Homemade Dog Food with Fish Oil

If you want to take care of your dog’s skin and coat, introducing a diet with fish oil is an easy and inexpensive way to do it. Fish oil contains omega-3, and essential fatty acid not found naturally in a dog’s body. Not only does it promote the health of the dog’s coat and skin, it can also be used to treat a number of skin allergies and help prevent kidney and heart diseases. The best sources of fish oil are oily fishes, no surprise there. Anchovies, trout, sardines and mackerels are just some oily fishes that can be used in place of a fish oil supplement as a source of omega-3. It is not recommended you feed fish on its own to your dog because it might not be well received. Instead, make a dog food yourself using fish oil as an ingredient.

Here’s what you need:

1 lb ground beef
½ lb chicken breast
1 cup brown rice
2/3 cup oats
15 oz chickpeas (use kidney beans or black beans as substitute)
½ cup shredded carrots (pumpkin can be used as substitute)
½ teaspoon of minced garlic
½ cup fish oil or ½ lb of any oily fish (steamed to bring out the oil)
½ cup cottage cheese or yoghurt

Here’s what you do:

• Boil the chicken in a large pot using only enough water to barely cover the meat. After the water has boiled, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot and leave it to simmer for 40 minutes. Take out the chicken and let it cool before chopping. Strain the liquid and set it aside, you will use it to cook the rice.
• Using the chicken broth, boil the rice then reduce the heat to medium low until the rice is fully cooked and tender. To make the perfect boiled rice, the ratio of liquid to rice should be 1:1. If the broth barely makes half a cup, just add water. Put the rice together with the chopped chicken in a bowl.
• Stir fry the ground beef until crumbly and brown. Drain any excess grease and add it to the rice and chicken.
• Toss in the rest of the ingredients in the bowl and mix thoroughly.
• If you’re using fish instead of fish oil, chop it before mixing it in.

Fish Oil For Your Dog Food Recipes

Fish Oil for dogs is one of the most essential sources in treating the health related problems of the domestic pets. It has shown That adding fish oil to your dog food recipes helps to reduce the itchiness, redness, swelling and hair loss associated with those dry, raw, hairless patches that bother our pets. There are several benefits that a dog can acquire by consuming fish oil products.

The advantages of fish oil for dogs are plentiful. The essential fatty acids in fish oil provides dogs with a health skin and coat. Fish oil will relief annoying skin and fur ailments, such as dry skin, hair loss, redness, swelling and itchiness, Tuna, which is rich in Omega3 fatty acids, is the recommended source of fish oil for dogs.

Veterinarians first used omega-3 fatty acids in the form of fish oil to treat canine allergies but now recommend it for a wide variety of conditions ranging from kidney disease to arthritis and high cholesterol. Dogs with allergies may need higher than the standard dosages, and they also may need supplemental GLA, an omega-6 fatty acid that improves skin health.

Studies have shown that omega-3 in fish oil may improve cognitive function in older dogs. Though some pet diets may include Omega-3 fatty acids, virtually none include satisfactory amounts of the most important Omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. Research has also shown that a ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 of 5:1 to 10:1 is optimal for dogs and therefore supplementing with a high quality Omega-3 fish oil supports pet health.

Choosing a high quality Omega-3 fish oil supplement with exceptional purity and freshness, as well as, high levels of Omega-3s is the key. Because fats are an expensive component of pet foods, many commercial foods do not contain high levels, especially of the Omega 3 fatty acids. Therefore, to get an adequate dose of these critical long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, you have to consume large amounts of fish oil and, thus, large amounts of toxic contaminants.

What you buy as dry pet food may be lacking omega 3 and is overdosing in omega 6, creating the conditions for degenerative diseases in your dog. Adding large amounts of omega-3 fatty acids to a dog's diet favors the production of non-inflammatory eicosanoids, decreasing inflammation and itchiness in the pet with atopic dermatitis.

Fish oil for dogs is an incredible addition to your dogs diet. Adding Fish oil will give your dog a healthier longer life. There are specific companies which provide fish oil for dogs and other pets, in the form of pet or dog fish oil supplements. When it comes to fish oil there is no other natural substance that can provide such a range of benefits, providing you are able to select the best and purest omega 3 oil.

Introducing the B.A.R.F. Diet to Your Dog

Do you want to stop feeding commercialized pet food to your dog and are willing to switch to the B.A.R.F. Diet or what is known as Biologically Appropriate Raw Food? This type of diet requires more effort in preparations on your part but it is very rewarding and highly beneficial to your dog. You just have to remember to make sure of safe and clean preparations and to cater your dog food recipes in perfect accordance to your dog’s needs.

