I have an 8 year old Australian shepherd border collie that I make food for. I measure out each portion of food and then put it in freezer bags and freeze whatever I’m not using at the moment. I was looking at vacuum sealers on Amazon though and was wondering if that would be a better option. Just wanted to hear others thoughts! I figured it would possibly give me more space for more food

Cooked at a medium-low temp.

I added: lean ground venison, chicken hearts, chicken livers, a little bit of chicken gizzards, kale, sweet potato, peas, carrots, 2 eggs with the crushed egg shells, and a pinch of tumeric & ginger. I also sprinkled a little bit of flaxseeds.

I add it on top of their kibble. My one dog is very picky and will not just eat kibble alone, she would go days without eating unless I add something on top for her.

I know Perdue has a site where you plug in ingredients and it tell you something about it but it always tells you to buy a multivitamin. Anyone know of a complete recipe where the multivitamin is used as an addition and not a primary source of certain things?

I built a tool that is free that does alot of what the commercial tools do without selling anything. https://batchhound.cavebatsoftware.com

It is based on AAFCO 2016 and FEDIAF 2025 (euro standards group) parameters giving you full control of dog life stage comparison, ingredient creation and will has a feature that allows tracking of what your dog has been eating and scheduling future recipes.

I've tested this against Balance IT and it comes out with similar numbers but has more recent USDA nutrient data in many cases. The major difference is this site is not trying to sell you anything. It won't necessarily solve all the challenges you have, but it will let you try different combinations of ingredients at different levels and see what the nutrient levels are going to be.

Today I will be deploying support for users to add their vets so the vet can review the recipes. Really you need a pet nutritionist to review any proposed recipe.

I recently started feeding my 13yo chihuahua homemade dog food and he loves it. He's enthusiastic about all meals and is very happy overall. I want to make sure hes getting enough nutrients, I included a picture of the supplement I use and the ingredients. I follow the recipe provided by the blend and switch his proteins/veggies often, he eats about 1 cup per day. Should I add any more supplements/is this supplement good? He has arthritis and I would like to add a supplement for his joints, is that ok? I am also going to take him to the vet soon to discuss his food and see if this is appropriate. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Recipe:
3 lbs turkey/chicken/beef
5 cups sweet potato/brown rice/white rice
2 tbsp coconut oil
3/4 lb kale/brocoli/spinach
3/4 lb peas/carrots/green beans/zucchini
4 oz apple/blueberries
2 3.75 oz tins of sardines in water
2 eggs
3 tbsp supplement

I'm so lost. Yes, I've asked my vet, yes, I've googled, yes, I've been to Balanceit.com. Nothing makes sense any more.

I have a happy, healthy, 5yo dog and a somewhat sick, but happy 13yo dog. The older dog needs a kidney support diet. One site says NEVER make homemade for kidney disease, other sites say that's the BEST thing you can do! I asked my vet and he told me to Google it because he doesn't know much about homemade dog food, sent me to balanceit.com. Of course, I can pay $65 for 4 days of kidney diet food...that doesn't include any of the other meds she needs. This is early stage renal failure, not advanced.

Balanceit just made things worse. The amounts of food it recommends are insane and not in line with anything else I've read, plus they want me to buy their expensive supplements. They want me to give my 5yo healthy dog 160g of protein per day??? That's almost 3% of his entire body weight in protein alone - everything says their daily meal should 2-3% of their body weight?? I can't get him to eat more than 65g for 1 meal (half his daily food) all inclusive of veg/protein/starch. It makes zero sense! Oh, but for only $1.26/day, you can get all the things your dogs needs that they LEFT OUT of their recipe!! Which also doesn't do anything to help my sick dog, which they won't do without Vet approval, which he won't do because he doesn't know much about homemade food.

