# Bobby’s Homecooked Food Journal



## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Poppy has always had a sensitive digestion, and these days her chronic liver disease means I have to be scrupulously careful with what she eats and even then she was getting frequent bouts of diarrhoea. One thing that really seems to help is Protexin Pro-Kolin Enterogenic - a pre and pro-biotic with other gut helpful ingredients Pro-Kolin Enterogenic. It took some time to be effective (6-8 weeks in Poppy's case) and it is not cheap, but it might be worth trying for a few months while getting Bobby's digestion onto an even keel.


----------



## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

My vet told me never to feed Babykins any dairy products. She has ulcerative colitis which is 100% controlled by diet and attention not letting her get overheated when temperatures go above 80 degrees F. 

Like many humans, dogs, once they are past puppyhood are lactose intolerant. Some dairy products naturally have less lactose and some dogs are okay on dairy…… I wouldn’t feed it to a dog with digestive problems until you get them on a healthy diet and can test their reaction later when they are stable so if they get sick you can trace it back to dairy.


----------



## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

Well the only time I home cook has been when they have tummy upsets with diarrhea. I do basically what your are now feeding. Plus a probiotic. I would assume that those would be a good base for Bobby then gradually adding in more nutrients to balance out the diet. That is where it fails for me. Renn has a good tummy however he has has two bouts about 1 1/2 years apart. After using your diet I gradually added in Science Diet prescription ID low fat until he was eating that, (I have it in the house for another dog) then I slowly switched him to Science diet perfect digestion. That is what he has been eating now. I add a spoon of canned id to it at times to give it a more appealing aroma and I add some dehydrated raw as a topper. For the raw dehydrated I use either Instinct or stella & chewy. The other day Primal was having a store promotion, I got about 4 small bags of frozen raw for only $20. I thought I would try it. The cats do not have a interest in the cat formula and I haven't tried the dog yet. So for now its just filling up my freezer. I will try a few kibbles at a time and see or perhaps try it as a treat. I'm always uneasy about new things. I also don't give many chews. He suddenly has developed a liking for the bully rings, and our stable chew has always been the jumbo Yak chew. He isn't a really big chewer so he gets those to help keep his teeth clean.


----------



## Spottytoes (Jul 28, 2020)

Skylar said:


> My vet told me never to feed Babykins any dairy products. She has ulcerative colitis which is 100% controlled by diet and attention not letting her get overheated when temperatures go above 80 degrees F.
> 
> Like many humans, dogs, once they are past puppyhood are lactose intolerant. Some dairy products naturally have less lactose and some dogs are okay on dairy…… I wouldn’t feed it to a dog with digestive problems until you get them on a healthy diet and can test their reaction later when they are stable so if they get sick you can trace it back to dairy.


Thank you. There’s so much conflicting information out there as yogurt and probiotic goat’s milk are often recommended for sensitive tummies. I think you are right though. I’m going to hold off. Bobby’s tummy has always been a touch sensitive but the small amounts of cheese we gave him didn’t seem to be an issue. I still don’t think it is but since I’m introducing things slowly I will definitely wait to reintroduce that so I will know for sure.

He has been boarded 3 times this year and while I give very specific directions about his food, who knows? His next boarding time isn’t until October so we should have a good handle on things by then. His digestive system could just be changing too. The one thing I have noticed is that freeze dried raw does not seem to agree with him anymore. We used that a lot as toppers when he was younger with no issues at all but, while I don’t know for sure, I think it just may be too rich for him now. I no longer give that.


----------



## Spottytoes (Jul 28, 2020)

For those of you who homecook what vitamin/mineral complex would you recommend? From everything I’ve read so far it 
seems essential for the homecooked diet.


----------



## EVpoodle (Sep 25, 2018)

Spottytoes said:


> For those of you who homecook what vitamin/mineral complex would you recommend? From everything I’ve read so far it
> seems essential for the homecooked diet.


I don't remember which brand we have, but it was available at the local store. I try choose brands that do not have any sugar, wheat, soy, or dyes added. 

I would ask your vet about how much supplementation Bobby will end up needing. Evie has a vitamin pill every other day but, she also refuses to eat anything other than meat. 

In regards to calcium I really like just plain old calcium powder which I found on amazon. I use the powder because I cannot find any pills that are reasonably sized that don't have tons of other vitamins and stuff added.


----------



## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I rarely add supplements. If feeding boneless meat I use ground eggshell for calcium, but mostly I feed a range of meats, ground bone, offal and vegetables, with eggs and fish to plug the gaps. The dogs get a Vetzyme vitamin B+E tablet as an occasional treat, but that is about it for supplements. If you are feeding a balanced diet I think there is usually more danger of too much, especially of oil soluble vitamins, than of too little.


----------



## Spottytoes (Jul 28, 2020)

I am quite overwhelmed with this whole home cooked thing. SO much information! But I have come to the conclusion that like most of the things in this Internet world, too much information causes overthinking and doubting. As with anything new, there is a learning curve, but that’s ok. I don’t have to have it perfect today. As long as Bobby is eating he will be fine and I will learn and fine tune things just for him.

