Save money making your own dog food
Over 50% of Australian households have one or more pets in the house, ranging from cats to birds and most predominantly dogs. Besides the obvious rewards of having a dog, it does equate to more mouths to feed and extra money taken from your budget. This article will look at ways to save money on pet food and also provide your pet with cheap homemade dog food options that are healthy and easy to make.
Buying dog food in bulk
One of the easiest ways to save money is buying your food in bulk. Whilst this may seem logical, many people do not carry this out because of the convenience factor of running down to your local store. Ultimately you could be spending twice as much on your pet food then you need to be.
The easy way is to locate your local pet barn or wholesale pet food shop; a quick Google search will help you find them. Not only do these places sell pet food in larger quantities, they regularly have great specials in which you can buy your chosen pet food at half the price. The key here is to not just get a weekly supply, but buy enough to last months in advance. Look into 20KG dry food bags for dogs and pallets of canned food that takes years to expire.
Making your own cheap dog food
A good nutritious dog food alternative involves a simple mix of boiled rice and meat. Try buying large sacks of rice from your local supermarket at cheap prices. Woolworths often has cheap meat packages that have been packaged earlier and therefore will expire quicker. If you cook these up straight away you can then freeze them so they will last longer. By combining the meat and the rice you have a cheap, long lasting and very nutritious meal for your pet. Adding your own left over’s or older veggies to the mix can also bulk out the meals and give your pet a variety of nutrients and goodness.
Also don’t discard supermarket or cheaper brands of pet food. They are often very similar if not the same in content as your well known brands at much more affordable value. If you are wary of using these try mixing using half/half. Home brand tuna cans are cheap and loved by dogs, so not a bad alternative to red meat.
Also don’t forget to check out whether your local butcher has off cuts or bones that they may be throwing out. Most butchers are happy to give these either for free or very cheap for your pet. This is a great way to give your pet a cheap treat and and easy way to prevent dental problems especially in your dog.
Pets are part of the family; they deserve healthy food and love and should not cost you an arm and a leg. They are not as fussy as children when it comes to dinners, so take the advice above and start cutting back the costs of dog food from your monthly shopping bill.
How do you save money on dog food?
We would love to hear your house and home hints for feeding the dogs without spending lots of money!
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One Response for Save money making your own dog food
While making this food may seem like a great idea, you simply do not get the same content as what is offered in the premium dog foods. There is a wide array of vitamins and fats which are essential to a dog’s health. Although rice and meat will allow you dog enough nutrition to live, it will not give them the same amazing sheen on their coat which shows good health.
Similarly, any wet dog food is approx 80-90% WATER. These kinds of wet food promote poor gum and tooth health and the animal will get nowhere near enough nutrition for a good health life. There is an enormous difference between the cheap (coles brand, chum, pedigree) and the premium (eukanuba, pro plan, hills etc), so to say otherwise is rediculous. You are basing this on whether or not the animal will live, not if they will be as healthy as they can be.
If you cannot afford the premium food for your animal, you probably shouldn’t own a pet. They deserve a quality of food (which doesnt mean that my dog stuff either) and a quality of life.
/end rant