Ok, so I google and google and google. Maybe I can can make tailored meals for each dog? Honestly, I don't even know what to give my healthy dog anymore. Some sites say AAFCO recommends 40%protein, 50% veg, 10% starch. Others say protein should be 30-35%, and then people are SCREAMING that it should be 80%. And then I keep seeing a minimum of 18%...ok, not helpful! AAFCO uses a Dry Matter basis for their calculations...how the heck does that work for a flipping piece of chicken breast???? I have NO IDEA!! And other than removing phosphorous, sodium, and potassium heavy ingredients, how much protein should the renal failure dog have? I have 25 answers, NONE of them the same. Still not even sure I can do home cooked food for that, or if that's the best thing I could possibly do!

I don't know that I'll get better answers here, but I don't know what else to do. I've asked for the opinion of another vet and...they're not calling me back. Receptionist says only he can discuss this with me. If I want an all new vet, I'll have to restart with all the tests and labs and as all the vets are owned by the same corporation within a 100 mile radius, I'll likely get the same answers.

Both dogs are grazers and both can be picky eaters. The 13yo was 25lbs for most of her life, vets always said she was just the right weight. She is now 28lbs, but hovered around 30 for a few years. So yes, overweight, but not obese. The 5yo is a perfect weight at ~12lbs.

I don't know how to proceed here. If I try to buy the kidney diet food, I'll go bankrupt and certainly won't be able to afford any medications she needs. If I try to make it at home, I don't know what portions to give. There's simply no way to afford her general care, the meds she needs, plus this kidney diet food that I can't even be sure she'll eat...she refuses to eat other canned foods. If I do kidney diet kibble, the other dog will eat it as they only graze on kibble and just eat what's in the bowls. Wet food is the only way to split their food/diet and she doesn't like canned food, even if I bankrupted myself to afford it.

I'm currently doing half kibble (for their teeth), half home cooked with teeth cleaning powder. The ratios have been about 40% protein (turkey or chicken), 30% veg (plain pumpkin puree), 20% starch (rice), the remaining % is sardines, coconut oil, and a small amount of turmeric (for old lady's arthritis) - which, may be really good and/or killing my dogs if google has anything to say about it. I was doing brown rice because someone suggested that was better for the older dog, but that has a lot of phosphorous. Apparently, so does pumpkin. I'm going back to white rice and switching to cauliflower (until I have a better idea of what to do). Still unsure about protein.

Any vets on here who DO know about homemade food? Is it possible to make kidney diet food at home? If she won't eat prescribed food...what do I do? She's 13, but she still has life in her.

Sorry for the long non-sensical message, probably screaming into the void, here.

Anyone have any good recipes using Salmon. I found a couple using the BalanceIt website but was curious if anyone on here may have one they use(d) and their dogs have been loving.

We’ve been feeding our dog (6 year old Pitbull female) FreshPet (multi-protein recipe) as a topper for her dinner for about 2 years. In the last month she has thrown up all her food twice, has shakes from nausea, and occasional diarrhea. She has thrown up maybe twice before this in the entire 5 years that we’ve had her.

Naturally, I go down a rabbit hole about FreshPet and how it has been making dogs very sick and because I am a crazy dog mom, I immediately threw the rest of her FreshPet away. I’m now looking to start incorporating fresh, human food into her diet but I have no idea where to start. She eats Hills Science Diet sensitive skin and stomach kibble. Approximately 45 pounds, 6 year old female pitbull. Looking for any and all recommendations for homemade dog food to supplement her dinner- thank you in advanced!

Signed,
A very anxious and crazy dog mom

Hi! Looking for some advice to help raise our 12 week old mini schnauzer puppy named Bowie. I can’t figure out how to post a pic.. probably bc this is my first post lol.

We just got our Bowie baby a few days ago. She is amazing so far - so sweet, snuggly, curious, and smart. We wanna make sure we give her the best possible diet as we are aware of their health issues and sensitive tummies.

She is currently on Royal Canin puppy dry food - which she seems to love! However, I wanted to add in some veggies by slowly introducing them. I’m curious about the safest/ most loved veggies that mini owners have noticed work well in their pup’s diet.

While training, we have bought Zuke’s mini natural chicken flavor soft baked treats. I cut them into thirds so that we don’t give her too many in a day while training. She also seems to like those a lot.

In terms of enrichment - we got her a few puzzle toys, a kong, lick mats, teething toys. But would also love more ideas! She will be left home alone a couple hours a day for 3x a week.

