To understand the nutritional needs of a canine, it’s important to understand one fundamental aspect of their physiological make up: canines are carnivores. We say this with the pure observation of dogs and carnivores; if we break down the facts then we are able to understand why dogs have to eat like a carnivore. Their Jaw only works one way physically by that we mean up and down, as a herbivore their jaw would work side to side to crush the vegetation. As an omnivore their jaw could do both, so side to side and up and down, which a dog is physically incapable of doing. Plus a herbivore starts the digestive process in its mouth as do we as omnivores by producing Amylase in our saliva. A dog does not produce this digestive enzyme in its mouth. All of these traits are the basis for science recognizing and therefore listing the species as herbivores, omnivores and our dogs as carnivores.
Wolves and other wild canines have survived and thrived on raw meat, meaty bones, organs and the pre-digested foods (such as grass, seeds, berries and leaf matter) of their prey for thousands of years. High in protein, this diet is easily digested and provides optimum nutrition and energy.
A dog’s digestive system passes food much quicker than a human’s, indeed too quickly for bacteria to do any harm. However, the speed of a dog's digestion means that its food needs to be packed full of quickly digestible nutrients. A wolf’s natural diet is full of these nutrients and is easily digested – which is why K9 Natural mimics this diet so closely.
The ingredients discussed below are the only ingredients in K9 Natural, and they are all entirely raw to maintain their nutritional properties for the absolute benefit of your dog.
Meat, bone, blood and organs
85% of the content of K9 Natural is raw meat, crushed bone, blood and a small amount of organ meats from grass-fed, free range, and hormone growth promotant free New Zealand livestock. We never use meat from ‘fallen’, diseased or dying animals and we never use waste meats such as hooves, tails, noses or chicken feet etc.
When meat is processed for human consumption, the blood, organs and most bones are removed from the carcass. As these things are a natural part of a dog’s diet and have been for thousands of years, we retain these ingredients and include them in K9 Natural in authentic quantities.
Blood ensures your dog gets sufficient Iron and other essential minerals, blood is the transport system designed by nature to supply the nutrients animals digest and deliver it to the muscles organs and brain of the species consuming the food. It is by far the most nutrient rich part of our diet. Ground bone provides calcium, which needs to be the most abundant mineral in a dog’s body (a deficiency of calcium may lead to fragile, porous bones, retarded growth and tooth decay, amongst other things). A sufficient amount of ground bone is included in K9 Natural to provide appropriate calcium, but we also recommend giving your dog a raw bone each day if you can, for healthy teeth, gums and breath, and as an enjoyable enrichment activity for your dog. Click for advice on feeding raw meaty bones.
Small amounts of organ meats, specifically heart, liver, kidney and green tripe are a natural part of a canine diet and provide some of the essential micro nutrients required by dogs. Green tripe, for example, contains a probiotic (an organism which contributes to the health and balance of the intestinal tract) that is only found in fresh stomach lining.
Vegetables & Fruit
The modest quantities of vegetables and fresh fruit included in K9 Natural provide a range of vitamins and minerals required by your dog. We use broccoli, cauliflower, carrot, silver beet (spinach) cabbage, pumpkin, apples and pears. In summer we replace apples and pears with fruits such as berries, mimicking the overripe and fallen fruit that a wolf would find and eat in the wild in summer.
Garlic
Garlic is known as nature’s antibiotic and is a safe and natural remedy for many ailments. It strengthens the immune system, is a powerful blood purifier and contains anti-fungal and anti-viral properties. It also contains two important protector minerals – geranium and selenium.
Garlic is also known to have a powerful anti-toxic blood purifying effect and assists in clearing the system of heavy metals (such as lead), drugs and poisons. It also plays a major role in the rejection of cancer-causing toxins from normal cells.
The amount of garlic included in K9 Natural is sufficient to provide the micro nutrients required and may assist your dog's natural defence mechanism against worms.
Eggs
Wolves are scavengers as well as hunters, and will keenly devour eggs when they find them. Eggs are packed with protein, folic acid, iron, phosphorus, zinc and vitamins A, D, E and B.
These nutrients are needed for a healthy skin and coat, strong bones and teeth, healthy joints, a healthy cardiovascular system, a healthy lining of the digestive tract and a healthy nervous system.
Green Lipped Mussel
Green-lipped mussels are commonly found in the pristine waters near the South Island, off New Zealand. These mussels are not only eaten as a local specialty, but they are also packed into capsules and taken as nutritional supplements all over the world. We add them to K9 natural and Feline Natural for their properties and vitamin and mineral contents.
Green lip mussel studies have shown that the lipids found in these mussels contribute to reducing inflammation. http://www.green-lipped-mussel-oil.com/greenlip-mussel-studies.html