I brought home several books on cooking for dogs. I have gleaned good information but so overwhelming too. So many recipes!!! I am taking notes but, at least as we are starting and as I am figuring out the foods that agree with Bobby, simplicity is the key. I will add variety as his tummy allows. So far we have cooked ground turkey and ground hamburger, cooked rice, cooked oatmeal, bone broth, and a touch pumpkin on the list. Not much at this point but now that his gut is improved and he’s done with his medication we can carefully move forward, hopefully with good results.

One observation that I have is how much he loves it. His approach to the food is so different which I find quite fascinating. Ever since he was a pup he would go to his bowl and circle to the living room and back to the bowl. Didn’t matter what he ate and he would eat slowly. He liked the food well enough most of the time although he has been known to turn his nose at it more than once. This week, he just eats! No circling. He seems to truly just enjoy the food. He’s still eats slowly but he never leaves the bowl which historically he has always done a back and forth approach. I just found this so interesting.

After this week, I have definitely decided we are going to proceed with home cooking so will be purchasing some calcium or bone meal and a multivitamin. I know we don’t want to over supplement so I will offer the multivitamin carefully, probably not the full recommendation as I would rather give less rather than overdo it. Until we have a more diverse menu I think I should do this. Once we get to the point where there is more variety I will feel more confident that he is getting proper nutrition and can reevaluate the supplement. The bone meal/calcium is necessary from everything I have read so will keep that up, for sure.


----------



## 94Magna_Tom (Feb 23, 2021)

How much supplemental calcium does a dog need? As a human (male), I've had gallstones (not fun), and my Dr. recommended NOT to take any supplemental calcium. People with kidney stones avoid excess calcium as well. I think excess calcium in dogs is bad too. I'm sure you've already researched this, but just figured I'd mention it.


----------



## Spottytoes (Jul 28, 2020)

Off the top of my head I don’t remember how much for his weight but it is a theme in everything home cooked for dogs. I will be starting that this weekend and I’m still researching amounts. Totally hear you though. Bobby is not a bone chewer and dairy isn’t an option right now so it is necessary. It is also my understanding that dogs actually have a higher need for calcium than humans.


----------



## For Want of Poodle (Feb 25, 2019)

94Magna_Tom said:


> How much supplemental calcium does a dog need? As a human (male), I've had gallstones (not fun), and my Dr. recommended NOT to take any supplemental calcium. People with kidney stones avoid excess calcium as well. I think excess calcium in dogs is bad too. I'm sure you've already researched this, but just figured I'd mention it.


Calcium is considered the most important thing to supplement or watch in a homemade diet. Dogs require far more calcium than humans - yes, excess calcium is bad, but dogs are designed to eat a diet with fairly significant amounts of bone (which has both calcium and phosphorus). With dogs, the ratio of calcium to phosphorous is the most important factor, not the total amount of calcium, as they can often easily tolerate even 200-300% of the RDA. You want the calcium to phosphorus ratio to be about 1-1.3. Basically all dogs need supplemental calcium on a homemade diet. Puppies are more sensitive than adult dogs. With adult dogs, excess calcium tends to be pooped out - you see stools that dry to look white, like with a dog who eats a lot of bone. 

AAFCO requires a minimum of 1.25 grams of calcium for every 1,000 kcal - different standards have different amounts or use different references, some go by weight of dog instead of amount of food.


----------



## Spottytoes (Jul 28, 2020)

You presented the calcium information better than anything I have read so far, For want of Poodle! Thank you ! 😊


----------



## Spottytoes (Jul 28, 2020)

Putting the home cooked diet on hold. Bobby just can’t shake the diarrhea. I’m going to post about that on the thread that is addressing this problem specifically.
I will proceed with this thread when or if we decide to revisit homecooked meals.


----------



## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

I’m sorry Bobby can’t shake the diarrhea.

Home cooking works, but it only works when you have figured out what to feed and what to avoid. Maybe one of the prescription foods from the vet will help?


----------



## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Really hoping you can figure this out. Poor you and poor Bobby. 

Something to keep in mind is that it’s possible Bobby’s belly woes have nothing to do with his meals. I have a health condition that can cause rapid emptying (from either end - yay!) with just the smallest bite of food...and it doesn’t matter what that food is. It could even be a sip of water.

Of course, whatever I’ve eaten recently can determine whether that experience is horrific or just mildly distressing. But in those situations it’s not the food itself that’s the trigger.


----------



## Spottytoes (Jul 28, 2020)

Thanks PTP and Skylar. I gave an update on the Diarrhea/home cooked thread I started before this thread. Diarrhea is the main subject now so I’m focusing on that thread and saving this one for the homecooked journey if it something we decide to pursue again. PTP, I totally agree there may be something more than the food going on. Skylar, if what we are doing now doesn’t work, definitely a prescription food will be discussed. I’m assuming testing too.


----------



## LoveMyRedToyPoodle (Sep 15, 2019)

For Want of Poodle said:


> Calcium is considered the most important thing to supplement or watch in a homemade diet.


My vet said this as well! She also mentioned that the calcium and phosphorous balance is very important in a home cooked diet. My tpoo's diet is 90% homemade, and I add ground eggshells as the calcium--not milk products. I used to cook the eggshells myself and then grind them, but it was a ton of work, and now I buy them already ground into a fine, almost flour like powder. It's called Egghsellent Calcium, found online. You add one teaspoon of ground eggshell per pound of muscle meat. The phosphorous comes from the protein rich foods, like meat, chicken, fish etc.


----------

