What you feed your pet each day is the single most important decision you can make regarding
his or her health and well-being. The daily diet is either building good health with the
proper nutrients, or damaging it through nutritional deficiencies and toxic substances.
As carnivores, dogs and cats have higher protein and fat requirements than humans that are
best fulfilled by flesh foods – meat, poultry, fish and eggs. They do not thrive on plant proteins
from wheat, corn, or soy, which supply an incomplete spectrum of amino acids. Moreover,
raw meats and fats are far more nutritious than cooked one, retaining all the enzymes,
vitamins, fatty acids, and other essential nutrients that are lost when subjected to heat and
processing.

Toxins occur in the form of chemical preservatives, rejected animal by-products, tainted or
unwanted cereal leftovers and non-nutritive fillers. These toxins tax the immune system and
must be filtered out through your pet’s organs of elimination. The better the quality of a
food’s raw ingredients, and the more minimal the processing, the better the health of the
dogs and cat that eat them.

Our Diet Hierarchy (worst to best)

1. Grocery Store Foods - least cost ingredients, highly processed, no real meat, just animal
   by-products, grain fractions, artificial preservatives. Also found in feed and warehouse stores.
   
   
2. “Premium” diets - higher meat content and definitely better quality than grocery store
   foods, but still highly processed with animal by-products, artificial preservatives, grain
   fractions, fillers and flavor enhancers. Examples: Eukanuba, IAMs & Science Diet
   
   
3. All-Natural “Premium” Diets – higher meat content and no animal by-products. Only
   natural preservatives (Vitamins C and E, rosemary extract), and no artificial ingredients.
   May include some ingredients not found in human foods, like corn gluten meal, cellulose
   (wood fiber), or animal digests. Meats are sometimes USDA approved. Examples: APD,
   Avo-Diets, Nutro, PetGuard, Precise, Sensible Choice, Wysong
   
   
4. Human - Quality All-Natural Diets – least processed state-of-the-art pet foods with
   exclusively USDA approved ingredients, nutrient rich fruits and vegetables, antioxidants,
   probiotics, and lots of extra supplements. Cooked slowly with lower heat to preserved
   nutrients. Examples: California Natural, Canidae, Innova (Original & Evo) , Nature’s
   Variety, Newman’s Own Organics, Organix, Pinnacle & Wellness
   
   
5. Unprocessed Raw Food Diets – closest to the “evolutionary diet” – USDA meats, vegetables,
   ground bones and small amounts of other ingredients. Feed as a sole diet or mix with
   other foods. Can be home-prepared (as us for recipes), frozen, or freeze-dried. Examples:
   Farmore, Natural Pet Pantry, Nature’s Variety, Peppercatz, Pepperdogz, Steve’s
   Real Food for Pets, Raw Advantage, R.O.A.R. Beef Marrow Bones, Whole Turkey Necks,
   and Ground Chicken Backs. Feed alone or use as a base for a home diet.