Small number feeding homemade diets to dogs

An ABCNews.com article about homemade diets for dogs said that about 1 percent of people actually make their own dog food.

Read the article here.

The story talks about a California man who began cooking his dog's food in 2004, using it to supplement dry food.

After the 2007 pet food recall because of melamine, the man switched to all homemade food.

Dr. Richard Pitcairn, author of "Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats," came to believe in the power of nutrition and that it could have a positive effect of the immune system.

"To my surprise, it made a big difference," he said, "bigger than I expected."

Animals fed some kibbles long-term, he said, show signs of lessened energy and duller coats and are more susceptible to parasites and fleas.

"It's hard for the body to repair itself if the body doesn't have the nutrients it needs," Pitcairn said.

If we believe that food can have a beneficial effect on us, why then do we have a difficult time believing the same thing doesn't happen with our pets?

It's all in the diet

Kate has had a problem with commercial dog foods for a while now.

I fed her premium food from the beginning (ProPlan dry puppy food, then Iams Turkey and Rice dry food).

About five or six years ago, my vet in Shekomeko said I should change Kate to a senior food.

Worst. Decision. Ever.

The adult food I had Kate on was primarily what the name said: turkey and rice. There was very little cornmeal or corn product in it.

Not so with Iams senior food. The first ingredient was cornmeal, which was something Kate did not eat a lot of. There was a scant amount in one dog biscuit recipe I would make, but that was about it.

She broke out with bumps all over her body. And believe me, bumps was not the worst part of it.

The "end" result, if you catch my drift, was either trips outside twice an hour (I'm not kidding) or a real mess to clean up (I'm really not kidding).

I took Kate to the vet, who determined it was a food allergy and put her on a prescription food which was just potato and venison.

Flash Forward (which isn't a bad show, BTW) to a few months ago, when my new vet in Pleasant Valley told me they were no longer carrying the brand of potato and venison Kate had been on. So we switched to another (more expensive) prescription brand.

Not halfway through the second bag of the new brand, Kate developed diarrhea. At that point I went into the "white diet" mode — poached chicken, rice and fat-free cottage cheese. There was also a prescription powder — Tylan — a pinch of which is sprinkled on the food to help quell the runs.

Within days, Kate would be fine. So usually after a week of her system being OK, I would start reintroducing the dry food — slowly. It would go fine until I was up to 1/2 cup of dry, then, bam, the runs would start again.

Back to the white diet. Then reintroducing the dry. Shampoo. Rinse. Repeat.

I even decided to dump the prescription and go back to a natural/organic food like Blue Buffalo. I made sure there was no corn in it, but unfortunately the results were eventually the same.

One thing I noticed while Kate was purely on the white diet was 1) how much she seemed to enjoy it and 2) how well she did on it.

I had nothing to lose — except my throw rugs — so I decided to see what would happen if I kept her on the homemade diet. I added boiled hamburger to the mix, along with pasta such as ditalini or small elbows and mashed sweet potatoes.

Kate loved it, and frankly, it seemed to love her. She was even going to the bathroom less, which at first, freaked me out, because we are a nation that loves regularity and schedules. Once I figured out that she would go when she needed to go, I felt much better and didn't worry. As long as I was still providing her the opportunities to do so. (You have to wonder what goes into the dry concoctions that make the animal produce such quantities of waste.)

Here's a video of Kate enjoying a homemade meal. I add a couple of tablespoons of a canned, organic dog food to the food.



Since that video was made, I've been putting cooked green beans in her meal. And she's really scarfed them up. Oddly though, I offered her one as a snack and she spit it out.

As a precaution I give her a multiple vitamin, along with her glucosamine tablet. And I noticed her hair was getting a bit dry looking, but a touch of olive oil seemed to fix that.

It's a work in progress, one that seems to be doing the trick.

Is it more expensive than the dry food? The last bag of prescription, most of which is still sitting in my cupboard, was $65 for a month.

I think what I'm doing — buying hamburger and chicken on sale — is probably a little less than that.

And the relief factor? Priceless.

Kate eats well

I made Kate some dog food yesterday. Pretty simple recipe. On sale ground beef, boiled. Added to a drained can of sweet potatoes and some rice.

You can tell from the video that she really enjoys it.

That was just a snack. I usually use it to supplement her dry food.

Either way, it's a hit.

And she kept licking the bowl for another 45 seconds after I stopped videotaping. I figured you didn't need to see all that.

UPDATE: Youtube seems to be hinky today. The video will play but you just don't see a preview of it and I'm too busy working to figure out why.

UPDATE 2: I guess the Youtube gurus heard me. The preview now displays.

Is my dog Jewish?

I wondered to myself after Michael's post about kosher dog food whether Ace was, in fact, a Jewish dog.
He refuses to play with the doggie dreidel, yet he loves potato pancakes.
So, I thought I'd do the true test.
Will he eat matzo?
But, to make it more telling, I gave him a choice. Doggie bone or plain, dry, matzo?
The result...

It wasn't even up for debate in his head. He went right to the matzo, scarfed it down and licked up the crumbs.
Then, he waited for me to give him more as I ate my dinner.
Perhaps I'll let him try the matzo primavera recipe from Wednesday's Busy Cook when I make it this weekend. Or not.

Keeping Fido kosher

With many people now observing Passover, it may be too late to get your dog or cat to also keep Kosher — at least this year.

Evanger's Dog and Cat Food Company, located in Wheeling, Ill., makes and sells a line of kosher dog and cat food.

They have 30 products, which, according to their Web site, "have been endorsed by the Chicago Rabbinical Council as acceptable for use by those who observe Jewish Law, and are free from any chometz which makes them acceptable for use during the Passover holidays."

The food is not made with grains, nor does it combine meat and dairy. But it is not kosher for human consumption.

The products include:

Dog food:

• 100% Beef for Dogs
• 100% Beef with Real Meat Chunks
• 100% Buffalo
• 100% Duck
• 100% Organic Chicken
• 100% Organic Turkey with Potato & Carrots
• 100% Pheasant
• Beef, Chicken & Liver for Dogs
• Beef with Liver for Dogs
• Cooked Chicken for Dogs
• Cooked Chicken with Real Meat Chunks
• Duck & Sweet Potatoes
• Hunk of Beef for Dogs
• Lamb & Rice Dinner for Dogs
• Senior Dinner for Dogs

Cat food:

• Chicken, Liver & Tuna for Cats
• Seafood Dinner for Cats
• Whole Mackerel with Gravy

Of course, when you say the food is for dogs, everyone will know what you mean. But when you say the food is for cats, you have to be clear that you don't mean Mr. Katz down the street.

Here's some feedback on the meatloaf you made for Kate and generously shared with some other dog-owners at the Journal...
My picky dog, Ace, stared at the MuttLoaf at first, but I think it was because it was in a strange dish. As soon as I dropped it in his bowl — atop the breakfast he didn't eat — he devoured it.
He'll get the second half tonight as a treat.
Here he is, staring at the food.
Thanks.