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Cheerios and Fresh Strawberries

Imagine if you ate Cheerios and only Cheerios every day of your life. Three meals a day – Cheerios. That’s what it is like for pets that eat only kibble; Cheerios (processed packaged food) with added vitamins and minerals. But what if you add fresh strawberries to your Cheerios? Changes a lot doesn’t it? The very same can be done for your pet’s food. Add some fresh food to their kibble!

Imagine if you ate Cheerios and only Cheerios every day of your life.  Three meals a day – Cheerios.  That’s what it is like for pets that eat only kibble; Cheerios (processed packaged food) with added vitamins and minerals.  But what if you add fresh strawberries to your Cheerios?  Changes a lot doesn’t it?  The very same can be done for your pet’s food.  Add some fresh food to their kibble!

Because I cook for my pets – all of their food – I understand not everyone has the time or the inclination to go through the effort (but it isn’t as complicated as one might think).  Plus, I understand the brainwashing the industry has done to us all.  Can I do this?  Are they getting all the nutrition they need?  What if I do something wrong?  These questions – and more – often prevent pet owners from making the change to home prepared pet food.  But no worry.  You can have the best of both worlds.  Some commercial pet food and some people food.

So…how about giving 3/4 commercial pet food and 1/4 people food?  Everyday, every meal.

Most ‘people food’ isn’t dangerous for our pets – in fact, real food provides the absolute best nutrition.  As example…
Meats and internal organs provide:  vitamin A, B vitamins, selenium, zinc, iron, phosphorus, copper.
Fish provides:  omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, B vitamins, potassium, zinc, copper, manganese, selenium.
Vegetables provide:  full range of vitamins, calcium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, fiber, phytonutrients (provide anti-inflammatory protection), antioxidants.

It’s easier than you think.  Whether you are cooking a whole chicken or just grilling a chicken breast for yourself…save some of that meat for your dog or cat.  Cooking some broccoli?  Cook a little extra for the dog.  Everyday, give your pet some lightly cooked vegetables, some fruit, and some meat – some of your food.  No seasoning.  You are in the kitchen anyway…just prepare a little bit more for your pet.

Some example foods…
chicken, beef, turkey, fish, broccoli, cauliflower, red and black beans, green beans, mushrooms, red/green peppers, spinach, sweet potato, apple, blueberries, strawberries.

Foods to avoid…
chocolate, avocado, macadamia nuts, grapes/raisins, yeast dough, onions.

Don’t…
add spices or seasonings;
give fatty foods (including fatty meats).

Reasons to give your pet people food added to commercial food…
1.  Saves money.  Roughly $150.00 a year savings feeding 1/4 people food with 3/4 commercial food.
2.  Provides variety.   Remember Cheerios every day of your life.
3.  Provides nutrition that is easily absorbed by the body.  Nutrition provided through lightly cooked meat, vegetables, and fruit provides an array of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients that are easily absorbed by your pet.
4.  Easy way to put pets on a pain free diet.  If your pet is overweight, adding low calorie people food while removing 1/4 of the commercial food is the easiest way for your pet to feel full, yet still lose weight.
5.  Should the pet food be contaminated, your pet is eating less of the toxin.
6.  Your pet is going to really like this!

Start with a small spoonful of people food a day and work your way up to 1/4 of their daily food intake to be home prepared, 3/4 commercial.  They will still have a balanced diet from the commercial food, plus get the benefit of natural nutrition from the people food.  Best of both worlds.

For dogs – of the 1/4 people food, up to 1/2 of this can be meat or fish – the remaining vegetables and fruit.  Example for a medium sized dog: a couple of small bites of chicken breast (grilled or roasted, no seasoning) with 1/4 cup of lightly cooked green beans.

For cats – meat and fish.  My cats like everything ground fine, but small bites are acceptable too (to most cats).  But, don’t hesitate in offering your cat a little vegetable and fruit.  All three of my cats love green beans – they actually steal them out of the dog bowls.  One of my cats loves red beans too.  Mollie Morrissette tells me her cats love cantaloupe.  Experiment with various foods to see what your cat will eat.

This is meant to replace some of the commercial food with people food.  Don’t add the people food without removing some of the commercial.

The majority of your pets diet will be the commercial food.  You are simply adding some natural nutrition (not synthetic nutrients) to your pets diet.  Take it slow, but do give it a try.  It is very beneficial to your pet (natural nutrition) and much easier than you think.

 

Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author, Buyer Beware
Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
PetsumerReport.com

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1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. june lay

    March 21, 2013 at 8:22 am

    I wholeheartly agree that adding non seasoned fresh food to a premium pet food can add nutrients, particularly proteins found in chicken, turkey, etc. I would caution with adding too much fish especially in cats, prone to urinary tract stones, and I would make sure the animal is eating enough of the premium pet food so that they are taking in a balance of vitamin and minerals.
    One more caution, too much of any single human food can turn their daily diet into an unbalanced one.

    Thank you your all your info, for unfortunately too much of the food industry for animals is about making profit, and the more I have learned in my small animal nutrition courses, the scarier it gets.

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