dog food advise

Question
Hi,
  With all the pet recalls I am wanting to switch my dogs over to home made food.  They were on Iams for years, but about a month ago I switched them (slowly) we switched to a premium brand called "California Natural"  I thought we were doing good by making this switch, but now the food Natural Balance had a recall which is similar to the California Natural.  It seems like everyday I turn the TV on, there is yet another pet food/treat recall.  I would feel much saver just making them home made food.  They currently get only home made treats and they seem to like them much better then the store bought ones.   I have done some research, but still not sure I'd be giving them all that they need in their diet going home made. I've read  40 percent meat, 30 percent vegetables and 30 percent starch.  I have several recipes and am more than willing to make them for my dogs.  I have a 10 year old beagle, an 8 year old beagle and a 6 year old Chihuahua.
I would appreciate it so much if you could give me your feedback on what you think of the homemade food thing and the California Natural dog food.

Thanks, Michelle  

Answer
Hi Michelle and I can appreciate your concern.

With all the recalls going on, knowing which food to feed your dog can be a stressful decision.
While I'm appalled at the pet food industry for their lack of quality control, sad for those who have lost pets (or had pets become ill), and sickened by those who have created the contaminated ingredients to begin with, these recalls have raised awareness to the quality of pet foods.
I applauded you for wanting to provide your pet(s) with the best possible nutrition.

First let me direct you to a site that will give the the nutrient composition of a food. This will help you in composing your dogs diet when it's based on nutrient requirements.
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/

The second site is what the National Research Council has determined to be the nutrient requirements of dogs and cats. This will help you determine WHAT they need and then you can use this site to determine their needs and the other site to make sure what you are feeding  is meeting those needs.
http://dels.nas.edu/banr/petdoor.html

As far as composing a diet, you can approach it in a similar way to making a stew for your family. Include meat and veggies (and fruit apple, cranberries, blueberries, figs, pears, etc), grains (such as oatmeal, rice, or cornmeal, barley or even pasta. I would highly recommend you use a calcium supplement (according to requirements) based on the quantity of meat you are using. (ex: 1lb beef = 1tsp calcium sup). I would also recommend that you add a couple meat proteins to each "pot" (ie: Beef and Fish, or chicken and lamb, or pork, beef, chicken). As for veggies, I would recommend spinach, carrots, sweet potatos, broccoli, squash, peas, or any of the ones high in beta carotene, vit b and c, and the macrominerals.

For supplements, I HIGHLY recommend ester-C, fish oil, and vit E, and calcium. Vitamin C is an immune booster and can act as a preservative, Vit E is a preservative and fights free radicals, fish oil is great for heart, brain, and organ health, as well as, fights inflammation. With the calcium, be careful to ensure the cal/phosphorus ratio is correct. Long term excesses or deficencies can cause a host of health issues that are hard to trace to lack of or excess of nutrients. You may spend thousands of $$ in vet bills trying to figure out that your dog has a nutrient issue.
Regarding the recipes you have, check them against the information I have given you to see if they are compatible. Here's a good site to visit to see if you are on track and to get allot more information from people who are making a homemade diet work for their pets.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/K9Kitchen/

You have the same type of dogs I have :) (beagles and Chi's)

I, personally, think California Natural is a great food. However, I would not use it for my dogs because it's really formulated for sensitive dogs OR those who prefer to feed a very simple diet (meat and potatos so to speak). My beagle's require alot more UMPH in their diet, as they are performance dogs. I do use some homecooked, raw, canned, and such in their diets, but do use a base kibble (Eagle Pack Original). I am not worried about this food, as they don't use these fractionated grains and they have their own USDA inspected plant (they don't' contract their production). I also know that EP uses local sources when available (corn grown locally, etc) and their fish protein is ethoxiquin-free.

I really hope that you can feel confident in whatever you decide to feed your pets and that I have provided some information that has helped you in your decision. Please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything else.