Did you know dogs need and enjoy the fresh addition of vegetables to their daily diet? My dogs love mashed carrots in there freshly cooked meat as it is naturally sweet.

Rice or pasta mixed in with the meat and vegetables every day is not just used as filler and in proper proportion makes a healthy nutritious diet. Proper nutrition is a healthy mix of meat, vegetables and grain every day, made with fresh healthy food that your or I would eat. There are many resorses available on the internet for more information and healthy dog food recipes.

We have been told that feeding dogs our food is bad for them for so long that it has become an unsubstantiated part of our beliefs. We have actually come to believe and trust that commercial dog food with additives, toxins and all sorts of preservatives is better than home made healthy dog food. There is startling and upsetting information in the news on what we have been really feeding our beloved pets.

Before you start making healthy, home made dog food you must be aware that there are certain human foods that are toxic and can make your dog sick or worse, Most people know about chocolate being bad, but did you know that onions and raisins or grapes can harm you pet.

Always check with your vet before starting your pet on a completely new diet. Slowly introduce new food to your pet, and always make sure your know how much they require according to their size. You can ask your vet for the proper feeding schedule.

By making home made treats you can control the calories and reduces obesity in your pet, and he/she will not even know they are on a diet because the treats are so delicious. Your dog will live longer. Your pet will become healthier and this will show in the gleaming coat and fresher breath. Because you are not adding sugar, salt and fat to your home cooked recipes, you can help an overweight pet lose weight.

A chemical free diet can be nothing but an improvement over what we now know is being put in a lot of the commercial dog food. I know I have seen major changes in my two special girls and you will also with a healthy diet fed regularly to your pet.

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Check out my main site at : www.recipes4gourmetdogs.com to see what my pets favorite recipes are. I also have special treat recipes that are healthy, nutritious, and easy to make.

Most commercial dog foods today lack the nutrients most growing and active dogs require. That is why it is important to consult with your veterinarian to determine if dog nutritional supplements would benefit your dog.

PET FOOD ADDITIVES
Some other substances that might be found in pet foods, which are not required nutrients. This is why it is important that dog owners understand what nutrients are in their dog’s food and how dogs use the various nutrients in food and dog nutritional supplements so they can choose a health diet and supplement program.

Some common yet not required nutrients you might find in your dog’s food are:

Chondroprotective agents are used by the body to make cartilage and joint tissues.

Antioxidants work to prevent oxidative damage to nutrients and other compounds in the body and inhibit or quench the formation of free radicals.

Herbs and botanicals are used in pet foods either to provide flavor or, more often, to have a medicinal effect on the body. This is especially true in the case of extracts, where the classical nutritive components of the plant may be separated from the extract in the process.

Flavors and extracts derived from animal tissues such as poultry or fish are considered “natural” flavors. A wide variety of flavors can be derived from other animal and plant materials, including dairy products, eggs, herbs, and spices. Acceptable processing methods include roasting, extraction, and fermentation. Except for artificial smoke and bacon flavors, synthetic substances are rarely used in most dog and cat foods.

Colors are synthetic compounds used to replace or accentuate the inherent color of the food. Only certified colors approved for use in human foods are allowed in pet foods. Iron oxide is a synthetic but non-certified color that can be used at levels not to exceed 0.25% of the pet food product to give dog food a red, meaty appearance. Titanium dioxide is another common color additive in human and pet foods because it can induce a “brightness” in foods by complementing other color additives. Its use is limited to 1% of the food by weight.

Dog food labels must list the percentage of protein, fat, fiber, and water in the food. When reading labels, it is important to understand the nutritional needs of your dog and determine if dog nutritional supplements should be added to the diet.

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Learn how to use dog nutritional supplements to enhance your dog’s life and remedy your dog’s discomforts – almost immediately – guaranteed! by going to www.supplementsforyourdog.com

Contaminated dog food can be in circulation for months before it gets picked up, and often it’s only when there’s a number of dogs getting sick and dying from the food that a recall is issued. Often quality is being sacrificed for the sake of profits.

In a bid to increase profits, many dog food manufacturers are using cheap by products from human food production and adding it as a protein source. This is can do your dog a lot of harm over the long term, leading to allergies and other chronic health issues.

In 2007, over 100 different types of dog food were recalled after melamine, which is a type of plastic, was found in many batches. Eventually the food was found to be tainted from imported rice protein. There are large questions about whether there is really any nutritional value in rice protein for dogs in the first place. But what this really means is that there is a chance that anything could end up in our dog food.

You may be thinking that this happened in China so I won’t affect you, but many companies around the world are using imported ingredients from China and other countries that don’t have the same regulation of their food products that we do in the western world. And when you think that contaminated milk powder was found recently, it’s really only a matter of time before it happens again.

Even if there’s no accidental contamination, your Beagle could still be at risk from additives that are put into the dog food, before it reaches the factory. Ethoxyquin is routinely added to fish meal. Fish meal is then often promoted as a healthy form of protein. However they neglect to mention that ethoxyquin has been linked to serious allergic reactions, cancer and liver failure in dogs. And that it has been banned for human consumption for decades.

So have a quick look and see if your dog food has fish meal in it. And just think that if it’s present then every meal your dog has is going to have a dose of carcinogen.

For the sake of your Beagle and it’s long term health, you really need to get educated about dog health food. It is our responsibility to know what is going into our dog’s food and to make sure that there are no toxic additives. or preservatives. We all want our best friend’s to live a long and healthy life and it’s not hard with a bit of knowledge.

Today more than ever dog health food is a vital key to keeping your Beagle healthy and free from disease. It can be hard to find out exactly what really goes into dog food with less strict labeling laws than on human food.

