Homemade puppy food with rabbit and zucchini
Homemade puppy food with rabbit and zucchini, plus rice, egg and measured calcium. How to bone rabbit without splinters and split the daily meals.
- Time
- 55 min + 10 min resting
- Makes
- About 1.35 kg / 3 lb (a little over 2 days for a 10 kg / 22 lb puppy; almost 4 days for a 5 kg / 11 lb puppy)
- Type
- Main meal
- Difficulty
- Medium
- 41 % boneless rabbit
- 29 % white rice
- 16 % zucchini
- 6 % egg
Follows THE RULE. All 8 ingredients are on our safe list: nothing that could harm your dog.
This homemade puppy food with rabbit and zucchini gives a puppy a protein other than chicken from an early age: boneless rabbit, white rice, egg, zucchini and carrot, with olive oil for the extra energy growth demands and eggshell for calcium. It's a good option to rotate with chicken or beef recipes, or if your puppy doesn't quite get along with chicken.
Cooked rabbit has fine, white meat with a mild smell that puppies love. It pulls apart into shreds with your fingers, which also lets you check by touch that no splinter is left. The zucchini is grated and melts into the rice, so the dish comes out moist and pale green, easy to eat even for a puppy that has only just moved on from mush.
Why it works
Rabbit provides quality protein with little fat and is an easily digested meat. The cooked egg boosts the protein and adds choline and B vitamins, and the olive oil makes up for how lean rabbit is, because a puppy needs more energy per bite than an adult dog. White rice is the gentlest energy source for a developing gut, and zucchini and carrot add soft fiber, water and beta-carotene. The eggshell keeps calcium in proportion to phosphorus, and the salmon oil provides DHA for brain and eye development.
Talk to your vet first. On its own, this recipe does not cover all the calcium, phosphorus and vitamins a growing puppy needs. As their only diet it needs the growth supplement your vet prescribes, especially for large or giant breeds. Don't add calcium by eye, and without the supplement, use it as part of their daily food, not all of it.
Step by step
Cook the rabbit
Put the rabbit in a pot, cover it with 1 liter (about 4 cups) of unsalted water and simmer gently until the meat pulls apart easily with a fork. Skim off the foam that rises at the start and save the cooking water.
Cook the rice with the vegetables
Strain the rabbit cooking water and use 450 ml (a scant 2 cups) of it to cook the rice with the grated carrot. After 12 minutes, add the grated zucchini and keep cooking until the rice is very tender and almost all the liquid is gone.
Cook the eggs
Boil the eggs for 10 minutes from when the water comes to a boil, cool them under the tap, peel them and chop them with a fork.
Shred and check the rabbit
Once the rabbit has cooled slightly, shred it into fine strands with your fingers. Take your time: this is when you find and remove any splinter or bit of cartilage that slipped through.
Mix in the oil and calcium
Combine the rice and vegetables, the rabbit and the egg, add the olive oil and eggshell and stir until everything is evenly mixed.
Cool and divide into meals
Let it come to room temperature and split the daily portion into the number of meals your puppy needs for their age: 4 until 3 months, 3 until 6 months and 2 after that. Add the salmon oil to each meal just before serving.
How much should I feed?
Approximate daily portion for a "puppy (4-12 months)" profile. Split it into two meals (three or four for puppies).
— g a day
| Weight | 3 kg | 5 kg | 10 kg | 15 kg | 20 kg | 30 kg | 40 kg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grams/day | 240 | 355 | 595 | 810 | 1,005 | 1,360 | 1,685 |
Puppy, senior, very active or on a diet? Calculate the exact portion.
- Energy
- 132 kcal/100 g
- Protein
- 39 % dry matter
- Fat
- 16 % dry matter
- Calcium:phosphorus
- 1.3 : 1
Values estimated from the ingredients (BEDCA/USDA data). An everyday meal. To feed it daily as the only food, add a vitamin and mineral supplement for homemade diets.
Storage
Fridge: up to 3 days in a sealed container. Freezer: up to 2 months, in single-meal portions (a large silicone ice cube tray works well for small puppies). Thaw in the fridge overnight and serve lukewarm, stirring well if you use the microwave so there are no very hot spots.
If you don't have…
- You can't find rabbit
- Boneless, skinless chicken thigh in the same amount, without the olive oil
- Your puppy doesn't tolerate egg
- Leave it out and increase the rabbit to 750 g (1.65 lb)
- You don't have zucchini
- Grated pumpkin in the same amount
Cooking tips
- If your puppy has never had rabbit, introduce it gradually: a quarter of the portion on the first day, building up over a week while you keep an eye on their stools.
- For small-breed puppies, shred the rabbit even finer and mash the rice with a fork.
- Recalculate the portion every month with the chart on this page: a puppy's weight changes very quickly, and what was enough at 3 months falls short at 4.
- Rotate this recipe with other puppy recipes made with chicken, beef or fish: varying the protein is a simple way to cover nutrients better.
Safety
- Rabbit always boned and checked by hand: its cooked bones are thin and splinter easily.
- Don't add more eggshell than listed: in puppies, especially large breeds, too much calcium is as harmful as too little.
- Egg always thoroughly cooked. Pick up anything left uneaten after 20 minutes and never reheat the same portion twice.
Frequently asked questions
Can puppies eat rabbit?
Yes, puppies can eat cooked, boneless rabbit from the time they start on solid food, at around 6-8 weeks. It's a lean, easily digested meat that's uncommon in commercial dog food, so it's also useful for rotating proteins. The key is to remove every bone, because rabbit bones are very thin, and never to serve it marinated or salted.
Is rabbit good for puppies with sensitive stomachs?
Rabbit usually agrees with puppies that have sensitive stomachs, because it's a white meat that is low in fat and easy to digest. Even so, any change of food in a puppy should be made gradually, over about 7 days. If your puppy has frequent diarrhea, vomits or isn't gaining weight, work out the cause with your vet before changing their diet.
How many times a day should I feed my puppy homemade food?
A puppy should eat 4 times a day until 3 months of age, 3 times a day until 6 months and twice a day after that, although small breeds may need 3 meals a little longer. The total daily amount is divided between those meals. With homemade food, it's handy to freeze portions already sized for one meal.
Can puppies eat zucchini?
Yes, zucchini is one of the gentlest vegetables for a puppy. Cooked and grated or puréed, it provides water and soft fiber with hardly any calories. Always serve it cooked, without salt or frying oil, and as part of their food, not the base of it: protein is the main thing in a puppy's diet.
What's in it, in detail
If they liked it, try
The fridge list
The foods your dog can eat, can have in moderation and must never eat, on a single printable page.