The best dog food you can feed your dog is a homemade dog food. Homemade dog food you make right in your own kitchen. It may seem a little scary at first but trust me you can do it. You can prepare the best dog food. It will be highly nutritious and your dog will love it. The absolute best dog food you can feed.
I believe the best dog food to feed your dog is a raw meat and meaty bone based diet. I will show you how to prepare healthy raw dog food recipes and explain the benefits of feeding your dog a raw dog food. Your dog will thrive on a raw meat based dog food.
That said, I know there are some of you who just can’t bring yourself to feeding your dog a raw dog food even if it is considered the best dog food. If you fall into this category I will also show you how to prepare cooked dog food that is also nutritious and yummy for your dog. I’m certain I can help you feed your dog better even if the dog food is cooked.
To help you understand how to feed a dog properly and help you make the best dog food check out the following pages:
- What are dogs designed to eat?
- Required Nutrients of Dogs
- Dog Food Ingredients
- Easy raw dog food
- Easy cooked dog food
Best Dog Food Debate
For some people the subject of dog food is almost a religion. The “best dog food” debate can get pretty heated. Some people think you will kill your dog if you feed raw and others aren’t happy unless you feed freshly killed caribou. The older I get the less I want to fight and argue. I’ve fed dogs raw meat based dog food for many years without incident. Dog’s fed raw meat based diets thrive. I also cook some for the dogs and they do well. I believe the best dog food is a homemade dog food that is either cooked or raw.
Best Dog Food Ingredients
All our dog food recipes on this site use human grade ingredients. These ingredients can be purchased at your local grocery store and butcher. Contrast that to commercial kibble that uses ingredients not fit for human consumption! Knowing the quality ingredients in your homemade dog food is great. Yet another reason I consider a homemade dog food the best dog food.
My goal is to help you feed your dog the best dog food possible. I guarantee it we be better than anything poured out of a bag!
The Best Dog food Recipes to Get You Started
- Best Dog Food – Easy Cooked
- Best Dog Food – Easy Raw
First Step to Making the Best Dog Food
Often the first steps in any new project are the hardest. Breaking into new ground can be scary. I have tried to make this process as easy as possible. Read the articles, recipes and comments. Also watch the videos because they can help a bunch. Then go for it! Good luck.
My Yorky prefers chicken over beef. Can chicken be used in your easy cooked dog food receipe instead of beef?
Vicki,
Yes, I think that would be fine. I am going to post a couple chicken recipes in the future.
You should also make a few recipes for homemade treats…. like jerky ? I wanted to make some treats but i’m not exactly sure the nutritional requirements and cant seem to find specific guidelines on the web 🙂
Hi, I am going to be new mom to 2-8 wk old mini -schnauzers. Is the raw food diet good for puppies? Thanks in advance. Jo
Jo,
Yes, I have fed puppies raw for their first meal. They do very well eating raw.
My 6 yr old bichon has chronic kidney disease and I would like to make homemade food for him. I have been makiing a mixture of rice, ground beef, hard boiled eggs and white bread and was wondering if you have any other suggestions. He does eat a bit of wet and dry Medi-cal low protein food also as well as taking an acid control pill and a prescribed phosphate binder twice a day. He does seem a lot better than when we first got him three months ago but I am wondering if he is getting all the nutrients he needs?
Dorinda,
I recommend feeding the “easy raw dog food recipe”, click here to view. The high moisture content of this recipe will help to flush the kidneys. It is also nutrient dense and this is good.
I am disabled in Vegas i take care of with with MS i have no time or energy to make my dogs food from scratch he just this month has started chewing scratching to raw spots licking he stopped eating but every other day can you help me i am senior we are poor we love our rescued dog of 8 years . He has never been this bad . I feed him Chicken brown rice and Sams dog food for years. Last @ vets she said he is very healthy. I substitute beef or Pork cooked with MRS Dash from time to time. I don’t think it is food because it started fast when wind changed direction across town,which is not normal this time of year. We are on desert side of town wind from south not NE as it did when this started. Is there a bagged food you recommend ? an what to do for chew spots? Something Homeopathic is preferred. Please Help Me Mr animal lover our 80 lb loving dogie needs fast help, I don’t trust vets now days they just want money and we have little. James
James,
I really don’t recommend kibble dog food. I personally don’t feed my dogs kibble so I’m not familiar with different brands. For the chew spots have you ever tried an essential oil shampoo? Often these are soothing for dogs. Click here to view a good dog shampoo.
