Dog and Puppy Nutrition: Carbohydrates

Learn more about the carbohydrate requirements for you puppy or dog. Learn about the right kinds of carbs and their place in a good dog food diet.

Find out how Eukanuba uses the right type of carbs blended in proper ways to help your dog get the most out of life. More on www.eukanuba.com

Dog and Puppy Nutrition: Fiber

Learn more about the importance of fiber in your puppy and dogs diet.

Eukanuba uses beet pulp as a fiber source for their dog foods. Learn about Eukanuba’s special fiber source that’s scientifically proven to aid in proper digestion for your dog.

Dog Treat Recipe- Munchie Crunchy Meat Treats

Munchie Crunchy Meat Treats

• 1/2 cup powdered milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups rice flour
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 cup chicken broth, or beef broth
• 1 jar baby food, meat, beef, strained — meat, any flavor

Combine all ingredients well. Form into a ball. Roll dough out on a floured surface. Cut out desired shapes. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes. Let cool. The treats should be hard and crunchy.

Beef Stew Dog Food Recipe

You can use chicken, lamb, fish or liver in place of the beef.

Beef Stew Dog Food Recipe

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 pounds lean beef

2 cups cabbage, chopped

18 ounces canned sweet potatoes — drained and chopped

14 1/2 ounces canned tomato wedges — undrained

1 1/2 cups tomato juice

3/4 cup apple juice

1 teaspoon ginger root, grated

2 cups green beans, frozen, cut crosswise

1/3 cup peanut butter

6 cups cooked brown rice

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Cook Beef, Add the cabbage and garlic; cook, stirring, until the cabbage is tender-crisp, about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the sweet potatoes, tomatoes, tomato juice, apple juice, ginger.
4. Reduce the heat to medium-low; cover. Simmer until hot and bubbling, about 6 minutes.
5. Stir in the green beans and simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes.
6. Stir in the peanut butter until well-blended and hot, about 1 minute. Spoon over rice.

Chow Chow Chicken and Rice

2 chicken thighs, or white meat
1 stalk celery, sliced thick
3 carrots, peeled and halved
2 small potato, peeled and cubed
2 cups rice, uncooked

1. Place chicken pieces in large pot. Cover with cold water (5 -6 cups).
   Add carrots, celery, and potatoes to water.
2. Cover and simmer on low heat about 2 hours until the chicken becomes tender.
3. Add the rice, cover and cook over low heat for about 30 minutes until the rice is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.
4. Remove soup from heat. Pull the chicken meat off the bone (it will practically fall off), discard bones.
5. Return shredded pieces to pot. Stir well. Let cool. Store in the refrigerator or freeze.

Choosing A Healthy Commercial Dog Food

Have you ever taken a look at the ingredients listed on a bag or can of commercial dog food? If so, depending on which brand you looked at, chances are you wondered how it could be healthy. Sadly, the truth is that most commercial dog foods are no healthier for your pet than a bag of potato chips is for you. So, before you allow your dog to take another bite of that chow you have been giving them, you should read this article on choosing a healthy commercial dog food.

Research the Dog Food
Commercial dog foods are a great convenience but what you are gaining in convenience, you might be losing in the health of your pet. Luckily, there are some commercial foods that are nutritious too. When push comes to shove, you should make sure the food you are feeding your dog is the best out there. This will require you to do your research on the subject. Not only should you familiarize yourself with the ingredients, but you should also familiarize yourself with the brands that are available.

Nutritional Ratios
The first thing you need to do is understand what the best ratio of food components is for your dogs diet. For example, it should be about fifty percent meat, ten percent grain and about forty percent fruits and vegetables. When you choose a pet food that is close to this ratio, then you have probably chosen a food that will meet your dogs nutritional needs.

Meat
As you are looking at the ingredients, you should make sure that meat meal protein sources are at the top of the line. Basically, meal is meat that has been pre-cooked. When you are looking at low quality foods, you will generally find a meat ingredient first. That meat ingredient will be followed by a number of fillers and by-products. Yes, meat has been listed as the first ingredient, but there are more fillers and that changes the ratio, so you want to avoid anything that has a lot of by products or fillers listed.

Preservatives
When choosing a commercial dog food, preservatives are necessary in order to keep the dog food from going stale. However, those preservatives should not be artificial chemicals. Did you know artificial chemicals could cause cancers? In fact, you should avoid any foods that have chemical preservatives such as BHT, BHA and Ethoxyquin.

