I need info on feeding home cooked

superruben · #1 24th August 2006, 10:26 AM

I am interested in learning about home cooked diets. Does anyone feed their dogs this way?

RachelsPrime · #2 24th August 2006, 11:59 AM

I have no idea, sorry! Maybe post this question in the BARF section as well...I am sure they will have some helpful insight!

superruben · #3 24th August 2006, 01:38 PM

Thanks for your replies! I am off to the bookstore this weekend to purchase some books on the subject. I have had dogs my whole life but never realized the importance of a sound diet until discovering this website. I did some figuring and am betting I can feed home cooked for less expensive than buying some of the top brands of dog food. Right now Ruben is eating Diamond. WAIT...before ya'll shake your head at me, please try to understand. When we purchased him I though well of course a $18 bag of dog food can fit into our budget. Now that I know better but just can't afford a $50 bag of dog food on a single income I want to do what I can afford to improve his health, that's why I'm interested in home cooked. Sorry I've rambled so long.

superruben · #4 24th August 2006, 01:45 PM

I have but I guess the thought just makes me squemish (is that a word? LOL). I have a 4 yr old daughter and I'm just not sure I would want all the raw meat being handled and in his bowl. I just can't help but think wouldn't raw lead to diseases? Perhaps once Kaylee gets older homecooked can transfer into raw.

garvinsmum · #5 25th August 2006, 04:25 AM

I feed a mix of homecooked and raw. I've adjusted it over the last year or 2 to where I'm pretty happy.
I rarely feed grains (only when I've forgotten and there is nothing else

)
So I give cooked veges, also lentils and sometimes tofu.
The meat I feed raw. Used to cook it in the beginning but don't worry now. I never feed raw meat at the same meal as grains or lentils, but i will feed it with other more easily digested veges.
I used to feed rice and oats often but I've found they don't seem to digest them as easily and they get more eye boogers. Although these are better than pasta etc.
If you don't want to feed bones you will need to add some ground bone.
But once you've served chicken necks, legs or frames you'll find it hard to bother cooking. Nearly as easy as pouring kibble. At least for a couple meals a week.
I homecook because I am vegetarian and the meat really does bother me. I try to minimise the amount of meat I serve by giving plenty of high protien veges like green beans and lentils plus carrots, sweet pot, broc, zucchini etc as 'fillers'. Garvin loves them and will happily eat a bowl of veges. After some effort he now eats offal too and they really do need that. The only veges they cant have are onions. In desperate straights I have even been known to add sliced bananas or tinned apples to his dinner if I haven't got quite enough.
I also add kelp, a couple cloves of garlic a week, some flax oil. He also gets a tinned fish/cooked veg mix and a couple raw eggs a week (you could give them cooked if you wanted).
So long as he gets a wide variety of foods he should be OK. Got to be at least as good as packaged food. IMO.