If the news of contaminated pet food has left you shocked and in doubt, this might be the perfect time to start making your own dog food from now on. Don’t worry, preparing homemade dog food is no more work than cooking human food; actually, it’s much easier. Let’s take a look at the basics.

The most important part of making your own dog food is getting the right ingredients. You need to know what belongs (meat, vegetables, noodles, rice,…) and what does not (sweets, leftovers, poultry bones,…) in a balanced dog food. You’d be surprised what some people feed their pets. Not surprisingly, they often show the same symptoms of malnutrition as many people, such as being overweight, diabetic, or dying early.

And not everything that is good (or harmless) for humans is automatically good for your pet. For example, dairy products can cause digestion problems, especially in older dogs, since many of them are lactose intolerant. This can result in stomach pains or diarrhea. The liver should be given only in small portions, as large doses can cause vitamin A toxicity. The fungi can cause shock and, in extreme cases, even death. These are just 3 examples of what doesn’t belong in dog food, but there are many more to know before you start coming up with recipes.

The next thing to consider is the proportions of the ingredients you mix. While it would probably be fine for your dog if you just fed him steak all day, if you want your pal to live a long and healthy life (and keep medical bills to a minimum), his diet should show a good mix of various components.

Finally, you need to know how to prepare all these ingredients. Throwing everything in a pot and cooking it to mush is not the way to go. To preserve vitamins and other valuable parts, you need to cook food at the right temperature for the right amount of time. It is also important how you prepare the ingredients before cooking. Improper handling will possibly result in something that even the hungriest dog won’t eat.

Making your own dog food has many advantages. Since commercial dog food can be quite expensive, you’ll surely save some money by doing a little cooking. Second, you finally know what your dog is eating and you can stop guessing why commercial dog food smells so bad (I don’t want to know either). And once you get the hang of it, you can pre-cook weeklong meals and store them in the freezer.

So for a little more work, you save some money and you can stop worrying about your dog’s health. Wouldn’t it be worth it?