Recipes For Dog Food

Here at How To Make Dog Food there is lots of information about homemade Dog foods and the benefits and also the realities of preparing food in the home for your Dog. I am gradually adding more and more information about just what is required to make healthy homemade Dog treats or regular meals every day for your Dog. Recipes for Dog food are springing up all over the Web, as well as a bewildering array of conflicting information on just what the correct diet for a Dog is. It can become very difficult to know exactly what the correct nutritional content of the homemade Dog foods should be. Before I get on to providing some recipes for Dog food I want to show you a few examples.

This is from the top result in google when I typed in "correct nutritional content of homemade dog foods". They have a table of the correct nutritional needs and the results for an average Dog are that they should have 16% protein, 10% fat, and 44% carbohydrates. One of the other top results states:

Understand that dogs need a diet that consists of 40 percent meat, 30 percent vegetables and 30 percent starch. Follow this formula to ensure that your dog has a well-balanced diet.

Yet another site stated that Dogs should have 30% Protein and 70% carbohydrates. So what do we do? It really is difficult to know exactly what to supply our Dogs with for optimum home made Dog food recipes.

I seriously wonder whether a few slight differences in an optimum diet has much effect on our Dogs. Do we always eat a perfectly balanced diet? No. Should our Dogs? Ideally, yes. But I think that worrying too much at getting percentages of homemade Dog foods exactly right will get us nowhere but worried. As long as you make the natural homemade Dog food recipes as well balanced as you can then I see little need for concern. We don't want to spend our lives constantly making sure we have the ratios exactly right. Especially when we really don't know what these exact percentages should be anyway.

A well rounded diet is the best and by making recipes for Dog food at home it is easy enough to ensure our Dogs get a nice balanced diet with lots of meat, carbohydrates, and vegetables.

Recipes For Dog Food

There are an awful lot of different recipes out there but if you want your Dog to have a balanced diet, then as with our meals, you need a lot of different recipes to keep your Dog healthy and by supplying healthy homemade Dog treats and natural food for Dogs you should be able to provide your Dog with a well balanced diet without worrying about exact proportions.

Here are a few recipes that you may wish to try:

Use any of the following ingredients:

• Rice, potatoes, pasta, oatmeal


• All forms of meat including hearts, kidneys, chicken necks etc


• Raw eggs including the crushed shells


• Different oils for health


• Any number of varieties of vegetables


• A good multi vitamin suitable for Dogs

All these ingredients can be used to create fantastic and healthy meals for Dogs that you can prepare at home.

Healthy Recipes For Dog Food

I call this the "How To Make Dog Food" Chicken Surprise.

Boil up a decent quantity of pasta leaving the liquid in the pan.

Add to this some raw vegetables that you have put through a food processor to make them easily digestible.

Break in a raw egg and mix together.

Grind the egg shell finely and add to the mix.

To this recipe for Dog food add a partial tin of tuna, including the oil.

A small amount of natural yogurt can also be added.

Now, cut up finely some raw chicken.

Add the chicken to the Dogs bowl and pout the remaining contents over the top.

Can you see why it is called chicken surprise?

When you introduce your Dog to homemade Dog foods, especially if your Dog has only ever eaten commercial food before, ensure you do it slowly. You need to get your Dog accustomed to different food gradually. Begin with small amounts of home made Dog foods and gradually make the switch. Alternatively you may wish to only ever make occasional food at home for your Dog. It does not have to be all or nothing.

When preparing your natural homemade Dog food recipes just ensure you don't decide it is what you want for supper yourself! It's for the Dog don't forget.

Healthy Homemade Dog Treats

Learning how to make Dog food means that we have the option whether to always feed homemade Dog foods or to use our knowledge to make occasional healthy homemade Dog treats. We do, at least have the knowledge to make the decision. Homemade Dog foods have come a long way since the best homemade recipes for Dog food were little more than our table scraps. Now there are quite a few recipes to be found, although it can be difficult to find a home made Dog food recipe that covers all the nutritional requirements that Dogs need.

Healthy homemade Dog treats do not always have to cover all the nutritional guidelines that we should be following if we are to feed our dogs only healthy homemade Dog food recipes. We can be a little more lenient in the correct balances of vitamins and minerals if we are just supplying a few meals a week. Recipes for Dog food often have meats and rice as a basis for the meal but what about healthy homemade Dog treats? Well, by a homemade Dog treat do we mean a snack or a meal? There is a difference and we should keep this in mind. If we are just making a homemade Dog treat which is seen as just that, a treat, then we can use our imaginations and come up with all manner of ingredients and concoctions that our dogs will love. An ideal healthy homemade dog treat should be something our Dog absolutely loves. Something that really will be seen as a great treat.

What are the best healthy homemade Dog treats?

Well. from a Dogs point of view the best homemade Dog treats will have one thing in common. Meat! All Dogs love a meat treat and if you are going to go to the time and effort to make a healthy homemade Dog food recipes then go for something full of a great meat that your Dog loves.

How about a recipe?

Here is a recipe for a great healthy homemade Dog treat that has Chicken as the meat ingredient.

