Canine Nutrition

 

As much as we love equines, we deeply love canines, too, and we're happy to offer nutritional supplements that can help support your dog’s health and quality of life. We're often asked which dog food we recommend, whether we feed raw or kibble, if we feed grain or grain-free, and for advice on overall canine wellness, so let's dive in.

Every Parent - Including Pet Parents - Must Become a Researcher

Diet is critical and supplements can be tremendously helpful, but everything you allow into and onto your dog's body will have an impact on his or her overall health and longevity - or lack their of.

Overlook nothing, deeply research and question everything, blindly trust no one, and follow the money.
You are your dog's only gatekeeper. Your best friend is counting on you!

High-Quality Dog Food

Dogs function on a cellular level just like we do and just like our horses do. The unfortunate truth is, kibble is the junk food of the dog food world, and is quite taxing on the kidneys. So what do we feed them?

High-quality nutrition is paramount and required for the body to function optimally. When we align more closely with how a canine would feed in the wild, feed them biologically appropriately and species appropriate, our dogs’ health can be rejuvenated, quality of life can improve, and we can have years more time with our precious friends.

Some of our favorite dog food brands are All Provide, Steve’s, Small Batch, Raised Right and Primal. We feed raw (or gently cooked) and grain-free. We have no affiliation with these brands, but appreciate that they include grass-fed meats, organ meat, raw bone, organic whole fruits, vegetables and seeds. This means no synthetic nutrients are required in the ingredient list, as the high-quality ingredients offer a dense variety of naturally occurring nutrients. They also use zero fillers and zero by-products.

How are the Ingredients Sourced?

When researching dog food, it's important to identify how the ingredients are sourced. Are they grass-fed, free-range and wild-caught or are they factory farmed / conventional? Is the company using whole foods or by-products (i.e., chicken meal)? If the label doesn't specify grass-fed or wild-caught, you can safely assume it is factory farmed and the nutrition will not be the same.

Wild, organic food sources are pure and more anti-inflammatory.

Factory-farmed, conventional sources can contain pesticides, hormones and stress hormones, toxins, are more pro-inflammatory and often depleted of many nutrients. 

If your dog can't digest raw food, perhaps he's older and has digestive challenges, you can research home cooking organically for your dog. When we do this, we rotate proteins and make meals similar to below, gently cooking the meat in extra virgin olive oil and maybe adding a little grass-fed butter.

> Grass-fed ground beef, sardines, sweet potato, zucchini, blueberries, organ meats* (liver, heart, kidney, tripe) + herbal supplements

> Wild-caught fish, butternut or acorn squash, green beans or asparagus, strawberries, organ meats* (liver, heart, kidney, tripe) + herbal supplements

> Grass-fed chicken, spaghetti squash, spinach or broccoli, cranberry powder, organ meats* (liver, heart, kidney, tripe) + herbal supplements

Raw, organic goat's milk can also be beneficial for many dogs. You can seek this locally if it interests you.

Grain or Grain-Free? DCM Fear

A canine in the wild wouldn't consume grains, but they would eat the organ meats, bone, hide and muscle tissue of the kill they hunted. The heart is the most plentiful source of taurine, as well as, the brain. A taurine deficiency can contribute to the development of DCM in dogs (dilated cardio-myopathy). To remedy this, it has become our practice to feed grass-fed organ meats, especially heart and brain, to naturally keep taurine levels adequately high. 

Grains are generally pro-inflammatory and can be problematic for digestion and numerous other aspects of the immune system. If you’re ready to take an honest look at a more likely culprit of DCM in dogs, I think it would be wise to research what some allow to be injected into their dogs routinely. Learn those ingredients, the synergy of those ingredients, the impact of injection vs. ingestion, read the package inserts, read the side effects and follow the scientists and doctors who have risked it all to reveal the truth. 

Learn how to support the body naturally, strengthening the immune system through diet, and without compromise.

*We source our grass-fed organ meats mostly from Ancestral Supplements, dropping a few capsules into their meals. 

Shop our growing …For the Canine Collection to compliment your dog’s strong foundational diet and help address his or her unique needs. E-mail us with any questions!