“It was very evident to us as we were watching how our own diet was changing as we moved over to more organic that there was a need to do the same for pets,” says Pastor, 30.
As a result the pair began whipping up all-organic dog treats using human-grade ingredients and selling them under The Doghouse Kitchen label.
“For us it started as ‘let’s bake something for our dog,’” Pastor explains. “Then it evolved into ‘let’s put them into a bag and see what happens.’”
The Doghouse Kitchen is currently on a manufacturing hiatus as Pastor and Krapf search for additional investment capital. However, their mission to upgrade the diet of their own dog Baxter, an 11-year-old golden retriever mix, hasn’t ceased.
“Right now we’re doing kibble and raw meat and bones,” Pastor says of Baxter’s cuisine. “He seems to really like that. I like integrating the chicken necks and other raw meats into his diet. We put fish oil on his food. Last night we had grilled asparagus and some of that went into his bowl.”
This growing trend of buying high quality pet foods is easy to spot at natural food stores and pet boutiques, like Planet Dog and Fetch.
“People are becoming more aware of their diet and their animals’ diet,” says Ken Hahn, the store manager at Planet Dog in Portland, which stocks a wide selection of kibble, canned foods, freeze dried foods and raw foods. “There are better choices to be made. You can live off Fruit Loops for a certain amount of time, but after awhile that will affect your health.”
The same goes for dog food.
A number of pet food brands, such as Solid Gold, Wysong, Wellness and Blue Buffalo, use whole food ingredients and steer clear of sketchy meat byproducts, nutritionally devoid fillers and chemical additives (all staples of mass-marketed pet foods). While none of these brands is certified organic (look for Newman’s Own if you want all organic), some offer organic ingredients and Hahn says all follow strict policies about souring meat and vegetables.
You get what you pay for
These super premium natural brands stand in stark contrast to commercial pet foods, many of which were recently recalled because they contained the deadly industrial chemical melamine. These same pet foods often serve up a range of questionable items, including rendered cats and dogs, diseased meat, pesticide residues, poultry feathers, factory-floor sweepings, antibiotics and moldy grains.
“What they often do in pet foods is use cast-offs of the human food industry,” explains veterinarian Ruth Dalto, who runs Holistic Healing for Animals in Yarmouth. “Generally, anything you can get in the grocery store is not good. Pet stores and feed stores will have a mix (of natural and commercial brands).”
Dalto recommends that her clients subscribe to “Whole Dog Journal,” which prints annual buying guides of the least processed and most natural brands. She says pet owners should pay close attention to the first four or five ingredients listed on the package, as these constitute the bulk of the food. Ideally these ingredients should be whole meat (not meat byproducts) and whole vegetables or grains.
For her own four dogs, Dalto serves a raw diet, using the Bravo brand frozen meat. Of course, buying raw foods or natural kibble will cost you more.
“It’s going to be more expensive,” Dalto says, “because you’re getting more meat.”
Mixing it up, going raw
Hahn, 36, at Planet Dog also feeds his two dogs a raw food diet. He says he aims for variety, using Bravo meats, Honest Kitchen freeze-dried mixes, tripe, yogurt, fish oil supplements and large slabs of beef he cuts down into one pound portions.
“There’s a very popular myth that you should never change your dog’s diet,” Hahn says. “I just think that’s bad advice. Dogs need variety just like people do. But not every food works well for every dog.”
Dalto agrees and also challenges the long-held belief that table scraps are bad for pets.
“Most of what we eat is safe for dogs,” Dalto says. “You want to avoid onions. That’s the big one. Grapes and raisins too. Too much high fat food can cause diarrhea or pancreatitis. In my opinion, the animal that’s getting some table scraps is getting better quality food. Remember all dry food is a processed food.”
For those who want to give a raw food diet a try, Dalto says “It’s not as hard as we’re often led to believe as far as getting vitamins and minerals. But it’s good to read a few books. There are a lot of recipes and resources out there.”
Back on Munjoy Hill, Pastor and Krapf plan to continue feeding Baxter organic food from the dinner table, paired with natural dry food and raw meats.
“I don’t think anyone can argue against eating organic if price isn’t an issue,” Pastor says. “If price is an issue, you’re forced into lower quality foods. If given a choice, why would you give this animal you love anything less?”