A Thread For Making Your Own Dog Food (In Light of the Recalls)

Free Republic ^ | 3/31/07 | Myself

[Mercat]

raw fish? why not?

[cripplecreek]

My little one had a Hemangiopericytoma removed from her leg and I'm doing what I can to prevent the likely recurrence for as long as possible.

[Melinda in TN]

I don't know why raw fish is considered toxic. I'll see if I can find out. It might be that the bones are dangerous.

[Melinda in TN]

I found this:

Raw Fish Poisoning

[TASMANIANRED]

White chocolate isn't really chocolate..it is not toxic.

Chocolate is toxic..The agent is theobromine.

It can cause vomiting, restlessness, cardiac arrhythmia's, ataxia seizures and death in 18-24 hours.

Toxic dose of milk chocolate is 1 ounce per pound.

Bakers chocolate is much more concentrated and unsugared 1/10 of an ounce per pound is toxic.

If you ever need to recover something a dog has ingested unless it is a liquid like antifreeze, you have a chance within the 1st hour of recovery.

Obviously the closer to the time of exposure the better chance of recovery.

Peroxide good old H2O2..at 1 tsp /10 lbs will cause vomiting within 20 minutes, You can repeat it at 20 minutes if not effective.

After the big foam of peroxide it has off gassed the extra oxygen and it becomes H2O . plain water.

Peroxide can go flat just like an opened soda can so keep a fresh bottle in reserve.

[girlangler]

Thanks for all the advice on feeding. I just returned from town grocery shopping for my two dogs and one cat. Getting ready to cook up a big batch of chicken and rice, mixed veggies, and corn oil for the dogs, and will freeze individual feedings. The cat has some tuna coming for dinner.

These dogs are going to think it's their birthday party or something. Until now I have fed them expensive commercially produced food, with scraps from time to time. They love people food, and that's what they'll be eating from now on.

All these suggestions and links are bookmarked. Ping all your cat freeper friends because there have been a few on here wanting more info on homemade catfood. My cat likes Tuna on occassion, so I guess I'll feed him chicken and what the dogs eat in addition to tuna. He is the picky one in the bunch. However, he'll either eat what I make him or he'll have to go and catch a mouse.

BTW, for you cat lovers, here's a funny story. I have a herd of deer come into my yard every afternoon, and I feed them shelled corn.

Once, I looked out my window and my cat was hunkered down beside where the deer were feeding, and crawling low toward them. He was actually trying to hunt a deer. When he got pretty close one of the deer stomped his hoof on the ground and the cat decided he'd pushed it as far as he was going, and took off running away.

[Darnright]

>My cat even eats spider webs so evidently they have nutritional value too.<

My Siamese just loves a good ol' juicy bug. Spiders are a kitty delicacy, apparently.

[Arizona Carolyn]

Then I would do the flax/cottage cheese in that case and also artemissium (have you read the article from Whole Dog Journal on it? My neighbor is the woman who they wrote about in the article that had good luck with her large dog's cancer using it)... also I would feed zero grains and minimal carbs of any kind.

If you don't mind me asking, how long ago was it removed and how is the dog doing? Our friends have a 12-year-old Standard Poodle with it and they opted to not have surgery... the bone is degenerating and she has had a raging infection in the leg...

I would have opted for surgery, they felt she wouldn't live long enough for it to heal properly and what time she had left would be poor... She is now on two antibiotics and Prednisone and the drugs are causing loss of appetite.... I am interested in hearing your story having opted for surgery.

[Arizona Carolyn]

Raw Salmon for certain unless it is Atlantic Salmon -- they carry a parasite... same with a lot of lake fish that is not cooked. I feed raw, and Hare-today does have raw Atlantic Salmon, but I stay away from the fish with my dogs.

[Darnright]

Here is a classic homemade recipe, revered in the dog world for putting weight on skinny pooches when nothing else will. It is a complete diet.

Note - you don't want to overfeed this to a dog with even a hint of a weight problem, because you'll have the equivalent of 2 dogs in a hurry, if you're not careful:

Satin Balls

The following recipe was sent to Wellpet by Diana Carreon, R.N.,C. It quickly became one of the most requested posts on Wellpet.

