Recipe Chicken and Sweet Potato Dog Food

The Late Night Gourmet

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I ate dog food today, and I don’t mind admitting that I liked it. It was a bit bland, but otherwise it was tasty, and I can't blame my dogs for liking it, too.

Over the years, I've tried giving my dogs a variety of dog foods, from the crappy, low-end ones that I realized soon are not good for them, to a higher end product produced by a service called The Farmer's Dog. The dogs loved what they provided, and I was happy about that, except for one thing: it was costing me about $50/week to feed my two 25-pound pugs. We used to joke that they're eating better than the people in our house.

But, I've been making their food using variations of this recipe for a while now. When I posted the ground chicken on the "what did you cook" thread, I used it for the first such recipe. Since then, I've alternated ground chicken with ground turkey.

Everything in this recipe is natural: chicken or turkey, sweet potatoes, peas, and carrots. That's it. And, doing it myself cuts down the cost considerably. At this point, I am paying maybe $15 a week, which is comparable to feeding them cans of Alpo (which isn't a particularly great commercial brand).

One important point: DO NOT ADD SALT. I mentioned that this makes a bland recipe, but it's exactly what dogs need. Per the pets section of Web MD, feeding dogs excessive salt can result in dehydration and sodium ion poisoning. Don't do that to your dog (and don't give them pretzels or other salty snacks, for the same reason).

Ingredients

3 pounds ground turkey or chicken
2 pounds sweet potatoes
12 ounce bag frozen peas and carrots
DO NOT ADD SALT!

Directions

1. Peel the sweet potatoes, then shred them. You can chop them, but it will take a lot longer. Microwave shredded sweet potatoes for 1 minute on High.

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2. Add ground chicken or turkey to a large pan on medium heat, breaking up any chunks. Brown on all sides. Drain the grease, then return the meat to the pan.

3. Stir in sweet potatoes thoroughly to fully coat. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in peas and carrots. Cook for another minute or two, then remove from heat.

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4. Allow to cool somewhat, then serve. Store most of it in freezer-safe containers, and defrost as needed.
 
I've made dogfood for my dogs in the past, and my ex-wife made dog treats for them.

We researched what was good and bad for dogs first, although, when my dog Casey was 17 years old and in her final weeks, and wouldn't eat, I gave her all kinds of food that's not good for dogs, beacuse she would eat it. I tried the same thing with Teddy, but he barfed it back up. Casey died of old age, Teddy died of cancer. I think that may have been the difference.

Anyway, our dogs loved the treats my ex baked for them, and they were healthier than treats from the pet store.

But, like you said, not really suited for the human palate. We tried the dog treats, and they were not good, but the dogs loved them. As for the dog food I made, it was bland, but not bad tasting. Just very bland.

I think sweet potatoes may have been in the dog treats. Not sure, but it sounds familiar.

CD
 
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Our GSD Vito was a Wedding gift from a very good friend, this was back in 1993.
At the time, I asked our Vet what foods I could make for him, and give him a healthy diet.
She told me to just buy the commercial foods :headshake:
Granted, this was back in the days where the WWW wasn't so great, but I did research and came up with a great diet for him.
He lived to be 12 years old, that's kinds old for a GSD.
 
But, like you said, not really suited for the human palate. We tried the dog treats, and they were not good, but the dogs loved them. As for the dog food I made, it was bland, but not bad tasting. Just very bland.

I think sweet potatoes may have been in the dog treats. Not sure, but it sounds familiar.

Hey...dog treats: great idea! I might not have time to cook as often for the humans in my house, but I will make time for my dogs. :laugh:
 
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