Tuffdogs Stuff have just launched our own branded dog food!
You might ask why? Well, there is a simple answer really....... because we had the opportunity to do so and we believe in the product.
We know that the question of 'what is best to feed my dog?' is a very divisive question. It is bound to be. There are so many different varieties of dog food, so many different ways of producing it, so many different opinions on what is 'good' and what 'isn't good'. It is very, very difficult to know what to do.
The science behind dog food has moved on enormously in recent years, there is a much better understanding of what is generally regarded as 'good' for your dog and what 'isn't good'. The whole business is huge, worth millions of pounds every year to the food manufacturers, and the general public has much more information available to them, which is good, but can be very confusing when there is a lot of conflicting information.
There has been a huge amount of research done on dog food in recent years, I won't go into that here, but there is lot of info on the net, I like to use All About Dog Food for getting good independent information and reviews. There is a general trend towards RAW feeding at the moment and I must admit that we have been very tempted to feed Luca & Cocoa RAW, I don't know if it is the best way to feed a dog or not but there are a lot of people who swear by it. However, it just isn't practical for us, we don't have enough freezer space to keep the amounts we would need to prevent us from having to buy it on a very regular basis. We spend a huge amount of time travelling, that would make it very difficult, we camp a lot when doing events, it would just be really, really difficult. I have also seen dogs that are being fed RAW that it just doesn't suit, our Bulldog Spike would not be able to tolerate RAW, he would continually have diarrhoea.
Based on research we know that most grains are just fillers, they are cheap ingredients that bulk up food, used frequently in low end foods and by some of the high street brands to keep cost down, profit high. Of course some dog food manufacturers will make it clear that their food have grains in it as it means they can keep the cost down for the consumer, but generally grains have no purpose in a dogs diet. There is also plenty of info on the additives often used in dog foods, especially preservatives, again I am not going to go into detail, just check on the internet for yourselves, but they are potentially very dangerous for your dog.
So we have been feeding our dogs grain free food for the last 2 years, not always the same brand, due to our moving locations. Most of the time we have been feeding 80/20/0, that is 80% meat, 20% veg, 0% additives. A good quality 80/20/0 kibble (dry food) is a good alternative to RAW feeding. Spike has been fed on kibble all his life, he is 13 this year, that is 3-5 yrs longer than the average Bulldog lives, so I am happy that a good quality kibble is a perfectly good dog food.
80/20/0 can be pretty expensive, Luca eats about 500g a day on his own, and some 80/20/0 brands he has had to have as much as 800g a day to maintain weight, that can work out very expensive.
For me, dog food is a personal thing, primarily it has to be healthy for your dog, and your dog likes it, but it also has to right for your circumstances, it has to be cost effective, not all of us can afford the very best food. I know people will say you shouldn't have a dog if you can't give them the best food but that is rubbish to be quite frank, but there is no reason why you can't give them the best you can afford.
Our dogs have been eating our own brand food for the last 4 months, these are its qualities.
- It is a mid range price, not the cheapest, not the most expensive.
- It has a high meat content, a minimum of 26% real fresh prepared meat (not derivatives) and in total a minimum of 50% meat.
- It is grain free, no fillers, just quality ingredients.
- It has no artificial colours or preservatives.
- It is hypoallergenic.
- It is made in the UK.
This is what we have noticed.
- Their stools are solid and the right colour.
- Their coats are shiny.
- No hyperactivity.
- Energy levels are very good.
- No smelly breath, which some kibbles can give.
So, in conclusion, we are selling our own branded food because we believe in it, it is not the best and we wouldn't claim it to be the best, but it is a good quality food and it is at a good price, for those that think we are making a lot of profit on it, you are wrong, we are not, we just want to offer a good food at a good price, maybe taking some customers away from the high street brands which are often not good quality and still at a premium price.
We are offering free samples to anyone who wants to give it a go. It comes in some great flavours and I'm sure we have one to suit your dog. We also have a puppy version with added ingredients.
All can be found here - Tuffdogs Stuff Grain Free Dog Food
Just send us an email at lee@tuffdogsstuff.co.uk for a free sample.
