This homemade dog food is just 4 wholesome ingredients and easy to make in big batches and freeze so you can offer your pet a healthy, nutritious meal.
Last week, I brought you some of our favorite beach snacks and a few weeks I shared some of our favorite easy vacation meals to have when traveling, just in time for summer.
Today though, we're switching gears for a minute and talking about food for our favorite 4-legged dog friends.
I started feeding this homemade dog food to my chocolate lab, Dixie, when she was 13 years old. She is celebrating her 15th birthday this week. (I, of course, will be making her these easy dog cupcakes for a fun treat!)
Every time I take her to the vet for a check up now, they just marvel at how well she’s doing and what great shape she is in. And that her blood work looks so good still.
Labs, and especially big ones like her, just don’t tend to live this long without much more serious problems.
Now, a lot of that is genetics, a lot of it is the regular exercise she got as a younger dog and the vet says it’s so important that she was always at a healthy weight - never overweight.
AND…
I truly think this homemade dog food has helped sustain her in good health these last couple of years.
My friend who shared this recipe with me and uses it for her two older (and smaller) dogs also said it’s made a huge difference in their energy and even improved the quality of their coats.
And I know for sure it’s helped my sweet dog's spirits.
Dixie LOVES this food. Adores it. Cannot wait for meal time.
She gets the cutest pep in her step when she knows she’s about to be fed.
And for an elderly dog that is hanging in there with us, I am more than happy to put in the effort to bring her that kind of joy.
OK, let’s get cooking so your dog can get in on this as well!
Now, I’ve got some notes, tips and FAQs coming up below on how to make homemade dog food. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Ingredient Notes:
- Chicken: I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts when I make this food for an easy, affordable and lean protein. You can also use some ground turkey or ground beef if you’d like. You need 6 pounds of meat total, so sometimes I’ll do a combination of 4-5 pounds of chicken and 1-2 pounds of ground meat for the remainder.
- Rice: I use and recommend brown rice so that you’re offering your dog the benefit of whole grains. You can use my directions on making perfect brown rice if you’re new to it.
- Sweet potatoes: Go for similarly sized sweet potatoes so that they all cook in the same amount of time in the oven. You could also use frozen or canned sweet potatoes, just make sure there isn’t any seasoning or sweetness added.
- Pumpkin: You’ll need 6 regular size (14 oz.) cans or if you can find them, substitute 3 of the large (28 oz.) cans. Make sure it’s pure pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling.
The recipe card below includes the full instructions, but a couple of things I wanted to point out.
We’re roasting the sweet potatoes in the oven to get them nice and tender, but you could also use your Instant Pot or slow cooker to cook the sweet potatoes if you prefer.
I boil the chicken breasts in a large pot of water and then use the water to cook the rice. This ensures all the nutrition remains with the food we’re using.
However, you could also make slow cooker chicken or use the Instant Pot to cook your chicken or rice.
However you want to set it up or try to streamline it will work!
OK, let’s tackle some frequently asked questions about making and feeding homemade dog food.
Dog Food FAQs
How much do I serve?
You’ll want to consult your vet, of course, but I can share with you what I’ve done and what my friend who makes this does as well.
I have a 70-pound chocolate lab that I feed this too.
She gets ½ cup of homemade dog food in the morning and ½ cup at night.
For each feeding, that is combined with about ½ cup of her dry food, which is a joint support formation as well as ½ cup water (for extra hydration since she’s old - it was recommended by our vet).
She has maintained her weight exactly with this amount.
My friend has much smaller dogs (around 30-40 pounds) and she gives them ¼ to ⅓ cup in the morning and at night of the homemade food, combined with ¼ cup dry kibble for each feeding.
Hopefully that gives you a starting point to be able to try out an amount with your dog.
Again, talk with your vet and also monitor your pet’s weight so that you can find the right balance.
Is homemade dog food nutritious?
Yes! You are giving your pet quality food without any add-ins, fillers or chemicals.
Just wholesome, nutritious, real foods.
This combination of food also supports your pet’s needs by including protein (the chicken or ground meat), carbohydrates (the rice) as well as vitamins and minerals and fiber from the sweet potatoes and pumpkin, which also help support a healthy skin, coat, eyes, nerves and digestion for dogs.
