Myth 1: Kibble cleans your pets teeth

Imagine if your dentist told you that all you needed to do to clean your teeth was eat cookies! Wouldn’t that be nice?

Sadly, its impossible for a food that contains nearly 50-60% carbohydrates (as nearly all dry foods do) to clean your pets teeth. The carbohydrates inside kibble are in fact the reason why your pets teeth need to be cleaned in the first place!

As many feeders of fresh foods can attest to, dental care is far easier for your pet if you do not feed a diet consisting of 100% dry food. Raw, meaty bones are an excellent way to scrape your pets teeth clean. Just make sure to never give your pet cooked bones, which can splinter and cause intestinal damage.

Myth #2: Your pet Should Eat The Same Dry Food Their Entire Life

This is perhaps the most pervasive myth that the pet food industry (and even some veterinarians) willingly perpetuate. I would argue feeding your pet the same dry food diet (no matter what the quality) is a risky proposition comparable to feeding yourself fast food every single day. No matter what the quality, dry food equals processed food, and processed food should never make up 100% of the diet for any pet.

Rotating foods offers several benefits to your pet. First, it ensures they are receiving a wide variety of nutrition from varying proteins and other ingredients. This rotation of ingredients can help prevent allergies from developing later in life. Secondly, rotating foods ensures that any contamination or ingredient imbalance will not affect your pet as severely as if you fed one food their entire life.  

Myth #3: Kibble Is Better Than Canned Pet Food

Kibble has one and only one advantage over canned food: it’s lower cost.

The manufacturing process of kibble requires a high amount of carbohydrates, which can lead to obesity and an increased risk of cancers in our pets. Canned food, on the other hand, nearly always boasts significantly more protein (there are some exceptions, of course) and a much lower amount of carbohydrates.

Your pet has no biological requirement for carbohydrates. This is why when you look at the guaranteed analysis on the back of your pets food label, you won’t see carbohydrates listed. Despite this undisputed fact, carbs are still the most prominent ingredient in all kibbles, sometimes composing over 50% of the ingredients by weight. Why? Simply because grains and starches are cheap for manufacturers and often subsidized.

One important note: When you compare the guaranteed analysis of a canned food to a dry food, it often creates confusion. The protein percentage on canned food appears to be lower. When you compare however, on a dry matter basis (removing moisture) you will always have more protein in a canned food vs kibble. Another important benefit of canned foods is their relatively low amount of preservatives. Due to the canning process itself, canned food often contains minimal preserving agents.

Myth #4: Kibble Stays Fresh for Long Periods of Time, Even When Stored Properly

That huge bag of pet food you just bought to save money? Odds are, the fats inside it are going rancid within weeks of opening, putting your pet at risk. When fats in your pets food go bad, free radicals are created in the process. These free radicals can scavenge your pets body, causing untold damage over time.

Unfortunately dry food that has become rancid will not necessarily look or smell bad. But rest assured, the moment oxygen comes in contact with kibble, the process of oxidation has begun. If you have a pet food storage container, its always better to put the entire pet food bag inside of the container, and not pour the kibble directly into the bin. Pet food packaging is actually pretty advanced these days and does a better job at keeping the food fresh than a storage bin alone.

Myth #5: My Kibble Must Be a Good One Because Its Recommended by My Veterinarian or Breeder

This is perhaps the most frustrating myth of all. Veterinarians are wonderful people with wonderful hearts. I fully trust my veterinarian’s advice on nearly any topic, save one: their food recommendations.

If you compare the labels of food commonly recommended by veterinarians and breeders (such as Hill’s Prescription Diet and Royal Canin) you’ll find that they are low quality foods with a few therapeutic ingredients added in. Most of the formulas rely heavily on meat by-products, corn, wheat, rice, and soy.

In addition, manufacturers such as Hill’s Prescription Diet and Science Diet are no better than the rest at avoiding recalls, as recently we learned when a dangerous amount of vitamin D was added into some formulas.

