RAW FEEDER? WHAT’S IN YOUR VEG THIS MONTH?

If you feed a raw diet to your dog or cat do you vary the vegetables you feed? Just like us our animals will crave sweet and starchy root veg more in the winter than in the summer when leafy greens may be more appropriate. Variety is the key to a successful home made diet (for us and our pets!)

IMPORTED OR HOME GROWN?

The jury is still out on whether organic produce has more nutrient content than conventionally grown crops but it seems logical that crops grown in season in naturally fertile soil will taste better and maybe ‘do’ better than those forced under artificial heat and light. Choosing UK grown vegetables for yourself and your pets should mean they get seasonal produce picked in it’s prime. Even better, grow you own. We find that pea pods, beet leaves and cabbages the slugs have hammered all make excellent ‘dog veg’ (after the potentially lungworm carrying slugs and their slime are washed off of course!). You could even consider planting a herb patch for your pets to graze themselves (more on this in a future blog).

HEDGEROW FREEBIES?

Traditional spring tonics include drinks made from dandelion and burdock roots and soup made from nettle. While we don’t advise digging up wild plants for their roots it is OK to harvest young nettles for your dogs dinner. Blanche with boiling water to denature the stings then blitz in their usual veg mix. Nettles are a great tonic for the skin and may help restore faded noses. Another hedgerow favourite is cleavers (goose grass); this can also be added to your veg mix in the spring.

Hedgerow plants can also liven up the diets of rabbits and guinea pigs and backyard hens. If unsure if a plant is safe for your pets to eat consult a guidebook.