Home made dog food

Topics, guidelines and tips for feeding Chow Chows.

Moderator: chowadmin

Post Reply
User avatar
mstrsszz
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 17
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:31 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia

Home made dog food

Post by mstrsszz »

Hey all,

I'm in Aus and I was just bumming around on the net looking at different dog foods, reading the info on here and trying to figure out whats what and whats good! (I'm beginning to think thats an immpossible task!)

Now out here we haven't had any prob what so ever with all the dog food recalls that you guys have had. And my dog (non chow - shes a bitsa) has always just been fed commercial dog food, whatever my mum has picked up from woolworths. But after reading on here all the crap that goes into it I'm a lil worried! (and disgusted!)

My main point in this topic is that I'd ideally love to feed my dog home made food but know I'd never have the time to make it and I'd be scared to get the nutrition wrong, so I was looking on the net and found this http://sassytreats.com.au/
I don't know if you guys have anything similar but I wanted to see what you thought? I think it looks pretty healthy? And its free delivery! But I wanted to get your opinions (specially Bama as you seem to know a lot! and i trust what you say :P :lol:) So yer any input would be loved!!

Thanx :)

Zoe
User avatar
shandilady
Rank 1
Rank 1
Posts: 179
Joined: Sat Apr 21, 2007 7:02 pm
Location: Yukon, OK

Post by shandilady »

I am with you. I know I could not produce the proper nutrition . I do use something close and it is Innova Evo by Natura after alot of research. Alot of folks seem to like SG (solid gold)but I cannot get it. That is for here though. I don't know what you can get there.
<a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j231/ ... anner2.jpg" border="0" alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a>
BANNER BY SWEETPEA
User avatar
mstrsszz
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 17
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:31 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by mstrsszz »

Yer I've been able to find Innova in a petstore that has a few chains around my area (yes I know a horrible pet store but thats the only place I can get it :P)

I'm not sure how much it costs around here though...
Zoe
User avatar
mstrsszz
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 17
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:31 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by mstrsszz »

haha I just thought I'd add in:

that I was looking at the time stamp and thinkin what the?! its not sunday, then I realised its on your time! Its almost 2pm here on monday arvo :P Ah blonde moments :P

and its also freezing! I want summer back!!!
Zoe
User avatar
shandilady
Rank 1
Rank 1
Posts: 179
Joined: Sat Apr 21, 2007 7:02 pm
Location: Yukon, OK

Post by shandilady »

Zoe,

Hopefully Bama will be back on soon to answer your food ?'s.

It is steaming here. Rained more this year than any other. Now the heat is hitting. It will be over 100 easy tomorrow plus humidity which makes it worse. I still prefer summer over winter but like spring and fall best. The in betweens. I do hope you find a great food.
<a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j231/ ... anner2.jpg" border="0" alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a>
BANNER BY SWEETPEA
User avatar
mstrsszz
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 17
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:31 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by mstrsszz »

Thanx heaps :) lol yer and I'm with you i like the in betweens as well :)
Zoe
User avatar
bama
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 3190
Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 1:00 pm
Location: In a van, down by the river...AL

Post by bama »

Mstrssz,

Nice to hear from you! I'm always happy to help when I can.
I followed the link you listed and looked at several treats and main courses. While I didn't see a complete ingredients listing, manufacturing procedures, or raw ingredients resource, they did list enough information for me to avoid this company's products. They have grains, soy, and milk products. Also, most of these products are mostly grain. They have a nice website and affective marketing, the product appears substandard, opening the door for allergies and ill-tolerance to the digestive system.
I have been a fan of Solid Gold, and while I am still a fan, I believe this new product on the market, called Orijens, not only rivals Solid Gold, but because of their manufacturing procedures and the blend of ingredients,
I believe it surpasses Solid Gold for overall good nutrition.
Jeff(&Vickie) gave me a heads up on it. Orijens is not available in my state, but they have an online store.
Here's the link,
http://www.championpetfoods.com/orijen/storeLocator/
Image
**Photo by Sweet Pea.
She has a photogenic memory...really!
User avatar
mstrsszz
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 17
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:31 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by mstrsszz »

Hey Bama!

Good to see you are back :)

Yer I looked at Solid Gold and couldn't find it out here in Aus :( and I just looked up Orijin and I can't get it out here or online :( (and I read the post by Vicki and Jeff and thought Orijin sounded good too)But being in Aus its hard to get some foods...

But I can get Innova and I've heard thats good...

