# home cooked food



## fjm

I home cook, with occasional raw (mostly chicken wings). I buy a complete dog minced meat (80% muscle, 10% bone, 10% organs), and add a few fresh or frozen vegetables (aiming for something green and leafy, a legume, and something orange and bulky). I vary the meats and mix them - chicken, rabbit, beef and a little lamb. I also feed some oily fish (frozen salmon or canned sardines or mackerel), and occasionally scrambled eggs. I did a lot of research to ensure all the nutritional bases were covered without dangerous excess - a small quantity of liver, preferably beef liver, is an important part of this. I prefer to feed whole foods, rather than to rely upon supplements - some vitamins and minerals are essential in tiny doses but can be dangerous in excess, and it can be easy to overdo supplements. Added to which they are an expensive way of home cooking!

You may find the advice at DogAware.com: Diet & Health Info for Man's Best Friend helpful - it covers all sorts of home prepared diets, including using commercial supplements.


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## scooterscout99

I home cook for my non-poodle, but it is a special recipe to prevent the recurrence of bladder stones (for which she had surgery once). My vet provided the recipe.

This web site is a source that was provided by a friend, though I haven’t used it.

https://secure.balanceit.com/


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## peppersb

I home cook for my poodles. I use a little bit of kibble that does not contain commercially raised meat or meat products (v-dog or Open Farm). I am concerned about the high degree of cruelty that is involved in raising farm animals for food, so I buy all of my meat directly from farmers who use humane and sustainable practices (see eatwild.com). My dogs get some meat but not a whole lot. I disagree with those who say that dogs need to eat a diet of primarily animal protein as they would in the wild. A number of articles I have read say that the modern dog's digestive system has evolved to be able to digest pretty much anything that we humans eat. Here's a good article on carbs:

Carbohydrates and Your Dog's Digestive System
https://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/13_10/features/Carbohydrates-and-Your-Dog_20103-1.html

From the above article:

As we mentioned before, dogs have no nutritional requirement for dietary carbohydrates. They can get everything they need from a diet that contains only protein and fat. Energy metabolism in the dog can be based on fat oxidation and the breakdown of protein to produce glucose.

There are two main reasons why we feed carbs to dogs. The first reason is because we can. Dogs can utilize just about anything we feed them; their digestive tracts are extremely versatile. The second reason is economic; fat and protein sources are much more expensive than carbohydrates.


I vary the menu each day, but this is basically what they get (all cooked):

Meat, fish or eggs: About 1/4 to 1/3 of a pound per dog of any of the following: hearts, livers, gizzards, chicken, turkey, kidney, ground beef, fish sticks or other frozen fish, canned wild salmon, tilapia, eggs. Stewing hens (spent egg layers) are a good cheap source of meat. Any bones from human or dog meals are boiled twice to make broth for the dogs. Limit livers and/or kidneys one meal every other week.

Carbs: Bread (usually soaked in broth), potatoes or sweet potatoes (I get frozen hash browns or spuds), rice, pasta. They like french toast -- I make it with eggs and water, no milk (no milk is just because I do not drink milk myself, so don't usually have any around).

Veggies: I try to put a few veggies in their food when I can, but they don't like veggies a whole lot. 

Calcium supplement: I am currently using Animal Essentials Seaweed Calcium. Sometimes I make my own calcium supplement by baking and then grinding egg shells in a coffee grinder.

My dogs are doing extremely well on this diet, and I am happy to be avoiding the many problems associated with commercial dog food.

Hope this helps.


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## lily cd re

I home cook exclusively for my dogs and my food plan is based on avoiding things they have sensitivities to. While peppersb's comments about carbs are correct, I actually think there are positive reasons to include carbs other than just them being cheap. If you do not feed a calorically adequate diet then yes the dog will burn fat and protein for energy, but that can lead to muscle loss since they will get that protein from their muscles. While you can figure out a diet that should be calorically adequate based on the dog's ideal weight that doesn't actually mean it will suit all dogs. When I switched to cooking I thought I was feeding Javelin enough, but wasn't and it wasn't until I realized he had lost over five pounds (10% of his body weight+) that we figured out he needed more calories. It took a very long time and satin balls as a supplement to his otherwise now bigger meals to get him to fill back out.

