Homemade dog treats don’t have to involve any cooking or baking. There is an increasing trend in feeding dogs a raw diet that consists of uncooked meats and vegetables. One traditional version of this diet is known as the bones and raw foods (BARF) diet. This diet emphasizes feeding your dog only natural foods that have not been cooked or otherwise processed. You can follow the principles of this diet to provide your dog with homemade dog treats that don’t involve lots of work.

The BARF diet includes the use of raw, meaty bones and includes items such as chicken wings, necks, and backs. It is important to note that while it is safe to give your raw dog chicken that includes bones, it is not safe to give them chicken that has been cooked that includes the bones.

The bones are softened during the cooking process making them brittle and a choking hazard for dogs. However, raw chicken bones are not likely to splinter and create this hazard and are therefore safe to give to dogs.

Buying a bag of frozen chicken wings is one way to provide your dog with incredibly simple home treats. These gifts can be as simple as removing a chicken wing or two from your freezer and distributing them to your dog.

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Supplements for Dogs on a Raw Dog Food Diet

The majority of dog owners, out of convenience, just choose to go with a commercial brand of dog food for their four-legged friend, with the most conscientious owners providing additional vitamin and mineral supplements to their dog’s diet. Today, however, as more and more owners choose to feed their pets a raw dog food diet, they will often ask whether dog supplements are necessary for such a diet.

We will answer that question shortly, but it’s worth taking a look at how dog supplements came to be in the first place. The simple answer is that they were made to meet the demands of a dog owning public that loves to treat their dogs like little humans. Companies make all kinds of clothing, toys, and other products to keep a dog happy, so why not supplements too?

There are some different varieties of dog supplements now on the market, usually in a chewable tablet, powder, or liquid form. Much like the food that you buy, you can choose from a natural/herbal supplement or a commercial one, with both ensuring that your dog gets all of the vitamins and minerals that he needs to remain healthy both inside and out.

The majority of supplements available are used to fill in essential ingredients that tend to be missing in commercial dog food. It is for this very reason that dog supplements are most imperative should you choose to go with commercial food rather than a raw dog food diet. Dog supplements help prevent common diseases. Selenium, for example, a commonly known ingredient in dog supplements, is often used to prevent cancer.

As great as all of this may sound, dog supplements do have a negative side to them as well as a positive. Most supplements are comprised of synthetic vitamins, meaning that a dog’s kidneys have to work much harder to process them.

Vitamins that are found in whole foods are far better than synthetics as they contain all of the healthy components required to benefit the body. Vitamins, when present in their natural state, aren’t found in a single isolated form but comprise other active components and enzymes as well.

Pets on a raw diet don’t need supplements

To finally answer the question, pets that are placed on a raw dog food diet will not need their feeding time supplemented in any way as they will naturally receive everything that they need from their food. As a dog owner, all you have to do is make sure that your dog is receiving the right quantity of raw food in the proportions required for each stage of their development. If you can do this, there is no need to include a dog supplement.

Before making any significant changes to your dog’s diet, it is recommended to consult your veterinarian, since your dog may have special health requirements that can only be evaluated by a veterinarian. Some dog owners can choose natural or herbal supplements, even if their dog is on a wet dog food, which is perfectly normal, although not necessary.