I didn't know grains were so bad for dogs??
Zoe
User avatar
bama
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 3190
Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 1:00 pm
Location: In a van, down by the river...AL

Post by bama »

Zoe,

***I order my Orijens online from:
http://www.k9cuisine.com
They have free shipping on a 29 lb. bag of dry food.***

If Innova is what you are able to get, then you might try to make it "EVO-Red Meat" formula for large breeds.
I think that is probably the best forumla that Innova has to offer.

About the grains...
grains are not species appropriate. It can be a tricky thing to read labels on commercial dog food packages.
For instance, a package may say, "lamb is our first ingredient"! But, when you read the label carefully, you will notice that maybe rice or another grain is listed in three or four different ways, but ultimately grain makes up the majority of the product, not lamb.
Let's look at rice...
"rice bran", "rice meal", "rice gluten", rice blah, blah, blah! Manufacturers break down the rice according to which part of the kernel is used, but if you add all of these together, you end up with a product that is mostly rice.

Protein...
Protein from plant sources is used in the overall protein count of the product. The problem lies with the fact that protein from plant sources, as opposed to animal sources, causes the product to have high ash and phosphorus levels.
This causes the body ph to be more alkaline and sets the stage for disease. A slightly acidic body ph is most desirable.
So, read your labels carefully.
Dogs need the majority of their protein from animal sources and not plant sources.
I hope this helps.
Image
**Photo by Sweet Pea.
She has a photogenic memory...really!
User avatar
mstrsszz
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 17
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:31 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by mstrsszz »

Thanx Bama for all the info! I appreciate it :) This site is just so awesome!
Zoe
User avatar
bama
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 3190
Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 1:00 pm
Location: In a van, down by the river...AL

Post by bama »

In the beginning your thread mentioned Home made meals.
I have a very recipe for you, if you are interested?

Bama's Chicken RagOut

1 large package of frozen chicken livers
1 large package of frozen chicken hearts
1 large package of frozen chicken gizzards
(Sometimes these are all packaged together)
In that case, use 3 1-lb packages.

In a large crockpot, toss in all packages of
chicken organ and muscle meat.
Add 1 1/2 cup of water.
Set it and forget it!!! The temp should be low
and allowed to cook for about 8 hours.
(overnight is perfect)
When done, scoop out chicken meat and set aside.
Scoop excess fat from top of chicken broth. (easier to do when broth has been allowed to cool)
Place cooked chicken into food processor with about 1/3 cup of broth and chop. Do a batch at a time.
**You may need to increase or reduce broth amounts.
We're looking for a moist crumbly texture.
Store in small zip loc bags or plastic container and freeze extras.
All of my furkids, including my cat love this!!!
It's chocked full of "good" protein and taurine, just to name a few. I mix just enough of Bama Chicken Ragout with
with kibble to make it extremely tasty.
Image
**Photo by Sweet Pea.
She has a photogenic memory...really!
User avatar
mstrsszz
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 17
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:31 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by mstrsszz »

Awesome thanx for that Bama :) Sorry it took me so long to answer, I've been so busy with uni and work :P
Zoe
User avatar
mswhitney
Rank 0
Rank 0
Posts: 20
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2007 10:16 am

Post by mswhitney »

I have some pals who have been feeding all their animals a completely raw food diet for 12 years now. I use their recipe with added supplements for our Chow Mix and give her a small amount in the am to supplement her dry food. She loves it and eagerly guides me to the kitchen after her morning walks to make certain she doesn't miss out.

She also get a turkey neck every now and again - the first time it took her about 15 minutes to figure how how to eat it, but now it's gone in mere minutes. Our surgeon says it's definitely helped her healing process tremendously after she had to have ACL surgeries on both her knees.
User avatar
sit_by_the_beach
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 3030
Joined: Tue Oct 31, 2006 8:20 am
Location: Toronto, Canada

Post by sit_by_the_beach »

We probably tried most dog foods that are on the market. My dog liked none. Unless I added pieces of salmon, herring, my chow would only eat every two days. She was itchy. Scratching her ears till they were sore. No ear mites, no fleas were present. The dog was allergic to the corn, wheat etc.

I now feed her Orijen, Mikki chow eats a cup or two every day depending on activity. Her coat is just beautiful, it's shiny, no tangles, easy to groom. Thanks Vicki and Jeff encouraging me to try the Orijen. It's difficult to come by in Canada because they have a bigger market exporting the food.

