Natural Nutrition

Find the best, most natural diet for your dog

What exactly is "natural nutrition" for a dog? Dry kibble from a bag? Canned wet food? Not exactly. Despite their obvious differences from wolves in the wild, our domestic canine pals are actually identical to them, digestively speaking.

Therefore, to create the most natural diet for dogs, we must take our cue from what wolves eat.

So what do wolves eat, anyway? While the majority of the lupine diet consists of large grazing animals, such as deer, elk, and moose, wolves also eat smaller prey, like mice, rabbits, birds and even fish. They will eat eggs, berries, grasshoppers, earthworms and the scat (feces) of other animals, too.

And when they eat animals, they don't just peel off the skin and eat the choicest cuts of meat. They eat everything except the very largest bones. That includes meat, organs, bones, skin and hair -- and every bit of it is eaten raw. A little gross, perhaps, but true...

Photo by Patrick Bell

To feed your dog as naturally as possible, it helps to think about building a prey animal in his dinner dish. Meat, bones and organs make a great foundation, to which you can add pureed vegetables, (as found in the intestines of prey animals) along with occasional eggs, yogurt (replicating the digestive-assisting bacteria found in scat) and supplements.

If you're uncomfortable with a raw diet, that's ok. We've got recipes for home-cooked foods, as well. And if you're not ready to commit to a homemade diet, that's ok, too. Some companies are now making high quality commercial pet foods that are much better than what was available in years past. We'll help you choose the best possible option for your dog.

Check out the pages listed below to learn more.

• Raw diets
  
  Learn about raw feeding for dogs. Compare various types of raw diets and recipes to help you create the very best meals for your dog.
• Home-cooked diets
  
  Learn all about preparing a home-cooked diet for your dog. Discussions of the best ingredients as well as recipes are featured.
• Commercial foods
  
  Find out about the best available commercially made dog foods here.
• Treats
  
  Find the best commercially made treats, plus recipes for treats you can make yourself.
• Supplements
  
  Learn about supplementation and find out which dietary supplements may benefit your dog.