Natural Dog Food
The best way to determine the quality of your natural dog food is to carefully read and understand the labelling. While reading the label, ask the following questions: Does the food use high quality ingredients? Is there a quality meat source as one of the first two ingredients? Better yet, are the ingredients human-grade?
Good food, good health…
It is now well established that food and health are inextricably linked. Without good food, there can be no good health, so when choosing a food for your pet it is essential to know exactly what it is made from. The problem is that pet food labelling doesn’t have to tell you. Broad umbrella terms like meat and animal derivatives, cereals and ‘EC permitted additives’ are common place in the dog food industry and are perfectly legal but don’t shed any light whatsoever on the real contents of the food, which can make choosing a pet food a real mine-field. We are proud to say our labelling is completely transparent with no misleading jargon – just straight forward honest ingredients that all have a reason to be in the diet. We have detailed these below.
Dry
Our dry kibble can support oral health by helping to clean dog’s teeth as they chew, helping to reduce plaque and tartar build-up. It can also help with bad doggie breath! No food alone can treat every ailment, so regular checks are recommended, of course.
Dry food is usually more economical (per-serving) as it contains less water (under 10%) than canned products (70% or higher), and packaging is much more environmentally friendly. It is easier to store, as it does not need to be kept in the fridge and can easily be transported in sealable containers.
Fish
Fresh fish is a highly nutritious and palatable protein source for dogs usually consisting of the leftovers from human-grade fish. All fish, but particularly oily fish like salmon, contain oil, which is high in health promoting omega-3 essential oils.
Joint Aid
Glucosamine hydrochloride is a compound that occurs naturally in the cartilage cushioning joints. Chondroitin sulphate is a long chain carbohydrate derived from connective tissue. Given in additional amounts, chondroitin with glucosamine, it is believed to attract fluid back into joint cartilage, helping maintain the cartilage matrix and the onset of osteoarthritis.
MSM (Methyl-sulphonyl-methane) is naturally derived from pine bark. It can be used in the prevention and treatment of joint issues in canines, due to its anti-inflammatory properties.
Meat
All our natural dog food recipes have meat as the number one main ingredient; high meat protein content and no derivatives. Only human-grade high quality chicken and lamb. Single source protein from quality meat ingredient reduces the risk of food allergies or intolerance.
Rich in meat that dogs instinctively prefer and for easy and efficient absorption of nutrients. High quality meat protein maintains lean muscle and strong bones.
Oils
Our complete dog food recipes are supplemented with natural oils, to help keep our dogs happy and healthy.
Linseed Oil
Linseeds contain high levels of lignans (antioxidants) and omega 3 oils. Antioxidants are substances that may protect the body against the effects of free radicals, these are molecules produced when the body breaks down the food consumed. Free radicals can damage cells and may play a role in heart disease.
Salmon Oil
Salmon oil has vitamin d which helps maintain the immune system, it also regulates calcium and phosphorus levels in the blood by promoting their absorption from food in the intestines. Crucially, salmon is very rich in the DHA & EPA omega 3 fatty acids which stimulates blood circulation and thus promotes good cardiovascular activity. It is also believed that this important oil increases the development of both the brain and eyes, especially beneficial for young and elderly animals alike.
Sunflower Oil
Sunflower oil is one of the best sources of the essential oil vitamin E and is very high in linoleic acid, making it an excellent source of the Omega 6 polyunsaturated fatty acid. These are essential for a good quality luxurious coat and to maintain healthy skin.
Sunflower oil also enables our recipes to be naturally preserved.
Prebiotics
Our recipes are supplemented with natural prebiotics to maintain a healthy digestive tract. Prebiotics help to improve your dog’s digestion by supporting & feeding the good bacteria already in the gut, aiding the absorption of nutrients such as essential minerals.
Rice
Brown rice has the added benefit of being more nutritious, simply because it is less processed. After harvesting, the grains are run through a rice huller/husker for milling to remove the outer grain husks. After this process, you’re left with brown rice. Nice and simple. To create white rice the germ and inner husk is removed, and the grain is then polished. All the added processing means that white rice has far less vitamin E, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folacin and potassium.
Sweet Potato
Sweet potatoes are a gluten-free source of complex carbohydrates. They are naturally rich in dietary fibre which improves colon health, aids in weight management and helps stabilise blood sugar levels in diabetic dogs. It can even help control both diarrhoea and constipation.