Myth #6: My Kibble Shows Real Meat Pictures on The Bag, So It Must Contain Sufficient Protein

Unfortunately, nearly all kibble contains shockingly low amounts of protein, ranging from 18% to 33%.

This is the very reason why kibble is so much lower cost compared to canned food or fresh food. There is no way around it, animal protein adds substantially to the cost. But let’s not forget, cats and dogs are natural carnivores!

To make matters worse, much of the protein found in kibble is from lower quality plant sources such as corn, wheat, peas, or soy.

Myth #7: My Dry Pet Food Says Made in The USA, So All of The Ingredients Must Come from The USA

Sadly, its nearly impossible to find a dry pet food that contains 100% of ingredients sourced from the USA.

This is due to the fact that China produces an overwhelming amount of the world’s vitamins, in the form of premixes. These vitamins are not sourced from nature, but rather created in a lab. While synthetic vitamins are sufficient to prevent most deficiencies, they do differ chemically from vitamins and minerals derived from nature and should not be a replacement for whole food sources.

Bonus Tip: If you think your pets food is 100% natural because the label says so, think again. You’ll often see a claim such as all-natural with added vitamins and minerals. Believe it or not, that last statement about vitamins and minerals is the manufacturer’s way of telling you they are synthetic, and the exception to the all-natural claim!

Myth #8: You Can Trust The Recommended Feeding Amount On The Bag

Let’s be real here: Would you trust McDonald’s recommendations on how much to eat their food? Of course not!

Pet food manufacturers can often recommend too much food for your individual pets needs. Recommending too much only plays in their favor as it leads you to buy more.

The recommendations on the bag are an ok starting place, but remember that based on your pets activity level, you may need to substantially modify the suggested servings.

Most importantly, learn to recognize a healthy weight and shape for your pet. Understanding the signs of obesity in your pet, and adjusting their diet accordingly, is absolutely vital to preventing obesity related diseases such as arthritis and cancer.

Myth #9: Having Real Meat Listed As the #1 Ingredient Means the Food is Good Quality

Manufacturers love to brag with the following claim: “real meat is our first ingredient!”

Here’s why that isn’t as big of a deal as you think. The ingredient list is always listed in the order of weight, prior to processing. Whole meat such as chicken breast contains roughly 70% water, which means that after the ingredient is cooked in the kibble manufacturing process, it often represents a tiny amount of the total protein, as low as 5%.

Odds are, the ‘meat meal’ listed later on in the list of ingredients represents more total protein than the first ingredient! Strange, but true.

Myth #10: Grain-Free Automatically Equals Healthy

Over the last 5 years grain-free foods have exploded in popularity, mirroring a trend in human foods. However, many pet parents are shocked to learn that some grain free foods can often contain more carbohydrates than grain based foods!

**This may seem like a contradiction, since we also firmly state dogs and cats should NOT have grains in their diet. The lack of grains isn’t the problem, it’s the over abundance of carbohydrates placed into these foods which create the problems.

Reading nutrition and ingredient labels may seem boring and tedious, however it’s crucial to understand what should and shouldn’t be in your pets kibble. Again, marketing companies know how to play with words and create the illusion of a healthy food.

Of course you’ve heard that! That’s a common propaganda attack from largely known Pet Food Companies who primarily use grains in their foods as a filler and alternative to real meat and organ meat for quality proteins, amino acids, trace minerals, and vitamins.

Hills Science Diet is currently facing a $2 Billion Lawsuit for making these false claims. Link Here: Hills Science Diet Lawsuit

The more people realize and discover that grains are in fact unhealthy and unnatural for your pets, the less they will be buying their products. To stay in business, they’ll have to reduce or eliminate these harmful ingredients, change their production methods, and overall heavily decrease their profit margins.

Most claims made against grain free pet food comes from companies who put grain in their food. NONE of these claims have ever been verified by substantial evidence or facts.

