Feeding
How much do I feed my dog? - click for info
Feeding guidelines for PaleoPet Pure are dependent on the weight, age and activity level of your dog! It goes without saying that overweight dogs need to be fed less daily, while working or very active dogs may need a little more than depicted on a daily basis. Only you know your dog, so use your discretion and remember that this is dog “Super” RAWsome Food!
We have a tendency to overfeed our pets , so you might look at your buddies bowl and think that it is not enough food for them but rather underfeed and increase the quantity as needed,. You don’t want a dog that is a healthy weight getting fat and if they are carrying a few extra pounds you’ll want to adjust their food so they lose that extra padding.
Feeding guidelines for PaleoPet Pure are guidelines only and your individual dog may need more or less than recommended. Your dog’s weight and growth are the best indicators of whether or not you are feeding the correct amount of food.
Click here for Our Feeding Calculator for Dogs
We have a tendency to overfeed our pets , so you might look at your buddies bowl and think that it is not enough food for them but rather underfeed and increase the quantity as needed,. You don’t want a dog that is a healthy weight getting fat and if they are carrying a few extra pounds you’ll want to adjust their food so they lose that extra padding.
Feeding guidelines for PaleoPet Pure are guidelines only and your individual dog may need more or less than recommended. Your dog’s weight and growth are the best indicators of whether or not you are feeding the correct amount of food.
Click here for Our Feeding Calculator for Dogs
A basic breakdown of how much Totally RAWsome food to give. - click for info
Healthy Dogs – Not Exercising excessively (normal daily dog activity)
Young & Moderate Aged: 2% – 4% of ideal bodyweight per day (divided into 1 or 2 meals) Older Aged: 2% – 3% of ideal bodyweight per day (divided into 1 or 2 meals)Very Active Dogs – Working, Running, Agility
4% – 8% of bodyweight per day when actually working or active, add slightly more fat to meals 2% – 4% of bodyweight per day when not active or workingPuppies – Small to Medium Breeds
4% – 8% of bodyweight per day (divided into 3 to 4 small meals)Puppies – Large and Giant Breeds
4% – 8% of bodyweight per day (divided into 3 to 4 meals). It is important to ensure that these puppies grow slowly to ensure that bones and joints form properly and not too rapidlyPregnant Female Dogs
For the first two thirds of pregnancy, 2% – 4% of bodyweight per day (divided into 1 or 2 meals) For the last third of pregnancy increase to 4% – 8% of bodyweight per day (divided into 2 or 3 meals)Lactating Female Dogs
Depending on litter size and the age of the puppies, feed from between 4% and 8% of bodyweight per day (divided into 2 or 3 meals – up to free choice with large litters)How Much do I feed my cat? - click for info
Feeding guidelines for cats of all ages and breeds is dependent on the weight, age and the activity level of your cat! Meaning overweight or couch-loafing creatures may need to be fed less daily, while very active or young cats may need a little more than depicted on a daily basis. Older cats also sometimes require a bit more food than might be expected.
At the end of the day your know your cat best, so use your discretion and remember that this is cat “Super” RAWsome Food! Feeding a cat is often quite intuitive and most cats who eat raw food are unlikely to gain excessive weight even if they eat what seems like a lot of food, therefore the amounts suggested are recommendations only. Cats sometimes prefer smaller, more frequent feeding schedules than dogs. Your cat will drink less water, but please ensure that there is still fresh water available for them at all times.
Click here for Our Feeding Calculator for Cats
At the end of the day your know your cat best, so use your discretion and remember that this is cat “Super” RAWsome Food! Feeding a cat is often quite intuitive and most cats who eat raw food are unlikely to gain excessive weight even if they eat what seems like a lot of food, therefore the amounts suggested are recommendations only. Cats sometimes prefer smaller, more frequent feeding schedules than dogs. Your cat will drink less water, but please ensure that there is still fresh water available for them at all times.
