Pet food

[Jonzjob]

Since we have been here we have been getting part of the food for our chokky lab from a place in Holland. It is the same brand as we were getting for her in England and we were so impressed that we chased it up and found a supplier for us here. They are a Dutch company and have been very good over the past 3 years. We work on the principle that we don't eat McD rubbish so we have no intention of feeding our dog rubbish either, you are what you eat?? (whooooops) Anyway we phoned to order some more food from Holland and the lovely lady we talk to there told us that there is a supplier now in France and it may be cheaper for us to deal with her than to get it shipped from Holland. The Dutch company is a total family afair and she said that if I had found out about the supplier form another source, not much chance of that, we may have thought that she had been trying to hide it and been upset with her! She did not want that. I feel that over the time we have become friends over a long distance. Anyway, we have now ordered from the 'new to us' company based in Grenoble and look forward to a similar relationship and good service as we have had from our Dutch friends. If anyone is interested. The food is very good quality with no rubbish/floor sweepings or substandard stuff in it. The 'new to us' company is run by an English lady/Dutch guy combination and if anyone would like any info on it then just PM me. I had a long chat to the lady today and anyone that can look after 3 labs, black/yellow/chokky, has my admiration. Nearly forgot, 2 black pups too! You may have guessed, but I have NO connection at all with this company... I just think that I will be a satisfied customer!!

[Jonzjob]

Well satisfied. I placed our order late Wednesday afternoon, it was dispatched yesterday and arrived this morning..

Our lab thought that ALL of her birthdays had come at once...

They also do good quality cat food..

[Athene]

I agree with you it is very important what we give our pets to eat. We had two cats who sadly died at the remarkable ages of 22 and 24 years (human years which puts them in their 100s in cat years I think!) this summer.The vet put their long lives down in large part to their diet. We now have a puppy who is thriving!  Before I made any decisions what to feed her, I did my research and looked into what is put in all 'off the shelf' dog foods.I did not like what I saw -  ie E ingredients, preservatives sugar and what on Earth is reconstituted meat? etc etc! So we give our puppy for lunch and dinner a mixture of proteins both meat and fish ( what we are eating ourselves) and a mixture of veg (no tomatoes, onions, garlic or leeks) with a carbohydrate eg rice, potatoes or pasta. We give scrambled egg and wholemeal toast for breakfast. The bread is wholemeal and homemade with no additives. She has a quarter teaspoon of marmite added to her food for the yeast. She also has half a teacupful of probiotic yoghourt a day. She has some dog biscuits to add to the bulk and look after her teeth. We give her the odd piece of apple or pear but only when we have it ourselves. Obviously we feed nothing with sugar or chocolate. Our vet has weighed her and says she is perfect in every way in weight/ state of her coat and general health.

Yes, it would be easier to throw a handful of granules from a bag than feed what we do but the reward is in the way she looks - a healthy dog in every way with breath that does not smell putrid as some dogs' breath does when fed on the dreaded granules!

[Christine Animal]

Athene, what did you feed your cats on for them to live so long?

Jon, you are allowed to say the brand on here aren't you?

 

[cooperlola]

Tough to do the right thing.  In the days when we first had cats, we fed them a variety of things, mostly tinned foods etc.  The longest any of them lived was 12when he contracted diabetes and did not respond to insulin injections.  We changed to dry food (Science diet) and the cats who have eaten nothing but lived to 16 (2) 17 (3) 18 (1) and the latest is still with us and will be 19 in a fortnight.

[Jonzjob]

I can do better than the brand Christine. Have a look at www.seulementnaturel.fr .

Our order arrived this morning. It was ordered on Wednesday afternoon, dispatched yesterday lunchtime and arrived this morning. Good service or what. All this with the ADSL line down at their place and they are operating on an analog modem at the moment!

The food we had today is only part of our labs diet. The other part is raw minced beef and vegetables. We get about 3 kilos of beef from the s/market along with broccoli, carrots and corgette. They are all minced together and she has 2 cricket ball size balls for her dinner. Her brekfast is normally 1/2 a tub of the Nature Diet food. No bad smells, lovely coat, plenty of energy and an appitite that could eat 2 potatoes more than a pig and then come back for the pig!!!

Link corrected by a mod

[Christine Animal]

Thanks Jon.  I've got to go out in the rain again right now, but will have a look at their site later on.  There's a typo in your link, here it is.

http://www.seulementnaturel.fr/

[mossie]

I have also been using this company since we moved to France and have found them very good.  I have also recently started my dogs on Nature Diet which they love, I only wish I had known about this before (although the deerhound turned his nose up at the fish variety (!!!), no problem, the pointer dealt with it!!!!!.  The producers of this food have their own website with further information on if it is of interest.  Although I don't give my dogs a home-made diet (for a variety of reasons), I feel what I am giving them is the next best thing.  It is also something of an experiment.  My five month old springer has been fed an additive-free diet almost from the time I brought him home at 7 weeks.  I am interested to see how he does over the course of his life.  Whilst knowing that this is affected by a variety of other factors, I am hoping to give him the best chance of a long and healthy life, which is after all what we all want for our companions.

[Jonzjob]

Ta Christine. We were getting the Nature Diet for several years too before we moved over. We contacted them after the move to find out if they shipped it over and it was then that they put us on to the company in Holland. It seemed a shame to change to SN as we had become quite friends with the Dutch people. It was them who told us about SN knowing full well that they would be loosing a customer.

It's really good to know that there are still people who do care about their customers!!

I'm just about to have a banana and I'm just about getting mugged by guess who, chocolat coloured and very hairy!

[Athene]

Hello Christine,

Athene and Sibyll had a variety of fish and meat. I would mix in a few well mashed veg and it had to be well mashed because any lumps they would pick out and leave! I used tinned tuna that had the brin washed right out - I emptied it into a sieve and washed it through and through. We never gave cows' milk just occasionally Whiskas milk not that it was good for them but Sib particularly loved it! They were lovely animals and I still really miss them! It was hard when in August last they died 7 weeks from each other. Daughter went first then her mother. The farmer across the road warned me that this would happen when the mother went and I was prepared - not ready- they were so close to me. I had them through all my bad times, through a horrendous divorce, they were a great comfort! Now when I am re-married and happy they have gone, I would have liked them a while longer to share my good times.

[Christine Animal]

Yes Athene that's the sad part, we can't keep them for always.  But they did live a very long time thanks to your love and care, not many cats are that lucky.