Homemade Diet as a Paramount for Dogs’ Health: A Descriptive Analysis

Simple Summary It is a fact that a pet's health is significantly influenced by proper nutrition. Pet owners increasingly seek support for cooking human-grade fresh food for their animals, driven by their concerns about commercial food quality and the rising prevalence of diet-related diseases. This shift in pet care practices provides nutritionists with an excellent opportunity to prevent future diseases or enhance the treatment of sick pets through customized homemade diets. Despite promising clinical data, the bibliography must make more scientific evidence or guidelines available. The present study contributes to this goal by presenting favorable results on a group of dogs that experienced improved wellbeing and reduced symptoms following a homemade dietary plan. Particularly impressive outcomes have been observed in dogs with gastrointestinal and dermatological pathologies. These findings underscore the potential benefits of personalized and balanced homemade diets, paving the way for further studies to explore this area.Abstract Pet nutrition awareness has risen enormously, with an increasing interest in homemade diets aimed at controlling food composition. The literature in this field is scarce, especially regarding the homemade diet's long-term effects on pathological conditions. This prospective study encompassed 167 healthy and sick dogs subjected to a customized dietary plan based on homemade food. After an initial visit, dog owners provided questionnaires with follow-up data on their perceptions of physical sign changes or symptom modifications. A total of 104 (62%) subjects maintained the homemade diet, while 63 reverted to their previous diet. The median follow-up was 14 months. Out of 31 healthy dogs that continued the nutritional plan, 70% exhibited improvements in their coat condition and 47% a decrease in evacuation frequency. Regarding weight loss goals, 67% of dogs achieved their target. The 67 pathological dogs that completed the follow-up were primarily affected by gastrointestinal and dermatological disorders. Dogs with chronic enteropathy improved their symptoms in 95% of the cases, subjects with dermatological pathologies in 83%, and patients presenting both disorders in 100%. These clinical results are promising. Personalized and well-balanced homemade diets noticeably enhanced the overall pet's health, with an almost complete remission of symptoms in pathological dogs.