Thursday, May 1, 2008
I made homemade dog food tonight! ~ here's what I used~
Thanks to everyone who responded to my previous post. I read through everything, did some more research online and asked around on a homesteading message board.
Among those that had been making their own food for a while, I noticed some consistencies. Now, I'm sure there's something still lacking, but for my first try I think I did pretty good. And oh my goodness did I ever have some happy customers!
First I cooked up some ground goat meat. (I'm just not mentally able to do the raw feed...) Then I added an egg to that and ground up the shell and added it in for calcium. I cooked up some oats while the meat was cooking. While all that was going, I put a canned of mixed veggies in a dish and mashed them up, liquid and all. Then I added in a can of pumpkin for fiber. After that I dumped in one can of salmon cat food for omega and fatty acids. Then I mixed it all together and added in just the little bit of supper leftovers that we had.
I measured it out one cup per large dog and 1/2 cup for the little. Then I mixed in a bit of their dry food for crunch.
Oh yeah, they're lovin me right now. I have enough left over the feed the three of them through tomorrow I think. I may add in some wheat germ to it. Rice is also very good to add to it. But I probably won't add in rice unless I'm already fixing rice for us. Then I may add just a bit of extra to the pot.
Also, you can pressure cook bones (chicken bones, whatever you have) and they will turn to a crumbly, mushy substance that is very good for the animals. That can be added to the dog food as well. ~ I *love* this as literally nothing is wasted!
If you hold off on things like the oats and rice, the rest of the mixture could be canned and you just add the oats or whatever when you open the jars.
I haven't done the math to see if this is cheaper, but I do know that at times of financial straights I can't go out and buy a 50 pound sack of dogfood. But I am likely to have the above ingredients sitting around not really being claimed for anything.
So for right now, this is a good thing.
Among those that had been making their own food for a while, I noticed some consistencies. Now, I'm sure there's something still lacking, but for my first try I think I did pretty good. And oh my goodness did I ever have some happy customers!
First I cooked up some ground goat meat. (I'm just not mentally able to do the raw feed...) Then I added an egg to that and ground up the shell and added it in for calcium. I cooked up some oats while the meat was cooking. While all that was going, I put a canned of mixed veggies in a dish and mashed them up, liquid and all. Then I added in a can of pumpkin for fiber. After that I dumped in one can of salmon cat food for omega and fatty acids. Then I mixed it all together and added in just the little bit of supper leftovers that we had.
I measured it out one cup per large dog and 1/2 cup for the little. Then I mixed in a bit of their dry food for crunch.
Oh yeah, they're lovin me right now. I have enough left over the feed the three of them through tomorrow I think. I may add in some wheat germ to it. Rice is also very good to add to it. But I probably won't add in rice unless I'm already fixing rice for us. Then I may add just a bit of extra to the pot.
Also, you can pressure cook bones (chicken bones, whatever you have) and they will turn to a crumbly, mushy substance that is very good for the animals. That can be added to the dog food as well. ~ I *love* this as literally nothing is wasted!
If you hold off on things like the oats and rice, the rest of the mixture could be canned and you just add the oats or whatever when you open the jars.
I haven't done the math to see if this is cheaper, but I do know that at times of financial straights I can't go out and buy a 50 pound sack of dogfood. But I am likely to have the above ingredients sitting around not really being claimed for anything.
So for right now, this is a good thing.
• Post A Comment!
Posted by Schatzi
Posted by AnIntentionalPeasant
Comments
Thursday, May 1, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by Schatzi Wow, that sounds like a lot of work....but definately healthier for the animals.
Blessings,
Connie
Blessings,
Connie
Monday, May 5, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by AnIntentionalPeasant Just wanted to say thanks for stopping by The Hard Times Cafe this morning. And yes, you are correct, that is a piece of plywood between our buckets and mattress. We put it there because we were afraid that the top of the buckets might damage the bottom of the mattress but it does help to keep the mattress from sliding around.
Also I saw your question about making homemade dog food. I have been playing with it myself but I can't quite get a complete adjustment. Its one of those things I worry about sense resources could become difficult. 2 things I have found that help us, one is for their calcium, you can give them Tums (or any generic antacid). They like it like a treat and it is cost effective. The other thing is if you get enriched white rice you can add that to their dog food to help extend it. I've tried taking mine completely off their dog food but when I do it completely and replace it with veggies, carbs and protein, they don't adjust well. We have 5 dogs and it is challenging. I'm not giving up because I would like mine off all dog food completely but right now it helps with price to add rice. Rice is certainly up in price but you can still get it from Sam's club for $21 a bag, however right now they have a 4 bag limit. I wouldn't recommend white rice for people unless there was nothing else, and certainly not fortified, however, because of the fortification of the rice its better for the dog than its dog but they certainly need more than just rice. That's just a filler for their diet. If they only ate rice they would be come malnourished. Hope this helps and thanks again for stopping by The Hard Times Cafe.
The Intentional Peasant
Also I saw your question about making homemade dog food. I have been playing with it myself but I can't quite get a complete adjustment. Its one of those things I worry about sense resources could become difficult. 2 things I have found that help us, one is for their calcium, you can give them Tums (or any generic antacid). They like it like a treat and it is cost effective. The other thing is if you get enriched white rice you can add that to their dog food to help extend it. I've tried taking mine completely off their dog food but when I do it completely and replace it with veggies, carbs and protein, they don't adjust well. We have 5 dogs and it is challenging. I'm not giving up because I would like mine off all dog food completely but right now it helps with price to add rice. Rice is certainly up in price but you can still get it from Sam's club for $21 a bag, however right now they have a 4 bag limit. I wouldn't recommend white rice for people unless there was nothing else, and certainly not fortified, however, because of the fortification of the rice its better for the dog than its dog but they certainly need more than just rice. That's just a filler for their diet. If they only ate rice they would be come malnourished. Hope this helps and thanks again for stopping by The Hard Times Cafe.
The Intentional Peasant