I cannot pull up your sites for the recipes. When I click on the site for the dog food recipes it saids in error. I have a shitsu and he is a very picky eater. He will not eat dog food and he will literally stop eating until he has a seizure. I have been feeding him eggs, cheese and turkey to prevent it. I came on your site today looking to see if I could find recipes for him. If you can help that would be great.
Ann,
It sounds like you may have a browser issue. Try updating your browser and then the links will work.
Help!!! Please advise… I brought my 4 month old collie pup home the first of Jan. this year. I noticed she had a little bit of rash on her tummy and was mildly itchy, I didn’t think much about it. The breeder was feeding Royal Canin, I believe chicken was the protein. I was planning to feed a raw diet and immediately switched her onto the raw food. (It was a complete raw food from b.a.r.f. It was beef and bison) She switched easily (no vomitting or loose stools) and she loved it. Over the next month she was getting itchier, losing hair, and the rash was spreading. She started getting little crusty spots all over her body and the itching was litterally driving her nuts. (I am going to give you the quick version of what has happened over the next 3 1/2 mths) To date she has had 2 rounds of antibiotics (when she is on them it is the only time she feels good, is eating well, and starts growing her hair back.) 1 round of steroids, has had her skin scraped and biopsied for mites, which came back negative and is now not eating very well, looking horrible, is getting dark brown/black spots all over her legs, and is itching herself bald again. She has zero undercoat at all. She wears the “lamp shade” almost 24/7 to keep her from mutilating herself. I tried changing the protein of the raw diet to see if that would help (she’s had duck and chicken also) which it didn’t. I have now taken her off the raw and have been giving her what the breeder was feeding to see if I could get back to where she was when I brought her home, it’s been 3+ weeks now and she’s getting worse. She’s been thru N.zymes with no help. We’ve tried itch eaze… no help and I’m trying Beta-Thym (natural cortisone) no help… She really needs another round of antibiotics at this point but I know they are bad for her stomach, I’m sure all the good flora is gone. So at this point what would you do to start with? I have spent mega amount of $$ here and don’t want to spend more on things that aren’t going to help. At this point I’m afraid of making a big batch of your dog food because I don’t know if she’ll eat it (plus I’m not sure whether to do a raw or cooked and I’m leary about using beef) Ugh!! If someone dropped this dog at your doorstep tell me where would you start?
Kelly & “Aurora”
Kelly,
Can you tell me exactly what you are feeding her?
Hi Ed,
Right now she is getting Nature’s Domain Salmon or fish kibble. She was eating it pretty well while on antibiotics but now she’s been 3 plus weeks off antibiotics and is starting to lose her appetite, she’s losing more hair and is going bonkers with itch. Her eyes are also losing their sparkle…looking kinda dull. I know she feels terrible and I feel horrible that so far I haven’t been able to help her. The breeder says that she has never had this type of problem and that the sire , bitch, and the 1 pup they kept are fine. Oh she also has an odor to her not like corn chips, but a definite odor. Her hair (whats left) is limp so she has been being bathed every 2 to 3 days both because of the smell and also because she feels better for a few hours after.
Kelly,
The corn chip smell is a strong sign you are dealing with a yeast infection. Try the “yeast starvation dog food recipe“. This is your best chance for relief. Prepare yourself in advance that things could appear to get worse before they get better.
It is important to note that kibble contains carbohydrates. These carbohydrates are what hold the kibble together. To beat the yeast you need to eliminate all carbohydrates and starve them back to reasonable numbers. The antibiotics do not kill the yeast only help prevent secondary infection.
Ed, our toy poodle has had one ear infection after another. He has a smell especially from his ears we are sure is from yeast. He licks his feet and has problem with itching. We have spent a fortune on Batril and Mometamax ointment as well as steriod shots. I am so concerned about all this medication. We want to try your yeast starvation yeast diet.
