Dog food vs. fresh food.

[Brooklyn619]

I've been reading a lot lately on yorkie pups and their eating habits lately because as stated in my previous thread, my puppy hasn't been eating well. Somebody here gave me a GREAT recipe for a formula that included half and half, rice cereal, baby food and karo. My dog eats it up. 2 teaspoons four times a day! She still has not TOUCHED any dry food. I was thinking about how difficult it would be to weane her off this formula and onto regular food, but now I'm wondering if I should just make her fresh food for the rest of her life. I've always heard it's bad to feed dogs "people food" but lots of what I'm reading contradicts this. Does anyone have any suggestions or opinions on this? Also, where can I find good recipes? If I do decide to make her food, I want to make sure she's getting all the right stuff at the right stages in her life. Is it better to just stick with a high quality kibble?

[Potter]

I have been thinking and reading a lot about this topic (the best food for my baby yorkie) for the last few months and I came up with my own food plan for my yorkie. He used to eat well sometimes and doesn't eat well at other times and tend to be picky but now, he is more stable. He usually finish his food. After giving it lots of thoughts and reading, fresh cooked human grade food can be very good and nourishing for them if you know what you are doing and the ingredients are safe for them. There is nothing wrong with feeding them good human grade cooked food. I still feed him part premium kibble (Canidae) because of all the nutrition balancing factor. I used to feed baby food at one point (with no onion in the ingredient) but its probably cheaper if you cook your own and more tasty too. I now feed 1/3 canidae kibble, 1/3 fresh baked dog food (www.caninecuisine.com) and 1/3 fresh cooked such as a mixture of boiled chicken breast, once a week of hardboiled egg or scramble egg without oil, some veggie such as grated raw carrots, boiled green peas, boiled broccoli etc, one teaspoon of full milk yogurt once a day, some low fat cottage cheese, and I add some fruits when I do buy them for my family or I just give fruits as snack. He loves banana, apple, some orange, mango, blueberry. I hope it helps. If I need to board him for vacation, I cook up a bunch and freeze them in small containers and thaw them for each meal. It can last for 3-4 weeks. When I see him gulping down his food instead of just picking, it makes all the effort worth it.

[Potter]

Just to add everyone have different opinions when it comes to feeding. Some will prefer to feed raw, just kibble which is okay but be sure to feed premium kibble, etc... It realy depends on your level of comfort. I was feeding 100% kibbles before but I had to add some chicken soup to make him eat it because it is a little more tasty to him when its a little wet and not as thirsty when he finish eating it and I wasn't comfortable with my dog being so thirsty after each meal and having to digest very dry food for each meal. As for their teeth, I brush his teeth every day so it isn't a problem. Then there is the thought that kibbles are baked at a high temperature and some of the nutrients provided by fresh food might have been lost and I wasn't comfortable with that. I did try raw but I can't do it plus he doesn't like it and after lots of reading, I have decided home cooking plus kibble is the best for me. At the end, it is really up to you to decide what is best for your dog and whether your yorkie likes it or not. The best food will not be good if he/she doesn't eat it.

[Yorkiedaze]

My grandparents raised me and had a Boston Terrier that died at 23 years old. THe dog ate what we ate. Since that's all I ever knew about feeding dogs, I continued feeding real food to my own dogs for many years. Then was talked into feeding kibble. It was then that I started researching how dog food was made and then switched back to real. My 15 year old Chihuahua has never eaten dog food. She has never been sick in her life, but is getting around slower like me.

[Yorkieluv]

I think fresh food is generally good for dogs if you know how much and what to feed...Some foods can make your dog very sick though, so be careful.

[Yorkiedaze]

Not many foods can upset a tummy in a dog. I don't feed onions, grapes, skin from chicken or any sugar or salty snacks like cookies, cake, pie, chips and such. Peanuts are ok. I buy the unsalted ones to put in their trail mix.

[Yorkiedaze]

This list will help.

RECOMMENDED LEGUMES

Kidney beans
Lentils
Pinto beans
Soybeans
Split Peas
White or black beans

BEST-LIKED VEGGIES THAT CAN BE FED RAW:

Corn
Peas
Green beans
Broccoli
Sweet potatoes

DAIRY:

Powdered milk
Eggs
Plain non-fat yogurt
Cheddar cheese
Cottage cheese (non-fat)

GRAINS:

Oats (steel cut is best)
Millet Brown rice
Bulgur Barley
Whole wheat couscous
Cornmeal Buckwheat
Wheat berries

MEATS

LEAN: Turkey, chicken, hamburger, chuck, duck, rabbit, tuna, mackerel & salmon.
FATTY: Roaster chicken (with skin) fatty beef heart, brains, regular hamburger, fatty chuck, sirloin steak, lamb or pork, ( If using fatty meat, reduce the amount of oil in the recipe) organ meats such as hearts, gizzard, kidney & liver. (easy on the liver)

[Yorkieluv]

Very good post Yorkiedaze!

[Brooklyn619]

Thanks Yorkiedaze... that helps a lot