How to Prepare Bland Food for a Dog

Every dog will need a bland diet prepared for it at some time in its life. Bland diets are beneficial to dogs suffering from stomach upsets and diarrhea as well as more serious illnesses such as liver and kidney disease. As your dog gets older, you may need to prepare this recipe more frequently. Kibble contains many additives that can irritate your dog's stomach. When making a bland diet, it's important to pare down to the essentials: bland meat and grains with a little yogurt and pumpkin added to soothe the stomach.

Things You'll Need

  • Skinless, boneless chicken
  • Rice, either brown or white
  • Potato (optional)
  • Cottage cheese
  • Yogurt
  • Pumpkin
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Instructions

    • 1

      Boil the skinless, boneless chicken. Another meat, such as turkey, may be used instead, but chicken is commonly recommended by veterinarians. How much chicken you prepare will depend on the size of your dog. An average sized dog (around 50 lbs.) should get between 1 to 2 cups of food per day, with 1/3 of each serving consisting of meat. This recipe for bland dog food consists of one part chicken to two parts rice.

    • 2

      Prepare rice for the remaining 2/3 of the bland food. If you boiled 1 cup of chicken, cook 2 cups of rice. Mix the cooked rice with the chicken. Many veterinarians recommend white rice because it is blander than brown rice, which is generally thought to have more nutritional value for dogs. Some recipes for bland dog food recommend adding a small baked potato. This is optional.

    • 3

      Add a tablespoon of cottage cheese and/or plain yogurt, which has probiotics and soothes the stomach, to the chicken and rice mixture. For a medium or large dog, add two tablespoons.

    • 4

      Add two tablespoons of canned pumpkin, but not pumpkin pie mix, for dogs with diarrhea. Pumpkin soothes the digestive system and should help your dog with its upset stomach.