Hi Roxie! I joined a yahoo group called"HomeCookingForDogs"to get some ideas.I searched my e-mails to see if anyone asked about barley and did ask the group too when I saw your message.Here is what one member had asked the group:

A local store seems to have a decent price on barley but I have never used barley when cooking for my dogs (or me).  Would I use it in place of or in addition to brown rice?  Would I use it in place of oatmeal? I use chicken, ground beef, carrots, green beans, eggs, cottage cheese, oatmeal, brown rice, flax seed meal and other stuff as available �?I usually make about 70#  to 80# for my pack of five and it last two weeks or so.  What little I have read about barley really makes me want to try it because of the report that it can help blood sugar readings for up to 10 hours after a meal.  Both my Dojee (10 year old Australian Cattle Dog) and I are diabetic.

Thanks,

Lynn, owned by Dojee, etal

Mary wrote back:In place of the rice , you must cook it to death or it comes out the other
end looking like barley.

I want to try zipping it in the blender after cooking so its
more digestable.. .

Mary also wrote: I get barley from   www.bulkfoods.com

,they have calcium powder as well as alot of other good things.

Thanks so much for the info..   I have started cooking more for the dogs since all the trouble with commercial dog food.  At least I know what goes in it.  Barley was not one ingredient I would have thought about either until I saw it listed on the back of a bag of dog food but came home instead and cooked for the guys.  Now I know I will use barley if it helps with blood sugar levels.

 

Roxie