If you’ve ever searched for free homemade dog food recipes online, you’ve probably been overwhelmed by the sheer number of results. A quick Google search yields thousands of recipes, many of which claim to be “healthy” and “balanced.” But the reality is, most of these recipes are not nutritionally complete—and some can even be outright dangerous.

Homemade diets can be a fantastic way to provide high-quality, tailored nutrition for your dog. However, formulating a truly balanced and safe diet requires much more than simply throwing together meat, vegetables, and grains. Unfortunately, many well-meaning pet owners unknowingly follow unsafe recipes, which can lead to nutritional deficiencies, imbalances, and long-term health issues.

To help you determine whether a recipe is actually safe, I’ve put together a list of red flags to watch for. Before using any homemade dog food recipe, ask yourself the following questions. If you can’t confidently answer ‘yes’ to all of them, proceed with caution—your dog’s health depends on it.

Just like humans, dogs have different nutritional requirements at different stages of life. Puppies, adult dogs, and seniors all have varying needs for protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals, making it essential for a recipe to clearly state which life stage it’s intended for.

• If a recipe is formulated for all life stages or growth, it must also specify whether it is appropriate for large breed puppies (since they have additional dietary restrictions to prevent developmental issues).

• Without this information, you have no way of knowing whether the recipe meets your dog’s specific nutritional needs, which can lead to deficiencies or over-supplementation.

🚩Red Flag: If the recipe does not indicate whether it is for puppies, adults, seniors, or all life stages, it likely has not been properly formulated.

✅ What to look for instead: A recipe should clearly state:

• “Formulated for adult maintenance”

• “Formulated for all life stages, including large breed growth”

• “Formulated for puppies (growth)”
  ✔ If the recipe doesn’t specify a life stage, it’s best to avoid it unless it has been reviewed by a professional.

There are three primary nutritional standards used in pet food formulation:

• AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) – Commonly used in the U.S. and Canada for commercial pet foods.

• NRC (National Research Council) – More appropriate for homemade and fresh food diets.

• FEDIAF (European Pet Food Industry Federation) – Used for pet food regulation in Europe.

These standards provide guidelines on the minimum and maximum levels of essential nutrients needed for a balanced diet. If a recipe was properly formulated, it should clearly state which standard was used.

🚩Red Flag: If a recipe does not mention any of these standards, it is likely not balanced and may have been put together without considering your dog’s full nutritional needs. If in doubt, reach out to the author and ask,

✅ What to look for instead: A statement such as:

• “Formulated to meet NRC guidelines for adult maintenance”

• “X Food is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog (or cat) Food Nutrient Profiles for Y Life Stage (Maintenance/ Growth/ All Life Stages including or excluding large breed growth)”
  ✔ If a recipe does not mention any nutritional standards, reach out to the author for clarification before using it.

Many pet owners assume they can freely swap ingredients in a homemade dog food recipe without consequences, but this is not the case.

• Different ingredients have different nutrient profiles.

• Substituting ingredients without proper adjustments can throw off the balance of essential vitamins and minerals.

• Even changing the fat or protein source can significantly affect the caloric density of the meal.

This issue is especially common in base recipe mixes—pre-made mixes that claim to be nutritionally complete but may require very specific ingredient additions to actually be balanced.

🚩Red Flag: If the recipe doesn’t state that it must be fed exactly as written, or if it encourages substitutions without providing guidelines on how to adjust the nutrients, be extremely cautious.

✅ What to look for instead: The recipe should clearly state:

• “This recipe must be followed exactly as written to ensure nutritional balance.”

• “Substitutions should only be made under the guidance of a pet nutritionist.”
  ✔ If substitutions are allowed, the recipe should provide specific guidance on how to adjust for nutrient balance.

Feeding guidelines should be based on your dog’s actual weight and caloric needs, not just a generic percentage of body weight. 

Why does this matter?

• Not all foods have the same caloric density. Feeding 2% of body weight in one diet may be vastly different in calories than 2% of another diet, leading to overfeeding or underfeeding.

• Feeding by volume (e.g., cups) is also highly inaccurate. A cup of ground meat will have a very different weight and calorie count compared to a cup of cubed meat. Moisture content, carbohydrate inclusion, and cooking methods all impact the density of food in a cup.

🚩 Red Flag: If a recipe suggests feeding a percentage of body weight (e.g., “feed 2% of your dog’s weight per day”), it is not providing a precise nutritional guideline.

✅ What to look for instead: Feeding guidelines should be provided in exact weights (grams, ounces, or pounds) to ensure precise portioning. Using a kitchen scale to weigh each meal is essential for accurate feeding.

Just like feeding guidelines, ingredient amounts must also be measured by weight, not volume.

💡 Why this matters:

• 1 cup of meat can have vastly different weights depending on the cut and moisture content. Ground meat is denser than cubed meat, and moisture levels will further alter the weight.

