Healthy homemade dog food recipes offer you as the pet lover a means to give your pet the best life possible. Your dog relies on what you feed it to stay healthy and feeling good. If you do not care what you are putting into your dog, then it is time to rethink if you should be caring for her at all. Dogs that are not fed right can become ill, develop allergies, need more vet visits, and become nutritionally starved. Making your own dog food offer you the chance to give your dog the best he should get and still keep your cost low. Knowing Where To StartThere are a few things you should know before you start to make your own dog food. Real healthy homemade dog food recipes take into consideration a few key things. Dog's have daily intake requirements just like humans and this needs to be noted and maintained. You will also need to consider your dog's age, size, sex, and energy level when meal planning. Your vet is a great place to start when you are gathering information for later use. They can tell you the percentages of food groups you need, what to avoid, and how much to feed your dog at each sitting. Just finding random dog food recipes may seem like a good idea, but if you have no idea what type of dog this person was cooking for than you could be hurting your dog, not helping. The Actual Recipe Contents Your dog food should not only be easy to make but well balanced nutritionally. Healthy homemade dog food recipes should offer the right ingredients that are cost effective and what your dog needs. The most expensive ingredient in your dog's diet is the meat he needs. You can save by shopping at the local butcher for sale meats or meat ends. These are usually cheaper. The rest of your dog's diet is very cost effective. Pasta is inexpensive as well as rice, frozen vegetables, and potatoes. Be sure to follow your vet's recommendation of the amounts to use. Stay away from too many grains, fats, and fillers. These offer nothing for your dog's health. You will also want to be sure to feed your dog as directed by his vet. Amounts And Storage The key to healthy homemade dog food recipes is amount and ease of storage. There are literally thousands of recipes to choose from and you will have to determine what works for you and what does not. The best way to avoid spending useless hours on the computer is to know what you want first, before searching. Wet foods have shorter storage time than dry foods. You will also need to make sure that you are viewing recipes of the right size. If you want to make enough food for a large dog for a week you will want to note that in your search. Raw and wet foods will need to be refrigerated or frozen, while dry food can be stored in air tight containers at room temperature. Dog Food Secrets: [link]/

over the years when it rains or melting snow ect, my wife is always cleaning the dog pen poop and it is a muddy mess at times, what are most people putting in the pen to help this out, I was thinking of wood chips, but before I do that, maybe someone has some better tips on what to put down. thanks Chet

See the BBC news about this Cambridgeshire woman, she's been selling certain breeds to takeaway restaurants and using the money to fund holidays in the far east. The whole thing is a disgrace.

We are gtting a 9 month old golden retrievr dog wit the name of NITNINNY. I want to change it to Jennifer. SHould I just call her Jennifr NitNInny for few weeks and then drop the nitninny? Tips welcome... Joe

Hi, I dog sit for my neighbor's dog, a mixed breed that weighs around 40lbs. He scratches an awful lot and I suspect he has fleas. What's the best way to get rid of them and keep them off the dog? I don't believe the owner is going to do anything about it. Also, what do you get recommend for dog food? Thanks, Mike

So over the years I have had many dogs! all of them were spasmodic and seamed to not listen. Well I thought that I would try something new. So I talked to my friends and one said she had found a great product for dog training. She than emailed me the link. Trust me this is a great product! [link] Thanks

I'm looking for advice on housebreaking a puppy (12 weeks old). We're trying to crate train him. He hasn't had an accident in the house until today, he pooped in the foyer a little while ago. When the dog poops is it appropriate to redirect him in some way or does that just create confusion? I know you aren't supposed to yell at the dog, smear his nose in it, or any of the other stereotypically cruel things that some people do. I just wondered if there is a more sensible and constructive way to address the "accident." Thanks! -Jim ps. if you are aware of any good resources online that deal with housetraining dogs, crate training, and so on I'd be interested in hearing about them.

