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This is a balanced dog food recipe that my veterinarian recommended to me a few years ago. I want my dogs to live long & healthy lives, so I make their food myself! I like knowing exactly what is in their food. It can get pricey, but hospital bills are even pricier. Healthy food = good health!
This recipe is completely balanced and my dogs LOVE it. They have super shiny coats, healthy teeth, and good breath!
Why you’ll love this recipe
For health reasons obviously! But it’s also perfect for making in bulk, which makes it much more convenient.
You can make a large batch of this once or twice a month, keep it in the freezer, and thaw overnight as needed until you run out. I make about 11 pounds of food (uncooked) and it will last almost 3 weeks for my two small adult dogs (about 10 lbs each).
This recipe can also kinda count as 3 recipes! You can switch out the ground beef for ground turkey or chicken, and just add a little extra beef liver to make up for the iron, zinc, and protein. That way your dog has a little variety in their meals.
How much should I feed my dog?
Check with your veterinarian for how much food your dog needs per serving. My two dogs are about 10 lbs each, and we feed them 2/3 of a cup (each), twice a day.
Nutritional info
This recipe has 40 calories per ounce. To see the original recipe posted on Youtube by Dr. Karen Becker and Rodney Habib, click here. This video can provide more information on the nutritional value of all the ingredients in this recipe.
Cooked or Raw?
I gently cook the food for my dogs, but this is still a great recipe if your dog is on a raw diet.
If you choose to cook the food, do so without any oil on a nonstick pan on low heat. Be careful not to sear the meat- you want to gently cook it until it is just done. You can make patties, large chunks, or break it down into mince if you prefer.
Ingredients:
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Very lean ground beef or poultry- This is the main source of protein and has to be lean since dogs have a high amino acid requirement. Compared to ground beef, ground chicken and turkey are lower in protein, iron, and zinc, so you’ll need to make up for it with extra beef liver.
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Hempseed– excellent source of essential fatty acids, omega-3 and omega-6. This balances the fats. I buy mine from Sprouts or Costco but it is also available an Amazon here. You can use hempseed oil but be very careful with the heat if you are going to cook it. Hempseed oil becomes very unpleasant to dogs if exposed to high heat.
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Sardines – meets vitamin E & D requirements. You can also use cod liver oil. Use canned sardines in water, not oil.
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Ground ginger- packed with manganese, which supports connective tissue health. This benefits ligaments, tendons, joints, and muscles.
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Kelp powder- packed with iodine and is AMAZING for teeth and coat health! You can purchase the one I use here. I highly recommend this stuff- my dogs have great hair & teeth, and their breath NEVER stinks!
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Eggs & eggshells- eggs are a great source of folic acid and vitamin b12. The eggshells are totally edible and provide the calcium needed for adult dogs, but not puppies.
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Beef liver- provides copper, zinc, and iron. Sprouts sells them in frozen packages that are convenient to use- 4 individually wrapped 4 oz portions.
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Broccoli, red bell pepper, & spinach- veggies add antioxidants, phytonutrients, enzymes, and fiber.
- Leave out the spinach if you have a senior dog with kidney issues. Spinach is not good for dogs with kidney failure because of its oxalates and high sodium content, but this small amount is perfectly fine for healthy dogs.
How to make it
(measurements and instructions provided in recipe card at the end of this post)
Begin by mixing together the ground beef (or chicken or turkey), eggs, kelp, ground ginger, hempseed, sardines, and pumpkin puree (if using). Sometimes I add pumpkin puree for digestive health, but it is not part of the original recipe.
Save half of the eggshells and set them aside.
Drain most of the water from the sardines before you add them in. Try to break them up as much as you can before mixing so that it is evenly distributed throughout the recipe. When it is well combined, set it aside.
Next, add the veggies, eggshells, and beef liver to a food processor and blend until everything is evenly chopped. You may need to do this in batches if your food processor is small.
I use a Hamilton Beach food processor! I love this one because it’s affordable and has a built in side scraper that can be used while the food processor is on.
Add the blended ingredients to the beef and mix until well combined.
How to store it
Portion out the food according to your dog’s daily food intake requirements. Remember that the uncooked food will be ok in the freezer for weeks, but only for a few days in the fridge. Portion accordingly. I do not like to keep cooked dog food in the fridge for more than 4 days.
If you’re going to consistently make this recipe, consider buying reusable freezer bags! I’ve had these for almost a year now and they’re still holding up great. Let’s try to reduce our plastic waste 🙂
The food is ready to serve raw, or you can gently cook it. Cook without any oil on a nonstick pan on low heat. Be careful not to sear the meat- you want to gently cook it until it is just done. You can make patties, large chunks, or break it down into mince if you prefer.
