Switch from kibble to home cooked

[Ken P]

OK I've looked through a lot of the posts & I'm looking for a good recipe for a daily diet for Max. He has been eating EVO for the last few months & it's such a pain to get him to eat sometimes. I've tried mixing other stuff with it canned EVO, cottage cheese, plain yogurt. If I can find a good starter recipe that I can mix with the EVO that would be great. I don't want to go through another abrupt food switch so I'm thinking about 2 months of adding a small amount of the home cooked food with the kibble increasing over the two months.

[Gib Laut]

There is a ton of recipes out there....mine is now on raw but he began on home cooked. I liked the stew idea....placing all your ingredients (ground/ cut up meats, veg if using, grain if using) in a huge pot, add some water, cook like you would for yourself!.....place into containers, use what you need for a few days, freeze the rest......the first link gives you food ideas and feeding guidelines for such a stew...

Home food for cats and dogs (This is from a vet)

This is from a nutritionist with the complete nutritional breakdown

HILARY'S BLEND - Sample recipe from the cookbook

Don't know if it's what you had in mind...good luck

[Ken P]

I think HILARY'S BLEND - Sample recipe from the cookbook will work to start with. I want the recipe to be good enough with a nutritional balance so once Max is off EVO I don't have to make major changes to his diet.

Thanks!

[Trina]

How many servings is the Hilary's R12 Adult Blend recipe? The recipe looks similar to some of the ones I make except for the cod liver oil.

I feed my dogs a combination of home-cooked food and dry kibble (Wellness Core) supplemented with a multivitamin, fish oil, and glucosamine.

The recipes for their home-cooked meals I get from a couple of books I purchased and the internet. But basically, I use "regular people food" that I buy at the grocery store, and prepare it the way you would prepare any healthy meal (roasting the meat, steaming the vegetables, fresh fruits when possible etc.) but without the added salt, sugar or preservatives.

[Gib Laut]

Originally Posted by Ken P

I think HILARY'S BLEND - Sample recipe from the cookbook will work to start with. I want the recipe to be good enough with a nutritional balance so once Max is off EVO I don't have to make major changes to his diet.

Thanks!

No prob!....hope it works for you....I don't have her book, but if you're interested in it, it is available to order on her site.....


P.S. Trina "How many servings is the Hilary's R12 Adult Blend recipe? The recipe looks similar to some of the ones I make except for the cod liver oil."

Looking at the recipe it makes 1000 grams....you would need to find ur dog's weight in the feeding sched., but it looks like it would be a full day of food (not taking into account any other type of food fed or mixed such as kibble)

[Trina]

Originally Posted by Gib Laut

P.S. Trina "How many servings is the Hilary's R12 Adult Blend recipe? The recipe looks similar to some of the ones I make except for the cod liver oil."

Looking at the recipe it makes 1000 grams....you would need to find ur dog's weight in the feeding sched., but it looks like it would be a full day of food (not taking into account any other type of food fed or mixed such as kibble)

Thanks.

I did see that, but I'm so accustomed to measuring their food by volume/cups instead of by weight/grams. Not a biggie, since I like to make their meals in batches anyway. I'll just double or triple the recipe, put into individual serving cups and see what it works out to.

[themurphyz]

This recipe is from a friend. Recipe - Fresh Dog Food - MixingBowl.com. She has two goldens and they have the most beautiful coats! My Franklin is moving from puppy food soon and this is what I'm planning on transitioning him to.

[natalie559]

I think you need to be really careful with recipes you receive free on the internet. Many times you will get what you pay for.

For example one recipe listed here is a disaster in the nutrient department,

Originally Posted by themurphyz

Recipe - Fresh Dog Food - MixingBowl.com

There is no way there is enough calcium, phos, zinc or iodine in that recipe and I am very sure there are other problems. Maybe great for a treat or a supplement of fresh foods, but for a day in day out diet- no.

Now this one looks better, it is analyzed and supplemented to standards which is great.

Originally Posted by Gib Laut

HILARY'S BLEND - Sample recipe from the cookbook

Another good resource is Monica Segal. She has books and booklets with recipes or you can learn to do it yourself. She also write a booklet on supplementing a commercial diet that I think is a great resource,

Enhancing Commercial Diets

"You feed a commercial diet and want to supplement with fresh foods. How can you do this without unbalancing the diet? Are certain supplements helpful? Are there any that you should not be using? The answers to these, and other commonly asked questions, are right here!"

[Dogrrific]

If you go for homemade dog food, why don't you go one step further?
I come with recipes that are both suitable for my best friend and human consumption,
Making the switch does not require too much homework.
Give it a try.

[Ucdcrush]

Originally Posted by Dogrrific

If you go for homemade dog food, why don't you go one step further?
I come with recipes that are both suitable for my best friend and human consumption,
Making the switch does not require too much homework.
Give it a try.

I was thinking of just that. My own diet consists mainly of chicken breast, brown rice or millet, and veggies.

If I add fruit and maybe a multivitamin for the dogs it SEEMS like it should be OK, but there is so much nutrition opinion out there it's a bit confusing.