I need some help, nutrition site for homecooking

Thanks for that information! It can be confusing while some say an amount of calcium per pound of food, and some say per pound of meat. I give a mix of meat, vege and carbs, alternating from beef to fish. I've already been considering B-50, just not too sure of a suitable dosage, so I'm putting that on hold for now, otherwise I'm taking the human one myself too and could easily share that with them.

I've even gone to the nutrition site to calculate their calcium :phosphorus per meal and 'tried' to base on that, which differs almost every other day. So right now I'll just finish the natural pets seaweed calcium and then probably go for my caltrate.

 

Lee debbie

It can be confusing while some say an amount of calcium per pound of food, and some say per pound of meat.

 

  It can be very confusing. You're doing a great job of trying to cook for your dogs. Cooking for multiple large dogs is quite a task. Giving them human B 50 is fine; one fourth of a tablet for each dog a day is good; that's what Jessie got when I cooked for her. I'm not cooking for her now because she only tolerates certain ingredients, and has multiple food allergies, so it's too expensive. She gets a venison and brown rice kibble, which she does very well on; I can't afford to buy venison and cook it for her myself.

 

Lee debbie

I've even gone to the nutrition site to calculate their calcium :phosphorus per meal and 'tried' to base on that, which differs almost every other day. . So right now I'll just finish the natural pets seaweed calcium and then probably go for my caltrate.   

  I guess that's because your recipe varies a lot? That would make it difficult to balance the ratio. The reason dogs don't need vitamin C is because their bodies make it. Some breeders use it to calm their bitches, and some owners of canine athletes, such as dogs that compete in agility, give it to their dogs, but it's generally not considered a necessary supplement. That being said, if your dogs don't have a tendency to form calcium oxalate stones, you should be able to give it to them safely.

 The B-50 I take, everything is 50mg or 50 mcg except folic acid is 400mcg, it's a capsule, would half be ok? So far from websites i read on 'dosages', they seem fine even for 1 capsule but i can never be too sure.

Yeah it's my first time cooking in bulk for 2 of them. I used to cook daily, but I thought just whip out the weighing machine and measuring cups to be very sure of the amounts. I just wanna be as sure as I can that I'm not screwing up... (already screwed up washing the egg shells trying to remove the membranes).

My proportion for brown rice and vege/fruits/oils are fixed, the meat is of the same weight daily, except the different kinds of meat have different proportions of phosphorus and calcium, so I even that out (or try to), by feeding an amountof around 900-1000mg calcium, trying to stay between a 1.5 to 2:1 ratio. I really take my hat off to moms and dads who can get that balance right!! It's rocket science to me!

B-50?  why? 

Don't try to supplement everything -- they need VERY LITTLE supplementation and as Janice mentioned with the calcium, you can honestly get yourself in a lot of trouble.  dont's uplement without the input of a good holistic vet.  You might need to find one to work with you via mail, but I see you talking about zillions of supplements.  You **will** get yourself in trouble if you try to supplement everything. 

You would be FAR better off to actually contact Monica or Mordana and get their guidance on a diet.  They won't steer you wrong.  But make sure they know ALL you are giving.

calliecritturs

B-50?  why? 

Don't try to supplement everything -- they need VERY LITTLE supplementation

 

  I advised her to give them a B vitamin supplement. Unless she's feeding them a lot of beef, they need the B vitamins supplemented. Monica had me give Jessie one fourth of a B 50 daily, so that's what I advised for her. B vitamins are water soluble, and one fourth of a B 50 will be very safe. A lot of home cooked diets need more supplementation than you may think. For example, unless they're getting a small amount of beef liver daily, they're probably not getting enough copper. Most people who cook for their dogs don't take into consideration that they need many minerals, such as potassium,selenium, iron, zinc, magnesium, etc, and the amount of each is very important since too much of one mineral can interfere with the absorption of another. Besides B vitamins, dogs also need vitamins A, D, and E, in the right amounts.

 

calliecritturs

dont's uplement without the input of a good holistic vet

  Actually someone who has taken all the nutrition courses and is certified in animal nutrition is much better, and most vets, holistic or otherwise, haven't. They usually don't know enough to truly formulate a diet for a dog that meets all their nutritional requirements.

  

calliecritturs

You would be FAR better off to actually contact Monica or Mordana and get their guidance on a diet.  They won't steer you wrong.  But make sure they know ALL you are giving.

  Absolutely; they both have taken all the courses necessary and know what they're doing. If money is a factor, Mordanna charges less.

