When Flossie first arrived from Cyprus her digestion was shot to pieces. It took around three months to sort it out, with a couple of false starts along the way. But once I’d discovered Nature’s Menu raw dog food, there was no looking back.
The problem
Flossie was born and lived in the wild for several months. She was used to eating what she found. This included scraps of paper and tissue which she is still occasionally partial to. Old habits die hard. So, it’s not surprising that a balanced diet was not available to her. Once she was adopted, her digestive system needed time to catch up.
At first, I fed her a good quality tinned food. This was simply because it had suited my previous dog well. Plus, I had a whole cupboard full of it! However, it was too rich for Flossie and there were several weeks of clearing up too-soft (and worse) poos. It was unpleasant and I was worried that there would be a long-term effect on her overall health, particularly given her poor start in life.
I tried a well-known natural dry food. It was also meant to be calming, which I thought might be suitable as she was an anxious girl. But it made no difference. So, I looked into a raw diet for dogs and decided to give it a go.
Raw food for dogs
Being vegetarian I had previously resisted a raw diet for my dogs even though I knew there were loads of health benefits including better digestion, reduced allergies and a shiny coat. Thinking about it selfishly, I didn’t want to have to deal with raw meat and bones and I certainly didn’t want to prepare it all myself which seemed a complicated business.
Enter Nature’s Menu frozen dog food. I had always used Nature’s Menu treats for my dogs and I knew it was a company with a good reputation. When I discovered they offered ready prepared frozen raw dog food, I investigated further.
The Country Hunter raw nuggets are made from human grade meat, have no artificial colours or preservatives and, combined with various superfoods, are a complete and nutritionally balanced food. It sounded like the food had everything Flossie needed in terms of nutrition, all ready prepared, so no nasty stuff for me to deal with.
Easy to use
Not only did the food sound perfect for Flossie, it was for me too. Because the food is frozen, you just have to thaw it, which I do in a sealed container, and then feed it to your dog. A benefit for me is that it hardly smells and it’s certainly nothing like as pungent as the tinned food I gave her when she first arrived.
It was a success
Once I’d done a gradual transition from the old food to the new, the improvement was astonishing. As all dog owners know, we like to keep a close eye on our dogs’ poos and, when they are not satisfactory, all is not well in our world.
Within a couple of days Flossie’s poos were small, firm, almost odourless and so much easier to pick up. When I first saw the change, I think I might have done a little dance around the garden.
Within a few weeks, she looked so fit and well. People remarked on her white teeth and glossy coat and asked what our secret was.
I recommend this food to anyone who asks. You do need space in your freezer and you do need to remember to take out the right number of nuggets in time for them to thaw for the next meal. You soon get into a routine though, and it’s no trouble. I have a small freezer with four drawers. Flossie gets one drawer for her food and it works out just fine.
Nature’s Menu website
There are nine flavours of Country Hunter frozen nuggets ranging from venison and lamb to duck and grass-fed beef. There are also nuggets suitable for puppies. I tend to buy several different packs so Flossie enjoys a variety. A kilo bag which contains 50 nuggets costs from £4.69. In addition, you can buy frozen raw bones and chews.
The Country Hunter range also includes non-raw pouches and tinned food. These are a good option if you are going on holiday with your dog and there isn’t a freezer available.
The Nature’s Menu website has loads of useful information. It answers any questions you might have about raw feeding. There’s a comprehensive feeding guideline calculator where you can input your dog’s information and the company will advise on which type of food to give and in what quantity. I found the quantity advice generous because I also feed Flossie through other sources including her Lickimat, Kong and treats, so I adjusted it to suit her.
Delivery
Nature’s Menu have a great delivery service which transports the food in specially designed frozen boxes. Deliveries over £29 are free.
I usually buy Flossie’s supply from our local pet store because it is so close to where I live. The last time I went in, they were unusually low on stock and tried to encourage me to buy another brand. I bought the last two bags of Country Hunter nuggets that were in stock and said I’d come back later in the week for the rest.
It would take a lot to persuade me to try Flossie on another food.
Suzy Pope is a certified copywriter and newspaper columnist specialising in pets, business and lifestyle. If you would like help with a writing project, please get in touch.
