Evolutionary Dog Food

A taste of the wild, just as nature intended?

An evolutionary dog food diet is a diet that is based on the pre-agricultural diet on which a species evolved.

It also goes by the names natural dog food diet, native diet, pre-agricultural diet, Paleolithic diet or ancestral dog food diet.

In 2007 I wrote an article about dog food trends, also mentioning this ´back to nature´ trend in commercial dog food, and now we see more dog food manufacturers developing these kinds of diets. I´ll list a few below.

• Only natural ingredients are used; no grains, no by-products, no fillers, no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives etc.
• This diet best suits your dog´s digestive and metabolic system.
• These foods are least likely to cause an allergic reaction.
• Cancer, diabetes and auto immune diseases can be related to lifestyle and diet. A dog food that is easily digested is said to reduce stressed out body systems.

Is this just another marketing trick or is it really true and scientifically proven? Is pet food with ´wild´ ingredients healthier?

Marketing the concept of evolutionary dog food has gone ahead of unbiased scientific research, once again. The idea is appealing so with that caveat I´m listing just a few popular ones.

Examples of evolutionary dog food

Multinational Procter & Gamble´s is believed to have conducted extensive market research to support the concept of evolutionary dog food and ancestral diets. Their daughter company Iams produces ´Eukanuba Naturally Wild´ in the following flavors ´Country-Grown Turkey & Multi-Grain Formula´, ´New-Zealand Venison & Potato Formula´ and ´North Atlantic Salmon & Rice Formula´.

This formula contains no fillers like meat by-products and corn. Healthy carbohydrates are provided in the form of potatoes or rice. Because of the exotic proteins and lack of wheat and corn these diets may be beneficial when your dog suffers from a food allergy.

Another example is the Evolution Diet Pet Food Corp. that produces a vegetarian dog food. Hmmm… this kind of puzzles me. Other parties in the industry claim that meat is the key source of nutrition for dogs, so how on earth can a vegetarian dog food be considered an evolutionary diet? I don´t think nature intended for dogs to become vegetarian. However, it is possible to have a healthy dog on a vegetarian diet as all required amino acids can be present in plant material.

The same is not true for cats! Dogs require 10 essential amino acids, whereas cats require 11. The extra one is taurine; an amino acid that can only be subtracted from animal tissue and not plants.

Still, it can be safe and healthy but I would not consider this food a native dog food diet.

Now here´s an example of a family-owned company, Merrick, that manufactures grain-free diets for dogs and cats. They say this is what nature intended. And their mission statement is in fact ´Comfort for the Soul´.

Their ´Before Grain´ meat cans come in six different flavors. These contain high-quality meat such as buffalo, beef, chicken, salmon, turkey and tripe. Since this is 100% meat it is only to be used as supplemental feeding.
Dogs cannot survive healthy on a 100% meat diet. If you want to learn about the nutritional requirements for dogs, then visit the nutritional needs pages on this website. They do have complete and balanced dog food too: ´Before Grain´ dry kibble. After the cooking process blue fruit is added to the kibbles. These contain high-quality meat, nutrient-dense vegetables and quality oils.

According to Merrick, blue fruits, such as acai (an Amazon palm berry) and blueberries, are high in beneficial antioxidants.

Canidae All Natural Pet Food brings another grain-free diet formula to you. According to the company, their products contain no corn, soy, wheat, glutens, grain fractions or fillers. Again, also suitable when your dog has a specific intolerance to grains.

A company called ´Taste of the Wild´ boasts four dry formulas with wonderful names, such as: ´Rocky Mountain Feline Formula with Roasted Venison & Smoked Salmon´, ´Wetlands Canine Formula with Roasted Wild Fowl´, ´High Prairie Canine Formula with Roasted Bison & Roasted Venison´ and ´Pacific Stream Canine Formula with smoked Salmon´.

This food is grain-free and has no corn, soy or by-products on the ingredients list.

How about some wild foods for yourself?

Buying evolutionary dog food for your pooch and learning about his (or her) health can be beneficial. But allow me to make just a small note for once: Is your diet reflecting the way humans lived before the introduction of heated houses, modern clothing, automated stairs, cars, television etc.? A minority of people follow the cave man diet, but most people are living the life style of modern man… too much fat, too much carbs and often the wrong fats and the wrong kinds of carbs. Best and most practical would be somewhere in between.

So when learning about your dog´s nutritional needs in order to have a more healthy pet, don´t forget to take care of yourself as well ♥.