The Importance of Raw Ingredients

Surprise, surprise, I have another topic related to food that I want to RUFF about. As THE original Hipster Hound, Rex, it is my duty to do the legwork when it comes to researching and letting you know about all the latest and greatest with dog food. This week, I wanted to check out just how important RAW foods are to my diet. Now, my mom, Tonya, and I don’t think that dogs should ONLY eat raw food, but the type and quality of the raw ingredients we eat are super important.

Benefits of Raw Diets
Advocates of raw dog food diets cite the following benefits: shinier coats, healthier skin, improved dental health, increased energy, improved digestion, and smaller stools. The average dog will benefit greatly from eating a raw diet instead of big box brand kibble.

Examples of Raw Diets
Raw dog food can be homemade, store-bought, freeze-dried, or dehydrated. Raw diets usually include organ meats, muscle meat, whole or ground bone, raw eggs, dog-safe fresh fruits and vegetables, and a dairy product such as Raw Goat's Milk.

Some specific examples are:

  • Chicken
  • Chicken eggs
  • Turkey
  • Beef
  • Mackerel
  • Carrots
  • Green beans
  • Spinach
  • Broccoli
  • Collard greens
  • Kale
  • Green apples
  • Organ meats like liver and kidney

What to Look for & What to Avoid
Unfortunately, you can’t always take the claims made on a pet food package at face value, so it’s your job to do a little digging. The information you need is all right there in the guaranteed analysis and the list of ingredients.

Ideally, every good dog food should have the following:

  • A whole source of animal protein as the first ingredient (ex: deboned chicken, turkey meal, or salmon).
  • A quality source of healthy fats (ex: chicken fat, salmon oil, or coconut oil).
  • Beneficial supplements such as prebiotic fibers and probiotics.

Be sure to avoid the following ingredients when choosing food for your furry best friend:

  • Non-specified meat or fat ingredients (ex: meat meal, animal fat, bone meal).
  • Artificial preservatives linked to cancer (ex: BHT, BHA, and ethoxyquin).
  • Artificial food dyes and flavors linked to allergic reactions and cancer.
  • Animal by-products (ex: chicken by-product meal, poultry by-product meal, etc.)
  • Low-quality grains and fillers (ex: corn, wheat, and soy products)

Raw Diets at The Hipster Hound
The Hipster Hound proudly carries a variety of different raw dog foods such as Primal, Answers, and Small Batch! There are many different kinds of raw foods to try including Raw Goat's Milk and Bone Broth products in our previous blog post. The Hipster Hound is your go-to shop for all things RAW. Shop online or visit our Diamond Causeway location today!

Woof,

Rex, The Original Hipster Hound

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