TOTALLY Free Healthy Dogfood Recipe
How I stopped my dog
having seizures by
making homemade dog food.
having seizures by
making homemade dog food.
"Chaco has gone from almost
one seizure a day
to maybe one seizure
every 4 or 5 weeks!
The vet said he had no idea
what causes it, yet this
improvement was immediate "
Chaco
PLEASE NOTE:
I am NOT any kind of veterinarian or dog nutritionist. I have created this recipe by reading other dog food recipes and through trial and error. My dog has been very healthy for over three years on this recipe.
Please introduce new foods to your dog's diet slowly to discover food allergies and/or to avoid digestive problems.
Your dog doesn't need to have
seizures to eat this food.
It's just good, healthy stuff.
Dog Food Recipe
This recipe is for my dog who weighs 65 lbs. I give him one cup in the morning and one at night. It makes enough for 5 or 6 weeks. I keep it in my freezer and thaw out a bag as needed. I nuke the bowl for 17 seconds to warm it up.
Full disclosure: I thought he was getting a little skinny and seemed hungry, so I add a little less than a 1/4 cup of dried, non-grain dog food at each meal (Rachel Ray's). This did not increase his seizures, so maybe non-grain dog food might solve the problem. I did not try this. Of course, your dog doesn't have to have seizures to eat this food. It's just healthy food and cheaper than the other fresh dog food out there. It costs maybe $100 to make this amount.
Ingredients
30 lbs Boneless, skinless chicken breast.
3 cans 14 oz each of salmon. My dog loves fish. I get Bumble Bee or Chicken of the Sea. I haven't found any bones in these (I did in the cheaper brands).
4 lbs Frozen broccoli florets.
40 ozs 4 packs of shredded carrots (they call them shoestring carrots).
24 oz Coconut oil (3 cups). I use food-grade coconut oil and keep it in the refrigerator. FYI: To save money at one point I started using a combo of coconut and safflower oils, but he started having more seizures - so stick to pure coconut oil.
1 1/4 cup Chia Seeds. Apparently flax, pumpkin or sunflower seeds can be used, but I have only used chia with good results. (A 1/4 teaspoon for every 10 lbs a day. My dog weighs 65lbs and this recipe make about 5 or 6 weeks of food.
Utensils
You need some large pans and mixing bowls. A Kitchen Aid blender is good for shredding the chicken or use a food processor.. Don't mush the chicken - chunks are good. You can always just chop everything into smaller pieces. You will also need one gallon zip lock bags.
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'Nuff said, let's make dog food!
Step 1
Cook the Chicken
Put two large pots of water on the stove. I just pull apart the breasts into a few large chunks (no need to dice). Cook in batches. Don't overcook - it really doesn't take long. When done, scoop out with slotted spoon into large bowl. Add the next batch of raw chicken. Let it cool while you prepare the other ingredients.
Step 2
Blanch the Veggies
The broccoli and carrots don't need cooking, but you don't want them to get freezer burn (been there, done that). So, when you're done cooking the chicken, dump the veggies into the hot water (you can turn off the stove, the water is hot enough). Give them ten minutes in the hot water - this is called blanching. Then scoop them out or strain them in a colander.
Step 3
Mix the Salmon
My dog loves fish, so I add salmon. You can add other meat if you wish. I dump the three cans including the liquid into a mixing bowl and mix it. This will be mushy.
Step 4
Seeds
Measure out your seeds and put into a bowl. Mix them if you have combined different seeds.
Step 5
Oil
Measure out how much oil you need into a small pitcher or measuring cup. Since I keep mine in the fridge it is usually solid. After blanching the veggies, I float the coconut oil container in the warm water until enough has liquified.
Step 6
Shred the Chicken with the Oil
Using my Kitchen Aid mixer, I pour some oil into the mixing bowl, then add lots of chicken. Be sure to use the little plastic shield on top because stuff may fly out. My dog loves this step.
It's tricky to use up the oil and chicken at the same time. Do the best you can. If you think one batch has too much oil, then mix it with some of the chicken with less oil. This is not rocket science.
Now you are ready to mix everything!
You have all of the ingredients: The oil and chicken, the seeds, the mushy salmon, the veggies. I put all of the chicken into bowls. I save the big pans to combine everything because their higher sides keeps stuff in. (Tamale pots are the best!)
Again, this is not rocket science. I just muddle through using my hands to measure stuff out. If you run out of an item while mixing, go back and mix it with the earlier batch which probably has plenty. Every serving doesn't need be perfect, because over time your dog will get everything he needs.
Into a pot:
I put 2 handfuls of chicken, 1 smaller handful of veggies, a heaping tablespoon of salmon, a teaspoon of seeds. Mix thoroughly by hand. Repeat, over and over until everything is mixed.
Bag it All!
This recipe makes about 6 weeks worth of food for my pup. I bag it into plastic one gallon freezer bags and freeze. Fortunately I have an extra freezer, so I have the space. If you don't have that extra freezer space, make less (duh).
Chaco's Story
We adopted Chaco in late spring of 2019. He was about one year old and didn't seem to have any issues except he's afraid of thunder. He was young and vibrant and I apologized to him on the way home because my husband and I are older and he was not going on any five mile runs - ever. But I told him we had a nice backyard with squirrels, he could sleep on our bed and he would have a good life. I don't think he cared. Looking back, I think he had his first small seizure soon after getting home.
About six months later, my husband called in a panic. He was out walking Chaco who had just laid down shaking and couldn't get up. It was then we realized that our dog had a problem.
We took him to the vet who ran all sorts of tests. The prognosis: Chaco has seizures. The vet didn't know why and there were no obvious medical issues causing them. Since they only last five or six minutes and because he recovers fully after each one, the vet recommended not giving him any medication because it would just make him lethargic.
When Chaco has a seizure, we just sit down next to him, cuddle him and tell him it will be over soon. He cannot control his legs when this happens. He does recover and is soon up and walking.
The seizures got more frequent and escalated to almost one a day (and these were the ones we witnessed, I'm sure there were others). This became very concerning. I started researching dogs and seizures and processed dog foods seemed to be an issue.
Purina has a Neurocare dog food that supposedly helps with seizures. I haven't tried it. I figured it would cost at lease $200 a month for a dog his size and decided to try making my own dog food.
Chaco has gone from almost one seizure a day to maybe one seizure
every 4 or 5 week! And this change was immediate!
If this helps just one dog, I'm happy. You can email me your comments or suggestions. Be nice!
jodysdogfood@gmail.com