Vegan Dog Food – My Recipe

Here is what I feed my dogs. I make home made food plus use some commercial plant based dog food to ensure my girls have a nutritious, balanced diet. Now, my girls, my Aussie daughter in heaven, and my two German Shepherds, are large, high energy dogs. Depending on the size of your dog, and their energy level, you may need to tweak this recipe some. Also, your dog(s) might not like certain foods so you might need to switch or remove something completely.

If you want to learn more about plant based diets for dogs, I have written more about it here with resources from scientists and veterinarians. I have been feeding my girls plants based diets for ten years now (at the time of writing this). From my old Australian Shepherd who got her eyesight back and was able to walk again thanks to a plant based diet (after years of abuse from my abusers), to a 6 week old puppy who recently turned 6 years, and now another German Shepherd puppy, I have a lot of experience. And I have a LOT of science to back me up. You also can read this book for more info.

Commercial Plant Based Dog Food:

For the store bought food, if you’re pressed for time, the ones I give my dogs and recommend are:

Natural Balance Vegetarian Food wet and dry formulas
Wild Earth
Halo Vegan Dog Food wet and dry
V-Dog

I give these with also plant based treats I find such as Zuke’s peanut butter treats. There’s many dog treats out there that are plant based made by many companies.

For dental chews I give my girls Whimzees, Clean Breathe, and Whole Hearted Dental Chews. V-Dog has their own dental chews but I haven’t gotten them for my girls.

My Homemade Recipe:

Now, for my recipe I start off with the following ingredients:

Brown Rice
Extra Firm Tofu (14oz)
Shredded Carrots (10oz)
Fresh Green Beans (32oz)
Kale (1 bunch)
Broccoli (2 heads or a large bag)
Zucchini
Sweet Peas (13oz frozen)
Edamame Beans (10oz)
Gardein Plant-Based Chik’n Broth (or any vegetable broth without mushrooms and garlic)
Plain Oats (the kind you make oatmeal from)
Butternut Squash (2 large ones)
Whole Flaxseeds

Optional:

You can add these or switch out the above ingredients with these as needed.

Cauliflower
Frozen Blueberries
Celery
Bananas (sliced, frozen or dried)
Sweet potatoes
Apples
Cantaloupe or Honeydew
Dried Cranberries
Mangoes
Peaches
Pears
Pineapple
Pumpkin (puree is best)
Watermelon

This is a good list: https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/nutrition/fruits-vegetables-dogs-can-and-cant-eat/
https://peterdobias.com/blogs/blog/safe-fruits-for-dogs
https://www.purina.co.uk/articles/dogs/feeding/guides/what-fruits-can-dogs-eat
https://pupford.com/vegetables-fruits-dogs-can-cant-eat/
https://www.petmd.com/dog/nutrition/what-fruits-can-dogs-eat

Preparation

The first thing I do is I put the edamame beans in the microwave per the instructions. If you didn’t buy them frozen you can skip this step.

Next I get a large skillet and put it on medium heat. I put the frozen peas, broccoli, diced tofu, carrots, edamame beans, and some of the vegetable broth in this.

I take another large skillet and fill it with water and bring to a boil. I then shred up some of the kale and toss in the boiling water. Wait for it to become darker and almost mushy, like how you cook spinach, before spooning it out and putting it with the other vegetables in the other skillet. Always cook kale as it makes it easier to digest.

In the same boiling water the kale was in I then toss in the green beans and allow them to soften. It takes a few minutes.

Leave a lid over the other vegetables as they simmer, stirring occasionally. You want the broccoli to become well steamed.

Peas placed in the pan while the other one has water set to boil
Add the other vegetables, tofu, etc. I used to add chickpeas (which is what you see), but no longer do.
Kale is boiling as other vegetables simmer in the chikn stock.
Removed kale and put with other veggies, placed green beans in the same boiling water.
I replaced the chickpeas with tofu now.

When the green beans are done, I place them in their own container. This is due to them spoiling before other vegetables do. So I keep them separate. Once they are done, the same water that boiled them and the kale I pour brown rice into. This way, all the nutrients lost from boiling the vegetables gets reabsorbed by the rice. You also can do this with the oatmeal.

Once the rice is done I place them in separate containers, one rice, one green beans, and one with the other vegetables. Or, you can mix them up, put in smaller containers, and freeze to last longer.

When serving the dog, I add some whole flaxseed, shredded zucchini, and prepared butternut squash. You can add other vegetables or fruits to it as well!

To make the butternut squash I bring the oven to 400F, then peel the butternut squash. I dice it up (throw away the seeds!), place it on a greased cooking pan (cookie pan), then place in the oven for 25 minutes.

My older German Shepherd LOVES her butternut squash and drools while watching me make it for her! I add this to her food, about a cup of it.

You can also mix in some of the commercial dry or wet food. Or give them the homemade meal for dinner and the commercial food for breakfast/lunch.

You might have to experiment some to make sure you are giving your dog what they need and what they like to eat!