# Food for Min Pin and Chihuahua



## chrismin (May 13, 2014)

Min Pin is 3 and a lunatic 24/7 (it takes playing with other dogs all day to wear him out lol), Chihuahua is going to be 9 but still spry and sprunky and runs/gets excited for food time lol. I've been feeding them Nutro Max canned lamb and chicken (not beef as it seems to give them both really bad breath), and then I sprinkle some Nutro Max hard food for toy breeds b/c the Chihuahua is picky about any hard food larger then that. Both have been fine, very healthy, 8-9lbs and about 5lb, but after reading stuff on Nutro, I switched to the Natural canned food which I still know isn't the best but better then regular Nutro. 

Been trying to figure out if there's any good affordable cans, meaning canned food that isn't 3-5+ bucks a can lol. I found Diamond Pet Foods which from searching online seems like people rave about it and the quality especially for the price (can get a 24 pack on Amazon Prime for $34 shipped which is like 1.41 a can, cheap as hell for something that top quality, Nutro Natural is like $2 a can and not as good ingredients).

Or should I cook food at home in bulk and freeze in portions, and if so any recommendations for small breeds like this? Rather not do raw as I've heard from way to many others the smell is bad and no way my neighbors or mother etc are going to deal with raw food for dogs when were away lol, my mother can't even stand touching raw chicken herself ha. Any Min Pin/Chihuahua owners on here want to chime in?

We brush their teeth.


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## Chichan (Apr 1, 2014)

WHAT THE FORUM SAYS:

"Here are some suggestions within your price range that are available in many stores; since $40 for 31 lbs is $1.29/lb, these all cost less than that. 
(All prices as local to me, excluding sales tax.)

From Tractor Supply, probably Diamond Naturals Extreme Athlete as bang for your buck. 40 lbs, $38 (95 cents/lb before tax), 470 kcals/cup, 32/25 protein/fat. Some people prefer to avoid Diamond products so I note the manufacturers of some of the other foods below.

From WalMart, probably Purina One Beyond, Pure Balance chicken and rice or RR's Nutrish which both hover around $1/lb

Depending on local availability, 

Pro Pac High Performance, 33 lbs for about $35 (~$1.06/lbs), 572 kcals/cup, 30/20 formula, made by Midwestern Pet Foods, the same makers of Earthborn Holistic 

Professional Active Chicken and Rice, ~$40 for 35 lbs (~$1.15/lb), 376 kcals/cup, 30/20

Fromm Classic Adult, about $37 for 33 lbs (~$1.12/lb), 404 kcals/cup, 23/15

Eagle Pack (from WellPet LLC, the makers of Wellness), about $38 for 30 lbs (~1.27/lb)"

- Shell, Dof Food #2

"Taste of the Wild, Wellness Core, Acana, Canidae, Earthborn Holistic are all better than BB and grain free. You can get all of them online for a great price at mrchewy.com

A word on rotation: You really should rotate your dog's proteins every bag. The more your dog is exposed to one protein, the more likely it is that an allergy will develop. This is why chicken is such a common allergy in dogs, most grocery store brands are chicken based. What I do is a bag of lamb based, a bag of fish based, then a bag of exotic- bison, boar, venison or duck. I like to switch brands, as well, just in case, but my dog has a stomach of steel. If your dog's stomach is more sensitive, switch proteins within the same brand."

- Amaryllis, What happened to blue buffalo?!? #3

"A few I like that have both grain free and grain inclusive are Farmina, Annamaet, and Dr. Tim's. All are cheaper than BB in my area. Victor is good too."

- MarieLovesChis, What happened to blue buffalo?!? #6

"Fromm is another manufacturer I like and the dogs have done just fine on their basic and inexpensive Fromm Classic although I do add some things like eggs, sardines and meat when I fed that to boost the protein and fat. "

- Shell, What happened to blue buffalo?!? #11

HELPFUL LINKS:

A thread about a dog not eating dry food : Link

A thread about homecooked meals: Link

HOMEMADE RECIPE:

"*Home Made Adult Chihuahua Dog Food Recipe*

Making your own dog food is the only way to know exactly what your little Chihuahua is eating and to know that they are getting proper Chihuahua nutrition. Your home made food should consist of:

60% of protein from lean turkey, lean beef, chicken, a little chicken fat is good, fish (mackerel or herring but no more than twice a week) organ meats, lamb, eggs in moderation, 
40% vegetables carrots, green beans, broccoli, peas, spinach, pumpkin, celery, cauliflower, cucumbers (broccoli and cauliflower may cause gas) Pumpkin is excellent for diarrhea and soothing the tummy.
40% carbohydrates white rice, brown rice, potatoes (must be cooked), oatmeal.

*Easy Recipe*

Cook one whole chicken
Separate the bone and fat, save about 1/2 cup of fat, save the broth
Add chicken to 2 cups of rice (after cooking, brown or white)
Mix in 2 cups of veggies, peas add extra protein
package all together and scoop out as needed or put in individual containers, store in the fridge, or the freezer if not used in a week. C

*How much to feed your Chihuahua 
*
A 5 pound Chihuahua would need approximately 4% of their body weight = 3.2 ounces of food daily.

