Jeannette and Michael
Jeannette’s note: A dog’s nutrition is important to me, and the following is solely my view of what a dog needs based on my experience and is not meant to be taken as medical or other advice.
I’ve listed specific dog food brands below that I believe in. I do not receive any compensation for mentioning them or linking to them.
Also, look for recipes coming here on the blog.
If you came across this write-up, click on our Elite Family Dogs page and our About page and get to know Michael and me.
Ready to feed your dog a meal filled with sweeteners, starches, and flour?
You’re not?
The big brand dog food companies are. In fact, that’s what they’ve been doing so your dog will lap up the highly processed kibble.
I’m a top breeder of pure-bloodline German Shepherds from Germany with about 40 years of experience and I used to tell my clients, “Give your dogs whatever your veterinarian suggests.”
Not anymore.
Why?
Real food is the best food for your dog and the kibble you buy in the grocery store or pet food store isn’t real food.
Scroll down to see my recommendations for dog food companies I trust and read how kibble is made.
Then you’ll see why I say kibble isn’t real food.
The story of a pure-bloodline German Shepherd named Hano is a case in point.
He came from my kennel, Wustenberger-Land, which I own along with my husband Michael, owner of Kempkes Executive K-9s.
Michael titled Hano to Schutzhund title 3. He was a fun dog, and it was gratifying to watch him grow and develop his skills.
But we were concerned when he was 6 years old.
Hano’s dramatic improvement
Hano was a pure bloodline German Shepherd from our kennel and descended from a top line in Germany.
A young couple purchased him and under Michael’s skill, Hano achieved a Schutzhund 3 title.
It’s so fun to see a dog learn, respond, and grow. He lived with us in Germany and on our Agua Dulce ranch northeast of Los Angeles until it was time for him to live with his new owner.
Michael and I stay in touch with our clients to answer questions and address concerns. When Hano was about 6 years old, his health wasn’t good.
Until his diet changed.
Step one was to stop feeding him kibble.
Hano’s owner told me he began making his own dog food recipe that included lightly cooked foods with fresh vegetables, pasteurized eggs, and clean meat.
Also, the dog didn’t get neutered and then he lived like a ranch dog who was able to run and play freely.
Hano loved being playful
He lived to almost 17 years old, a ripe old age for a German Shepherd.
So why don’t I recommend kibble?
I’ll take you back to the ‘70s during my childhood.
Hano loved to play
Comparing dog waste back then—and now
Growing up in the ‘70s, my parents fed our dogs table scraps and canned meats. My dogs were eating human food.
The dog’s poop looked like chalk on the ground. It decomposed and didn’t stick around.
Kibble was just coming onto the market.
Today, a dog that’s eating mostly kibble has waste that doesn’t decompose. It sticks around and stays poop forever.
A minimally processed whole food diet has a different result because the waste decomposes.
Raw food diet and benefits
Bones and marrow available through Soul’y Raw
The photo of bones and marrow is courtesy of Soul’y Raw.
Here’s a good summary of raw food diets:
- Muscle meat
- Bones, either whole or ground
- Organ meats such as livers and kidneys
- Vegetables like broccoli, spinach, and celery
- Berries or other fruit
- Some daily, such as yogurt
- Pasture raised eggs
Eggs can be lightly cooked with a runny yolk as I mention below under foods options.
Benefits include a stronger immune system, shinier coat, and improved dental health.
I can make recommendations on how to balance the diet.
Scroll down to the website of Soul’y Raw, run by Lisa Ayotte.
She launched her company after her very special bulldog who had serious allergies improved while eating a raw food diet.
Photo by ayla verschueren, Unsplasher very special bulldog had serious allergies and improved after feeding a raw food diet.
Caution with kibble
Kibble is highly processed and doesn’t have the nutrients that a dog needs.
This leads to chronic dehydration and inflammation.
Your veterinarian may prescribe a highly processed brand of dog food with hydrolyzed protein. It’s the worst thing that a dog could ever eat.
It’s a genetically produced protein and doesn’t sustain the dogs for a long life.
When you go to a vet with your puppy, the first thing they want to do is monthly flea, tick, and heartworm. If it’s a German Shepherd, they want it on a diet with hydrolyzed protein because they already label your dog as having digestive issues.
