Homecooking for your Doodles

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

A place to talk about feeding our doodles a variety of home-cooked foods, with recipes included. Ask questions, check on safe ingredients, share some tips. Please see The DK Cookbook Group for recipes, too!
http://doodlekisses.com/group/dkcookbook

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Uh Oh, Denise. Sounds like you are coming over to the dark side. LOL That's how I started cooking for my dogs. I started small, added things here and there that I read about and now I homecook every Sunday so my three dogs have a healthy, nutritious dinner every night that I don't have to worry will kill them. Keep going, you're on your way. Ask, if you have questions and WELCOME TO HOMECOOKING DOGFOOD!!!

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

Well, thank you Lynn. And Abby gets so excited eating what I cook for her - unlike the "other" people I cook for. LOL
Is there anything else I should put in there - she is still eating dry (premium holistic) dog food.
Merry Christmas

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

What I found is that over the 1 1/2 years I have been at this is that as I read new things and find out about new things, I add those new things. But remember, I try to ballance over time not balance at every meal. So, adding different veggies, different fruits, different meats and/or fish, eggs, etc., will balance it all out. I also give a daily vitamin supplement, add olive oil to the stew and fish oil to the meal. You'll start to notice over time what she likes a lot and things she's so-so with. Like one of my guys will eat anything I give him, one loves apples and Ginger is picky and doesn't like it too juicy or mashed. It took about 2-3 months before I really felt I had it figured out, and I will still try new things as I learn about them. I still free-feed their kibble and they will pick at it all day.

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

So - in doing this - have you found that their poops stay firm - and that their coats are nice and shiny and soft? The canned dog food I buy - which is Canadae - is close to $2 a can, and I would feed her a 1/2 a can a day. Making my own will definitely be cheaper.

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Their poops are softer and smaller than when I fed my last dog canned only. But this is mainly due to having less "filler" and "crap" in their diets. The poops will just about melt away in a hard rain, which is a nice side effect. I do that sometimes with the cans, too. If I am running short on mine, I will sometimes split a can of Canidae, Natures Logic, Wellness or Organix between the three dogs bulking up my stew. My own seems to cost about the same as the premium cans. But I figure it will cost a lot less in vet bills in the long run.

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

I had made liver and onions for us the other evening for dinner - YUM YUM - but had quite a bit left over. I wished i hadn't have added the onions, I could have made dog food out of it. Why are onions so toxic to dogs - (cats too) - it makes no sense. When I'm cutitng onions up while making dinner - i have to watch real closely that i don't drop any - Abby will grab it and run with it and eat it.

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Onions are toxic to dogs. The toxicity is dose dependent, so the bigger the animal, the more onion need be consumed to cause a toxicity. Onion toxicity causes a Heinz body anemia. Heinz bodies are small bubble-like projections which protrude from a red blood cell and can be seen when the cells are stained. This "bubble" is a weak spot in the red blood cell and, therefore, the cell has a decreased life-span and ruptures prematurely.
If numerous red cells are affected and rupture, anemia can result. It is a form of hemolytic anemia. Onions are only one of the substances which can cause Heinz body anemia. Other substances such as Acetominophen (Tylenol) and benzocaine-containing topical preparations can also cause Heinz body anemia in the dog.

The toxic effect of the onions are the same whether the product is raw, cooked or dehydrated. The hemolytic episode usually occurs several days after onion ingestion (lowest hematocrit around day 5 post ingestion). Daily feeding of onions could have a cumulative effect due to ongoing formation of Heinz bodies versus a single exposure with a wide gap until the next exposure, allowing the bone marrow time to regenerate the prematurely destroyed red cells.

The cat is even more susceptible. Recently, Gerber began to add onion powder to all its meat baby foods. They are labeled as "better tasting". Since baby food is often used in sick cats that are not eating (to stimulate their appetites), there was concern that the onion powder would cause a Heinz body anemia in these cats. Within a week or two of the change, there were numerous reports of Heinz body anemia in cats receiving Gerber baby food in their diets.

I strongly recommend NO ONIONS for dogs. There is no benefit and certainly the potential to cause harm.


NOTE: Garlic is safe for your dog used in moderation and can help with a myriad of things such as gas, flea prevention and it has natural antibiotic properties.

Written by Dr. Wendy Wallner, DVM

If you scraped the onions off, even washed the liver, she would have loved it. I add liver about once a month to my stew.

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

Thanks Lynne - I guess I didn't think of rinsing it off - doesn't sound so appetizing to me but I'm sure Abby would have loved it just the same! Thanks so much for your help and sharing what you know. I really appreciate it.

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Anytime! Happy Holidays!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Denise, I have started rinsing off certain items from our dinner to give to Jack...tonight it was lima beans. We had them with butter, salt & pepper...I rinsed a spoonful in hot water & Jack gobbled them up. I have also done this with cooked carrots, and roast beef...rinsed off all the seasoning, gravy, etc. It doesn't sound appetizing to me, either, but the dogs don't care, lol!

[Denise, Winnie, and AngelAbby]

I guess i wouldn't have thot of doing that. We are BIG onion eaters here - I put onions in /on everything, so if Abby were to get a treat from leftovers, it would have to be rinsed. Thanks for all the input - it's been great!

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Kelli, I am so glad things are easy for you. I found out, too, how easy it is. The more you do it, the easier it gets. My guys do the same thing with carrots, so now I cut the smaller and they eat them right up. Keep experimenting and Leo will love every "stew."