Meet Remy & Leeloo!
Here is a recent picture of our pups! Remy (left) and Leeloo (right) are mother and daughter. We adopted them in 2021 and we love them so much!
I fed this recipe to my previous dog Lucy, who passed away last year from kidney failure and arthritis. She was very old when she passed, but I am not sure exactly how old. I miss her so much.
It is so important to me to make sure I am feeding my dogs the best food possible. I have received SO many messages from readers saying that this recipe saved or improved their dog’s life, and that sincerely brings me so much joy!
Healthy homemade dog treats
If you’re interested in making this recipe for you dog(s), consider making them some healthy treats too! I am working on adding more to the blog, but for now here is an easy one my dogs love:
Green-lipped mussels are packed with nutrients! They are particularly effective in relieving joint pain in dogs. My dogs are dachshund mixes, so I am constantly worried about their impending back and joint pain. They love these little fishy snacks and it gives me peace of mind to know it is helping to reduce inflammation! You can read more about the benefits of green-lipped mussels here.
Balanced Dog Food Recipe
Ingredients
- 7 lbs 90% lean ground beef , or lean ground turkey or chicken
- 1.5 cup hempseeds, or 1/3 cup hempseed oil
- 16 oz canned sardines in water, or 4 tsp cod liver oil
- 4 tsp ground ginger
- 4 tsp kelp powder
- 8 eggs, pasture raised
- 4 egg shells
- 15 oz pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie mix!
- 8 oz beef liver, 12 oz if using ground turkey or chicken instead of ground beef
- 8 oz broccoli
- 8 oz spinach, omit if your dog has kidney issues
- 8 oz red bell pepper
Instructions
- Begin by mixing together the ground beef, eggs, kelp powder, ground ginger, hempseed, (or hempseed oil), sardines, and pumpkin puree (if using). Drain the water from the sardines before you add them in. Save half (4) of the eggshells and set them aside.
- Break up the sardines as much as you can so that it is evenly distributed when mixed.
- Next, process the veggies, eggshells, and beef liver. You may need to do this separately if your food processor can't fit everything. I process everything separately, except for the bell pepper and eggshells- I process those together. I use a Hamilton Beach food processor. I love this one because it has the side scrapers that can be used while the processor is on!
- Add the blended ingredients to the beef and mix until well combined.
- Portion out the food according to your dog's daily food intake requirements. The dog food will be good in the freezer for weeks, but only for a few days in the fridge. Portion accordingly. I do not like to keep cooked dog food in the fridge for more than 4 days.Reusable freezer bags are the way to go! Let's try to reduce plastic waste 🙂
- The food is ready to serve raw, or you can gently cook it. Cook without any oil on a nonstick pan on low heat. Do not try to sear the meat over high heat- you want to gently cook it until it is just done. *Note- If using hempseed oil, cooking the food on high heat for a long period of time will make the hempseed oil taste really bad to the dogs, so be really careful about "gently" cooking it!
- Drain the fat and let it cool completely before storing in the fridge, for up to 4 days.
Notes
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Does anyone here have any insight on whether I could feed this recipe to my cats?
Quality pet food has gotten so expensive, especially for my older cat who is allergic to fish and it is VERY difficult finding a cat food without a fish ingredient.
I would like to make one food for both my dog and my cats, and supplement each with the appropriate dry kibble for their individual nutritional needs.
I would talk to your vet about a recipe for your cats. There are a couple of vitamins that cat’s need that are not in commercial dog food or human food. I cook for my dogs, but not my cats because of this.
Hello! Thanks for this recipe! What’s the longest this batch can stay in the freezer before it goes bad? Could it be kept for up to maybe 3 months frozen? Thanks!
3 months is probably the maximum amount of time I would keep it in the freezer, personally. Technically I think it would be fine even longer, but quality will start to degrade. I’m most concerned about the diminishing nutritional value over that time.
My 16yr old boarder terrier cross is loving this she has arthritis though but still manages a small walk and is quite happy any further advise appreciated
I started making this when my 9 year old, 21lb dog got very sick with IMHA and vestibular dog disease. She’s always been a very picky eater and mealtime has been a smorgasbord of what can I give her to eat. No more, she eats this up 2x a day. I put the pumpkin on the side and add a tiny bit of oatmeal as she got so sick and lost so much weight. After about 3 months of steriods and feeding her this food, she’s back to our Lucy. While I’m not qualified to say, I feel this food has been a huge reason as to why she’s been able to get better ❤️🩹. I love this recipe. Thank you 🙏
Hi Kat, thank you so much for leaving a comment. This nearly brought tears to my eyes, I am so happy to heard that your Lucy is doing better!
