Nutrition Tips

• Don’t overcheese your dog. There are plenty of fruits and vegetables that can be fed that are safe and healthy.
  
  
• I recommend a diet of half homemade and half commercial foods. If you want to do more on your own, check out my supplement stew recipe in Feed Your Best Friend Better.
  
  
• When trying out new foods with your dog, start with teaspoons and tablespoons—not cups and handfuls.

Listed below is a nutritional analysis of every recipe found in Feed Your Best Friend Better, organized alphabetically within the same categories. The number listed next to each title references the page in the book where the individual recipe can be found.

Veterinarians want to see Dry Matter Basis as the standard but that means nothing to most people unless you have a calculator, a dictionary and hours of patience. Sure, I’ll include that to help them match it up with their standards, but I also include an analysis based upon Recommended Daily Allowances; showing the percentage of each nutrient and how different combinations of my recipe and dry foods will help you keep your dog healthy.

My goal is to help you have a conversation with your vet without you feeling overwhelmed by facts and figures. While dry foods are heavily supplemented between 200–600% of most nutrients, combining fresh and commercial foods will help you give your dog the best of both worlds.