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup nonfat dry milk powder

A beaten egg

A good handful of shredded chicken

Chicken stock, just a little

It is then a simple matter of mixing all the ingredients in to a stiff dough. Roll it out, cut in to some shapes and put in the oven on a medium heat for half an hour or so. Tell me what Dog won't love this lovely healthy homemade Dog treat?

There are an endless number of variations on this recipe. Just ensure that if you are going to be making natural homemade Dog food recipes that you cover all the necessary ingredients if it is not going to be just an occasional treat. Dogs, like humans need balanced diets and we need to ensure that we follow the dietary guidelines to keep our Dogs health in top condition.

Healthy homemade Dog treats do not have to cover all the dietary needs of our Dogs if they are only fed on occasion. It is, after all a Dog treat. There are any number of different meats you can use to make homemade Dog foods but things like Chicken and Beef are always a firm favorite of Dogs, although, let's face it, they will eat almost anything we give them. We want our Dogs to be healthy though and if you are reading "How To Make Dog Food", then the chances are you want to make natural homemade Dog food recipes that will improve your Dogs health not hinder it.

This is one of the main reasons why so many more people are choosing to make Dog food recipes at home. Some have lost their trust in commercial Dog foods for one reason or another and wish to prepare at least some of their Dogs food themselves. Homemade Dog foods do require quite a bit of work and you would be well advised to read some good books on the subject that will give you the specific ratios of proteins, carbohydrates etc that your Dog will need to be as healthy as possible.

Healthy homemade Dog treats can be made very quickly or you can slave away in the kitchen to your hearts content. Some of us love being in the kitchen while some of us (me included) seem to draw a total blank on how to prepare food. Hopefully by reading "How To Make Dog Food" you will have some idea about what natural homemade Dog food recipes to prepare and your Dog will love you for all the healthy homemade Dog treats that you keep making.

Learn How To Make Dog Food That Tastes Great

Many Dog owners switch to homemade Dog food because they have fussy eaters. Dog can become very disdainful of commercial Dog foods and may decide that enough is enough and become very fussy eaters.

Before I continue I will state that I absolutely do not believe in giving in to a fussy eater. The main reason why Dogs begin to turn their noses up at food is because they simply know that if they hold out long enough they will be supplied with something better. I would never advise a Dog owner to give in to this. Dogs should eat what they are given as naturally they would not be fussy eaters. The giving of scraps at the wrong times can lead to fussy eating and I would advise all Dog owners to never give in to a fussy eater. Homemade Dog foods can be just as much a problem as commercial foods when it comes to this problem.

If you repeatedly supply super tasty meats and fish then you may find you have the beginnings of a fussy eater. Healthy homemade Dog treats should always be fairly similar in the quality so you never end up with this problem. Learning how to make dog food that consistently tastes great will help stop this problem ever happening and will lead to a more stable eater.

Learning how to make Dog food that tastes great is very worthwhile to know, but bear in mind that a Dog that is simply given a raw Chicken carcass will be in Doggie heaven. These Dog food recipes, while worthwhile should never dominate your life. A simple throwaway meal of raw meaty bones or raw meat is always a super healthy Dog treat and if you are pushed for time I see nothing wrong with this. You can always make up for it tomorrow, right?

Preparing homemade Dog foods takes time on our part, and if you have chosen to go down this road then a break for the chores that are often involved is not admitting defeat. Feed raw bones regularly to your Dog f they have no adverse side effects. They really are very important to your Dog. Apart from being a great source of protein and calcium, raw bones do a fantastic job of keeping your Dogs teeth clean.

How To Make Dog Food That Tastes Great

If you have decided to prepare homemade Dog foods on a regular or permanent basis then there are a few tips that will keep the flavors quite consistent and mean that every meal has a great taste and is more than palatable to the fussiest of eaters.

The typical healthy homemade dog food may consist of some of the following basics:

• Brown Rice


• Oatmeal


• Vegetables


• Eggs


• Powdered Milk


• Oils


• Meat


• Potatoes


• Fish

All these ingredients will form the basis of a very healthy home made Dog food recipe. Trying to keep the flavors consistent and high is not difficult and the answer lies in the addition of a stock or gravy. To make fantastic stock that can be added to all meals can be prepared in the following way:

1. Ask at the Fish or Meat counter for carcasses of Chickens and the remains of boned Fish. All these ends and Heads etc, while not the most palatable are fantastic as the basis of a liquid to add to the recipes for Dog food that you will be preparing.


2. Boil up any bones, heads, carcasses you can find in a large pan of water. Simmer for an hour or so.


3. Once boiled and the very high flavor imparted you can simply sieve the contents to give you an extremely rich and tasty liquid that you can add to each meal. You can re-use this liquid to cook meats for the Dogs meal or simply pour, slightly warm, over raw ingredients.


4. This simple and very cheap, or sometimes free, stock will be full of great protein and will even get your mouth watering.


5. By adding this stock to meals that you prepare for your Dog you will be keeping a fairly consistent flavor to the meals and your arsenal of healthy homemade Dog food recipes will have been given a significant boost.

