MAKE YOUR OWN DOG FOOD - REALLY!

 Ben

As you probably know by now, I despise pre-packaged foods.  I even make my own dog food, and you can too.  Once again, as you can see from this reputable dog food company, the ingredients are scary.  Would you eat this? 

Chicken, Brown Rice, Lamb Meal, Oatmeal, Barley, Salmon Meal, Potatoes, Carrots, Chicken Fat (preserved with natural mixed tocopherols), Tomato Pomace, Natural Flavor, Canola Oil, Brewers Yeast, Duck, Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Salmon Oil, Whole Ground Flaxseed, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Spinach, Parsley Flakes, Cranberries, L-Lysine, L-Carnitine, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Kelp, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Manganese Proteinate, Manganous Oxide, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Riboflavin (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid.

Ewwww!  Why do you need all that extra junk?  Ben has the healthiest coat and firm poops you've ever seen.

I know you love your dog as a family member.  Fido deserves a healthy lifestyle too and you won’t ever have to worry again about subpar additive ingredients made in China and shipped here for canine consumption.

I make a large batch of this beef & liver stew every couple of weeks.

5.5 lbs. - Ground beef (I usually find this marked down at Sam’s Club) $12.00

3 (20 oz) packages of chicken livers – from your local meat department $1.69 each

4 sweet potatoes, chopped in bite size pieces - $.64

8 carrots, chopped in bite size pieces - $0.50

1 bag of frozen cut green beans - $0.99

2 (16 oz each) bags of barley $0.99 each

1 16 oz. bag of course cracked wheat – $1.49

(I’ve also used steele cut oats)

The cost is $21.69 for three weeks - 42 servings, feeding my Ben twice per day comes out to $0.52 per serving.  That's quite a bit cheaper than canned dog food and so much better for Fido! 

You’ll need a very large pot. Boil the ground beef and livers.  Strain the meat into a big bowl and save the juice to cook the vegetables and grains.  I de-fat the juice, there is no reason to give Fido all that extra fat. 

For variety, sometimes I’ll boil a big batch of chicken thighs instead of ground beef.  When done, I debone and remove the skins and chop into bite size pieces.  This is more work, but worth it. 

 fat separator

If you don’t the inclination to buy a fat separator, add a few ice cubes to the broth (or refigerate until cooled). Within minutes, the fat cools and solidifies, making it easy to remove.

Put the meat juice back into the pot.  Add the sweet potatoes and carrots.  Bring to boil and simmer for 10 minutes.  Add everything else.  Cook until barley and what are just tender – not mushy.

Mix the meat mixture with the barley mixture.  You may need another large bowl.

Divide the dog food and pack  into appropriate sized containers and freeze.  Add a little water to each container if there's not enough broth to smooth out the mixture and to avoid air pockets. Make sure you don’t pack more than what your dog(s) will eat in 5 days.  You don’t want your dog to get sick from spoiled food.

If you don’t have the time or inclination to do this, make sure you buy your dog certified organic food such as Organics Formula.

You’re such a good doggie parent!  Ruff!  Ruff!

Have a great day! 

Cindy

visit:   http://www.thebighoopla.com/ to learn more!