• For carbohydrate sources (like rice or sweet potatoes), cooking changes their weight. A cup of uncooked rice is nutritionally very different from a cup of cooked rice, which contains much more water and far fewer calories.

🚩 Red Flag: If a recipe lists ingredient amounts in cups instead of grams or ounces, it is not accurately formulated.

✅ What to look for instead: Ingredient measurements should be given in grams, ounces, or pounds, ensuring that you can accurately replicate the intended nutrient profile.

Supplements play a crucial role in ensuring that homemade diets provide all essential vitamins and minerals. However, not all supplements are created equal, and vague recommendations can be highly problematic.

💡 Why this matters:

• Different multivitamins contain vastly different nutrient profiles. One brand may contain high levels of certain vitamins while another contains much lower amounts. If a recipe doesn’t specify a brand, you won’t know which product will actually balance the diet.

• Zinc supplements vary significantly in dose and absorption rate. A recipe that simply lists “1 zinc tablet” could mean 15 mg or 100+ mg, and the bioavailability (how well it’s absorbed) differs depending on whether it’s zinc bisglycinate, gluconate, or sulfate.

• Cod liver oil is a common ingredient in homemade dog food, but different brands have widely varying levels of vitamin A and vitamin D. Both of these nutrients are toxic at high levels, and because they are stored in the liver, excessive intake over time can lead to serious health issues.

🚩 Red Flag: If a recipe simply lists a generic supplement like “canine multivitamin” or “zinc tablet” without specifying:

• The brand used in formulation

• The form of the supplement

• The exact dosage required

…it is impossible to know whether the diet is properly balanced.

✅ What to look for instead:
✔ Specific supplement recommendations, such as:

• “Zinc bisglycinate, 15 mg daily” instead of just “zinc tablet”

• “Nordic Naturals Cod Liver Oil – 1 ml daily” instead of just “cod liver oil”
  ✔ If no brand is specified, the recipe should at least include detailed dosage and supplement form.

There’s a growing trend of using herbs, seeds, and spices as nutrient sources in homemade dog food recipes. While these ingredients can provide vitamins and minerals, they come with significant drawbacks that often make them an unreliable choice for balanced nutrition.

💡 Why this matters:

• While seeds and herbs may appear nutrient-rich on paper, they often contain high levels of antinutrients such as oxalates and phytates, which block mineral absorption. This means your dog may not actually be absorbing the nutrients they need.

• The amounts needed to provide adequate nutrition are often too high to be palatable or practical for dogs.

• Unlike formulated supplements, which provide bioavailable (easily absorbed) nutrients, natural sources can be highly variable in potency.

🚩 Red Flag: If a recipe over-relies on seeds, herbs, or spices for minerals instead of using proper supplementation.

✅ What to look for instead:
✔ A balanced recipe should use science-backed supplementation for essential nutrients rather than relying on whole-food sources that may not be bioavailable.
✔ If whole-food sources are used, they should be in combination with appropriate supplementation to guarantee nutrient needs are met.

Vitamin E is an essential antioxidant that plays a crucial role in preventing oxidative damage in the body. However, it is not naturally abundant in most whole foods and must be supplemented in homemade diets.

💡 Why this matters:

• Vitamin E needs increase with fat intake. The more polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in the diet, the higher the requirement for vitamin E to prevent oxidative damage.

• Many homemade diets are high in fat, meaning dogs require additional vitamin E to maintain a proper balance.

• Whole food sources of vitamin E are not enough. While some foods contain vitamin E, they also tend to be high in PUFAs, meaning the more you feed, the more vitamin E your dog needs—creating a never-ending cycle where whole food sources alone are insufficient.

🚩 Red Flag: If a recipe does not include any vitamin E supplementation, it suggests that the formulator is not fully aware of essential canine nutritional requirements.

✅ What to look for instead:
✔ A properly formulated recipe should include a natural vitamin E supplement, such as:

• “Vitamin E (d-alpha tocopherol), 50 IU per day”
  ✔ If a recipe contains a high-fat content, vitamin E supplementation is even more critical.

Many free homemade dog food recipes found online do not provide adequate supplementation, leaving dogs at risk for deficiencies and health issues. Properly formulated recipes should include:

✅ Clearly specified supplements with detailed dosing instructions
✅ Brand recommendations or supplement form specifications
✅ A well-balanced approach that prioritizes bioavailable nutrients over unreliable whole-food sources

Without these details, the recipe is likely not complete and balanced, and feeding it long-term could harm your dog’s health.

By carefully evaluating recipes using these red flags, you can ensure that you’re feeding your dog a diet that is not only homemade but also safe, nutritionally complete, and optimized for long-term health.

To help those looking for instant access to complete and balanced homemade diet recipes, I have created a handful of instant download recipes. You can find them here.