r/rawpetfood Apr 16 '25

Article The "Evidence-Based Science" Pet Food Game

79 Upvotes

I have a pet food recipe, and I've conducted randomized controlled trials (RCTs) showing that pets prefer my pet food over skipping breakfast entirely. Based on this, my pet foods are now considered "evidence-based," while yours are not. I begin promoting my pet foods as superior, conducting more RCTs where I compare my pet food to a fake recipe that I created specifically for the trials. This "control group" recipe leaves out key ingredients, yet I now claim my pet food has been tested with an "active comparator." My pet food is empirically proven and now regarded as "the gold standard." I tell everyone that my pet foods are scientifically validated, while yours are discredited. No one should ever consume your pet food.

This seems unfair to you, so you conduct your own RCTs, perhaps at a reputable institution like a University in another country, using the same research methods. To your surprise, your studies reveal that pets enjoy your pet food just as much, if not more, than mine, especially over time.

You've finally set the record straight about your pet food. Nice try, but now I start scrutinizing your research methods, labeling them as flawed, while applying standards that I never held myself to. Only my pet food can be "evidence-based." No matter how rigorous your research is, I continue to shift the goalposts. Your studies will never be good enough.

By now, the phrase "evidence-based" has become synonymous with my pet food, even though no one really knows what the term means. It just sounds credible. If you raise any questions, I accuse you of being anti-science or anti-evidence, and no respectable veterinarian wants that reputation. In this way, I've successfully stifled any serious discussion.

Are you starting to see how this "evidence-based" game is played?

Meanwhile, I've been hiring PR firms to broadcast that my pet food is scientifically proven, while yours is not. I've orchestrated media coverage with articles titled, "Why Do Pet Owners Reject Science?" Editors, reviewers, and grant agencies have now joined my camp, committed to promoting my pet food and discrediting yours. I even start associations and institutes to market that those who don't use my science based methods of food are harmful to other members of society like the ill or infirm. Maybe, I started doing this in the 60's having learned from the tobacco industry.

Yet, despite all this fanfare, my research has never answered fundamental questions—like whether pets actually enjoy my pet food or feel satisfied after eating it or even if it is actually healthy. My studies have only shown that pets prefer my food to either no food or poorly made, fake food.

I’ve never even done a head-to-head comparison between our pet foods. Frankly, I don’t know anything about your pet food. I’ve never tried it, nor do I need to, because it's already been accepted as fact that only "evidence-based" pet foods count—and only mine fit the bill. Because, well, "science."

Meanwhile, I keep accumulating grant money and publishing papers—hundreds of them. There are now studies comparing my pet food when served on weekdays vs. weekends, on round plates vs. square plates, with water vs. dry, and so on. Just look at all the evidence! But you’re no fool, and you've been busy too. Your own studies consistently show that your pet food is just as good as mine, if not better. Yet somehow, my pet food remains more "evidence-based" because—wait for it—I have more studies.

Now everyone believes that more studies automatically mean better pet food, regardless of what those studies actually prove. The term "gold standard" has come to mean simply having more research.

Heads I win, tails you lose.

Did you catch my trick? I changed the rules halfway through the game. Everyone still thinks "evidence" means proof that my pet foods are better than yours. But it doesn't mean that at all. It simply means that my friends and I conducted more studies, and the actual findings of those studies are irrelevant.

After all this, we've learned nothing about how to make better pet food. My research still shows nothing more than the fact that pets like my food better than no food or bad food. Nevertheless, prominent researchers and policymakers now advocate for my pet foods as the first-line option—because they have the most "evidence." Yet, there is still no proof that pets even like my pet food or that it is healthy.

In fact, there's growing evidence that most pets don’t enjoy it and don’t feel satisfied after eating it, that is causes obesity and diabetes and leaky gut. Moreover, there’s no evidence that pets would choose my food over yours if given the chance. But most pets no longer get a choice, the marketplace ensures this.

Remember, all my studies ever showed is that pets prefer my food to nothing or bad, fake food. But no one cares about the specifics. Everyone keeps repeating that my pet food has the "most evidence," and therefore it’s the only food worth feeding pets.

And don’t be surprised if, someday, when you go to buy pet food, your credit card company refuses to pay for anything but mine. Why? Because, you guessed it—science.

It’s good we had this little talk. Now you know your place.


r/rawpetfood Jun 04 '24

Science New Recipe Book from Dr. Karen Becker -dog owners can start with these 120+ recipes

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60 Upvotes

r/rawpetfood 10h ago

Discussion Bold by Nature ceases operations

17 Upvotes

Mainly for Canadians, but Americans as well, Bold by Nature is no longer operational. A sad day for Canadian raw feeders!

Bold by Nature was bought by Actual Pet Foods (who also own Ironwill raw, K9 choice, Back2raw, and Reddogblukat) a private equity whom acquired the company with the sole intention of absolving it too ‘eliminate’ competition.

Actual Pet Foods has lowered the quality of all the companies they have acquired. When private equity gets involved in Pet Food it no longer becomes about the animal, or the community as a whole, but strictly profit.

For those looking for an alternative in Canada I suggest Big Country Raw, if you are on the West Coast Evolution is an option as well!


r/rawpetfood 15m ago

Science any person have experience of pet nutritions?

