As a dog owner, I’m sure you would never deliberately feed your dog poison. But that is exactly what has happened over the last few years. In a number of high profile cases, contaminated dog food has led to the death, or severe illness of hundreds of dogs. Yet, pet owners continue to feed these products to their dogs. Many believe there is any alternative.

If that describes you, read on because in this article I’ll provide some usefull tips for making your own dog food.

It is pretty much accepted that commercial dog food companies fill their foods with all kinds of junk. Some of these ingredients, like the processed grains used as filler, have little nutritional value and are responsible for a whole range of dog allergies and skin ailments.

Worse still, their are the artificial flavorings and colorings. These are generally chemical based, and in some cases have been proven to cause diseases like cancer.Even the meat components contained in these foods are generally extremely low grade and unfit for comsumption.

Of course, not all commercial dog foods should be tarred with the same brush. Some, in particular the premium brands, are of much higher quality than what I’ve described. However, it is doubtful wether they provide the same level of nutrition as a whole food diet, so you may want to consider that for your dog.

Here are 3 quick tips to get you started;

Quality is important. Feed your dog good cuts of unprocessed meat, fresh vegetables and unprocessed fiber, like brown rice. Avoid at all costs, junk food, table scraps and highly processed foods, like white bread.

As an omnivore your dog cannot survive on meat alone, so be sure to include vegetables in his diet. The ideal split should be 1/3 meat, 1/3 vegetables, and 1/3 fiber. You can also feed slightly more meat, at the expense of the other two ingredients if you so wish.

Bland food is easier for your dog to digest, so lay off the spices. In fact, spicy foods will probably just end up giving your dog diarrhea.

Also remember that not all foods that can be safely consumed by humans, are good for dogs.

It’s common knowledge that chocolate is dangerous, but it doesn’t stop there. Many other human foods are harmful, even deadly to your dog.

Onions, garlic, raisins, grapes, macadamia nuts are just some of the foods that fall into this category. Other things, like table scraps and junk food may not be deadly, but are just as dangerous, causing obesity and a plethora of related health problems.

Also be careful when giving your dog bones, as these can splinter and cause intestinal damage if swallowed. Raw bones also carry the risk of salmonella poisoning.

Feeding your dog a whole food diet based on meat, vegetables and fiber is a wise choice, but have a word with your vet before making the change.

Click here to find out more about homemade dog food, dog care, dog behavior and other useful dog advice at http://www.dogsanddogtraining.com

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