Here are Lady and Lola with the typical canine "I love you" look. They are waiting for this home made treat.
Can you tell - they completely and utterly own me. So onward with a few recipes for heatlhy homemade organic dog food. Just use organic food, which has recently become plentiful at the grocery store, such as organic fruits and veggies, and the hormone free meat.
This is really great using leftover turkey during the holidays, if you happen to have an overabundance. If not use chicken, lamb or venison (my hubby hunts) or ground beef or beef cubes. Your dog will love you all the more when you use a variety of flavours.
This is my recipe adapted for feeding my two chunky girls who are both between 75 and 80 pounds. One recipe gives me a full days supply for both of them. I feed them twice a day, rather than one big meal.
LADY AND LOLA'S FAVORITE EVERYDAY MEAL
- 7 cups of turkey ( or other choice)
- 5 cups brown rice ( or substitute 4 cups pasta, or try 6 cups of mashed potatoes)
- 4 cups cooked pureed veggies and fruits mixed together. (Pureed vegetables and fruits make them easier to digest) see below for combination ideas to try.
- 3 tbsp canola oil
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- daily multivitamin/mineral supplement
I also give my girls a calcium supplement every day. Check with your vet about what he would recommend or buy a book that is written by a canine nutritionist or veteranarian (D.V.M.)
Remove fat, skin and drippings from the pan after cooking the meat.
Cut the meat into small cubes and mix in the veggie/fruit puree and add the rice.
Make sure the meal is not hot - I wait until it's room temperature as Lady always gets an upset tummy if I give her food that warm.
Cook the starch you are using a little longer than necessary to make it softer.
When the meal is ready add the salt and drizzle with the oil. Yummy!
The veggies and fruits should be cooked and pureed. Use any combination your dog prefers. He/she will let you know quickly which are the winners and which are landfill material. Don't introduce several at once. Start with the basic carrot and apple combo. I usually use approx. 3/4 to 1/4 ration of veggies to fruit.
For the above recipe that is 3 cups carrots and 1 cup apples, pureed and mixed together. My girls like carrots, beans and peas mashed together so I use 3 cups of this and add one cup of mixed fruit consisting of apple and pears. (I use canned pears without sugar). Sometimes I use blueberries in combo with the apple or pears. I use frozen fruits and veggies a lot in the winter, and cook them till I can whiz them up in the processor.
In the summer I use loads of fresh picked from my own garden and local fruit stands. Either way this is much healthier for your dog than the cheap commercial chemical filled dog kibble you can buy at the store.
A FEEDING CHART BASED ON YOUR DOG'S WEIGHT CAN BE FOUND HERE.
If you don't want to cook don't sweat it. There are of course excellent commercial organic dog foods available.
I also make the semi-homemade lazy day meal shown here.
Any of these choices are something to consider if you want to extend your pets life and increase their health.
Getting them away from the chemical filled cheap commercial foods is my main reason for starting this site.
I had a sweet beagle named Susie, and she had multiple diseases and died of cancer way too young.
See Susie's story here.
Here's an easy treat that I make for the "girls."
LIVER AND PEANUT BUTTER TREATS:
- 1 lb beef liver (cooked and pureed)
- 3 tbsp. peanut butter
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 cup cooked barley (measure after cooking)
Mix the flour and barley together and then add this to the paste mixture and combine well.
Bake at 350 degrees in a 9 x 9 brownie pan for 20 minutes.
Cut into small bite size pieces after cooling and store in the fridge for no more than one week.
Don't forget to add lot's of love!
