BEST HOME MADE DOG AND CAT FOOD EVER! No, really....

It's Dog Food Day, always a favorite around here. Apple and Miniver love it when I make their food. They guard the kitchen and the stove top with true enthusiasm, leaving pools of slobber around the base of the stove. Time is suspended in a lovely haze of chicken, vegetables and fruit, brown rice and garlic (really does help to keep ticks and fleas away. Haven't used chemicals on any of my dogs for years.) I've been using this recipe for years, and years, and years ... more than thirty. It's kept my various dogs and cats happy for all of that time with lovely, long life spans and no pests. 

With that in mind I thought I would share it with anyone who wanders by my BLOG. I'm a vegetarian but my carnivorous friends aren't. I say a little prayer to thank the chicken "Gods" for their gift and on we go (Yes, I am a gently fading Hippy.).

This makes enough for two large dogs and three small barn cats. They also get Taste of the Wild kibble and as many mice as they care to catch. I mix the home made food with the kibble about half and half. Lasts for about three weeks, give or take.

THINGS YOU WILL NEED:

A large canning pot. I use one of those enameled canning pots, the one with a dark blue background and white spots.

Six or seven 64 oz plastic containers. I reuse Nancy's Organic Yogurt containers. 

A blender or food processor to grind the bones.

A slotted stainless steel spoon .

A day at home. Please do NOT go off and leave a huge pot of boiling anything on the stove top.

INGREDIENTS:

Two whole chickens. Make sure you check inside for small plastic bags of hearts, kidneys, etc. Add those too. (Variations on a theme; a small turkey, two salmon)

Two two pound bags of whole grain brown rice.

Two or three sweet potatoes, chopped.

Two or three carrots, chopped.

A cup or so of sweet peas.

A cup or so of cut green beans.

A cup or so of corn.

1\4 to 1\2 cup EACH of cranberries and blueberries (I use all dried fruits)

Three or four finely chopped cloves of garlic.

NO MORE than a tsp of pink sea salt. (they need the minerals more than the salt)

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:

Clean your chickens and put them in the big canning pot. Cover them with water up to the bottom of the indented rim, about 4\5's full. Bring to a boil, turn it down and simmer for three or four hours. You want the meat falling off the bones. The broth will be nice and greasy. Be sure to put the lid on, venting only a bit.

Fish out the bones. Use your slotted spoon for this. Put them in the blender or food processor with some extra water. Grind the bones until they are a thin gruel, add back to the chicken and broth. 

Add your veggies, fruits, etc including ALL of the rice. Add enough water to bring it back up to at least 4\5's full. The rice will expand to fill the pot. Keep it simmering for at least 30 minutes. Turn it off and leave it alone for several hours, two or three. The rice will finish cooking on it's own. Stir it several times, about every fifteen minutes, for the simmer the rice etc phase (so three of four times, just to distribute everything evenly)  

Store in your containers, putting several in the freezer. Be ready to dish up some of the still warm, fresh food. They've been guarding it all day and keeping Evil Ninja Bad guys and the NSA away, maybe even a few wild bears and such. 

We've been saving about $75 or more per month doing this. I use as many organic ingredients as I can find but I leave that part up to you.

I promise you will have happy, healthy dogs and cats lined up to eat, sometimes the neighbor's dogs and cats too!

Quick funny story : when we moved out here fourteen years ago and I made this recipe in our new place for the first time, my dogs (The Three Amigos, Gypsy, Neumann and Joe) all came streaming through the doors, wreaking from the new found joys of pond water and deer poop along with three of the neighbor's dogs who must have smelled it cooking from across the road! It was a dog party.

All six lined up very politely, even my territorial Gypsy, and waited for their plates of home made food. I gave the recipe to my neighbors so my dogs could return with reciprocal visits. So fair warning. If you cook with open windows, expect visitors.

Given to all of you with LOVE!

Hope your dogs and cats enjoy this as much as mine do.

PS> You can also add scrambled eggs, as many as you like, at the end like and egg drop soup. Eggs are very easy to digest and an excellent food source for your dogs and cats.

I am, ever yours, Nancy, laughing at the way things go! PEACE...