Stuffed carrots might not be the ideal way to provide fresh food in your dog’s diet, but there are plenty of recipes for freshly prepared meals for your pup.

In our last home-cooking series installment we introduced you to resources available through the Balance IT website. In this article we will focus on the do-it-yourself (DIY) program available through The Farmer’s Dog. The Farmer’s Dog offers an online subscription service delivering either fresh food or nutrient mixes to add to a catalog of DIY recipes.

“There are many reasons pet owners may decide to cook at home for their dogs,” said Dr. Kristin BeVirt Patneaude. “These could include adverse reactions to ingredients, sensitive digestive systems, fussy eaters, dental concerns or other conditions requiring increased water content in the diet. Of course there is also personal enjoyment from offering fresh, healthy foods to your pet.”

Patneaude explained that getting started cooking for dogs can be a little daunting.  “There’s a vast amount of information available, leaving pet parents wondering what’s involved, whether home cooking is enough by itself or if supplements are needed to ensure a complete and balanced diet.”

The Farmer’s Dog DIY takes the guesswork out of cooking for your dog. Through the DIY program, The Farmer’s Dog offers a nutrient blend powder subscription service. The mix has been developed by their on-staff board certified veterinary nutritionists. The combination will provide your dog with meals that are complete and balanced based on Association of American Feed Control Officials (AFFCO)recommendations.

“AAFCO sets the standard for establishing safety and ingredient standards in the pet food industry,” said Patneaude.  “While some home-cooked recipes may state their recipe is complete and balanced for a particular life stage based on AFFCO standards, it is highly unlikely that AFFCO feeding trials have been performed to prove the recipe is meeting their claims.”

Most commercial pet foods have undergone AFFCO feeding trials as stated on their labels, The Farmer’s Dog recipes have undergone feeding trials that exceed AFFCO feeding trial standards of a minimum of six months for adult maintenance and 10 weeks for growth.

“They performed a1-year feeding trial at Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, in addition to long-term, at-home feeding trials,” said Patneaude.  “Additionally, The Farmer’s Dog monitors 49 blood values to assess effects on the dog’s body during the trial. This also exceeds the AFFCO feeding trial standard of monitoring four blood values.”

All that being noted, she said, getting set up is actually easy. “Just go to The Farmers Dog, where you will enter the requested information and any specific dietary needs your dog may have,” said Patneaude.  “It will calculate the caloric needs and amounts of ingredients for your recipes and ship you a box of the nutrient-mix powder. Once you are set up you will get access to their recipes so you can start cooking!”

Even pets with particular health concerns can benefit from home cooking.  “Recipes can be adapted to address health conditions such as cardiac support, cancer, food allergies, acute and chronic diarrhea, gastroenteritis, obesity, and management of the most common types of bladder stones,” said Patneaude. While not all are available in the DIY platform, there are ready-to-eat meal options for these conditions. You will easily find what you need after entering your dog’s information to include health conditions. The staff at Greendale Village Vet is also happy to help should you need guidance.

“Home cooking is such a rewarding way we can care for our dog’s health,” she said. “Unfortunately, without appropriate support, the best of intentions can often lead to dietary deficiencies and the resulting complications. The Farmer’s Dog DIY can be a great way to ensure that you are giving your dog everything it needs.

“Hippocrates said, ‘all disease starts in the gut.’  As modern medicine catches up with the theory of this profound statement, the importance of fresh whole foods in all our diets cannot be stressed enough,” said Patneaude. “Our furry family members are no exception. By cooking at home, the DIY program can make providing fresh complete and balanced food safe and affordable.”

For more information or to make an appointment, visit https://greendalevillagevet.com/ or call 414-421-1800.