More people are stepping away from the kibble in an effort to extend the life and health of their dogs.
BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. – More people are stepping away from the kibble in an effort to extend the life and health of their dogs. But does cooking your own dog food from home really help? Chico woman Rachel McMillan believes it does.
“She has a heart condition and there is no treatment for it. So, I went the alternative route and got her on a good diet to give her the best chance at life we could give her,” said McMillan.
When she adopted a puppy with health problems four months ago, Rachel McMillan ditched the kibble. And it’s been a game changer for all her dogs.
“He received a diagnosis of gum disease, and the treatment is severe, so I decided to go the holistic route with him, and put him on a good diet. There is a visible notice his gums are less inflamed and red and his older dog's arthritis is better as well,” McMillan said.
Action News Now spoke to McMillan’s certified pet nutrition counselor, Lori Wells-Bauer, to learn more about standard kibble.
“I think that the more we do research-wise on animals, we learn… how inflammatory processed food can be for ourselves and our animals,” Wells-Bauer said. “We might see allergies, licking paws, recurring ear infections. The skin looks dry and flaky, and it's falling out, you have hair loss. You see dogs that are tired all the time.”
She says you need to be thoughtful about what you put in that food though.
“Home cooking has to be balanced. This is really important. You can't just do chicken, rice, and, you know, sweet potato and green beans and call it good. You're missing minerals and fatty acids and fish oil and choline from eggs,” Wells-Bauer said.
She says your pet needs protein from meat, seafood, dairy, or eggs, fat from meat or oil, and carbs like grains or vegetables. They also need calcium and essential fatty acids.
“And all of these things create enzymes and new cells. They support the joints and the teeth of dogs. I've had people come to me where their diet is not balanced, and it's a 3-year-old dog, and the dog digested all of its teeth to get to its calcium needs,” Wells-Bauer said.
She says it’s ok to change dog meals up based on your leftovers, and that variety will make them stronger.
Homemade dog food can be expensive, so you may try just mixing a little real, fresh food into the store-bought stuff. As for the preparation, you’ll need to cook low-water content veggies like sweet potatoes and broccoli, and your meats, to make it safer and easier for your dogs to digest. Water-dense produce like fruit you can use raw. Cook meat the way you’d cook for yourself.
“Every dog is different, but definitely just do some of that gentle cooking when you're starting out, and I think it's more impactful. They're gonna have an easier transition,” Wells-Bauer said.
If you don't have access to a pet nutritionist, Wells-Bauer says you can find recipes and create a balanced meal for your dog using websites like Balance It and Meal Mix.