We have a few questions. What ratio of fat in ground beef do you use and is this a permnent diet?. When is the best time to feed Bengie and is this all he should eat in a day? He is 13 years old and weighs 71/2 lbs. He has always been a picky eater. He has been on Science Diet for small mature dogs. We have tried to change him to Blue Buffalo. His previous owner feed him what he ate. Not table scraps. If the owner had steak Bengie had steak. the owner died and we took Bengie. W have had him for 7 years.
Dotty,
I use the 70/30 ground beef. We feed are dogs once per day but twice is fine too, just split the portion.
Hi Ed,
I only discovered your website today after coming home from shopping for raw food for my 7 1/2 pound Yorkie, Goliath. I was given the instruction to mix the raw food with kibble the first feeding and then decrease the kibble by half and the forth day feed the thaw frozen raw food by itself. After seeing your video I think I am going to try to make your recipe myself after receiving the Dimorte and Supromega 3. THANKS.
A question. Is it OK to treat him with pork pizzle tweet and beef/buffulo tentacles? They are made in USA.
Roslin,
Super! Your dog will love the homemade dog food! I’m not sure what the treats are?
my dog has allergies. We have to switch food to one that is no grain, buffalo based. The vet really wanted the salmon mix, but it was not in stock. Can dogs with allergies do well with homemade food and do u gave any natural treat recipes??? thanks…
Suzzanne,
Yes dogs with allergies can do great on homemade dog food. It is easy for the “cook” to control what is added. Try the easy cooked dog food or easy raw dog food recipe. Both these dog food recipes are easy to make and nutritious.
Ed,
I have read through a great deal of your posts. Thank you for all the great information your provide. I plan on starting my dogs on your recipes soon. One of my dogs is a 9 year old, 11 lb rat terrier who has had pancreatitis. The vet recommended a lower fat diet. Is the ground beef still safe to use or should I substitue a lower fat meat or version of the beef? Also, I dehydrate calves liver for treats, is this a good option. My vet is really not very helpful when it comes to nutrition.
Thanks so much for your assistance.
Michelle,
The omega 3 fatty acids in fish oil are helpful for pancreatitis so they would be a good addition. You can also add coconut oil because it does not aggravate the pancreas. Then you could use a leaner meat.
I think the dehydrated calves liver is a good treat.
I have a 9-year old Australian shepherd (slightly overweight) and have been researching raw food diets for awhile. Your system is the only one I’ve found workable (I just can’t feed my dog raw chicken necks). But I also have a cat. What do you suggest for him?
Bev,
For your cat take the rice out of the recipe and use the “Dinovite Liquid Feline” in stead of the dog supplement.
My Cockapoo is allergic to eggs. Will your raw recipe be nutritious enough if I leave out the eggs?
Michelle,
How allergic to eggs is your dog?
I’ve got the Spinal Column off of a Deer I harvested on Friday. Currently it is in the Frig. It’s got a good amount of meat still left on it and I’d hate to let it go to waste. My Dog (Walker/Blue Tick mix) is atleat 9 – 10 years old and I am afraid that giving them the Spinal column raw would be a little to much for his teeth. I did also save the rib bones and he can crunch through those just fine and I plan freeze them and give them to him as treats.
Anyway I have a large crock pot and I was wondering if there was a recipie where I could put the bones in the crock pot and cook all the meat off of them. Than remove the cleaned bones.
I have only been feeding my dag home cooled food for the past 4 – 5 months. So I don’t have a lot o recipies or a lot of knowledge on which foods provide which nutrients etc. So I kinda need a small amount of hand holding. lol
Michelle,
Yes, you can make bone stock out of the deer bones. If you follow the procedure on this site for making bone stock they should soften.
My German shepherd has sebaceous adenitis an immune system problem that is causing her hair to fall out and her skin to flake. She has also been diagnosed with low thyroid for which she takes meds along with an anti inflammatory she is also on a grain free dry dog food.
Will I benefit from a raw diet? She has just started a bathing and oil soak regimen that I found online from someone in Germany that had a similar problem. I am a senior on a limited income and must keep the expense down as much as possible. This is such a worry for me!
Allan,
I would try the yeast starvation dog food recipe it is grain free, easy to make and very nutritious.
Hi, I have been feeding raw for a long time with no problems. Recently I was given a large amount of deer and elk, which I have been feeding to my dog and cats. Someone said I need to cook game because of worms, I haven’t been but wondered if I really should?
