Make Dog Food Yourself: The Best Recipes And Most Important Tricks

Making dog food yourself is very healthy, but also difficult. After all, you are now responsible for ensuring that your dog really lacks nothing. We explain what belongs in a homemade dog food and what you need to consider when cooking for your four-legged friend.

Cooking Your Own Dog Food: The Most Important Things In A Nutshell

  • Home-cooked dog food is good for dogs with allergies or diseases and gives the owner full control over the ingredients.
  • Balanced food consists of meat, vegetables and carbohydrates.
  • A nutritional consultation with a veterinarian is important to ensure the dog is getting all the nutrients it needs.
  • Food must be cooked much longer for dog food than for humans.
  • Dog food can be kept in the refrigerator for up to three days, but it can also be frozen.

Why Should You Make Dog Food Yourself?

There are several reasons why you should make dog food yourself. Many people have to resort to this method because their four-legged friend suffers from allergies or intolerances, for example. But very often there is also the desire for a regional food, made with organic ingredients, which is not based on animal testing.

Another advantage is that you always know exactly what your dog is eating. Canned food often contains low-quality filler that offers dogs no nutritional value and may even be unhealthy. If you cook the food yourself, on the other hand, you can determine all the ingredients and, of course, their proportions yourself.

Sick dogs sometimes prefer to eat home-cooked food than the pre-made canned ones. The same is true if your dog is a bit older and has problems with his sense of taste. And last but not least, you can even replace Dental health your dog’s taste buds with home-cooked food, because you can decide for yourself whether the food should contain larger pieces that the dog will have to chew for longer.

Creating The Right Dog Food Recipe: What Goes In It?

Meat For Homemade Dog Food

If you want to make your own dog food, you should first know what it consists of. The most important ingredient is, of course, meat – which should always remain the main ingredient. Probably the most popular meats in dog food are beef, poultry, lamb and venison. Pork can be fed if it is cooked and completely cooked through.

If possible, do not mix different types of meat, but limit yourself to one or two per food portion. On the other hand, it is possible to mix different ingredients: Unlike humans, dogs not only like muscle meat, but are also happy to have tendons, cartilage and offal. This provides important minerals – and can often be bought cheaply, as humans don’t like to eat it.

Vegetables For The Dog

It’s not just meat that goes into a good dog food recipe, though – vegetables and even some fruits are just as important for your dog. The following are generally considered to be well tolerated:

  • Potatoes and sweet potatoes.
  • Carrots.
  • Parsnips.
  • Pumpkin.
  • Fennel.
  • Bananas.
  • Beet.
  • Zucchini.

If you want to make your own dog food, it is best to mix different types of vegetables so that the dog gets as many nutrients as possible. You should also keep in mind that about twenty percent of the vegetables are carbohydrates. Potatoes and sweet potatoes, for example, fulfill this criterion very well.

Important: Dogs cannot break down vegetable cell walls on their own like humans do. This means that vegetables must be pureed or cooked for a very long time – otherwise the dog cannot absorb the vitamins they contain at all.

Make Your Own Dog Food: What Else Goes Into It

Many veterinarians are skeptical of homemade dog food because it often results in inadequate nutrition. One reason for this is that owners do not get enough advice. They then do not know that by heating the food, many nutrients are lost that should actually be made up for with supplements.

For example, there are special mixtures in the specialized trade, which are actually sold for BARFing. They contain important vitamins and minerals such as calcium or iodine. If you want to make dog food yourself, you should also use different oils such as linseed oil, salmon oil or coconut oil to supply your dog with fatty acids.

Tip: You can find out exactly how to put together the right dog food recipe in a nutritional consultation with your vet.

What The Dog Must Not Eat Under Any Circumstances

Now you know what you can use if you want to cook dog food yourself. However, there are also foods that you must absolutely avoid. These include cow’s milk, as most dogs are lactose intolerant. However, they can still tolerate dairy products such as yogurt, quark and cottage cheese. You should completely avoid the following ingredients:

  • Salt, sugar and other strong spices.
  • Chocolate and cocoa.
  • Legumes.
  • Onions.
  • Nuts.
  • Peppers.
  • Avocado.
  • Grapes and raisins.
  • Mushrooms and various types of leeks.

