If you own a Chihuahua, you’ve likely had to deal with their pickiness at some point. These pint-sized pups are notorious for getting bored with food easily.
This has forced many owners to start thinking outside of the box when it comes to keeping their dogs healthy and well-fed.
Homemade diets are becoming more and more popular with each passing year. Sure, commercial kibbles are a lot more convenient.
But making your Chihuahuas food from scratch offers far more benefits.
Why Consider Making Homemade Dog Food for Your Chihuahua?
Everyone has their reasons for weaning their dogs off commercial kibble. One of the most common is control. The commercial dog food industry has gone a long way in the last few decades. It’s become more varied and high-quality.
Premium brands emerged as more dog owners focused on providing healthy products for their canine companions. Even still, commercial kibble products aren’t perfect.
While you can use ingredients lists and protein analysis guides to paint a picture, there’s just no way to tell where the ingredients used came from. Oftentimes, ingredients travel far and wide just to make it into that piece of kibble.
When you make your Chihuahua’s food from scratch, there’s no question about quality. You know where it came from and how it has been processed. This alone is enough to get many to switch.
You don’t have to worry about potential toxins, bad batches, or unhealthy ingredients. As the chef to your pup’s meals, you have all the control.
Making homemade meals can also help you keep your Chihuahua excited about eating. These dogs are small enough. Skipping meals is just unhealthy! Unfortunately, this is pretty common due to their finicky nature.
Homemade meals include stronger flavors and more natural ingredients. Plus, you can mix things up to prevent boredom! It’s a win-win!
4 Homemade Dog food Recipes for Chihuahuas
Creating your pup’s meals is a lot easier than you may think! Many owners hesitate to give it a try because they don’t know what types of ingredients they should use.
This is a reasonable fear, as you don’t want to provide anything that will cause harm.
It will take time to learn what works and what doesn’t. But, you can pick up on the basics pretty easily.
To help you get started, here are a few tried and true recipes that Chihuahuas love! They’re wholesome meals with safe ingredients that can improve your pup’s health in the long-run.
#1. Balanced Apple and Chicken Meal
Here’s a simple recipe that you can easily adapt as you learn more. It features similar ingredients to some premium kibble foods. However, the meal has far less processing.
The most processing you’re going to be doing is baking!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of boneless chicken
- 1 Apple
- Half a cup of peas
- Half a cup of corn
- Half a cup of carrots
- About a cup of brown rice
- 1 Egg
Directions
Start by bringing a large pot of water to a boil.
While you’re at it, preheat your oven to about 350 degrees Fahrenheit (About 176 Celcius). When the water is to a boil, place the chicken in and cook it until it’s fully white.
After that, remove it from the water and shred it with a fork.
Then, cook your rice. You can do so in a pot according to the instructions or use a rice cooker. As that’s cooking, slice up your fruits and vegetables.
In one large bowl, combine the sliced apples, shredded chicken, and egg. Mix the two up nicely to create a thick consistency. In a separate bowl, combine the brown rice and vegetables.
Make sure they’re mixed thoroughly. Now you’re ready to assemble and bake!
Grease a large casserole can and add a thick layer of the chicken mixture. Then, add a layer of the rice mixture. Continue alternating layers until you’ve used up all of the ingredients.
Pop the pan into the oven and bake it for about half an hour.
Let the leaf cool down completely before chopping it up and serving it to your Chihuahua.
#2. Doggie Stew
This recipe is pretty flexible, too. It covers most of the basics that Chihuahuas need. But, you can easily swap ingredients out to make things your own.
This is a great choice if you have healthy leftovers that you need to get rid of!
Ingredients
- 3 pounds of minced beef
- 6 cups of water
- 4 cups of brown rice
- 1 cup green beans
- 1 cup pumpkin
Directions
The first thing you need to do is boil the beef. In a large stockpot bring the 6 cups of water up to a boil and add the meat.
Cook the meat in this way until the beef is no longer pink.
Then, remove the meat.In the same pot and water, cook your rice. This will infuse some of that beef flavor into the rice.
While that’s cooking, puree your green beans and your pumpkin. You should have a thick and creamy consistency.
Once everything is prepared, finishing the meal is as easy as mixing everything together! You can then feed the meal as is.
It’s a soft dish that’s packed with flavor!
#3. Raw Homemade Meal
BARF diets are pretty popular these days, too. BARF stands for Bones and Raw Food. Raw meals are much closer to what animals ate in the wild.
After all, wild canines didn’t have the luxury of ovens to cook their meals for them!This recipe replicates that a bit. It’s easy and doesn’t require any major prep to complete.
Ingredients
- 1 soft-boiled egg
- 2 ounces of raw beef organs
- 1 teaspoon of white plain yogurt
- 3 teaspoons of mixed vegetables
Directions
You can use a ton of different ingredients here. Use what you have on hand.
For organs, beef liver, heart, and kidney work well. Chop up those organs into small pieces so that your Chihuahua won’t have trouble eating it.
For your vegetables, things like baby carrots, peas, green beans, and spinach work well. Steam those vegetables and let them cool.
After that, you can prepare the meal. Just mix all of the ingredients up together and serve! Pop any leftovers in the freezer for some extra shelf life.
#4. Flaxseed and Turkey Dish
If you have a Chihuahua that’s allergic to the common ingredients in standard kibbles, this is a great recipe to try out. It has something other than chicken as the main protein source.
Oatmeal and flaxseeds provide a bit of extra texture. Meanwhile, the vegetables provide a ton of vitamins and nutrients. Use what you have on hand and mix things up to keep your Chihuahua happy!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of ground turkey
- Three quarters of a cup of vegetables
- 1 and a half cups of plain oatmeal
- Half a cup of ground flaxseeds
- 2 eggs
- Half a cup of cottage cheese
Directions
This is another recipe that won’t take very long to prepare.
Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees.Now, you’re going to want to grate up those vegetables. You have a lot of options on what types of vegetables to use.
You can utilize sweet potatoes, carrots, peas, or many other crops you have in your refrigerator. Just avoid anything that’s known to cause issues with dogs!
Grate the vegetables up into tiny pieces. Then, combine all of the ingredients to create a thick dough-like consistency. Place the mixture into a greased or lined loaf pan.
Bake it for about an hour. Let the loaf cool and it’s ready to serve to your eager pup!
Conclusion
Say goodbye to your dog turning his or her nose up at their food! Homemade meals are a delicious treat that your Chihuahua will love.
They offer tons of flexibility and control, ensuring that everything your dog consumes is healthy and filling. Give these recipes a shot and see what your dog thinks! Y
ou’ll be surprised by just how much your canine companion enjoys them!
Also Read:Vet Approved Homemade Dog Food Recipes
