I’ve been cooking Mylah a homemade diet for about 7 years now and it’s the only way she’s been able to thrive for this long while keeping her diabetes under control. Cooking for her has literally saved her life. The focus of her diet is comprised of a few important parameters that I’ve seen make a huge difference in her overall quality of life as a diabetic dog. 

Here’s what I focus on when I formulate Mylah’s homemade diabetic dog recipes:

1. Choose foods wisely that together can help regulate her diabetes, provide antioxidants, won’t put stress on her body, and will support her other ailments
2. Feed her a recipe that meets nutrient requirements by providing a complete and balanced diet
3. Focus on foods that are easier to digest because of her IBD and EPI
4. Add in necessary foods to account for the loss of her PLN, protein losing nephropathy
5. Provide supplements that support her pancreas and eye health
6. Carefully balance her fat intake so she’s getting just enough but not too much to cause stress on her pancreas

Things to Note: 
→ Every dog is of course, very different, especially diabetic dogs. Many have pancreatic or GI complications in addition to their diabetes. For Mylah, her complications are IBD, EPI, and PLN (protein losing nephropathy). Many diabetics struggle with pancreatitis so they require a low fat diet. In general, a diabetic dog typically does better with a low fat diet. As each dog is an individual though, diet should be approached from an individual standpoint. 

→ My favorite foods to formulate diabetic dog recipes are listed below! Keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive list. It really, really, depends on the individual dog in front of you. Also, please be aware that choosing a protein, carb, and vegetable from this list and feeding it to your dog (whether diabetic or not) is NOT SAFE! Dogs need a complete and balanced diet to nutrient standards such as AAFCO, NRC, or FEDIAF. 

→ Particularly for dogs with diseases such as diabetes, a complete and balanced diet can literally make the difference between life and death. I have seen it, firsthand. 

→ Lastly, this is not a recipe list – it’s just my favorite types of foods to use when formulating diabetic dog recipes for my dog, or clients dogs. 

My Favorite Foods for Diabetic Dog Food Homemade Recipes

• Atlantic Cod
• Turkey, no fat or 7%
• Beef, 90/10
• Chicken (sometimes I use chicken, really depends on the dog though)
• Barley
• Buckwheat
• Oatmeal
• Sweet Potato or squash (very very carefully though)
• Spinach (not too much)
• Kale
• Swiss Chard
• Dandelion leaf (really depends on the dog though)
• Broccoli
• Celery
• Cod Liver Oil (must be careful with this as many are high in Vit A & D)
• Fish oil (varies depending on the dog)
• Flaxseed oil (varies depending on the dog)
• MCT oil (varies depending on the dog)
• Organ meats – this very much depends on the dog and how sensitive they might be to organ meats. I typically like using beef liver, beef spleen, even pancreas.

Yours in canine health and happiness,

Alicia

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