10 Homemade Dog Food Recipes Every Dog Parent Should Know (2024)

FAQs

What are the best ingredients to put in homemade dog food? ›

Good homemade food for healthy dogs includes all the vitamins, calcium, proteins and minerals your pet needs to stay healthy. You can add ground beef, chicken, lamb or venison, as well as vegetables, such as zucchini, carrots, parsnips, beets, yams, butternut squash, and sweet potatoes.

The best dog foods will always have meat as the top ingredient, and you should look for recipes that emphasize real animal proteins, rather than just meat meals. Because your dog's food should have more meat than any other ingredient, it's vital to choose a meat source that will benefit your dog's health.

There is a wide variety of unhealthy and unsafe foods to avoid when preparing meals for your dog. Potentially toxic ingredients are of special concern, including chocolate, xylitol, avocado, grapes, raisins, onions, garlic, and macadamia nuts.

Chicken and rice isn't meant to be given as an everyday dog food, nor is it suitable to be used in place of regular dog treats. It's simply a short-term bland diet option intended for a sick dog.

Chicken, turkey, lean ground beef, and chuck steak or roast are animal-based proteins, which help dogs grow strong. A few rules apply: Always cook meat well. Never serve it raw or undercooked.

What is the number one food you should never feed your dog? ›

Fatty foods

Feeding your dog fatty foods, like hot dogs, bacon, ribs, or fried chicken, can upset your dog's stomach and cause vomiting and diarrhea. It can also lead to pancreatitis, which is an inflammation of the pancreas.

For the 52 weeks ending on June 18, 2023, Nestlé Purina PetCare was the highest selling dry dog food vendor in the United States, generating approximately 2.5 billion U.S. dollars. Ranked second, Mars Petcare generated around 1.9 billion U.S. dollars in sales during that period.

Your pet needs protein (animal meat, seafood, dairy, or eggs), fat (from meat or oil) and carbohydrates (grains or vegetables). They also need calcium (from dairy or an ingredient such as egg shells), and essential fatty acids (from certain plant oils, egg yolks, oatmeal, and other foods).

Bland diet recipe

The goal should be to maintain a ratio somewhere between 50:50 to 75:25 rice to protein.

Small Breeds (10-20 pounds): 3/4 cup to 1 1/2 cups per day. Medium Breeds (30-50 pounds) 1 3/4 to 2 2/3 cups per day. Large Breeds: (60-100 pounds) 3 to 4 1/2 cups per day, plus 1/3 cup for every 10 pounds over 100 pounds.

FILLERS --- (Oats, Brown rice, Yams, Cooked potatoes, and Pasta.) These healthy fillers will keep the dog food together. RECIPE: Ground turkey or chicken, brown rice, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, and peas. Add water, as necessary.

Corn, wheat, and soy are cheap, commonly used fillers in many commercial dog foods. While they may provide some nutritional value, they are also some of the most common allergens in dogs. Many dogs have trouble digesting these ingredients, which can manifest as skin irritations and other health issues.

“Homemade food is a great option for many pets, but we recommend that owners avoid general recipes from books and the Internet and instead consult with a board-certified veterinary nutritionist,” Larsen said.

Veg-to-Bowl

With nine different vegetables for dogs (including potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, broccoli, peas, celery, and beets), all you have to do is add water, fresh protein, and oil, and the meal is complete.