Micronutrients are essential vitamins and minerals.  Although only required in small quantities they are essential for proper functioning of every system in the body. Each vitamin and mineral has a specific role.  Unfortunately many diets do not have the correct balance, due to the lack of variation (raw diets) or bioavailability (dry/wet diets)

Minerals and Vitamins often lacking are; Manganese, Iodine, Copper, Zinc, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Iron, Potassium, Folate (B9) and Thiamine (B1)

An imbalance (too much or too little) of a micronutrient can lead to health & behavioural issues.  It is therefore important to offer a good variation of proteins from multiples sources and fresh whole foods where possible.

For raw feeders the 5 & 5 rule with the addition of phytonutrients, which are only found in plants (blog coming soon on this) will for majority, meet your dogs nutritional needs.  Commercial complete raw meals are already balanced, but different proteins provide different levels of micronutrients.

If you always feed a complete chicken meal for example, varying suppliers will help achieve a better balance.  This is because chickens from different sources will have different levels of micronutrients.

Every aspect of the chickens environment has an impact.  Chemical treatments for parasites, drugs for disease prevention, hormones to ensure growth even the type of food they have and the air they breath are contributors.  These all have an affect on the nutritional quality of the meat your dog eats and the levels of micronutrients within it.

If you feed a dry or wet food diet then the minimum micronutrient requirements have been met with a synthetic vitamin & mineral mix.

However, you can still get some benefits from feeding additional whole food ingredients as these can provide your dog with all the nutrients contained within the food, rather than just isolated components.  For example, abscorbic acid is not a food ingredient, it is an isolated component of vitamin C.  If you were to just give your dog vitamin C, you would be missing hundreds of other important nutrients that all interact in synergy.

Nutritional herbs, vegetables and fruit, contain all the vitamins, minerals, trace minerals, and phytonutrients in a way that nature intended, in a whole food form.

Whether you feed dry, wet or raw, feeding your dog vitamins and minerals in whole food forms or in supplements like nutritional herbs, as opposed to synthetic derivatives (like vitamins in a bottle), is an important step toward creating optimal health.

Nutrient needs vary greatly from dog to dog, and change over time.  One food does not fit all, when it comes to providing the best for your dog. Looking out for the right foods, the right supplements and the right extras to add to your dog’s diet are the best way of providing wonderful building blocks to a healthy and long life.

This is one of the main reasons why we offer such a diverse range of products & encourage our customers to switch between them, as well as adding fresh foods to dry/wet food diets.

We want you to feel confident that your dogs are getting the best they can and are always on hand to offer advice.

Abby