Sweet Potato Stew for My Sweethearts

We had another fun adventure with the dogs at the dog park today.

It's so amazing to watch a dog in his glory chasing and retrieving a stick out of the river over a hundred times only to do it again a hundred more times with absolute pleasure. The river at it's deepest point is only 2 inches away from our dog being able to touch the bottom. Our older German Shepherd Remy, who is just over 9 months has had some tissue and joint problems, as he seems to get sore easily. We have tried our best to avoid letting him run as much as possible and started supplementing his diet with glucosamine. How ever by not letting him run, that means no more taking his ball to the dog park, and no ball for Remy, which also means he gets bored and starts to look for something to do. For Remy just a simple walk isn't enough which goes with the territory of having a German Shepherd they are truly working dogs. Whether he carries a ball, or a stick or a toy we give him, he needs to feel like he has a job even when he's on a simple walk at the dog park. So we had to think of another way to allow him to feel like he is doing something useful. Dogs need exercise just like we do in order for them to get their feel good endorphins stimulated. What better way to allow our dogs to get some exercise than by letting them go swimming.

In fact it's the safest type of exercise you can provide for your dog so long as the water they are swimming isn't freezing cold, or have any dangerous currents. Dogs having arthritis, recent surgery, joint or tissue related issues still need exercise. Swimming provides very minimal impact on a dog's joints, and it's a pain free physical activity for arthritic dogs. It is effective in strengthening the muscles and it's a great aid in managing your dog’s weight. If your dog has sore knees or other joints that are inflamed, swimming is a great alternative for them to get exercise. The most important benefit of swimming is that water is calming for your dog, this way he can still go out with you and participate in a dog and owner activity. After our long swim, I made the dogs something new. I had a few apples and bananas that were a little too bruised for us to eat, and rather than throw them out I used them in my latest recipe today. I call it Sweet Potato Stew For My Sweethearts. Here is what you will need. 1 Large Red Apple Finely diced with skin 1 Large Banana (Puree) 1 Medium Sweet potato (boil with skin and mash up) 2 Sticks Finely diced Celery 400 Grams of Chicken Breasts Poached 300 Grams of Beef Liver Poached 4 Cups of Quinoa 2 Tbp of Omega 3 Fish Oil Dice up apple into fine pieces with skin, make sure to always remove any apple seeds as the seeds are very toxic to dogs. Peel and puree banana, boil sweet potato with skin and mash up. Dice up 2 sticks of celery. Poach both the chicken and the Liver separately make sure not to over cook the meat. I like to always slightly under cook all my dogs meat. Cook Quinoa per packaging. Mix the fruit and celery and sweet potato together add fish oil, dice up chicken and liver and add in quinoa and meats to the rest of the ingredients and serve! Did you know that sweet potatoes are in many dog food kibble recipes?

I personally love Sweet Potatoes, and one of my favorite dishes to make and eat is my home made sweet potato pie! Not only are sweet potatoes great for us, but guess what, Yes, that's right, they are fantastic for or dogs too. They are very rich in beta carotene, which is a major anti oxidant, apart from vitamin-C and B-complex, iron and phosphorus present in them, sweet potatoes are excellent immunity boosters. Sweet potato also has anti inflammatory properties. It is equally effective in curing internal and external inflammations. Beta-carotene, magnesium, zinc and vitamin-B complex, among others, make sweet potato a helping hand to cure arthritis. The fiber content of sweet potatoes is higher than that of common potatoes and it tastes good too. When these two factors are combined with other minerals like magnesium present in sweet potatoes, it makes an excellent facilitator for digestion. Sweet potatoes are easy to digest too, since they mainly contain starch. They are soothing for the stomach and intestines too. Beta-carotene, the champion anti oxidant and anti carcinogen, the pigments responsible for the color of the peel of the sweet potatoes and vitamin-C, are very beneficial for curing many types of cancer, mainly those of colon, intestines, prostrate, kidneys and other internal organs. There are several doggy brands who make healthy all natural sweet potato chew treats for dogs.

I like to make my own sweet potato chews for our dogs. The next time you are making sweet potatoes for Thanksgiving or at Christmas time, just take out an extra potato for the dogs! Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Cut the potatoes into approximately 1/3" slices. Drizzle a little olive oil over the slices, and toss to coat. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a cookie sheet(s). Bake for approximately three hours, turning once, until potatoes are dried out. Cool completely on a wire rack and serve. Make sure not to feed your dog to many of these treats as they can cause diarrhea if they have to many. These treats can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three weeks, or in the freezer for up to four months.