Thanks for any help!
Amy,
I’m not up on all the possible parasite in wild game. I know that raw salmon can have a liver fluke that can cause real problems. I cook the eggs to break down an enzyme in them that can bind with a B vitamin.
Hi Ed, we just adopted a 6 month old lab hound mix. My 2 year old son is highly allergic to eggs. We do not bring any egg product into the house. Is there a possible substitute?
Thanks
Chris,
Feed the chicken and rice dog food recipe and eliminate the rice but then make sure you add the bone stock.
I have two dogs, a purebred 22 pound Boston terrier and the 70 pound black lab mix. They were eating a highly regarded dehydrated dog food for the last year and during this time my Boston would have problems tolerating many different varieties of this dog food. For about two weeks now I have been feeding them the cooked ground meat recipe with the added supplements and my Boston has not had any G.I. issues since the switch. I have also noticed that my lab does not seem to be shedding as much as he did before. The only problem I have noticed is when I start preparing their food; both dogs get overly anxious, they never did this for any dog food before.
I just wanted to thank you for a simple recipe that my dogs love and I can make quickly.
I’m going to make the chicken recipe with the next batch and I’ll let you know how that goes over.
Thanks again.
Stephen,
All good news!
I’ve been feeding my English Springer Spaniel your home cooked dog food recipe for about 1.5 months and she loves it. However, instead of adding your recommended supplements I’ve continued with what I have been using – a daily fish oil tablet (which my vet said is ok), a daily dog multi-vitamin and an Omega-3 with glucosamine chewy. In your opinion, will these supplements provide what she needs? Thanks for having this information on the internet.
Molly,
I’ve not seen any dog supplements compare to Dinovite. The majority are synthetic vitamins. Try the Dinovite brand vitamins I think you will be pleased.
Hi Ed –
We are a small 100% grass-fed buffalo company and are thinking of to producing smoked heart strips (really dried in a smoker without smoke) , as dog treats. No salt or anything else added. Is this a healthy treat option for dogs? Cats?
Thanks for your time.
Jill,
It sounds good.
I have a 9 month old shih tzu, I have been feeding him regular store bought dog food and was wondering are there any side effects when switching diets? And u also mentioned supplements.. do u add them per serving? Thanks in advance for your time and any advice you may have.
Michelle,
It is important to follow the introductory method outline with these dog food recipes to limit digestive upset. Side effects? How about a healthy dog? That’s the side effect I see over and over. You can either mix the supplements in the entire batch ( I find this easier) or add them daily with each meal.
Hi, I was just wondering – what about in-between meal snacks? I have a German Shepherd and she gets lots of exercise, and she seems to get hungry between meals. I have seen some websites with recipes for home-made dog treats made of things like sweet potatoes, etc. Is there anything you would recommend as a dog snack or “treat”?
Molly,
The best snacks for dogs are some sort of meat.
Hi,
I have a King Charles cavalier , these dogs 90% of them will have a bad heart. So what is the best food diet l can make for her? Also raw or cook?
Sincerely, Joan (my dog Daisy)
Joan,
I would start off with the easy raw dog food recipe.
My vet says two of my Frenchies have allergies because of ear infections and paw licking. He said it may be diet. He first sold me the most expensive food with the first three ingredients in this order: dried potatoes, duck by-products, coconut oil. There is about 40 other ingredients. That CAN NOT be good for my dogs. I want to use your feeding system. One thing my vet said that did make some sense is to choose a protein that the dog’s immune system is not used to like Bison, Venison, Ostrich, Duck, Rabbit, etc. Okay, I can NOT afford to feed my dogs (12 of them) Venison! What are your thoughts on duck and rabbbit? Those choices are much more affordable. You should partner with some wholesale meat companies for all your many customers to go to:))))
Renee,
12 French bulldogs! That must be a whole lot of fun especially at nap time, I’m imagining a snore fest;) I would put your Frenchies on the yeast starvation dog food recipe for about 6 months and see if that doesn’t clear up their problems.
I recently got a boxer mix (she is either mixed with bulldog or pit)
I have never heard of feeding a dog raw.
So its better for them than any of the dry dog foods?
Also what would be the best food for her?
Haley,
Try any of these recipes and your dog will do great. You can also feed cooked if you are uncomfortable with feeding raw. Just don’t cook the supplements, add them after the food is cool.