Ingredients

10 pounds hamburger meat [the cheapest kind]
1 lg. box of Total cereal
1 lg. box oatmeal
1 jar of wheat germ
1 1/4 cup veg oil
1 1/4 cup of unsulfured molasses
10 raw eggs AND shells
10 envelopes of unflavored gelatin
pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients together, much like you would a meatloaf.

Divide into 10 quart freezer bags (smaller if you have a little dog) and freeze.

Thaw as needed and feed raw!

[cripplecreek]

She's a 10 year old Jack Russel mix and she seems to be doing very well after about 6 weeks. The cancer was well defined so the vet was able to get most of it.

I've been weighing the options and right now I just want to keep her healthy and happy for as long as possible. We considered radiation but the cost is enormous and it would mean a months stay at the oncology center. Chemo would simply make her sick.

Personally I would prefer that she lose the leg. Dogs adapt to the loss very well and at 10 years old she would likely live a normal lifespan without recurrence.

[Mercat]

Cats really don't need feeding at all during locust season, especially in the years when they are plentiful. yum.

[Global2010]

Yes we use Dick Van Pattons Fish and Sweet potato formula.

Wonderful healthy lean boys.

Great for skin allergies too.

[Ditter]

I feed my dogs Natural Balance and have for about a year. I think I need to stock up, if it isn't already sold out. Even tho, according to my veterinarian brother, he hasn't seen or heard of any food problems in Houston.

[Sally'sConcerns]

Grind up some kidney, liver, heart, etc., and then slowly start adding to kitty's dry food and as kitty starts to eat it then slowly decrease kibble and increase the beef heart and the organ meats... you can lightly steam the meat, the smell will sometimes tempt them more if steamed.

Kitty will eat around it or will eat the dogs dry food if her food is messed with in any way. Anytime I've baked a whole chicken I've done my best to entice her with the organ meats. It's been a no go everytime!

Up goes her little black nose, up goes her long black tail as she turns her back on my pitiful offering of a special treat. She saunters past the eager terrier and the excited though elderly giantess with extreme disdain for their quivering noses and begging eyes. Once again royalty has put we commoners back in our rightful place.

[Arizona Carolyn]

~LOL~ There is a new kibble on the market, I've heard very good things about it -- all natural and they have a cat formula. It is called Natures Logic. They have a website and you can click your location for places carrying it... or order from some of the holistic stores online like onlynaturalpet.com.

I know how difficult cats are to switch, normally they do have to start out as kittens on healthy diet. Biggest difference between dog and cat, you can let dog go without eating, can't cat due to kidney's in cat will start to malfunction without food.

Our cat was fairly easy to change for some reason after she lost all her fur and I decided she was going to eat healthy. I don't know why she went for it, but she did.

[Arizona Carolyn]

If my friends dog had been my dog, I would have opted for amputation. If it was one of my dogs I would opt for amputation. Chemo -- no... They only found this when she tripped and fell and they thought she had dislocated her knee, turned out to be this instead.

[lonestar]

My vet had a sign on the door @ Thanksgiving --"Do NOT feed your pet turkey bones! I don't want to work on Thanksgiving."

[BagCamAddict]

If you don't think you're up to cooking yourself, do what I did... try Abady brand. It's the next best thing. Order a small amount to try it out, and if you and your pets like it, then order the larger sizes for better economy. Just remember that you only need to feed 1/2 - 2/3 as much as your previous food, so don't overfeed. That's the only problem I've ever heard anyone had, because they fed too much so the dog got the runs. Here's the website, and you can find a distributor near you or have it shipped UPS to your doorstep:

http://therobertabadydogfoodcoltd.com/

[RepoGirl]

I think a dog food thread is a great idea. In fact, just made a batch of a whole food recipe I used to make about 23 years ago: ground turkey, chicken gizzards, mixed with rolled oats and chopped brocolli. All stewed to a nice gooey consistency. Stinks to high heaven, but the cats love it -- and the dog thinks it's ambrosia.

Would like to get as many recipes as possible. I've spent too damn much money on that 'boutique' and high end dog foods only to find the stuff isn't worth the money, and potentially fatal.