DIY Homemade Dog Food
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Keep your dog healthy and fit with this easy peasy homemade recipe – it’s cheaper than store-bought and chockfull of fresh veggies!
I never thought I would be one of those dog owners who made homemade human food for their pups. Not in a million years.
But when Butters recently fell sick with an upset stomach, our vet advised us to feed him a bland diet – chicken and rice without any kind of seasoning. So that’s what we did – we poached a chicken, shredded it in a food processor, and mixed in some white rice and fed him this bland diet for 3 days.
That’s when I started to do some research on homemade dog food, and I have been so amazed as to how many different kinds of vegetables dogs can have. And with the help of Balance IT, you can create so many different recipes for your pup!
Now the best part about making homemade dog food – just like making anything at home – is that you know exactly what is going into the dog bowl, and not any of that questionable gelatinous gunk from the canned food.
But it’s important to note that dogs have different nutrient requirements than humans for their proportional body size, such as:
- High-quality protein (meat, seafood, dairy or eggs)
- Fat (meat or oil)
- Carbohydrates (grains or vegetables)
- Calcium (dairy)
- Essential fatty acids (egg yolks or oatmeal)
Now this recipe here has a balance of 50% protein, 25% veggies and 25% grains, but the ratios can easily be adjusted to suit your pup’s breed and/or needs.
Once you’ve made your batch, you can divide them up into single servings, note the date, and freeze it. When ready to serve, you can defrost it in the fridge overnight and nuke it for 15-30 seconds. That’s it! Now who knew that making dog food would be this easy?
DIY Homemade Dog Food
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups brown rice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 pounds ground turkey
- 3 cups baby spinach, chopped
- 2 carrots, shredded
- 1 zucchini, shredded
- ½ cup peas, canned or frozen
Equipment
Instructions
- In a large saucepan of 3 cups water, cook rice according to package instructions; set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add ground turkey and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the turkey as it cooks.
- Stir in spinach, carrots, zucchini, peas and brown rice until the spinach has wilted and the mixture is heated through, about 3-5 minutes.
- Let cool completely.
Did you make this recipe?
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Where is the dairy in this recipe? At the first of the article you said they had to have a certain percentage of dairy. Just wondering.
There is no dairy in this recipe.
Dairy: you can test the recipe w/ a few ounces of shredded low/no-lactose Cheddar or American cheese.
Aslo, regarding the rice debate..
The Difference Between Brown and White Rice
All rice consists almost entirely of carbs, with small amounts of protein and practically no fat.
Brown rice is a whole grain. That means it contains all parts of the grain — including the fibrous bran, the nutritious germ and the carb-rich endosperm.
White rice, on the other hand, has had the bran and germ removed, which are the most nutritious parts of the grain. This leaves white rice with very few essential nutrients, which is why brown rice is usually considered much healthier than white.
Brown rice has a big advantage over white rice when it comes to nutrient content. Brown rice has more fiber and antioxidants, as well as a lot more important vitamins and minerals. White rice is mostly a source of “empty” calories and carbs with very few essential nutrients.
100 grams (3.5 ounces) of cooked brown rice provide 1.8 grams of fiber, whereas 100 grams of white provide only 0.4 grams of fiber.Brown rice is high in magnesium and fiber, both of which help control blood sugar levels. Research suggests that regularly eating whole grains, like brown rice, helps lower blood sugar levels and decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Simply replacing white rice with brown has been shown to lower blood sugar levels and decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes. On the other hand, high consumption of white rice has been linked to an increased risk of diabetes. This may be due to its high glycemic index (GI), which measures how quickly a food increases blood sugar.
Brown rice has a GI of 50 and white rice has a GI of 89, meaning that white increases blood sugar levels much faster than brown. Eating high-GI foods has been associated with several health conditions, including type 2 diabetes.
The list below shows a comparison of other vitamins and minerals:
Brown (RDI) White (RDI)
Thiamine 6% 1%
Niacin 8% 2%
Vitamin B6 7% 5%
Manganese 45% 24%
Magnesium 11% 3%
Phosphorus 8% 4%
Iron 2% 1%
Zinc 4% 3%
Can once melted frozen peas be frozen again?
Usually frozen things should not be frozen again.
As I am not an expert on food safety, I cannot really say with certainty – sorry! Methods for optimal food storage and shelf life should be based on good judgment and what you are personally comfortable with.