The reason the dog has digestive issues is because of the modern way of feeding.
They pump them up with a chemical and then over-vaccinate them. They spay and neuter at 4 months of age and then order this prescription diet.
I see it over and over again.
By the time the dog is 8 years old, it’s either quite sick or it’s already passed away.
Spaying and neutering
There are other lifestyle issues related to spaying and neutering to be aware of that I mention below.
Raw food options better than kibble
I know that feeding your dog a balanced diet is a challenge, but you can do better than kibble with little effort.
Properly sourced meat and veggies are a start.
Here are a few companies that I recommend, especially Soul’y Raw since I work closely with them because I believe in what they do.
Soul’y Raw offers balanced meals and quality foods
Company: Soul’y Raw
My rating: Excellent
I personally know Lisa Ayotte and she’s terrific to work with. She’ll prepare foods for my clients according to my specifications.
She provides balanced meals making it convenient for you to properly feed your dog.
The meals have “… all the essential components of a balanced diet, using only the highest quality human grade ingredients, we then add raw bone, organs, and marrow” with “optional fish for added omegas.”
Visit the Soul’y Raw website and read more on raw food blends and where Lisa and her team source their food.
Company: Ziwi Peak
My rating: Good
Key food option: Air-dried lamb
The lamb is sourced in New Zealand and the company has been in the U.S. for about 10 years. The lamb is air-dried with about 98% of the moisture taken out.
Company: The Farmer’s Dog
My rating: Acceptable to Good
They tout human-grade food and fresh food. Based on my knowledge, the foods are lightly processed and some may have little caloric value.
Company: Green Tripe.com
My rating: Excellent
Has food options that are good for dogs with digestive problems.
Company: Hare Today
My rating: Excellent
This has prey-dinner dog food. On their website, they say that raw food is what nature intends.
Company: OlewoUSA
My rating: Excellent
Their carrots, red beets and other products add nutrition and aid with digestion. They’re from Germany and I describe them in the foods below.
More food ratings and advice
Option: White rice
My rating: Terrible, never feeds
Don’t feed your dog cooked white rice. They can’t digest the carbohydrates.
Option: Organic pumpkin
My rating: Excellent
Instead of white rice, try a can of organic pumpkin as a supplement to the main meal.
Option: Bone meal with bits of cartilage
My rating: Excellent
You can mix this in with other foods to make a meal.
Option: Eggs
My rating: Excellent
A good pasture raised egg is an excellent food for your dog.
Cook as soft-boiled as the best way to prepare or cook sunny side up with grass-fed butter or cook an egg with olive oil.
Cook the egg white and leave the yolk runny. Don’t just cook and give an egg white due to lack of nutrition.
Soul’y Raw provides a wide variety of meats for meals and chews
Option: Whole duck
My rating: Excellent
If you live in an area with ethnic grocery stores like we have in Los Angeles, then here’s an idea. Ask the grocer to grind up the whole duck, including with the bones.
The photo, right, is from Soul’y Raw.
Option: Organ meats
My rating: Excellent
Organ meats are what a dog in the wild would eat if it joined a wolf pack.
In Europe, they feed lungs, trachea, stomach and the organs have enzymes that haven’t washed out.
Note:
It’s good to offer many of the foods in small quantities and mix together. You don’t want too much organ meats like heart or liver. Make in percentages.
Option: Cooked carrots
My rating: Excellent
Olewo is a highly concentrated carrot and boosts a dog’s immune system. Plus, it combats parasites and diarrhea.
Dogs on raw diets may have loose stools because there’s not enough bone, cartilage, or fiber. Carrots are a good add-in. They’re air dried. Highly concentrated vegetable.
Option: Green lipped muscle powder from New Zealand
My rating: Good
A specific type of mollusk is harvested off the coast of New Zealand and has been said to reduce the impact of arthritis. This supplement is anti-inflammatory and many find useful in combatting degenerative joint disease.
Battling parasites: another benefit of good nutrition
A dog with a strong immune system won’t have problems with a range of parasites like fleas, ticks, worms, giardia, coccidia.
The diet won’t prevent fleas, ticks, or other parasites from biting a dog. But when they bite a healthy dog, they’ll drop off instead of embedding themselves in the body.
