How to pick the best raw food for your dog

Quick takeaways about picking the best raw dog food

• Raw dog food can bring big benefits like better digestive wellbeing and a healthy coat.
• ‘Complete and balanced’ raw food gives your dog all the nutrients they need.
• Many brands now offer meal plans or subscription services, so you never run out.

 

Raw feeding means giving your dog meals made from 100% raw ingredients. This diet mimics the natural prey and scavenged food that dogs used to eat in the wild.

A raw dog food meal contains raw meat and offal (organs), sometimes vegetables and fruit, as well as extra vitamins and minerals.

Creating balanced raw meals at home can be tricky and time-consuming. Many companies have taken all the guesswork out of it.

You can easily buy raw dog food online, as part of a personalised meal plan or at retailers like Pets At Home.

There are so many raw dog food brands in the UK that it can take time to pick one.

To ensure your pooch's health and happiness, choose a company that uses high-quality ingredients and offers complete and balanced meals. These meals contain all the nutrients needed to sustain your dog.

 

Why choose raw dog food – what are the benefits?

More owners are choosing to feed their dogs raw food. Researchers and our customers have found there are five key benefits to feeding raw:

• Healthy digestion
• Healthy teeth
• Healthy skin
• Shiny coat
• Small, firm poos.

Because raw dog food is minimally processed and free from preservatives, each ingredient keeps its whole nutritional goodness. Raw is also packed with high-quality proteins and fatty acids – key to a dog’s health.

Experts have also noticed that dogs eating raw diets tend to stay healthy and have nicer-smelling breath.

 

How to choose the best raw dog food

Here’s what to consider when picking the ideal raw food for your dog:

 

1. Is the food made from quality ingredients?

Choose a brand that uses whole cuts of responsibly farmed meat and quality fruit, grains and vegetables sourced from trusted farms.

The food ingredient list is on the brand’s website. Then, check how the brand fares on All About Dog Food.

This independent site ranks all dog food available in the UK to help you choose. Meals are rated based on ingredient quality, composition, nutritional profile and more.

A rating of over 75% is excellent. Natures Menu 80/20 raw nuggets have scored a rating of 91%.

 

2. What range do they offer?

Check if the brand offers food suitable for puppies and dogs with allergies.

Also, make sure you can mix protein types with your orders. Single-protein foods can be great for dogs with sensitive stomachs.

Changing your dog’s recipes can give them variety and help them enjoy their food. Check out Natures Menu ranges here.

 

3. What types of food and recipes do they offer?

Most brands offer frozen or freeze-dried meals. These come minced, in nuggets or chunks and different flavours.

At Nature's Menu, we offer 60/40 and 80/20 complete and balanced frozen meals. We also offer Ready-to-Mix bags for creating unique raw meals at home.

 

4. How easy is it to store and serve?

You need to store frozen raw dog food in a freezer, which is why a subscription or meal plan can be helpful. This way, you always have enough but aren’t buying packs and packs of raw food at once.

Frozen food takes at least 2 hours to defrost – or you can leave it in the fridge overnight.

You’ll likely need to store cooked food in the fridge. So, plan to make sure you have enough room to store your dog’s meals.

Freeze-dried food is more compact, and you can store it at room temperature.

 

5. How easy is it to order?

Figure out how to place your order, including whether there’s a minimum spend and how often they deliver. Then, check if you need to change the order manually to switch protein types.

Natures Menu offers a personalised meal plan and a subscribe and save service, both of which you can stop and edit anytime.

 

Natures Menu raw dog food

We know we’re biased, but we think Natures Menu is the best raw dog food in the UK.

That’s because our meals are made from whole cuts of meat and quality fresh fruits and vegetables (delivered daily to our raw food factory).

 

What is Natures Menu?

Natures Menu is a raw dog food provider based in Norfolk. We offer:

• Personalised meals with complete and balanced frozen meals
• Ready To Mix raw ingredients
• Raw and freeze-dried snacks and treats.

Once you set up your meal plan, we deliver raw food to your door using temperature-controlled vans and specially designed boxes, which keep the food frozen for hours.

 

What’s in the range?

We offer 60/40 and 80/20 recipes with beef, chicken, salmon, turkey, rabbit, duck, goose and lamb.

60/40 meals contain 60% meat, offal, and 40% vegetables and brown rice. 80/20 recipes are made of 80% meat, offal, and 20% fruits, vegetables, and superfoods.

We offer a Ready to Mix range if you prefer to create your own recipes. Each package contains 100% meat, bone, and offal ingredients that you can mix with your blend of fruit, grain, and vegetables at home.

 

How do I order?

You can sign up for our website via Meal Plans or order directly from the website (if you subscribe, you save 10% on each order).

Changing your delivery day and editing the order from your account is easy. You can also cancel or pause your subscription at any time.

 

How do I serve?

Serving raw dog food is easy. Place the nuggets or blocks into an airtight container – or a dog bowl with a lid – and let them defrost.

Most of our products, like nuggets and minces, take about 2 hours to thaw at room temperature.

 

Is it easy to transition from one food to another?

Yes. You can safely switch to raw food in just a week by gradually introducing raw food into your dog’s diet.

For 7 days, feed them one of their usual meals and one raw food meal. From day 8, you can go 100% raw.

 

How much does it cost?

A Natures Menu subscription costs depend on your dog's breed, age, size, activity level and dietary requirements.

Feeding a medium-sized dog with standard dietary requirements costs around £2 a day. Find out more about the cost and why raw food can cost more than dry food (it’s for good reason!).

 

The bottom line

There’s no need to overthink which raw dog food you choose. Just focus on high quality ingredients and make sure there are a range of recipes for your dog.

If you take time to find the right raw food for your dog, you won’t ever have to switch again. And your pooch will live a healthier and happier life.

 

Choosing the best raw dog food FAQs

What is freeze-dried raw dog food?

Freeze-dried raw dog food is made by freezing a recipe at its peak freshness and removing moisture using a vacuum

This process protects the ingredients’ nutritional value and makes the food more compact. You can store freeze-dried dog food at room temperature.

 

What is the best raw dog food for allergies?

Raw dog food is a great option for dogs with allergies and sensitive stomachs. You can choose the protein and grain-free meals to easily exclude foods.

Because raw food is free from additives, fillers and preservatives, many of our customers have found that it’s less likely to cause stomach upset.

 

Are there any dogs who shouldn’t eat raw dog food?

While every dog is different, many dogs can handle raw food well because it mimics their ancestors’ natural diet.

But, if your dog has a health condition or weakened immune system, speak to your vet before switching first.

 

What’s the best raw dog food subscription?

We think Natures Menu personalised meal plans are the best raw dog food subscriptions in the UK.

Our in-house veterinary team design each meal around your dog’s breed, age, taste, activity levels, weight and dietary requirements.

 

What’s the best raw dog food for puppies?

Natures Menu complete and balanced raw puppy food is designed to help your puppy grow up strong and healthy by providing all the nutrients they need.

Our puppy recipes include turkey and fish, chicken with salmon, and beef.

   
Try a personalised meal plan with high-quality raw ingredients to help keep your dog healthy and happy.