I assemble my food from scratch. Here is my basic recipe (not with portions): skinless boneless dark meat chicken, whole grain pasta, ground up spinach/kale/chards, chicken livers, canned pumpkin, mega red krill capsule, vegetable oil, CoQ10, sea kelp powder, bone meal, vitamin C and vitamin D supplements. I cook the cooked components ahead and freeze in large batches for routine use at home. If I expect to travel I assemble complete meals in correct portions for whoever is coming with me and put them in vacuum seal bags and then freeze those.


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## grjoga

Thank you to all who left such valuable information!


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## The Spork

I have been looking into home cooking, I do wonder about pressure cooking and if anyone has experience with it. With pressure cooking I can fully cook bones down to a soft meal with all the healthy marrow. and cooking other items without losing nutrients.
I am always a little leary of websites for natural living/feeding/pet care. The science behind the information is non-existent for so many it is difficult to know if the site you are looking at is trustworth.


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## fjm

I think pressure cooking would be ideal - just check for any bones that have not softened.


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## peppersb

The Spork said:


> I have been looking into home cooking, I do wonder about pressure cooking and if anyone has experience with it. With pressure cooking I can fully cook bones down to a soft meal with all the healthy marrow. and cooking other items without losing nutrients.
> I am always a little leary of websites for natural living/feeding/pet care. The science behind the information is non-existent for so many it is difficult to know if the site you are looking at is trustworth.


Very interesting. Could you put a whole chicken in the pressure cooker and end up with every part of it being edible for dogs? Do you know if it would work for a stewing hen? (For those of you who don't know, stewing hens are adult egg laying hens that have been retired. They are have very solid bones and the meat is tough. I boil them for 6 or 7 hours to get the meat tender enough to get off of the bones to feed to the dogs.) That would be really nice to be able to use softened bones as well as the meat.


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## Shamrockmommy

When I feed homecooked (fairly frequently, but in rotation with honest kitchen and volhard ndf), I follow the recommendations on dogaware.com. I use Sea Calcium and animal essentials herbal vitamin powder as supplements.


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## The Spork

peppersb said:


> Very interesting. Could you put a whole chicken in the pressure cooker and end up with every part of it being edible for dogs? Do you know if it would work for a stewing hen? (For those of you who don't know, stewing hens are adult egg laying hens that have been retired. They are have very solid bones and the meat is tough. I boil them for 6 or 7 hours to get the meat tender enough to get off of the bones to feed to the dogs.) That would be really nice to be able to use softened bones as well as the meat.


I fed a previous dog chickens after pressure cooking for about 45 minutes at 10-12 lbs, the bones could be completely crushed and if I put in veggies I would just mash the mixture to a pâté. I would think you could use stewing hen but would need to play with the time. but I would often start with beef and pork bones I had to pull all of the marrow out.

I only used the food at that time as a supplement to a kibble diet. I am now wondering about cooking as a primary way of feeding.


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## peppersb

Thanks Spork! I am definitely thinking of getting a pressure cooker. I love the idea of using the bones as well as the rest of the chicken for the dogs. No waste! As I was reading about it on line I came across the following article which talks about how to make dog food using 1/3 pressure cooked chicken, 1/3 carbs and 1/3 veggies.

https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/forums/topic/an-economical-way-to-make-dog-food/


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## Vita

peppersb said:


> ... I use a little bit of kibble that does not contain commercially raised meat or meat products (v-dog or Open Farm). ...


Peppersb, after going through several bags of expensive dog food recommended by Pet Food Advisor and here (with Bella rejecting most and finding the other two ho-hum), on a scale of 1 to 10, how much do Cammie and Sam like Open Farm? Thanks.


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## peppersb

Vita said:


> Peppersb, after going through several bags of expensive dog food recommended by Pet Food Advisor and here (with Bella rejecting most and finding the other two ho-hum), on a scale of 1 to 10, how much do Cammie and Sam like Open Farm? Thanks.


Well I would definitely say that their reaction is ho-hum at best. They love their home cooked food and they eat kibble only when they are hungry and it is the only option available. I change the flavors between fish, chicken/turkey and salmon. They seem to prefer whatever is new. But they strongly prefer home cooked food. I really wish that they liked kibble more than they do. I am seriously considering moving to all home cooked. It actually concerns me that they don't seem to like kibble, even high-end kibble like Open Farm.

You can buy Open Farm in small bags and give it a try.


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## Vita

I'm so frustrated with ho-hum to questionable ingredients in dog food that I just did a search on how to make kibble. Looks do-able and worthy of it's own thread!


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