Do you make your Pet Food
 

It seems that lives revolve around their pets in TV. So I am guessing many want to insure their pets eat healthy, making sure their wellbeing is at the top of the list.

We have always made our own pet food, taking only 20 minutes weekly to make healthy no additive high quality pet food. Rotating weekly different menus of protein.

That said looking to sub in on occasion something like Farmers Dog, or a product similar. Hopefully there are many who can weigh in on benefits of fresh food, products you are using.

Not looking for any canned, or dry kibble info.

We don't have the storage space to cook for 95 pounds of dog, but our neighbors have a four-year-old Sheltie who competes in agility trials. They have always made her food and will top it with Farmer's Dog, or use that when traveling.

The dog food I make contains a rotating protein, carrot, sweet potato, pumpkin and other veggies I may have on hand plus rice from time to time.

My little babies have me as their personal chef, but I can fine chop in some Fresh Pet chicken flavor with their homemade chicken dinner and get away with it. I've even come home late and fed fine chopped Fresh Pet that I zap the refrigerator chill off of. They give me that look of disdain but eat it. I think it would be best to titrate up the mixture until you could pull off the full fake food meal. If I choose to buy it, it's readily available at Walmart and looks like bologna with carrots and rice in it...lol. Once you open it the clock is ticking on freshness, and it's a 6 pound tube steak that's not really cheap to buy if your pup don't like it:mmmm:

I have a small mixed-breed who is 14+ years old. I used to feed her a mix of dry kibble mixed with wet food and a little cooked chicken on top.

About 5 years ago she was having digestive issues that resulted in less appetite, off-colored and loose stool. It didn't seem to relent so, I tried some other foods. Didn't help much. I then began shifting away from dog food and making my own for her which worked much better and I later added a multi-vitamin which also produced positive results. What I figured-out myself (fortunately! Without spending hundreds or thousands on Vets and tests) was that she cannot process fats well anymore. A pancreas issue, I assume.

So, for 5 + years, I've made a mash-up of some combo of carbs - potatoes, white and sweet, pasta, rice, quinoa, couscous, grits - along with cooked veggies plus black or kidney beans and only cooked chicken with no fats added for protein. That's all that will work otherwise, she has problems. Just to make her sniffer happy, I sometimes add a tiny bit of cooked pork or beef on top so she isn't bored out her mind.

Notable observations: She throws up less on this diet and she scooches her bottom on the floor a lot less also. Small dogs are known to get impacted anal glands and that's why they do that. Well, it may be the commercial food that's causing it -- too much junk or fat in it.

Also, let me mention something from a prior dog that had digestive issues for a time. That one did cost me a bit at the vet but, the solution was simple. No dog foods with Red dye #40 in them! That was his issue. Changed his food, problem resolved. FYI, many dog foods have it - read the ingredients.

For the past several years for a variety reasons, we have been cooking our dog’s food in a crockpot. Recipe is 1.5 lbs ground turkey, 162 g brown rice, 36 g frozen peas, 276 g frozen butternut squash, 120 g carrots, 125 g frozen spinach, and 2 cups water. Put it on high for four hours , stirring every hour so things don’t stick. For our Shih Tzu (20 lbs), we feed him 150 g twice a day. We freeze it so that we can take out 4 to 5 days food at a time. It also allows us to put it in a cooler when we take multiple day trips.

I know that I have mixed the English and metric systems. However when we buy meat, it comes in pounds. Also, as cooks we have gone to weighing most major ingredients.

I would love to see some recipes you are using. I have 2 border collies and one has skin allergies, so making their food may be the best way to go. Feel free to email me if you are willing to share your recipes. Thank you, Maria hmbfoxtail@gmail.com

You can find a lot of recipes online specifically for skin allergies. Most of them are very basic and it will tell you any additives that you need and usually where to buy them.

That said we have a 14yo rescue Himalayan cat. She will not eat any kibble,canned food, no matter the cost, or bagged fresh pet.

