New Food for The D Boys.

[CorgiMum]

Thanks so much Laurie (2CrazyCorgis) for helping me with info about this great dog food.

http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/

The boys LOVE IT!

They have only been eating it for a few days, but as much as they liked mealtime before, they like it even more now.

I've never considered feeding raw, so I do think that this is the next best thing to be feeding my dogs. We are still adding a wee bit of their kibble during the transition, and upping the veg & fruit amounts in their daily intake.

I've chosen to start them off with the Keen, alternating with the Preference. With that I am adding cooked chicken, turkey or beef.

Shall I mention one of our favourite topics...dog poop. They are more regular, the formed shape is consistent & the size indicating that the intake is being moved through and keeping things inside clean.

At first I thought that the prices for the food was high, but considering the amount that they dogs will have per meal, I now don 't think that it is.

So far we have:

1. Dogs that are REALLY enjoying this food.
2. Good poop.

I will be looking for weight maintenance (lower for Danny) & changes in their coats etc as time goes on.

Dylan & Danny say, "Thanks for the recommendation Auntie Laurie!".:SMILE:

[dcole]

Thank you for supporting a local (San Diego) business, Barbara. :SMILE:

I tried out some samples of The Honest Kitchen back when Trevor was just a little guy. He actually didn't care for it but then I think I mixed the food too "soupy". The texture was very weird. I bet it would work great as a food topper, though. May give it another try one of these days.

If you ever want another option for dehydrated raw food, I sometimes give this to the kittys as a special treat:

http://www.stellaandchewys.com/index.php

I haven't tried the dog version but it looks pretty good. The cat version is actually one of the very few foods I've found that doesn't have fruits, vegetables or herbs in it - all stuff that they don't need.

[mtoy]

I bought some a while back and the dogs loved it. We didn't stick with it as it's more expensive than our already pretty pricey food and the other family members (yes, the guys) don't like mixing it up. I think it's pretty healthy stuff.

[Kelownacorgis]

Barbara

Just a query
Does St John Ambulance let you do Pet Visits when your dog(s) are on a raw food diet?
Our Pet Visiting Society here does not let you get certified if your dog is on raw food diet

[CorgiMum]

I don't know Sue, I've never checked into that since I've never fed raw. I could see that it might be an issue though.

[2CrazyCorgis]

That is a controversial issue. The Honest Kitchen is not an approved food for Delta Society dogs. Here is their response to the Delta Society, and DS responses back.
http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/2010/09/16/delta-societys-new-pet-food-policy-and-how-it-pertains-to-non-typical-foods-like-the-honest-kitchen/

Barbara if you are concerned about it or if it is prohibited by the organization that Dylan and Danny are certified through, you could just stick to the Preference along with cooked meat. For those of you not familiar with HK, Preference is an all vegetarian base diet where you add your own protein, cooked or raw. That is what Bella and Rudy mostly eat, I add raw meat now but when I started them on it I added only cooked meat. I had to ease into the raw thing!

I'm glad the D boys are liking the new food! Another similar food that we also use occasionally is NRG. It is made in Canada and is dehydrated, but not technically a raw food since it is cooked at a low temperature before dehydrating. They have a distributor in Washington that I can order from but I have not found it in any stores. nrgdogproducts.com is where I order it, but I don't know where you buy it in Canada.

[CorgiMum]

Would you please tell me again the quantities of each of he two foods that you are feeding Bella & Rudy. And their weight if you don't mind.

[2CrazyCorgis]

Sure, they get a heaping 1/3 cup of HK plus about 1/2 cup of meat twice a day. At dinner they also get some kind of extra - some of what we are having for dinner or a spoonful of Merrick or Tiki Dog canned food. At breakfast they get a spoonful of plain lowfat yogurt.
Bella weighs about 25 pounds, Rudy is about 32 pounds.

[CorgiMum]

Thanks, I was over feeding, will go with a bit less. Dylan is 32lb & Danny is 35.

So they both get the same amount then.

[Betsie]

I've used the stella and cheweys "food" as training treats. it's a little less expensive than the treats. It breaks up easily and of course Connor loves it.

[dcole]

I've used the stella and cheweys "food" as training treats. it's a little less expensive than the treats. It breaks up easily and of course Connor loves it.

The cats love it - only if it's rehydrated, though.

[Dillydoodle]

Reviving this thread a bit.. I have been toying with the idea of trying HK.. and the last order i made from Clean run, i saw they had a small sample size, so i bought two varieites.. I got the embark (turkey) and Force (chicken) .

I have been having trouble in the last 5 months with food for my guys as i tried to switch them to Orijen.. with not good results.. Both had soft poops and clearly they were not digesting the product properly.. especially Gus who had slimy soft poops while on the product. Much disappointment from me since i wanted them to do well on that food. Anyway, i ended up back on a three part mix of different fromms foods and they straightened out a bit.

I love the fromms but i wanted to try the Honest kitchen. I mixed up the Embark variety...and added in their yogurt and pumpkin ( as normal) and their salmon oil and cranberry capsule . and put in a bit of their kibble mix.. and they were very surprised to see something so different looking in their bowls.. Dillon immediately started eating it.. and decided it was AWESOME! Gus sniffed once , took one tentative lick, realized it was great and ate every drop and spent 10 minutes licking their bowls beyond clean! They really liked it. Since then, i have been giving them some honest kitchen for their evening meal (mixed with kibble) and giving their usual kibble with pumpkin yogurt and wellness lamb for breakfast.

The best part was that there were no problems with digestion.. their poops are good!! woo hoo!!!

They liked the Embark ..but when i tried the Force.. they were wild for it! So today i went out and got a box of Force for the boys.

It isn't the prettiest looking food ( in my opinion) but they LOVE it.. and I feel good about feeding it!

[dcole]

Hmmm... two more puppers that like HK. I really think it must have been the way I mixed it - way to watery. That, and the fact the Trevor, unlike many other Corgis, does NOT like veggies! :SHOCKED:

Anyway, to Emilie, Barbara and others who feed HK, how long do you let it rehydrate before serving and what is the texture? Like stew? Or more solid?
(like papier mache, lol.) I'm not 100% sold on Trev's current food (just switched to Orijen Senior formula - less fat and more fiber) but I just may give HK another try.

[2CrazyCorgis]

We've been feeding Honest Kitchen for about 5 years now. I mainly use the Preference and add my own protein, but we also use the others occasionally too. I like being able to vary the protein they get. I rehydrate it for about 10-15 minutes to the consistency of runny oatmeal. I like to add a little more water to Bella's since I don't think she drinks enough water.

[Dillydoodle]

i let it sit for at least 5 minutes (up to 10 minutes, if the boys can wait- which is not often) . for a half cup of the dry HK, i add about half cup water.. and i can always add more after a few minutes if it ends up pastey and mix again - tonight it was 1/2 cup dry and 3/4 cup water and it sat for 8 minutes.. but usually it is the consistancy of mushy baby food. or maybe like yogurt.. soft but not liiquidy.

I am using one with the protein in it.. (Force- chicken and i also tried Embark-Turkey). I also use warm water as it seems to rehydrate better.. The boys really do like it.. depsite it looking kind of gross.

[dcole]

Thanks guys. Next time I go to the pet deli I'll pick up some HK samples. I will try the ones with protein added - at least at first. Don't know if I'll switch him over completely but it will be good to have options. :SMILE: