Saturday, January 5, 2013

5. Homemade Dog Food

5. Homemade Dog Food

Our dogs enjoy dry kibble in the morning and a mixture of dry kibble and homemade wet food. We use to buy can dog food for this and then found Fresh Pet Select. Our dogs absolutely loved Fresh Pet Select. We relocated to an area where this brand was not available so we started making our own food. We have continued after we realized the cost savings.

Turkey Round Dinner

  • 2 lbs   ground turkey
  • 2        eggs
  • 3 C    cooked rice
  • 8 oz.   peas
  • 3        carrots, diced
  • 1        apple, diced
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In mixing bowl, combine all ingredients. Mix well by hand.

Grease muffin tins (makes 24). Fill 24 muffin cups. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely. Remove from cups. Store in refrigerator or freeze. 

We serve 1 round to each dog along with their kibble for dinner. 

You could use different meat (ground chicken or lamb). Chicken doesn't hold together as well as the turkey.
You could, also, use brown rice.

72 comments:

  1. My two finicky Chihuahuas loved this recipe. I think I will use beef for variety. Also, a couple of family members DIDNT Know it was for the dogs and ate some and loved it and asked for their portions! LOL!

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    1. Do you mind me asking what portion size that you give to your chihuahuas? A whole or half of one per meal?

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    2. Look up on line a feeding chart. All you gotta know is your dogs weight

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  2. great idea! sometimes i make soup with peas, carrots, pumpkin,leg of chicken, whole egg including shell,rice or quinoa,green plantain, (any other vegetable. Cook well then puree. I have five yorkies, give them two spoon fools with their dry food and store rest in refrigerator. I could last a week.(You puree the egg with the shell and there's the calcium!)

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  3. Thank you so much for this recipe! I just tried it out today, and we've never seen our dog gobble up her meal so quickly.

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  4. Every deer season we avail ourselves of the unwanted parts of the deer (read, everything below the head) that my husband's boss shoots during deer season. We take the backstrap and some other parts for making jerky, and the rest gets ground up for dog food like this. This year we'll be making it with venison (1 cup organ meat to every pound of red meat), pumpkin (in place of rice), green beans, eggs, carrots, kale, and pears, plus 1 tsp crushed eggshell for every pound of meat added. Since we grew all this in our back yard, the only cost I'll have tied up in the dog food will be for the chicken feed for our hens who laid the eggs, lol! Sure beats paying $80 a month for high quality dog food for our four like we were!

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    1. Thanks for the specs on including organ meat. I've been looking for a way to do this. Going to try your recipe. :)

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  5. Feed it to your dogs raw, they will love it. Wolves don't cook thier food.

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    1. But domestic dogs have become adapted to cooked meat, and can get sick from raw meat, especially poultry, just like humans.

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    2. Domesticated dogs have the digestive tract of a wolf. If they are healthy, there's no reason they can't eat raw. its not for everyone...the best diet is the one where the owner and dog are both happy. I fed my three mini dachshunds raw since they were a year old. My oldest one lived to be nearly 18 years old. We're on our second generation of doxie girls and they love it!!

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    3. i also feed my dog raw meats.. always have since she was a puppy.. she has never had any what so ever any issues. sharpest teeth, most beautiful coat.. very healthy. i've never fed her any store food.

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    4. Raw meat what kind of raw meat? I have a 3yr.teddybear yorkie I got him from someone so can I feed him raw meat to I'm on a fixed income I'd like to try it so it would be cheaper in me!

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    5. I agree! Feed it raw... and omit the rice.

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    6. Feed this mixture raw. Omit the rice.

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  6. Brilliant - just cooked my third batch. Ruby my cavachon loves it!

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  7. I'm going to try without the peas - peas can cause gastrointestinal problems for some dogs

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    1. They go straight thru my dogs, so really a waste of time. Be sure you are careful feeding raw meat such as beef or deer. I just had a dog affected by incurable parasite found in deer and cattle. Look up neosporosis.

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    2. You can get round this by freezing the meat for a couple of weeks first before defrosting it and feeding it to your dogs. It will kill the parasites.

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    3. You can get round this problem by freezing the meat for a few weeks before defrosting it and feeding it to your dogs, the freezing process kills any parasites.

