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Unfortunately, our furry companions can become sick and get diseases just like we do. Diabetes in dogs can be caused by a number of things and there are a few ways to treat it. It’s not fun and it limits what your pooch can eat. However, if you feed your pup a homemade diabetic-friendly meal, they’re sure to be happy. That’s why we took a look at ingredients for the best diabetic dog food homemade.
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Most of us tend to avoid feeding our doggies “people food” but sometimes it’s better to make them a homemade meal. While it can be tricky to get the recipe right, in the long run, it may be healthier for your pup as you can control what nutrients go into each meal without any added sugar or anything else. This list contains some great ingredients for homemade recipes, though it’s always a good idea to check the ingredients and nutrition facts yourself before buying to make sure you know what’s right for your pup.
Top 5 Rated Ingredients For Best Diabetic Dog Food Homemade
| Recommendation | Best Diabetic Dog Food Homemade |
|---|---|
| Top Choice | No products found. |
| Runner Up | No products found. |
| Budget Choice | No products found. |
| Best For Low Fat Diet | No products found. |
| Best For Natural Diet | No products found. |
Our Top Pick: Barilla Pasta, Penne
Barilla is a great, well-known brand of pasta. It’s the kind of pasta I cook and eat for myself. It’s quick and easy and tasty to boot. Who knew that it’s healthy for your pooch as well? Pasta is a great alternative to feed your pet when they have diabetes because it has a low glycemic index and is also pretty low in sugars.
Also, this particular product is great because it’s quick and easy to cook. The penne shape is also big enough for your pet so they can easily pick it up and chew and you shouldn’t have to worry about them choking on it.
Key Features
- Affordable
- Boxes come in 16-oz as a pack of eight or 12
- Complex carb
- Low glycemic index
- About 1g of sugar
- Contains Wheat
Our Runner-Up Pick: Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin
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Pumpkin is a great add-on for anything you feed your pup. Of course, your pet shouldn’t eat raw pumpkin or the seeds at all, but there are canned pumpkin options that are already cooked and ready to go. Just add a little bit to your dog’s food and they’ll get some extra nutritional value out of it.
However, this particular product is a little more on the expensive side, but it’s 100% pumpkin. There are no other added ingredients. The pumpkin alone is healthy for your pet, though just be sure not to give them too much of it at one time. This product adds extra nutrients which reduces the fat and sodium in their meal and it adds extra flavor your pup will surely enjoy.
Key Features
- Pumpkin is the only ingredient
- Already cooked and made with Dickinson pumpkins
- Adds extra fiber and vitamin A as well as flavor
- Rich in antioxidants
- 5g of sugar
- Cans are 29-oz and come in a pack of 12
Best Budget Pick: Perdue, Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
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Chicken is a go-to food for a lot of people and dogs. When my dog has tummy troubles and we need to feed her a bland diet, we give her plain, boiled chicken. In fact, my uncle feeds his dog plain, boiled chicken every night with her dinner. I have yet to come across a pup who didn’t enjoy chicken. However, you have to be careful because some dogs have food allergies to chicken.
Still, chicken is a great option for a meal for dogs with diabetes. It’s loaded with protein and doesn’t contain any sugar. This particular product is great because it’s already boneless so you don’t need to worry about bone splinters getting in the chicken or your dog possibly choking and getting sick because of it.
Key Features
- Affordable
- Comes with five individually wrapped chicken breasts
- Skinless and boneless
- Zero sugar and has 22g of protein
- No antibiotics
- No need to thaw before cooking
Best For Low Fat Diet: UNCLE BEN’S Ready Rice, Whole Grain Brown
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UNCLE BEN’S is a wonderful brand that has many different kinds of rice that are quick and easy to cook in convenient microwaveable packaging. Brown rice is especially good for diabetes because it’s a good source of fiber, which isn’t digested in the body. This means it doesn’t affect the blood sugar levels so it’s safe for canine diabetes.