Adding pumpkin and carrots helps fight diarrhea caused by poor digestion and parasites.
Pharma-grade diatomaceous earth can also be used to combat parasites.
It’s a European product that sends out natural energetic frequencies that repel fleas, ticks and mosquitos to keep them away from your pet for a full year.
A Word on Spaying and Neutering
Photo: Wustenberger-Land
Nutrition has an impact on a dog’s quality of life and so does the practice of spaying and neutering.
I want you to be informed.
Up to 80% of dogs in North America are spayed or neutered before six months of age. The practice is done primarily for population control but there are long-term health risks as outlined in these two articles that link to additional studies.
Spayed and Neutered Dogs Show More Signs of Aging | Psychology Today
Spaying and neutering may be done to control behavior, too, but it doesn’t mean dogs will be less aggressive. In fact, they may become more aggressive.
Are There Behavior Changes When Dogs Are Spayed or Neutered? | Psychology Today
A Vet’s Viewpoint
Have you heard of Dr. Karen Becker?
If not, her videos are easy to find on YouTube and are worth watching.
Here’s one I recommend:
Dr. Becker: The Truth about Spaying and Neutering
Cutting Corners
I want my clients and other dog lovers to understand how the major pet food manufacturers buy up smaller companies and change the formulation.
That’s why the independent companies I’ve mentioned are worth buying from. They have integrity and a sense of purpose because they know how much you value your pets.
If you buy raw meat from a pet food store, it’s typically washed with a low-grade product that takes out the nutrition.
It’s best to purchase food marked “human grade” that come from USDA processing facilities. If not, you run the risk of processing using cows that have diseases like cancer.
Photo by Mart Production, Pexels
What to Know about the Dog Food Industry
Dog food is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Makes like Diamond have to manufacture and package food as efficiently and profitably as possible for mass distribution.
That means using low-cost ingredients that can be marked up.
A company in Canada, Orijen, launched in 2005 and sourced wild-caught fish from streams under the parent company Champion Pet Foods.
A 2018 article in The Globe and Mail, showed Orijen’s focus and why it became popular.
Management figured out early on that by making biologically “appropriate” pet food – as close to what animals would eat in nature as possible – and producing it using fresh, natural ingredients, they could differentiate their Orijen and Acana product lines from competitors [that produced lower quality food].
In 2023, Champion was bought out by Mars, the global brand known for making candy that has a pet food line, Petcare.
Will Orijen be able to continue its quality?
Success is getting your dog to gobble down the junk
Pet food makers know that if your dog eats up their brand, then you’ll continue buying.
They win your dog’s taste buds with texture. as described in a quote with the manager of
This means using “starches, flours, sweeteners, prebiotic fibers and plant proteins,” [Patrick] Luchsinger said. “Our ingredients come from many different bases such as potato, rice, tapioca, pea, lentil, chickpea, guar and many others that all have different functionalities to address texture.”
Source: Understanding texture and how to formulate pet food, treats for success
Patrick Luchsinger was quoted as the manager of marketing and business development for Ingredion Incorporated’s pet food segment.
Petfoodprocessing.net July 27, 2021.
It’s no wonder dogs have digestive problems and other issues after eating kibble.
The Global Alliance of Pet Food Associations describes the kibble process as adding moisture to a dough mixture and the mixture “enters a machine known as an extruder, which cooks the dough under pressure.”
Once the kibbles dry and cool, they “often enter a revolving drum where they are evenly coated with a mix of flavours to enhance taste, and preservatives to prevent spoilage through the shelf life of the food.”
Source: Gapfa.org How Pet Food is Made.
The History of Dog Food
The first dog biscuit was made in Great Britain in 1860 and kicked off the manufacturing of pet food.
Learn about it and the processed pet food industry in this entertaining and eye-opening video by Dr. Karen Becker.
A Short Story About the History of Pet Food
Think about food
Yankee, a good sport
You want your dog to have a nice quality of life. Nutrition is as important for your dogs as it is for you and me.
If you plan to keep feeding your dog kibble, then be sure to fortify the meals with the foods listed above.
Be aware of the differences between the best raw foods and the brands using processed foods that you see on the grocery store and pet food store shelves.
The bottom line is this: the more nutritious the meal then the happier and healthier your dog will be.
