When you provide your pet with a diet consisting of natural and whole foods, you know that their requirements are being met in the healthy way that nature intended. Although dogs have been domesticated over the years, their digestive systems are still the same as their wild canine/feline ancestors,  so feeding them as close to that as possible makes sense! 

Nature intended your pet to a fresh food diet. Would any doctor tell you to eat more preservatives and junk food and less fresh ingredients??

Feeding a natural diet to your pet;

• Gives them a stronger immune system

• Aids in digestion

• Cleaner and stronger teeth and gums

• Gives healthier skin, coat, and eyes

• Better breath

• Lowers the chance of diseases.

• Smaller and less smelly stools!

• A natural diet has minimal additives and preservatives, so it also aids in behavioural and emotional issues! 

*Importantly, you know exactly what’s in it! No hidden nasties! 

If owners decide to make the change to a natural nutrition diet, it is advised that the diet is devised or overlooked by a nutritionist. This is because some of these diets can become nutrient deficient. It is paramount the correct nutrients are given as some nutrients are essential, meaning that the body cannot produce them, therefore we have to make sure they are included in the foods that we feed our pets. 

When we talk about commercial pet foods we are talking about the pet foods sold at various shops, and pet outlets that are put into 3 main categories, dry food (biscuits/kibble), wet food (canned), and semi-moist (rolls/meatball style). 

We understand why people feed these foods, there are some advantages! They are easy, convenient, have a huge shelf life, and are very accessible from multiple outlets. 

However, they come with their disadvantages! 

They usually contain colours, additives, fats, and carbs such as wheat and soy. So not great for an everyday diet, however, every now and then is ok, a bit like us having takeaway! 

“I only feed the premium biscuits”, is something that I hear a lot. There

are a lot of companies that sell “premium”, very expensive dry food claiming it to be preservative free and nutritious, however, these nutrients are synthetic, and even if they are present in the food it doesn’t mean they will be utilised the same in the body.

They are also processed at such high temperatures that a lot of the nutrients are ultimately destroyed.

One of the biggest disadvantages I believe we have with dry pet foods is the carbohydrate/starch content. Busicuts/kibble need at least 30% of starch to begin holding them together in their biscuit form, some use up to 60%! Grain-free biscuits are just as bad, sometimes actually higher in starch. The wheat and grain may be eliminated but it’s just replaced with different starches, as the biscuit still needs to hold its shape. 

Starch creates an inflammatory response and an immune response in the body, which can lead to conditions such as skin issues, IBD (irritable bowel disease), arthritis, CNS (central nervous system) issues, leaky gut, and multiple degenerative diseases.