How
to Choose the Right Kind of Pet Food
Species,
age, activity level, environment and physiological conditions
such as growth, pregnancy or nursing affect the nutritional
needs of animals.
Steps:
1. Choose food that mentions both the AAFCO (Association
of American Feeding Control Officials) and Animal Feeding
Trials on its label.
2. Pick food that provides all nutrients for your pet, including
water, energy, protein (essential amino acids and nitrogen),
essential fatty acids, minerals and vitamins.
3. Select pet food that's balanced. Nutrients must be present
in the proper proportions.
4. Choose food that's digestible. Nutrients must be easily
broken down and made available to the animal.
5. Recognize that feeding directions on labels can only
be estimated and must be modified to fit individual pet
needs. Check with your veterinarian.
6. Consider the manufacturer's reputation when selecting
brands. Generally, you should purchase brands that are priced
higher.
Tips:
Preserving food makes water
unavailable for bacterial growth. Methods of preserving
dog food include drying, salting and canning.
Do not feed your animal
dog or cat food. The ash content in cat food can be toxic.
The protein levels in dog food are far too high for their
bodies to digest, and illnesses may result. Skin reactions
to protein are the most common side effect, and you will
notice scabbing and bare patches on animals that have far
too much protein in their diet. If you occasionally feed
your pet kitten chow, as a treat, or as once-in-awhile dinner,
your animal will be fine. Although these rodents aren't
dogs, they do enjoy playing fetch and hide with rawhide
chews. It's best to use those that are made from vegetable
products, rather than real animal hides, simply because
of the protein issues. Do not feed your pet apple seeds,
chocolates, or dairy products. These cause toxic reactions
in some cases, and you may have a very sick animal after
a few nibbles of apple seeds because of the cyanide content.
Warnings:
- Because of specific
differences between dogs and cats, dog food (particularly
vegetable-based) should not be fed to cats because of nutritional
deficiencies.
- Your pet may
not be receiving a balanced diet if more than 50 percent
of it is made up of treats or human food.
- "Palatable" means food is appealing to eat but
does not mean food is healthful.
Example
Recipes
Rice
Diet
- Triple the recipe and freeze it
divided into small yoghurt containers. The amount lasts
about 2~3 weeks and then I make more.)
Bring the following ingredients to
a boil:
1 c. water
1/2 tsp. salt (adds Iodine)
1 tsp. vegetable oil (Canola or Corn)
1/2-3/4 c. minced meat (beef, chicken or lamb)
- Add the following to the meat mixture
and bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 20-30
minutes. Rice will soften and water will be absorbed.
1/2 c. rice, uncooked, white long
grain
minced vegetables (celery, carrots, broccoli, yams, cabbage)
NB. no onions (toxic), no lettuce or tomatoes (water contents
too high)
[Any combo, I think. I use carrots, zucchini and celery
sometimes.
- Add to the mixture and cook 5 more
minutes.
1.5 oz. liver, minced
- Freeze the pieces of liver and
then mince when a bit thawed. I find this easier than when
totally thawed out.
- Remove mixture from pot and spread
on a tray to cool. When cool, mix in:
1 Tbsp. bone meal (for dogs)
1 Tbsp. wheat or oat bran
May be kept for 3 days in fridge
or frozen for longer periods.
Daily to meal, add 100-200mg Ester-C
powder. (For back care)
Cheese Bone Dog Cookies
2 cups of all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups shredded chedder cheese
2 cloves of garlic. finely chopped
1/2 cup veggie oil
4 1/2 T. water
- Ppreheat
oven to 400 F. Make a cardboard pattern of a dog bone, 4"
long, or use a dog bone cookie cutter.
- Combine flour cheese , garlic,
and veggie oil in a container of food processor.
- Cover, whirl intil mixture is consistency
of course meal. With machine running,slowly add water intil
mixture forms a ball. Divide dough into 12 equal pieces.
- Roll
out each piece to 1/2" thickness. Cut out bones. Transfer
to ungreased cookie sheet. Do not reroll scraps.
- Bake
10 -15 miutues intil bottoms are lightly brown.Cool, then
refrigerate in an air tight container.