As stated earlier I am no advocate of pandering to fussy eaters as it is normally the fact that Dogs are given too many scraps at times when it is not appropriate that can cause fussy eating. I would say that no Dog will ever starve itself to death. Many Dogs can easily go for a few days without eating with no adverse effects.

If you are wondering how to make Dog food that will always be palatable then follow the above instructions for a fabulous addition to the home prepared Dog food. This way you will know that the food is consistently tasty and if your Dog does choose to ignore or not eat the Healthy homemade Dog treat of a meal then you know it has nothing to do with the food. It beats a bowl of Kibble right?

Homemade Dog Foods The Argument

Homemade Dog foods have many supporters and likewise there are those that see no advantages to the time, effort and cost involved in preparing the many recipes for Dog food that are now available.

We will take a look at the pros and cons of preparing Dog food at home at see if we cannot dispel some of the myths present of both sides. However, we all need to make up our own minds about the benefits of preparing food for Dogs at home and this is by no means a totally exhaustive list of the many factors we need to decide upon when it comes to home made Dog food recipes.

Why To Make Homemade Dog Foods

How to make Dog food at home can take quite a while to master. We have to find a variety of Dog food recipes and learn how to effectively prepare them. However, once we know how to make Dog food there are numerous benefits to our Dogs. Recipes for Dog food, once we have a sizable amount can be endlessly modified so that we will always have a great variety of different meals to serve to our Dogs.

We can always find a diferent Dog food recipe to try to alleviate the boredom that commercial Dog foods never can. We can swap ingredients, change the meats, make a wonderful (or invent) raw Dog food recipe whenever the urge takes us.

Added to this is the concern over many commercial Dog food recipes. We, as the buyer, and lover of our Dog simply do not know what is in the food. Labelling is obscure to say the least. The ingredients are vague and we simply have no real idea about many of the meats involved. By learning how to make Dog food we know exactly what our Dogs are consuming. We know what every ingredient is and we know where it came from. As with our own food this is an important factor. This is one of the main reasons why so many Dog owners are switching to Dog food prepared at home.

Preparing Dog food at home, for many who do it, is actually seen as making a stronger bond with the Dog. The time taken is not seen as a chore, rather as treating the Dog like a more integral part of the family. Preparing food is seen not as a chore but simply as giving the Dog the best food that can be afforded whilst always ensuring the Dog is not getting over fed.

Homemade Dog foods have the advantage in that we can serve raw Dog food. Feeding raw has gained a lot of exposure in recent years and more Dog owners are beginning to appreciate the advantages of a diet that involves more raw meat for Dogs.

Learning how to make Dog food also has one crucial advantage over commercial Dog food and that is the fact that we can supply our Dogs with a more varied diet. Dogs in the wild will eat a variety of foodstuffs depending on what is available. By preparing Dog food at home the variety can be high and we can supply lots of different ingredients that will satisfy the variety of foods that is the basis of a healthy diet.

All very convincing arguments. Now let us look at the opposing view and see what many believe are the negative aspects of natural homemade Dog food recipes.

Why NOT To Make Homemade Dog Food Recipes

Many Vets, Dog owners and those involved with the making, selling of commercial Dog foods are opposed to the growing trend of homemade Dog foods for the following reasons.

Firstly they believe that there is no need to give Dogs a highly varied diet. For many consistency is key when it comes to feeding Dogs. They state that a constantly changing diet can lead to upset stomachs and problems with regulating bowel movements. A regular diet consisting of the same food on a regular basis does not cause this problem. Keeping to the same food means the Dog is used to the diet and has much more controlled movements on a very regular basis.

Added to this is the argument that many recipes for Dog food do not contain a total balance of vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates that commercial foods do. It is claimed that Science has formulated a perfect balance in these commercial foods and that trying to duplicate this at home is nigh on impossible. May home made Dog food recipes, raw Dog food recipe or otherwise as cited as being lacking in one crucial element or another.

Another reason why not to make homemade Dog food recipes is that Dogs live so much longer since commercial Dog food became available. It is argued that this longevity in Dogs is down to the balanced diet that so many Dogs eat, and that is commercial Dog food. Before commercial Dog food was widely available it is argued that Dogs live much shorter lives because of the imbalance in their diets. Our healthy homemade Dog food is claimed to almost always lack one crucial aspect or another.

One of the main arguments against learning how to make Dog food and then applying that knowledge to preparing food at home for your Dog is the cost. By many it is seen as simply too expensive. Commercial foods for Dogs are, for the most part, cheap. Trying to spend the same amount whilst preparing Dog food at home, it is argued, is basically impossible. Why spend more money when you can simply buy it already prepared.

Also the time factor is a large issue. Who nowadays has the tie to prepare yet another meal for a member of the family. It is much quicker and easier to buy already prepared food that is well balanced and takes little to no time to prepare.

Both sides can be seen to have fairly convincing arguments. It is up to us to decide what we believe is right and whether learning how to make Dog food and then making homemade Dog foods really is worth the extra time, effort and possibly cost.