When your dog is sick, you can help your dog feeling better by giving him good foods. For example, dog that have digestive tract problems, such as vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite, or upset stomach, needs more nutrition, but usually is difficult to digest the food. Dog with nausea, gas, allergies, diabetes, kidneys or organ’s problems, old age, and dogs undergoing chemotherapy usually have weak stomach that needed special attention to their diets.
A simple homemade diet might be very beneficial, since you can make the best nutritional food that is suitable for your dog condition at the moment. You can choose what kind of homemade diet based on the illness your dog has, but make sure to consult your veterinarian first before deciding the diet.
1. Boiled Meat
The first 5 homemade diets to feed your sick dog is boiled meat. Boiled meat is a good food for dogs that suffer from diarrhea. You can make homemade diet from boiled meat by using shredded skinless white chicken meat and boil it with brown rice with 2:1 ratio for about 30 minutes or until it cooked and easily shredded. Plain chicken is easy to digest and packed with essential vitamins, minerals, fats, and amino acids, while brown rice is higher in nutritional value than white rice. You can use 1 or 2 chicken breast with ½ cup of rice boiled in 1,5 cup of water. Do not add salt, oil, or flavors. Oils, butter, and seasonings can irritate dog’s stomach and make the problem worse, bland is the key. Plain boiled meat is easy to digest by sick stomach.
Serve to your dog in small portions, about ¼ of his usual portion. As his stomach problems ease, you can increase the portions a little until he is eating his normal serving. For bloating, plain boiled turkey can help to relieve the symptoms. Make sure that the chicken is cooked thoroughly and shredded or cut in small pieces, since dog might choke when eating bigger meat.
2. Eggs
If your dog is suffering from vomiting or diarrhea, giving him scrambled egg may help. Begin with giving him one or two tablespoon every two hours and see if he can eat it well. If it goes well, you can increase the amount after six hours until he eats the same amount as he usually eats. When his stomach is completely well, mix his regular food with scrambled egg and decrease the amount of egg over next few days until you give him his regular food.
3. Broth
When your dog has digestive problems, he may be difficult to take solid foods. That’s why, liquid food may be beneficial. Chicken broth, for example, contains many nutritional value of chicken meat, prevents dehydration, and easy do digest. You can make chicken broth by boiling chicken meat in plain water. You can use about 2 boneless chicken breasts and boil it for about 45 minutes or until cooked and easily shredded. Don’t use any salt or seasoning, keep in bland. Instead to let your dog drink it, you can also feed him using syringe.
You can also make a chicken soup instead of chicken broth by making potato soup. You can make it by adding 1 cup of chopped sweet potato and 1 cup of rice and simmer them for about 15 minutes or until the rice is cooked. Shred the previously boiled chicken and place it on the soup.
For dogs with chronic pancreatitis, you can give broth made from overcooked rice. Boil the rice until it become soupy. It can help to soothe their stomachs.
Beside chicken broth, bone broth is also good for dogs. It is nutritional, good for healthy joint, keeps the dog hydrated, and helps detoxify liver. To make bone broth, you can start by adding the water to the beef marrow bones and bones that have a lot of joints, such as chicken or turkey legs, until the bones are submerged by 2-3 inches. Add 2-3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. Boil it on low temperature for 20-24 hours. After that, remove all the bones and make sure there is no bone left, since the bones can splinter and cut your dog’s digestive tract. Place the pot in the fridge and let it cool for 2-3 hours. After that, remove the layer of fat at the top. The remaining jelly-like broth is the one you give your dog. It can be stored in the fridge for 3 days. Serve it in small portions for the first day. As the stomach problems ease, add in regular food over next 2-3 days until your dag back with his regular food. After your dog’s stomach is healed, you can still give the bone broth to your dog since it is healthy and nutritious.
4. Raw Food
Many people believe that homemade diet from raw food is good for dog’s health. It is good for dog that have some health problems, such as arthritis, joint issues, diabetes, obesity, and allergy, with many well-response cases. You can make raw food diet with protein, such as chicken, turkey, beef, or salmon that make up 50 percent of the food, mashed fruit and vegetables, such as apples, bananas, broccoli, carrots, and green beans that make up 40 percent of the food, and another ingredients, such as eggs, for remaining 10 percent.
5. Pumpkin
The last 5 homemade diets to feed your sick dog is pumpkin. For mild stomach problems, such as gas or mild constipation, giving your dog pumpkin and yogurt mix could be a great option. Pumpkin is high in fiber that can helps regulate your dog’s digestive systems. It also contains vitamin E, thiamin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, and many more nutrition. You can make it by mixing ¼ cup of pumpkin puree and 2-3 tablespoons of plain yogurt. Make sure that you use pure pumpkin and not canned pumpkin. Replace your dog food with the mix for the first day and slowly give him his regular food with the mix over next 2-3 days until your dog can have his usual meal.