So I buy fresh pet pate cut it into small chunks ( because she has such a flat face), add fresh cooked chicken breast cut into small cubes. She will not and cannot eat anything shredded as far as chicken because it’s too hard for her to get in her mouth.

If I didn’t use fresh pet would have to buy livers, or powder mix that can cost $18 for 4oz. So fresh pet it is

We did, we now use Farmer’s Dog and our pups love it.

If your dog is a little overweight, a good bulking agent to replace high calorie foods is Rutabaga (called Swede in UK) it's very low in calories.
Grated fresh raw beetroot, or boiled, is a good addition to a diet.
In hot weather, or if the dog has a very high protein diet, and gets red or inflamed skin, along with reducing protein levels, boiled celery juice is good for cooling the blood.
Don't forget to subtract the calorie content of treats from the main meal, also check salt content of packet treats. High salt levels, not good.

Recipe?
 

Hello! Can you please share how you make your dog food?

No meat?

my husband routinely made our dog food from whatever meats for various flavors. it was done in a huge lobster-type pot and was fed with supplements, & really was cheaper. these days i feed Hills sensitive skin/stomach dry with people food added. my dog gets sick on canned dog food, but any human food doesn't bother her.

"A rotating protein"...

cook it in a large pot, covered skillet, or even a crock pot . you can either grind up the meat or have it 'pulled' style. blend that with your sweet potatoes, rice, pasta, whatever, & add the veggies towards the end. my dogs liked: carrots, peas, green beans, corn. (don't overcook or nutrients will be reduced.) use very little salt, for taste only. store the mix in several small containers, & keep frozen. you can thaw out a few containers each day, depending on the size of your dog.

Shawarma? I was thinking Whirling Dervish, but decided it would be expensive, and possibly illegal.

Stella and Chewy's makes a pretty good freeze-dried complete food. It's for people whose pets are on raw diets. Add warm water and stir it into a puree (or less water if your dog drinks a lot from the water bowl).

I hope your pup doesn’t encounter any problems. I called Farmer’s dog twice to try to get the analysis of their food for my insulin dependent (diabetic) dog. They refused to state what’s in it. I understand they don't want to give me the recipe but the content analysis shouldn't be a secret. So next I asked my favorite vet about it. She said she’s seen several dogs who have been ill on it. We both suspect that may be bc the contents may vary a lot. Just FYI in case your pup suddenly has issues.

Sad story: my beloved little dog was on Hills CHICKEN STEW abdominal care canned dog food. We went to visit my daughter whose Manx cat was on Hills CHICKEN STEW cat food. My little dog developed a strong preference for her cat’s food & her cat didn't seem to care & he eventually ate my dog’s food. I didn’t think it made much difference—in part because they were both CHICKEN STEW &
the photo of the food on the two labels was identical too. Boy was I wrong! After about a week, my dog developed severe acute pancreatitis & nearly died. It resulted in permanent injury to her pancreas & lifelong insulin dependent diabetes & impaired fat tolerance. I still feel horrible bc I allowed her to eat the cat’s food since she LOVED it. Now I know that the cats food contains a gigantic amount of fat (like 40+%) compared to their dogs chicken stew food is low-fat and the cat Hills chicken stew contains taurine (which cats need but dogs do not). Wish I hadn't learned this the hard way!

The most valuable thing I’ve learned from having a dog with complex health issues is that canned plain pumpkin is digestive magic—for both dogs & cats. I call it magic because it normalizes both loose & hard poop. How? I have no idea but it works every time!

Pure pumpkin can even help eliminate dog scooting & cats hair balls. Just make sure you buy a can of pure pumpkin puree—NOT pumpkin pie filling which contains a lot of added ingredients & spices.

I put the contents of the can in a gallon ziploc bag then spread it out flat in the freezer so i can break off little bits for her. She loves it frozen.She never refuses to eat frozen foods (plain with no sauces & no preservatives) Most frozen bags of plain berries & veggies don't have anything added but check.

My dog likes frozen carrots, blueberries, broccoli, green beans, peas & spinach. . {Not corn—it always causes loose poo} Dogs cant eat plants from the nightshade family (tomato, eggplant…) and no onions or grapes.

