Health
Feed Raw Dog Food For A Longer Life

Feed Raw Dog Food For A Longer Life!

Feeding your dog a raw diet is one of the best ways to ensure your pooch will be around for many more trips to the park and long naps on the couch. You want to keep your best friend around for as long as possible, and that means making sure they are well provided for...mind, body and paws.

Raw diets have benefits and nutrients that freeze dried kibble or other traditional pet food varieties don't, plus your pup will think eating raw is absolutely delicious.

Here are some more facts about raw dog food to help you decide whether it is time to make the switch!

 

Top down bowl shot of kibble with a red heelers paws and muzzle looking at the dog food


Why do we even feed our dogs kibble?

Convenience, I want to say kibble feeders do so for convenience. Maybe it is easy enough to just grab that 12kg bag and lug it to the checkout at Pet Barn or My Pet Warehouse before paying too much for it and then dragging it out to the car, into the house, etc etc.

In comparison, Raw is much more difficult. I get that.

In fact, homemade Raw is notoriously risky with more than 95% of home-made raw being unbalanced and nutrient deficient which causes huge problems as time progresses.

Rawmate was conceived to simplify this whole process. Let us take care of the prep, we will deliver your dogs total nutrition needs direct to your door.


Raw vs. Kibble

Way back when, before dogs were domesticated and turned into the loving companions we know today, their diets consisted mostly of protein and fat.

 

Check out our articles:

Hungry Like A Wolf

The Domestication Of Wolves

Is My Dog A Carnivore?


Most traditional kibble varieties contain at least 60% carbohydrates, which are not as easily digested or as nutritious for your pup.

side by side bowl shot of raw minced dog food and kibble

Why Kibble?  


Kibble was a cheaper alternative to feeding dogs fresh meat, especially so when rationing was in place throughout the war years making a meat diet for dogs difficult to source.

Aluminium, steel, meat and bones were in short supply, enter kibble as a cheaper option. In short, kibble was created out of necessity during times of economic decline.

The consequences of reducing a dogs diet to one heavily reliant on carbohydrates is clear.

Dogs that eat kibble tend to be more prone to degenerative diseases and often have shortened lifespans.

The rise in the popularity of kibble also led to a rise in obesity in dogs, diabetes and other related illnesses. These public health issues can significantly lower the quality of a dog’s life such as premature joint pain and certain cancers in adult dogs.

Raw diets are comprised of mostly protein, fat and small amounts of vegetables and fruits to give your dog the added benefits of their nutrients without the grain or carbohydrate-forward filler.

A raw diet, as mentioned above, is more compatible with a dog’s natural dietary needs.

Not yet convinced?

Look at a dog’s teeth. Dogs have two large canines in the front, designed for ripping and tearing. These in combination with the rest of their teeth - all of which are pretty sharp compared to the flat grinding molars of herbivores - make them excellent eaters of fresh vegetables, muscle meat, offal and raw meaty bones.

 

Commander Strax GSD eating Rawmate Original Blend

Benefits of raw feeding dogs

As previously mentioned, dogs that consume a raw diet rather than a cooked or carb based one have fewer degenerative diseases throughout their lifetimes. But this doesn’t just mean avoiding serious diseases like diabetes, a raw diet can impact every part of a dog's life for the better.

Raw feeders find that dogs on a raw diet tend to age more slowly, have shinier coats and have more energy. These benefits are due to dogs being given the proper nutrients found in vegetables, fruits, raw eggs, muscle meats and raw meaty bones. Some dog owners have even reported smaller poops after switching their dogs to a raw diet, everyone wants cleanup time to be a little bit easier!

You may also see an increase in your pooch’s energy because they are actually absorbing the nutrients from their raw food, which help their gut flora to thrive, giving them more energy for playing, training, working or just generally being a dog.


Prey Model Raw vs Rawmate Complete and Balanced

Prey Model Raw feeders lean towards a dog being a carnivore (hint: your dog is NOT a carnivore)

Rawmate is Complete and Balanced according to AAFCO requirements. You just can’t balance raw properly without the veg. Getting this wrong puts your dog at risk of nutritional deficiencies and death.

Once you acknowledge the omnivorous nature of your dog. The requirement for some vegetables makes sense. Especially market fresh vegetables good enough to put on your own plate or your families dinner table.

 

Rawmate Ingredient Pyramid

Raw fed dogs live longer

The most significant reason for switching your dog to a raw diet is to ensure that you have as much time with them as possible.

Dr. Gérard Lippert conducted a study published in 2003 starting in 1998 of over 500 dogs.

Some of these dogs were fed raw diets made to specific specifications, the others were fed a traditional dry/kibble diet. Unsurprisingly, the dogs being fed the raw homemade diet on average had a life expectancy of around 3 years longer than the dogs being fed a dry/kibble diet!

These results were evident despite the breed, age, size and sex of the dogs, and it is clear why. If your dog is eating the things their body needs in order to thrive and live a long happy life, they will thrive and live a long happy life.

How much would you pay to have another 3 years with your dog? Does the price difference to Kibble really matter today if you knew you could feed your dog something that could offer an average 3 years longer, healthier, happier life?

Many have speculated that the uptick in modern disease, in general, is due to disrupted gut micriobiomes.

All living creatures must provide their bodies with the proper nutrients in order to remain balanced, healthy and increase longevity.
Naturally is best of course!

Raw Fed Working Line German Shepherd Puppies

How to get started raw feeding

Putting your pup on the road to a healthier life and living longer will be immensely rewarding, but it needs to be done correctly.

If your pup is being fed a kibble diet it is important to slowly transition them onto raw so as not to cause upset stomach, diarrhea, or other discomfort associated with a sudden change in diet.

For some dogs, it may take a couple weeks to switch to raw, but eventually, your pup will be fully acclimated and the health benefits will start rolling in.

The team here at Rawmate will be able to walk you through this process and offer a tailor made, individualised raw dog food meal plan solution for your dog.

We deliver what we believe is the best raw dog food around to help you keep your four-legged bestie happy and healthy for many years to come.

 

Top down bowl shot of Rawmate original blend

Call To Paws

Did you enjoy this article?

Loved it? Hated it? Un-decided? Skim-read? What are you talking about?

Mind dropping us a comment? We’d love to get your take on the Kibble debate.

Maybe you are already a Raw Feeder, looking for an easier solution. We’d love to hear your story and how you came to believe what you believe.

Please. Like, Share, Follow, Subscribe.

It truly does help us to be able to help you (and your dog).

Matt Joseph

Staff writer

There are 0 Comments

Leave a comment

Name .
.
Message .

Please note, comments must be approved before they are published