FAQ: Can I balance my dog's diet by feeding a variety of fresh foods over time?

Answer: Technically, yes. The idea is that rotating a wide range of whole food ingredients will cover your dog's nutritional needs over days or weeks rather than in a single meal. In theory it makes sense. In practice, guaranteeing that balance is actually being achieved is more challenging than it sounds.

As this question keeps popping up, not just in my DMs and emails, but all over the internet, it’s one I wanted to take the time to answer, so you have the knowledge to decide if feeding your dog a homemade diet will work best for them.

I’ll let you in on a little secret…this was how I fed Jessie from the time we started her on a fresh food diet to her last meal.

The scratch paper recipe

When Jessie's vet put her on a fresh food diet (all those years ago), he handed me the recipe on a piece of scratch paper. Some meat, liver, chicken frames, spinach, pumpkin and a few other things I can't quite remember. I didn't know anything about nutrient balance back then. I wasn't a canine nutritionist – yet. I was just a dog parent who wanted our girl to live a long, healthy, and thriving life. I took that piece of paper, thanked him, and off we went on this new path.

Over the weeks that I fed her diet, I saw changes in her. She started to lose the excess weight. She had more energy. She was loving meal time more than she had before…at least that was what I thought. I couldn’t exactly read her mind. I was convinced that a fresh food diet was the way to go. It took time before I gained the knowledge and confidence to add to the vet’s recipe and rotate through ingredients.

It took years and a journey into canine nutrition that eventually became my career before I understood what that recipe was actually missing. Mineral deficiencies. Vitamin gaps. Macronutrients not proportioned to support Jessie the way we thought they were. We fed that recipe with love and complete confidence. And the whole time, unknowingly, we were leaving gaps.  But, we didn’t know about the nutritional gaps that could have impacted her health. We didn’t know what we didn’t know. 

During my first few years of studying canine nutrition I learned that feeding your dog the same fresh food meal everyday, would most likely have gaps. The best and easiest way to fill those gaps was to simply rotate through a variety of ingredients – different meats, vegetables, fruits, fish. Even where you sourced your ingredients would be better if rotated. It made sense to me. This is how we as people eat, but was it the same for dogs?

And that's exactly the point of this article. To truly understand where the balance over time philosophy fits along your path to optimal nutrition for your dog.

What exactly is homemade dog food?

Let's make sure we're on the same page before we go any further.

A homemade fresh food diet is one that you make yourself. You source the ingredients, you build the bowl, and you know exactly what's going into your dog's meal. It can be served fresh — ingredients in their natural, unadulterated state — lightly cooked, or a combination of both. Which works best often comes down to your dog's preference, and how their body responds. Plus, making your own food for your dog is a great way to know what your dog is eating.

How that homemade diet fits into your dog's overall feeding is another decision entirely. It can make up 100% of their diet, be used as a topper to boost an existing diet, or be mixed with commercial pet food as a hybrid approach. There's no one method that's better than another. The common thread is whole food ingredients that are minimally processed.

One thing worth noting: commercially prepared fresh food diets, whether raw or cooked, sit outside the definition of homemade for the purposes of this article. Why? Because commercial fresh food can generally be assumed to be formulated to a complete and balanced standard. Homemade, as we're discussing it here, is what you make yourself.

The 3 ways to feed a homemade diet

When it comes to homemade feeding, there are three different approaches, each with their own pros and cons. Understanding the differences is the first step to knowing which one is right for you and your dog. 

Complete & Balanced – This is the gold standard. Every recipe is formulated to ensure your dog is consuming at least their daily minimum nutritional requirements, as set by the pet food industry. The two main standards used globally are AAFCO, which is widely followed in New Zealand, Australia, and North America, and FEDIAF, which is the standard used across Europe. Both set the nutritional benchmarks that a complete and balanced recipe is formulated to meet.

Balance over time (the focus of this article) – Rather than relying on detailed nutritional analysis or software programmes, this approach aims to achieve balance through variety. Each meal may not be complete and balanced on its own, but by rotating a wide range of ingredients, it is theorised that your dog's nutritional needs will be met over time. This approach tends to appeal to dog parents who find the formulation process overwhelming, or who believe their dog should eat similarly to the way we do as humans — variety across the week rather than precision at every meal. It's an intuitive idea. But as we'll explore shortly, intuition and nutritional adequacy aren't always the same thing.

Combination feeding – A homemade diet, whether complete and balanced or balanced over time, is fed alongside a commercial diet. A good starting point is 10% fresh food. At this level there's no need to replace anything in the existing diet. Once fresh food makes up more than 10% of your dog's daily calories, balance becomes a consideration and the homemade portion needs to be accounted for properly. The goal is to increase nutritional variety with more fresh food while maintaining nutritional balance.

No matter which approach you choose, the goal is to provide your dog with nourishing food that they enjoy and will support their overall health and well-being. 

The balance over time approach:  why so many dog parents are drawn to it

It's easy to understand why the balance over time approach is appealing. On the surface, it makes a lot of sense.

The general premise is that by feeding a variety of whole food ingredients across different categories including muscle meat, organ, bone, vegetables, fruit, in specific ratios based on a percentage of your dog's ideal body weight, their nutritional needs will be met over time. There are different ratio models out there, but the one I followed personally with Jessie was BARF. It's intuitive, it mirrors the way many of us think about our own eating, and it puts whole food ingredients at the centre of your dog's bowl.

The appeal goes beyond the philosophy too.

