Wanting to try a homemade diet for working lab

[BobVanceRefrigeration]

We’ve been to the vet several times now about ongoing inflammation in our dog’s ear - seems to fluctuate and can’t seem to figure out what’s going on for him. He’s a 3 year old working lab and been on a high quality kibble all his life, alongside some raw meat as a topper. The vet has tried steroid ear drops and oral steroids but the inflammation keeps returning. She’s suggested an elimination diet next.

I’m considering switching him to completely homemade before the stress of the elimination diet - taking out the common allergen of chicken and beef and switching to a protein like rabbit or venison and then grains / fruits / veggies / carbs. Does anyone else feed their large breed dog homemade food and where do you start?! Any reliable sources for guidance to make sure he’s getting all his nutritional requirements?? Also feel very confused about supplements!!

Any recommendations for dog “cookbooks” would be great!

I'm wondering the same thing except it's for skin issues. But my budget is tight.

Unless you really know what you're doing, I really wouldn't recommend going down this road as it's very easy to get the balance wrong or miss out on basic nutrients.

I'd recommend a consult with Elmo's Kitchen. They will formulate a balanced home cook recipe for you to follow. I done this for my previous dog - it was tailored to his medical condition and improved his life tenfold. There were so many things that needed adding that I would have never considered, like zinc, vitamin B complex, kelp etc. These were all brought very cheaply and added in tiny amounts, so were no issue, but it made me realise it wasn't as easy as just cooking for him (as I thought pre-consult). This was a few years ago now but I think the consult was about £100 and we definitely saved that in vets bills and their recommended diets for his condition.

We has similar. Went to a raw complete. No concerns about balancing nutrients.

We use Honeys. They're great. Nutriment are pretty decent too.

There is some urban myth that it is incredibly hard to home cook food for your dog. It is not . If you can feed your child or yourself correctly then you can feed your dog but be aware that they have different nutritional needs.

However it is time consuming and does need to be done probably. There is a lot of info about . I would start with the Forever Dog.

If you want to feed raw that is dead easy if you have freezer space and very easy to do an elimination diet.

Thanks everyone for the advice - I do appreciate it! I’ve ordered the Forever Dog book and will educate myself a bit more and will also book a consult with a nutritionist. I’m sure when I was growing up my parents would just bung our dogs anything and everything, my dad would have a fit if he found out my dog had his own personal nutritionist designed menu 😂

Have a look at Holly Barkers Sport Dog nutrition on Facebook. She is amazing and does consults, but also loads of friendly supportive searchable advice on there and whilst sport dogs are her passion, don’t be put off by that. It’s defo not one of those raw only pages. There are recipes on there.

Sorry - meant to say loads of advice there for working dogs. Missed that bit in your post!

Out of interest, what kibble have you been feeding? Grain/poultry free?

It's a grain-inclusive kibble, as our vet advised to keep grains in his diet due to the link with heart issues. We've tried different versions and he's been on the salmon one for the last 3 bags.

We've decided to go for a pre-made raw diet for a while and see how that goes. Seems easier than making his meals myself!! We've been transitioning him for the last few days and already we are seeing a positive difference in his poos. He absolutely loves it too - it's a blend of meat / organs / bones and veg. It's going to be expensive though. Also supplementing it with a fish oil for the omega 3 & 6.

I've begun reading the Forever Dog that a previous poster recommended. It's really informative and helpful in figuring out how to make his diet work better for him. There's a lot to take in!