I see you have a good raw feed recipe, but I was just wondering where is the good bacteria to help digest the raw meat. Such as yogurt or cottage cheese? Also I see no greens. Is just the meat eggs and supplements enough?
The supplements contain the bacteria and the greens. Dinovite contains alfalfa nutrient concentrate (kind of like dehydrated alfalfa juice) and kelp meal for lots of trace minerals.
I have four dogs ages 1, 1.5, 3, and 5. Up until I got the younger two I have not had any trouble feeding commercial dry dog food. The 1.5 year old is a great Dane mix and has been difficult to feed (she has been really picky and I just did an allergy test this week), recently she had problems where the vet recommended feeding her a bland diet of cooked chicken, mashed potatoes, and rice. She doesn’t really like the rice so it is just chicken and potatoes (this is only a temporary diet). My question is that if yeast is not a problem can I add a small amount of kibble for teeth cleaning purposes or does the egg shells help with that? Also my 5 year old needs probiotics and antioxidants to help with digestion do the dinovite and lickochops have these things to help with this. Last question if I substitute potatoes for the rice would it be the same amount cup wise like 10 and 10 or would it be 10 of rice and 12 of potatoes?
I would not feed kibble along with the homemade. If you can bring yourself to feeding the meat raw with the bones you won’t have to worry about their teeth. Yes you can switch the potato for the rice in equal amounts. Yes, Dinovite contains probiotics, enzymes, trace minerals and other nutrients.
Hi Ed,
I have two goldendoodles (1 is 90lb the other 65lb). One of them suffers from regular flares of pancreatitis. Our vet always advises bland diet so I make rice and chicken for him which helps. We’re considering doing raw full time for both to help prevent flares all together. Do you suggest one over the other (beef or chicken) for a dog that suffers with pancreatitis?
My husband is curious and would like to know why adding Lickochops and DinoVite is needed to add into their food. Also, do you have any storage suggestions and/or how long does the raw keep.
Thanks so much for your help!!
Jacklyn
If your dog is suffering from pancreatitis then feed leaner meats and substitute the fish oil for the Lickochops. The Dinovite is added for many reasons; trace minerals, omega 3s, probiotics, enzymes and other delicate nutrients.
Hi Ed,
I was really excited when I found your site since I have been wanting to switch my dogs to raw diet. I was so unsure where to start & found that your recipes made it extremely easy to start. I have a 15 month old boxer and three chihuahuas that range from 5 years to 13 years old. I did the fast for 24 hours then started all on the raw recipe. All four dogs gobbled up the food & seemed happy. On day three my oldest chihuahua began to have issues with diarrhea and refused to eat but still drank water. Did the fast with him again & gave him raw chicken with bone in it. He loved it. Next day he once again refused to eat but was still drinking water. Won’t go near the chicken or the raw food I made for other dogs. It’s been about a 8 days since starting them all on the diet & although the other dogs are still gobbling up the raw food (I also supplement their diet giving them raw meaty bones I purchase from local butcher) they all have begun to seem sluggish and less active. My boxer that is extremely active isn’t as playful & will yelp or whine if I touch her neck area. I am really stressing that I made a bad decision switching their food and am seriously considering going back to dry food. I hoping you can give me some direction on where to go from here. I don’t really want to give up on this but there really isn’t much support to help me stick with it and help guide me through these problems I’m having.
Thank you,
Christina
Can you tell me exactly what you are feeding, each ingredient and amounts? Also, what portion size are you feeding? Did you slowly work up to the full serving?
Hi Ed,
For the boxer I started off with 1/2 lb. of your easy raw recipe twice a day for 3 days, then added about 1/4 lb. more and either beef heart or liver every few days for about a week. Took her to the vet & she’s lost about 3lbs. since I’ve started her on the diet which isn’t good since she’s extremely thin for her size. I am now up to 1 lb twice a day and will see how that goes for a week then might go up to 1.5 lbs. She gets raw meaty bones a few times a week too. As for my chi’s, they’ve been getting a little less than 1/4 lb of food twice a day but one of my chi’s had really bad diarrhea which I think was still affecting her from the last batch of dry food we had bought so I alternated her meals with a piece of chicken wing/leg with bone in it every other day for a week. Happy to say she is doing much better and it’s nice to not find messes all over the place anymore. Now, the chi I had mentioned before about not wanting to eat has finally made it very clear to me that although the other dogs may love the raw food, he does not and insist that his meals be cooked. I now sear his portion quickly in coconut oil before feeding him and he’s as happy as can be. Unfortunately, he’s had most of his teeth removed and can’t really chew on bones so I think I’ll be doing the bone stock recipe you’ve posted for him.
