AIR DRIED DOG FOOD

By Monday, September 25, 2017 18 No tags Permalink

Air dried dog food by Ziwi Peak ended my arduous journey in search of a species appropriate diet for the Boys …

AIR DRIED DOG FOOD

The last time I wrote about those annoying environmental allergens taking over our lives, I decided to switch to a Raw Fed diet.

In a sense I did (in an air-dried kind of way)…

AIR DRIED DOG FOOD

Dogs are carnivores and they thrive on meat. Their bodies aren’t designed to digest carbohydrates like grains, soy, corn, potatoes, wheat and rice. Source: Ziwi Peak 

Through multiple conversations and a few sleepless nights searching for answers as Harley scratched himself raw –  I learned – the more dogs are exposed to potential allergens like corn, wheat and soy ingredients, the more likely they are going to develop a reaction.

Raw food diets are typically grain-free and gluten-free which significantly reduces the risk for  allergic reactions. Also the high nutritional value of a raw food diet for dogs may also help resolve issues with environmental allergies.

WHY AIR-DRIED DOG FOOD? –

  • My lifestyle is not conducive to a total raw switch at the present time. Still in “house renovation hell”, and the kitchen is going to be the largest project – making it the last on the list.
  • I have no idea where to store large quantities of raw meat. Co-op’s are not close by, the local butcher thinks I’m crazy #gottaeducate and I can’t purchase a freezer without knowing where it will reside permanently.
  • Harley’s leg pits where he licks constantly can’t wait for the renovations. Jaxson will surely loosen something important shaking his head because of his ear issues.

Feeling defeated AND frustrated an angel appeared in the form of a fellow Doodle therapy handler who told me about Ziwi Peak…

AIR DRIED DOG FOOD

Elated – I scoured their website – #twice, watched a short, informative and interesting video…

…then called the company and proceeded to ask numerous questions.

SPECIFICS –

  • 95% is meat, organs, bone, and seafood.
  • The other 5% consists of essential vitamins, minerals natural kelp, parsley, chicory inulin and lecithin.
  • All tier natural ingredients are sourced from the green free range farms and blue pristine oceans of New Zealand.
  • Instead of allergy inducing low cost filler such as grains, corn, potatoes, wheat and rice – they have organs like heart and lung because that’s what dogs eat when they catch their prey in the wild.
  • Green-lipped mussel, a natural source of glucosamine and chondroitin to support long-term joint health.
  • A natural super-food (Green Tripe) assists with gut health and digestion.
  • Kelp

WHERE’S THE BEEF? –

AIR DRIED DOG FOOD

It’s actually in their food LOL 

Beef –

  •  liver
  • kidney
  •  heart
  •  tripe
  •  bone
  •  lung
  • green mussel
  • dried kelp
  • sea salt
  • parsley

WEEK TWO –

No complaints – no issues. Too early to expect the allergy symptoms to disappear but detoxification is working!..

AIR DRIED DOG FOOD -

Hang with us – you’ll crack up on Friday when I tell you about my cross country walk for a little bit of poop!

New Monday, new week, new goals ❤️

18 Comments
  • Shadow and Ducky's Mom
    September 25, 2017

    Hope this food works for the DoodleBoys! Have you discontinued their Honest Kitchen meals altogether?

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 25, 2017

      Yes I did. I decided to do that because of the potatoes and other carbs in there. If these allergies never popped up, I would be perfectly happy staying with THK – but that’s not possible anymore. I still think it’s a great food.

  • Emma
    September 26, 2017

    It must be awful to have such allergies. Mom has had allergies, but not from food. Your food sounds delicious, enjoy and hope it helps.

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 30, 2017

      Your Mom knows the pain and suffering they go through I am sure. I believe we’ve got ourselves on the right regimen now. – We’ll keep you posted.

  • The Daily Pip
    September 26, 2017

    Sounds like a great food. I love that this food contains green-lipped mussel. We have tried that in a supplement and have found it very effective for Ruby’s stiffness.

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 30, 2017

      I was excited for that and the green tripe. Two foods I wasn’t particularly looking forward to touching – ugh… So far so good, they really enjoy it and results are happening slowly which is to be expected. Stay tuned….

  • kim
    September 27, 2017

    My doodle LOVES this food…game changer…Hope it helps with Harley’s allergies 🙂

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 30, 2017

      Hi Kim – did you’re Doodle have allergies? Please let me know….

  • Monika & Sam
    September 28, 2017

    All the best of luck with this new food. I’m intrigued enough to check out their website. Thanks!

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 30, 2017

      Terrific – check it out Monika and let me know what you think. It’s been an exciting watching them shake and scratch less and less each day. Still a long way to go, but I like the progress I’ve seen thus far….

  • Jan K
    September 28, 2017

    This seems like a great alternative to raw! We look forward to hearing more about how it goes, and we’re hoping it works for the boys! I wonder about veggies though – no veggies at all in this?

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 30, 2017

      It is a wonderful alternative to raw Jan. I like everything about it and so far so do the Boys. Parsley and kelp are the only veggies. I haven’t supplemented anything however – their favorite fruits and fresh/raw veggies are given more now as treats. They just finished a bowl of strawberries earlier today!

      • Jan K
        October 2, 2017

        Interesting! I’m going to think about this. While we love the fresh food we’re getting, it’s pretty pricey and I just don’t think we can continue it long term.

  • Carleen
    September 28, 2017

    I’m looking into switching to this. I currently feed Primal freeze dried raw to my dog with cancer because it is one of those rare convenient foods with no grain, potatoes, or starchy veggies like peas and carrots. But it does have a few berries. With cancer I would like a keto food, which means cutting those berries, and this fits the bill. Do you have any idea of how many scoops are in a bag? I can’t figure out from the website how a long a bag will last for me. Also, do you reconstitute yours with water? They say no need to do that, but I would prefer to do so since moisture with food is important to me. Just wondering if it reconstituted well.

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 30, 2017

      Hello Carleen, There are definitely no berries in ZIWI. I used to feed the Boys a dehydrated human food, but there were starches, fruits and veggies in there as well. I too had difficulty determining the scoop amount and that’s when I found out how easily accessible the staff at ZIWI Peak really is. I called and spoke with Heather and she reassured me my calculations (using their scale on the website) was correct. Even after the food arrived, it looked like it wasn’t enough but it is. I would certainly encourage you to give them a call and ask all the questions you have. They’re very patient (trust me). Hope you keep reading about the adventures of Harley & Jaxson and don’t hesitate to contact me should you want to talk – 703-400-3498
      Take care and thanks for reading 🙂

  • Peggy
    September 29, 2017

    I mix our pups Ziwi Peak, lamb, with Zignature. It’s a wee bit pricey (well, sort of a lot pricey) to feed alone. Our boy has a lot of food sensitivities and the mix seems to be working well for him. Fingers crossed and yay! Hope it continues doing well for your pups.

    • Cathy Bennett
      September 29, 2017

      Hi Peggy – I’ve never heard of Zignature before – you’ve got me curious. We will keep our fingers AND paws crossed for your pups as well. Keep in touch and thanks so much for reading, please come back again real soon!

  • Barbara Rivers
    October 3, 2017

    I’m super excited for your boys’ transition over to raw! I’ve fed my guys Ziwipeak before and they did great on it. The only downside to me was their high price point. Then again, quality has its price, right?! And it’s imported from New Zealand after all, so I guess that adds to the price here in the States.