In our household, we have five dogs which we feed normal food every meal time. It consists of corn, sardines, rice and some leftovers all mixed together. We do not go with the usual dog food which can be bought in pet stores or supermarkets. The main reason is that this mix of foods is a cheaper alternative to dog food. Another is that our dogs don’t really like the dry, biscuit like dog food pellets, but they like the wet canned ones, which are more expensive. But a disadvantage of this is that you still have to prepare the meals of your dogs which can be very time-consuming. What is your take on this? Do you go for pet food or normal food?
A mix of the two works fine for me. Some table scraps and store bought pet food. However, not all table scraps are great for pets. Giving your pets certain kinds of bones would cause problems. Bone fragments could get stuck in the throat and you'd probably have spend a substantial amount of money to get the bone removed by a vet. Or if a pet swallows bones without chewing them, they can splinter in the digestive tract and perforate the stomach, intestines, etc. Not something you want for your pet, right?
We don't have pets, but most of our family and friends do. They too do a mix of dog food and the dry pellets and biscuits, because canned dog food is way off the scale expensive. Sometimes they do treat their pets to the canned variety but not very often. My father-in-law goes one further and prepares his dog fine human food; like for breakfast the dog gets Weetabix with milk, and then for dinner it could be steak or even roast chicken. He gets his own whole roast chicken!
We only feeder our cats dry cat food. For some reason, wet food makes the cats vomit (nothing wrong with them, they just can't keep it down for some reason) so we stick with dry only. We never give them people food though. They have their own cat treats (it's the kind with vitamins, made for them.) so there is not reason to give them our food.
Which brand of cat food do you feed them? Because I avoid Whiskas now ever since it caused my cat kidney troubles and developed stones from it. So I just feed him table food ever since. Anyway, regarding our dogs, we feed them a mixture of both people food and dog food, and nothing bad has happened to them after all these years of feeding them dog food.
With my dogs it tends to be a mixture of both. We will put in dog food along with regular food such as table scraps. With our cats we tend to stick mostly to cat food. Mainly because they are more particular and won't eat just anything. Maybe this is a good thing because in the cats wanting only cat food we at least know they are getting their proper nutrtion necessary to stay healthy.
I have a cat, and I don't think they should be given normal food, so... pet food only. Mostly wt, mixed with some dry food, my cat doesn't want to eat only dry food for some reason. She always takes a couple of bites and then goes away.
I switched over to making our own dog food a few years back. I don't consider it "normal" food because it's made directly for them. I use a specific ratio of carbs, protein, etc, to meat their specific needs instead of mine, etc. Log In
Dogs need a good deal of meat product, they do like things like green beans and mine strangely like cauliflower, various types of leafy greens and some fruits like oranges. As a rule I use both canned food and regular foods. I think that just canned food alone does not give near enough of the nutrients that a dog needs. I add cooking scraps and fresh vegetables or fruit as she either bothers me for it, or as I cook. I also have started to give my dog a daily fish oil capsule as it is high in omega 3's and that is vital for a dogs health. My dog seems to like it, takes it willingly and eats it right down. The only thing the dog does not seem to like is mushroom, she will pick this out and lay it next to the dish every time. Over all she seems very health, is not over weight and has a nice shiny coat. Her eyes look clear and she does not seem to be lacking in anyway. I have been fortunate that all my dogs seem to do well with this kind of food mixing.
I would love to feed my dog 'people' food. It would likely extend his life & the quality of life would improve. It's just impossible to afford. Unless I use more rice than I do protein but that would defeat the purpose of making his food from scratch.
We do feed our pets with cat food and dog food (they can eat either one, depending on availability of supply and their mood). Unlike dogs, however, cats easily get bored when you feed them with the same thing over and over again. The only food they don't get tired of is fish. For variety's sake, we try to combine feeding our pets with both dog/cat food and normal food.
Feeding them dry pet food is just much more convenient. That said I do occasionally prepare some meat and scraps for my dog as a treat.
My family feed our dogs with pet food most of the time but sometimes we give him leftover meals as long as they contain meat or fish and as long they don't have a lot of oil or spices in it. However, in case of very spicy food such Chinese food or oily food such as burgers, then we prefer to throw them away if we don't eat them. I know somebody that feed his dog with any leftover meals including pizzas, salads, spaghetti, etc. and I think those food can potentially affect the dog's health. I don't want to risk it.
A mix of pure table scraps some days and dried pet food the next. That is what we serve our cats. When we went on all out dry food, two of our cats had complications in their kidneys and eventually died even when we changed their diet. So from then, we alternate their food regularly.
I really don't think it's the best option for dogs to eat human food. Sure they can live on it, but there are a lot of complications that can arise with dogs that eat people food. Think about it like this: dogs are very much like babies; they'll eat anything you feed them as long as it tastes great, but you don't really want to feed your child unhealthy food now do you? It's weird that we humans have unhealthier diets than our pets, but it's also a fact. I try to eat healthy and I make sure my dog does too.
I haven't thought about making my own dog food for our dog! I am always worried that what I make isn't complete nutrients for him. I opt for dry dog food and I find it more convenient when we are travel to other people's house. I don't need to make a mess out of their house and also have time to relax with my visits!
I used to make homemade food for my cat. I know you're talking about dogs here but it works for cats too. I just don't have the time/energy anymore unfortunately and my 1 cat has to be on a vet diet because of his health. I do give the other 2 some table scraps though.
Our pets (cats and dogs) get a bit of pet food every day along with plenty of table scraps. I don't mind giving them table scraps, but tend not to like to feed them from the table. My husband, however, loves to feed them from the table and they line up around his chair like the little beggars they are. When the scraps aren't coming fast enough the two dogs and one of the cats will look at the other cat, the spokes-pet of the bunch, and that cat will then stand up on two legs and bat my husbands arm until the scraps start coming again. It drives me crazy and makes me laugh, too.
I used to cook for mine but it is really time consuming. I have switched to a top quality kibble and they seem to like it just fine.
Actually, I doubt you're eating worse than recalled foods, road kill, slaughterhouse scraps and euthanized pets. Among other grossness no being should be consuming. Yep.. even the "healthy" brands. As much as I don't condone sharing much of what people eat on a processed diet.. I'd rather see our pets eating that junk than what they're given in their canned and kibble foods. There are a lot of horrible things going on in the pet food industry.
