Homemade dog food — what the evidence says

Wanting control and “whole foods” is understandable. Completeness is the hard part: dogs need dozens of essential nutrients in workable ratios, not just meat and vegetables that look wholesome on a plate.

Sources: Stockman et al. 2013 (JAVMA) · UC Davis summary · ACVN · BalanceIT

The Stockman et al. 2013 finding

Stockman, Fascetti, Kass, and Larsen (UC Davis) evaluated 200 recipes for home-prepared adult dog maintenance diets (books, websites, and other published sources) with computer-based nutrient analysis against NRC and AAFCO adult standards (JAVMA 2013;242:1500–1505).

• 95% of recipes produced at least one essential-nutrient shortfall vs NRC or AAFCO (UC Davis news summary of the study).
• Only 9 of 200 recipes met AAFCO adult nutrient-profile minima; eight of those nine were written by veterinarians.
• More than 83% had multiple deficiencies.
• 92% of recipes had vague or incomplete instructions that forced owners to assume ingredients, prep, or supplements.

That is not an argument against all home cooking — it is evidence that published recipes as written often fail completeness tests.

The legitimate DIY path

UC Davis clinical nutrition guidance: avoid general internet/book recipes; work with a board-certified veterinary nutritionist for a customized, complete recipe (UC Davis). The American College of Veterinary Nutrition (ACVN) is the specialty organization for that credential.

Formulation tools such as BalanceIT (Autobalancer lineage referenced in the Stockman/Larsen literature) are used in veterinary nutrition workflows to balance homemade recipes with appropriate supplements — not as a substitute for clinical judgment when a pet is ill.

This page does not publish complete diet recipes.

Educational only — not veterinary advice. Diet changes for sick or at-risk pets belong with your veterinarian (and a board-certified veterinary nutritionist when homemade or complex diets are considered).