Healthy Homemade Dog Food
December 10th, 2009
After the huge pet food recall during 2007, millions of dog owners were horrified that they had unknowingly been poisoning their beloved dog. If your beloved pet survived that scary time, you have undoubtedly been much more cautious in your choice of dog foods. But how is the average dog owner to know what's really going into their four-legged companions dish? One way to be absolutely certain is to make the dogs food yourself, but that can be very time-consuming. The other alternative is to know which store-bought food is the the best choice, one that is safe and nutritious.
What to feed your dog has now become a very sensitive subject, especially with all the conflicting information out there.For most dog owners, this simply comes down to finances. Most people don't have the expendable income to buy the top of the line store bought product. While this approach may seem logical, considering the cost of feeding your own family takes priority number one, it may not always be the best. Choosing the right foods from the get go, can save money and sadness down the road, as feeding your pet sub par ingredients can take a huge toll on your pets health over time.
Looking over the list of dog foods found on the shelves of most grocery stores, you will find that these products are filled low quality and cheap ingredients. They are a cheaper option to the other brands, but they are not recommended. This can be proven by a quick glance at the list of ingredients on this lower quality food.
When checking the ingredients in the food, it is advised to avoid food with generic meat ingredients. You want to steer clear of phrases like "meat and bone meal" or "meat byproduct". You want to look for brands that actually list the animal the food is made out of. Good phrases to look for include "beef" or "chicken meal". Another pointer it to avoid food's with corn as the main ingredient. Your not feeding a pig or a cow.
But what is the big deal as long as Rufus loves his store brand food, which retails for half the price? The reason for this is that your animal has been tricked. They have been adding chemicals to his food, resulting in a pleasing color and mouth watering aroma, there to hide the fact that the food is low quality. You can find these chemicals easily by looking for things such as drying agents, coloring agents, and texturizers. These are just some of alarming ingredients in your dog's food that you need to be aware of.
Of course you can find premium top of the line commercial dog food, with high grade ingredients and no additives of any kind. These foods are more expensive though, sometimes considerably. But we will discuss that in detail in another article. But at this stage many dog lovers begin to wonder about making the dog's food on your own.
The popularity of making making pet food from the home has exploded over the last few years, as it allows people to pick exactly what they will be putting in their dog's dish. You need to learn the proper balance of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats for your pet. This does not mean feeding him left over's from dinner. The best known homemade nutrition plan for your dogs body is the BARF diet.
BARF you say? What exactly does that stand for? Technically BARF can mean a few things, most notably is Bones And Raw Food. Another common name circulating around is Biologically Appropriate Raw Food, which came from Dr. Ian Billinghurst, as one of the first Barfers.
The BARF diet takes dedication and hard work, but is very beneficial to your pet's well being. There are noticeable differences between commercially bought dog foods, and the BARF diet, but they both serve the same purpose of providing the dog with the best nutrients possible.
The philosophy of BARF is to feed a biologically appropriate diet consisting of whole raw foods like those eaten by their ancestors. These ingredient include fat, bone, muscle meat, organ meat, and vegetable materials.
As great as the BARF diet is, it is not always the ideal method of feeding, as it takes time to prepare and research the foods you are serving. In fact, Rufus may be inclined to be quite healthy on the quality commercial dog food, which undergoes strenuous test's to insure that the foods will meet your dog's dietary needs. The important thing that you must remember as a dog owner is that commercial dog food is NOT all the same. Reading up on AAFCO standards to become educated in what ingredients to look for , and which ones to avoid. It is up to you as a dog downer to decide.
Sharda Baker has published several dog e-book and audios, including the internet best selling "Complete Guide to Your Dog's Nutrition".
Visit the link below now for Sharda's Special Free Dog Food Report.
