With so many different brands of dog food on the market why would you want to make your own homemade dog food? The answer is if you make it yourself you know exactly what’s going in there. And perhaps even more important, what’s not in the food.
The major pet food manufacturers would have you believe that homemade food is somehow unsafe for your dog. They ignore the major pet food recalls in the last several years where food was contaminated and hundreds, if not thousands of pets died. For hundreds (if not thousands of years) since dogs have been domesticated, they have eaten what they could catch and leftover food from humans.
Dogs are simple to please with food. They eat pretty much anything and everything. Unlike cats which are strictly carnivorous, dogs are more like bears and people and are omnivores. An omnivore eats and digests both meat, vegetables, grains, and fruits.
Unless your dog is one of the large breeds you can probably make homemade food for less than the cost of premium canned food.
You may be asking yourself “How can I possibly make sure that my dog gets everything it needs nutritionally with home made food?” If you serve a varied diet you’ll naturally cover all the bases. And here’s a simple trick: dog food should be 1/3 protein source, 1/3 veggies and fruits, 1/3 carbohydrates like rice or potatoes. Rotating the types of protein, veggies, fruits and carbohydrates you serve insures your pampered pup will get everything they need.
Homemade dog food is not leftovers but you can use left over people food if you cook healthy for yourself. Don’t salt the food and watch the fat content. While pizza could be a once in awhile treat, a fast food diet isn’t good for you or your dog.
There are a few foods dogs shouldn’t have including:
grapes
onions
alcoholic beverages
most nuts
milk
mushrooms
salt
Garbage which some dogs consider food
peach and plum pits
cherry pits
coffee grinds
egg shells
spoiled food
tomato, potato, rhubarb leaves
Avoid those and your dog should be okay.
If your dog has a chronic disease don’t switch to homemade foods until you’ve consulted your veterinary. Too much protein can be a problem, or too much carbohydrates can be a problem.
Change the dog’s diet gradually to avoid tummy upsets. Start by mixing a little of the homemade food with the store bought food and gradually increasing the amount of homemade food. Within a couple of weeks your dog could be eating a healthier diet.