Healthy homemade dog food needs a balance of protein (meat/fish/eggs), carbs (rice/sweet potatoes), fiber (veggies like carrots/beans), and fats (oils/egg yolks), plus crucial vitamins and minerals (often from supplements or organ meats) to be complete, with common ingredients including chicken, lean beef, brown rice, sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, and a healthy oil like olive or coconut oil, but always consult a vet to ensure nutritional completeness for your specific dog.
butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, fennel, peas, zucchini, carrots, sweet potato, fresh spinach, cooked potato (in moderation), pumpkin, celery, broccoli (chopped), frozen peas, bell peppers, green beans, or kale.
A properly balanced homemade meal typically includes:
There is a wide variety of unhealthy and unsafe foods to avoid when preparing meals for your dog. Potentially toxic ingredients are of special concern, including chocolate, xylitol, avocado, grapes, raisins, onions, garlic, and macadamia nuts.
Canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling), blueberries, cut up carrots, baked sweet potatoes (plain), plain Greek yogurt, oatmeal, melted coconut oil.
What Should Top 3 Ingredients Be in Dog Food?
The short answer is no, it's not ideal to feed your dog chicken and rice every day for an extended period of time. While chicken is a great source of lean protein and rice provides easily digestible carbohydrates, this combination lacks the essential nutrients that a balanced dog diet requires.
Concerns About Bacteria in Raw Dog Food
One of the most common reasons veterinarians oppose raw diets is concern about pathogens like Salmonella, Listeria, or E. coli—not just for pets, but for humans in the household as well.
The 95% Rule in dog food labeling, set by AAFCO, means a product named after a specific ingredient (e.g., "Chicken Dog Food") must be at least 95% that ingredient by weight (excluding water) and 70% including water, with the ingredient listed first and comprising more than 95%. If two ingredients are named ("Chicken & Beef"), they must total 95% (minus water), with the first ingredient being more abundant and both making up at least 3% each. This rule ensures transparency, indicating foods with a very high concentration of the named ingredient.
The 90/10 rule for dogs means that 90% of their daily calories should come from a complete and balanced dog food, while only 10% should come from treats, chews, and table scraps, preventing weight gain and ensuring proper nutrition. This guideline helps owners manage treat portions, preventing unbalanced diets and health issues like obesity, joint problems, and diabetes, as treats can be surprisingly high in calories, even healthy ones.
What Human Food Can Dogs Eat? [With Health Benefits]
The 90/10 rule for dogs means 90% of their daily calories should come from a complete, balanced dog food, while only 10% should come from treats, training rewards, and any extra human foods or toppers, preventing nutritional imbalances and obesity. This guideline ensures essential vitamins and minerals are met through their main diet, keeping treats as occasional indulgences rather than dietary staples.
Yes, dogs can eat cooked eggs in moderation. Boiled, scrambled, and poached are all great options—as long as they're plain and not cooked in butter or oil. Raw eggs should be avoided due to potential health risks such as salmonella and reduced nutrient absorption.
Starting With Protein
The first five ingredients of your dog's food should always start with protein. Dogs are omnivores, so they receive energy and nutrients from both plant and animal nutrients. But protein is essential to their muscle and tissue development, immune system health, energy, and healthy skin and nails.
80/10/10 dog food refers to the Prey Model Raw (PMR) diet, a popular raw feeding method with a ratio of 80% muscle meat, 10% raw edible bone, and 10% secreting organs (like liver and kidney), aiming to mimic a whole prey animal's diet. While considered a natural approach, many experts stress that this model alone often lacks essential nutrients, requiring additions like fatty fish, kelp, or supplements to provide complete nutrition and prevent deficiencies, especially for long-term feeding or growing puppies, notes Houndsy and The Canine Dietitian.
Try soft foods
Long, slow cooking softens meat, beans, pulses and vegetables. Use more sauces, gravies, cream, butter, milk or custard to soften foods. Moist food is easier to swallow than dry food. Make milkshakes (banana, chocolate, strawberry) and add ice cream for extra calories.
There's no single "number 1" healthiest dog food, as the best choice depends on your dog's age, breed, and health; however, look for foods meeting AAFCO standards (Association of American Feed Control Officials), with real meat as the first ingredient, and vet-recommended brands like Hill's Science Diet, Purina Pro Plan, and Royal Canin are often cited for balanced nutrition. Freshly prepared or raw diets can also be healthy but carry risks, so always consult your vet.
Common toxic foods for dogs
Studies have shown that dogs fed fresh diets can live up to 2.5 years longer than those on commercial diets. Research also shows that fresh dog food changes the skin's bacterial diversity and promotes better overall health [2].
Homemade meals may even make it possible to feed your dog well for less. Even when you add the cost of a vitamin/mineral supplement and calcium, it can still cost less than commercial food (like, as little as $3 a day).
Three toxic types of meat for dogs include fatty, processed meats (like bacon, sausage, ham) due to salt/fat causing pancreatitis and sodium issues; seasoned meats with onions/garlic (allium) that damage red blood cells; and cooked bones, which splinter and cause internal damage or blockages, potentially requiring surgery. Raw meats can also carry harmful bacteria like Salmonella or E. coli.
It's a 100% protein and mixes with homemade dog food well. Peas, carrots, spinach, blueberries, sweet potatoes. I also add ground turkey in with with the chicken. Then I add fish oil, turmeric and then ill heat up a little of the chicken broth that's left over from when I cooked the chicken.
Each dog needs plenty of protein, easily processed from a high-quality meat source, like muscle tissue. Your pet can also benefit from fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats for body maintenance. The combination of these creates what every pet parent is looking for: a balanced diet.