 

I've contacted Sabine, can't find links to engage Mordanna at her page. Long waiting list though. I'll do this for Ashton first and maybe Alphie later. Thanks ladies!

Lee debbie

I've contacted Sabine, can't find links to engage Mordanna at her page.

 

  You know that Mordanna is Sabine, right? One idea that may save you some money; both of them will analyze the diet you're using and tell you which vitamins and minerals need tweaking.

Oh, ok how embarassing. Yup I'll do that.

Have you got a crock pot or pressure cooker?  That is what I use.  I pressure cook a whole chicken plus throw in some sweet potatoes and other veggies. The bones mush and are completely safe to eat.  I use a potato masher and smoosh/mix up the whole batch. 

I learned about it from a vet that is not very far from me, who wrote a book.  dogdishdiet.com.  Dr. Greg Martinez.  He has a lot of youtube videos about it as well.

It's working well for me/the girls :)

And pretty cost effective as well, especially when I find chickens on sale.

HTH.

would that work on pork? my guys are sensitive towards poultry. .. well they were when they were younger, and I've stayed away from chicken since. then again it could be thyroidism or whatever issues and not the chicken. otherwise that would be a good idea, i love the idea of stew. THey were on hypoallergenic kibbles made from hydro something chicken, but i don't that if that's the same as cooked chicken.

 Seeked a second opinion for acupuncture and other issues today. Asked the vet about supplementing a home cooked diet. She said just give them centrum and they won't need anything much else, well maybe glucosamine for their joints... hmm... She didn't mention much about the calcium/phosphorus ratio, didn't talk about the fish oils, or any individual vitamins. Just simply, a multivitamin would do. Any ideas?

  I would not give them Centrum; it isn't appropriate for dogs and could have too much iron, as well as too much of the other vitamins and minerals. This vet isn't knowledgeable concerning their nutritional needs. You could have Monica or Mordanna formulate a diet for your dogs, or buy Monica's "Cooked Diet Recipes" booklet, which is $7.95 and has balanced recipes, or her book " Optimal Nutrition", which is $25  ( I gave you links to all these on your other threads.

  Have you considered UC Davis; 

  UC Davis School of Vet Med:

  or Balance IT;

 Balance IT®  

  

Janice is right -- a human mutli usually isn't at all good for a dog.  How about even a dog vitamin like Pet Tabs or Pet Tinic if she can get those?  But I would definitely do a consult with Monica or Mordana/Sabine Contreras.

Pressure cooking won't cook pork bones enough, only chicken/fish.  but you can put a pork roast (or beef or whatever) in a slow cooker and then the meat is easy to shred.  I use a tabletop roaster (a small one) to do my dogfood.  I don't really do a stew -- I cook things by groups according to how 'hard' or long they need to cook and then combine it all at the end.  it winds up LIKE a stew in that everything is all broken down into mush so you couldn't pick out a bean from a bit of meat or veg. 

99.99% of what I've learned about home-cooking has been from Monica and reading.  No vet ever told ME about the cal-phos ratio (I heard it was something to be heeded and looked it up online), but Monica got me started literally 13 years ago.  I'd been 'cooking' for many years then but only meat and grain.  The books Janice has listed are GOOD ones.

I tried balance it, they don't deliver supplements to where I live..:( I am on the wait list with Sabine. Why I asked was because vet said not to supplement with individual vitamins so centrum... I didn't buy that and am still doing what I do. I do cook my stuff separately, pan fry beef, minced, and cubed, and boil the different fish; tuna, white fish, salmon, sometimes cod. Boil the carrots, celery, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, purée all of that and portion them by weight. Just like when I was preparing weekly purée for my son during weaning. Just need Sabine to get those proportions right. And Janice, you're right about the vet not being a nutritionist. I think they heavily rely on commercial food that it doesn't bother them what goes into the bowl. I wish I did home cooking earlier, OR didn't give up in raw diets. I shy away because of the parasite attack they had when young, and Alphie got very aggressive with the boys when they strolled past her while she had her raw chicken. I didn't know better then. Anyway, now I need to address these certain issues with weight and suspected hypothyroidism and itchy ears and alphie's heart and Ashton's aggression. I don't know what else will come up after their ultrasound, hopefully nothing but a peace of mind...

I use bok choy a lot too (it is REALLY good for arthritis).  What you get is probably a lot better than what I get.  In fact it's in my dogs' food this week.