Cost
Typically, healthy commercial dog foods are going to be more expensive, but your dog may actually eat less of them since they are not loaded with fillers that have no nutritional value and, therefore, it takes less food to meet his nutritional needs. You want to look for foods that are natural and/or organic as these will be free from toxins. Feeding a healthy commercial food to your dog may cost a bit more, but you will be paid back with lower vet bills and a healthy dog that lives a long life.

Oscar’s Cheese Nuggets

Oscar loves cheese in any form. Mention of the word is enough to gain his attention. Touch the wrapper of a piece of cheese and he will come running from anywhere in the house. These are his favorite treats, next to the real thing.

Oscar’s Cheese Nuggets

• 1 cup Oatmeal — uncooked
• 1 1/2 cups Hot Water — or Meat Juices
• 4 oz Grated Cheese — one cup
• 1 Egg — beaten
• 1 cup Wheat Germ
• 1/4 cup Margarine
• 1/2 cup Powdered Milk
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup Cornmeal
• 3 cups Whole Wheat Flour

1. In large bowl pour hot water over oatmeal and margarine: let stand for 5 minutes.
2. Stir in powdered milk, grated cheese, salt and egg. Add cornmeal and wheat germ.
3. Mix well. Add flour, 1/3 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition.
4. Knead 3 or 4 minutes, adding more flour if necessary to make a very stiff dough.
5. Pat or roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness.
6. Cut into bone shaped biscuits and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour at 300 degrees.
7. Turn off heat and leave in the unopened oven for 1 1/2 hours or longer.

Makes approximately 2 1/4 pounds.

Homemade Dog Treat Recipe: Good for You Gobblers

Good for You Gobblers

• 1 cup white flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds — chopped
• 2 tablespoons applesauce
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 eggs — beaten
• 1/4 cup milk

1. Mix the dry ingredients (flour and seeds) together.
2. Add applesauce, peanut butter and molasses and stir well.
3. In a separate bowl mix the egg and milk together. Add to the dough.
4. Add a little more milk if the mixture is too dry – you want a firm dough.
5. Knead for a few minutes. Roll out to 1/2″ thickness. Cut into desired shapes.
6. Bakes at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until biscuits are brown and firm.

Homemade Dog Food Goulash Recipe

Homemade Doggie Goulash

• 1 pound ground beef — *see Note
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• 2 cans vegetables — *see Note
• 2 whole eggs — *see Note
• 1 can mackerel, canned
• 1 pound chicken liver — or gizzards

Pulverize veggies, either in a blender, processor or grinder. Mix all ingredients together in a big pot. Add enough water to cover, mix well.

If you feed raw, place into containers, enough for one feeding in each, and freeze. We use plastic baggies.

If you don’t feed raw, cover the pot and simmer for about 2 hrs, stirring occasionally. When it is done cooking, cool, and place into containers or baggies, enough for one feeding in each and freeze. Simply get out in the morning to thaw in the fridge.

Note: ground beef, ground turkey, ground venison, etc.

Note: fresh veggies (about 3 cups)- broccoli, asparagus, sweet potatoes, green beans, carrots, spinach, kale. CUT UP.

Note: shells crushed and added

Dogs get this every evening for dinner, with 1/4 to 1/2c kibble mixed in, depending on size of dog.

Feed 1 cup per 15 lbs body weight.

How to Choose a Good Vitamin Supplement for Your Dog

Once you have made the decision to supplement your dog’s food, the next question is how to choose a good vitamin supplement. Dogs need supplements made especially for them, and should not be given human supplements unless specifically ordered by your veterinarian. Follow these tips to choosing a good vitamin supplement for your dog.

Taste
Choose a vitamin supplementthat tastes good enough to be acceptable to your pet. You do not want to be daily force feeding your dog, or trying to hide the vitamin in a treat. Many vitamin supplements are available in treat form or in flavors that are preferred by dogs.

Contains Essential Vitamins
Your dog’s vitamin supplement should contain the essential vitamins including Vitamin A, B-complex, D, and E, as well as the B vitamins. Check the label to make sure that these essential vitamins are present and in a form that is nutritionally available to your dog. Check the source of vitamins.

Look for:

• B-Complex and zinc from Brewer’s yeast and other sources
• Magnesium from wheat germ and fish, and other sources
• Calcium from non-fat dried milk, and other sources
• Fatty acids from marine sources, such as cod liver oil
• Iron from natural sources, such as liver, as well as other sources

Look for vitamins and mineralsin the best ratio for your dogs health. Puppies have different health needs than aging senior dog’s. Choose a supplement that is formulated specifically designed for your dog’s life stage.

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