Practicality and simplicity — There's no requirement for detailed tracking, calculations, software programmes or adherence to precise formulations. It allows for flexibility and easier meal preparation, which for many dog parents is the difference between making homemade feeding work or not.

Nutrient variability — By rotating through a variety of meats, organs, bones, fruits and vegetables, you're providing a broad spectrum of nutrients. Different ingredients have different nutritional profiles, so variety in theory covers more ground. 

Nutrient levels - It's worth noting that nutrient levels can also differ based on factors like soil quality, ripeness and processing methods, which is another reason variety feels like a sensible strategy.

The intention behind balance over time is genuinely good. And for a long time, it was the approach I believed in too.

Why balanced over time doesn’t guarantee complete and balanced nutrition for your dog

Here's where I need to be honest with you.

Balancing homemade dog food over time has its risks and limitations, including nutritional deficiencies. Without formulating each recipe properly, you cannot guarantee that you are providing your dog the nutrients they need in the right amounts. You cannot depend on freshness and a rotation of ingredients alone for nutritional adequacy. You're essentially crossing your fingers and saying, "I hope this is balanced for my dog." And hope isn't a strategy worth building your dog's health on.

But wait — I don't balance every meal I eat, so why should my dog?

It's a fair question. And one I hear a lot. But here's the thing — most dogs aren't rotating through twelve different meals a week the way we might. They eat the same food on repeat. Which means if there's a gap, that gap shows up again and again. Nutritional deficiencies compound quietly over time, which is exactly why they're so easy to miss until there's a real problem.

And the research backs this up. 95% of homemade dog food recipes, including many found online, are deficient in at least one nutrient. 83% were deficient in multiple nutrients. Some of these recipes were formulated by experts. How does that translate for you, the dog parent working on a balance over time approach? The deficiencies may be even greater.

The most common deficiencies found were Vitamin D, E, zinc and choline. But there are other considerations too, like the ratio of Calcium to Phosphorus, which if not in the right amounts can have adverse effects on bone and joint health. The same goes for the Omega 6 to Omega 3 fatty acid ratio.

There's also the way nutrients interact with each other. Some work together to support one another, while others will deplete a nutrient if they're out of balance. With the balance over time approach, there's a real risk of fluctuations in nutrient intake. 

For example, some weeks the meals may be too high in certain nutrients, so you think next week I'll feed less of an ingredient or two to fix the abundance of said nutrients. But again, you have no guarantee that it will sort itself out. The “she'll be alright” Kiwi mentality isn't necessarily one to bank on here.

So what does getting it right actually look like? That's where formulation comes in.

What does a complete and balanced homemade diet actually require?

Don’t I just have to be sure I provide the right amount of macro-nutrients?

Well, yes and no. A typical answer from me, I know, but hear me out.

You're not just feeding your dog for their protein, fat and carbohydrate intake. There are factors that need to be considered before you even add your first ingredient to the bowl. Things like your dog's age, activity level, breed specific considerations and health status. 

Feeding your dog isn't a once and done thing. It's a review and amendment process that evolves as your dog moves through different life stages or encounters health obstacles along the way. The nutrients your dog needs today may not be the same as the nutrients they need in two years time.

Once you understand the dog in front of you, then you can start working towards a recipe — one that includes foods they enjoy, avoids anything they'll turn their nose up at, and works towards genuine nutritional balance. So how is that actually done? Let me give you a sneak peek under the hood.

Formulating a complete and balanced recipe is a three step process.

Step 1: Get the macronutrients right — Not just right in general, but right for your dog, their life stage and their specific health needs. The proportions of protein, fat and carbohydrates will vary depending on where your dog is in life. And the proportions matter. A diet formulated with too much fat — over 20% on a dry matter basis — can put your dog at risk for health issues like pancreatitis. Getting this step right is the foundation everything else is built on.

Step 2: Adjust the micronutrients — Once the macronutrients are in the right proportions, attention turns to the micronutrients. Think of it like pulling levers, adjusting one affects another. Balance one micronutrient and another shifts out of range. Knowing which levers to pull, in which order, and how they interact with each other is where the real complexity lives.

Step 3: Tweak for caloric needs — Based on your dog's age, activity level, neuter status and body condition score, you can determine how many calories they need to consume daily. I'm not one for counting calories myself, but having a target gives you something to work with. If the recipe comes in over or under, ingredient amounts can be adjusted to hit the mark. It's a starting point, one that gets refined over time as you monitor your dog's body condition score.

Three steps that sound straightforward. And in theory, they are. In practice, each one requires knowledge, the right tools, and an understanding of how they all interact with each other. That's not said to overwhelm you. I say it because you deserve to know what's actually involved, so you can make the best decision for your dog.

So what's the right approach for your dog?

I know, you want me to give you a straight answer. But like most questions in canine nutrition, it's never quite black and white because it depends.

There is no one size fits all. Every dog is different. Their age, their life stage, their health status, their breed, your capacity as their dog parent. All of it factors in. What works brilliantly for one dog may not be the right fit for another.

What I can tell you is this. All three approaches have merit. Homemade feeding, done with care and intention, can be a wonderful thing for your dog. But there is a difference between feeding with confidence and feeding with hope. Between knowing your dog's nutritional needs are being met and guessing that they might be.

That difference comes down to formulation. And formulation, done well, requires knowledge, the right tools, and an understanding of your individual dog.

You now have a clearer picture of what balance over time involves, where it has limitations, and what complete and balanced actually requires. What you do with that information is entirely up to you. And if you're not sure where your dog's diet currently sits, then that's exactly what the Thrive Check is for.

 

Want to know if your dog's diet is actually working for them?

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