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  8. Could this be made without the rice. Our dog needs and gluten and grain free diet

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    1. I would think so; it will be similar to meatloaf. It will probably make fewer rounds, also!

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    2. Someone above substitutes pumpkin for rice. Pumpkin is also great for clearing up diarrhea in dogs. :)

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    3. Some substitutes for rice:
      http://dogcare.dailypuppy.com/substitutes-rice-dogs-diet-2861.html

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    4. Quinoa is my preferred grain - I hate cooking rice

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  9. Rice is not good for a dogs digestive system. Rice is really used as a filler. I don't put It in my dogs food.

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    1. Plain white rice is actually recommended for dogs with gastrointestinal upset. Of course, everything you feed your babies should be decided by you.

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    2. My dog can't digest rice, I used to give him chicken & rice for upset tummy but the rice made everything worse. Funny thing is, I can't digest rice either!

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    3. Can your dog tolerate steel cut oats? My two do great with this..I mix half brown or white rice, half oats..along with fresh sweet potatoes, fresh green beans and or snap peas, banana, apple, zucchini, etc..I use unsalted stock and water, half and half..then add lean ground beef and/or white meat chicken, or turkey..they will only eat this with their blue kibble..
      The white rice is actually great for puppies, it is easily digestible carbs, which they need as they are growing..I raise labs/lab mix rescues..my pups all do awesome..
      After losing two purebred labs way too young, one to a ruptured gallbladder, one to pancreatic cancer..I make all of their wet food myself..we do buy the high end, no grain kibble, which they feed as they wish..and they get a smaller bowl of wet food twice per day..
      My 7 month old yellow lab looks amazing, he is currently about 70 pounds..as he has a taller frame, it's perfect for him..our vet has been recommending my method to other lab parents..

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    4. I'm glad to hear my dog and I are not the only ones who share inability to digest rice. We also share corn intolerance. My dog doubts that he is adopted!

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    5. My frenchie can't digest rice, he's been having GI issues and I read about the chicken and rice, he would cry while laying down and wasn't pooping, once I stopped giving him rice he stopped having as many issues.

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  10. I'm going to cook it because I worry about E-Coli. I'd rather feed some raw beef.

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    1. My daughter had EColi at age 6,the CDC said E Coli was from undercooked beef. When a cow is slaughted and there is more than a 20% spill rate from the gut the meat is exposed to E Coli, when the beef is cooked properly the E Coli dies. Humans also have E Coli naturally in the gut each can handle ones own E Coli bacteria fine other E Coli from beef or human waste causes the issues.

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  11. Do you just hand them the round like a treat, or do you mash it up in their bowls for them?

    Also, how long do the rounds take to thaw?

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    1. We have just broken them up and put them in their bowls as part of their meal. I hadn't frozen them, so not sure on the thawing time.

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  12. My Chi's love this recipe. Thank you for posting it. I also sometimes use quinoa instead of the rice and Green beans instead of peas. They love it all!

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  13. I will make this for my pug and so glad you shared.

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  14. About how many cups of food does this make?

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    1. I do not have an exact cup measurement. Each round is about 1/2 a cup, so this recipe would make about 12 cups.

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  15. You can substitute old fashioned oatmeal instead of rice also. I add coconut oil and brewers yeast to my dog food

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  16. I am a Veterinary Technician. Making homemade diets can be a great option however most dogs do not get the right ratio of vitamins and minerals. This can cause severe health issues even though they seem to love their new food. There are many supplements out there. We always recommend using something labeled for dogs and from a well known manufacture. Consulting your Veterinarian is always the best idea.

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    1. quick question I will be making my dogs this wet food but to add with store bought dry food. Will they still get nutrients from the store bought dry food?

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    2. My vet recommend a children's chewable vitamin, once a day as a treat, to ensure my dogs were getting their vitamins.

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  17. Thank you so much for this. I just made my 3rd batch and my shih tzu who only ate when she was really hungry, only ate wet food but then eventually ate her dry food when she got hungry enough....she now runs to her bowl the second I put it down and gobbles up the 1/2 round I give her and the dry food I mix with it. She has never eaten so well! Thank you!!!