So we just recently started this but we have two 50 pound dogs. How many cups do you think we should do for them and how many times?
Sophia, this may be best consulted with your veterinarian.
Thank you so much for this recipe! Even though we buy good quality food our littlest yorkie boy who’s about 7 years old suddenly stopped eating and got the runs. The only thing I could get him to eat for two days was part of a peanut butter sandwich. Then I found a packet of the dog food I had made in the freezer… one last one left. I thawed it out and held out a tablespoon of it to him and he ate it up! I was SO relieved! He ate half a bowl of it this evening no problem so I’m making two more batches. One just like the recipe says and one with egg yolks, peas, turkey, spinach, peas, pumpkin and brown rice.
Much love from our fur kids and family!
Wendy in Lexington TN
I really like this recipe for my beautiful dogs. Homemade dog food is guaranteed fresh and nutrient packed! Thank you so much.
I’m really grateful for your provided information. I will save this article for one of my favorite this month and if it’s okay to you I will share this to my friend.
How much of the balance it canine supplement do you use with this recipe?
Emily, this may be best consulted with your veterinarian.
This is actually not a balanced diet for a dog and you can have problems if you don’t feed the correct ratios of meat and bone. Please let people know they need to do more research than just following this blog! Misinformation can harm puppies. Please research raw, prey-model, and BARF diets. The absolute best diet for a dog is raw, but you have to feed it correctly to make sure they get proper nutrition. Cooked diets like this can cause a lot of long term issues…
I have a 15 month 124 lb Great Dane and have recently discovered he has severe food allergies that have caused severe bowl issues his whole life I am now cooking for him but I am concerned with getting the nutrients and calories right for him He is allergic to Wheat,Corn,Rice,Sweet Potatoe and Pork any help would be appreciated. I took him in to discuss the food with my vet he is determined that I need to feed him the 1 brand of dog food he can have it is 73.00 for 17 lbs he would need 5 bags a month this just isn’t feasible for us I don’t want him to lose more weight so a good recipe with advice on how much would be greatly appreciated. I am feeding him beef , Chicken Breasts, Chicken Gizzards and Livers, White Potatoes, Cottage Cheese, Greek Yougurt no sugar, Oatmeal, Eggs and ground egg Shells also add different veggies such as carrots, spinach,Parsley, peas, green beans, garbonza beans
I have a 15 year old shih tzu. Ever since he broke his jaw 4 months ago i have to feed him canned food. That stuff isn’t cheap…. Do you know if I save money by making the food for my dog instead of buying can food? Also what’s the receommended portion to my little man? He’s never hungry in the morning. Only eats at dinner time.
Any suggestions or opinions welcomed!
Thanks!!
Marie, this may be best consulted with your veterinarian.
I’m really confused my all the filler? I had German Shepherds which were used for protection work. They were big strong, very high energy dogs. I initially had them on Iams for ages, and it seemed to change.. both my cats and dogs started to lose condition. Several Vet trips and multiple food changes.. we wound up with the cats on Origen Red, and the dogs on a BARF diet. There was raw chicken with bone in for their calcium, their meats changed, I had multiple sources from rabbit, to venison, to beef, to goat, to pork (store bought only), we even got beaver, squirrel and tripe. Both of my boys got between 4 1/2 to 5 lbs a day total because of their energy level. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that dogs are primarily carnivores, yes they WILL eat vegetation, but their digestive system is not designed for it. That is why is causes so much gas and huge piles of poo. Your dogs body can’t utilize it, so it just gets rid of it. It’s amazing the first week of a true raw diet where you are only feeding raw meat, bones, and organ meat. The poos will bee so tiny even if you have a 200 lb dog.. and the best part, after about three days, they just vanish, they just dry up, crumble and disintegrate. I only have a Chihuahua at the moment, she is very pampered. Filet, Ahi Tuna steak, whatever we have I cut some up for her before I start cooking. I’m looking for my next dog. Hopefully it will not be long. I would NEVER EVER buy any food that the first ingredient listed wasn’t an animal protein
I’m soooo happy I found this recipe! My dog is such a brat and won’t eat hard dog food. We ended up switching him over to wet dog food of the same brand, and they sent me expired food! I didn’t notice for over a week of feeding it to him. I felt sooo bad about it. I ended up making this for him right after that, and he absolutely loves it! He used to never get excited about his food, and now he jumps around when I pull out a baggy. 🙂
This is a great recipe, but cats and dogs also need specific nutrients daily. I make dog food, but my dog also gets regular dog food once a day. Also, be careful to those that give fish to cats. I learned the hard way that too much is not a good thing. It ended up costing me $2500!
