Confused!

[Janie]

Can someone please help? I am a little confused about a dog's diet. I have heard that a dog must stay on the very same diet on a daily basis and that changing foods on them can cause distress. So, are we recommending here that its okay to give your dog oatmeal, veggies and chicken one day --and then rice, veggies and salmon the next? Please help! Thanks.

[DaneMama]

Now are you wanting to make your own dogs food?

[Janie]

Danemama, my dog had colitis and I cured it by giving her homemade food which is chicken, rice and peas. She is doing great on it, but I feel bad that I have to giver her the same ole dinner every day. Can I change it on occasion, giving something like salmon in place of the chicken, or oatmeal instead of the rice ---or does she have to stay on the exact same diet on a daily basis? I have heard that you aren't supposed to change foods on a dog, or it will get problems, yet I am under the impression that everyone on the internet is saying otherwise.

[CorgiPaws]

I prepare my dogs diet at home, and do not buy commercial pet food. I don't feed grains and veggies because they aren't digestable and provide nothing benefitial to a dog.

I feed my dogs twice per day. I feed raw bone in chicken every morning, and I feed a different meat every night with no problems. I feed lamb, goat, beef, pork, turkey, chicken, and fish on a regular basis, and then other things when I get my hands on them at decent prices.

Carbohydrates can be dangerous to canines, so I feel comfortable feeding my dogs this way. Even a cooked diet of only meat, bones, and organs (though never feed cooked bones. raw only) is superior to any kind of kibble, but still not quite as ideal as feeding the ingredients raw

[mike487]

One of the reasons raw meat and bones is so good for dogs is the cutting and tearing cleans the dogs teeth. Grains and other carbs on the other hand sit on the dogs teeth and cause plaque and decay. This is why 80% of dogs over 3 yrs/o have gum disease.
If you do want to go the route of cooking for your dog (healthier than processed junk kibble but lacking in many respects including most obviously the teeth cleaning aspects of raw) you should look at:
Dr. Pitcairn's complete guide to ... - Google Books
Most of the book is viewable online and has recipes etc.

[magicre]

Danemama, my dog had colitis and I cured it by giving her homemade food which is chicken, rice and peas. She is doing great on it, but I feel bad that I have to giver her the same ole dinner every day. Can I change it on occasion, giving something like salmon in place of the chicken, or oatmeal instead of the rice ---or does she have to stay on the exact same diet on a daily basis? I have heard that you aren't supposed to change foods on a dog, or it will get problems, yet I am under the impression that everyone on the internet is saying otherwise.

every dog is different...let me start out by saying that....you may want to check out some yahoo groups...or google home cooked recipes for dogs...

when my dogs were on home made cooked foods....i started them out with boiled chicken/brown rice. and that was that.

then when their stools calmed down, i added a probiotic to it (berte's ultraprobiotics)....

when their stools turned normal, i added in veggies....

the ones i liked the best came from costco - it was broccoli/cauliflower/yellow and orange carrots

i also used quinoa and oatmeal and oat groats, sometimes barley....

yes, i mixed it up a bit...there were times when they were fed yoghurt with barley and veggies....they loved that..

and their stools were perfect....the probiotics helped because of all the antibiotics they had been on....

now, they are back on raw and doing fine, but i certainly can understand if that's not the route you want to take...

although every one is right when they say that raw meaty bones do wonders for dogs....i'm not even at the balanced diet stage and the differences in my dogs are incredible...their coats are silky soft....they don't shed as much and their teeth are getting whiter...and one of my babies is ten years old...

some of the recipes i used were:

chicken/barley/alaskan salmon oil cap/veggies

i never gave corn/wheat/soy/...

sometimes i roasted their protein...they got soft boiled eggs, scrambled eggs...

i would find bottom round roasts on sale and slow cook them until they melted....and mix that with quinoa and veggies....

they got salmon from a can or sardines packed in water for certain meals....

you can switch it up a lot when you're home cooking....just add in one thing at a time so you know they are tolerating it well...