Raw lamb dog food recipe (BARF) with pumpkin
Raw lamb dog food recipe with heart, liver, kidney and cooked pumpkin. Boneless, with measured calcium and the hygiene and freezing steps explained.
- Time
- 50 min
- Makes
- About 1.3 kg / 2.9 lb (almost 3 days for a 10 kg / 22 lb adult dog)
- Type
- Main meal
- Difficulty
- Medium
- 63 % lean lamb
- 14 % beef heart
- 13 % pumpkin
- 5 % beef kidney
Follows THE RULE. All 7 ingredients are on our safe list: nothing that could harm your dog.
This raw lamb dog food recipe uses lean leg of lamb, beef heart, 5 % liver, another 5 % kidney and cooked pumpkin, with eggshell as the calcium source. Lamb is a good meat to rotate with chicken and beef, and for dogs that have already been eating raw for weeks without problems and need some variety.
The most work goes into trimming the leg: lamb has fat in layers between the muscles and it is worth removing it patiently, because too much raw fat is the most common reason for soft stools. Once it is cubed and mixed with the pumpkin, you get a deep red batch with a smell that hardly any dog can ignore.
Why it works
Leg of lamb is the muscle base: complete protein, iron, zinc and vitamin B12. Beef heart also counts as muscle and provides taurine and coenzyme Q10. Liver, limited to 5 %, is the source of vitamin A, copper and folate, and kidney adds selenium, iron and more B12. Cooked pumpkin provides soluble fiber and water for firm stools. Eggshell offsets the phosphorus in the meat, and salmon oil adds the omega-3s EPA and DHA, which lamb barely has.
Talk to your vet first. Raw feeding carries risks: raw meat can carry bacteria such as Salmonella, Listeria or Campylobacter that affect both your dog and the people in your home, and veterinary bodies such as WSAVA advise against feeding uncooked raw meat. If you would rather avoid those risks, you will find equivalent cooked recipes in our homemade dog food section. If you decide to feed raw, talk it over with your vet, especially if there are young children, older adults, pregnant women or anyone with a weakened immune system in your home.
Step by step
Freeze the meat for a week
Freeze the lamb, heart, liver and kidney for at least one week at −18 °C / 0 °F. Move them to the fridge 24 to 36 hours before you make the batch, in a container that catches the juices.
Cook the pumpkin
Peel the pumpkin, scoop out the seeds and cut it into cubes. Steam it until a knife goes in with no resistance, mash it and let it cool completely before it goes anywhere near the raw meat.
Trim the lamb
On a board used only for raw meat, remove the fat on the surface and the fat between the muscles, and feel with your fingers for any bone fragments. Weigh the meat once it is trimmed.
Clean the organs
Remove the hard fat from the top of the heart and any remaining valve tissue. Cut the kidney in half and snip out the white core with kitchen scissors.
Cube the meat and chop the liver
Cut the lamb, heart and kidney into 2-3 cm (about 1 inch) cubes (1-2 cm / ½ inch if your dog is small). Chop the liver very fine, almost to a paste, so it spreads through the whole batch.
Mix with the pumpkin and calcium
Combine the meat and organs with the cold pumpkin and sprinkle in the eggshell while you stir, until you cannot see any clumps of white specks.
Portion and freeze
Weigh out the daily portions, pack them in containers or bags labeled with the date and keep only the next two days in the fridge. The rest goes in the freezer.
How much should I feed?
Approximate daily portion for a "spayed or neutered adult" 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 | 205 | 300 | 510 | 690 | 855 | 1,155 | 1,435 |
Puppy, senior, very active or on a diet? Calculate the exact portion.
- Energy
- 124 kcal/100 g
- Protein
- 66 % dry matter
- Fat
- 21 % dry matter
- Calcium:phosphorus
- 1.4 : 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: 48 hours at most, tightly closed and on the bottom shelf. Freezer: up to 3 months at −18 °C / 0 °F, in one-day portions labeled with the date. Thaw each portion in the fridge the night before; never at room temperature, in hot water or in the microwave. Do not refreeze anything that has thawed.
If you don't have…
- You cannot find beef heart
- More leg of lamb, in the same amount
- Your dog gets soft stools with lamb
- Replace half the leg with boneless rabbit, which is leaner
- You do not have pumpkin
- Raw zucchini blended very fine or blended carrot, in the same amount
Cooking tips
- If you are not feeding raw yet, start with our guide to the BARF diet for dogs and with a chicken menu, which is gentler. Lamb, being fattier, is better introduced later.
- If your dog has been eating lamb-based kibble for years, do not expect this recipe to work as a hypoallergenic diet: for that you need a protein he has never eaten.
- To feed it every day as the only food, add a vitamin and mineral supplement made for raw or homemade diets.
- Remember that BARF means raw food: if you cook the meat in this recipe, it stops being BARF. You can do it, because there is no bone, but then it is a homemade stew.
Safety
- Raw-meat hygiene: wash your hands before and after, use a board and knife only for raw meat, do not rinse the meat in the sink (splashes spread bacteria) and wash everything with hot, soapy water when you finish.
- Freeze all the meat and organs for at least one week at −18 °C / 0 °F before using them: this is against parasites, not bacteria. Salmonella, Listeria and Campylobacter survive freezing; only strict hygiene or cooking deals with them. Always thaw in the fridge.
- The pumpkin must be cooked and cold before mixing: never combine raw meat with warm vegetables, because you bring it up to the temperature at which bacteria multiply.
- Trim the lamb fat well: too much raw fat can cause diarrhea and, in predisposed dogs, pancreatitis.
- Never use raw pork or wild boar: they can transmit Aujeszky's disease (pseudorabies), which is fatal to dogs. And never give cooked bones.
- This recipe is not designed for puppies: while they are growing, calcium and phosphorus need to be adjusted with your vet, and raw meat carries more risk.
Frequently asked questions
Is raw lamb good for dogs?
Raw lamb can be part of a well-planned BARF diet: it provides complete protein, iron, zinc and vitamin B12. Its weak point is fat, so use leg and trim off everything visible. Freeze it for a week at −18 °C / 0 °F first, handle it with raw-meat hygiene and introduce it gradually if your dog has never eaten it.
What cut of lamb is best for raw feeding?
Leg is the best cut of lamb for boneless BARF: it is the leanest and the easiest to trim. Shoulder works, but it has more fat between the muscles. Avoid breast and ribs, which are very fatty. Lamb heart, if you can find it, also counts as muscle and can replace the beef heart.
How much fat should raw dog food have?
As a rough guide, 10 to 15 % fat in the raw meat, which is what trimmed leg of lamb or chicken thigh usually has. Above that, soft stools and too many calories are likely. Dogs with a history of pancreatitis need much leaner meats and veterinary supervision.
How long does raw dog food last in the fridge?
Raw dog food lasts 48 hours at most in the fridge, tightly closed and on the bottom shelf so it does not drip onto other food. That is why it is best to freeze the batch in one-day portions and take out the next day's portion each night. If it smells bad or looks an odd color, throw it away.
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.