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At least once a week, I receive a request for a balanced, raw dog food recipe. While I do document my recipes on my blog EasyRawDogFoodRecipes.com and I plan to launch Foodie Fridays on this blog, my recipes aren't what I would describe as balanced because I choose to balance over time.
DepositPhoto/ KalypsoWorldPhotography
I remember what it was like in the beginning, when I wanted to make sure I was doing it right. At the time, I wasn't so concerned about nutrients because I believed the people who told me that as long as I was feeding a variety of proteins and other foods, my dogs would get everything they needed through the raw diet. Today, I'm not so sure about that, so I do track my dogs' nutrients in a spreadsheet to better learn what is in their food and what may be lacking.
But if you don't want to build a spreadsheet to track nutrients, you don't want to do the math to calculate a balanced meal, and you're not ready to trust “balance over time,” then I recommend making a small investment in the raw pet food recipes offered by Planet Paws. The recipe cards will not only give you a list of ingredients, you'll also receive the nutrient make up of the meal you're feeding along with calories and explanations of why you're adding unconventional ingredients to the meal. For example, cinnamon and ginger are high in manganese (I didn't know this) and egg yolks are high in Vitamin D.
DepositPhoto/RomarioIen
Balanced Raw Dog Food Recipes by Protein
And, they didn't forget our feline furkids; there are balanced raw cat food recipes as well. Planet Paws is also sharing a “sample recipe card” for you to check out before you order. The sample recipe is simply to give you an idea of what you're buying; the card gives you a list of ingredients, but no amounts.
I love the variety of proteins because many raw feeders will be able to create these meals whether they have a large variety of proteins available or only a couple. If you're still stuck on how to source quality proteins, check out the following blog posts:
- 21 Ways to Save Money on Raw Dog Food
- 4 Examples of Craigslists Ads for Raw Feeders
- You Don't Have to Pay $618 a Month for Dog Food
And the following are blog posts I've written about transitioning dogs (and a cat) to a raw food diet.
- Transitioning to Raw Through a Hybrid Diet
- 5 Steps to Transition a Dog to Raw Dog Food
- Transition Your New Puppy to Raw in 7 Steps
- Steps I Took to Get My Cat to Kick his Kibble Habit
