A food challenge for Dog owners!

[CountessDracula]

I just wondered if anyone would be up for this.

You may or may not know that dog food (dry and tinned) is full of not very nice things. Even the posh ones. EG even if they say they use sunflower oil, they buy it from factories where it has been used for cooking and it is oxidised which is carcinogenic.

We are very keen on feeding our kids well on mn, should we not show a similar concern for our animals?

So... for the past year I have cooked for my dog on the vet's advice after she had cancer very young. Every 3 days i cook a huge pot of veggies and keep them in the fridge. Sometimes I give her cooked meat, sometimes raw. It works out cheaper than dog food as I never throw anything out. Make sure there is plenty of variety, greens are especially good eg broccoli, peas etc. I buy the cheapest mince in the supermarket or stuff that is marked down.

I cannot tell you what a difference it has made to her. Her coat is incredible, her eyes are bright, she is so full of energy. I though that all those things were true before but now she really is on top form. She is much slimmer than she was before though she eats more and she never gets the runs etc any more.

Would anyone like to give it a go? I was talking to my vet today about it, he said most vets won't promote it as they make money from selling dog food, but that it is making our dogs ill.

[CountessDracula]

no?

[thedogmother]

I think it's an excellent idea in theory CD but in reality I don't know if i've got the time to be doing that for the dog. But I know what you mean about the sunflower oil thing. I've only just discovered fairly recently this vile thing companies put in food called Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil whihc is basically a trans-fat - extremely bad for the body, and used-again sunflower/cooking oil becomes trans-fat.

[sweetmonkey]

ill give it a try. my dog who is 10 has had skin problems since he was a pup. im def up for trying it. how much do you usually give or is it a case of whatever looks the right amount

[CountessDracula]

dogmother it takes almost no time. 5 mins every 3 days to chop up a pile of veggies? C'mon! I just did it while dd was having her pud.

She also loves the cheapo tinned tuna and tinned pilchards btw

[fishfinger]

does she fart?

[CountessDracula]

Well I have a Ridgeback, they don't eat a huge amount despite being big dogs.

I usually give her (twice a day)

about 1/3lb of mince or a tin of tuna or half a tin or pilchards

mixed veggies eg

potatoes
swede
cabbage
sweet potatoes
carrots
broccoli
beans
peas

basically anything I have left over, plus I buy extra broccoli for her as it is so good for her.

Chop it all into bitesized pieces and cook in boiling water for about 5 mins, don't over cook it as it keeps cooking while it is cooling.

A couple of times a week I will put a large dash of olive oil in.

[CountessDracula]

She farts less than she used to!

[CountessDracula]

Sorry didn't say how much veggies - usually I would say about 3 or 4 good handfuls.

Just experiment for a while with your dog.

[fishfinger]

asparagus spears?

[wilfulwife]

I'm going to give it a try.My cavalier has a delicate stomach(!!!)and is not really keen on dog food-posh or otherwise.How long does this keep in the fridge do you think?I do make dried liver chips for him instead of treat sticks etc-ooh the things we do for our pooches!

[Blackduck]

My hound is aways happier with our leftovers than his own dinner (likes pasta and yoghurt!)...so I think I'm half way there...

[CountessDracula]

Yes mine had v v delicate stomach prior to this diet.

It lasts 3 days in the fridge

[redsky]

I bet noone else has a CHEF cook for the dog!!!. But I didn't know that all those veggies would be good for him too. We get loads of left over veggies from our pub meals and I give them to the chickens - now I'll make sure the dog gets some too.

[Chuffed]

CD my mum and dad have always done this for the dogs, they bred labs and used to add cook a bit of meat/mince and rice in there too. By far the cheapest as well as good for the dog.
Most of the other breeders did the same thing so it is probably one of those things that 'people in the know' do.

[fifilala]

Our lab just has dried food - not even the expensive stuff, whenever we have tried to add anything else he just gets diarrhoea and farts+++++++++. We also add evening primrose oil which seems to help his skin (occ a bit dandruff)

[Titania]

my terrier cross eat anything and everything whether its edible or not.

am concerned about the amount of poo and wind fresh veg will produse lol!!

[Chandra]

I will try the recipe, one of my dogs has a very sensitive stomach and even Z/D diet (a allergen free diet that costs a fortune) has been bad for her. My only question is what about their teeth? specially if the dog in question can't chew the usual pork skin stuff sold in pet shops without having an upset tummy. Any suggestions about that?

[CountessDracula]

Chandra she has a chew after dinner every night