Home Cooking for Dogs

Tips on how to responsibly prepare homemade food for your dog.

Posted: April 14, 2007, 5 a.m. EST

With the ongoing investigation of the Menu Foods pet foods recall, the ASPCA and numerous other organizations have received inquiries from concerned pet owners regarding the safety of homemade diets for their pets.

While these questions are natural, toxicologists and veterinarians urge pet owners to fully research homemade diets for pets before putting on the chef’s hat.

The ASPCA still generally recommends high-quality commercial diets for pets since such foods are highly researched and are formulated with nutrients, said ASPCA Senior Vice President Steven Hansen, a board-certified veterinary toxicologist.

“Homemade diets can certainly provide pets with an adequate diet, but they do require a substantial amount of work and guidance by your veterinary team to ensure that the final product includes a complete nutritional balance,” said Hansen, who manages the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, said.

“This is especially important if you plan to give your pet vegetarian or vegan food — some fruits and vegetables, in certain doses and circumstances, can be extremely harmful to pets,” he said.

For example, onions, garlic, chives, avocado, grapes, raisins, and macadamia nuts can all cause illness when eaten by pets. And raw foods may lead to Salmonella poisoning.

“Ask your veterinarian to refer you to a specialist with an advanced degree in animal nutrition. These certified veterinary nutritionists will be able to formulate a balanced recipe for your pet, which will give you peace of mind as well,” suggests Louise Murray, director of medicine at the ASPCA’s Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital.

If a homemade pet food recipe is used, it’s important to remember the following:

Follow recipe directions exactly, without substitutions or omitting of ingredients. This includes processing and cooking instructions since some processing steps can destroy or damage the nutrients in the ingredients.
Have your pet examined by a veterinarian at least twice a year, so that their health can be evaluated.
Supplementing your pet’s diet with healthy treats is fine, but treats, even healthy ones, should not make up more than five to 10 percent of a pet’s daily caloric intake. Too many treats can throw off the balance of nutrients a pet is receiving from their diet.

Some appropriate healthy snacks for dogs include: carrot sticks, apple slices (without seeds), green beans, and cantaloupe. However, vets recommend that pets who don’t tolerate dietary changes well or have specific health conditions be given these types of extras unless approved by a veterinarian.

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Give us your opinion on Home Cooking for Dogs

lollypupgirl bloom, Michigan

10/28/2012 4:15:02 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F_KGCoLPww

Shelly Toronto, New York

9/13/2012 9:01:34 AM

Can anyone help!. I have a cockopoo, love her to death and last summer she developed allergies. She has this nasal, grunting sound and she scratches her face and licks one back paw. We took her to the vet and is currently on Vanectyl P 60 gm, which I give to her every other day. She cannot go for more than one day without a pill before the scratching starts again and I am concerned about the long term effects it will have on her. I took her to another vet for a second opinion and was told to take her off all ready made foods and try home cooked ones. I just bought quinoa and tilapia but have not cooked it as I am scared and not sure how to balance her diet. (I was told to give her something she's never had before to see the changes, she'd had salmon before so I choose tilapia) any suggestions will be appreciated

Dulcie DeCillis Peabody, Massachusetts

9/6/2012 5:42:19 AM

Home cooking for your dogs is the way to go! Just make sure that it is balanced. For those of you who would like to homecook but do not have the time...Please contact me. My business is all about the dogs. I home cook for dogs in my Peabody store. AAFCO approved and all human quality meats and vegis are used along with a homemade vitamin mix.Check it out. www.dulciesdogbowl.com

Elizabeth Thibeault North Brookfiled, MA

10/23/2011 10:27:13 AM

I cook for my dog and never feed him dog food at all. I also give him supplements. It has taken me awhile to figure out what he likes and does not like but this is what I have come up with and my holistic vet agrees and loves the fact that I keep up with it and my dog is super healthy!! The supplements he gets are Salmon oil, Vitamin E, and a Digestive Enzyme (the one I give has his multi vitamin in it so I don't have to give it to him separate). The foods are ground beef, chicken, turkey or venison I also do use non ground and then I put it through the food processor after boiling it. For vegetables I use carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, peas, greenbeans, cabbage, zucchini, summer squash and I have tried spinich but my dog hates it! For grains he likes oatmeal, brown rice, barley, lentils, chick peas, sweet potato, potato & rice. I add the supplements to each meal individually and I cook once a week. He is a standard size min pin and only eats about 2/3 cup of food and the food is mixed about 2/3 protein to 1/3 veggie carb mix this is per my vet instructions. He is a very happy and healthy dog and when I got him he was very very sick and close to dying. This was my vets idea and at first I was very much not really with him on it, but after seeing how my boy responded to it and how healthy he was getting, I am definately all for it. I have done my research and I see all the evidence I need in my dog!! He is healthy, has no tartar on his teeth, his coat shines he has zero dandruff and he has lots of energy. I love that my dog is so healthy and happy and it is not even expensive to take care of him!!!!