Homemade dog food recipes for senior dogs and those with medical issues aren't as difficult to make as I thought they would be. If you use my tips it doesn't even take that much time! Just a note - I am not a vet. This recipe was given to me by my vet to feed to my dog that has kidney failure. It is meant to be low protein. You should not feed this (or any new food) to your dog without talking to your vet first.
If you are following the Restless Chipotle Facebook page you already know that we had a serious issue with Cuddles, our pit bull (yes... Cuddles. If you have a pit you understand why that name, I'm sure).
We aren't sure how it happened but he got a bacterial infection and his kidneys began to shut down. He spent a week in doggie ICU -- refusing to eat.
When he got home he refused the special low-protein dog food and he just got thinner and thinner. It was time for some homemade dog food recipes!
I finally started making a dog food gruel that he would eat and he began to make a comeback.
It was a long, hard road! When I took him in for his check up and talked to the vet she gave me a recipe that she approved of. You see, although we have always fed our dogs premium dog food the protein was way too high for Cuddles now.
My vet explained that even our older dogs who were healthy should have less protein than before. She said dog food recipes for Cuddles had to be under 20 grams of protein but under 10 was better.
This recipe has 6.9% protein and Cuddles loves it. In fact, our older dog does, too. He is playing and jumping around like a puppy.
The other two (yes, we have four -- 2 yorkies that moved in when my husband and I got married and my old dog which is a long haired chihuaha mix-up, and then Cuddles) like the food as well so I mix it in with their dog food.
Cuddles is a rescue dog - both of my dogs are.
We found him under our porch one day. When my son coaxed him out we saw that his chest and shoulders were basically shredded. He had been used as a bait dog -- thrown in with pit bulls being trained to fight.
I am horrified to say that there is a lot of that in my area. Anyway, my son had been wanting a pit bull and praying for one -- who am I to argue with God?
We found him on a Saturday so of course there were no vets open. I wasn't sure if he wasn't going to need his leg amputated it was so bad.
Shreds of flesh and muscle infested with maggots. I had my husband and son hold him so I could clean the wounds with cotton swabs and a copious amount of peroxide.
I was nervous because here I was digging into this dog's wounds and he was a big dog with big teeth -- even if he was skinny.
That dog never even snapped at me. He looked it me with those big eyes and pushed at my hand with his nose. That was all. I
cleaned those wounds a couple times a day all weekend long and then to my vet.They kept him overnight, put him out, scrubbed a couple of pounds of mud and dried blood off of him, then fixed him up.
Tip
When you make homemade dog food recipes for senior dogs, and those with kidney failure, it's important to use the fattiest, cheapest ground beef you can find. You want more fat and less protein.
Totally the opposite of what I do when I'm making meatballs for us, for example.
I get a big chub pack and cook all of it up at once with the eggs that go in the recipe. Then I divide in in portions and freeze it. When I need another batch of food I thaw it and add the rest of the ingredients. So easy!
The recipe calls for boiled eggs but I crack raw eggs into the nearly cooked ground beef and then cover the pan until everything is cooked and the yolks are cooked through. Then I chop them into the ground beef.
You May Need...
The following are affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Thanks so much for being a part of Restless Chipotle!
It's very important that you use a kitchen scale to make this and to serve it. It must be done by weight.
This is similar to the kitchen scale I use and it works really well.
Escali Glass Digital Kitchen Scale is thin and accurate plus easy to clean. Just remember to put your dogs bowl on the scale and zero the scale out before measuring in the food.
Measure everything very accurately and be sure not to make any substitutions or changes. The food should be refrigerated in an airtight container and eaten within three or four days.
Also - get a good canine multivitamin like (another affiliate link) Pet MD Multivitamin plus Minerals. This is extremely important because your food will not be enriched like the commercial foods are.
Update
I am sad to update this to say that Cuddles succumbed to his kidney disease but he lasted longer than the vet thought he would. His kidneys were just very weak.
We miss him terribly but within a few months two more pitties were at our kitchen door, starved and abused. We just couldn't resist Toby and Bisous.
