When we humans are feeling under the weather, there's nothing quite like good old comfort food to help us get back on track. Even if we aren't feeling up to the task of eating, things like chicken soup seem to have this magical ability to ease our appetites without making things worse.
The same thing applies to dogs, too! If your dog has diarrhea, getting them to eat can be a bit of a task. Your pooch still needs to eat. However, feeding them their standard food could only exacerbate the problem and lead to more painful stomach upsets.
So, what's a dog owner supposed to do?
Well, you could try giving your dog a simple meal of rice and beef. Also known as a "bland diet," a straightforward dinner of just rice and ground beef is the equivalent of chicken soup for us humans.
The recipe is a great way to provide your dog with all the nutrition they need without the added agitation. Commercially available dog foods are filled with a wide range of ingredients. Even top-shelf products have ingredients that could cause further stomach pains.
The goal of a bland diet is to maintain your dog's diet while letting the system heal on its own. Sometimes, your dog's gastrointestinal tract just needs time to regulate. A bland meal lets the process continue uninterrupted.
As always, consult with your vet before you make any sudden dietary changes. Before you try this recipe out, it's a good idea to ensure that there's nothing more serious going on.
Hamburger and Rice Recipe
Ingredients
First things first, you'll need to gather your ingredients. For this bland diet recipe, all you need are:
When you're choosing the two main ingredients, beef and rice, stick with healthier alternatives. Avoid fatty ground beef products. Organic lean beef is always recommended.
As for the rice, you can choose white rice. Even minute rice is acceptable. However, if you're looking for the healthiest option available, stick with brown rice.
You can always adjust the quantities of the food to make enough food for a few days. Once your dog starts feeling better, you can also implement simple vegetables for a kick of vitamins.
However, to deal with diarrhea, we recommend sticking to only rice and ground beef.
Instructions
In a large frying pan, brown the ground beef. Do not add any extra spices or ingredients. Just brown the meat over medium heat until it's no longer pink. Make sure to break the meat up as you're cooking so that it's easy to mix later on.
As the beef is cooking, you can bring your water up to a boil and add your rice. The recommended water amount is just a guideline. Cook the rice according to the instructions on the package.
Typically, brown rice needs a bit more water than standard white rice. Of course, things don't have to be perfect. As long as the rice is soft when it's cooked, your dog is not going to care about texture too much.
Once the beef is cooked, drain off any excess fat in the pan. It doesn't have to bone dry. A bit of fat is good for your pup. However, because they're suffering from diarrhea, you want to keep things on the leaner side.
Then, all you have to do is mix the beef up with the rice until they're fully combined. Voila! It's done!
Give the mixture some time to cool down fully before you feed it to your dog.
Feeding Guidelines
Your dog shouldn't have any issues gobbling this bland meal down. Despite the limited ingredients, the cooked beef is quite appetizing. When you're feeding this recipe, provide about the same amount of food as their standard kibble.
* You can continue feeding the meal for about a week.
With that said, it's a good idea to start phasing the kibble back in once your dog's stool starts to firm up. This recipe is very fattening. If you feed it to your canine companion too much, they may end up gaining weight. So, provide this in moderation only when they're experiencing diarrhea.
Conclusion
A bland meal of boiled rice and hamburger beef may be the solution your dog needs to feel better. It's a simple recipe that can be whipped up in only a few minutes.
Even still, your dog will appreciate the food and what it does for their system.
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