Feeding Dogs the Healthy Way!

Any responsible dog owner wants to feed their pet to provide the best possible nutrition and health. Feeding dogs according to the needs of their bodies - that is, the needs for certain nutrients and the needs of canine digestive processes - is the best way to ensure the health, well-being, and long life of your pet. This article will discuss one common sense way we can feed dogs so that we know without a doubt their diets are full of the best ingredients and nutritional quality possible.

First, it's important to understand what attracts dogs to certain food. I don't know about you, but I am not a dog. While you and I are impressed by visual stimuli - the colors of the foods we eat and how they are arranged on the plate - dogs are not. The dog's nose knows! Dogs are attracted to food by how good it smells to them.

While it's true that not all dogs are exactly the same in their food preferences, we can generalize somewhat when it comes to what dogs like to eat. Most dogs are attracted to the aromas emanating from most meats - things like liver, beef, lamb, horsemeat, chicken, etc. Most are also attracted by the smell of cheese, fat, garlic and onions.

That brings up the subject of vegetables, and when it comes to feeding dogs vegetables there are not as many universally appreciated smells. You can learn what vegetables your dog likes by offering it leftovers. Notice what gets gobbled and what gets ignored. It may surprise you what vegetables, and even fruits, your dog enjoys.

Our neighbor Bonnie has a Shih Tzu that loves fresh tomatoes. For many years in the summers she would plant a tomato plant or two in large planters on her back porch. This is the same back porch where her dog Snickers would spend much of his day. Bonnie began to notice that her tomatoes would sometimes disappear when they began to ripen, especially the ones closest to the ground. This was a puzzle, and Bonnie began to suspect that perhaps some of the neighborhood kids were making raids on her tomatoes. Not MY kids of course!

One day Bonnie noticed red around Snickers' mouth. She thought it was blood at first, and looked closer. It was the remains of one of her ripe tomatoes! When I tell this story to other dog owners, I hear all kinds of stories about how their dogs like everything from lettuce, to rutabaga to grapes and oranges! Go figure.

While cats should not be fed starchy vegetables like peas and corn, dogs can have pretty much any vegetable they like. We should not, however, be feeding dogs extra salt. The salt nature provides is plenty for our canine friends.

So why not feed dogs the foods they love, and why not make it yourself? When you feed dogs homemade food you know exactly what's in it and that it is fresh and healthy. A good rule of thumb is to use about three quarters carbohydrates (grains and vegetables) and about one quarter meat products. It's also a good practice to add grains - whole wheat bread crumbs, cooked oatmeal and wheat germ are probably the healthiest. There's one very good recipe you can try below, although you may need to tweak it according to what you know about your own pet's preferences.

Combine a chicken liver, chicken giblets, a chicken heart, a chicken neck, and 2 cups water and 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley. Cover in a pot and simmer until the giblet is tender. Be sure to chop up all the meat, and remove all the bones. Add whatever chopped cooked or raw vegetables your dog likes. Substitute any leftover meats and fish you may have in place of the chicken parts.

Experiment with this recipe, and find combinations that your pet appreciates most. Taking a little time and expending the effort to make your pet's food will save you money while feeding your dog a healthy and nutritious diet that will have plenty of variety and be customized to your dog's particular tastes. What better expression of your love could your dog receive?

Go to [http://www.PetDogHealthEtc.com] to read more articles by Jonathan Richardson. Mr. Richardson's career in corporate training has helped him hone his writing and editing skills. He has lived in Connecticut for the last 22 years raising a fantastic family with his wife Elaine.