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Walk into your local pet store, and you’ll probably see a lot of grain-free dog food. But what does that mean, and why is grain-free dog food better? In reality, the term “grain free” does not automatically make the food better than the next product. But many foods that contain grains use them as filler, meaning that the overall nutritional content of the food can be sacrificed. In addition, this filler can sometimes be made from a variety of ingredients, making it much harder to determine what could be causing a dog’s food sensitivities. Buy Grain Free Dog Food Here :) And, finally, some of these grain-containing foods can lead to weight gain in your pet. We’re sure you’ve noticed the increase in overweight dogs that America has experienced in recent years. Extra weight often leads to extra health issues for our four-legged friends. Add all of these issues together, and you have a good reason to try to find a healthier alternative when it comes to dinnertime. However, as we said, “grain free dog food” isn’t the only thing you need to look at when considering new food for your pet. What you really need to examine is the overall nutritional content of the food. You want a clean recipe — the fewer ingredients the better as long as they are top-quality and high in a single-source protein. People like to say “you are what you eat.” The same is true for your pet. As pet owners, our goal is to find a healthy, delicious alternative to help keep the pounds off and the food sensitivities away.

Studies have shown that food allergies overall are the third most common type of feline allergy. Symptoms include Itchy, irritated skin and up to 15 percent of affected cats also exhibit gastrointestinal signs, such as vomiting and diarrhea. Food allergy symptoms include persistent scratching, skin lesions and hair loss which develop over a period of time. The cat’s immune system gradually mounts a defense against protein and carbohydrate that are present in most cat foods. Since protein is essential for cat’s, a novel diet must contain protein, but it should be derived from a source which a cat has not been previously exposed to, such as venison, guineafowl or kangaroo. For carbohydrates, popular wheat, barley, and corn should be excluded from a novel or limited ingredient diet as chances are your cat has already been overexposed to them. No two cats are alike and as a result, one cat might do well on novel protein like kangaroo cat food and another on duck or venison limited ingredient cat food. The key to food allergies is finding a novel protein and carbohydrate and patiently testing.

Our dogs have a lot in common with us, including being susceptible to food sensitivities and skin issues. Unfortunately, it generally takes more effort to find a solution for our four-legged friends’ problems than for our own. Pets can’t just tell us if they feel better on one food or another, and the dietary options that work with a dog’s digestive system are limited. Novel proteins and limited ingredient diets are great solutions for dogs. One protein to try is kangaroo dog food. Why kangaroo for dogs? There are a number of reasons: Since kangaroo is generally not consumed here in the USA, your dog probably hasn’t built up an intolerance to it. Novel proteins tend to work well with dogs with sensitive stomachs. While many dogs have sensitivities to the more common meats, it’s still best for your dog’s overall health if his or her food is high in protein. That generally means a meat-based diet as opposed to a vegetarian one. Kangaroo meat is high in protein, but it’s low in fat. A win-win combination! Looking for a food that boosts the immune system and serves as an anti-inflammatory agent? You need a food that contains Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) — and, of course, kangaroo meat has it. In fact, kangaroo meat has some of the highest CLA content of any animal. Even people benefit from CLA, but we tend to take a dietary supplement to get it. However, CLAs are readily available in kangaroo meat, helping keep your dog happier and healthier! So, now that you understand more about the benefits of kangaroo meat, what are you waiting for? Hop to it. Your dogs will love the taste, and you’ll love the difference in your dogs once they start eating this limited ingredient diet with the novel protein of kangaroo. For many dogs, upset stomachs and skin issues improve or disappear when their owners make the switch to kangaroo!

You may have heard the term "Free Feeding". Basically, this means you drop a food bowl and your dog eats throughout the day. Now Free Feeding to me is a term that does not make sense at all from a dog’s perspective. Did the wild dog hunt and occasionally nibble on his prey throughout the day, or if you tossed some freshly roasted turkey in your dog’s bowl, do you think he would eat it gradually throughout the day? No Way! Most so-called Free Feeding dogs, in my opinion, are simply telling you that they’re not extremely fond of their food and when they’re really hungry enough they will finally eat it. How to Tell if Your Dog Likes Free Feeding or Is Just Finicky? Here’s a simple test if you have a Free Feeding or finicky dog. Pick up a high-quality wet food and set up two bowls. One bowl will have your dog’s regular food and the second bowl will have the wet food. If your dog eats all the new wet food immediately, then you have identified that your dog is not really a Free Feeder. WATCH: Wet Food vs. Dog Food Challenge  Here’s another tip if your dog is a Free Feeder. Rotate delicious wet food proteins daily so your dog never gets bored!Most dogs, just like their human companions, live to eat, so make mealtime more exciting with something new, novel and delicious. If you’re looking for a new wet food filled with delicious cuts of meat and packed with problem solving ingredients and no junky fillers, try one of our KOHA Limited Ingredient Diet entrees.