I eat this brand myself and even give it to my pup along with the boiled chicken when she’s having an upset stomach and needs a bland diet. She loves it and rice is just so quick and easy to make. Some dogs have food allergies to grains, so, if you’re unsure if your pup has allergies, keep an extra eye on them if you give them rice.
Key Features
- Affordable
- Quick and easy to cook
- Low fat, rich in fiber
- Has zero sugar and 5g of protein
Best For Natural Diet: Perdue, Fresh Lean Ground Turkey
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Another Perdue product is on this list because Perdue is a great brand. This is a great product because it’s all natural and has no antibiotics. When feeding your pup lean ground turkey for their diabetes, this is a great brand to choose from. If you want to feed your pup a natural diet with raw food, this is a good product to choose. When serving raw food, you need to be careful, but this ground turkey is all natural and is one of the best to serve to your pooch.
Perdue fresh lean ground turkey is 93% lean, which means it has less fat. The less fat, the better for your dog with diabetes. For a homemade diet, this product is great to use to keep track of their glucose levels since this has zero sugar, but it has other nutrients your pup needs.
Key Features
- Afforable
- No antibiotics
- Contains zero sugar and has 21g of protein
- 93% lean
- All natural
Buyer’s Guide
It’s not easy to hear that there is something wrong with our furry friend. Everyone, unfortunately, gets sick or is diagnosed with certain long-term illnesses. Dogs are no different. Diabetes is no joke and you have to be super careful with it, but there’s no need to panic. There’s plenty of knowledge and resources that exist on the topic of diabetes and how to keep it under control.
This list of ingredients is to help you choose what sorts of food your pup can have either as a meal or a snack. Creating a homemade diet for your dog’s health is easier said than done, but with the right ingredients and understanding of diabetes and nutritional value, as well as talking with your vet, taking control of your dog’s diabetes should be a breeze.
However, there are a few things to keep in mind when picking out ingredients for a homemade diet for your pup. You should learn about diabetes in dogs so that you know the right foods to feed your pup as well as keep an eye on their blood sugar levels. Also, storing the food you make in the right way is a must so that it doesn’t go bad and harm your pup further. Here are some ideas and things to know.
Learn About Diabetes In Dogs
Diabetes Insipidus
This is just one of the two types of diabetes in dogs. The two types are unrelated to each other but they have similar symptoms to look out for. Diabetes Insipidus is rare in dogs and causes their urine to be tasteless which can result in your pup losing control of their bladder and becoming dehydrated as a result.
Diabetes Mellitus
Also known as “sugar diabetes,” Diabetes Mellitus is more common in dogs. This type of diabetes results in failure of the pancreas in which your pup’s body can no longer regulate blood sugar.
Symptoms Of Diabetes In Dogs
There a handful of symptoms in dogs that can be linked to diabetes. Of course, these symptoms could also be caused by something else, but should you notice any of these symptoms in your pup, then call your vet right away and get your companion checked out. It’s better to be safe that sorry. With that said, some symptoms to look out for are as follows.
- Increased thirst and/or hunger
- Frequent urination
- Weight loss
- Lethargic
Storage For Homemade Recipes
When creating your own homemade diet for your pup, there are a lot of things to consider about nutrients, ingredients, and generally keeping track of your dog’s blood sugar levels. Storing these recipes so that they remain healthy and safe for your pup to eat a few days after being cooked is another thing to consider.
Diabetic diets for dogs that are homemade are created in two different ways: trial and error on your part as you create recipes or looking up homemade diets on the Internet that other people have made for their pups. Sometimes, they’ll add tips on storing the recipes, especially if the recipes make a few meals in bulk.
Put In Freezer Or Fridge
Whatever leftovers you have, put the food in a container and either place it in the fridge or the freezer. If you’re going to use it tomorrow and the next few days, storing the food in the fridge is a good idea. However, if you have a lot and there are a couple of containers you know you would use for another week or so, place it in the freezer. It’ll keep it fresh and will take longer to go back. This makes it much easier to make meals in bulk.