Homemade Dog Food Recipes for Senior Dogs
Print Rate RecipeIngredients
- ¼ pound ground beef, (do not use lean)
- 2 cups cooked white rice, (no salt)
- 1 hard cooked egg, , peeled and chopped
- 3 slices white bread, , crumbled
- 1 teaspoon calcium carbonate, (blend a bottle of calcium carbonate in the blender until it's a powder then keep in a resealable plastic bag)
Instructions
- Cook the beef until it is cooked through.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients and mix it well.
- Feed twice a day.
- Be sure to give your dog a vitamin supplement.
Notes
5 pounds feed ¼ pound
10 pounds feed ½ pound
20 pounds feed 1 pound
40 pounds feed 1 ½ pounds
60 pounds feed 2 pounds
80 pounds feed 2 ½ pounds
100 pounds feed 3 pounds
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
Love this recipe?
Subscribe to the free membership group and never miss another recipe!
Marilyn Haire says
OMG! So many thanks for this site! My older dog [15-17] has been to the vet 3 days straight after refusing food & water into 4th day. Kidney tests show low kidney function of as yet undetermined origin. My vet gave similar diet without the meat. He suggested grits or even cheese (for fat content) grits as gruel first while stool is liquidy until near normal. Then thicken consistency. They will rerun tests on 5th day of diet. Hoping for full recovery. Again: Thanks so much for recipe!
Marye Audet says
Id be careful of cheese because of the protein. Thanks for commenting!
Chris Marrs says
In the servings, is it 2 1/2 pounds divided into two meals a day or 2 1/2 pounds twice a day?
Marye Audet says
It depends on the size of your dog. We feed twice a day.
patricia colley says
do you mean cups in how much to feed because my dog weighs 24 lbs but needs to lose weight and a pound of food is way too much. Do you mean a half a cup for every five pounds? I tried using the scale and weighing out 8 ounces and it seems like way too much.
Marye Audet says
I'd suggest talking to your vet.
Holly says
Our vet gave us this recipe for our dog whose kidney levels are continuously decking after a bout with lime. This is the only recipe we have found that he will actually eat!
We feed our dog twice a day as well. He is about 40lbs so the recipes says 1 1/2 cups. Do we do 1 1/2 cups in the morning and another 1 1/2 cups in the evening? Or .3/4 cup in the morning and 3/4 cup in the evening? Thank you!
Marye Audet says
Try 3/4 and 3/4 and adjust as you need to, Holly
Maria Oliveira says
Is ground turkey or chicken better than beef?
Marye Audet says
The fat from the beef is needed - ground poultry is too lean.
carol says
Too lean, but beef is higher in protein...use chicken thighs WITH skin for fat
Elsea says
My vet gave me this recipe a couple of days ago. There were a few differences in that the recipe she gave me said the beef should be 80% lean, only use 1/2 of the boiled egg, 2 pieces of white bread and 1-1/3 cups of the white rice (instant). For the calcium carbonate I was told to use tums. The recipe also called for 1/2 tsp of vegetable oil and a "dash' of iodized salt. This was the daily diet for a 40 lb dog - my dog is a bit bigger than that so the hope is he'll more than just this during the day (I also have the prescription K/D for him as well). Thanks for posting the recipe and encouraging people to be sure this would be good for their pets!
Beth Small says
I found this while looking for low protein treats. My dog has liver disease and I also recently started making her food. I use Balanceit.com to create recipes based on her illness, age and weight. They sell a supplement for the homemade food so your pet (dog or cat) gets all the nutrients they need.
sandy says
DO you drain the hamburger fat?? then add the rest of the ingredence?
Marye Audet says
No leave the fat in.
Cheryl M. says
I just checked with my vet about this recipe for my 15 year old dog ^ he OK'd it for him. So my question is about the calcium carbonate. The recipe calls for 1 tsp. But when I went to the store there were various kinds with different milligram levels. There is regular strength, ultra strength, 500 mgs, 1000 mgs, etc. What strength or milligram level should be in the 1 tsp.?
Marye Audet says
I can remember how it was done - check with your vet.
mary says
Hi. Thx for the recipie. Just bought an expensive bag of renal food. Was going to mix in your recipie to supplement and make it stretch... It`s confusing. He ate 1/2 cup of food per day (20 lb dog). A pound seems like alot. I'll need to watch his weight, but i know he'll like your recipie