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.
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I have never tried raw meat for our dogs. I have bought expensive dog foods many times and my dogs do not like it. After trying different brands, I just want what is best for them. I have 2 chihuahuas and a 60 lb mix that looks like a Rottweiler. We have a cat who lives outside now. The cat was very sick for months and taking medicine. After x rays, etc… it was learned that he had microscopic lung worms, from an infected bird or rodent. He was inside for many, many months taking other medicine and getting well, but when well desperately wanted to go out. He has been outside months now. I don’t want to give raw chicken and read not to cook the meat. I read about dry food, and don’t know why I never read about what could be in it and the utter horror, and now I do not know what to do. I just want what is best for our sweet babies. Our veterinarian said Purina One or Purina Pro when I asked her opinion for dog food. Also to get a food and stick with it. Also, when I fed the expensive dog food, there was no less poop. I tried grain free and others. Thank you for any help.
Thank you for the recipe. How do you add calcium to their diet since it’s not included in this recipe?
There are calcium supplements that are available at specialty stores. But as always, please consult your veterinarian.
I want to keep my dog healthy and fit with this easy peasy homemade recipe!
Can you tell me if any one has used this diet for dogs with pancreatitis? I have a standard poodle, her enzyme levels have been elevated, however not drastically. She suffers from nausea and I have to be extremely careful about her fat content. If the protein was changed to skinless, boneless chicken breast could you see this diet as a possible choice for her. Unfortunately most veterinarians are not at all well versed on diets for these suffering dogs other than their prescription diets that are not at all that good. It was been such a maddening experience trying to find an adequate diet that she can tolerate.
Deborah, when my 13 year old Pom-Tzu had a pancreatitis attack, I fed her boiled hamburger and rice for several days until her levels were down. She then went on a dry kibble diet that was around 8% fat. She didn’t care for it and was starving all the time. I went back to the boiled hamburger and rice. I have made her food for years, which was boiled chicken, small pasta and veggies, and slowly re introduced it. We were very fortunate that she only suffered from one attack. My dog is still doing well and will be 16 in March. You should talk with your vet about what they recommend until the attack is over and then for maintenance. This is simply what worked for us, and not typical as I’m told by my vet. Pancreatitis is scary in pups, good luck!
The perfect easy recipe, I will try it and I think that my dog will love it, she really adores homemade human food.
I make my own dog food, but am concerned I’m missing something, can someone look over my recipe and give me any feed back. I have no solid measurements this is all rounding…
dozen egg yolks
3T. black strap molassas
1/3 cup wheat germ
1 cup soaked chia seeds
2cups cooked quinoa
1/2 cup coconut oil
3 pkgs unflavored gelatin
1 1/2 apples cooked
2 sweet potatoes cooked
1 crown broccoli cooked
2 large cans salmon with bones
4 lbs ground beef
1 cup whole fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup turmeric, cooked with the quinoa
Looks pretty good. But I think I would add the egg whites and ground up egg shells. The egg whites remove toxins, and the egg shells add calcium. If there is no yeast problem, the potatoes may be okay.
Sorry if this has been asked/answered. Should I drain cooked turkey meat before adding other ingredients? TIA!
Yes, I recommend draining the excess fat as needed.
I have been making my dogs food for a bout a year and they love it. (chicken, rice and veggies) I just have to be sure I only give them about 2 tablespoons for breakfast and 2 more for dinner (each). They are both about 10 pounds and this serving size is per their vet. Also per mtheir vet turkey is not good for dogs. It’s the tryptophan that is bad for them. I would definitely check all ingredients with your vet first.
Check the package of ground turkey. The sodium level can be extremely high even though it is fresh.
I fed my last dog a homemade diet and she loved it.My recipe was very similar to this one. However, I used quinoa because she had problems with grains, it is not a grain but a seed. Also, I used cottage cheese, my vet told me it is a highly digestable form of protein, which would contain calcium. I don’t know if it is enough calcium but she was on supplement vitamins too. I would mix all of the cooked ingredients with raw eggs to hold it together. I would then put them in muffin pans with the papers and cook them at 250 just until set, then freeze individually and put in large ziplock bag. I could then get out X amount of “cupcakes” to last for a couple of days. By doing this I could cook enough food for her for about 2 weeks at a time.
If I give my dogs supplements in chewable form do I also need to add to homemade dog food?