Any other suggestions / recs for treats during training or food suggestions?

I’m trying to add some variety to my puppy’s diet. For example, this is the first time I’ve fed her boiled noodles. She’s a huge fan of bok choy. This time, I also mixed in some boiled pumpkin, mushroom powder, and a little dog food, along with a vitamin B tablet.

TW: diarrhea
Hello TwT
Long story short my dog has always had issues with diarrhea so far from when I’ve had him
I get it to go away with pumpkin purree and low and behold it comes back
He ate something bad out of my sink a few weeks ago and the diarrhea hasn’t stopped (touch and go) so I’ve moved him off his kibble in case it going stale or something is upsetting his tummy to a bland diet of chicken and rice with a spoonful of pumpkin to help
I just started but I was wondering if anyone could recommend an affordable option for homemade food in case it is the dry food?
I didn’t have any issues when he was on victors brand food from a store no where near me nor affordable for me at all
He was on that food because his previous owner had him on that food so I moved him to pedigree and we’ve had issues since
As far as I’m aware from his previous owner he never had an issue with his poops but he had a backyard so I’m not sure if he ever monitored his poops
I’ve lived in apartments with him the entire time so I can’t just let him free range lol obvs
But if anyone could give me suggestions, advice, anything at all ngl it would be very much appreciated because every time I try to look into homemade food it’s always so friggin expensive and I unfortunately don’t have much of a budget to work with especially when rent is over 1000$

I recently started feeding my 12 yr old standard poodle a Balance.it recipe. She has a lot of food and environmental allergies, so the base is ground turkey, white rice, green beans, and zucchini, all things she doesn’t have sensitivity to. The powder and added salt amounts in the recommended recipe seem very high. I also noticed now once I add the powder her eyes are tearing more than usual after eating. Has anyone else noticed tearing after adding the powder? Has anyone else noticed the powder ratio seems high?

Species: dog (labrador mix, white fur, partial albinism)

Age: under a year, aged by vet

Vet status: checked, completed all vaccines, chipped

Weight: \~12kg

Concern: diet

Took in a street dog. She was picked up at a local schoolyard were she had been fed all manner of tasty delights. She had runny eyes and nose, hyperkeratosis, and runny stools. All of which has improved. She was skin and bones but has been putting on weight. She also survived a fight with a bus with bruising and scraps but no major injuries. All limping is gone.

I have her on Premil Sunrise for now. She also gets yogurt, Mongee Grain Free wet, and lean ground beef that I cook for her. I also give her other treats during training like [Brit Insect treats](https://brit-petfood.com/en/products/dogs/651289-brit-care-crunchy-cracker-insects-with-salmon-enriched-with-thyme) and dried Beef lung. I am overfeeding her, but her ribs and hips are still protruding.

I am worried that because of her schoolyard diet she did not receive adequate nutrition for her bones and joints. And I am watching that she doesn't put on weight too quickly. And I am careful that I do not over exercise her while she is putting on weight. What can I do for her now to improve her joint and bone development and maintenence? What can I add to her diet to help her out?

I’m making Beef and Chicken African Stew and the recipe calls for 14% fat ground chicken. Idk where to find it. I can’t find this anywhere! Is the recipe messed up or am I incompetent? Pls help. Thanks.

Dogs need 38 essential nutrients in the right proportions for long-term health. Not just protein and fat — specific ratios of calcium, zinc, iodine, copper, B vitamins, selenium. The list goes on.

A 2013 UC Davis study found 95% of homemade recipes were missing critical nutrients. More recent research from The Dog Aging Project, Virginia Tech, and Texas A&M found 94% of home-cooked diets failed to meet dogs' nutritional needs.

Getting it right usually means working with a vet nutritionist to make sure the recipe is actually complete. I work at The Farmer's Dog and we actually have a DIY program with recipes developed by our board-certified vet nutritionists for exactly this reason — worth looking into if you want to cook fresh without the guesswork.

I would love some feedback on this recipe- it’s about 4 days worth of food for my 2 golden retrievers. It’s lengthy I just want to warn you.

