2023v2-naturaw-feeding-guidelines

We are excited to hear that you are considering switching your pet to a raw diet, or if you’re already on one, trying something new. Providing your pet with a diet that aligns with nature’s intentions is the best decision you can make for their health.

It’s important to note that there are no set rules for canine nutrition, and even experts may have different opinions. Below, we have addressed some commonly asked questions and concerns. While we do not claim to be experts, we encourage you to conduct your own research as knowledge is power.

We usually suggest starting with leaner meats like chicken, turkey, or rabbit. Start with a smaller portion and make sure their stool is neither too loose nor too firm. If your pet has never had organs before, the stool may be a little loose at first, but this will pass quickly. If the stool is fine, you can feed that protein for the next two to three weeks before gradually switching to another. Take your time to mix things up remember we’re always here to help you along the way!

If your pet has been on a dry food diet for a long time, try incorporating small amounts of raw food into the diet as a ‘treat’ to make the transition easier. After that, gradually reduce the amount of kibble until your pet is on a completely raw diet. It is not recommended to mix kibble and raw together because this may cause digestive issues. Raw food takes longer to digest than kibble because kibble is over-processed and easier to break down. In addition, the presence of bones in raw food slows digestion. A gradual transition allows your pet’s stomach to adjust to the proper pH level. Many of our customers, on the other hand, have used a quick transition by simply switching their pets to raw food and have had no problems! It’s best to introduce your pet to one protein at a time so that they become accustomed to it.

The sooner you introduce a raw diet to your pet, the sooner it will develop a healthy lifestyle, and the transition is always easier when your pet is younger and healthier. You might be surprised to learn that puppies can eat raw food right after their mother has breastfed them. From the age of three weeks, we fed Leo and Pai ground raw food! Puppies learn to adapt quickly. You can start giving them raw meaty bones when they’re six weeks old. 

The sooner you introduce a raw diet to your pet, the sooner it will develop a healthy lifestyle, and the transition is always easier when your pet is younger and healthier. You might be surprised to learn that puppies can eat raw food right after their mother has breastfed them. From the age of three weeks, we fed Leo and Pai ground raw food! Puppies learn to adapt quickly. You can start giving them raw meaty bones when they’re six weeks old. 

You can use our raw feeding calculator to get an idea of how much you should feed your pet on a daily basis.

Always keep a close eye on your pet’s health and weight, and adjust their food as needed! You may need to feed your pet a little more if it is active. If your pet is inactive, on the other hand, you may want to feed it less. Just make sure your pet is in good shape. Also, if your pet doesn’t finish his or her meal in one sitting, you can divide it into two or three servings. 

Although most transitions go smoothly, your pet may experience symptoms like diarrhea, constipation, or vomiting as part of the detoxification process. Always make sure that these symptoms aren’t overbearing and don’t last long; otherwise, you should consult with your veterinarian. Fortunately, none of these scenarios have occurred to us. Keep in mind that your pet may become less thirsty and hungry during the transition due to the moisture content in the raw meat and the fact that they require less food because it is high in nutrients! 

 

Raw food is designed for dogs and cats. Their strong jaws and sharp teeth enable them to rip, tear, and eat large amounts of meat, bone, and organs. More importantly, their digestive systems are more acidic, making bacteria colonies impossible to survive. To put it another way, you don’t have to be concerned about your pet contracting salmonella from raw meat. We humans must be cautious and practice safe food handling, as well as refrain from kissing our pets within 30 minutes to an hour of eating raw food!

Raw food will not make your pet aggressive or bloodthirsty. Carnivores were created to eat this type of food. Our dogs, as well as those of our customers, have been on a raw diet their entire lives and are extremely friendly and loving! Your pet will only become aggressive if it believes its food will be taken away from them by another dog, and they will defend it by growling. Consider someone attempting to steal your favorite meal from your plate; you won’t be pleased. This behavior, however, should be corrected, and your dog should never growl at you, their owner. On the contrary, switching to a raw diet will likely make your pet calmer because it will feel satisfied and receive all of the nutrients it requires without the negative effects of additives or preservatives.

Store-bought meat and possibly organs are typically used in a homemade raw diet. However, the main problem with homemade raw food is that it may be unbalanced, lacking certain proteins/organs and thus nutrients. For example, unbleached tripe is nearly impossible to find in a grocery or butcher shop, despite the fact that tripe is one of your pet’s most nutritious foods. Most meat sold in supermarkets is not pasture-raised or grass-fed, which is reflected in the prices. Making your own raw food can be time-consuming, expensive, and difficult to follow the species-appropriate raw feeding guidelines. Because raw food companies buy large quantities of meat, commercially available raw food is much more easily accessible and affordable. Although the number of raw pet food companies has increased recently, there are still only a few in Ontario that source and manufacture their own food from scratch. One of those businesses is ours. Finding a raw food company that is honest, transparent, and ethical, on the other hand, is difficult. Many raw food companies make untrue claims or cut corners with the ingredients they use. For example, they may claim to use 80% meat, 10% bone, and 10% organ, but in reality, they use very little meat, meat scraps, or meaty bones like necks, additional bone/carcasses, fat, and organs in their mixes to save money. This isn’t obvious to the buyer, but the consequences will manifest in constipation, weight gain, and nutrient deficiencies in your pet. Furthermore, many businesses do not source their food locally, putting the quality and freshness of their products in jeopardy. As a pet owner and customer, it’s critical to understand where your pet’s food comes from, how it’s made, and what’s in it. Always double-check that the data you’re given makes sense and can be justified. The proof is in the pudding, or in this case, the food, as the saying goes. Our company’s goal is complete transparency, honesty, and integrity in terms of how our food is prepared and the quality of the ingredients we use!