B.A.R.F. feeding is designed to re-acquaint our pets with what would have been their natural diets as creatures of the wild. You do not necessarily have to go hunting each time you need to feed your pet but the main foundation of B.A.R.F. is feeding raw meaty bones mixed with some combination of organic products, dairy foods, offal, grain, and supplements.

So how do you get your dog started on B.A.R.F.? If you want complete dog food nutrition for your dog through this type of diet, you should make sure to buy quality dog food ingredients from reputable stores. Do not forget to clean up the kitchen counter as well as your dog’s food bowl regularly to prevent the contamination of harmful bacteria.

Livestock – Stock up on raw meaty bones from chicken, rabbit, lamb, beef, pork as well as muscle meat. For organ meat, you can use kidneys, liver, heart, and brains. Eggs make good additions, as well as seafood like fatty fish, salmon, sardines, and herring.

Organic Products – Fresh green leafy vegetables are a must. Get fresh spinach, lettuce (use outer leaves), broccoli, cauliflower, and sprouts. Starchy vegetables like corn, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, and squash and root vegetables like potatoes, radishes, parsnips, and carrots are recommended. When you visit the supermarket, get legumes and whole grains as well.

Dairy – Dogs love cheese, milk butter, and yoghurt.

Oils – Use only edible oils like cod liver oil, soya bean oil, wheatgerm oil, ground nut oil, corn oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil, and safflower oil.

Supplements – Visit health food shops for yeast powder or tablets, molasses, apple cider vinegar, kelp powder, Vitamin C powder, Vitamin E, and herb mixes.

Dog Food Diets For Overweight Dogs

If your dog is fat then he/she is taking in more calories than necessary, and they are being denied a chance to live a longer, happier life. An Overweight dog is at risk of developing life threatening physical conditions and diseases. Our dogs depend on us for their food. If our dogs are overweight then we need to put them on a dog diet.

A recent survey showed that 40 percent of the pets in the US are overweight. If a dog is overweight but appears to be healthy then it is a good idea to pay a visit to the vet for a physical exam. Before considering a nutritious diet it is important to rule out any thyroid or metabolic disorders that may have gone undiagnosed. The veterinarian should be aware of how little exercise the dog gets as well as what and how much he/she is feed.

There are many commercial dog food diets that can be used, but it is important to understand and to properly interpret the ingredients of dog food labels. The first ingredients present in a bag or can of food should be meat or meat products, NOT grains such as corn. It is also important to identify the fat source and how much quantity of fat is present in the food.

Before starting a weight loss program for our dog, we should get an accurate record of his weight. Then, we should reduce his/her total daily amount of food by one third. This should include any treats and snacks. After two weeks, we shoould weigh him/her again. If after two weeks there has been some significant weight loss, then we should stick to this diet. If, however, there hasn't been any weight loss, then we must reduce the daily food intake by another third. During this time it is important not to give in to their begging, and to make sure that no other member of the family has been feeding them.

There are low calorie diets available for dogs. Some veterinarians do not like to recommend them because many of these diets are very restrictive in their fat levels. However, because of the reduced fats the carbs are increased which produces extra insulin which in turn cues the dog's body to store the unused calories as fat.

Dog food nutrition is an important factor when it comes to caring for our dogs. If we try to maintain a healthy life style for ourselves, then we should do the same for our dogs. We should always consult a veterinarian when considering a change in diet and it is a good idea to introduce new foods gradually.

Healthy Homemade Dog Food Recipes

Just as it is fun to have a pet dog, it is equally fun to cook only the best dog food for them. Most pet owners prefer to do homemade dog food more than buy a ready to eat one. Not only is it safer, it is also most of the time healthier. Needless to say, just like human beings, dogs should be eating only nutritional dog food recipes to make sure they stay healthy. This is a must if you do not want your dog to be sick of diabetes or weakened by obesity.

It is a good thing that such homemade dog food recipes are easily accessible via the internet. Many of these recipes are especially created for dogs with health problems or simply for the maintenance of good health. The commercial dog food that can be bought in the supermarkets are usually not ideal when it comes to dog food nutrition. You should opt for natural dog food anytime more than these canned or synthetic ones.

One example of a healthy recipe for your food is lamb stew. For your use, please follow the recipe below:

Lamb Stew

Ingredients:

1 k lamb

3 potatoes, diced

2 carrots, chopped

2 celery sticks, chopped

2 tbps. Olive oil

2 pints broth of chicken

Cook the lamb in olive oil. When lamb is cooked, add the chicken broth and allow cooking for another 45 minutes. Mix all the other remaining ingredients and cook for another 45 minutes. Allow the lamb stew to cool before serving it to your pet dog. You may opt to use beef instead of lamb if you choose to. You may also do it for variety’s sake. You can also add other ingredients to the stew such as corn or rice. Although the food you cook is healthy, feeding you dog too much of it is not. You should therefore allow your dog to over-eat.