The Love Pup - An Introduction

My wonderful puppy woke me up this morning to go potty, and I can't get back to sleep.  I'd love to, but it's not happening.  Why? Because my brain gets too busy thinking about the fact that "balled" and "bald" are pronounced the same way, and that I ALWAYS say "wing'ed" if I'm going to say it at all.  Then I take a little tour of my body and figure out where anything is in an awkward position, and if I've unnecessarily tensed any muscles, correcting these things.  I don't know why I have this affliction, but it means I don't fall asleep easily, and that I don't get to catch up from being out too late.  But I do think of fun things I can tell you about!

Since you already know I love organic/natural/super good stuff, you could naturally draw the conclusion that this must certainly extend to my pets.  They're a part of the family, and keeping them in good health is extremely important.  The first step, as it is with people, is nutrition.  Dogs are hunters, and eat meat.  They don't eat corn, or potatoes.  Wild dogs don't, anyway.  And though the domestic canine has come a long way, their digestive system is basically the same.  So Hazel gets to eat fantastically high protein food.  I buy two brands, different varieties and rotate them.  Come on, you'd get bored eating the same thing for your whole life too!

The first is Evo. They have several different flavors and sizes of food.  Hazel gets the small bites, though she would probably be ok with the larger kibble.  Currently she's on red meat, and there is a white meat variety as well.

Note: One of the pet store guys told me that white meat is one of the culprits in dogs having tear stains.  Sounds odd, right?  I'll let you know if I see a difference.

Now Natura, the company that makes Evo, uses ingredients that I would put in my own body.  Their ingredients are grown DOMESTICALLY.  Remember all those pet food recalls?  They weren't involved.  Read up on their philosophy and such.  I think you'll give them your approval.

Next up is Orijen.  They, too, use locally grown produce.  The only difference is that they are based in Alberta, Canada, instead of the states.  Orijen isn't so concerned with having different flavors.  They have puppy formulas for large and small dogs, an adult formula, and one for senior dogs.  Theirs includes fresh caught salmon (yay Canada!), at the same incredible quality.  Seriously people, if the zombie apocalypse happens, you could totally live on this stuff.



Now, you get what you pay for. This food is a little on the pricier side, but I say TOTALLY worth it. A 5 or 6 lb bag is almost $20.  But since my dog is only 4.5 lbs, it takes her several months to eat that much food.  I say, if you can afford it, do it.  You'll see a difference in your dogs health, that might save you money and grief in the end!  Plus, the high protein and good fat in it is wonderful for their coats. I can't tell you how many times someone has pet Hazel, and said "oh my gosh, she's so soft!"  They ask me what kind of shampoo I use, but it's all in the food. 

Here she is, Hazel, the Love Pup.