Do You Prefer Home Food For Your Pet?

Discussion in Pets started by akiii123 • Feb 3, 2015.

  1. akiii123

    akiii123Active Member

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    Home food are always healthy and cheaper than usual store food. However a lot of people prefer to buy food from outside for their pets. I believe it is a great waste of money. What are your thoughts on this matter?
     
  2. Denis Hard

    Denis HardWell-Known Member

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    Home food? Are you referring to pet food which you make at home or table scraps?

    While at times I get to think that store bought pet food is pricey for no reason, I think that making your own pet food could mean the pets don't get all the nutrients they need. If you must save some money then why not supplement whatever pet food you make with store bought pet food for the sake of your pet's health?
     
  3. pafjlh

    pafjlhActive Member

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    Well, I buy pet food. Yes, I will give my dogs some human food but not too much. I think when it comes to the overall health and nutrition of a pet the pet food sold in stores is the best route to go. I know that this can be an extra added expense and sometimes its hard to swing that expense. Believe me I know especially right now feeding my cats isn't cheap on a tight budget. But I won't cut out the cat food because its what they need to remain healthy in my opinion. The same with my dogs they need dog food because of the nutrients foud in it that human food doesn't supply them with, at least that is my opinion on this subject.
     
  4. JosieP

    JosiePWell-Known Member

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    If table scraps, no. They don't have the same digestive system as we do. Take cats for example.. everyone buys expensive, healthier foods that are just loooooaded with veggies they don't have the digestive enzymes to process properly. Not sure how they get around this and many animals may not show effects, I haven't watched this one long enough, but in the wild, a cat's salad usually came from the stomachs of the animals that already digested it for them. So are they feeding veggies to the animals in cat food so it's already digested? Ew. anyway.. no to scraps, preferably no to store bought, but what can a lot of us do about that.. and yes, to a proper diet specifically for the species of animal you have. Just because we can eat something, absolutely does not mean your animal should be eating it. And just because they don't choke on it and die immediately, doesn't mean it won't eventually make them very, very sick.
     
  5. sidney

    sidneyWell-Known Member

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    It depends on the pet I guess. Our dogs get fed a mix of dog food and table food, while Whiskas has made my cat unable to pee. So for me, I think that it's ok to feed your pet table food if it suits them.
     
  6. LAGuy

    LAGuyMember

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    We've been making our own dog food for the past couple of years. The dogs get better quality food, it costs less, plus you don't have to worry about horrible things like melamine in the food...

    We basically get boneless chicken thighs, or gizzards, liver or chicken hearts once in a while, and throw them in a pressure cooker along with sweet potatoes or rice and lots of other veggies and water. We turn on the pressure cooker for 35 minutes, and when it's done, the food's ready...

    It's a bit more work, but we know exactly what our dogs are eating, there's no salt or other strange additives like in dry dog food, and the dogs LOVE it... We used to have to try to convince our Basset to eat the dry food... Now as soon as we open the pressure cooker she goes nuts waiting for her food!
     
  7. isabbbela

    isabbbelaWell-Known Member

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    I buy dry dog food at the pet store. I wouldn't know what to give my dog that is homemade, from what I have always known, specialized dog food is the best thing for your dog... I'm sure if you know exactly what ingredients your dog need to be healthy you can make its food at home, but working 8 hours a day and living by myself that is unsustainable.
     
  8. LAGuy

    LAGuyMember

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    Yeah, it is a bit of work to make... You have to be able to freeze meat when you find it on sale, and you need to be able to freeze the meals if you make a whole bunch... It would be a bit tough on a single person with limited time.
     
  9. May102014

    May102014Active Member

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    I always buy dog food at the store. When I have time to prepare, I let my dog eat a homemade food. Sometimes, I mixed homemade food with the dog food. I think having a dog food is very handy, especially if you don't know what to prepare or when you are not in the mood to prepare a homemade food for your dog.
     
  10. xTinx

    xTinxWell-Known Member

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    It's rather a combination of both. The thing is, dog food and cat food are getting more and more expensive. Although we still buy them on a regular basis, we think it best to vary the kinds of food we feed to our pets. That way, we can save up on costs and at the same time prevent our pets from getting fed up of eating the same food everyday.
     
  11. tipoywizard

    tipoywizardActive Member

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    I always buy pet foods for my dog. Human and animals have different dietary needs thus they need different types of food. What is good for humans might not be good for animals. My dog needs a lot of protein and pet foods ( dog foods) provides the greatest amount of protein. Also pet foods are formulate generally for the health and wellness of the animals so I buy them.
     
  12. IcyFirefly

    IcyFireflyActive Member

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    I bought dog food online through Amazon, and I don't plan on feeding my puppy human food. I haven't tried making dog food because I know he won't get all his nutrients from what I make. Above all, I have an extremely small refrigerator, not even enough to keep our foods, so there is no room for dog food in there.