# Beau's Homemade food



## Tierna (Jun 5, 2020)

We all know what picky eaters poodles can be, and Beau is no exception. I have him on a good kibble, 4Health lamb & rice, and he was eating it _ok _but he really didn't like it much. It's not just this kibble he has never been happy about eating plain kibble. So I decided to do something about it. I thought about wet/canned food, but I have always been interested in making food for my dogs. With my last 2 dogs (Charlie and Lilly) I would make them healthy treats. So I watched a lot of youtube videos, read a lot of recipes and information, and talked to my vet. About 8 months ago I took the plunge and came up with a simple, nutritious, and tasty recipe (vet approved) that Beau loves.

I do still feed him his kibble, he gets half homemade half kibble mixed together. I also add Solid Gold SeaMeal to the mixture, he eats twice a day and he is doing really well on this food.

My recipe:

Doggie Slow Cooker Casserole
Ingredients:
1. 2lbs Meat of choice
2. 1 cup rice & 2 cups oatmeal
3. 1.5 cups butternut squash or sweet potato
4. 1 12oz pkg. california blend mixed veg.
5. 1 cup Kale or 2 cups green beans
6. 2 cups zucchini or 1 bell pepper
7. 1 14oz can of diced tomatoes (drained)
8. 4 raw eggs
9. 1 tsp each of dried parsley, rosemary, and turmeric
10. 4 cups of water
11. 1 cup dried organic cranberries (nuts.com)

Directions:
Leave meat mostly frozen, run veg and eggs (shell incl.) through food processor blend well. Pour all ingredients, except herbs and cranberries, into slow cooker stir well. Cover and cook on low heat 6 hours or high heat 4 hours, stir occasionally. When done cooking stir in herbs and cranberries and cool to room temp. Then divide out into single servings and refrigerate or freeze. Makes about 1 month worth of 1/2 cup daily servings.

The finished product


















My little taste tester 
















I used 1lb of swai fish and 1lb of lean ground beef, and I switch the vegetables with each batch. This time it is sweet potato, bell pepper, and green beans. The meat should be at least half frozen so it doesn't get overcooked. I know it is pretty fiber heavy, but this is what works for Beau. Before he was hungry, hungry, hungry a couple of hours before his meal times even though he was eating 1 cup of kibble a day. Now he still eats 1 cup of food 1/2 cup of each split into 2 meals, but he is not hungry till maybe 30 mins before meal time. And we no longer have to encourage Beau to eat, he happily gobbles down his meal kibble included, and licks the bowl clean.

This recipe has been working so well for Beau, that I thought I would share and maybe encourage others to try their hand at making dog food.


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## Michigan Gal (Jun 4, 2019)

My recipe is much simpler. For a 30 pound dog, one chicken leg in the morning, one in the evening. Twice a week, a piece of liver the size of a front paw. If I don't have thawed meat, I feed a couple of eggs, with shells. Other organ meat as a separate treat. Sometimes cooked leftovers or raw hamburger. I also will feed canned mackerel occasionally .


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

The recipe looks delicious, but I don't see a calcium source or any offal (organ meats), which are both needed in a balanced diet. Adding a teaspoonful of ground eggshell for calcium and a few ounces of liver and kidney would be enough - I find the eggshell tends to sink to the bottom in cooked food, so is best sprinkled over the portions just before freezing.


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## Meisha (Sep 21, 2020)

It makes me want to sit down with a bowl of that and some tortilla chips.


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## Tierna (Jun 5, 2020)

fjm said:


> The recipe looks delicious, but I don't see a calcium source or any offal (organ meats), which are both needed in a balanced diet. Adding a teaspoonful of ground eggshell for calcium and a few ounces of liver and kidney would be enough - I find the eggshell tends to sink to the bottom in cooked food, so is best sprinkled over the portions just before freezing.


Whoops I forgot to add that the eggs are put into the food processor whole, shells included . He does get freeze dried organ meats for treats, lamb heart and beef liver. Plus he also gets cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese, and other tidbits, and this is only half his diet the other half is still his regular kibble.
According to Beau these treats are very yummy 








Stella & Chewy's Freeze-Dried Raw Single Ingredient Lamb Heart Treats, 3 oz. Bag: Pet Supplies: Amazon.com


Shopping for Stella & Chewy's Freeze-Dried Raw Single Ingredient Lamb Heart Treats, 3 oz. Bag? Free automatic delivery may be available by subscription.



www.amazon.com







Meisha said:


> It makes me want to sit down with a bowl of that and some tortilla chips.


 It did come out quite green this time, thanks to the green beans and green bell pepper.


Michigan Gal said:


> My recipe is much simpler. For a 30 pound dog, one chicken leg in the morning, one in the evening. Twice a week, a piece of liver the size of a front paw. If I don't have thawed meat, I feed a couple of eggs, with shells. Other organ meat as a separate treat. Sometimes cooked leftovers or raw hamburger. I also will feed canned mackerel occasionally .


Yeah I really do wish I could do that, unfortunately Beau is extremely sensitive to poultry. Plus I have a touch of OCD and am a germaphobe, I tried feeding him raw meat just for treats, and I couldn't handle it.


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## Basil_the_Spoo (Sep 1, 2020)

Spoiled! 

Basils Grandma does stuff like this for her two fur grandbabies... 

I'll have to try crushing the eggshells smaller next time. Basil just took it out and played with it last time I tried to give her some.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I started cooking about 5 years ago to be able to feed three dogs a limited ingredient but complete diet that could be the same for all of them. I have my recipe in its own thread somewhere here on PF, but it includes whole grain pasta instead of rice or oatmeal (based on food sensitivity testing through nutriscan). I usually give chicken but also switch to cooked ground beef. They also get ground raw kale or spinach and canned pumpkin puree. There are a few other things that get tossed in too. Fresh human grade food has done wonders for some low grade chronic health concerns. Through COVID, supply chain problems on getting large packs of the protein I have also been using some kibble (Castor and Pollux). 

For those who use eggs remember to grind the shells really finely, especially if they end up being cooked. This is not so important if the shells will be eaten raw.


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## Michigan Gal (Jun 4, 2019)

The meat used is up to you, your dog, and where you live. I understand that kangaroo meat is fed to dogs in Australia. I've also fed lamb, since I used to raise sheep. I do think you can do better than a commercial dog food, if you are willing to put in the time and effort (which obviously you are).


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