Dogs are primarily carnivores, which means that at least a third of their diet should be high-quality protein. They also like vegetables, grains and fruit, all of which can add interest and nutrition to their diets.
One of the most effective ways you can help your dog after he's been diagnosed with diabetes is to stop feeding him commercial dog food and prepare it yourself.
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Benefits
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Your veterinarian may prescribe a commercial canned food made especially for diabetic dogs. However, with the many recalls of tainted pet food and the high cost of prescription food, doesn't it make more sense to make it yourself? Here are some reasons to consider.
Yes, the first couple of times you make food for your dog, you'll use every pot in your kitchen and make a big mess. But you'll get the hang of it and become more efficient. Large batches can be frozen in individual portions.
You'll know exactly what's in your dog's food and feel confident you're giving him the best nutrition possible.
You will probably find that high-quality ingredients in these recipes, ingredients that you would serve to the human members of your family, cost less than buying the canned food prescribed by your veterinarian.
Considerations
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What's wrong with commercial food? According to "Natural Health for Dogs and Cats" by Richard H. Pitcairn, DVM, commercial food is loaded with artificial flavor and color, sweeteners such as corn syrup and sugar, heavy metal contamination, tainted meat and grains that have been rejected from the human food chain because of disease or spoilage, and other ingredients such as feathers, gristle, tendons, hoofs, hair and fur. Some of these are poisonous, some are empty calories with no nutritional value and some are barely digestible and provide little nutritional value.
Recipes
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These recipes were formulated by Richard H. Pitcairn, DVM, and are taken from book titled "Natural Health for Dogs and Cats."
Start with a healthy powdered supplement that is mixed into batches of food and into individual meals.Healthy Powder
2 cups nutritional or brewers yeast
1 cup lecithin granules
1/4 cup kelp powder
4 tbsp. KAL brand bone meal
1,000 mg vitamin C crystals
Mix the yeast, lecithin, kelp, bone meal and vitamin C thoroughly and store in a quart-sized container in the refrigerator.
Add the powder blend as directed to recipes and to individual meals as follows:
1 to 2 tsp. a day for toy, small dogs
2 to 3 tsp. a day for medium dogs
3 to 4 tsp. a day for large dogs
4 to 5 tsp. per day for very large dogsThis recipe is about 32 percent protein, 17 percent fat and 47 percent complex carbohydrates. It yields about 5 cups of food.
Diabetic Dinner
2 cups unsalted cooked brown rice
2 cups (about 1 lb.) ground lean turkey
1 cup unsalted home-cooked kidney beans, OR low-sodium canned kidney beans
1 egg, beaten, uncooked
1 tbsp. healthy powder supplement (see recipe above)
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. KAL bone meal
1 to 10,000 IU vitamin A and D capsule
1 to 400 IU vitamin E capsule
1 tsp. tamari soy sauce OR 1/8 tsp. iodized salt
1 small clove of garlic, minced fineBrown the ground turkey in a large skillet, using a spoon or spatula to break up the chunks. Cook until all the pink is gone. Pour the cooked turkey and its fat and juices into a large stainless steel bowl and set it aside to cool for 5 minutes.
With a pair of clean scissors, snip the tips off the vitamin A and D and E capsules and push the oil out of the capsules and into the cooked turkey. Discard the capsules.
Add the brown rice, kidney beans, beaten egg, healthy powder supplement, olive oil, KAL bone meal, tamari soy sauce OR iodized salt and the garlic to the turkey . Blend all of the ingredients thoroughly.
Serve it to your diabetic dog in the serving size recommended by your veterinarian, or using the portion sizes in the next section as a guideline.
Feeding
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Diabetic dogs suffer from blood sugar spikes that can cause long-term damage to their vision, nervous systems and circulatory systems. To keep blood sugar steady, try feeding your diabetic dog smaller meals 2 or 3 times per day instead of one giant meal every day. Consult your veterinarian for portion sizes or use this guideline:
Toy dogs: slightly less than 2 cups Diabetic Doggy Dinner per day
Small dogs: 4 cups Diabetic Doggy Dinner per day
Medium dogs: 6 to 7 cups Diabetic Doggy Dinner per day
Large dogs: 8 cups Diabetic Doggy Dinner per day
Very large dogs: 9 to 10 cups Diabetic Doggy Dinner per day
Planning Ahead
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You can make preparing your diabetic dog recipe simpler by making some ingredients in advance and freezing them in recipe-size quantities. The rice and beans, for instance, can be made ahead in large amounts. Beans can be pressure-cooked for fast use, with the excess going into the freezer. You can also double this recipe as many times as you like and freeze it in individual portions. To serve frozen food, heat it in the microwave to thaw and bring it to room temperature.
Warning
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Discuss changes to your diabetic dog's diet with your veterinarian.
Many veterinarians are opposed to homemade food, so come prepared with your recipe and the recipes of any supplements you are giving your dog, such as the healthy powder recipe. It's not that veterinarians have any special affection for pet food companies; most want what's best for your dog. However, until recently, animal nutrition and its role in health and disease received very little attention in veterinary training programs, and you might have to gently educate your veterinarian. Be firm and ask for an explanation if your veterinarian is adamant that commercial food be fed.
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