It can be helpful - and may be recommended by your veterinarian - to combine homemade dog food with a store-bought kibble to ensure all of your dogs dietary needs are met.
It’s an easy way to cover your bases.
Is homemade dog food cost effective?
If you’re wondering about the cost effectiveness, I have looked into that as well.
One full batch of this recipe, as written below, costs just under $40. Of course, your groceries may be slightly more or less expensive than mine, but that gives you a range at least.
And for me and my large dog, one full batch lasts over 1 month, so let’s even round down and say that it’s 30 days.
That’s just a little more than $1 a day to feed your pet two wholesome, nutritious meals with no filler or add-ins or chemicals.
Of course, you’ll have to factor in that you are still using dry food in most instances, but it’s still a huge savings for me.
How do you store homemade dog food?
Once this food is made and cooled, store up to 5-7 days worth of food in a covered container in the refrigerator.
The remainder - because we're making a LOT - can be stored in the freezer for up to 3-4 months.
I put it in quart size freezer bags so I can pull one out at a time. It'll need 1-2 days to thaw, so you'll need to plan accordingly.
This way, we're only making dog food once a month or so - maybe less if your dog is smaller - and we've got food on hand that keeps.
OK, I hope that helps answer your top questions and if you have more, feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to answer them. (Anything medical, however, will need to be directed to your dog’s veterinarian.)
I’m so excited for you to give this a try and see what an absolute hit it is with your dog.
It’s a little extra work, and it can be tedious, but it’s so rewarding to know you’re giving your dog the best.
Happy cooking!
XO,
Kathryn
Homemade Dog Food
Ingredients
- 6 lbs. meat (such as boneless, skinless chicken breasts or a mix of chicken and ground turkey or ground beef)
- 6 cups rice (brown or white)
- 6 (14 oz.) cans pure pumpkin puree
- 6 medium sweet potatoes
Instructions
- Make the sweet potatoes. Preheat oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil for easy clean up. Scrub the sweet potatoes and pierce each one with a fork a few times. Place on baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 1 hour or until tender. Remove from the oven and once cool enough to handle, remove the skins and mash the sweet potatoes in a large bowl.
- Make the chicken/meat. Bring a very large pot of water to a boil. Add the chicken breasts and cook for 25-30 minutes, until cooked through. Remove the chicken to a cutting board, reserving the water. Chop the chicken into small pieces and add to the bowl with the sweet potato.
- Make the rice. Measure and use the water from cooking the chicken (for extra nutrients) to cook the rice according to package directions. Once cooked, fluff and add the rice to the large bowl.
- Add the pumpkin. Add the canned pumpkin to the bowl and stir very well to get everything evenly mixed.
- Once cooled, divide the homemade dog food into airtight containers. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days and in the freezer for up to 3-4 months.
Amy
Thank you for sharing! Really glad to have a good recipe to give the smallest family member some variety. ❤️
Kathryn Doherty
Aww, yay! Give you pup some head scratches for me! : )
Amy Belcher
About 9 months ago, our 5 year old golden retriever got very sick. We took her to the emergency vet around 10pm one night. After a lot of tests they determined that she has pancreatitis. They gave her an IV plus all kinds of meds including probiotics. The doctor said she could only have chicken and rice for the next 2 weeks. I panicked thinking how I could do this with my work travel schedule but I made the food in bulk and was able to do it. But then what? The doctor said chicken and rice plus vegetables would be best from now on. Forever? Yes, forever. Yikes. Again, I panicked. I researched Farmers Dog dog food plus many other expensive brands; they all said they can’t confidently say a dog with pancreatitis won’t have issues with their food. So I kept researching and found this recipe. It has absolutely been a game changer. Before my dogs diagnosis, she would barely eat no matter what brand of dog food we bought. Since I’ve been making this recipe, she eats ever since piece and begs for more. When she sees me bring in the sweet potatoes and canned pumpkin from the grocery, she’s all over me cause she knows those are the ingredients for her food. Thank you, thank you, thank you to the author of this recipe. It’s changed our dogs life and our lives. No issues with pancreatitis flareups since we’ve been using this recipe.
Kathryn Doherty
Oh Amy, thank you so much for sharing! This brought tears to my eyes. I am so happy you have found something that works for you AND for your sweet dog and so grateful to be part of your journey. I hope you have many more happy years of snuggles together!