Click here for Our Feeding Calculator for Cats
A basic breakdown of how much Totally RAWsome food to give. - click for info
Healthy Cats – Not exercising excessively (normal daily activity)
Young & Moderate Aged: 2% – 5% of ideal bodyweight per day (divided into 1 or 2 meals)Older Aged: 2% – 4% of ideal bodyweight per day (divided into 1 or 2 meals)
Healthy Cats – Very active
4% – 6% of bodyweight per dayKittens
5% – 8% of bodyweight per day divided into 3 mealsLactating Queens
Depending on litter size and the age of the kittens, feed from between 4% and 8% of bodyweight per day (divided into 2 or 3 meals – up to free choice with large litters) Feeding guidelines for PaleoPet Pure are estimations only and your individual cat may need more or less than recommended. Your cat’s weight and growth are the best determinators of whether or not you are feeding the correct amount of food.How old should my dog be to start eating PaleoPet Pure™? - click for info
You can begin feeding your 8 week old puppy immediately, providing it weighs more than 500 grams. The younger a dog starts eating a natural dog diet, the healthier and happier it will be. Our PaleoPet Pure™ Chicken Meal and 100% Chicken are the ideal foods for a growing dog. Puppies should consume half to two thirds (depending on breed and size) 100% Chicken for adequate calcium and one third complete meal until at least six months of age. We recommend puppy food should always be fresh and never kept in the fridge for more than a day and that it is not mixed with kibble or cooked food. This can slow down the digestion of raw food and may potentially create issues. We do not recommend dogs under 500 grams in weight begin on raw food, only once they have reached this weight can they begin a raw diet.
How do you know that your food is balanced? - click for info
Our food has been tested for it’s nutritional adequacy and totally meets the AAFCO dietary recommendations for dogs. We pay particular attention to the calcium/phosphorous ratio of the foods, most pet foods on the market today are too high in phosphorous which can cause kidney issues over time. Meals which are ‘Complete’ and may be fed every day, are described as such. Products which may not meet this criteria, by being too high in phosphorous or calcium or because they do not contain adequate amounts of certain nutrients, are not labelled ‘Complete’ meals; these are complementary foods that can be fed intermittently and should not form the basis of your dog’s diet (unless you use them to make your own complete food by adding freshly grated fruit and veg).
What is the difference between the Complete Meals and the Complementary 100% Minces? - click for info
Complete Meals are balanced & complete raw meals for dogs, sufficient to deliver everything they naturally need. It is made 80% meat and bone with 20% fresh, raw veggies and fruit and contains Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Phytoplankton based DHA for Omega 3 and Wild Harvested Sea Kelp (Ascophyllum Nosodum).
The Complementary 100% Minces do not contain any supplements, but serve as a replacement for feeding meaty bones.
Puppies should consume half to two thirds Complementary 100% Mince and one third Complete Meal until at least six months of age after which the complete meals should be fed primarily.
Puppies should consume half to two thirds Complementary 100% Mince and one third Complete Meal until at least six months of age after which the complete meals should be fed primarily.
My dog is quite old. Is it ok if I change his diet at this late stage? - click for info
Elderly dogs may need a longer period of transition from dry pet foods to B.A.R.F. Gradually ease the old guy or gal into the new food regime, keeping an eye on them for any real discomfort while he/she detoxes. If you want to make the change, try starting off with a 90/10 ratio split of old food to new food, over a week gradually decrease the amount of old food as you increase the amount of Totally RAWsome PaleoPet Pure™.
My dog has been on a B.A.R.F diet for about a week and has a runny tummy. Should I be concerned? - click for info
Some breeds that have been fed dry food for an extended period of time may have a “detox” period which results in a runny tummy for 2-3 days. This is totally normal and is an indication that the intestine and gastro enzymes are readjusting to the Totally RAWsome diet. It is also the body’s way of ridding itself of any gunky intestinal lining that may be present from the dog’s current diet. The runny tummy should clear up after a couple of days. However, should it persist for longer, please contact us for further assistance.