Can I Cook And Preserve Dog Food Myself?

Making dog food yourself can take quite a long time. That’s why you should consider cooking it ahead of time. If your freezer is big enough, it makes sense to freeze the food in portions. It is important that you let it thaw long enough so that your dog eats only food at room temperature.

If you don’t have a freezer, you can also cook the dog food in cans. For this, the temperature should be around 100 degrees and the cooking time should be at least two hours. The problem with this method is that important vitamins and nutrients are lost during the long cooking process, and not all vegetables are suitable for canning.

Dog Food Recipe: Three Ideas For Your Dog

The Classic: Meat With Vegetables

To make a classic dog food, you only need 400 grams of meat, for example beef goulash or poultry fillets, and 300 grams of vegetables, for example a combination of potatoes, parsnips or carrots. Cut all the ingredients into small pieces and cook them. Then mash the vegetables together with the meat broth to a pulp and add the pieces of meat. Done!

For More Calories: Minced Meat With Sweet Potatoes

If your dog can tolerate a few extra calories, this dog food recipe with minced meat and sweet potatoes is very suitable. You will need:

  • One sweet potato.
  • 200 grams of ground beef.
  • 50 grams of low-fat curd cheese.
  • One egg.
  • Some flaxseed meal.
  • One tablespoon of melted coconut oil.

First, cut the peeled sweet potato into small cubes and boil them for about ten minutes. Then mash the potato pieces and mix them with the curd. While the mixture is soaking, mix the minced meat with the egg, the flaxseed meal and the coconut oil. From this mixture you can finally form balls, which are fried in a pan and served with the sweet potato puree.

Treat: Semolina Cookies With Bananas

If your dog loves snacks and treats, you can also bake him dog cookies yourself. To make them, simply mash two ripe bananas with a fork and mix the pulp with 200 grams of wheat semolina and a tablespoon of honey. Stir in enough semolina until you can form firm balls and bake the cookies for fifteen minutes at 120 degrees.

Caution: Both bananas and honey contain a lot of sugar, which your dog can only tolerate in moderation. So feed the cookies as sparingly as possible.

Homemade Dog Food: How Much Does My Dog Get?

If you want to make your own dog food, not only you have to get used to it, but also your dog. This means: don’t force him to eat only cooked food from now on, but reduce the canned food step by step and slowly switch to homemade food. This way of acclimatization makes it easier for the intestinal flora to adapt to the new way of feeding.

Important: If you notice that your dog reacts with flatulence or even vomiting despite the slow changeover, it is also possible that he does not tolerate the new food and canned food is the better decision for him.

How much of which food you should cook your dog is difficult to estimate. The ingredients and amounts needed vary not only by breed, but also depend on your dog’s age, activity and health. Therefore, consult your veterinarian before switching to homemade food and get advice on what rations they recommend for your dog.

FAQ: Make Your Own Dog Food

Which Meat Is Suitable For Dog Food?

If you want to make your own dog food, you need one thing above all: meat. Fortunately, almost all types of meat are suitable, the most popular being beef, lamb and poultry. Pork can also be fed, if it is fully cooked.

What Should Dogs Not Eat?

There are several foods that dogs are not allowed to eat. In addition to nuts, chocolate, cocoa and cow’s milk, these include certain vegetables such as onions, eggplant and legumes.

How Much Should I Feed My Dog?

This cannot be answered in a general way, because it always depends on the health and activity level of your dog. Tables from the Internet always offer only a rough guideline. It is best to ask your dog’s veterinarian for a recommendation.

What Do I Have To Consider When I Make Dog Food Myself?

If you want to make your own dog food, you should bear in mind that the ingredients have to be cooked much longer than when cooking for a human. In addition, dogs do not tolerate all vegetables and meats, even though they are omnivores. At best, take nutritional advice from your veterinarian and slowly transition your dog to the new food.

Can Homemade Dog Food Be Frozen?

Homemade dog food can be frozen and will keep for at least three months. Otherwise, it is best stored in the refrigerator, where it can be kept in a suitable container for up to three days.

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