Findings from the Dog Aging Project: home-prepared diets for companion dogs feature diverse ingredients, and few are nutritionally complete

To qualitatively describe the home-prepared diets of dogs enrolled within the Dog Aging Project cohort and to evaluate the overall potential for the diet to be complete when possible.

Free-text responses provided from January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023, by dog owners were evaluated by 2 independent coders to describe dietary ingredients in this observational study. Five independent coders input ingredients into a website for pet owners that was designed by veterinary nutritionists to determine the overall completeness of diets.

Overall, 1,726 home-prepared diets were composed of a range of ingredients, which may include meat and organs, vegetables, fruits, grains, nuts and seeds, and added oils. The most common dietary ingredients were meat (90%) and vegetables (65%). Nearly half (45%) of owners added some form of commercially prepared diet or base/topper to supplement the home-prepared ingredients. Only 6% of these diets were potentially nutritionally complete according to the Association of American Feed Control Officials adult dog maintenance standards.

The composition of home-prepared diets varied substantially in terms of ingredients, and few are likely to be nutritionally complete.

Veterinarians collecting diet history information should take care to fully examine the home-prepared diets reported by owners and use a variety of tools, including consultation with board-certified veterinary nutritionists (diplomate of American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine-Nutrition), to assist owners in the selection of a maintenance diet.