Why doesn’t my dog seem to like the PaleoPet Pure™ food I put down for him? - click for info
Some dogs are simply fussy eaters and will take a little longer to transition from their diet of “Junk food” to healthy food. However, a hungry dog will eat PaleoPet Pure™ without hesitation! If your dog turns their nose up at first, simply remove the food for an hour and try again. Keep repeating hourly until they are hungry enough to eat. More often than not, dogs fed dry food are overfed and it may take some time for them to feel real hunger. A day or two at the most of not eating will not harm your dog, so don’t worry they wont starve. Persevere, it’s totally worth it!
My vet has told me not to feed B.A.R.F as my dog may get salmonella poisoning if they eat raw meat. Is this true? - click for info
While a valid concern, PaleoPet Pure™ is made from human grade meat and vegetable ingredients and is produced according to the highest standards of food preparation. All the offal, meat and carcass used is handled with great care, prepared and frozen with this particular threat in mind. In the 15 years of feeding our dogs B.A.R.F, we have never had a dog suffer from Salmonella poisoning. We also regularly send our food for testing to ensure it is free from this bacteria. Our test results are available on request. Dogs have a stomach pH of 2, this is extremely acidic and it is highly unlikely that Salmonella or even e-coli will survive in a dog’s digestive system. The Salmonella testing is really done to ease the pet owner’s mind and prevent any occurences of human infection. Research has indicated that some dry foods are much higher in certain more dangerous bacteria than raw food is.
My vet has told me that feeding dogs bones is dangerous. Is this true? - click for info
The simple answer is no – as long as the bones are fed to the dog raw and they are too big to swallow whole (if they come from a cow, game animal, sheep or other large mammal). The rule of thumb is that the bone should be larger than the length of the muzzle of the dog. Whole bones that have been swallowed can lead to blockages, perforation of the stomach or colon and ultimately death. Hard bones are good for teeth cleaning and recreation. You should monitor your dog while they eat them, chicken bone is considered soft bone and is a totally different story. A good starter bone for small and medium breeds is chicken neck. We cannot stress how important it is that your dog is NEVER fed cooked bones, raw bone on the other hand is a necessary component of a healthy dog’s diet. If you have a dog that suffers from Pica or you know that they cannot digest raw bone, then please do not feed your dog bones.
Can I mix dry pellets/kibble and raw dog food? - click for info
Reasons to mix a dry kibble and raw diet may include time constraints (dry kibble is made to be easy) or budget constraints (quality raw dog food diets costs a little more). You can follow a half dry kibble and half raw food diet BUT JUST NOT IN THE SAME MEAL. A complete raw food diet is better but dry kibble can be included for the above reasons.
Feed the dry kibble in the morning and the raw diet in the evening at least 10 hours apart. This will help prevent any digestive problems and at least introduces an improvement in nutrition by feeding half raw over a dry kibble diet only. If your dogs gain too much weight, reduce the kibble. It is very calorie dense and full of carbs which dogs don’t usually need much of. Even the ‘good’ kibble.
How long can I store the food? - click for info
PaleoPet Pure food has a three month shelf life from production and kept in a freezer. Defrosted complete meals can be stored safely in the fridge for three days and 100% minces two days.
Delivery
Where do you deliver to? - click for info
We deliver in the Garden-Route area. We do arrange deliveries via courier to other major towns like OUDTSHOORN, PRINCE ALBERT , but you will need to enquire with us for a quote.
How long does delivery take? - click for info
We typically deliver within 24 hours after receiving proof of payment.
What does delivery cost? - click for info
Do you deliver to work addresses? - click for info
We will gladly deliver to your daytime work address, we would just suggest you have a cooler box or bag handy to store your food in until you get home.
Can I collect? - click for info
Absolutely. All we ask is to organise your collection day and time with us at 072 801 8136 or info@totallyrawsome.co.za