Does anyone cook there own dog food?

So I REALLY don't want to put Lola on kibble, I went today to buy a bag and just left pissed off and without a bag. I picked up a couple cans of natural balance to see if maybe cooked style food will help with her issues. I am thinking that if that works that I will try to cook her food and then freeze it like I have done her raw for the past couple months. I have tried googling it and the results have been pretty lackluster as far as in depth guides. Anyone have a good site? If I am gonna do this I want to do it right, even down to percentages of protein to carb ratio and fillers.

On a side note, I know I am a penny pincher but damn kibble is expensive! Natures Balance is running ~3.40 per pound. I was doing raw with only high grade meat and quality veges for around $1.67 per pound. That is highway robbery!!

I have been doing a modified raw diet for about 5-6 months now. No kibble at all. We do raw meat or raw meaty bones in the morning, and THK in the evening. Doing this version allows me to buy the more expensive THK , and buy the meat in bulk and use it too.

I would recommend you try The Honest Kitchen Zeal formula. It is expensive (about $100 per 10lb box)....but, it may help with the allergies.

I re-read your earlier post, and you said you had eliminated that poultry was the issue. If you have to stay away from poultry, can you still do raw, but without poultry? Do you think she has any contact allergies, like from outside or somewhere in the house?

You may need to do a series of allergy treatments (like prednisone), just to clear up the current stuff, and then see if you can manage any future issues. I had to do this with a dog I fostered that had bad yeast allergies.

Don't give up! I would not give in to kibble just yet. And yes, kibble is big business.

Well I have found that poultry REALLY bothers her. But like right now (up until 3-4 days ago) she was eating venison as her protein source and she was still itching some. At this point I am thinking that the raw is just bothering her in some way. I change the veges just about every time, the only staples in her food have been green beans, carrots, coconut oil, and ground kelp. Sometimes I do less fruit and more veges this last batch had more fruit in it because that's what we had in the house that needed to be used.

I am thinking that by cooking the food it might mellow it out some and hopefully stop the allergies? I might be completely off but I have honestly spent 20+ hours researching and reading about raw and am at a complete loss at what I should do.

Well, i have never fed raw, but I do feed my puglets Ziwi Peak. I will never feed them ANY othr meal, thats how awesome it is ! Its fantastic for dogs with food allergies, its got no chemicals or grains, I can honestly go on forever. Fantastic for tummy health, good for the joints, healthy coat and skin, good breath, helps teeth, less smelly farts .......
It also has vitamins and proteins....I just feed it with water, and my pugs are fantastic !!!! Good for keeping them slim.

http://www.ziwipeak.com/nzl/home.shtml

There is the link :)

I cooked for Tilly for about 18 months. It was a hassle. I was always second guessing myself as to the nutritional balance, vitamins, etc and it wasn't cheap. I only bought organic and natural stuff. I belonged to a group on Yahoo that is solely about homecooking.


http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Totally_Canine_Nutrition/?yguid=156484363

I cook for Buster due to the fact that he has cancer & couldn't tolerate raw. It made him throw up for some reason. He did well on Honest Kitchen's Force but I felt that it was too high carb (carbs feed cancer). I don't have a whole lot of advice to offer because it sounds to me like you've been doing everything right as far as the raw & elimination diet goes. I don't think that cooking her food would make that much of a difference. The only thing that I would maybe change is not using carrots - they are naturally high in sugar & yeast thrives on sugar. We use mostly leafy greens (kale, spinach, cabbage), green beans, zucchini, and broccoli in Buster's food. Just make sure to steam or boil them & then puree them in a blender or food processor. Dogs lack the enzymes necessary to properly break down plant materials & absorb the nutrients before they can pass thru their system.

An excellent book that you should check out that covers both raw & cooked diets is "Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs" by Lew Olson. Really a great book for any home feeder, in my opinion. I have a few others but I like this one the best:

http://www.amazon.com/Raw-Natural-Nutrition-Dogs-Definitive/dp/1556439032/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266424695&sr=8-1

www.dogaware.com is a great website for nutrition info too.

I have honestly been considering cooking for our entire crew. It's really not that difficult or costly - just takes time to prepare everything (the main thing holding me back). It takes me just under an hour to whip up about a week's worth of food for Buster. I don't know if I can do that times five!