~ New: Our Dogs Alive Raw Diet Guide! See the bottom of the page for more information ~
Hello! We're glad you found us! If you are anything like us, you have searched the internet for recipes so you can safely cook for your beloved dog(s) - but have come up empty-handed! We too want to do the very BEST for our dogs in every way and got fed up with commercial dog foods and the dishonest companies that make them after the dog food recalls involving thousands of pet deaths in 2007. We decided that we needed to have as much control as possible over what our dogs were fed to ensure that they were kept safe and in good health. But looking for recipes that not only agreed with the breed we raise (Boston Terriers), one that kept them in good weight, one that supplied a balanced amount of nutrients based on objective research one that they liked and one that was easy to make - led us down a confusing and empty path! So we set out to develop a diet that did all of the above - and more. Since we have showdogs, we have very high standards and need a very high quality, concentrated food that will keep proper muscle tone, give great shiny coats and keep a dog in top show condition. We wanted something with repeatable results - that meant the stools had to be the same each day, they had to hold their weight and we needed a cross section of many different dogs to test it on so that we knew we had a solid recipe. Since I am a breeder, I had the luxury of testing it on my own family of reproducing dogs, and I also enlisted the help of other breeder friends around the country who tested the recipe on their dogs as well. I spent a year working out all the details using the National Research Council's recommended values for nutrients and I watched 3 litters being born to dams who ate modified versions of it. I saw my dogs change in some amazing ways - they became "happier" (if that's possible for a Boston!), their body condition greatly improved, and best of all, they became healthier! Their stinky mouths became fresh smelling! My husband said "their mouths smelled like garbage because they were eating garbage"! Their tear stains disappeared. Their stools got smaller and MUCH less frequent. Their coats became softer and shinier - and I had a record year for the fewest vet visits (In 16 months, I only went to the vet for progesterone testing to pinpoint ovulation, for routine c-sections to deliver the pups, and once to pick up some heartworm medication!) My vet has never seen so little of me, lol. I discussed the diet with two of my vets, and they both requested copies for their clients, as unfortunately vets have very little training or knowledge about the intricacies of nutrition.
Once I felt the diet was stable, I had bloodwork done on dogs eating it to make sure all organs were functioning properly and that there were no signs of any deficiencies or toxicity. All blood levels including thyroid hormone levels came back 100% normal! I also continued to follow the health and reports of my "beta testers" and all was going swimmingly with them too. I spent 6 more months after this continuing the diet just to make absolutely sure that it was safe and that the dogs were doing well on it before I felt it was ready to offer to the public. I have gotten so many requests over the past year for the diet, but I did not want to offer it until I was 100% confident that it was "safe and effective". Now that I have reached the 16 month point, I can finally feel confident in offering those who want to cook for their dogs a safe diet to try. NOTE: I've been using this diet now since 2007) Over the past year I have had so many people tell me they can find almost nothing about balanced cooked diets that have been tested on multiple dogs.
I wanted to make a repeatable, solid, easy diet for dogs that could be made up in a short time with a few reasonably priced and easily found ingredients that one would look forward to making. A diet that uses nutrient levels that were calculated to match the ingredients used and not just ones that were guessed at or shotgunned like the dog food companies do with their standard vitamin pre-mixes. A diet for "regular people". And one for easy kitchen cleanup! I have never had a dog turn their nose up at any variety of my diet, even the fussiest eaters have eaten it happily.
Here are some of the highlights and benefits of my diet:
1. It uses all human foods and supplements - no ingredients are made for animal consumption. You can eat it yourself. See if you can find that statement on a bag of dog food. They tell you it's made with all "human grade" ingredients in one breath, then they tell you it's "not for human consumption". I wrote one of the commercial companies where the bag made both of these statements and asked them why they say it's human grade ingredients, but that humans should not eat it? I received no response...
With my diet, you prepare it so you know EXACTLY what's in it. You have complete control just as you do when you cook for yourself.
2. It supplies the correct amounts and ratio of calcium to phosphorus for adults.
3. It supplies the correct balance of Omega 3 to Omega 6 Fatty Acids. Research has shown that when using the correct amount and ratio of fatty acids, litter sizes can be increased and brain development in puppies is enhanced, and coats GLOW.