This is really best when answered by your veterinarian.
I have been making this recipe for my dog but it was brought to my attention that their is no calcium in it which you stated as something needed in a dogs food. Is there something additional that I should be adding to the recipe to make sure she is getting all she needs?
We use Balance IT® Canine as recommended by our veterinarian.
What is the serving size on this? Per pound?
Please consult with your pet’s veterinarian and use personal judgment when applying this information to your own dog’s diet.
I have been researching DIY dogfood for some time now! I am going to start with this recipe but am not sure how much should be fed to my dog daily. My dog currently gets 1 cup of dry food a day per the directions of the bag. He weights 12 lbs. Would that same serving size apply once daily with this recipe?
Please consult with your pet’s veterinarian and use personal judgment when applying this information to your own dog’s diet.
Hi! Thank you for your dog food recipes. I’ve found them to be so versatile. I’m able to make all of your recipes in the crockpot which I so appreciate. Bailey loves his new food. He’s a shin-tzu and prone to staining. His staining has disappeared since I started him on real food. He’s put on just a half pins of weight and now maintains. He was thin before because getting him to eat was a chore. Very picky. We were feeding him $3.50 per can food and half of it went to waste. He’s so healthy now!!! I interchange sweet potatoe, butternut squash, carrots, etc in all the recipes. I make sure to add up calorie and nutrition values so I’m not skimping. Thank you again. You’ve opened up a wonderful new way of caring for my pride and joy. Bailey says thank you. Julie. Oh a nice idea I found. I gook the food, let it cool portion out morning and afternoon amounts by putting in muffin tin. Then freeze and just move from freezer to fridge so there is always one ready at mealtime. Makes it so easy compared to blowing through all of my 1/2 cup measuring cups
I’ve made dog food off and on for several years and have researched a lot of recipes. Apparently, a dog’s shorter digestive tract can’t digest brown rice, so white is better. I also add oatmeal and barley, a squirt of tomato paste, blueberries or apples, eggs and cottage cheese. I also change things up using lean ground beef or chicken. Just to be on the safe side, I add some Dino-vite or Show Stopper and a few drops of Lick-O-Chops or Supr-O-Mega when I serve it. My dogs are really excited about breakfast and dinner. They’re toy Rat Terriers (8 and 10 lbs.) I give them a level ice cream scoop twice a day. Freeze it in quart freezer bags. Each one lasts about 4 days in fridge after being defrosted.
I have a 6 year old Maltese Poodle who is a very very finicky eater!! I can never get him to eat dog food unless I literally force feed him. I started making this food for him a week ago and he absolutely loves it! He actual,y begs to be fed now. And he gobbles it up immediately. I substituted boneless chicken breast, boiled instead of ground turkey. He loves chicken! I am going to try the turkey this next time.
Thanks for the recipe! How long will this keep in the fridge? Do you freeze it? I have one dog…Border Terrier Mix…small…So this looks like it makes a lot more than she can eat in a week.
It should keep for at least 2-3 days in the fridge (they are also freezer-friendly in individual servings) but as always, please use your best judgment.
Could I use quinoa instead of brown rice? Also, could I put potato in it instead of brown rice?
Yes, quinoa can be used. Potatoes should be kept to a minimum and should be avoided serving raw. You can read more about it here.
I have a very finicky Husky. He LOVES this dog food.
My Husky mix does also. I switch the veggies now and then (squash, kidney beans, sweet potato, kale, strawberries) and always add 1 apple + 1 fish oil pill +1+Apoquel (MIRACLE DRUG)+ 1 Glucosamin (Walmart twin packs) = one happy and healthy fur baby, for much less $$$. No more hot spots, flaky & itchy skin, licking, or $2,000 vet bills (without any solution other than Apoquel) = one happy dog mom! FYI I’m a Chemist and can tell you the chemical structure DOES DOES NOT CHANGE , VITAMINS (or any nutrient) do not DECREASE, and the food is unchanged in any way except for temperature using a microwave. THE FOOD IS, KEY WORD HERE “WARMED”. 10-30 seconds is 100% ok. Fact. If your boiling or nuking it, you will loose 2-4% of the nutrient content and minuscule amounts of radiation, which your dog is exposed to on a daily basis anyway. Moderation people. Would you like to eat cold, soggy, defrosted turkey burger w rice for dinner every night? Didn’t think so.