Dog food has been a topic of debate for many years. Rising to popularity because of its convenient design, it is hard to imagine owning a dog without feeding kibble. It is even harder to believe that kibble is known to dehydrate dogs, give them cancer, and keep them in a state of constant malnutrition.
Different dog food companies have been criticized for recalling their food as it frequently goes rancid. Even though our pets may be surviving off commercial kibble, it is hard to argue that they are thriving on it. A dry kibble diet consists of at least 60% carbohydrates, very little moisture and minimal, low-quality protein. Chronic degenerative diseases, auto-immune diseases, allergies, kidney, pancreatic and liver disease are all rampant within our pets populations.
This being said... you may ask what about feeding fresh food?
Feeding your dog a diet made with natural, real ingredients, such as beef, chicken, lamb, peas, and carrots can do wonders for their overall health. Fresh food diets are proven to promote heart health, increase energy level, help breath smell better, improve eyesight, and can even positively impact a dogs stool.
First starting to feed fresh can feel very confusing and complicated. Many vets are not trained in animal nutrition, and there are endless conflicting articles online about what to feed. Consulting an animal nutritionist is the best way to work out what balance of protein - carbs - vegetables your dog needs. Using premixed vitamins and meal toppers is an excellent way to ensure your dog is getting all of their essential nutrients.
Most fresh food services are offered by subscription and delivered to your door. The best ones work with veterinary nutritionists to formulate a plan customized for your dog. They offer options in recipe choices, portion size, and frequency of delivery.
If you want to make your own dog food from scratch we have used this amazing recipe that our dogs went crazy for.
Ingredients:
1 cup brown rice
1/2 cup lentils
5 cups water
2 large carrots peeled and chopped
1 medium potato, scrubbed and chopped
1 medium sweet potato, scrubbed and chopped
1 apple peeled, cored, and chopped
1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup steel-cup oats
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
2 1/4 cups ground turkey
1/4 cup olive oil,
Directions
preheat the oven to 350F
Put the rice and lentils into a saucepan and cover with water. bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium and cook for 20 minutes.
Once cooked, add the carrots, potatoes, apple, and apple sauce to the saucepan. Stir in the oats and chopped parsley and simmer for 20 minutes. (add more water if the mixture is dry)
Meanwhile cook the ground turkey in a frying pan (about 10 minutes)
put the cooked vegetable and grain mixture into a food processor with the cooked turkey, add the oil and pulse until the mixture resembles a thick puree.
If you are putting the kibble into molds, put into molds and cook for 2 hours.
If you are not using a mold grease 2 cookie sheets and spread the mixture onto one of the sheets so that it is about 1/4 inch thick. (it is important that the mixture is not too thick because it wont cook through)
Bake in the oven for 45 minutes. flip the kibble over once and cook for another 45 minutes. Make sure it is completely dried out.
Reduce the oven to 325F and cut up the kibble into small pieces. Place the pieces back onto the cookie sheets and bake for an additional hour.
Remove kibble and let it cool completely.