Measure Out The Food In Each Container
If you feed your pup four cups of food per day for their diabetes, then measure out four cups of the meal and place that in one container. Or, if you have a big enough container, fill it with eight cups so that it can be used two days in a row and be stored in the fridge. This will make things easier for you when you need to make more and keep track of just how much food you’ve fed your pooch.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are pros and cons to both and you should talk to your vet about what you decide is most adequate for your pet. A homemade diet allows you to control what goes into your dog’s body with nothing else added while commercial dog food made have other ingredients added in that may or may not be good for your pooch.
For a homemade diet, consistency is key to make sure your pup is getting what they need and how much. When creating a diet for diabetes, it should have little sugar to keep their blood sugar level low. Unrefined complex carbs and fiber will help their blood sugar intake. Finally, the diet should be low fat as obesity can make diabetes worse.
The glycemic index counts the carbohydrates in food from 1 to 100. The lower the number, the better it is for diabetes because that means the food is easily digestible and the metabolism is slower. In turn, blood glucose and insulin levels rise slower.
Other Ingredients For Best Diabetic Dog Food Homemade We Reviewed
- Best Vegetables For Diabetic Diet
- Best Fruits For Diabetic Diet
The Best Vegetables For Diabetic Diet
Organic Carrots
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Carrots are often found in a lot of homemade recipes for dogs with diabetes. This is for a number of reasons because carrots are a good source of fiber as well as vitamin A and other vitamins. They’re a low-calorie food which makes it easy to toss in some carrots bits into their meal or give your pup a carrot for a snack.
These particular carrots from Amazon Fresh are organic, which is great because this means there are no added chemicals to the vegetable. Organic foods strengthen the immune system. For a dog with diabetes, this is good since they may be prone to getting other illnesses.
Key Features
- Affordable
- Organic
- Comes with 30-35 carrots per bunch
- Can be served to your pup raw or cooked
- Low calorie
- Plenty of fiber, potassium, vitamin A, and other vitamins
Organic Broccoli
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Broccoli is a great source of nutrients for your pooch. In addition to carrots, it’s another vegetable that is super healthy. However, there are some things in broccoli that you should watch out for when feeding it to your pup. For example, broccoli can be a choking hazard for dogs, especially small breeds, so be sure to give small pieces of broccoli to your pup. In addition, this vegetable also contains isothiocyanates which can cause gastric irritation in dogs either mildly or severely.
On the other hand, broccoli does have plenty of vitamins and nutritional value as long as it’s given to your pup in small doses. However, it is organic with plenty of fiber and is low in fat, which is perfect for dogs with diabetes.
Key Features
- Affordable
- Organic
- Contains vitamins K, C, and A as well as fiber
- Low fat
- Can be served raw or cooked
- Choking hazard
- Give in small quantities – contains isothiocyanates which causes gastric irritation in dogs
The Best Fruits For Diabetic Diet
Organic Blueberries
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Blueberries, like most fruits and vegetables, should be given to your pup in small quantities. They’re healthy for you and your dog but too much at once can cause issues. Blueberries, however, are somewhat of a super food as they are packed with various vitamins, antioxidants, and more.
Feeding your dog with diabetes organic blueberries are a nice treat for them once in a while – or to be mixed in with their meal once in a while – because it’s low calorie and has plenty of fiber.
Key Features
- Afforable
- Organic
- Contains plenty of antioxidants
- Low calorie
- Has vitamin C and fiber
- Can be served frozen or fresh
- Choking hazard, especially for small breeds
Conclusion
Having a pup with diabetes isn’t easy, but there are plenty of ways to control it and keep track of your dog’s blood glucose levels. Creating a homemade diet for your dog’s body is a healthy way to go so long as you keep an eye on the ingredients and you talk to your vet about it.
If you create a homemade meal for your pup at home, share any tips in the comments below.
If you want to learn more about a diet for diabetes in dogs, you can check out a couple of other articles we’ve done. Take a look at the Best Low Glycemic Dog Food and Best High Fiber Dog Food.
Do you have any relevant experience with your pets? Drop us a comment below so we can exchange ideas and further tips! We always like to hear from our readers.
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