SAD FACT: Did you know Mars Company is the biggest consolidator of pet care companies in the United States, owning pet food companies, pet pharmacies and veterinary care clinic chains? It’s a WONDERFUL scam they play.. Buy their low quality pet food… your pet eventually suffers from a nutrient deficient diet… your pet eventually needs veterinary care… they then sell you the medicines they create and own. They profit by cutting costs on your pets food, and again from selling you the meds your pet now needs. THEY DO NOT CARE ABOUT YOUR PETS!!!

• Balanced Weight: A high protein diet will help maintain a healthy weight ratio. As “Obligate Carnivores”, Cats especially can’t process carbohydrates very well.
• Improved Digestion: Raw food reduces urination, since salt is added to kibble, causing pets to drink more. Raw food reduces fecal matter and flatulence since they synthesize raw meat better than processed kibble.
• Shinier Coats: The Proteins and Fats from Raw Food produce a shinier, thicker, and healthy soft fur coat.
• Cleaner Teeth: The myth of eating Kibble to clean teeth is equal to us eating Tortilla Chips to clean our teeth. Dry Kibble is high on carbs and acts like sugar getting stuck on your pets teeth. Feeding Freeze Dried Treats and bones is the only to help clean their teeth next to brushing them.
• Fewer Recalls: While these stats change, there have only been around a dozen recalls out of thousands of commercial pet foods. The vast majority of recalls were for dry Kibble.
• Superior Joint & Bone Health: The best support for bones… is bones! Bone is a natural source of calcium, phosphorus, glucosamine, chondrotin, collagen, and marrow.
• Strengthened Immune System: This means fewer visits to the vet, and fewer health issues for your pet! Meat is a fundamental component of your pets natural diet, and provides a high quality and easily digestible protein. The array of fats, vitamins, and minerals in raw meat are not diminished through the cooking process.
• Cats & Dogs are Natural Carnivores: Nature designed Cats & Dogs to consume raw meat. Evolved from Wolves, Lions, and Tigers, our domesticated Dogs and Cats require a raw meat diet. The Kibble industry has made billions through marketing propaganda, convincing us Cats & Dogs can thrive on cheaply made, and overly processed dry Kibble. They add Salt & Sugar to their long list of ingredients full of names most people can’t even pronounce, to get your pet addicted to their food. Feeding your pet dry Kibble every day is comparable to only feeding your kids nothing but fast food & soda everyday.

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  Cats are “OBLIGATE CARNIVORES”: They MUST eat meat in order to survive. Cats meet their blood sugar requirements by breaking down protein, rather than carbohydrates in their diet. They lack the ability to digest plant matter, and in fact, will eat vegetation specifically to vomit. Cats are also “IMPRINT EATERS”, meaning they learn to eat by watching and learning from mom. So if mom eats Kibble, they eat Kibble… If mom eats Raw, they eat Raw.

  Dogs are “FACULTATIVE CARNIVORES”: They do best on a Carnivorous diet, but can “survive, not thrive” on a non-carnivorous diet.

  Although our pets are long removed from their primal ancestors, their dietary requirements haven’t changed. The most appropriate diet for your carnivorous pet is one which is high in moisture, contains quality sources of muscle meat, and has little-to-no carbohydrates.

  The manufactured kibble diet full of processed and synthetic ingredients has led to many common illnesses plaguing our pets, such as: Obesity, Diabetes, Kidney Disease, Urinary Tract Infections, Urinary Crystal Formation and Blockages, and Dental Disease.

Myth 1: Raw food is unsafe 

There’s no getting around it – handling raw meat poses a risk. But chances are you handle it when cooking for your human family members, right? There’s really no difference when it comes to safe practices for handling raw pet food. Avoid using wooden cutting boards, dishes and utensils, and wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water after handling the meat. Many companies offer easy-to-open, pre-portioned packaging to make this process even more simple and safe.