Easy to make & the boys loved it!!!
Thank you
It is ideal that you add organ meat (livers and hearts) and perhaps ground cartilage to this recipe. Organ meats supply a great many nutrients that the primary meat will not, and cartilage does this as well as give joint benefits. Depending on the dog’s personal sensitivity you might also want to cook the rice longer than directed and in extra water, and grind up it or it may cause irritation as dogs have a harder time digesting rice than humans do and will also not digest most of the nutrients found in brown rice anyway, oatmeal is also another alternative and may be better for the skin and coat. If you get your meat from a quality (Organic, not factory farmed) source it is probably safe to give it to your pets raw as well, my dog loves raw bloody chicken livers and they are very good for her too. Adding a probiotic to your dogs food is also ideal, you can easily do this by adding a spoonful or two of yogurt or probiotic powder supplement to your dogs food after cooking it. Peas and rice are both filler and do not benefit the dog much other than bulking up their food to make them feel full faster, the protein in peas should not be necessary if you are using enough animal products. You can also cook poultry bones in a slow cooker with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and enough water to cover until they become soft enough to snap and grind in a food processor for an excellent source of protein and minerals, but this can also be tedious.
Thank you for the recipe and all those that have chimed in with alternatives and ideas. I appreciate the sharing! I look forward to making homemade food for my dog for her better health!
Thank you for the recipe. I have six little Yorkies and the cost of going to the vet was starting to be too much. I come from a place where human food was shared with our dogs (our diet has white rice, boiled veggies, boiled meat, no oil other than the fat from the meat cooked and onions are not used though tomatoes, ginger, and garlic are used heavily). The dogs rarely have stomach issues or illnesses. Now with one of our dog having shunts which caused bladder infection and blood in her urine, needing high risk surgery, I decided to go with my gut and follow my peoples way. It is 3 months and the bladder infection is gone, no blood in the urine, their wastes no longer smells, no more upset tummys and diarrhea, more energy, reduced bad breath, the cost of food has been reduced hugely even with buying organic and all natural food and no vet visit as yet. My husband is happy that expenses have been reduced It is definitely worth giving them home cooked meals!
Love your comment on this post. I have a 15 year old shih tzu and I was wondering how big of a portion do you give your little yorkies? I would love your input on that because I’m considering to do the same thing as you.
I love this post! Thanks for sharing. I recently started doing home cooked meals for my dog too. I found he wasn’t digesting the veggies very well. I put the rice and the veggies in my blender to make a soupy mixture and mix that with the meat, the texture of his poop became more solid after doing that and it seems he’s digesting it really well. I also alternate between raw and cooked meat and give raw meaty bones. For those who don’t know, dogs can digest raw meat easily but vegetables need to be cooked and often pulverized to increase digestibility. If you see pieces of undigested carrot in your dogs poop for example, best to put your veggies through a blender.
Just in response to a few posts on here: For those who think that dogs are carnivores, they can be if you make them but that’s not what they are genetically. Dogs domesticated themselves by manipulating humans into giving them more easily digestible food and letting them sleep closer to the fire. The 10 key genes that separate dogs from wolves include genes for the digestion of starch, making them genetically omnivorous. Dogs are not wolves. They are more scavengers than hunters by their genetic code. I feel my dog needs the extra energy from the carbs I feed him. He’s a giant breed, I believe it’s a disservice to deny your dog of that extra feel good energy that’s encoded in his DNA, especially when they’re growing, which for giant breed can be 3 years. Would you feed your growing child an all protein diet?
Anyway, awesome post! Thank you!
I have 2 Yorkies 3Lbs & 5Lbs how much should I give them…I can’t wait for them to make this for them! looks great… Thank you
what breed is your dog and how much does he/she weigh. And do you feed him/her 1 cup per day?
We feed our 3-yr old, 18-pound corgi one cup of food each day, supplemented by treats. This was decided after consulting our vet and a nutritionist. I recommend consulting with your own veterinarian to see what is best for your dog.