Dog owners who are concerned about the contents of popular commercial dog foods often seek out holistic dog food alternatives. Natural, commercial dog foods and homemade dog food are common holistic choices.

Natural dog foods that the companies promote as holistic often contain natural ingredients. Perhaps one of the biggest differences between these holistic dog foods and the most popular commercial dog foods is the quality of the ingredients.

Though animal byproducts are often the animal protein source in commercial dog food, animal byproducts are not usually included in holistic dog food. Animal byproducts are meat pieces that are not suitable for human consumption. Some holistic dog foods use only human-grade ingredients. Holistic dog food may have vitamins, minerals, and anti-oxidants added.

Holistic dog food recipes blend natural ingredients. Natural dog food recipes can be found on the Internet. The dog owner needs to make sure that the recipes do not contain any foods that can be toxic to dogs including garlic, avocado, onions, chocolate, and grapes.

One basic meat and rice dinner gives the dog owner flexibility in the ingredients that are included. One and a half cup of brown rice, two teaspoons of vegetable oil, one half cup of cubed meat, and one-fourth to one half cup of cooked vegetables are the four basic ingredients in this meat and rice dinner dog food recipe.

Beef, chicken, turkey, ham, liver, or veal can be used as the meat in this dog food recipe. Ground beef or ground turkey need to be cooked thoroughly if used as the meat. The meat should be cooked until well done in the vegetable oil.

The vegetables can be a mixture of cooked carrots, celery, cabbage, broccoli, diced potatoes, or other dog-safe vegetables. Some dog food recipes similar to this basic recipe include a half cup of plain yogurt. The ingredients should be blended and cooled before being fed to the dog.

The dog owner may want to experiment with different meats and vegetables. A variety of ingredients is strongly recommended as opposed to using liver or other ingredient every day. Using a variety of ingredients helps ensure the dog is receiving proper nutrition and avoids health problems related to eating too much of one particular food.