Worried about your pet getting a food-borne illness? Fear not! Cats’ and dogs’ digestive systems are much shorter and more acidic than ours, meaning they’re designed to take on any bacteria that may be present in their food.

Myth 2: Raw feeding takes a lot of work

It’s true that feeding a raw diet to pets used to be quite complicated – it involved a lot of pre-planning, portioning and preparation. But nowadays, due to the steps companies are taking to pre-portion their raw meals and include the appropriate amounts of bone, organ and supplements, raw feeding has never been easier! If you opt for a frozen raw option, food for up to four days can be defrosted at the same time (stored in the fridge), so you don’t have to take food out of the freezer every day. Many products don’t require any additional prep – just thaw and serve the appropriate amount!

Myth 3: Raw food diet is unaffordable

As with any diet, the amount you spend will depend on the size of your pet! If you have a Chihuahua or a tabby cat, you’ll need to spend a lot less on pet food than someone who has three Great Danes. Pound for pound, raw is slightly more expensive than most kibbles or canned foods, but over the long-term, opting for a higher-quality diet will end up saving you money. Think about it: health starts with diet, so if you invest in a biologically appropriate food that helps your fur babe thrive, you’ll wind up spending way less on medication and vet bills down the road. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!

Myth 4: A Raw food diet consists of just raw meat

If you’ve never fed raw before, it’d be easy to assume that the diet consists of nothing but raw meat. But this isn’t actually the case! Proper raw diets for dogs and cats are made up of meat, bone, organ meats, vegetables, and supplements. All of these elements are needed in proper proportions to ensure your pet maintains their health.

Myth 5: You can’t feed both raw and kibble

It doesn’t have to be all or nothing! In fact, if you’re considering switching your pet to a raw diet, it’s best to make the transition slowly over a period of 1–2 weeks. One suggestion is not to feed both kibble and raw food in the same meal. When making the switch to raw, or if you choose to feed both over the long-term, feed raw in the morning and kibble in the evening, for example. This goes for both dogs and cats. Tip: supplementing your pet’s kibble-based diet with raw food is an affordable way to give his diet a boost!

It’s important to note Cats and Dogs will require different transitional methods. Given that cats are far more finicky especially when trying new foods, the first rule is we must be patient!

Remember the “3 Ts” of your pets preferences, “Taste”, “Texture”, and “Temperature”. Cats are imprint eaters, meaning they learn from a young age what to eat by watching their mother. Once a cat has imprinted on food, they develop a strong preference for taste, texture and temperature of that food for the rest of their life. We often confuse them “not eating” as a sign of them “not liking” that particular food. It’s actually that they don’t recognize it as food, and may even try burying it.

START SMALL: Add only 25% new food/raw to their dish for about 3-5 days. At that rate, increase the percentage by 25% every 3-5 days. Eventually you’ll be able to feed a full 100% raw diet.

SNEAK ATTACK: Occasionally place a small bowl of raw food next to your cats current bowl of food. This allows your cat to smell the raw food while eating their regular food. Maintain this routine for about a week, then sneak a layer of raw pet food under their current food.

TOPPERS, BROTHS, and TREATS: It can be beneficial to experiment with a variety of supplements added to the food to entice your pet to try out new foods. Many of our products offer such options which not only add extra nutrients to the food, but added flavors as well.

CONSISTENCY IS KEY: Once you choose a routine, you must stick to it! This will take time, and you will have plenty of uneaten food, which makes it difficult to not give up, as of course we see that as wasted food and money. NEVER NEVER NEVER starve your cat! One misconception is if your cat is hungry enough, they’ll eventually just eat the new food. This is false and puts your cats life in serious jeopardy. Patience and variety is the ONLY safe and effective method for transitioning your pet into a new and healthy eating lifestyle.

Before we talk about their food, lets talk about their food dishes! You wouldn’t put a plate that was covered in raw chicken back in your cupboard without washing it… the same applies for your pets bowl! Clean their dishes thoroughly after each feeding! Stainless steel, glass, or ceramic bowls are the most hygienic option for food and water dishes. On a second side note… We are fans of using stainless steel water fountains with carbon filters rather than dishes with stagnate water.

