Question about rice - homecooked diet

[T&Csmom]

I do not feed store bought canned/package food to my dogs, and prefer to prepare their food. Usually they get rice with meat and veggies. Both my dogs are medium sized, so can someone tell me how many cups of rice should I feed each dog per day?

thanks in advance

[Maya]

People here might have suggestions about how often they feed and what times of day work best for thier dogs but like with any person or animal it will have a lot to do with the activity level, age and metabolism of each dog as well as the specific meal given each time. Even if they are both "medium size" one may still need more than the other for variuos reasons. Kudos to you for making thier food at home. I don't think you will want to make the rice a large part of the diet anyway since dogs are carnivores. Hope that helps a little.

[technodoll]

i agree, bravo!! but don't bulk up the diet with rice, instead feed more meat-based proteins (meat, organs, fish, eggs, cottage cheese, etc) and don't forget the calcium supplements, since you can't feed cooked bones. OR supplement the cooked diet with raw edible bones such as raw turkey necks, chicken backs, etc. good luck!

[SableCollie]

If you feed rice, I would recommend brown rice, since white rice does not have much nutritional value. When I use brown rice, I add extra water and boil it till it is mushy and easy to digest. My dog is 50 lbs and really only gets a tiny bit of rice at each meal. It's not necessary for a dog to have carbs, and you can just leave it out if you want.
Techno's post is right on the money.

[T&Csmom]

Thanks for the input

I give them sprats every other day for calcium; commonly available here and recommended by their vet. In addition they get a bowl of milk.
They get liver 2-3 times a week with rice, and on other days chicken or salmon with rice. As for eggs each dog gets 2-3 per week.

Cheese is very expensive here, so I rarely give it. I was also wondering if it is alright to mix soy meat with chicken to increase their protein intake?

[technodoll]

In addition they get a bowl of milk.
I was also wondering if it is alright to mix soy meat with chicken to increase their protein intake?

oh no NO! never any soy, which is indigestible for carnivores and a big cause of allergies and health problems. Also avoid milk if you can, cats and dogs don't have the necessary enzymes to digest lactose so the less, the better (but a small spoon of plain yogurt now and again is fine.. just not the liquid milk all the time). If you want to increase their protein intake, feed meat, any kind of meat - it's the easiest and most natural protein they can digest and get the most nutrition out of (the smaller the poops, the more food is being digested and utilized). Keep the eggshells, dry them out, crush them into a fine powder - coffee grinders work well - and use that as a perfect calcium supplement. 1 tsp per pound of meat given. Hope this helps!

[SableCollie]

If they are getting enough meat and eggs, they won't need additional protein.
My dog likes a little bit of peanut butter for a snack (the natural kind) and there is a bit of protein in that. She's spoiled though! She only gets it about once a week.

As for the eggshells, if you bake them in the oven at 350 F (or about 177 celcius I think...bad at math!) for 10 minutes they will dry right out and it's easier to crush them into a powder.

I wouldn't give milk, it gives a lot of dogs diarrhea.