Published: Last Updated: by Marye 1151 words. | About 6 minutes to read this article.
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.
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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 Scaleis 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.
3.96 from 170 votes
Homemade Dog Food Recipes for Senior Dogs
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Homemade dog food for dogs who've been put on low protein diets by their vet. ALWAYS check with your own vet before changing your dog's diet!!
Course Homemade Pet Food
Cuisine American
Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes minutes
Servings:1
Calories:
Author:Marye Audet-White
Ingredients
- 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)
I earn a commission from Instacart from qualifying purchases.
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
Body Weight Feed per day:
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
You'll find more helpful tips and variations in the body of the post.
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.
More Basic Kitchen Skills and Recipes
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About Marye
Meet Marye Audet, a wizard in the kitchen and a storyteller at heart. Marye is like your eccentric but fun aunt who knows all the secret recipes and isn't afraid to spill them. She's been around the culinary block more than once, turning simple ingredients into mouthwatering masterpieces. With a sprinkle of humor and a dash of wit, she makes cooking feel like a piece of cake (which she can also teach you to bake perfectly). When she's not conjuring up delicious dishes, you might find her sharing laughs with her family, reading by the fire, or scribbling down her next big recipe idea. Marye believes that a good meal and a hearty laugh are the best parts of life. Marye's a NY Times Bestselling author with 10 cookbooks under her belt and her recipes have been featured in Good Housekeeping, Country Living, Today, House Beautiful, Texas Living, Food & Wine, and many more.
Reader Interactions
Comments
Pat
Can I add carrots I’m told they are very good for fur babies with kidney problems. Haven’t asked vet
Reply
Marye
You'll need to check with your vet but I'd think it would be ok.
Reply
Lisa
Can I substitute ground chicken for the ground beef?
Marye
No. Chicken has too much protein.
Nancy
This recipe was originally published in the 1990's by Hill's Pet Food. I've used it several times on our dogs. Here's the printed recipe I have in my possession-
Canine Restricted Protein Diet
1/4 lb. ground beef (do not use lean round chuck), 2 cups cooked rice, 1 hard-boiled egg finely chopped, 3 slices white bread, crumbled, 1 teaspoon calcium carbonate, one balanced vitamin-mineral supplement.
Cook beef in skillet stirring until lightly browned. Stir in remaining ingredients & mix well. This mixture is dry & you can add a little water(not milk). Keep covered in refrigerator. Yield 1 & 1/4 lbs.
Protein-6.4% Fat-5% Carbs-21.0% Calories 740 Kcal/lb
Feeding Guide 5lb-1/4 lb. 10 lb-1/2 lb. 20 lb.-1 lb. 40 lb.-1 1/2 lb. 60 lb.-2 lbs. 80 lbs.-2 1/2 lbs. 100 lbs. 3 lbs.I've always drained the beef in a strainer. When I go to the grocery store there's 3 types of beef-chuck, ground & sirloin. You want to use the middle one-ground. Chuck is too fatty & Sirloin doesn't have enough fat. Instead of calcium carbonate my vet told me to use the shell off of the hard boiled egg. Chop it up fine.
Reply
Paula Schiavitti
This is the same diet my vet recommended I love that you have a double and triple recipe saved me time doing math! Is there a recipe for dog treats for this particular diet?
Reply
Marye
I don't have a recipe for treats. 🙁
Reply
Pat lake
Do I drain all the grease after browning the beef?
Reply
Marye
I don't - but check with your vet.
Reply
Mia
Hi! Would 1 pound be equivalent to whatever can fit into 2 - 8 ounce cups? Or do I need to weigh out 1 pound on a kitchen/food scale? Thank you!
Reply
Marye
you'll need to weight it out.
Reply
Beth Anne
Hi, Wondering about how many mg of the calcium carbonate. There are a lot of options! Thanks for the recipe! Giving it a try ASAP.Reply
Marye
Check with your vet - it depends on the size of the dog.
Reply
Atonya
Where do you get the calcium carbonate
Reply
Marye
Amazon, health food store, pretty much anywhere.
Reply
Michelle
Thank you for the ideas. My senior is super picky and I am preparing meals for her but she won’t eat all that rice. If my ratio of rice is greater than the protein she won’t eat it. Any ideas to substitute rice?
Reply
Marye
I'm not sure. Rice is very low protein and low gluten... some sort of gluten free starch - but be sure it's ok for dogs. Ask your vet?
Reply
Rachelle Hauzer
Hi Michelle,
I have a fur baby named Kodi, who is also a rescue 🐾. He is 14 years old (I’ve had him since he was a puppy) He was just diagnosed with stage 3 kidney disease. He will not eat the prescribed fog food so I have been desperate to find something I can make for him. The vet was not very helpful and the internet is very contradicting 🙁
I want to thank you for your recipe! I am going to start him on it tonight!
I was wondering if you would mind sharing how long Cuddles lived with his kidney disease before he passed? (I’m so sorry for you loss)
I’m heart broken about Kodi’s diagnosis and want to do the best I can for him ♥️Reply
Marye
about 2 years but we got him when he was older AND he had a terrible start in life. 🙂
BEVERLY BARNEY
I have an older dog just diagonsed withe the kidney failure. so I saw the you tube video for this one and then another you did with pumpkin. parsley apples vegs etc. so which one is better? why 2 of them? is this the original? i am confused to which to use
Reply
Marye
I didn't do a you tubevideo - that must be someone else.
Reply
kimri smith
Thanks for the recipe, my Airedale loves it. A question though how do I make larger portions so I can refrigerate and also do you drain the ground beef after cooking?
Reply
Marye
Multiply the ingredients.
Reply
Annie
I'm confused as to how this recipe is low protein diet because I understand that eggs and beef are high in protein. ????
Reply
Marye
Even on a low protein diet your dog needs some protein. This has a lot of rice and carbs to make it filling on the least amount of protein possible - at least that's what my vet says. Always consult your vet.
Reply
Sindy Scott
Thanks for posting recipe do you have any more
recipe I can use because my fur baby does not like the kidney failure dog food I got from the vet. The only way she will eat it if I mix it with some table food.Reply
Marye
No I'm sorry, I don't.
Reply
Penny Harveson
I add water and to the prepared food. I let it soften a bit and she is more likely to take it. Failing that, I give her just some of the juice from a tin of tuna in spring water. Tinned fish has always been a favourite, I give her just enough to flavour the food, not to add extra protein.
Reply
Danny and Nancy Robinson
My 10 year old pit has just been diagnosed with cistine stones and needs a low protein diet thank you so much! Can I ask why cuddles passed
Reply
Marye
The kidney failure eventually caused his kidneys to shut down despite all we did.
Reply
Jessica
I'm read in a previous post that Cuddles passed away. I'm so sorry. Your family is wonderful for adopting him and giving him the amazing life he deserved. There's no doubt he is healthy and happy in heaven.
Reply
Marye
Thank you Jessica - we've since been adopted by 2 pitties that were skin and bones when they showed up. We miss Cuddles but we love Toby and Bisous.
Reply
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