5 Tips For Making Dog Food At Home

There are many health benefits that come with preparing your dogs food at home.  Knowing exactly what your dog is consuming gives peace of mind and reassurance they're getting what they need to maintain optimal health. Here are the 5 tips for making homemade dog food:

1.  Balancing the diet is the most important factor.  If the diet is not balanced, it goes from the best food to feed, to not so good at all.  If there are no vitamins or minerals (especially calcium) in the diet, dogs run into deficiencies quite quickly.  Especially in puppies, it can happen in just a few months.  This is a big reason why vets are against homemade meals, they are the ones who see all the deficiencies.

2.  Meat Selection:  Meat, raw or cooked is the base ingredient for homemade food.  Dogs are obligate carnivores and thrive on a meat based diet.  Meat options include:  beef, lamb, pork, turkey, chicken, venison, ostrich, buffalo, etc.  Be sure the meat is fresh and fit for human consumption.  The fat content should be no greater than 15-20%.  Feeding fish occasionally is ok, but definitely not as a main staple.

3.  Vegetables:  Vegetables make up about 1/4 of the meal and provide vitamins, minerals and fiber.  Dogs get more nutrients from the vegetables if they are lightly steamed, (chopped or pureed).  Vegetables to include:  squash, pumpkin, zucchini, carrots, peas, beets, yams, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans and sweet potato.  Vegetables to avoid:  onion, potato, tomato, bell peppers, spinach, raw beans, garlic, leek, chard and beet greens.

4.  Avoid Feeding Carbohydrates (corn, wheat, rice, brown rice & potatoes):  Dogs lack the digestive enzymes to break down and metabolize carbohydrates.  They contain no nutritional value for dogs and basically just go right through the digestive tract.  Carbohydrates are the main cause of many canine diseases, including obesity, inflammitory bowel disease, kidney disease and allergies.  The reason they are added to commercial pet food is that it cuts down on the production cost.

5.  Have fun and enjoy the results!  Play around with different meat/vegetable combinations.  See which meat and vegetables are your dogs favourite.

You can buy the best Raw Dog Food in here.

Video Homemade Dog Food: