Pet Food Recalls

Press release 3-16-07 Menu Foods has issued a pet food recall on cat and dog food such as Iams, Eukanuba, Nutro and many stores own brands of pet foods siting ingredient WHEAT GLUTEN as causing severe renal failure and deaths in several pets.
Switch to Flint River Ranch All Natural Dog and Cat Food. Absolutely no glutens by products or chemical preservatives in our pet food

The Honest Kitchen Proudly Introduces PROWL for Cats

Prowl - a brand new recipe especially for cats! It is a grain-free diet, made with Human Grade hormone-free chicken, plus eggs, potatoes, yams, flaxseed, zucchini, spinach, honey, cranberries (for urinary tract health) and rosemary. This recipe has been formulated to meet the AAFCO cat food nutrient profiles for adult maintenance and can be fed as a stand alone diet, or as a nutritionally balanced base for home made raw or cooked cat food.

What are some recommended add in ideas?
The list of items to add into your dogs and cats diet is near endless, just to name a few, ground beef/ turkey/ chicken or exotic meats of available, cottage cheese, plain yogurt, fruits such as melon, a few nuts such as flaked almonds - the list is endless!

Some items that you should NEVER feed to your dog or cat are onions, raisins, COOKED BONE, and basic junk foods that we ourselves should not be eating! Add-in amounts may vary; try a ratio of about 1/2 cup of meats, veggies, or Raw Meaty Bones to 1 cup dry measure of The Honest Kitchen diets.

All of Honest Kitchen's dog and cat food and dehydrated raw dog and cat food products are formulated to meet the AAFCO nutrient profiles for dogs and you don't have to add anything to make them 'complete'. However, the original idea behind these diets was as a base for a raw or other fresh homemade diet and to facilitate that, they are somewhat 'lite' in terms of fat and protein, so that your own choice of raw, or cooked, meat can be added, if desired.

It is entirely a matter of personal choice (and your pet's taste!) whether you add in extra meat and other ingredients, or not. Most people with younger and more active dogs like to mix in the additional meat, and those with senior or overweight animals usually prefer to feed the organic pet food alone. The Honest Kitchen supplies pet owners with the best in fresh dehydrated raw dog food and other organic dog food products.

About Dehydration

Dehydration or drying, is one of the oldest and gentlest methods of food preservation. Food dehydration works by removing only the water content from the ingredients. All other nutrients remain, and become highly concentrated. Dried foods are extremely nutritious, easy to prepare and store, and light weight to ship.

Because dehydration takes place at moderate temperatures, the ingredients are still considered raw. The only exceptions are the meat and egg ingredients, which are dehydrated at high enough temperatures to kill any bacteria present and are therefore essentially considered 'cooked'. This is becuase they must be human-edible grade, to enter our manufacturing facility.

The removal of moisture prevents enzymatic activity, which can lead to browning and decomposition of foods, and also prevents the growth of bacteria, yeast and molds. Dehydration does not actually destroy or kill the food enzymes, as occurs in baking and freezing or high pressure processing such as extrusion. Enzyme activity in dehydrated foods is simply suspended, until the food is rehydrated.

A remarkable example of the way dehydration preserves without destroying, is in Africa, where scientists have discovered live fish being hatched from fish eggs, that have been dehydrated in the sun, during droughts that sometimes last for years. When the rains fall, the lakes and rivers refill with water to rehydrate the eggs - and live fish emerge. The eggs are actually preserved and remain viable throughout the natural dehydration that takes place.

How do I transition my pet to The Honest Kitchen Diets?
Generally for a healthy pet, it is recommended to substitute 1/2 of the total amount of your pet's present food with the new food choice, and continue to increase by 1/2 every 3 days until your pet is completely on The Honest Kitchen Diet. In about 10 days your pet should be completely on the wholesome diet. Many dogs can transition more swiftly and a few may take a little longer to make the switch.

What do The Honest Kitchen diets look like once hydrated?
All three of the diets have a texture resembling muesli or 'loose mixes' after hydration, with some colorful pieces of recognizable fruits, veggies, and grains (for Verve). All three diets have a very pleasant aroma.