4. It supplies the correct ratio of copper to zinc. These two minerals work in conjunction with each other and need to be in the correct balance.
5. The base diet of the beef and lamb versions uses only 3 food ingredients plus one optional one to regulate stools a little more if necessary. This means it's highly concentrated so you feed less, it's easy to assemble and inexpensive to buy. All ingredients are readily available at grocery stores or warehouse stores such as Costco or Sam's Club. The base diet of the chicken versions adds one more ingredient, also inexpensive and easily found in grocery stores. All diets are grain-free depending on how you choose to use them.
6. FLEXIBILITY. The base diets are complete and balanced as-is. However, for those who want to add more ingredients or more variety (totally optional and not needed for good health), I have tested additional ingredients and give a list of those that work well with the diet. This means that you have the flexibility of adding as much or as little as you want while still knowing the simpler base diet is all you need for those busy days or for when you need to stretch your dollar a little further.
7. The diet has been tested on my family of reproducing dogs - plus it has been tested by other breeders who agreed to participate in my feeding trials. This way I got a better cross section of dogs than if I were to have only tested it on my own. Others that sell diets, even Veterinary Animal Nutritionists have not tested their diets on actual dogs and the ingredients are insanely out of balance. The 
company doesn't test their diets. Not only that, but they supply a diet for a 15 lb dog that calls for 12-1/2 oz of potato and 2-5/8 oz of meat! This is a HUGE amount of potato and a TINY amount of meat. The overall amount is so huge that no 15 lb dog could ever even finish it (my dogs tried!). It then adds corn oil - a really unhealthy oil for dogs that supplies almost nothing in the way of fatty acids, not to mention there are no added Omega 3's at all. And these are developed by Board Certified Veterinary Nutritionists! We all know that dogs need at least 1/3 of the diet supplied as meat. And people's vets are knowingly sending clients to this site for dietary help....
8. I have not relied on widely available layperson's books found in book stores on home-prepared diets for pets nor other web sites with information on diets for dogs. I also have not used AAFCO nutrient levels. I have used the NRC's recommended levels since these have been actually tested and proven safe and effective on dogs, whereas AAFCO levels have not (commercial dog food manufacturer's use AAFCO levels as AAFCO was appointed by the dog food companies themselves and allows them to circumvent the testing). Little known fact: A COMMERCIAL DOG FOOD DOES NOT HAVE TO BE TESTED ON DOGS BEFORE A FOOD IS MASS-MARKETED (most are not). Anyone can set up shop and produce and sell pet food.
9. My diet meets or exceeds the NRC daily requirements for all nutrients when feeding adult dogs up to 20 lbs. I may in the future offer the diet for larger dogs, but it will be very time consuming to do this and I need a rest :-) Let me know if you have an interest in a larger dog version though.
10. If you are still not convinced that cooking for your dog is the best you can do, see my Dog Food Page for more information on my disillusionment with commercial dog food including pictures of "things" I've found in bags and cans of food, pictures of my naturally fed dogs and puppies and more info on my diet.
I am offering 4 different cooked meat-based recipes for adults, one for pregnancy and lactation and a raw diet. The cooked recipes contain photos, detailed tips such as what temperature to cook your meat to so that it is not overly cooked but that it is cooked enough to kill any bacteria, the full list of foods and supplements you need, a list of online sites with direct links to them for buying your supplements (though you may order from anywhere you like, I just found inexpensive sources online), other tips and hints for saving time and getting the best results and more!
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Recipe (* see note under pregnancy recipe) |
(cooked boneless breasts, also good for dogs needing cancer support) |
Recipe (using Perdue ground chicken) |
(thighs, requires a meat grinder) |
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Recipe NOTE: You must buy hormone-free beef for breeding bitches as the hormones in normal beef will affect the ability of your bitches to cycle normally and to get pregnant if they eat regular ground beef over an extended period of time. |
Puppy Recipe For puppies 5 lbs and over |
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2 adult recipes - $31.99
3 adult recipes - $38.99
All 4 adult recipes - $42.99
Pregnancy/Lactation recipe - $31.99
Puppy Recipe - 31.99
To receive the volume discount multiple recipes must be purchased at the same time.
