Frequently asked questions about the BARF diet

The BARF diet, i.e. raw natural food, has a long list of health benefits for dogs and cats, achieving optimal nutrition and development. Let’s see what benefits it has:

Increased hydration: since it is raw food, the animal is going to receive more liquids from the food, making the kidneys and liver make less effort to process the food, facing less toxins than with denatured dry food.

Improves digestion: with dry food, the body has to rehydrate the food in order to process it, making digestions longer and heavier. Whereas with BARF foods, digestion is easier and shorter, and nutrients are more easily obtained.

Improves oral health: Natural food helps the animal to have less bacterial plaque and avoids bad breath problems. By including meaty bones in the animal’s diet, you will help to remove much of the tartar from its teeth.

Strengthens the immune system: Since this type of food covers all the animal’s needs in terms of vitamins, minerals and fatty acids, the immune system is normalized and strengthened. This also helps to reduce the occurrence of inflammatory diseases and to improve the response to infections, as well as to prevent arthritis.

Reduces obesity: Natural food does not contain refined carbohydrates, so it can help lose weight and prevent animal obesity, minimizing the occurrence of diseases such as diabetes or irritable bowel disease.

More energy: With a metabolic boost like this diet, your pets will have more energy and vitality, essentially coming from animal protein.

Get ready to run after your dog, with this diet, you won’t be able to catch up!

If you want to switch from feeding your dog the BARF diet, we bring you the steps to follow. However, before you start, there is something you should keep in mind:

Every dog is different, and feeding needs are going to vary from animal to animal, you know your dog better than anyone else, his tastes, demands and special requirements. Don’t go crazy and listen to your pet.

That said, here are the 4 steps to change:

• STEP 1: 24h fasting (optional).

This step is optional, as it is only recommended for adult dogs without health problems. That is to say, we should not fast puppies, sick or elderly dogs.

This 24-hour fast will serve to cleanse the dog’s stomach of ultra-processed food, eliminating certain toxins from the animal’s organism. In addition, keeping the animal without food for a day will make him hungry and he will face his new food with more appetite and desire.

• STEP 2: Transition diet (1-2 weeks)

To start this second stage, we are going to start slowly, giving him easily digestible proteins, such as chicken or turkey, combined with soft diet foods, such as cooked carrot or pumpkin. The proportion in which we are going to give these foods is going to be 80% animal protein and 20% cooked soft diet vegetables.

Also, we are going to give these foods in smaller intakes and spread over time, so that the animal’s body gets used to this type of food in the most gentle and progressive way possible. So it would be advisable to make about 3 or 4 smaller daily intakes than what we would usually give him.

• STEP 3: Complete menus (2-3 weeks)

Once the dog has become accustomed to this diet, we can gradually introduce more elaborate menus, with other proteins and combined with other vegetables. You can include some with an extra contribution of offal and complements. We recommend our Veal + Chicken Classic Menu.

• STEP 4: Change of menu (2-3 weeks)

Once he has become accustomed to this diet, try changing the menu after 2 or 3 weeks, so that he does not get tired and to provide him with other amino acids and vitamins. For example, our Salmon Menu.

When feeding our pets with the BARF diet we must adapt the amounts we give them to a series of characteristics of the animal: age, weight, activity and additional physical conditions (castrated or in gestation period). So in Naturcanin we have created the table of recommended amounts to help you that you find above.

As for the daily intakes, it will depend on how many times a day your dog is used to eating. That is to say, if your pet usually eats 3 times a day, divide the total daily amount in 3 portions.

The BARF diet is perfectly suitable for senior dogs. The only thing we should pay attention to is the transition to this type of food, which should be progressive, and using easily digestible protein such as chicken or turkey.

We would begin the process by introducing raw BARF food as a reward and alternating the days. In this way, little by little we will be able to replace one feeding of his current food with a BARF feeding. The last thing we will incorporate into their diet is offal, as it can be too fatty and could destabilize your pet’s digestive system. However, once the animal has become accustomed to this diet and the transition is complete, their menus should contain a percentage of offal to make it a balanced and nutritious diet.

In the case of elderly dogs that have always been fed on processed feed, we recommend adding probiotics during the transition period to reinforce the animal’s intestinal flora, so that its organism is strong enough to accept the change of diet.

BARF foods do not need to be cooked, they are consumed raw. In fact, this is the basis of this diet, thanks to which the greatest number of benefits can be extracted.

Raw food, as it has not been exposed to high temperatures, preserves vitamins, proteins, essential amino acids and antioxidants, making it easier for the animal’s organism to acquire them.

To give Naturcanin menus to your dog you only have to let it thaw, leaving it in the fridge for a day. Take it out of the fridge half an hour before consumption so that it is at room temperature, and that’s it! Your pet will leave the dish clean.