Looks like a good chicken recipe from bama, will try it. Mikki still loves her once a month bama burgers,
Karin
KARIN &
chowMIKKI

Image
Image
User avatar
redangie24
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 2386
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 3:36 pm
Location: Keesler AFB, MS
Contact:

Post by redangie24 »

Orijen is my new food!! It was the only food I could find and read here in Germany. At least the only thing that is good enough for Ivana. A nice thing here is you can buy the bag or they will divide it up for you into a size that you want. Ivana likes the food and it seems good so far, but it has only been a week so....


Also, petfoods plus stores carry the BARF diet. And some other premium pet food. Non that are super, but better than grocery brands.
Have a Chowfastic Day!!
Image
User avatar
Red Dragon
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 1946
Joined: Wed Dec 13, 2006 6:03 pm

Post by Red Dragon »

Bama, do you realize that your Ragout recipe is made of Chicken bi-product? :lol:
Sam

Keeper of the furry things...Master of the kibble....Scooper of the poo!
User avatar
Jeff&Peks
Rank 4
Rank 4
Posts: 8386
Joined: Wed Mar 02, 2005 10:29 am
Location: Los Angeles,, CA

Post by Jeff&Peks »

"It was the only food I could find and read here in Germany"

Are you already in Germany? I thought you still had months before you moved. If your already in Germany does your being there have anything to do with the News saying the Nazi party in Germany is on the rise.

If your already there you never said anything about the trip or how ivana handled it.
“...There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but one must take it because conscience tells one that it is right.” MLK

ImageImage
User avatar
Auddymay
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 7575
Joined: Tue Oct 25, 2005 3:49 am
Location: Muskegon, Michigan

Post by Auddymay »

I am surprised we didn't get an Ivana report on the trip! Whaddup with that?
User avatar
redangie24
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 2386
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 3:36 pm
Location: Keesler AFB, MS
Contact:

Post by redangie24 »

I was trying to wait until we got a house so I could sneak in pics of her at the new house, but I have been caught!! So in a little while I will post her pics and how the trip went. Darn I me and my big mouth.
Have a Chowfastic Day!!
Image
User avatar
sit_by_the_beach
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 3030
Joined: Tue Oct 31, 2006 8:20 am
Location: Toronto, Canada

Post by sit_by_the_beach »

Redangie,

I was offline for two months. I had dial up but no images and very slow dial up at that. What happened to the other dog you owned, did you find him a home? Or is he with you in Germany?

How are your girls (human) adjusting to life away from home? Have you adjusted? Did you make it to the westcoast before you crossed the pond???

Karin
KARIN &
chowMIKKI

Image
Image
User avatar
redangie24
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 2386
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 3:36 pm
Location: Keesler AFB, MS
Contact:

Post by redangie24 »

Ziyear found a home in North Carolina (with the help from a rescue) from a really nice girl who basically reminds me of...me! He adjusted very quickly and is a super lucky guy.

Yeah, I went to the westcoast for about 3 weeks. Then hubby was having a hard time getting everything done for our PCS so I had to hurry home and help out. I hope to go back in Jan or at least by summer.

I was able to make it too a friends house and have more fun than I have had in ages. I went to lots of concerts, hung out with friends, and spent lots of time with my family. I got to pack allot of time into just a few weeks.

My daughters are okay. They don't like allot of the food when we eat out and my oldest gets frustrated at times not being able to talk to people. She keeps talking to them and then just says it louder thinking that will make them understand. She is 5 so I think she will adjust pretty quickly. I am glad she has a sister. They have become really close since there is just the two of them except for school.

The little one is the same as if we were still in Georgia. At two she is pretty good anywhere. She loves all the dogs and thinks the people are funny when they talk.

Image
Have a Chowfastic Day!!
Image
User avatar
sit_by_the_beach
Rank 3
Rank 3
Posts: 3030
Joined: Tue Oct 31, 2006 8:20 am
Location: Toronto, Canada

Post by sit_by_the_beach »

Thanks for the update. Your daughters look like they're enjoying themselves. I like the sweaters, sweet.

Schnaufen, essen drinken, blinken, Wursten Suppe, yea funny language. My son who doesn't speak German still makes fun when I am on the phone talking to my cousin. Your 5 year old will get used to the language, customs, people. Deutsche Sprache ist eine schwere Sprache. Not an easy language to learn, speak.
Karin
KARIN &
chowMIKKI

Image
Image
Post Reply