Balanced Diet

Balanced Diet For Dogs

• Water should never be substituted with milk, although the latter is an essential fluid in the balanced diet for dogs. The pet should be fed with moderate quantity of milk, because it's over consumption may cause diarrhea. Ensure that your dog gets the good supply of clean water.
• Growing puppies and pregnant dogs need additional supply of calcium. Be sure to provide your pet with the essential nutrient in such special situations.
• The protein content recommended for a balanced diet for dog is 20 to 30 percent. Be sure to include protein rich food in your dog's diet. Chicken, salmon and lamb are good sources of protein, apart from pulses.
• Your dog needs 'fuel' so stay healthy and active. Hence, provide it with food rich in fat and oils. The nutrient also helps in improving the taste and digestive capacity of the pet.
• Minerals such as calcium and phosphorus are important inclusions in the balanced diet of your dog. The nutrients are required for strong bones and teeth as well as the development of cells and tissue.
• Cereals, pasta and rice are rich sources of carbohydrate, an essential nutrient required for the supply of energy to the dog. Complement the food with fibrous food, as to improve the smooth bowel movement of the pet.

Tips

• Feed your dog with food at regular interval. You may serve measured meal, twice a day. Feed your pet on scheduled timings.
• Being omnivorous, dogs love to feast on meat. However, you should remember that the pets, fed on raw meats, are susceptible to a number of diseases and infections. For example, raw liver can cause vitamin A toxicity in dogs, even if it is accompanied by a balanced diet. Moreover, small soft bones may choke the pet.
• If your dog is habitual of being rewarded with treats frequently, then you should be careful not to overdo it. Keep a check on the treats, because excess of them can perturb the static calorie balance. You should also remember that chocolates are harmful for dogs.
• Dogs are deprived of biotin, when they consume raw eggs. In addition, the consistent use of raw eggs in the dog's diet may lead to dermatitis, loss of hair and poor growth in your pet.
• Fish is high in protein content and hence, it should be included in your dog's diet. However, make sure that you provide cooked fish to your pet, because the consumption of raw fish has been cited as the cause of vitamin deficiencies in dogs. It can also result in the loss of appetite, abnormal posture, weakness, seizure in dog.
• The daily intake of balanced food, rich in all the essential nutrients, nearly eliminates the need of supplements. However, it is still recommended to provide your dog with supplements, because it only adds to the health of the pet.
• Avoid feeding your dog with table scraps, because it develops the bad habit of begging in the pet. Moreover, table scraps do not find any place in the balanced diet and may cause harm to your pet's smooth bowel movement.
• In case you are feeding your pet with shop-bought dog food, ensure that you have chosen a well known brand. Good quality is the prerequisite for the good health of the pet. Ensure that you have chosen the food according to the age, weight, breed and special needs of the dog.

Some Ready to Eat Nutrition Foods for you Dog

PEDIGREE Adult Complete Nutrition Dry Food for Dogs

PEDIGREE Healthy Longevity Dry Food for Dogs 15lb bag

Taste of the Wild Dry Dog Food, Hi Prairie Canine Formula with Roasted Bison & Venison, 30-Pound Bag

Homemade Food

Cheesy Cookies

Ingredients

• 1½ cups Flour
• 2 cups Milk
• 1 cup Cheese (grated)
• ½ stick Margarine
• 2 Garlic cloves

Procedure

• Whip the grated cheese and margarine in a bowl for 2-3 min.
• Now, add the crushed garlic and flour and mix thoroughly.
• Pour some milk and knead the mixture into a ball.
• Now, refrigerate the ball for ½ hr.
• Finally, roll and shape it into as many cookies as possible.
• Bake until the cookies are light golden brown.

Fish Patties 
Ingredients

• 1 can of Boneless salmon
• 1 Egg
• 1 Potato
• 1 Carrot
• 1 Stick of celery
• 3 tbsp Cornmeal
• 2 tbsp Canola or Rapeseed oil (oil used for salad dressing)
• Peanut butter or cottage cheese (optional)

Procedure

• Chop the vegetables and boil them in 3 cups of water.
• Beat the egg in a separate bowl, add the cornmeal and salmon pieces to it and mix well.
• Roll them into small patties and rub some cornmeal to the pieces again.
• Fry in a little canola oil, till they get light brown on both the sides.
• Now, add these fried pieces to the boiled vegetables.
• Add some peanut butter or cottage cheese, if desired.

Chicken Delight
Ingredients

• ½ kg Chicken
• ½ cup Brown/ white rice (cooked)
• 3 Potatoes
• 3 Carrots
• 3 shoots or pieces of Broccoli
• 3-4 cloves of Garlic
• 2 tbsp Canola oil
• Pepper to taste

Procedure

• Chop the broccoli sticks and carrots and boil them in 5 cups of water.
• Lightly add fried chicken and potato pieces (fried in canola oil) to the boiling concoction.
• You may also add fried garlic cloves to for extra flavor.
• Cover the pot for sometime, till the ingredients are properly cooked.
• Finally, add the cooked brown rice.
• Sprinkle some pepper for taste.

Lamb in Yoghurt
Ingredients

• ½ kg Lamb (finely chopped)
• ½ cup Brown/ white rice (cooked)
• 1 Carrot (boiled)
• 3-4 Garlic cloves
• ½ cup Yoghurt
• 1 tsp Flaxseed (ground)

Procedure

• Boil the lamb pieces and the crushed garlic cloves in 5 cups of water.
• Take out the cooked lamb pieces when tender.
• Don't drain the water and use it for cooking the rice.
• Finely mix the cooked rice and lamb mixture in a bowl.
• Add boiled carrots and sprinkle ground flaxseed to it.
• Blend it again.
• Finally add yoghurt and serve when cool.

Serve these nutritious recipes to your pet and see him wagging his tail in delight.