My raw diet feeding guide is ready! Due to popular requests, I have created a raw feeding diet guide for those who want to feed their small dog raw safely but don't know where to begin. If you are nervous or squeamish when you think about feeding your dog raw meat - but still have a secret curiosity as to what it's all about and the possible health benefits, this guide is for you! It's based on my feeding and preparing trials that have gone on for many years alongside of my cooked recipes.
It is based on my experience of trying many different approaches to feeding my Boston Terriers raw in a safe manner. It is not the only way to feed raw, but it is what I have had the best luck with given the knowledge I have about food safety and nutritional needs. My dogs eat my cooked diet recipes because it is easier for me to make and it’s less expensive when feeding multiple dogs. That said, this guide is for you if:
1. You believe your dog will do best on a homemade raw diet with few to no carbs (you
decide the amount of carbs you will feed)
2. You have tried commercial raw and either:
~ You worry about possible bacteria in it and how it was handled/transported (did it thaw in
transit?)
~ You worry about what the source of the meat really is
~ Your dog did not do well on it because the meat content or quality was too low
~ You found commercial raw to be too expensive or too hard to find
~ You worry about dogs choking on bone chunks in commercial raw
3. You worry about dogs choking on raw whole pieces of meat and bone as they consume
them (such as in the prey model diet)
4. Your dog has a health problem that you have heard could possibly be helped with a raw diet
5. You simply want to have full control over what your dog eats and feel that making it
yourself is the only way that can be accomplished.
6. You have read tons of stuff online, have watched youtube videos and are still thoroughly
confused as to where to start and what the best approach to use is.
7. You have, or are willing to buy a meat grinder that can grind meat and bones
8. You want a recipe that has been tested on multiple dogs over time before you take the
plunge yourself.
9. You want to benefit from my trial and error "raw meat messes" in the kitchen and do it right
from the start. It was a very long process both mentally and in practice to get here from
where I started!
I have to list the usual disclaimers, so here goes :-)
Please use these recipes at your own risk. I have tested and continually revised them using my own family of showdogs starting in March of 2007. As of these versions, I consider the recipes to be stabilized and I am getting 100% repeatable results (the ability to hold weight, have firm stools consistently, show good coats and energy levels) as well as the ability of my dogs to reproduce, nurse and go from weaning to adulthood on a separate version for reproduction and weaning (weaning not available to the public yet). I am not a vet nor am I a Veterinary Animal Nutritionist and the diets have not formally been checked by a vet or a nutritionist (although after seeing my dog's blood test results, 2 of my vets requested copies for their clients!) Other fellow breeders I know participated in my trial along with me so I could get additional feedback from others who have dogs unrelated to mine. I calculated the nutrients myself using scholarly resources such as the National Research Council publication, USDA's Nutrient Data Laboratory and other scholarly references and publications. These diets meet or exceed the NRC daily requirements for all nutrients when feeding Adult dogs over 6 months between 12-20 lbs. and puppies over 5 lbs to 6 months to the best of my knowledge.
So far we have had fantastic results, but your dogs may not be like mine and there could be hidden dangers when using this recipe that I am not aware of. This is a recipe of my own creation from start to finish and it does not appear in any book or on any web site. My dogs are doing well on it but yours may not. If you see anything about your dogs that you don't like after giving the diet a chance, please stop feeding it and find something your dog does better on. The diet is only as good as your dogs do on it.
By purchasing and trying these diets, you hold me harmless for any problems, deficiencies, illnesses or death resulting from feeding these recipes to your dogs. The diets do not claim to cure any illness and cannot be used as the sole treatment for illnesses such as kidney disease, pancreatic disease, seizures, cancer or the like. They are formulated only for healthy ADULT dogs who have owners that want to control what their dogs eat, who want to keep it simple and those who want only the best for their dogs. NOTE: Puppies require a completely different set of nutrients and this recipe will not supply enough of the vitamins and minerals they need for growth.
I will keep you abreast of any changes or adjustments in levels of nutrients (if any) so you know what you are feeding if you choose to feed these recipes. Please do not send these recipes to anyone else - refer them to me if they want to try it as I need to keep track of who is using it since changes may be made. You will be advised of any changes.
No refunds can be made on diets since they are intellectual property. So far people have been thrilled with the diets we have created, and we are confident you will be too.
I Agree and Want to Purchase and Try the Diets For My Dog That Is An Adult between 12-20 lbs. Or A Puppy Over 5 lbs.