Does anyone else do this?

Mmel'ours · Joined: 10 Nov 2009 Posts: 41 Location: Chicago suburbs

Any other C&Z'ers out there who feed their dogs homemade food?
I started doing it because Orion (13-y.o. Brittany boy) has a sensitive tummy. Just wondering.
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Griffin · Joined: 09 Jun 2006 Posts: 932 Location: England

Short answer is no, cos I don't have a dog!!

But when we had cats, the best they could expect was scraps mixed in with their food or cheap cuts of fish boiled and flavoured with rosemary or sage. Our last cat was extremely good at purrsuasion where I was concerned, but I have always been a sucker for a cat.

So long as the vet advises you, I suppose it's ok though. It's when your dog has a sensitive soul and languishes on a chaise longue in a velvet smoking jacket and cravat reading Oscar Wilde that you have to worry.
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KYHeirloomer · Joined: 21 Aug 2007 Posts: 552 Location: Central Kentucky

I know it's a trendy thing, right now. But, frankly, unless there is a medical reason for it, I don't see any need to cook specially for my dogs.

Generally speaking, they only get dry food, occasionally suplemented with table scraps (and, of course, they share my sandwiches when we're out in the field). But they get premium dog food, with a high protein level.

simona · Joined: 11 Mar 2005 Posts: 696 Location: israel

I'm not and I'll never a dog/cat person. But one of my best friends has a dog for whom she cooks daily fresh food ( I advised her to get professional help..).So I have to hear nearly every day about his menu: french toasts with fresh cream or omlet with ham in the morning, meat balls with vegetables and rice or pasta for lunch and G. knows what for dinner ( maybe foie gras?). This dog has never seen/tasted dog food in his life!!! She is going to be a granmother soon and I hope her grandchildren will get the same loving treatment... but I'm not sure.

No more war, equal rights for dogs and cats ( and other pets)

swan · Posted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 2:04 am Post subject:

haha, Simona, good to see you!
Professional help for your friends mind and soul or to do the dog-cooking Very Happy

?!?!?!? (uhm, I mean, the dogs'foods'cooking, cooking FOR the dog, not cooking the dog ofcourse Cool

)

I say, unless there's a medical reason NOT to: give pets (good quality/premium) petfood. Isn't that what it's for?!?!?!?!?
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harpospeaking · Joined: 13 Sep 2005 Posts: 194 Location: San Diego, CA

I had a neighbor who fed her Maltese mix a diet of raw meat. She said it did wonders for his health problems. Sounds like a lot of work though.
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cigalechanta · Joined: 27 Dec 2004 Posts: 200 Location: cambridge, ma.

only on holidays
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David · Posted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 4:22 pm Post subject:

I've made home made dog cookies for the mutts on and off but never really cooked up a meal just for them (although Dick consistently overcooked all food to ensure there was a spoonful for each at least after we'd had our meal)

But as a child in the 50's on the west coast we had a lovely border collie named Nipper who developed what seemed to be a case of mange. The vet advised home cooked stew bones with vegies. Mom did this for quite awhile and it worked, and at the time butchers would just give away that sort of leftover and we grew beans and stuff by the bushel so it wasn't really an onerous task, and since I was such a perfect child requiring no effort to raise Mom did have the time to do it.
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gingerpale · Joined: 23 Jan 2006 Posts: 1324

I'll bet you changed your own diapers, David!

I unfortunately live next door to a little boxer who has been just this side of illegal ignored. (Why do people like that even GET a dog??) She gets (forbidden by the neighbors) treats as often as I dare. She likes liverwurst or fried eggs mashed up into a baked potato. We hope it keeps her warmer.
Our own dog (now gone) ate Science Diet dog food, and a little of anything else he asked for politely.

melinda · Joined: 01 Oct 2004 Posts: 256 Location: Richmond, VA, usa

i have done both ...fed homemade food and store bought & i cant honestly say i saw much difference in health or coat in my cats & dogs...it was a lot of trouble to make ur own....i used brown rice & mixed veggies & cooked ground turkey, or sometimed cooked chix and even picked it off for them....i added various mixtures of things suggested for cats in the book "The Natural Cat"........so now i am down to 2 kitties & they get some canned & some dry food, but no people food (they don't like it!) and my life is much easier....
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Snowy Owl · Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 1:01 am Post subject:

We have had many dogs but I never made their food ... maybe I should have but somehow after I fed the kids ... dog food was the easiest ....

David · Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 3:45 pm Post subject:

I agreee Melinda, my 5 dogs thrive on their diet of Pedigree dry dog food, a tablespoon of wet and leftovers quite nicely. I only see the point if there is a health issue as with Mmel'ours' aging pup or my long gone Nipper.

gingerpale, no I didn't change my own diapers, was never an issue--womb to fully potty trained in about an hour as I recall.
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Mmel'ours · Joined: 10 Nov 2009 Posts: 41 Location: Chicago suburbs

Goodness! I didn't think that I'd stir up such a thread.
In answer to some thoughts...no, I don't make special doggy meals. I simply keep a lot of canned salmon on hand, cook extra chicken, and when I make pasta sauce or chili, I cook extra bison or turkey. I combine the protein with some cooked veggies and use sweet potatoes or oatmeal for the carb component. He does well with Milk Bones. He gets MSM/glucosamine/chondroiten, fish oil and calcium as supplements. His favorite treat is banana.
The problem is that even high end premium dog foods have ingredients in them such as flax and echinacea--both members of the daisy family, and Orion is allergic to them (don't ask). There's one kind of wet canned food he can eat, but at $2.75 a can, we save it for days when Mommy just ain't in no mood to cook. Or be grammatical.
Bottom line: vet says he's one of the healthiest dogs on her caseload. She expects him to be around for many years to come. So, gentle C&Z'ers, do what works for your companions.
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"Food is an important part of a balanced diet..." Fran Leibowitz

dory · Joined: 11 Nov 2007 Posts: 236 Location: Madison, WI

I cook for my dogs. I don't spend hours making elaborate dishes. However, I give them ultra-premium dog food and like to mix it with something fresh like meat-- their dad is South American so there is usually something carnivorous around-- and fresh veggies. I have an 18 year old dog, so I may be doing something right. I also don't have kids (even miracle ones) although I always wanted them, so I have no diapers to change. One of my dogs became so enamored of fresh tomatoes, which he used to get in his plate, that he would go outside in summer and pick ripe tomatoes off the vine. We still think of him and his little red moustache in tomato season. All of my dogs are crazy about asparagus, some like spaghetti with pesto, and some have liked artichokes and peppers. We like them to have their favorite foods sometimes, just like we enjoy ours.