Hi Everyone, We have a 7 year old female bassett hound who has mainly sayed outdoors with only an occasional visit inside the house. On Monday we took her to the vet to have a bump on her side surgically removed, and the vet asked that we keep her indoors for 2 weeks until things heal and the stitches are removed. At night we keep her in a large laundry room, but while we're home during the day we hoped to let her run free in the house. Monday evening after getting home from the vet, all went well. We let her run around the house with an occasional bathroom visit to the back yard. Not long before bedtime though we noticed two pee spots down the hallway. In our house the hallway and living room are carpet while the kitchen, dining area, an laundry area are all linoleum floor. I figured she saw the long, dark hallway as a secluded place to pee, so we decided to put up a barrier going into the hallway so she'd say in the open, well lit area. No probs the rest of the evening. Tuesday we let her run around the house (except the hallway) while at work, and all was wonderful. We took her out to pee before leaving for work at 7am and after getting home around 5pm. That evening no problems either figured pee problem fixed. Wedneday my wife was home most of the day, and no problems, but once I got home and took down the barrier to the hallway the dog ran down and pee'd right in t he same spot as before. I put the barrier back up and she pee'd in the living room. I then put up a barrier between the carpet and floor areas, but while in the other room she got throgh and pee'd in living room a second time. With all this it's become obvious that she looks at the carpet as 'grass' and pee's anyplace she wants. The linoleum floor though she's never pee'd on. Is there any suggested way to train or keep her from peeing inside or specifically not on the carpet? At least on the linoleum we can clean it up easier, but everytime she gets on the carpet she now decides to pee. Sorry for the long post, but I thought it best to give the whole story incase there's something I'm missing. Thanks Sam Alex

What do you do with a dog with a broken spirit? This poor 1-2yo lab mix whatever was recieved into our loving quiet home and just stays in a corner. She likes to go outside, but seems to be fidgity~ or should I say re-fridgity (cold) and distant. She is not interested in us at all, though we present food and toys and encouragment. We have shown her nothing but love, and we want her to love us. I guess this is like loving someone who will not love you back , but I feel such compassion for her. She must have been treated terribly. If you don't pay any attention to her, she will come closer, but not within reach. Any motion to pet or caress her and she lowers her head (does not pee though). Does anybody know how long is this will go on?

From what little I've seen about it so far, it looks to me like some people actually believe dogs are not aware of themselves simply because they don't appear to recognise their reflection in a mirror. To me that only means they don't understand a mirror, and has absolutely nothing to do with whether or not they have a mental concept of themselves. The facts that they have a mental concept of their objects, their territory, their urine, their body, etc, are all indications that they have a mental concept of themselves, imo. The fact that they are aware of different individual beings is a very strong indication that they are aware of themselves as an individual also imo, especially when considered along with the fact that they have a mental concept of the other things they encounter. Question: Has anyone ever managed to get a dog to understand that it can see its reflection in a mirror, and if so, did it appear to experience a great revelation about its own existence at the instant it learned to do so?

We got a Mixed Lab from the pound a couple months ago and it has begun digging in the yard. It takes 15 minute breaks out there so it's not a matter of long boring excursions (our fenced yard offers plenty of entertainment besides...rabbits, squirels, etc.) I've tried watching from a window to correct him immediately, but of course it NEVER happens while I'm on duty. What drives them to this behavior? Any way to stop this besides babysitting him, which hasn't worked yet? Les

I have waited over 15 years for a dog of my own. In August, my puppy, Maui, finally came home. Since then he has been spoiled and treated as a king. I don't have kids or a husband so he is my main companion. We share a bed and play for hours. Here's my question, this is his first Christmas and I get so excited about buying him all kinds of stuff, a stocking, some new toys, a car seat (to help with the carsickness) and treats. My sister and family just laugh at me going all out for a dog. How do you guys do Christmas with dogs? Do you buy them stuff? Wrap it? I know I want to wrap some treats to see if he can sniff out his own on Christmas morning but beyond that, what should I do? Thanks!

how did I stop fur biting? it caused my puppy to have one bald spot and now I don't want more.

My 5 month old puppy was doing very well for a bit with his housebreaking and now he seems to have forgotten everything he ever learned. We will both not survive if we have to start over. What can I do as a quick refresher? I haven't changed the routine at all, just take him out whenever he's at the door or every hour even if he hasn't been at the door. He gets treats when he comes in (after going potty only). What can I do? HELP! Thanks!

I have a 18 week poodle who had a black nose when I got him at 8 weeks old. Now his black looks like it rubbed off and it is pink. The whole nose is not all the same color, some is still black, some pink and some a mix. It looks like it will all be pink eventuallyu though. Is this normal or a sign of a problem? Should I be concerned? Thanks for any help!