Look no further now that you’ve hopefully decided to feed raw, or if you’re wondering if your pet’s current raw diet is balanced, complete, or optimal. Unfortunately, not all raw diets are created equal, and not all raw diets are equally nutritious. Although feeding your pet raw food is unquestionably healthier and more nutritious than feeding it processed food, you must still ensure that the raw food is biologically appropriate and that you are aware of its origins. Don’t be afraid to ask questions; after all, it’s for the health of your pet, and it’s also money out of your pocket. 

It is undeniable that quality matters. You are what you eat, as the saying goes. You are, in fact, what your food has eaten! The way farm animals are raised and the food they eat have a huge impact on their health and nutrient composition, which has an impact on our health and that of our pets. Animals that are fed conventionally are usually confined and raised in filthy, unsanitary conditions, and they may also be given hormones and antibiotics. Their diet is grain-based, with a soy or corn base, in order for them to grow at a faster rate, which is more profitable for large corporations. However, our health is jeopardized as a result of this. On the other hand, pasture-raised, grass-fed animals have complete freedom of movement, are not given hormones or antibiotics, and eat mostly or entirely grass.

Your pet’s stool, like a picture, is worth a thousand words. By inspecting your pet’s poop, you can learn a lot about their health. Raw-fed poop is “normal-and-healthy” – brown, passes easily, moist, firm, and has a mild odor. Raw-fed poop with “too much bone content” is white, difficult to pass, chalky, and hard. Poop from “Kibble” is easy to pass, comes in large quantities, is softer, and stinks. The color of your pet’s poop can also indicate whether or not it is sick. Yellow mucus, for example, usually indicates a food intolerance, especially if the diet has recently changed. 

It’s important to include a variety of proteins in your pet’s diet because they all have different nutritional profiles. If you only feed one protein to your pet, they will not only become bored with it, but they will also miss out on the benefits of other proteins. Protein, vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids levels differ between proteins. We recommend feeding your pet a leaner protein (chicken, rabbit, turkey) on a regular basis and a richer protein (beef, lamb, tripe, duck, water buffalo) every 2 to 3 weeks. Raw meaty bones and dehydrated treats are also beneficial because they promote dental hygiene and keep those jaw muscles active! 

Many people feel bad about fasting their pets for one day, but fasting them once a week or twice a week has numerous health benefits. Puppies, on the other hand, should not be fasted because they require regular feeding. Make sure your adult pet has plenty of water when you’re fasting them. Fasting has several advantages, including increased cell activity, which ingests and destroys bacteria, viruses, and infectious agents, resulting in increased disease immunity. It also allows their bodies to flush any toxins out.

If your pet’s raw diet is properly balanced with the proper ratios of meat, organs, and bones, and the meat quality is high – no hormones, antibiotics, or grains – your pet will get all of the vitamins and minerals from the various meat sources. Vitamins (A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, B12, C, D, E, K) and minerals (calcium, copper, iodine, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, zinc). Furthermore, if the farm animals are grass-fed, all of the nutrients will be present in their bloodstream, reaching your pet. That being said, if your pet requires additional nutrients due to poor immune or thyroid function or if you just want to give them an extra boost, you may consider supplementing their diet with herbs and vegetables. Dogs generally eat small amounts of plant matter which they usually find in nature. If you want to add extra vegetables to your pet’s diet it is not recommended to mix it with meat as protein takes longer to digest and the fruit may start to ferment into traces of alcohol. If you do give your dog vegetables, first make sure they are not toxic for them! Vegetables should be blended or steamed in order for your pet to easily digest them and get the full nutritional value. Raw eggs with their shells are an additional source of calcium ,phosphorus, magnesium, iron, folate, vitamins A, E, and B6. But always make sure the eggs are fresh from the farm as commercially available eggs are likely sprayed with wax. 

Cats are carnivores, so raw food is a good option for them. Cats are natural hunters who eat their prey whole. Although cats can eat the same food as dogs, they need taurine, which is why we make a special chicken mix for them. Because cats’ teeth are smaller than dogs’, the bone content should be finer ground.

When purchasing a gift card or Naturaw membership, there is no sales tax. When you use a gift card to buy something, you’ll have to pay HST. As a Naturaw member, you are still entitled to pay for the HST when using the membership to make a purchase.

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