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I switched my dogs to an all-raw diet about 6 months ago, and it was the single best decision I have ever made. Looking back now, I realize that I should have made the switch 2 years earlier.
So, you might be asking: “why didn’t I switch sooner?”
I initially thought that feeding raw meant making your dog’s raw food from scratch. I was intimidated by the idea of making food for my dogs without any kind of guidance or supervision.
After all, what do I know about dog nutrition?
Kibble was all too comfortable for me and I doubted my ability to provide them with the proper nutrients and proportions they needed.
After a lot of research, I have learned that you don’t need a degree in dog nutrition to feed your dog raw food after all.
Now that I am feeding my dogs raw, there is one thing I know for certain: I will never feed my dogs kibble again, and I hope this blog post will help convince you to make the switch too!
My Journey from Kibble to Raw
My journey to feeding a species-appropriate diet started when I watched “Pet Fooled” on Amazon.
If you haven’t watched it yet, I highly recommend it. I’ll try not to spoil it but, in short, it pulls back the curtain on the commercial pet food industry.
After watching Pet Fooled, I started researching “species-appropriate diets for dogs” (AKA Raw Feeding). It wasn’t too long before I started reading about 80/10/10 diets, offal percentages, and B.A.R.F.
The whole thought of feeding raw quickly began to overwhelm me. I wanted to feed my dogs something better than kibble, but I wasn’t comfortable with making my dogs’ food from scratch.
Instead of switching to raw, I chose the easy way out– Freeze-Dried Raw.
It was close enough to kibble that it didn’t scare me, but it had the word “raw” in it, which put my conscience at ease.
I always told myself that I would, someday, make the switch to a completely raw diet.
I even stayed engaged in several raw feeding Facebook groups and spent some time each week reading a little bit more about how to feed raw.
One time, I even mustered up the courage to walk into a butcher shop and try to make my own dog food. I quickly learned that I had no business attempting this on my own and I left empty-handed.
The Benefits of Premade Raw
After that trip to the butcher, I had essentially given up on the idea of feeding raw on my own. That is until I came across this wonderful concept that changed my life forever: Premade Raw.
I learned that premade raw is a complete, pre-portioned raw diet for dogs, formulated by pet nutritionists! It takes the guesswork out of raw feeding.
I don’t have to measure out bone, organ, and meat percentages. Everything is done for me.
There are many pre-made raw distributors out there, but my personal choice is Darwin’s Pet Food.
I chose Darwin’s because they never add any fillers or grains to their meals, just raw meat, and vegetables. Plus, Darwin’s food shows up at my door as I need it (about every two weeks).
No more trips to the pet store, butcher shop, or hours in the kitchen meal prepping each week.
Turns out, you don’t have to be a dog nutritionist to feed a raw diet after all.
If you are interested in switching to Darwin’s you can use the code RUMPS2020 at checkout for 10 lbs of food for only $14.95 ($50 in savings). I won’t get any money if you sign up, but my favorite non-profit (Queen’s Stumpy Dog Rescue) will!
5 Reasons to Switch Your Dog To Raw
There are a lot of benefits to feeding your pet a raw diet. I can tell you that my two corgis are a testament to the benefits of raw; they have the softest coats, cleanest teeth, and are in overall great health.
1. Better Coat/Skin Health
Fur is made up of 90% protein. Dry, brittle hair is often related to either poor quality proteins or lack of sufficient proteins in the diet. High-quality proteins produce a soft coat and will contain the essential fatty acids necessary to maintain a beautiful shine.
A balanced raw diet is free from processed foods, artificial preservatives, additives, and low-quality proteins and instead provides pets with the fatty acids necessary to maintain a thick, shiny, and healthy coat.
2. Dental Health
Your dog’s teeth and gums will be cleaner and healthier with fewer sugars and carbohydrates in their diet.
Carbs and sugars are the main sources of food for plaque and tartar, they are also highly prevalent ingredients found in commercial kibble.
Because raw meat has little-to-no sugars and carbs for plaque and tartar to use as fuel, there will be less plaque growth on your dog’s teeth.
This will result in your dog having fresher breath and an overall healthier mouth.
You can read more about Canine Dental Health and Way To Prevent Periodontal Disease here
3. Improved Digestion
Since a dog’s digestive tract is short and lacks complexity, most kibble diets will pass through undigested as bulk waste. This produces a large/smelly stool.
Feeding a species-appropriate diet means that your dog is consuming food that is highly/easily digestible. Less food will go to waste and this will result in smaller, firmer stools with less odor.
4. Strengthened Immune System
Raw diets stabilize and strengthen the immune system. Feeding raw provides a natural source of protein, vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, and other nutrients necessary to build a strong immune system. Improving the immune system function serves as the foundation to fight current diseases and prevent future illnesses.
5. More/Improved Energy
Dogs metabolize their energy from raw animal fat (instead of carbohydrates). Diets full of carbs and sugars will spike their energy levels for a short time, only to cause them to crash later on.
Raw diets provide your dog with clean, consistent, and healthy energy to last them throughout the day.
Final Thoughts
Switching to raw was, hands down, the best decision I have ever made for my dogs. Their coats are the softest they have ever been and their teeth have never been cleaner. Moose and Koda have been full of energy and as healthy as they can be. If there is one single thing you can do to improve the health of your pets, it is to throw away the kibble and take the step towards a more species-appropriate diet.