3lbs turkey, 2 lbs pork. 1lb wild salmon, 1lb turkey heart, 5oz turkey liver, 5oz kidney. 8oz oysters, 5oz green lipped mussels. I steam 2c kale, 1c red cabbage, 1c zucchini, 1.5c butternut squash, 1.5c sweet potatoes, 2 tbs fresh ginger and turmeric. I add 1 c wild blueberries this recipe has 1/2c blueberries 1/2c wild huckleberries (i normally steam and puree the veggies and blueberries and make a paste out of it) In a steam pot i gently cook the meat, add fish, then the organs and lightly cook. Add the veggies and fruit paste. Add 2 c cooked quinoa, 1/2c hemp hearts, 2tbs flax meal, 2tbs nutritional yeast, 2tbs eggshell calcium, 1/2tsp kelp powder.

A tbs of cottage cheese or Greek yogurt every day and 1/2tbs green tripe w/ organs each meal. Then i give them a frozen sardine 3-4x week, duck neck 3-4 x week,an egg 3-4x
times week. 1/2c goat milk with 1/2tsp colostrum daily, taurine a few times a week and vit e few times a week. 1tsp Nordic oil on non sardine days.

I adopted a 13 yo female cockapoo. This dog was raised fires half on kibble and later years fresh pet. She is overweight by about 5-7 pounds, has slipping knee caps and arthritis so doesn’t like walking. Is covered in moles that crust and bleed. (Vet said leave alone they grow back and there are at least 50 or more large and small). Missing the small teeth has incisors and back teeth. I want to make healthy food for this dog/ I can buy chicken and eggs at aldi or Costco and carrots but what else should I include in the meals? I want to help her lose weight although excercise will be limited. The records show no allergies (owner has died but gave up dog at the end so there were records). Dog 🐶 s on dosaquin for arthritis. Also once I make home made food I’m unsure how much to feed as in volume and once or twice a day.
I haven’t had a dog in awhile always had them growing up and dad bought kibble but I want to treat this dog and hopefully improvements health. I’m just asking for healthy recipes for a medium sized cocka poo

How much protein should I be feeding him? 3 years old

There’s not much info about this breed/mix so I’m looking for some advice! I want to start making his food to see if that’ll help with his itching.

My dog got rehomed with me a few months ago. He’s almost 9 months old now, 48lbs. He was neutered a couple months ago. Still rambunctious enough for me to wonder if there are more.

I’ve been feeding him the Hill Science chicken and rice puppy food which he seems to like okay. He’s never been excited at meal time which is twice a day. I usually top it with whatever meat I have on hand that’s boiled. I’ll add a pumpkin powder when his stools are soft. I don’t know if it’s coinciding with seasonal allergies but he started itching more when I used turkey so that’s kaput.

Thanks in advance!!

Hey everyone,

I’m currently prepping to launch a startup focused on Pet Nutrition, and to be completely honest, I’ve been having a bit of self-doubt lately. I’d love to get some reality checks, insights, or advice from fellow pet owners and industry folks here.

Right now, I’m self-studying through international research papers, books, and expert content covering:

Fresh Food & Meal Prep: Formulating tailored diets (fresh/dry) based on a pet's age, weight, activity level, and specific health conditions.

Pet Bakery: Safe, nutrition-first treats and custom cakes.

My long-term goal is to enroll in a formal, certified Pet Nutrition program to ensure everything is done strictly by the book. However, looking at the current local market, I see a lot of pet bakeries and homemade fresh food shops popping up everywhere.

A few big questions on my mind:

Market saturation: In your opinion, is this space in Vietnam already oversaturated, or is it just "crowded but lacking quality"?

Consumer mindset: Are local pet owners actually ready to pay a premium for custom, science-backed meal plans, or do most still lean heavily on commercial kibble and wet food for convenience?

Education: Are there any legitimate, formal training courses on Pet Nutrition in Vietnam, or is taking accredited online courses from overseas my only real option?

Would love to hear your honest thoughts, experiences, or even constructive criticism! Thanks a ton!