Five pounds (5 pounds x 4%= 3.2 ounces)

The percentage is lower for large and medium breeds (2% to 3%) 

Cottage cheese and yogurt are the only recommended cow dairy food for dogs. Yogurt is excellent for diarrhea and calcium. Cottage cheese is great for extra calcium, nursing mothers need.

*Time vs Cost
*
It is time consuming to cook up some chicken, throw in some rice and veggies,right? You must prepare, cook, sort out the bones and most of the fat, mix all the ingredients together, then bag it and store it. It is more time efficient to make a big batch all at once and then store it. You can store all in one big bag, scooping out what is needed, or individual storage. This should keep in your fridge for about a week, longer than a week, keep in your freezer.

The cost of making your own dog food is equivalent to or cheaper than buying premium dog food. Commercial premium dog food saves time and is more convenient.

Give raw bones in their diet twice weekly for teeth cleaning (again raw), or buy commercial chews.There is some controversy over splintered bones causing health problems.

There is also the option of supplementing their diet, either with commercially bought or you prepare.

Do your homework and pick the dog food you believe is best for your Chihuahua."

- Source


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## Kathyy (Jun 15, 2008)

You would definitely have to feed raw meaty bones twice a week for that recipe as it doesn't have any calcium added. Or use eggs as part of the protein and powder the dried out egg shell adding 1/2 tsp of the powder to each pound of food. Be very sure the rice is very soft or the dogs may have interesting poop.

Why do the ingredients add up to 140%? Perhaps use either the veggies or the grains or part of each depending on how the dogs do?

Do go for it. If you aren't sure then cook up the meat and substitute 25% of the kibble calories for 25% chicken and any other protein calories you decide to use. Canned dog food has a lot more water than home cooked food due to processing requirements so home cooked food can be much cheaper to make than canned food. That $3 can of food usually has a lot less protein than a pound of fresh meat and usually I can source chicken, pork or beef for less than $3 a pound. A can of Nutro Natural Lamb and Potato has only 26 grams of protein in it, 6 ounces of raw chicken has about the same number of protein grams.

It is much easier to deal with ground meats but I have found that cooking meat chunks then chopping in the food processor works very well.


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## April0684 (Sep 17, 2013)

I have a chihuahua and I feed mine canned 4Health from Tractor Supply. It is rated to be 4.5 stars according to the Dog Food Advisor website. It's a dollar for a 13.2 ounce can which is pretty good considering the prices of some of the other high end brands out there.


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## Shell (Oct 19, 2009)

Another option that is closer to the consistency of canned that could be pretty affordable for dogs that size is a dehydrated food such as The Honest Kitchen or Grandma Lucy's. They have complete formulas where you just add warm water (it is about the thickness of instant mashed potatos) or they have formulas where you add the protein source- like cooked chicken or ground beef.


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## taquitos (Oct 18, 2012)

Raw shouldn't smell?!?!?! That is the strangest thing I have heard. I feed raw to my three cats and dog and their food does *not* smell unless I am giving something like fish. Even at that it smells way less than kibble/canned.

I second dehydrated food like THK or Gma Lucy's.


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## Shell (Oct 19, 2009)

taquitos said:


> Raw shouldn't smell?!?!?! That is the strangest thing I have heard. I feed raw to my three cats and dog and their food does *not* smell unless I am giving something like fish. Even at that it smells way less than kibble/canned.
> 
> I second dehydrated food like THK or Gma Lucy's.


The only raw food I feed which smells strongly is green tripe. That does stink. Otherwise, raw is just raw meat. No more or less smell then the chicken or beef you prepare for your own meals. Liver smells if you cook it to make treats, but has no real scent when raw. There're definitely more kitchen odors when I cook fish or fry garlic or make a curry than when I put the raw food in the dogs' bowls.

If you are interested in raw, a premade ground raw is a simple way to get started and feel confident that the dogs are getting the correct nutrient balance plus it is generally easier for someone else to feed when needed (or when you're not home the dogs can eat a dehydrated food). Premade can be pricey for larger dogs, it would probably cost similar to canned for small dogs. Most of the premades look basically like little frozen hamburger patties and you just defrost them and put in a bowl.


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## taquitos (Oct 18, 2012)

Shell said:


> The only raw food I feed which smells strongly is green tripe. That does stink. Otherwise, raw is just raw meat. No more or less smell then the chicken or beef you prepare for your own meals. Liver smells if you cook it to make treats, but has no real scent when raw. There're definitely more kitchen odors when I cook fish or fry garlic or make a curry than when I put the raw food in the dogs' bowls.
> 
> If you are interested in raw, a premade ground raw is a simple way to get started and feel confident that the dogs are getting the correct nutrient balance plus it is generally easier for someone else to feed when needed (or when you're not home the dogs can eat a dehydrated food). Premade can be pricey for larger dogs, it would probably cost similar to canned for small dogs. Most of the premades look basically like little frozen hamburger patties and you just defrost them and put in a bowl.


Oh yeah, tripe def stinks haha I forgot about that... but even then it really isn't so horrible.


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