Why switch to a cooked diet?
When looking at the composition of commercial dog food, i.e. mainly canned food and kibble, it is sometimes appalling what is in the food.
If you don’t pay much attention to the ingredients in kibble and canned food, you may be feeding your dog a poor quality and inadequate food. The quality of the food affects the lifespan of your dog. This is proven by several studies from abroad, the results of which indicate that dogs fed industrially produced food live on average a few years less than dogs fed a homemade varied diet.
With canned food and kibble, it is very important to be careful that it does not contain chemical preservatives, colourings, spices, artificial stabilisers or flavourings. In addition, you should also not settle for canned food that contains “meat and animal by-products (5% chicken)”.
How to switch from kibble to cooked food?
When changing your diet, the transition needs to be very gradual. It is definitely not advisable to switch from kibble to meat overnight. Dogs with more sensitive digestion will not thank you for this. This is because dogs digest kibble and meat (raw or cooked) differently.
When switching from commercial food to a homemade diet, you need to plan a feeding schedule for at least two weeks. During this time, the dog should be taken off his old food and new food added gradually. With such a gradual transition, the dog should not have any subsequent problems such as digestive problems or softer stools.
Ideally, you should plan your switching programme as follows:
- For the first 4 days, remove 20% of the old food and add 20% of the new food
- For the next 4 days, remove 40% of the old food and add 40% of the new food
- For the next 3-4 days, remove 60% of the old food and add 60% of the new food
- For the next 3-4 days, take 80% of the old food away from the dog and add 80% of the new food
- If the dog has had no health problems during this time, now is the time to finally switch fully to the new food
Benefits of cooked dog food
When you feed your dog homemade food, you can be sure that you know what you are feeding him. The food contains no harmful substances, preservatives or additives.
There are several meats to choose from, and when combined with the addition of offal and side dishes, it can be a very tasty food option. Dogs often prefer this food to a raw diet.
Cooked food is also very digestible, so it is an obvious choice for dogs with sensitive digestion.
There can be misinformation among owners that cooking individual ingredients loses all their necessary nutrients. However, this is a misconception, as confirmed by many vets. However, it is certainly advisable not to boil the ingredients directly in water, but to steam them. This prevents the ingredients from coming into contact with water and keeps the food wholesome. Studies suggest that cooking in this way makes the food at least as valuable as raw food.
Of course, there are some disadvantages, such as the greater labour involved in preparing the feed. The food also does not contain bones like raw food, so we have to supplement the pets’ calcium in the form of a supplement.
