[Diablo]

Hey there folks. Just thought I would update on our homemade food project. The results are very good. In fact our 6 month old American Bulldog no longer has psycho bursts of energy after eating. Now she eats and relaxes.

The dogs drink much less water than they used too. Our Bouvier Des Flandres could go through 2 bowls of water after eating the dry store bought dog food. Now he has an occasional sip through the day.

Our Greyhound is also drinking much less.

Their weight seems to be doing well and I would say the Bouvier has actually put weight back on.

The poop has decreased an insane amount. Each dog now has one to two smallish poops per day instead for 3 and 4 huge ones.

With three large dogs this we are certainly not saving much money, but it is not as expensive as some of the packaged foods out there either. It appears that the cost is equal to maybe a $50.00 bag of dog food give or take a few bucks.

The coats are nice, the energy is good, and the eyes are clear. And I know exactly what is in their food. We change up the food here and there. The meat/protein changes depending on what is on sale. It could be chicken, beef, salmon or lamb.

We have not tried turkey or pork yet, but we have used venison.

We make a batch every 3 days and it's really not a big deal.

I would suggest this to any dog owner who has the time and is suspicious of the commercially available product out there.

 

[Kathyy]

Wow, good job! I switched for health reasons and was very surprised that Sassy got much less stinky and her ears are much cleaner. All I wanted was a healthier food she liked to eat!

 

[Diablo]

Hey Kathyy, do you ever use pork or turkey in the food?

 

[Kathyy]

Yes, they are both good foods. Just introduce slowly and then use them fairly regularly. Last couple times I cooked chicken I just roasted it until good and done then cooled enough to bone. My food processor can chop cooked meat and skin but doesn't stand a chance with raw meat. Easier than cutting up and then cooking and it sure smelled good here.

 

[4lilmunchkins]

That's great! My dogs eat raw food and home cooked food through out the week (at different times, not together) and they do great on it.
Always so nice to hear about a dog doing so well on a new healthy diet!

 

[Donna5503]

Hi....I also cook for my dog..

I give him Chicken and Beef....I've tried fish (but he doesn't like it - I was very surprised for a Husky) ....he doesn't like Turkey or Pork....I haven't tried Lamb yet.

Do you give him anything else other than the meats?....I give him some veggies and/or sweet potatoes & mix in a 1/2 Cup Blue Buffalo Dry Food (because I read they don't get enough vitamins from just all meat diet)

 

[Kathyy]

Oh yes! Vitamins are mostly taken care of if you feed a variety of meats and some organ meat, especially liver but the main issue is calcium. My 44 pound dog needs as much calcium daily as I do! Please check out B-Naturals newsletters and dogaware.com for terrific articles on home cooking/raw feeding dogs.

http://www.dogaware.com/
and http://www.b-naturals.com/index.php?main_page=newsletters

 

[Holeintheworld]

What do you put in the dog food? I was wondering if I am putting enough of all the right stuff in mine? For grains I give her oatmeal, barley, and brown rice, and for veges I give her spinach, carrots, little celery, green beans, and broccoli stems, and for meat i give liver, chicken, and beef steak chuncks. I also sprinkle a really little bit of egg shell and a multi vitamin. And I put some eagle pack Holistic select dog food in. Should I keep using the dog food or is the homeade stuff enough and is that good or is there anything else I should add?

 

[Diablo]

Well the meat varies. We use Ground beef, Chicken, Fish, and venison. We are looking to add organs as well. We also use eggs. We are looking into turkey and pork as well.

The protein is also boosted with the combination of brown rice and lentils.

we add potatoes some pasta. peas carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, spinache, squash, apples,and sweet potatoes.

we also put in olive oil.

Most of the time the meat is boiled so we get a nice broth with it.

Laugh if you want, but I have actually taste tested these meals, and the are pretty damn good by human standards.

We are considering some vitamins, but want to do more research first.

Oh I forgot, the protein to carb ratio is 60/40 approximately. So the meat itself is slightly more than 50% of the mixture not counting the vegitable protein.

 

[Kathyy]

Sounds like good stuff to me too. Make sure the grains are overcooked so the dog gets to utilize the nutrients. Fish is a really good addition, especially oily fish like sardines, mackerel and salmon. The fat from the meat is enough, no need to add plant based oils. The food needs to be mostly meat with a little grain and vegetable. Sassy gets canned pumpkin but she likes any veggie I have tried.Try to use a bit of liver. Chicken gizzards are really good too.

