Food

If your Maltese has really watery eyes or/and sore ears the most likely irritant responsible for it is the food.
Many ingredients used in the store food are harmful to dogs and therefore we recommend cooking yourself at home.
If you do not have time to cook for your pet and you still prefer to buy food for them in the store, then be sure to pay attention to the ingredients listed and choose only the food, which consists of as much as possible natural ingredients, proper meat (no meat meal, bone meal or rendered meat), don’t contain any cheap fillers (wheat, corn, soya), nutritious organs, vegetables, fruit, botanical herbs and are overall nutritionally balanced.
For example, a great brand is “Lily’s Kitchen”, which we use for our dogs.
Here are some simple recipes that can be prepared at home, from easily available ingredients:
Meatballs
Ingredients:
2 eggs
1/8 teaspoon ceylon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
1/2 can of red canned beans
1 small grated carrot
1 small grated zucchini
500 g minced meat of tenderloin or breast (you can use low-fat lamb, turkey or rabbit)
1 teaspoon fish oil
Boiled brown rice
some finely chopped cilantro

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl.
Form 12 meatballs.
Bake for about 1 hour.
Portion for one dog is 1 meatball, given twice a day. Before serving break it down using a fork.
Keep in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze.
Tip: Instead of baking in the oven, you can boil them.

Stew with turkey and vegetables
Ingredients :
2 cups of water
250 g minced turkey
1 cup brown rice
half a cup of chopped carrots
half a cup of chopped green beans
1 teaspoon fish oil

Directions:
Fry the minced meat on a teflon pan over medium heat until half cooked. Do not use any oil, as this can lead to your pet having an upset stomach.
Put the brown rice into a large saucepan, add water and the turkey. Bring to the boil.
Then reduce the heat and cook for another 15 minutes until the rice softens.
Add carrots and beans and cook for 5-10 minutes until the vegetables soften.
Leave to cool.
Add fish oil.
Keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

* You can improvise and create your own recipes adding or substituting the following ingredients:
apples
carrots
green beans
brown or white(for easier digestion) rice, buckwheat, whole or rolled (not instant) oats
turkey, fish, rabbit, beef
1 teaspoon flaxseed (ground for better absorption)/ 1 teaspoon chia seeds
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
eggs
celery, spinach, cabbage, coriander
fish oil (omega 3)
liver
When creating a recipe, remember that to have balance meal for your pet you need to use: whole grains, meat, vegetables, greens and herbs.
Be sure to add fish oil (for Omega 3 and vitamin D).
In addition, it would be beneficial to mix in multivitamins and probiotics after cooling down the food.

Turkey Jerky
I give my pup these turkey jerky treats as an alternative to the store-bought treats. The jerky is tough and chewy, so it keeps my dog occupied for a while.

Ingredients:
2-4 turkey/organic chicken breasts

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 90 degrees.
Remove all the fat from the meat if any.
Cut into strips about 3 mm wide.
Put the slices on the parchment paper and a baking sheet.
Bake for about 2 hours.
Check the readiness before removing from the oven: the pieces must be dry and hard, not soft.
Cool down.
Store in a container without access to air in the refrigerator.
Tip: You can also use sweet potatoes.