A homemade cooked food dog can be an ideal option for the health of your furry friend. Since commercial food is full of additives, preservatives, and hormones, it is better to choose a diet of cooked dog food. But is it healthier for my pet?
CONTENT:
- Is the homemade cooked food dog better?
- Why NOT choose the homemade cooked food dog?
- Can I substitute an ingredient in the recipe without consulting the vet?
- What categories of animals should avoid the homemade cooked food dog
- Final recap
Is the homemade cooked food dog better?
Cooking for animals can be a delicious option, especially for those who also have time to cook. However, there is no conclusive evidence that a cooked dog food diet is healthier than a wet dog food diet.
Very few pets need home-prepared food, and that is, perhaps, for health reasons. But a diet of cooked food can seriously damage the health of the four-legged friend, especially if it is prepared inconsistently with its nutritional needs.
Cooking for your pet is not the same as cooking for your family. Commercial pet food must have more than the minimum nutrients in the legal nutritional standards to be classified as a “complete” food, suitable for a main course.
Why NOT choose the homemade cooked food dog?
Many pet lovers choose cooked dog food for various reasons. Among these reasons, we mention: the health problems of the puppy, they no longer trust pet food from the market, they consider that food cooked in the comfort of the house is healthier or they want not to feed the pet with any particular ingredient.
If you are still thinking about switching your dog to a cooked diet consider the following aspects:
- Choosing a home-cooked diet will obviously be more expensive and time-consuming than feeding your dog good commercial food. So get ready to empty your wallets and spend some time cooking if you switch to this diet!
- There is no evidence that a diet of cooked dog food has greater nutritional or health benefits than a diet of commercial dog food.
- Even if the pet has a health problem, you should not put it on a home-cooked diet. Your veterinarian may recommend a diet to recover or keep your dog or cat’s problem under control. Very often, these diets have proven benefits through research studies.
- Even if your pet will enjoy a home-cooked meal, they may not be so excited when the diet has the right proportions of nutrients.
- Cooked food can only be given as an alternative food when a dog has a medical problem and refuses to eat anymore.
- Creating and maintaining a nutritionally complete home-cooked diet can be challenging, and many pet owners can make mistakes that will result in their pets not getting good nutrition. So beware of such mistakes if you choose a home-cooked diet.
Can I substitute an ingredient in the recipe without consulting the vet?
Compliance with the prescription drawn up by the nutritionist or the veterinarian is very important. Each ingredient and its preparation method are essential to the unique nutrient requirements of this type of home-cooked meal. Substituting ingredients, even if only at the brand level when the recipe specifies a specific brand, can dramatically change the nutritional profile of the diet and become deficient in a specific nutrient category.
What categories of animals should avoid the homemade cooked food dog
The periods of gestation, lactation, or growth are very nutritionally demanding for an animal. If the pet is fed a diet that does not have enough nutrients, then serious health problems, sometimes fatal, can occur. Without the help of a nutritionist to properly formulate the diet, cooked food may lack an essential nutrient category.
In growing puppies (those up to 12 months old or large breeds up to 18 months old) serious nutritional health problems are most common when fed cooked dog food. Even a well-formulated recipe can raise problems.
These categories of animals have higher needs for food with many nutrients. If these needs are not met, there can be serious consequences throughout the life of the pet. Thus, almost all veterinarians will recommend that you, as we do otherwise, NOT feed puppies, pregnant or lactating females a diet of cooked dog food.
Overweight dogs who are on a weight loss program should not be put on this diet. It is very difficult to meet all the nutritional needs of a dog when he is in the process of losing weight.
Final recap
- Cooked food diets can be healthy if you give them the time they need to prepare properly.
- They can be a food option but don’t treat it like a simple recipe to cook.
- It should not be given to growing puppies, pregnant or lactating bitches, or cats.
- The best way to make sure your dog’s cooked food diet is nutritionally balanced is to get it from your vet nutritionist and follow it to the letter!
Have you chosen yet? Have you changed your mind? Regardless of the option or if you are willing to try the homemade cooked food dog, you need to have in mind what is best for your furry friend and not necessarily what you want, and don’t forget to feed it with lots of love!