What's so great about dehydrated food?
The dehydration process removes only the water from the food, while leaving the enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and phyto-nutrients in tact. The Honest Kitchen's dehydrated foods provide your dog with many of the benefits of a fresh home prepared diet, made much more convenient. Processed dry kibble and canned foods, are cooked at such high temperatures that the food becomes denatured and many important nutrients are lost. A good clue to this is a very long list of vitamins & minerals in the ingredients panel - it shows what the manufacturer had to add to make the food nutritionally balanced.

Are the meats in The Honest Kitchen diets raw?
All of the all natural ingredients in our diets are guaranteed human edible. Raw food is never "cooked" and the meats are dehydrated at a low enough temperature to maintain many of the nutrients, but the process takes place at a high enough temperature to kill any pathogenic bacteria that may be present in raw meats. The meats used in Honest Kitchen are the exact same ingredients used in dehydrated and frozen human foods. Additional raw or cooked meats may be mixed in with the dry foods if desired. All the other ingredients are dehydrated at very low temperatures (below 104 degrees) and are therefore still considered raw.

Do the Honest Kitchen diets contain bone?
They do not contain any bone. They contain ONLY Human Grade ingredients, and dehydrated bones are not in high demand for human foods, so they are not a readily available ingredient. Honest Kitchen meats are 100% pure, USDA muscle meats only. Raw Meaty Bones may be mixed in with foods.

Will adding in meats and raw bones affect the Calcium: Phosphorus ratio in my dog's diet? The Calcium: phosphorous ratio in our foods is balanced with the vitamin premix, containing human grade tri- calcium phosphate, and is set at a ratio that allows for additional meat and raw bones to be mixed in without throwing off the ratio. As a general guideline, it is recommend to use about 1/2 cup of meat or RAW meaty bones (such as chicken backs/ or necks) to 1 cup of dry-measured Honest Kitchen diet. NEVER FEED COOKED BONE!!

What is the shelf life on The Honest Kitchen Diets?
All of The Honest Kitchen products have about 12 months' shelf life prior to hydration. Once rehydrated, any leftovers should be treated like raw food and be refrigerated or discarded.

What are the standards for the all natural ingredients in Honest Kitchen products?
All of the ingredients are of US origin, and everything is USDA inspected, human edible. Products are processed in a plant that only accepts human grade ingredients onto their premises, therefore all ingredients must meet these standards. All the meats used in The Honest Kitchen diets are antibiotic & hormone- free. All the fruits and vegetables are certified GMO- free. All flax, barley, oats, and rye contained in Honest Kitchen products are all Certified Organic.

1 Cup of dehydrated food will make approximately 1 lb (or a little over two cups) of food once re-hydrated.

Are the feeding guideline recommendations based on dry measure?
Yes, the recommendations for measuring out your dog's meal are based on de-hydrated measure.

I feed my pet twice daily, are the feeding guidelines the total daily amount or per meal?
The Honest Kitchen suggests feeding your pet twice daily, and the feeding guidelines are designed for the total calorie intake for one day. The feeding guideline amount should be split into two meals.

Can I prepare the food in advance and how long will the food stay fresh once prepared? Yes, you can prepare a day or two of feedings in advance, though the food should be refrigerated once hydrated because of the all natural ingredients and lack of preservatives. The food will keep in the fridge for up to 48 hours. If you wish to prepare more then two days you may prepare the food and freeze the diet. May people like to freeze it in individual portions, especially if someone else will be caring for their dog for a few days.

Here are the some of the other products from THE HONEST KITCHEN

Verve - a beef based food with organic grains, and contains the least calories of the three diets. This is a great food to maintain your dog at a good weight.

Force - a chicken based diet and is grain free, great for dogs with allergies. The Force diet is higher in fat than Verve & contains a number of veggies and fruits to provide your dog with adequate carbohydrates.

Embark - a turkey based diet and was designed with the active dog, or puppy in mind, also dogs with weakened immune system (cancer recovery) benefit from Embark higher calorie and protein content with very low carbs.

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