Being Your Pet's Personal Chef

Dr. Laurie Dohmen makes meals that taste like dog food.

It's not a slap at her cooking; it's actually a compliment. Little Boo, her 8-year-old black pug, loves Dohmen's dinners.

And if you see another meaty concoction bubbling away in her green ceramic slow cooker, it's likely even more food fit for Dohmen's four-legged friends. Her eight hungry cats will be chowing down soon on the protein-rich meal.

Dohmen, a veterinarian who lives on a 72-acre farm in Hartly with her husband, two sons and various animals, recently taught a "Home Cooking For Pets" class at Wilmington's Fresh Thymes Cafe. Eight students learned basic, step-by-step instructions for feeding healthy dogs and cats meals made in a Crock-Pot.

Owners cook from scratch for pets not simply to pamper their precious tail-waggers, but as an alternative to commercial kibble and canned food.

Being a dog or cat's personal chef takes more time, dedication and planning than pulling the lid off a can or ripping open a bag. It's certainly not for all and tends to be embraced by those already interested in whole foods. Owners also make homemade food for pets suffering from allergies or other health problems and need special diets.

For sure, you have to be devoted to your pet to cook its meals. And it goes without saying (but we will anyway), owners should always do research and consult a veterinarian or veterinary nutritionist before and after making homemade food to ensure pets are getting the proper amount of nutrition. Pets should be checked about two or three weeks after eating a homemade diet to make sure they are not gaining or losing too much weight.

Dohmen, who has closed her Kent County veterinary practice, now teaches veterinarians and pet-lovers about western herbal medicine, nutrition and food therapy. She runs the website, Purple Moon Herbs and Studies, and is studying for a master's in Therapeutic Herbalism at Maryland University of Integrative Medicine.

A vegetarian for years, Dohmen eats organic food and uses alternative medicines. She found her family thrived on a "wholistic" lifestyle — "wholistic" takes into consideration the mind, body and spirit — and now applies the philosophy to her animal patients.
Dohmen says in her practice she has seen an uprise in chronic diseases. Making pet food from scratch is not only a way to feed animals better, she says, it can be faster and cheaper than you might imagine.

"I'm a busy mom and have a farm; this is simple and easy," she says.

Jenn Adams, owner of Fresh Thymes, a vegetarian/vegan eatery on Lovering Avenue, invited Dohmen, a frequent customer, to teach the Jan. 27 home cooking for pets class. Adams makes pet food for her 15-year-old cat, Francesca, who follows a strict diet for health reasons.

About once or twice a month, Adams offers a variety of evening classes at the shop, usually aimed at the mind and body, after the breakfast and lunch café has closed for business.

While Dohmen follows a plant-based diet herself, she cooks meat, fish and poultry for her dog and cats and uses other foods that humans eat. She has been making homemade pet food for at least five years.

But, there are some rules to follow when cooking for dogs and cats. Foods, such as onions, grapes, pork, chocolate and cooked bones, are harmful, if not toxic, for pets and should never be used. Don't add salt or other flavorings when cooking, she says; animals like the food just the way it is.
Dohmen says commercial pet food wasn't always an option for U.S. pet owners. Indeed, canned horsemeat for dog food was introduced in the United States after World War I, according to the Pet Food Institute, the organization representing the makers of U.S. cat and dog food. Canned cat food and dry meat-meal dog foods were introduced in the 1930s. By the 1950s, dry expanded type pet foods were introduced through the adaptation of equipment used in the production of breakfast cereals.

Not surprising, the Pet Institute cautions against cooking at home because, they say, some recipes can be nutritionally deficient. The topic is addressed on its website, www.petfoodinstitute.org
The American Veterinary Medical Association, however, says it does not and will not regulate what pet owners choose to feed their pets.

Before getting started, owners should know diets for dogs and cats are different and so are the homemade pet recipes Dohmen provides to students taking her classes.

Visit her website, purplemoonherbstudies.com, for more information. Various websites can be found for making homemade pet food. Make sure they come from credible sources such as veterinarians and veterinary nutritionists. WebMD also has tips for making homemade dog food.

Both dogs and cats need protein in their diets, but in varying amounts. Dogs need about 50 to 75 percent protein, Dohmen says, which can include beef, chicken, turkey, gizzards, organ meats (preferably organic), raw necks, white fish, oily fish, eggs, lamb and cheese or yogurt. Added to it should be 15 to 25 percent complex carbohydrates — foods like brown rice, whole oats, oatmeal, barley, quinoa or millet, buckwheat, sweet potato, potato and root vegetables like turnips or beets can be used. Vegetables such as green beans, asparagus, zucchini, hearty or leafy greens make up the remaining 10 to 15 percent of a dog's diet.

Diets for felines are slightly different. Cats need 75 to 80 percent protein in their diets. The amount of complex carbohydrates is 10 to 15 percent, and the remaining should be 3 to 5 percent vegetables.

The meats used for both dogs and cats should be fatty — like chicken thighs and regular ground meat. Animals need fat, Dohmen says. If lean meats are used, she suggests tossing in a stick of butter. "Fat is a dirty word, but it really shouldn't be."

When it comes to the vegetables, she says don't be afraid to rummage around the vegetable bin. Use cuttings or slightly wilted vegetables, such as lettuce, your family might not eat. She says she saves broccoli stalks for dog food. "My kids won't eat them, but my dog will."

Pets also can eat raw fruit snacks like apples, pears and pineapples. "My mom's cat ate cantaloupe his entire life and lived to be 21," she says. Melon should be eaten between meals only.

Dohmen showed students how to cook a batch of dog food.

"It really only takes 5 minutes" to prepare, she says.

The protein, or meat of choice, is placed in a slow cooker with enough water to cover it. She then adds a calcium supplement (use one for dogs, not humans) to the slow cooker. This night, Dohmen added ground beef and then millet for the complex carbohydrates. It's about 5 pounds of meat to 2 cups of millet. Stir occasionally and cook until the meat is done. (This can take anywhere from 4 to 8 hours, maybe a little more or less, depending if the slow cooker setting is on low or high.)

Dohmen adds vegetables after the slow cooker is turned off and lets them sit. The only exception is hard vegetables, like broccoli or cauliflower, which is added at the beginning, so they are well cooked.

For her demonstration, she first sliced and tossed away some dark, graying curds from a large head of cauliflower that had been in the back of her refrigerator. The remaining cauliflower slices she then tossed into the slow cooker.

"It's perfectly fine. My family might not like it, but it's still good and the dog won't mind." Dohmen says using wilted vegetables is a good way to throw out less food. "You never let anything go to waste."
She usually makes one very large batch of pet food at a time. Dohmen freezes much of the food in plastic bags and keeps about five days' worth in the refrigerator.

When it comes time for feeding, Dohmen suggests warming the food in the microwave before serving. A vitamin supplement (for dogs or cats) goes directly onto the meal.

Her 15-pound very active farm dog eats three times a day, usually about 1 1/2 cups of homemade food at each meal. Most average dogs should be fed twice a day, Dohmen says.

The veterinarian suggests adding the homemade food slowly to your pet's diet to allow them time to get used to it. "It takes about a month," she says.

Dogs tend to adapt much easier than notoriously finicky cats. And it might take some adjustments to figure out what cats will eat. Changing the ingredients, and texture might help.

"My cats like (the food) soupy. They line up for this," Dohmen says, showing off a bowl of the food.


Information from: The News Journal of Wilmington, Del., http://www.delawareonline.com

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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