With all the deceptive practices in labelling pet food, it’s difficult to find a good quality food for your dog or cat. And since the pet food industry is self-regulated, it’s even harder. The ‘stamp of approval’ for pet foods comes from AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) which is a volunteer organization of industry insiders. It is NOT a government body, nor does it have any responsibility to government bodies, like the Food and Drug Administration (the FDA) . The nicest thing I can say about AAFCO, is that its reviews and approvals are better than nothing. But not much.
So it’s up to you – the consumer and caring owner – to decipher what’s really in that food you pay good money for.
So what foods ARE safe?
Based on a number of experts’ reviews, and what a small dog like a Yorkie, Morkie or Maltese needs, I would recommend any of the following dry foods:
- Acana from Champion
- Amicus from Horizon
- Before Grain from Merrick
- Fromm
- Go! Sensitivity
- Holistic Precise
- Life’s Abundance
- NOW!
- Orjen from Champion
- Pinnacle
- Wellness Core
This recommendation is based on my own research of expert opinions and my own experience – please keep in mind I’m not a trained animal professional, just a concerned consumer and committed dog lover.
Click to read more about the DOWNLOADABLE EBOOK – the Complete Guide to Feeding your Morkie. Just $7.
Please note: I’m not a trained dog health professional. It is the reader’s responsibility to consult with a licensed, practicing Doctor of Veterinarian Medicine (DVM) (or equivalent in your country) before making any changes to your method of feeding, grooming or any other matter of dog care for any dogs for which you have any responsibility or contribute, in any way, to his or her care. This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice of your own Veterinarian.
We are feeding our Morkie Blue Mountain for small adult dogs, kibble, add white meat boiled chicken and broccoli. She is just 6, Either red meat (beef) or chicken. No grains etc. she has been doing well but sleeps a lot. Are we doing something wrong for our sweet pup?
Hi Janet, For homemade food, I suggest something quite simple… I often brown lean ground beef, drain any fat, and mix with cooked white rice and frozen mixed vegetables… 2 parts meat, to 1 part rice and 1 part veggies. Mix it all up – and a touch of olive oil. I feed about 1/4 cup of this, twice a day. Most small dogs I’ve served this to, really love it.
For something a little more work… here are 2 other good recipes:
CHICKEN DINNER
4 chicken breasts with skin and bones
1/2 cup fresh green beans, chopped into small pieces your Morkie can easily bite
1/2 cup carrots, chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup broccoli, chopped into small pieces
1/4 cup rolled oats
4 cups of low-salt chicken broth
Remove the excess fat from the chicken breasts; cut into large pieces and simmer in the low-salt chicken broth for 15 minutes.
Remove from the broth and when the chicken is cool, carefully remove the meat and cut it into small bites – about the size of a dime. Strain the chicken broth to remove any bits of bone or skin, and bring it to a low boil again.
Add the chicken meat, vegetables and rolled oats and simmer for another 15 minutes until the carrots are tender and the oatmeal is cooked.
Cool before serving,and store portion-size meals in the freezer.
BEEF STEW
1 pound of stewing beef
1 small sweet potato
1/2 cup carrots, chopped into small pieces your Morkie can easily bite
1/2 cup green beans, chipped
1/4 to 1/2 cup brown flour (you can also use white flour)
1/2 cup water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
Microwave the sweet potato including skin, until firm but tender. Meanwhile slice the stewing beef into very small bites, and fry it with olive oil, over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Dice the sweet potato and remove meat from the pan, keeping the juices and drippings.
Slowly heat the drippings over medium low heat and slowly add the flour, whisking it into the fat of the pan. Then slowly add water, whisking rapidly to create a smooth gravy. Add the cooked meat back in to the pan, along with the carrots and green beans and simmer until the carrots are tender, about 10 minutes. Add in the diced sweet potato and coat everything with the gravy.
Cool before serving,and store portion-size meals in the freezer.
** Let us know how you make out with these.
After learning about horror stories about commercial dog food, I immediately switched to home-made meal. I can’t trust the dog food labels anymore.
What home-made food are you feeding your morkie? I started off feeding him royal canine dry food for yorkies, but he wasn’t gaining any weight, he weighed 3 lbs. My sister-in-law has 2 yorkies and she said she feeds hers rotisserie chicken so I started feeding him that. He gained weight(4 1/2 lbs), then he got sick with an infection & diarrhea. The doctor put him on prescription science diet and gave him a shot to stimulate his appetite. Of coarse, he ate all of it, but then the shot wore off . I bought regular science diet food & other natural foods and he won’t eat it. He does eat the royal canine but not that much so I thought maybe I could find another answer.