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  18. My Basset Abbey loved this recipe!
    I changed it a little by adding pumpkin instead of the peas
    Just like Thanksgiving dinner
    Thank you
    Deborah

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  19. I would also like to point out that feeding raw food to a dog that drools, could be bad for you! If you have an open sore, and get drool in it, you could be open to e. coli or salmonella

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  20. I have been told that I should put all veges in blender to pulverize. Otherwise they can not be digested. I have a Cavalier. I am thinking of doing a variation on this recipe, pulverized eggshell,no rice (have not decide filler...he likes cheerios??)frozen raw in large ice cube tray raw. Cooked when needed.

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  21. I only see the one recipe here & was hoping desperately to find the other 4.

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    1. I am not sure to which other 4 you are referring.

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    2. At the top it starts 5. Homemade Dog Food. It's #5 on your
      list of financial sanity :) Not 1 of 5 recipes. Gonna try your recipe. Thanks

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  22. Made this for my dog. Added green beans instead of peas. She is at my fridge begging for it now. I also give her a scoop of dry kibble with pumpkin and yogurt. She is literally licking the bowl. Wish I could add a picture of my very happy puppy

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  23. Is it necessary to cook it because it contains raw ground turkey?

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  24. Do you add anything for additional calcium, iron, zinc and phosphorus and other trace minerals that they say are lacking in home cooked food? My dogs have gotten picky about kibble ever since i made them home made food, but now i am freaking out that i may not be providing the right amount of calcium, omegas, trace minerals and other stuff found in organ meats

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  25. Replies
    1. You could, although you probably want to double check the nutritional label to make sure that it would be appropriate for your dog(s).

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  26. What rice is good to use,I'm not that good with the rice that takes a while to cook

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  27. Awesome idea! I doubled the recipe and ended up using my donut pans, also ��

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  28. Awesome idea! I doubled the recipe and ended up using my donut pans 😉

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  29. I actually wanted to send you a picture but didn't see the option....

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  30. Why is this considered raw if you're cooking it in the oven? can you feed them this without baking??

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  31. I made these for our dog, added some spinach, she just loved them. Will make more and add different veggies to give some variety. Easier and cheaper then I usually make. Thanks fo4 the recipe.

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  32. I feed my dog both raw and cooked meat, mostly raw, but sometimes I cook it to change it up. I switched him to home cooked meals after he was diagnosed with colitis in his colon. Since then all his symptoms disappeared, including his bad breath. The transition from kibble to raw/homemade was very easy for my dog who is a 100lb Husky Shepherd mix. I also feed him a multivitamin supplement to make sure he's getting all the nutrients he needs.

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    1. I would like to know how much do you feed your Husky, I also have a german shepherd mix and I'm not sure in how much or little should I feed him per day of the raw/cooked meat. Thanks in advance

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    2. I would like to know how much do you feed your Husky, I also have a german shepherd mix and I'm not sure in how much or little should I feed him per day of the raw/cooked meat. Thanks in advance

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  33. My three year old a Great Dane had his first round of chemo therapy yesterday for Lymphoma. I fed a super premium kibble. Through my research on his condition, I learned 1 in 3 USA dogs get cancer. No geographic area is better or worse. I can only assume it’s the commercial food. He won’t eat it again. I just took my first batch of your recipe out f the oven. It smells great! Thanks for posting this recipe.

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    1. This is not a balanced recipe, please don't use on this as your dogs main diet. I agree that kibble is not best for a dog with cancer, I started making my own when my previous dog was diagnosed with osteosarcoma. You need to avoid carbs as sugar feeds cancer. For convenience I started using a base mix, I switch between Dr. Harvey's (paradigm is great for cancer patients), The Honest Kitchen and Food Fur Life EZ Complete. Dr. Karen Becker, Rodney Habib and Dr. Judy Morgan are all great resources and you can contact Dr. Harvey's for help as well. Good luck and best wishes for you Dane.

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  34. Question - you say muffin pan, but your pic looks like it is a cupcake pan. Could you clarify if it is the smaller, 12 CR cupcake pan or is the larger muffin size? I have a mix of dogs so need to be sure of size! Thank you

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  35. Very good information is given in this blog...Everyone likes to have pets, if you want to keep it,
    then we are the best pet's shop and best breeders in Dehradun,Uttarakhand(India).

    ReplyDelete
  36. Question: Some recipes have you putting the whole egg in, shells and all for the calcium. Would you suggests this?

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