Add 1/2 tsp powdered dried eggshell per pound of food served up to cover the calcium and with the variety of foods you are feeding it is fine.

 

[Holeintheworld]

Is it good for dogs to chew on boiled bones (other then chicken or turkey bones)? I was thinking of trying to find a butcher to try get some lamb or beef bones or something and freeze a bunch, then boil them so my dog gets a little more calcium and her diet and can work her teeth.

 

[poodleholic]

Is it good for dogs to chew on boiled bones (other then chicken or turkey bones)? I was thinking of trying to find a butcher to try get some lamb or beef bones or something and freeze a bunch, then boil them so my dog gets a little more calcium and her diet and can work her teeth.

Absolutely NOT! No cooked bones, EVER, they must be raw. I get beef knucklebones from my butcher, and pick up bison bones from my pet food store where I buy their staple food, EVO.

I do provide home cooking as a supplement to one of their two daily meals, and also for snacks. Pot roast w/baby carrots and new red potatoes; meatloaf made from ground bison, or beef, or lamb, in which I mix garlic, grated carrot, a little oatmeal, cottage cheese, chopped green beans, or whatever I have on hand. Another favorite is their pasta meal made with roasted meat balls and homemade red sauce, and the staple, poached meats (bison, sirloin, lamb) and chicken breasts, mixed with a little brown rice, some peas or green beans, or whatever. They love sardines in olive oil, hard boiled eggs, or omelettes w/cheese and spinach. It's actually more economical to cook fresh, whole meats than to buy canned dog food. And I getta eat it, too! LOL

 

[Holeintheworld]

But if they aren't boiled or cooked couldn't there be diseases on in? Thats why I haven't wanted to feed raw meat before...

 

[Kathyy]

As soon as the meat cools down new bacteria land and start to grow anyway. You don't have to offer bones if you don't want to. Stuff a kong, offer a puzzle food toy, lots of ways for dogs to have fun with food.

 

[skelaki]

Bacteria and such are not a big problem for dogs because of the high acidic levels in their digestive systems, especially dogs that are fed a raw diet. Remember dogs are designed to eat raw meats. The main thing is to use common sense in handling the meat just as you would in handling meat for your family. And supervise the dogs if you decide to give them raw meaty bones.

 

[briteday]

If you are cooking for your dog be sure to give some sort of calcium to balance the phosphorus or you will end up with a calcium deficiency. Also, if you are not feeding liver and organs your dog may be lacking vitamins A, D, and trace minerals.

 

[Diablo]

We have started to include a multi vitamin with minerals along with sardines. All the dogs are still doing well. We added the sardines after reading Kathyy"s suggestion (Thanks Kathyy). We have been considering the vitamins for a while know and just decided to go with them.

 

[SaveStrayDogs]

when i was feeding cooked food,my dog was in the best shape ever!
I think we'll look for a RAW diet too.

 

[skelaki]

when i was feeding cooked food,my dog was in the best shape ever!
I think we'll look for a RAW diet too.

Yia sou!

Basically you just want to feed a wide variety of various meats and bone including chicken, lamb, goat, fish, etc. The ratios should be approximately80% meat, 10% bone, and 10% offal (green tripe, organ meat, etc.) of which about half should be liver). Dogs don't need vegetables, fruits or grains but in most cases (except for dogs with allergies) they won't hurt if the dog likes them. Just make sure to pulverize veggies and overcook the grains if you use those. Yep, even as part of a raw diet, grains must be cooked.

 

[SaveStrayDogs]

Yia sou!

Basically you just want to feed a wide variety of various meats and bone including chicken, lamb, goat, fish, etc. The ratios should be approximately80% meat, 10% bone, and 10% offal (green tripe, organ meat, etc.) of which about half should be liver). Dogs don't need vegetables, fruits or grains but in most cases (except for dogs with allergies) they won't hurt if the dog likes them. Just make sure to pulverize veggies and overcook the grains if you use those. Yep, even as part of a raw diet, grains must be cooked.
Today 05:51 AM

Γειά σου skelaki!
I m currently reading about the ''prey model''.
We'll see...Maybe i'll make o combination of fresh raw food and an affordable kibble.