There will always be the debate about dogs/cats needing or not needing grains. Like humans we all have different food tolerances and preferences, some animals do well on grain-free foods and some do well on foods with grain. Whether for energy purposes, protein factors, digestive issues, or fillers, grains are used a lot across the pet food industry. These are some things you might or might not know about grains: Dogs and Cats do not fully benefit from the nutrients of grains because their bodies do not fully absorb or extract nutrients from non-meat ingredients. Dogs and Cats have a hard time digesting grains. Dogs and cats do not have the proper enzymes in their saliva to break down plant matter and carbohydrates like an herbivore or omnivore. Grains can be harder for our pets to digest, therefore negatively affecting the efficiency of their digestive tracts and functions. Vegetable carbohydrates like potatoes and peas could be a better choice than grains like corn, wheat, barley, and rice. Grains like whole oats or whole brown rice could also be a better choice and easier on a pet’s digestive tract. Grains are used to bind meats to create different consistencies like kibble, pate, loafs, etc… Grains can also be used as proteins or “fillers”, which can make the consumer feel full faster and longer, while also bringing the cost down for the buyer. Removing grains can improve skin & coat, alleviate certain allergies and digestive problems. Grain free diets usually tend to have higher protein percentages, obviously no grains, but this doesn’t mean low carbohydrates so keep that in mind as well. Grains do have vitamins, nutrients, and minerals but it all depends on the sensitivity of your pet and the cooking process of those grains going into their food. I want to clarify that every animal has a different tolerance, just like humans have a different tolerance for certain foods and ingredients. The bullet points above are meant to summarize the idea, the newest trends, and some simple back to basics information about our pets and their digestive tracts. You might think that you choose what your animal eats, but ultimately the choice of food you continue to buy for your pet obviously revolves around the end results. The “end results” meaning how they react and feel with their diets whether it is grain free or not. Mauri believes in a complete and well balanced diet, while also offering a variety of common and uncommon alternative proteins, like kangaroo. Our formulas are grain, gluten, carrageenan gum, potato free, using pumpkin for digestive support and the cat cans also have added cranberry for urinary support. Try KOHA with your pet and see how they like it…

Pet owners often face the challenges of dealing with a pet that is either experiencing food intolerance or a food allergy. Just like humans, some of our pets have a hard time digesting certain proteins and ingredients, this is known as food intolerance. Food intolerance's may cause vomiting or diarrhea. Food allergies are different than intolerances, they include symptoms like dry-itchy skin, rashes, or even excessive shedding. Finding the solution to these two challenges can be one of the hardest tasks for a pet owner. The journey begins with an unhappy, irritated pet, to unwanted vet visits, or google searches for pet food advice, or maybe even a list of never ending questions for the knowledgeable pet store employee. Either way, pet owners will find that, the typical solution for these issues will be to adjust the pets diet. "But my pet has been eating the same food for years?!" Just like humans, our pets can develop allergies over time. "Woof, woof! I love my chicken!" says my pug, Zulu. "Well I hate to break it to you Zulu, but chicken is not the best option for you anymore." When you are ready to alter your pets diet, you might want to keep these proteins and ingredients on your "Try to avoid" list....Chicken, Beef, Corn, Wheat, Soy, and Dairy Products. Again, just like humans, we are all different and we can all tolerate different proteins and ingredients, but the ingredients listed above are very common allergens in pet foods. "Chicken, corn and wheat? I see those ingredients in a lot of pet foods" In certain occurrences, allergic reactions can be blamed on the constant use of these ingredients. "What types of proteins and ingredients should I be looking for then?" This is when pet owners begin the "elimination diet" or "trial and error diet", which involves getting rid of the foods that include the offending ingredients and introducing the new foods with alternative proteins and ingredients. These alternatives can come in many different forms like: raw, freeze-dried, dehydrated, fresh, homemade, dry food, or canned wet food (like our KOHA SUPER PREMIUM PET FOOD). For example, potatoes and peas are popular alternatives to grains, but KOHA goes even further than that alternative. KOHA is made with pumpkin which for some is considered a healthier alternative than potatoes and peas. Protein makes up most of the ingredient panel in pet foods, so finding an alternative to the typical chicken and beef is going to be the most important factor towards a healthy pet. Alternative proteins like lamb, salmon, venison, rabbit and duck have been very popular in recent years. KOHA decided to go one step further again and introduced even more exotic, novel alternative proteins like KANGAROO, venison and guineafowl. These proteins, just like all others, have different characteristics and benefits. Try the KOHA "WILD KANGAROO with Fresh Blueberries" for your dog or the "WILD Kangaroo" for your cat and see for yourself if the alternative proteins and ingredients help with food intolerance's and allergies. I'm sure everyone will agree that they do not like seeing their pet sick or uncomfortable, so if you are dealing with either food intolerance's or food allergies, try ALTERNATIVE PROTEINS, try ALTERNATIVE INGREDIENTS, or better yet try KOHA SUPER PREMIUM PET FOOD. Please email me any questions alex@nootie.com By Alex Cortes aka "The Hound Dog"

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a disorder in which one or more sections of the gastrointestinal tract have become invaded with inflammatory cells. Over time, this inflammation causes the intestine to become less efficient at absorbing nutrients from digested food and weight loss, vomiting or diarrhea often result. KOHA Pet Food would be a great diet for dogs and cats who may suffer from IBD. KOHA Pet Food is free of Potatoes and Peas, which was replaced with pumpkin. Pumpkin is loaded with fiber and beta-carotene to help resolve issues like diarrhea and even constipation. Many people add pumpkin to their pets food bowls already, but by supplementing it yourself you may run the risk of over using the pumpkin. Pumpkin is converted into Vitamin A, which can be toxic if over supplemented. KOHA Pet Food contains enough pumpkin to keep your loving dogs and purring cats "regular", without having to worry about overdoing it. Try the KANGAROO with FRESH BLUEBERRIES, LAMB with FRESH APPLES, or VENISON with FRESH KIWI, these options have a little less pumpkin and an added fruit for antioxidant benefits. New Zealand Green Lipped Mussel is also an ingredient you will find in every MAURI Pet Food Formula. This special ingredient is an anti-inflammatory agent which will help aid digestive issues and also keep joints healthy.