STORAGE: Store your pet’s raw food in the freezer until it’s time to thaw. Avoid fully thawing, portioning, and refreezing raw meat as this can allow harmful bacteria to develop!

THAWING: Thaw your pet’s food in the fridge or in cool water. Thawing your pet’s food in the fridge will take a bit more time and planning, but it’s the safest way to thaw raw meat. If you need to thaw your pet’s meals more quickly, partially submerge the pouch or container in cold tap water and change the water every 30 minutes or so. When meat is thawed in water it actually increases up to 1% in moisture (based on studies conducted on human consumption meat), so you may find the product is more moist when thawed this way. Never thaw in the microwave. This can change the molecular structure of the food. Destroying nutrients and increasing bacteria growth.

FEEDING: Raw food should not sit out for very long. Any uneaten food should be tossed within 20-30 minutes of being served.

CLEANING SURFACES: Always wash surfaces, utensils, and hands with warm soapy water after handling your raw pet food. We personally like to keep disinfectant wipes readily available near our food prep area.

Synthetic Vitamins and Minerals are not healthy for your pets! While Cats are Obligate Carnivores, and Dogs are Facultative Carnivores.

Fruits and Vegetables contain a naturally complete and balanced package of vitamins and minerals, provided they haven’t been damaged by the cooking process.

Superfoods such as Wheatgrass, Kelp, and Garlic highly benefit your dogs, while your cat will benefit from additional nutrients such as Taurine.

Probiotics are an amazing option to add to your pets food as they provide the additional needs for nutrition. Cats in particular cannot synthesize their own Taurine, so it’s important their food sources have it. We recommend doing the research on your particular pets genealogy to learn what specific vitamins and nutrients they need, and be certain to add them to their diet.

The general rule of thumb for the amount to feed adult cats or dogs, either in raw or canned food, is to feed 2 to 4% of the ideal body weight per day. For an inactive and/or older pet, the 2% amount might be good and for a very active and/or younger pet, 4% might be closer to what’s needed.

Now keep in mind you are not required to feed only raw food. You can feed canned or kibble food as well to keep that variety. For example your pets tummy is only so big. If your cat should only eat 6 oz. in a day then feed 3 oz in the morning and then 3 oz. in the evening.

Our kitties tend to like kibble mixed with freeze dried or canned food mixed with a freeze dried topper in the morning and the raw foods at night.

Processed commercial dog and cat food is a relatively new phenomenon, introduced only about 100 years ago. However, your animal’s GI tract has not evolved in those 100 years to make good use of a diet based entirely on poor quality kibble – and it never will.

Fortunately, the bodies of dogs and cats are amazingly resilient and capable of handling foods that aren’t biologically appropriate. Unfortunately, this has led to a situation of dietary abuse in the veterinary community.

Commercial pet foods – especially dry diets – are so convenient that the majority of vets recommend them for all their patients.

It’s easy to feed, inexpensive, and there’s no preparation or cleanup required. You stash the bag in the pantry, scoop out a portion at meal time, drop it in your animal’s food dish and you’re done.

Because commercial pet food has been so successfully marketed (dog and cat food products are a multimillion dollar industry), and because our animals’ bodies are resilient and can survive on this stuff, we have been lulled into a sense of complacency about the food we feed them.

Most veterinary students don’t learn about species-appropriate pet food in vet school. The only foods discussed are the processed, commercial pet formulas. The concept of feeding a living food diet is foreign to many vets.

It doesn’t take much research to uncover the fact that dogs and cats are designed by nature to eat living foods – unprocessed, raw, nourishing foods. Feeding a commercial formula is a bit like deciding your child can be healthy on a diet of meal replacement bars. A meal replacement bar is fine now and then, but no responsible parent would ever consider raising a child on those alone. Yet that’s what we’re doing when we feed our animals nothing but poor quality, commercial, processed foods.