Is there a rough estimate of how much one batch of this costs? Thank you!!
As of May 2023, it costs about $80 to make this amount.
I have a multi rescue dog home and am interested in trying your recipe. I go through 80lbs of kibble a week roughly $105. I saw that you have 2 small dogs and this recipe lasts you 2-3 weeks. What are the serving sizes per 10lb dog a day? Mine range from 13lbs up to 68lbs. So I can calculate a shopping list for my crew :).
This is too much protein, dogs are omnivores who coevolved besides and now have very similar digestive genes to humans.
Your recipe is not founded in science or medical nutrition. This is not a good diet for a dog.
It’s actually not my recipe. As stated above, this is a Dr. Karen Becker & Rodney Habib recipe, which was also recommended by my vet. I think I will trust the experts, thank you.
This looks like a good recipe for a dog.
As for the person saying this is too much protein, you cannot give a dog too much protein. That is ridiculous. The only reason we don’t feed dogs 100% protein is becasue of the cost. Oatmeal and vegetables and grains are not for the dogs’ health — that is a myth. That stuff is only for filler becasue it fills them up and it’s cheaper. a 100% meat diet is ideal but cost prohibitive.
I’ve been an RVT for 20+ years and was looking for some ideas for a good homemade diet for our dog, just to supplement with quality ingredients I can control. I will be doing 50/50 RX diet and homemade for now- thank you for posting this recipe! I’m a big fan of the increased protein, I have done much research on commercial diets, and although rx is my preference, all the grains, corn, etc is not ok with me!
Thank you for this recipe! I fell in love with the YouTube video you had linked for my two giant dogs because the only kibble we actually trusted enough for them to eat just skyrocketed in price and we were already spending extra to get multivitamins and probiotics into their diets. We knew there had to be another, healthier way. Amazingly, your recipe lasts my boys exactly one week, and we portion it out by their daily servings (calculated by our vet – one dog is 70 pounds, the other is 85, so they are slightly different portions), sealing it into mason jars. They LOVE it! We also end up with about 1/4 pound of the meat mixture leftover, so we make our own freezer treats for them, adding a 1/2 cup of plain rolled oats cooked in homemade beef bone broth and a mashed sweet potato to the mix. We then put the mixture into two silicone ice cube trays. No more commercial kibble and biscuits for us! And all this fresh food is working out to save us about $30/week. Best of all, our 4 year old daughter loves to help us make it, and we are proud to teach her how easy it is to feed our furry family homemade healthy meals ?
Hi Alena. Would you mind sharing how much you feed your 70 lb dog? Thanks!
Hi, do you think I could use other lean meats for this, like turkey? I try to rotate proteins but I’ve been using a meal completer which is costing me so much money.. been looking for some good DIY recipes that are truly balanced.
Hi Bethany, yes I have used ground turkey for this! Usually when I make it with turkey, I just add a bit more beef liver to make up for the iron. Hope this helps!
Is baking it at 325 (low heat) an option as well?
I’ve never tried this but I do not see why it wouldn’t work 🙂
My understanding is that cats are carnivorous and this recipie is for omnivores, not carnivores. Your cat would do better on a diet that is all meat.
Hi there. So I saw your comment, and I thought I’d respond. I do believe you can do a low bake method for this. Just put it on a sheet try and keep and eye on not over cooking it. But yes! If it’s easier for you to bake it, I think it’s fine. I’m not a pet nutritionist, but I am a chef. So I have food knowledge. I think it’s a great idea actually. Less mess. I think I might try it also!
How much should I feed a 70 pound dog?
Hi Bella, I think it would be better to ask your vet about this. I am not a pet nutritionist and I am just following the directions from my veterinarian. You can find more information about he macros/nutritional values of this recipe on Rodney Habib’s Youtube video that I linked in this blog post. Hope this helps!
We are looking at getting a puppy between 6-10 months old. Can we start them on this recipe as a puppy?
You can but I would definitely supplement it with some puppy kibble since they have very different dietary needs. I am currently feeding my 7 lb, 5 month old 1/4 cup of this food plus 1/4 cup of puppy kibble 2 times a day. This was what my vet recommended. Hope that helps!