Contaminated dog food can be in circulation for months before it gets picked up, and often it’s only when there’s a number of dogs getting sick and dying from the food that a recall is issued. Often quality is being sacrificed for the sake of profits.

In a bid to increase profits, many dog food manufacturers are using cheap by products from human food production and adding it as a protein source. This is can do your dog a lot of harm over the long term, leading to allergies and other chronic health issues.

In 2007, over 100 different types of dog food were recalled after melamine, which is a type of plastic, was found in many batches. Eventually the food was found to be tainted from imported rice protein. There are large questions about whether there is really any nutritional value in rice protein for dogs in the first place. But what this really means is that there is a chance that anything could end up in our dog food.

You may be thinking that this happened in China so I won’t affect you, but many companies around the world are using imported ingredients from China and other countries that don’t have the same regulation of their food products that we do in the western world. And when you think that contaminated milk powder was found recently, it’s really only a matter of time before it happens again.

Even if there’s no accidental contamination, your Beagle could still be at risk from additives that are put into the dog food, before it reaches the factory. Ethoxyquin is routinely added to fish meal. Fish meal is then often promoted as a healthy form of protein. However they neglect to mention that ethoxyquin has been linked to serious allergic reactions, cancer and liver failure in dogs. And that it has been banned for human consumption for decades.

So have a quick look and see if your dog food has fish meal in it. And just think that if it’s present then every meal your dog has is going to have a dose of carcinogen.

For the sake of your Beagle and it’s long term health, you really need to get educated about dog health food. It is our responsibility to know what is going into our dog’s food and to make sure that there are no toxic additives. or preservatives. We all want our best friend’s to live a long and healthy life and it’s not hard with a bit of knowledge.

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Our dogs rely on us to provide them with the best possible food and care. To keep your best friend healthy and add years to their life, subscribe to our dog health food newsletter. You’ll find out exactly what goes into commercial dog food and how to make your own at home, cheaply and easily. Click here to subscribe www.dog-health-food.com

If excessive itching and scratching are the problems, that may simply be the lack of Omega 3,6 and 9 fatty acids in your dog’s diet that’s making their skin and coat dry. Winter indoor heating may also be exacerbating the condition. Adding simple food additives to your dog’s food may be the key without switching diets. Supplements like Mrs. Allen’s Shed Stop, Flaxseed Oil, Pet Botanics Skin & Coat supplement, Royal Coat from Ark Naturals or Health & Shine from Dr. Harvey’s are all viable solutions for supplementing your dog’s diet with the needed Omegas that dog’s and cats need to lubricate their skin and coats.

Excessive and compulsive foot licking, or chewing and biting other parts of the body, are generally a sign that allergies are to blame.

Assuming it’s food allergies and not environmental, many vets and pet nutritionists recommend substituting a protein source that your dog doesn’t normally eat. Lamb is often used for this purpose, because it’s not as common a dog food ingredient. Lamb, in and of itself, is not “non-allergic”, but it’s less common than chicken and beef so it enables you to introduce something new into your dog’s diet, in effect, starting with a clean slate.

Some vets sell expensive “allergy free formulas” but there are ways to figure this out on your own and a lot less expensively. Increasingly, pet owners who have dogs with food allergies are feeding various pet food mixes like Dr. Harvey’s, Solid Gold Holistique Blendz or The Honest Kitchen’s FORCE formula, which is grain free, or Sojourner Farms’ new grain free Europa formula.

Mixes, while a bit more work, allow you to more closely control what your dog is eating by beginning with a good “base” that contains the proper nutrients and vitamins especially formulated for dogs. Then, you can experiment by introducing your own protein sources (whether raw or cooked) and seeing how your dog reacts over the next few days.

Because The Honest Kitchen FORCE Formula is grain free but chicken-based, I would stick to the Dr. Harveys or the Europa which have no protein or grain sources. The Solid Gold Holistique Blendz formula is also a good choice but that already contains fish protein. Because fish-based protein is an unlikely protein source for your dog to begin with, it’s unlikely that it will cause allergy problems now — same theory with the lamb or any other uncommon protein like venison or buffalo or rabbit. If later you find that chicken is ok, I would give The Honest Kitchen FORCE Formula a second look, too.

Beginning with one of these neutral, grain-free formulas, try adding chicken for a week. If that goes well, than your dog is probably ok with chicken. Then try beef. Then lamb. Try, fish, too. If that goes well, than it was probably one or more of the grains.

Now a picture is starting to form. Your dog’s allergies have improved with a grain free diet that includes certain proteins.

As we mentioned before, the point of introducing a different protein source to test your dog’s tolerance is because if your dog is suffering some type of food-related reaction, common sense tells you it’s something she’s already eating. Can’t be having reactions to something she never had yet, right?

Please note that when switching a dog’s food, do it gradually over 5 to 6 days. Begin a 4 to 1 ration, old to new food, than 3 to 2 on day 2, than half and half on day 3, than 2 to 3 on day 4 and 1 to 4 on day 5. Day six, you’re switched over completely. Than the real allergy testing can begin in earnest by sticking with the new protein source for a week and than introducing a new one every week taking note of your dog’s reaction or, hopefully, lack of one.

As you’ve probably figured out by now, there’s no one answer or “Silver Bullet” that will miraculously solve all your dog’s allergy problems overnight. You have to break the cycle by moving your dog to a neutral, grain-free food and begin experimenting with different proteins. Once you find a protein or combination of proteins that work, try slowly introducing grain formulas back into the diet to see if there’s a reaction or not. Using this gradual, common sense method combined with a good quality dog food should have your dog on the road to a happy, itch-free life.

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Gene Sower is the publisher of the DOG BYTES newsletter and owner of www.naturalpetsworld.com, a site devoted to offering a huge selection of natural pet foods at discount prices.