PARIS, France: Remy lives in an attic. His job is to sniff for poison in food. His life is constantly in grave danger, especially when he's around humans. That's because Remy is a rat. But Remy is not your ordinary garbage-raiding, leftover-eating vermin. Remy is a rat with superb culinary skills and a taste for gourmet dishes.
If Remy, the culinary wonder from the animated film Ratatouille, won't settle for anything less than haute cuisine, why should your pet dog or cat?
Commercial pet foods are economical and convenient. Even experts recommend processed pet food because it is designed to meet your pet's nutritional needs. Sounds perfect, right? Not quite.
While there is no shortage of commercially-processed pet foods on the market, more and more pet owners are joining the bandwagon. The homemade pet food bandwagon, that is. And they have good reason to do so.
According to Animal Planet.com, homemade diets allow pet owners to give their pets sustenance which is free from by-products, chemical additives and processing. They also work best for pets with special health requirements, such as animals with food allergies, diabetes mellitus, kidney failure or weight-loss problems.
However, don't be deceived by the innocuous name - making your pet's food isn't easy. A homemade diet doesn't mean feeding your pets with table scraps. Human food, as the name implies, is made for humans. Some well-loved human treats can in fact be toxic to our pets. Examples of these are chocolates, macadamia nuts, and raw or spoiled garlic.
Pet Shed's resident veterinarian Dr. Sally Gardiner has dished out some tips for pet owners wanting to whip up a tasty and healthy homemade treat for their pets.
- 1.Check it with the vet: A good homemade diet for your pet varies depending upon your furry friend's breed and energy requirements. Make sure to consult with your veterinarian so you don't miss out on any nutrients.
- 2. Fat fact: Fat sources include vegetable oils and animals oils. Cats, in particular, must have an animal fat source. Fat also contributes to food palatability, which is especially important since pets can be rather picky at times.
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“A homemade diet doesn't mean feeding your pets with table scraps. Human food, as the name implies, is made for humans.”
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- 3. Protein pile-up: Protein sources may include eggs, cottage cheese, red meat, poultry, fish and tofu.
- 4. Carb it up: Rice, potatoes, pumpkin, corn, barley and pasta are good sources of carbohydrates for your pet's homemade diets. Carbs are usually balanced at a ratio of 1:1 with proteins.
- 5. Cook it: Meat components should be cooked properly to ensure bacteria is killed off and your pets are safe from food-borne illnesses.
- 6. Never substitute: The nutrient profile for every ingredient is different. A seemingly minor change can affect the nutritional balance of your pet's diet. So if the recipe says beef, chicken won't do.
- 7. Don't mix and match: Dog foods are for dogs in the same way that cat foods are for cats. So don't interchange. According to eHow.com's guide to making homemade pet food, dog food will not meet a cat's nutritional needs, and vice versa. And reminder to cat owners, vegetarian diets are a no-no for felines.
- 8. Keep it cool: Keep cooked pet food inside the refrigerator for no longer than three days.
- 9. Last but not least: Vitamins and minerals will be added last to your animal's homemade pet diet, based on the deficiencies in the diet.
- 10. Slowly but surely: Do not rush your pet. Switching from a commercial diet to a homemade one should be performed gradually, ideally over a period of three weeks to avoid intestinal upset.
A homemade diet for your pet need not be French haute cuisine. After all, they say that there is no place like home, and often nothing beats good ol' home cooking for your pets. With these start-up tips, every pet owner can be the master of their own kitchen and come up with their own la ratatouille for their beloved pets.
Bon Appetit!
this looks like hard work i think i will cook for my daughter instead heheh
Oh geez, no. I'm terrible at the kitchen! I think me preparing my cat's food would just do her more harm than good! lol, i might end up poisoning her!
i actually did some research about this subject some months back and i was surprised to see that there are a lot of home made recipes available online. although i have yet to try a single one, i'm just really hesitant coz i might simply do more harm than good.
Hey this is good. I'd better find me some recipes! Maybe my cat will appreciate my cooking! Nobody else does! lol
well, this seems to be a good idea. my only problem is what if my dog won't like my cooking? what will i do with it? i wouldn't want to throw it out. it's such a waste. maybe i'll just eat it instead. lol
With all consumers bein at the mercy of pet food in the market, only to be recalled a few days after, makin your own petfood is much safer. If you have time to cook, then this is a good thing. I'm all for this.
not only dog food is in danger of being contaminated by poisons. even our own food is not safe anymore. i read a news story a few weeks back about some ground beef or pork being recalled because of e-coli contamination. it's really a scary world we're living in right now. lol
Well the article doesnt say anything about it tasting real good so i guess this should be easy. lol
well, when my dog was sick and didn't want to eat, my vet told me to just boil the white meat of a chicken part and mix it with soupy cooked rice. my pooch loved it although when i tasted it, it was so bland. i guess home made pet food is really healthy and better
so far, i've been extremely lucky that nothing bad has happened to my dog yet. i really don't have time to cook for my pooch but i should really consider doing that soon. although i'm very hesitant coz i definitely can't cook.
that really depends coz if your cookings bad then am sure your pet will not feel good about it. he'll be barking for his canned food! lol!
I know someone who is obsessed with her pet that she feeds her pet fried chicken and fresh milk on a regular basis! ha! based on what i just read i do not think that qualifies under acceptable homemade pet food..
i'm just worried that if i change my dog's food, he might not get the right amounts of nutrients that he needs. i would still prefer giving him good quality dog food. i just hope that the manufacturers will keep a high standard of food safety at all times.
Anythin' to do with cookin, count me out! Can't even cook for myself, what more for those cats? I might just end up poisoning em. Id rather go for commercial foods and just give those kitties vitamins. That'll do.
i normally cook for my cat every friday. it's the treat that i give her for being good. it's also the only time i can cook coz for the rest of the week, i would be too busy and tired. but i really think that giving them fresh food is a lot better than just giving them mass produced cat food.
there is a guideline for preparing dog food that is why you dont just mix and match because of nutrition need
I chose to have cats as pets cos they are fairly low maintenance. they don't need to be taken out for walks and stuff like those. This cooking really ain't for me. Its gonna take too much time and that's what I don't have. Probably this is good for stay at home moms or somethin. but never for the working soul.
i'm actually getting some culinary classes now but not for cooking pet food. maybe it would be good for some pet food expert to offer classes for cooking pet food right?
my recipe for good pet health? lotsa love, devotion and affection. any pet owner would agree.
aaaw that is sweet. and yes i agree. the best recipe and the easiest is lovin ur pet.
Nice read, but no thank you. I am a kitchen hazard. My dog is way to special to be placed in a predicament such as a taste of my cooking. LOL!
i've always thought of the recipe for good pet health lies in three very important words: tender loving care (tlc). when you have all of these for your pet, then everything else follows.
as long as you give nutritious food and much love and attention then i think that's all you need to have a healthy pet.
i've always loved cooking for my family and i think it would be equally good to try cooking for my pets.
i always make a mess in the kitchen so i leave all the cooking to my mom. i don;t think she would have the patience to cook for my cat duke coz she cooks for the entire family. but this is nice. it would really make me more interested to learn how to cook.
i bet there are chefs out there specializing in cooking just pet foods.. now that would be.. too much. cooking for your pet seems like a lotta hard work but hey if ur that devoted i guess this works.
getting a pet nowadays seems more like hard work, not like before when getting a pet was simply fun.