Living foods in your companion’s diet are necessary for successful overall immune and organ function.

PLEASE NEVER GIVE YOUR PETS RAWHIDE!

Rawhide is described as a natural chew… but it’s nothing more than leftover material from the leather industry, and not a piece of dried beef skin shaped into a bone as the public is lead to believe.

First the hides are placed into a brine to slow their decay, not stop it. They are then shipped to tanneries where the fat and hair are removed using toxic chemicals such as ash-lye or sodium sulphide liming.

They are then whitened using hydrogen peroxide bleach or other strong chemicals, which removes the smell of the decayed leather.

Rawhides can be then basted with flavors or smoked and dyed in different colors, or painted with titanium dioxide.

To preserve the rawhide, they use various chemicals which may include formaldehyde or chromium salts. Finally different types of glues are used to help make the variety of shapes they come in.

Sounds healthy and natural right??? Yeah, didn’t think so. So why is all of this bad for your pet?

If the chemicals used to create rawhide weren’t bad enough, there is also the risking of choking and blockage. Rawhide is very indigestable and can sit in a dogs stomach for months.

Similar to Kibble claims, Rawhide is not good for your pets teeth. The chews start out hard, but get softer as chewed.

So What are Your Options? Raw Recreational Bones, Freeze Dried Treats such as Duck Heads, Turkey Necks, Turkey Hearts, Freeze Dried Salmon Skins and more.

We hold our veterinarians in high regard and deeply appreciate their dedication to our pets’ well-being. However, many veterinarians do not endorse a raw diet for pets. In our experience, some even react strongly and negatively when the topic arises.

This pivotal moment led us to establish Natural Carnivore. After feeding our cats a nutritionally complete raw diet for six months, we took our two Maine Coons for their routine checkups and microchipping. Our long-time veterinarian praised their health, physical condition, clean teeth, skin, fur quality, and overall appearance. When asked about their diet, we proudly mentioned that we feed them raw food. To our surprise, the veterinarian’s demeanor changed abruptly. He criticized us, labeling us as irresponsible pet owners, and strongly advised against continuing the raw diet.

This reaction was perplexing, especially after receiving such positive feedback on our cats’ health. Consequently, we decided to switch veterinarians, only to encounter similar responses from two more professionals.

In conversations with other raw feeders, we discovered a common theme: many veterinarians disapprove of raw diets, despite the evident health benefits observed in pets. This prompted us to delve deeper into the reasons behind this stance.

There are two primary reasons many veterinarians do not approve of a raw diet for pets:

1. Veterinarians are not nutritionists. Their education on pet nutrition typically consists of a brief 2-4 week course, often sponsored by major pet food companies such as Purina and Hill’s Science Diet. This sponsorship likely influences their strong advocacy for these products. It is important to note that we are not criticizing veterinarians. They are dedicated professionals who, like many of us, have been influenced by extensive marketing from companies like Purina, Hill’s Science Diet, and Royal Canin over the past four decades.

2. Challenges with proper implementation. While some veterinarians do support and endorse a raw diet, they often encounter issues with pet owners who, despite their best intentions, do not implement the diet correctly. An improperly balanced raw diet can lead to worse health conditions than a kibble-based diet. A raw pet food diet can be highly beneficial if it is nutritionally complete. However, many well-meaning pet owners attempt a DIY raw diet and may either add too much of one ingredient, not enough of another, or omit a crucial element altogether. Proper raw feeding requires careful consideration of factors such as sanitation, storage, ingredients, and their quantities. To address these challenges, many companies now offer pre-calculated and complete raw meals for pets, ensuring a nutritionally balanced diet and alleviating the stress and guesswork for pet owners.

ALL FOOD SALES FINAL.

Unopened or Undamaged non-food items are “Exchangeable” within 1 week of original purchase with proof of receipt.