Making the Change to Homecooked On My Own

jessies_mom

Also, the diet from Mordanna is about 50% meat by weight whereas balanceit diets like 2 DogsMom is using have more carbs and would be cheaper to feed. Monica's diets are also about 50% meat.

The recipe I got from petdiets.com has SO much rice in it. Is there a benefit to feeding so many carbs? We've had the dogs on homecooked for about a week now and while they both love the recipe I'm using, I wonder if it's healthy to be giving them so much rice.

2DogsMom

The recipe I got from petdiets.com has SO much rice in it. 

 That's why I decided not to use their services; the recipes seemed too carb heavy. Dogs aren't supposed to need carbs; they burn fat for energy, though working dogs often benefit from some carbs in their diet.

Hmmm.... Maybe I should switch to another recipe then. With Cooper being a couple of lbs overweight (which I noted when I requested the recipe from petdiets), I wonder if the carbs aren't going to do more harm than good for him.

I ordered some booklets from Monica Segal earlier today. The Homecooked Feeding Primer and Homecooked Recipes, Vol. 2. Maybe she'll have a recipe included in her literature that I can use for my two.

 The more carbs you use, the cheaper the diet will be.  That's the main reason my dogs' diets are carb-heavy.  Well, that, and for the working dogs carbs help meet their energy needs more efficiently.  They get plenty of good protein however - their diets are still comparable to even the grain free kibbles that are available currently.

If it's a deal breaker between a carb-heavy homecooked, and going to a kibble, I'd choose the home cooked now every time.  Even using a grain like rice, I see so much difference between the home prepared and right now when the dogs are having to eat kibble due to my being off my feet and our in the middle of moving.  And we're spending more, for sure. 

The grain free kibbles are heavy on potato and there's not an easier or cheaper grainless carb source.  And very well tolerated.  Ben was on a white potato diet based diet and Maggie is right now.  It's the easiest one I do - just pop the potatoes in the microwave, cut them open when they are "baked", let them cool, slice/mash, and bag them up with the rest of the diet (Maggie gets garlic, jicama or chicory root, egg, fish, and parsley, plus heart and kidney).
 

2DogsMom

jessies_mom

Also, the diet from Mordanna is about 50% meat by weight whereas balanceit diets like 2 DogsMom is using have more carbs and would be cheaper to feed. Monica's diets are also about 50% meat.

The recipe I got from petdiets.com has SO much rice in it. Is there a benefit to feeding so many carbs? We've had the dogs on homecooked for about a week now and while they both love the recipe I'm using, I wonder if it's healthy to be giving them so much rice.

 

I think it depends on the dog and their metabolism.  Woobie needs alot of carbs to keep weight on, his energy level is ridiculous and even when on reduced activity, just sitting around, he drops weight easily.  Although Indie doesn't need as much (carbs) as Woobie, if I cut back on his carbs too much, his energy level really plummets, he did NOT do well on high protein, low carb.  I don't buy the argument that they don't *need* carbs based on what my nutritionist told me, but that's a debate of another sort.   I think if your dogs are doing well, love the food and aren't having problems with either energy or weight, go with what works and appreciate the savings.