Education Centre

Yes, the plastic used to package our patties is BPA-free.

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No, we don't.

HPP - High Pressure Processing is a non-thermal food preservation technique that kills microorganisms that can cause diseases or spoil food. It uses intense pressure for a certain time and has minimal effects on taste, texture, appearance, or nutritional values. At Big Dog, we don't have the need to use this process as our food is frozen.

Yes! You absolutely can co-feed kibble and raw. In fact, if your dog was on a kibble diet beforehand, mixing kibble and raw is how we recommend they transition over 10 - 12 days. This helps to ensure they have time to get used to the introduction of raw food into their diet. If you wanted to read more about transitioning your pet, read this.

We believe that any inclusion of raw food into your pets diet will benefit them however, if you’d prefer to feed a mixture of diets on an on-going basis, also known as co-feeding, ensure to adjust the feeding portions to reflect this.

For example if you choose to split your pet’s diet into 50% of a Big Dog diet and 50% of another diet, we advise to only feed half the recommended feeding portion for each diet.

For dogs and cats that have more sensitive stomachs, their diet can still consist of a raw diet and a kibble diet however if you notice any issues it could be advised to feed these two diets at different time, for example feed raw in the morning and their other diet at night, or vice-versa.

Our Big Dog for Cats range consists of mixed protein diets that provide all the macro and micronutrients your cat needs to be healthy and happy. These include protein, amino acids, taurine, healthy fats (including omega-3 fatty acids), moisture, antioxidants, probiotics, prebiotics, fibre, phytonutrients, active enzymes and essential vitamins and minerals. Mixed protein raw food diets, most closely represent an evolutionary diet and the predominant protein source in each product represents the flavour of that product.

For more information on each product, see our products page for cats.

Big Dog has a product suitable for dogs of all shapes and sizes.

Our core range of diets are flavour based, mixed protein diets that provide all the macro and micronutrients your dog needs to be healthy and happy. These include protein, amino acids, healthy fats (including omega-3 fatty acids), moisture, antioxidants, probiotics, prebiotics, fibre, phytonutrients, active enzymes and essential vitamins and minerals. Mixed protein raw food diets, most closely represent an evolutionary diet. The predominant protein source in each of our core diet range represents the flavour of that product. Our core range consists of Beef, Chicken, Tasmanian Salmon, Lamb, and Combo (combo being a mix of all those proteins).

Our single protein, allergy range is formulated for dogs with food intolerances to certain meats, most commonly being beef and chicken. As a single protein diet, our Kanga and Turkey diets contain only muscle meat, offal and bone of these species. Additionally, Kanga is a low fat option that may be suitable for overweight dogs.

Our Scientific range has been formulated to address dogs with health conditions, assisting from the inside out. The Sensitive Skin diet contains an abundance of natural anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids designed to promote healthy skin, coat and a stronger immune system, as well as long term healing and reduction of potential future skin issues. Our Wellbeing Diet has been specifically formulated to support dogs with common chronic health conditions including arthritis, pancreatic issues, liver problems, renal conditions and some cancers. It is lower in fat with a mixture of traditional healing, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and health-promoting herbs.

For more information on each product, see our products page for dogs.

Yes.

We use ingredients from the human-supply chain, we prefer this term when referring to pet food, rather than saying it’s human-grade. You can read about our food safety and quality here: Trusted Raw Feeders since 2000 for a reason.

Absolutely! Microencapsulation plays an important role in protecting probiotic bacteria from the degradation that the digestive system was designed to do. It ensures they can stay viable through to the colon and, most importantly, get absorbed and benefit the pet’s health the way they are intended.

Read more.

The transition from kibble to raw can be long and challenging, we recommend a very slow transition. The primary reason for this is to avoid upset stomachs but also because rejection of the food is to be expected. Give your cat the time and space they need to figure out their new diet. That being said, you do not want to leave it for more than 24 hours without eating something. Cats need to eat frequently as fasting is unnatural to them and could induce a case of Hepatic Lipidosis (feline liver disease).

Find our thorough transition guide for cats here: Transitioning to our Big Dog Raw Diet for Cats

Kangaroo is a very rich tasting, 'gamey' meat. Some dogs will love the unique taste while others may regurgitate or reject the food and need a slow introduction.

We always recommend slowly introducing raw diets over 2 weeks. The reason for this is to minimise any potential for stomach upsets which can happen if a change in diet is sudden. Some pets will have no issues with a quick changeover in diet, however to be sure, we do recommend slowly introducing the new food.

Day 1-3: 20% New 80% Old

Day 4-6: 40% New 60% Old

Day 7-9: 60% New 40% Old

Day 10-12: 80% New 20% Old

Day 12+: 100% New Diet

Transition for dogs.

Transition for cats.

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_{Remember, there are no preservatives in our food so it will last only 2-3 days in the fridge once defrosted.}

Most of our raw dog food recipes are a Complete and Balanced Dietby AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) standards. Our substantiation to support this claim is based on the outcome of a successful feeding trial with Smart Pups Assistance Dogs, our charity of choice.

Look for the statement "Complete and Balanced by AAFCO standards for healthy growth in puppies and maintaining health in adult dogs" on the product page or packaging.

Feel free to contact our staff if you had any questions in regards to our diets here at: customercare@bigdogpetfoods.com

For more information on our diets being Complete and Balanced check out our article 'Complete and Balanced by Nature'

For more information on AAFCO, Complete and Balanced and raw feeding, check out 'Complete and Balanced and Raw Feeding'