HOMECOOKING AND KEEPING KOSHER?

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

As you may know, I homecook for my pack and all the fosters that come through my doors. I encourage the people who apply to adopt my fosters to think about also homecooking or at least adding fresh ingredients to their dogs diet as I believe it is healthier for the dog, in the long run.

One of my recent applicants mentioned, "We keep a Kosher home and homecooking would become prohibitive, in terms of buying kosher meat, chicken, etc. for a pet." I am not Jewish and was wondering how this might be handled? Do any of our Jewish members have an idea how I might answer this?

I thought kosher meant blessed and cleanly prepared. Why would this be prohibitive to feed to a dog? Can a dog not eat blessed and clean meat? How does this answer the handling of the crap that is put into commercial dogfood?

I admit I am totally ignorant here. Educate me, please.

This is not meant to offend but to understand. -Lynne

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The Evanger's Classic chicken & rice canned food is very good...limited ingredients and no crap. Dianne recommends it for dogs with digestive problems. Jack liked their pheasant & brown rice kibble, too.

[Dianne Carter ~ Trinity Doodles]

I apologize in advance for not going through the entire discussion I am real tight for time before running to catch the rear bumper of the day that is already getting away from me. Yes Evangers does have kosher products, I know there are more and will be happy to add to these later ~ perhaps we could in fact compile a list for future reference. I think the family perhaps is limiting themselves in their perception of what this may involve, they certainly can merely supplement as many do without relying completely on homecooking, even if it meant adding some of the evenings meal pre seasoning to the kibble or canned of choice. Personally I would have no reason to keep kosher however I did work for a kosher caterer for many years. Every portion of the process is 'cleaner' from the environment of raising the animal, to the slaughter to the processing and end result of the food. In a very strict kosher environment there are separate dishes, utensils and even ovens, refrigerators, dishwashers. Additionally as noted there are not only restricted foods but also restrictions for what foods may be combined together. Will hope to be back later today to add to this and also to expand my understanding from the input of so many others.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks so much for your help Dianne. It is appreciated, as always.

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

This is a link to Chabad.org - the internet site of the Labavitch Jewish Organization - an orthodox group. Althouhg this discusses cat food it would also apply to dogs.

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/684725/jewish/Do-I-ne...


As you can see there should be no problem with home cooking.

Please forward this link to the perspective family.

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Thanks, Andy. I will do this. I appreciate everyone's help. I have been homecooking for my pack for three years now and was really stopped in my tracks with this topic. I had no idea there would be a problem. In fact, I would think it would be safer to HC than feed the bad stuff in dogfood. I guess I was surprised it would be an issue. We really are becoming experts in this topic, aren't we?

[Leslie J]

We are an orthodox Jewish family, and we feed our dog non-kosher dog food. The dog food doesn't need to be kosher- although we can't use a dog food that has meat and dairy in it. I wash the dog food dishes in our laundry room sink so that we don't have non-kosher food in the kitchen. During Passover, the food still doesn't need to be kosher, as long as it is grain-free.

As far as cooking home-made food, the only problem would be cost. A kosher chicken (whole, not cut-up) costs about $2.50 a pound (I'm not sure how much nonkosher meat costs, but I'm guessing it is considerably less). I often feed Cocoa our food (things like baked chicken, boiled eggs, salmon, vegetable soup, etc.) but don't cook exclusively for her.

[Dianne Carter ~ Trinity Doodles]

Hi Leslie, when I worked for a kosher caterer they also had their own butcher shop. Perhaps those who have an interest in this might initiate a contact if they have such a resource to inquire about possibly purchasing trimmings that are not packaged for sale. Oh man I wish they were still here I would love to hit them up for those meaty raw bones!

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

I started doing a little research after seeing this topic. My understanding is the requirements for feeding you dog are:
1) Meat and milk products can not be mixed if the meat is from an animal that can be kosher for people. In otherwords beef and milk can not be mixed but pork and milk can be.
2) There is no requirement that the food be kosher for human consumption, there was one opinion that if the meat is being purchased specificly for the dog it should not be kosher.
3) The dogs food and feeding stuff should be kept seperate from the humans food. The bowls washed in a different sink, etc.
4) Passover creates other issues - I think someone has already covered this.

There are a few other issues of dog ownership for the observant orthodox Jewish person - I will list some of them and recomend that they consult their Rabbi for answers:

a) There is a question if desexing is allowed
b) How to leash walk on Sabbath
c) Can you pet your dog on Sabbath

This should not prevent an observant person from owning a pet - there are rules that they should make themselves aware of. I had posted about the rules regarding feeding your animals before you eat. There are also rules on how to treat a stray dog,

Again I should stress that any observant Jewish person consult their Rabbi before getting a dog.