Embarrassed to say that the first batch of raw food I made for them was before I received my order of dinovite & super omega oil so they didn’t have any supplements with their first batch of food. This last batch is the yeast starvation recipe (boxer girl chews on her paws, hoping this recipe works better for her) and since I have to cook one of the dogs portion the dinovite & superomega oil is added separately to each dogs meals. All seem to be doing better but my boxer still has issues with occasional diarrhea and weight loss. Do you recommend going up to 3lbs a day and giving beef liver or heart every few days or trying a different recipe?
Also, very pleased to add that I was extremely nervous to tell my vet about changing their diet since most vets don’t approve of the raw diet and he was not against it. He asked me a few questions and made sure I knew the dangers of raw food contamination and making sure to do good clean ups & WASH your hands!!! Then added that he knew enough about it to say he doesn’t know enough about it to be opposed to it and if I was comfortable with it then he was too. Gotta love a vet that supports you!
Thanks Ed, for your time it’s so hard to find support. Please let me know if you think I’m doing ok or if I should change anything up.
Christina
It sounds like you are under feeding her, try doubling her feeding to 3-4 cups per day. Also, cut back on the liver and organ meats because they tend to cause loose stool.
Thanks Ed, I’ll cut back on the liver & heart and will prob pick up some of your bone powder supplement!
Thanks for all your help,
Christina
Hi Ed,
I sent you a comment back on Feb 18th and it has said “your comment is awaiting moderation”, don’t know what that means but I also haven’t heard back from you.
Anyway here goes! We raise our own grass fed and grass finished beef that we market, so we have access to all cuts of beef. Our dogs currently eat an expense grain free dry dog food and have marrow and knuckle bones to chew on and we produce what we call pet burger which is ground heart, tongue and liver. We add that raw to their dry food occasionally.
I make tallow with the kidney fat and I am looking at making pemmican soon.
Do you have a recipe that includes the organ meats. Our burger is currently not 70/30 like you use. So I see that I could add kidney fat to my recipe to make 70/30 burger. But how much pet burger could I include without making it to rich for them. We also have our own chicken and duck eggs.
Hamburger, kidney fat, pet burger, boiled chicken and duck eggs, and white rice. Would you recommend using all these ingredients and how much of our pet burger would you recommend for the recipe? What do you think about bone broth made from marrow and knuckles bones being included in their diet? Also would I use the same amount of your supplements? I would really appreciate any advice you would give me. I have been wanting to feed our dogs raw for sometime but not sure how to get started and giving a them a good balance. Don’t want to make things worse.
Thank you for this sight, very encouraging.
Nadine
Organ meats tend to be pretty rich and can lead to loose stool, so I would try about 25% and see how that goes. Bone broth is great stuff and can be used liberally. Yes, use the same amount of supplements and it should be fine.
Hi Ed, Thank you for providing all of this information. My dog has been on the raw yeast starvation diet for exactly 5 weeks now with no change (yeasty paws). About how long does it take to start noticing changes/improvements? We will continue the raw diet even if it doesn’t cure the yeast problem, but at what point should we seek out another treatment option?
It can take 6 months. Sometimes dogs need additional help, like a yeast killing shampoo.
Hi There,
What a joy to be able to cook for my dog.
Currently feeding my 15 lb Goldendoodle about 1 cup per day of the chicken recipe. Although she seems to want more food, and begs for it or sits by her bowl, which she has never done before. I don’t know if this is because she is being gluttonous because it’s so delicious, or if she is feeling hungry and not eating enough.
I’m slightly worried because I want her to be healthy and comfortable. Also, we hike about 3-5 miles daily so I wonder if this is not giving her enough of what she needs.
Thank you for all your great work, Rebecca
I would judge it by if she is gaining or losing weight, then adjust the portion size accordingly.