It has been an unwritten rule among all dog-owners that human food is a no-no for their pets. Very rarely do you see dogs being fed rice and meat. Oftentimes, they are given dog food pellets. There’s nothing wrong about doing it the tried and tested way, but you can also try what’s outside the standards, and cook real food for your canine friend.
To know how, read the following steps:
- Before cooking real food for your dog, it is important to take into consideration that this could be your dog’s first time to eat real food. Don’t shock your dog by feeding him dog food pellets one day and then human food the next day. Try mixing the dog pellets with the human food for the first few days and then that’s when you can gradually get him to eat human food only.
- Think about food that’s complete with proteins. Food such as chicken, turkey and beef are good choices. If you have a small pet, it’s best to give it as ground beef or meat chopped up into chunks. Cheeses are also to be considered as these have a lot of protein content. Cheeses like low-fat cottage cheese are good choices. Eggs that are hard-boiled would also do.
- Next thing to include in your dog’s diet would be calories. Calories are equivalent to energy. They can get this from long-grain rice, of which brown rice would be the best kind, mashed potatoes that are unseasoned and cooked pasta and macaroni without the sauce.
- To give your dogs shiny and healthy hair, it’s best to use canola oil or olive oil instead of regular cooking oil.
- Vegetables are good for them, just as they are good for us. Your dog will most likely be selective in his choice of vegetables so it would be a good idea to give him bits and pieces of everything first until you find out what it vegetables that are more to their liking. Carrots are usually the best-sellers. Remember to feed the vegetables to your dogs either raw or lightly steamed.
- Just like us, as well, our dogs need vitamins and food supplements. You can consult your vet and they will most likely suggest that you add bonemeal tablets or powder to the food. This will give them the calcium they need. You can also consider giving fish oil or flaxseed oil to give them Omega-3 fatty acids.
- Do not feed your dog more than he can finish in one meal. Consider your dog’s size and weight. It would also be best to visit your vet and ask how much cooked food you can give to your dog.
- You shouldn’t practice giving your dog leftover and scrap food from the table for several reasons. First, it’s not a good habit to keep. Secondly, you’d most likely be giving him food that’s not good for him.
Just stay within the diet and play around with the options that you have. It is important that your dog gets all the vitamins and minerals from the food that you give him.