How to DIY raw dog food

There are many reasons why you may choose to DIY - saving money, reducing packaging or just to have total control over what your dog is eating.

It can seem a bit daunting at first but this blog is here to help you and equip you to make your own dog’s meals.

Raw feeding can appear time consuming and complicated. It doesn't have to be. Better still we can even supply you with the bits and bobs to create your DIY meal.

To DIY successfully you need to know 3 things:

• What ingredients you need to include in the diet and in what quantity

• What bone to feed

• What other things to add

Ingredients

You can use any muscle meat - chicken, beef, pork, lamb, duck, venison, rabbit, turkey.  The most important thing to consider is the quality. The better quality meat you feed the better quality nutrients your dog receives, it really is as simple as that.  As with our pre-made meals we recommend you use free range or grass fed meats wherever possible and wild in the case of venison and rabbit.

Added to the muscle meat is organ meat - heart, lung, liver, kidney or spleen.  This should make up no more than 10% of your dog’s diet.  You will know if you feed too much as things become a bit dark and loose.

For the purpose of DIY we shall include tripe in the muscle meat category rather than in the offal category.  If there is one type of meat to add to the bowl it is tripe. Bursting with goodness and full of easily digestible proteins. Remember though, it must be green tripe ( it actually looks rather grey in reality but it should never look white!)

Where to source your ingredients?

It’s worth having a chat with your butcher, however steer clear of butchers ‘dog mince’ as this is usually very offal heavy.  Your local supermarket clearance section is another great place to hang out.  Morrisons seems to have a particularly good range of meats and offals so always worth a visit.

How about bone?

The key here is to provide meaty bones of a suitable size for your dog’s size and age and never feed weight bearing bones. They are too hard and may damage your dog’s teeth. Meaty bones such as chicken, duck or turkey carcasses/necks or wings are perfect to feed. You could also include lamb or pork ribs too. Not only are bones full of vital nutrients they are great for keeping your dog’s teeth clean too.

If you worry about your dog gobbling a bone too quickly, always feed a bone that is roughly as big as your dog’s head as a guide.

What other bits should I add?

Leafy vegetables contain important food for your dog’s gut. Always blitz or grate them for maximum benefit. Broccoli, spring greens, green beans, spinach, cabbage, kale.  Always try to choose vegetables that are in season and are as fresh as possible.

Add oily fish once or twice a week - make sure they’re in spring water not brine.  Canned pilchards or sardines are fine.

Important points to remember:

• Dogs need muscle meats, offal and vegetables alongside meaty bones to fulfil their nutritional needs.

• Every dog is an individual, some tolerate more vegetables than others. Some owners feed 2/3rds meat and offal 1/3rd vegetable whilst others feed more in the region of 90% meat/offal to 10% vegetable. There is no one size fits all as long as green vegetables are included in the diet to some degree (remember these are needed for your dog’s gut health). Bone can be fed 2 or 3 times a week, not necessarily in every meal.

• Any vegetables added to the diet need to be blitzed or grated to provide maximum benefit.

• When DIY’ing balanced is often achieved over time - a week or month

• Variety is key, try to offer a different protein each day.

Other beneficial additions:

Eggs

Blueberries

Kefir

Bone broth

Fresh ginger

Fresh garlic

Fresh turmeric

The all important how?

We have even made it super easy to DIY.   Here’s a sample menu