not in a million years.
But when Butters recently fell sick with an upset stomach, our vet advised us to feed him a bland diet chicken and rice without any kind of seasoning. So thats what we did we poached a chicken, shredded it in a food processor, and mixed in some white rice and fed him this bland diet for 3 days.
Thats when I started to do some research on homemade dog food, and I have been so amazed as to how many different kinds of vegetables dogs can have. And with the help of Balance IT, you can create so many different recipes for your pup!
Now the best part about making homemade dog food just like making anything at home is that you know exactly what is going into the dog bowl, and not any of that questionable gelatinous gunk from the canned food.
But its important to note that dogs have different nutrient requirements than humans for their proportional body size, such as:
Now this recipe here has a balance of 50% protein, 25% veggies and 25% grains, but the ratios can easily be adjusted to suit your pups breed and/or needs.