Naturcanin’s raw products always come frozen, in a clean and quality packaging, without risk of freezer burn. In addition, you can have two different convenient formats of BARF menus: 500gr or 1000gr.

Regarding the conservation of  Naturcanin products, you should put them in the freezer until the day before consumption. And, once defrosted, keep it in the refrigerator for a maximum of approximately 2 days (depending on the temperature of the refrigerator). The treatment will be the same as for any minced meat product: keep it covered in the refrigerator so that it does not dry out and does not absorb odors from other products.

NO. You should never mix in the same feeding the two types of food (feed and BARF), since the digestion of each type of food is very different and you can cause digestive problems to your pet.

What you can do is to alternate feed and BARF feedings throughout the day. In fact, this is especially recommended when making the transition from a feed-based diet to the BARF diet. Simply, you will have to calculate well the intakes of each food, and it will be very simple: if your dog has to eat daily 2% of his body weight of BARF products, you will have to give him 1% in a morning intake, for example, and with the feed, if you are recommended 200g per day, you will have to give him 100g in the evening intake.

We must think that the dog and the wolf share 99.8% of their genetics and, since their biology is practically identical, so is their digestive system, saving some differences, such as the ability to target starches. So, with this in mind, we must offer our pet an evolutionary appropriate diet, remembering that our animals have been eating raw foods for centuries.

With processed foods such as feed we move away from the needs dictated by our dog’s nature, providing him with an excess of carbohydrates, low quality proteins, lack of essential oils and, above all, lack of moisture. This has very negative repercussions on the health of our animal: premature aging of the organs due to overexertion, obesity, bone loss, dehydration, kidney problems and various diseases.

That is why we provide raw food such as BARF dog food, with balanced proteins, minerals and vitamins for optimal digestion and health. Meat contains a number of properties such as vitamins, enzymes and antioxidants, which are destroyed by exposure to high temperatures, i.e. cooking. When these digestive enzymes in meat are destroyed, our pet’s organs must use more resources and energy to digest the food.

To answer this question we must remember that the digestive system of dogs and humans is not the same. Therefore, the fact that we can be intoxicated by the consumption of raw meat does not mean that our dog can too.

Dogs are carnivorous animals, and for hundreds of years they have been hunting their prey and eating them raw, so their organism and digestive system are perfectly prepared to deal with raw meat and bones of other animals.

In addition, you should keep in mind that Naturcanin products, and all the ingredients that compose them, pass rigorous quality controls. And these ingredients have the same origin as what you can use for your food.

Perfectly. The BARF diet is a healthy diet for dogs and cats, regardless of whether it is sterilized or not, as it provides all the nutrients and vitamins that your body needs for proper functioning.

The only thing you should take into account if your pet is sterilized is the amount of BARF food that you give him in each feeding, since, generally, sterilized dogs and cats tend to have less physical activity. So, if this is the case of your dog, and it has a low level of activity, you should calculate the amounts based on the age, weight and activity level of the animal. You can calculate their ration here.

Absolutely yes. Besides, this is usually the healthiest way to do it. When we stop the feed and switch to this natural diet, we are reducing a considerable part of the carbohydrates, which are the main cause of overweight in dogs and cats.

To achieve a healthy weight loss, you should calculate the intake with the ideal weight of your pet (not with the current one). So, let’s say that, for example, if your dog is a Maltese poodle, his ideal weight will be between 3 and 4kg, but he currently weighs 6kg, so you should calculate with the 3 or 4kg. This way you will be giving him the amount that his body needs, no more and no less.

In addition, we should start with low fat meats, such as turkey or rabbit, until the dog reaches its perfect weight. Afterwards, you will be able to vary and introduce all kinds of meats and BARF products, since the animal will maintain its weight, achieving better activity levels and more energy and vitality.

If you follow the indications and give your pet a varied BARF diet, switching between different types of menus that contain a variety of vegetables, proteins, viscera and meaty bones, such as Naturcanin menus, you will cover all the needs of your pet, without food deficiencies of any kind.

However, you can give him supplements if you want to enrich his diet even more, or in case your pet has any specific problem. For example, in case your dog has had the need to take antibiotics for a while, he will need a little help to regenerate the intestinal flora and, in this case, it would be advisable to add a probiotic. In any case, consult your veterinarian, they will tell you how to proceed.

In Naturcanin we recommend two supplements that will achieve an iron health for your pet:

• Salmon oil. It is a great source of Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids. It has a high mineral content, so it is beneficial during gestation for the mental development of fetuses. It also provides energy and strength, ideal for weak, sick dogs and puppies. It regulates cholesterol, reduces triglycerides and blood pressure, thus reducing cardiovascular risks. And it helps regulate the immune system.
• Green tripe. Which is what is known as a superfood, with a high content of digestive enzymes and probiotics, is rich in vitamin B and essential fatty acids, and has a perfect percentage of calcium and phosphorus. And your dog will love it too.