Most pet owners are searching for the best diets to provide for their pets based on their nutritional needs and a complete, balanced diet.
While there may be much variety in commercial dog food, it doesn’t guarantee the exact individualistic needs that can meet a dog breed compared with Homemade Dog Food.
German Shepherds require a power-packed diet, with a minimum of 22% protein during their development stage and 5-8% fat to keep their energy intact throughout the day.
Moreover, other than customizing homemade diets to meet your dog’s requirements, they are also guaranteed to offer the best nutritional value using natural and digestible ingredients.
Also Read Chicken liver and gizzard recipe for dogs: Complete guide on How to cook.
Owners have complete control over the source and preparation of their dog’s meals, which can be beneficial for pets with allergies, injuries, digestive issues, and other health concerns as well.
These diets can also be altered depending on the dog’s life stage, skeleton structure, health conditions to monitor the type, quantity, quality, and form of food consumed by the pet and prevent any problematic ingredients.
Is Commercial Dog Food Healthy for your Pet?
Commercially packaged dog food is popular because of the ease and convenience they provide to pet owners. The owners do not have to think about the nutrients and the proportions of ingredients; the pre-made food pack does it for them. However, they have some issues as well that could cause harm to your German Shepherd puppy. A few of them are:
1. Added Preservatives: Most packaged dog food has some added preservatives which won’t be suitable for your puppy. Artificial preservatives are added to increase food packs’ shelf life, which can become toxic for your puppy if used regularly.
2. Lack of Control: Most packaged food is not designed to cater to your dog’s specific needs. They follow a one-size-fits-all approach and serve a general diet which should not be the case. Every dog is different and has a particular nutrition requirement that demands a well-balanced, customized diet.
3. Freshness: Commercially processed food packs are meant to have a longer shelf life which doesn’t have the freshness of an unprocessed and natural food diet. Homemade dog food digests better and allows for more natural ingredients than packaged food with added artificial preservatives.
4. Affordability: Commercial food packs are highly-priced, and not everybody can afford them. One of the reasons they are highly-priced could be that they aren’t available in your country and you need to pay an import fee every time you purchase them.
Raw Dog Food: Dietary Concerns, Benefits, and Risks
Raw food diets have been increasingly adopted because of the control and freshness it provides to your pup, which gives them the desired nutrients, boosts their immune system, and maintains a healthy fur coat.
Besides their diet, pet owners also need to provide the best flea treatment for dogs on a routine basis to prevent internal or external flea infestation.
A well-balanced, nutritious diet for your pup requires your dedicated time to plan out meals and ingredients for your dog.
Here are some of the benefits of feeding your German Shepherd puppy with homemade dog food:
- You can cater to your pup’s particular nutritious need with a tailored diet
- Take care of what suits him and what he is allergic to
- Avoid the side effects of added artificial preservatives that come with readymade food
- Having a reasonable budget on dog food instead of buying expensive readymade food
- Assured overall good health of your pup, including better digestion, healthier skin, improved dental health, and reduced allergies
4 Easy Homemade Raw Food Diet for Your German Shepherd Puppy
Chicken Neck and Beef: German Shepherd puppies, like any other puppies, love to chew, and a chicken neck offers precisely that.
Moreover, it is full of calcium which is an essential ingredient for the growth of your pup.
Also, beef is a good source of iron for your furry friend, making it a well-balanced diet for your puppy.
Fish and Pork: Pork is an excellent introduction to your puppy’s diet because of its high nutritious value. Not only it has high omega-3 fatty acids, but it also is very easily digestible.
However, it could be challenging to maintain the equilibrium by just feeding pork because it also has high levels of omega-6 fatty acids, and that is where the role of fish comes in.
Fish helps in balancing the whole portion and is an excellent source of protein and calcium.
Turkey and Egg: This combination is the easiest and tastiest addition to your puppy’s homemade diet. Boneless turkey is an excellent source of iron and calcium, which is essential in your puppy’s overall growth and health.
Adding eggs makes the meal more chewable and digestible. You have the option of grinding the turkey in a grinder or cutting it into small pieces and mixing the egg puree to serve it to your puppy.
Rabbit and Chicken: Puppies require an additional source of nutrients because they are in their growing phase. Rabbits are a good source of lean meat with high protein levels and are a very sustainable food option.
Adding chicken chunks will provide calcium and phosphorus, which are essential for your puppy’s structural and skeletal growth.
Ideally, a German Shepherd puppy should eat around 2% of their adult body weight. While choosing meat for your puppy, make sure that it does not have more than 20% fat content.
The right choice of ingredients with sufficient portions of meals placed at an equal time interval (ideally thrice a day) would help your puppy stay healthier and happier.
Switching to a homemade raw food diet for your pet may seem like a lot of work initially, but it becomes second nature very soon when you realize it is in the best interest of your beloved puppy.