When I want to know if my dog can eat something I search “(the food) AKC” AKC is American Kennel Club & our vet said their info can be trusted.

I enjoy feeding her real food snacks but she’s a little dog so frozen foods make it very cheap & convenient. Since pure veggies have almost no fat she can have them without concern. Her other indulgence is a cooked plain egg. They are also low fat, high protein. I either zap it or cook it in a fry pan until firm then cool it with an ice cube.
Her coat & eyes are much better since shes been eating real foods in addition to her prescription canned food.

Try pumpkin. You'll be glad you did.

I've used pumpkin for the last 27 years on two Goldens. Not quite magic, but darn close. I've just resumed using it on our beagle/hound mix who has a sensitive stomach. Too early to tell if it will make a difference, but I'm pretty desperate at this point to "firm her up" without resorting to high-priced doggie pro-biotics. So I appreciate the freeze-flat tip, as a can will go bad by the time I use it on a 49-lb dog as opposed to our 85-lb Goldens.

I'm also searching around for the correct amount to give her. Giving too much will have the opposite effect.

In France we can't get canned pumpkin, so I have to Instant Pot fresh it and freeze it. Doesn't work as well as the canned in the US, but I think it's a different kind of squash. Gets very watery. But the freezing flat in my small freezer will be very helpful. Duh. Why didn't I think of that.

wow, my heart goes out to you. am so sorry you had to go through that

Glad to help. I like to cook ahead for myself too so that's where i learned that freezing food in flat ziploc bags takes up much less room in small freezers. The added benefit of being able to break off smaller portions is so convenient!

Amounts of frozen pumpkin: I give my 12 pound dog about 1 tablespoon morning & again at night. She acts like it’s the best treat ever! i’m glad your pups have had good results with pumpkin too. One side note: it does seem to make her poo more smelly but at least thats not as bad as too loose or too hard. I guess its all a trade off but I like that its just natural food & does not require a vet bill nor pharma.

Thanks for your recipe! Do you give him any added vitamins or supplements? How do you know if this recipe is nutritionally complete to meet all of his needs? Thats what has stopped me from completely switching to homemade dog food. I fear omitting a key component or overdoing one.

As a former dog owner for many years whose dogs never had the myriad of issues I have read about here, I can't help but wonder if these issues are a result of poor breeding practices. The wolves, coyotes, and other canines that our dogs came from seem to survive pretty well on what they can catch and kill, or occasionally scavenge. No cooked carrots, rice, etc. Food sensitivities, allergies.
I applaud the efforts and love that you all give your pets. They reward you with pure love and unflinching devotion. Still, I wonder at so many, seemingly, possibly, genetic weaknesses. Could it be poor breeding?

Fellow border collie owner, here is Zack and Sallie on my little bass fishing boat. They eat a high quality kibble, but if an upset stomach arises we boil up a mixture of boneless chicken and rice.

All of our pets are rescued, I hope a very good amount in TV share the same views and adopt. So answers to poor breeding would be hard

Love to hear when pets are rescued and adopted. Still, many puppies purchased from breeders may find themselves lost or unwanted for some reason and end up in a shelter somewhere.
Remember, no matter how much you love your pet, they love you more.
Oh, and before I forget, "keep off my lawn"! 😉🤭

I can attest to that. In the last couple years we have had two Rotties, three bulldogs, two goldendoodles, a few pure beagles, a basset hound--there's more, I just can't remember--in the few years I have been walking dogs at the Sumter Humane Society.

After our two Goldens, the last of which had many breed-specific problems, we turned to rescues. Get a mixed breed, they said! They'll be healthier, they said! Not so fast. So far the first one (lab+++ mix) died of cancer, the second (beagle mix) one has gird and a very sensitive stomach that's difficult to pin down, and the third one (Eskimo mix) has a neurological problem we're working on. The last two have 13 and 18 breeds mixed in.

Ive always fed my pets horsemeat…its good for them, lean nutritious meat

yes, it could in my opinion. many people inbreed their pure breds.

where do you buy it from?