Raw dog food diets have been increasingly popular in recent years but they’re certainly not for everyone. Some owners find that raw dog food diets aren’t subtitle for their canine companion. This is because they don’t have time to prepare proper meals or their dogs weren’t fans of the new diet. If you’re looking for a way to transition back into kibble then keep reading. Canine Caviar would like to help you properly transition your dog’s diet away from raw feeding.
This is also a good opportunity to compare a raw food diet to Canine Caviar’s limited ingredient diets. We’ll see what’s similar and different about these two seemingly unique approaches to nutrition.
The Basics of Raw Dog Food
The goal of raw feeding is simple; provide a more natural diet for your pet. People who prepare raw dog food aim to go back to the roots of dog’s ancestors by providing a raw diet. Raw dog food tends to contain:
- Raw muscle meats
- Whole bones (safe for dogs or grounded)
- An array of fruits (pineapple, blueberries, mango, etc.)
- A safe variety of vegetables (brussels sprouts, carrots, celery, etc.)
Whether raw feeding is the right diet for your dog is debatable. Dogs have transformed from their large ancestors to become golden retrievers, papillons, poodles, and everything in between. That means these dogs can have different needs that need to be met; needs that weren’t prevalent before. These new needs may not be met with raw dog food but it’s ultimately up to the consumer to form an opinion over the subject.
Similarities Between Raw Feeding and Canine Caviar
Despite being different diets, there are some similarities between the two. For example, many of the benefits raw dog food diets seem to strive for are the same as Canine Caviar’s. Raw feeding aims to achieve these benefits:
- Increased amounts of energy
- Shiner skin and coat
- Better oral hygiene
- Decreased elimination
On top of shared benefits, both Canine Caviar and Raw feeders strive to make dog food highly digestible. We achieve this great benefit by finding fresh all-natural ingredient sources. For Canine Caviar that means wild caught, free range protein sources and ingredients that are GMO free. Now that we’ve seen some key similarities, let’s look at some key difference between Canine Caviar and raw dog food.
Differences between Raw Feeding and Canine Caviar
Convenience
There a couple key differences, none more prevalent than convenience. Raw dog food is expensive to fund and it takes a while to prepare. Owners hold the responsibility of making sure meals are properly balanced with all a dog needs. That means you have to plan carefully and invest time to properly raw feed. If you have a busy schedule, it becomes difficult to dedicate all these resources.
Canine Caviar is convenient because we’re a minimally processed complete and balanced diet ready to be served whenever. Does that mean a more convenient diet is more likely to be a low quality diet? Not at all. Canine Caviar designs its kibble diets to go above and beyond standards. Our single protein, single complex carb and alkaline approach are what make our kibbles great in nutritional value.
Safety
Safety is also another big difference for these two diet philosophies. You can imagine how dangerous raw feeding could be in terms of safety. Raw meat is susceptible to a number of bacterial threats that can harm the family and the dog. These include E. coli, Salmonella, Clostridium Perfringens, and more. Harmful pathogens can then spread to the family from dog interaction in the home.
Dry kibble formulas like Canine Caviar’s do not face this kind of an issue. Canine Caviar uses dehydrated meat. This is great because dehydrating meat keeps the moisture out without removing all the great nutrients unlike cooking. As meat is cooked, the meat loses value so dehydration is a wonderful solution to both extremes.
Transitioning Away from Raw Dog Food
Are you looking into moving past raw diets and going back to kibble? Then that means it’s time to transition but how do we transition from raw dog food to kibble? The answer is simple but surprising; straight transition into the kibble. We know that sounds a little counter intuitive. The industry is always vocal about a gradual transition when changing dog foods but in this case, it’s a little different. Raw dog food and dry kibbles are different foods which require different digestive enzymes which break up the food. These digestive enzymes can upset each other and cause ill side effects such as stomach pain, diarrhea, and vomiting. That’s to say if you combine the two diets (just like when you transition) your dog will most likely experience these effects.
To avoid these problems, it’s best to get it over and done with. If you’re nervous of such a bold move, you can consider interchanging the diets. You can feed kibble for one meal/day and raw dog food another meal/day. This method isn’t recommended though. Switching between diets can be very taxing on the dog’s digestive system. Please do a straight transition if you can, otherwise go with this approach.
Final thoughts
It can be hard to know what types of diets or brands are best for our dog. With so many diets and advocates for those diets, how can one possibly know what to feed? Sometimes it’s best to look at entities with more authority than social media celebrities or trends. The American Kennel Club for example lists components they believe determines a great dog food. Their most important rule states
Look for a food that has a protein as the first ingredient, not a grain. The best dry dog foods have a single or novel source of protein, such as lamb, chicken, or salmon.
Sounds familiar doesn’t it. It sounds a lot like our alkaline dry kibble formulas. Our first ingredient is our protein source and we use ONLY one protein source per formula. It makes digesting easier and nutrient absorption more effective.
If you’re new to Canine Caviar, give us a try. We’re available online and in-stores across the US. If you have questions, feel free to call our office at 1.714.223.1800 or e-mail us at info@caninecaviar.com. Check the Canine Caviar Blog for more helpful articles like 9 Toxic Foods for Dogs and Canine Caviar’s Flash Cooking Process.