Why cook for your dog?

Dog food has been a topic of debate for years. Many dog owners know all about kibble and tend to choose this over homemade dog food due to its convenient design. However, most people are unaware that kibble can actually be very harmful to our furry best friends. Further, different dog food companies have been criticized for recalling their pet food as it frequently goes rancid. Moreover, many health issues, such as auto-immune diseases, allergies, kidney disease, and pancreatic diseases, are highly prevalent in our pet populations. This makes it all the more important to consider healthy alternatives for our dog’s diets and nutritional needs.

So how can we fix this? 

The answer is home cooking! Although this seems daunting, it can be quite easy, and there are so many incredible benefits to making your own dog food and preparing your dog’s meals. To put it in perspective, just as it's healthier for humans to eat home-cooked fresh foods rather than processed packaged foods, the same applies to our pets as well. Most processed dog foods have several quality issues and additives that we may have never even heard of! One of the benefits of cooking and preparing dog food recipes and meals is knowing exactly what's going into them. Homemade dog food allows you to have complete control over every aspect of your dog's health, and just as we as humans care about what we put in our bodies, it's important to apply that same level of care to our friendly pups.

Another benefit of having control over what goes into your homemade dog food is knowing the protein source you're feeding your dog and using fresh ingredients. There are so many different sources of protein you can feed your dog, and many of them contain essential nutrients for building a strong and healthy pup, just like they do for humans! Your protein source can be catered to your dog's needs. For example, if your dog is particularly overweight, you may opt to use a protein such as turkey with fresh veggies such as green beans, which can be a great way to help your pooch shed those extra pounds. Another benefit to using high-quality, fresh ingredients and specific protein sources is having control over food allergies. For example, for dogs that are allergic to chicken and beef, you can use lamb to ensure they are still meeting their nutritional requirements.  

This leads us to our next point of why homemade dog food and homemade dog food recipes are the best way to go; two words: picky eaters. Yes, it's true; dogs can be picky eaters too! Sometimes it can be extremely challenging to figure out what your dog likes and doesn't like or what they can and can't eat, and spending money on over-processed foods for your dog or different kibble brands can make figuring this out all the more difficult and expensive. Therefore, taking the time to look into healthy dog food recipes and testing out different homemade meals and new food options for your dog can be beneficial in the long run to creating a healthy balanced diet for your pup. Using left-over dog-friendly food or raw food you may already have in your kitchen, like bananas, cooked chicken, carrots or brown rice, you can test out what your dog likes and start planning meals and recipes around these foods. Remember, it's extremely important as a pet owner to research beforehand what is safe for your dog to consume before trying anything! 

Our dogs need just as much love and care as humans do, so next time you're at the grocery store, think about ditching the pre-packaged commercial dog food and start home cooking for your pooch. Stuck on what to make? Check out our meal mixes which make home cooking a breeze!