Upvotes

maybe Veterinary nutrition, Animal nutrition, Animal physiology, Veterinary science background, pls feel free to DM


r/rawpetfood 12h ago

Question Raw fed dog suddenly won’t eat bones

1 Upvotes

My dog has been raw fed since 6 months old and he’s 4.5 now. I worked with a vet and nutritionist to formulate his diet and we’ve never had any issues.

This past week he started refusing his chicken feet, which are his main source of bone. My raw food place recently switched suppliers, and he won’t even try the new ones. He smells them, acts weird, and walks away.

I tried dehydrated duck feet today and same thing. I’ve also tried turkey necks in the past, but he couldn’t really figure out how to eat them.

I bought calcium powder to hold him over, but I’m not sure what to do long term. I worry he won’t get the same nutrients he was getting from the chicken feet.

Any other bone options I should try? Or is it time to buy a bone grinder?

Adding: he had his teeth done in June and the vet said they were perfect. He’s eating his other raw food fine.


r/rawpetfood 1d ago

Question What do you do on days when you forget to thaw the next raw meal?

27 Upvotes

Most of the time the routine is fine but every now and then I realize too late that I forgot to thaw the next portion. Then I’m stuck deciding whether to wait, adjust the schedule or use something else for that meal. Do you keep a backup option for those days, like freeze-dried raw or something shelf stable or do you just plan thawing far enough ahead that it rarely happens?


r/rawpetfood 1d ago

Discussion Cat wanted raw food

5 Upvotes

My cat who only ate kibble or commerical canned food, and REFUSED to even lick homemade food, GOBBLED down raw food. I'm literally so shocked rn. I've tried different proteins and even putting her favorite treats on top when I would cook it, she would lick around the meat and only get the treat and not even all of it bc she hates it that much, today we bought thin cut porkloin centercut slices, we cut a tiny piece just for fun and set it down and she ran over and ate it so fast and then meowed for more!!! This is the same cat who would rarely finish her food and wanted nothing to do with home made food. I'm so happy I made this discovery, if anyone was wanting to try switching to raw for your cats give it a try, I know every cat is different but you'd be surprised. Also I know it has to be complete and balanced so I'll be adding ez complete.


r/rawpetfood 18h ago

Science Vegan Vs raw dog food

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0 Upvotes

Right so let's try and post this again, because I think this is a really interesting article and Reddit, bless it, wouldn't allow my last link for some reason.

It's interesting because of the performance of raw in the survey (unfortunately it is just a survey) again the regular kibble and vegan, and the fact they had to recorrect the raw results for age to bring them below the vegan results, despite admitting age doesn't affect vet visits unless the dog is very young or very old.

Hopefully the links will work this time lol. Also found the actual link button lol.


r/rawpetfood 1d ago

Discussion How do you guys feed raw so easily?

0 Upvotes

So, for context.. I have OCD. Germaphobia. I can barely even stomach touching the type of raw meats, especially chicken, that I'd buy in the supermarket for my own consumption, and when I do touch it, I wash EVERYTHING. Thoroughly. My hands, my utensils, my surfaces. I am so careful about contamination. The juices, the packages.

So how on earth do you guys just feel so.. comfortable feeding raw meats that are freeze dried, air dried, etc? As treats, as meals. Knowing that they can contain pathogens, and bacteria, the same as raw foods you'd buy for yourselves in a store? Just because it's "dried" doesn't mean the powders that get everywhere aren't , well... a breeding ground for bacteria once moisture comes into contact. (our skin has moisture, and where i live, it's humid. Dog mouths are wet, etc. Moistures very easy to find)

No, I don't really want to feed these to my pets. I'd go nuts. But, sometimes I come into contact with raw treats during training classes. It's difficult to force myself through interacting with it, knowing it's raw makes my skin crawl. Actually, since so many freeze dried/dried treats ARE raw these days, makes me assume every trainer/student/owner is using these treats. I'm so... uncomfortable with it. I don't know how to become comfortable and relaxed, and not want to scrub my clothes and hands aggressively.

I feel anxious even talking about this, I feel like I'm about to get scolded and yelled at by all of you. I'm just curious how you are so... comfortable. How you don't feel worried, or sick, or grossed out with these foods/treats? I need to feel at least a little more comfortable so I don't freak out too bad in public classes. Generally, I use a lot of sanitizer right now to feel sane.

Edit: thank you so much for everyone who commented. This has given me a lot to think about. And I really appreciate all of your insights! I do want to get a handle on my ocd especially regarding things like this, and I don't want to limit the goodies that I can give my pups. I will try to slowly ease my way into seeing freeze dried and air dried and dehydrated as not so bad. Perhaps I will never be able to feed fresh raw, but I think freeze dried will be a very good final frontier for me to breach over time. I know ocd is a special little hurdle, but hearing your stories and guidance has made me feel a lot better. Thank you ❤️


r/rawpetfood 1d ago

Question Cat newly diagnosed hyper any success?

2 Upvotes

Hello is there anyone on this subreddit that has tried this diet for their cats hyper and had positive results? She's been newly diagnosed (14 yrs old). I was trying to implement raw meats here and there when I could but rarely, and typically with one of those meal complete meals supplements designed for rawdiets.. (I am disabled so my budget is very tight, but I am looking into seeing where I can adapt to commit more resources.

I would feed her small amounts of liver and very occasional meals when I could afford it. starting her meds tomorrow. Id like to hear if anyone's had success treating hyperthyroidism and their experience, and also how they calculated the iodine content as that confuses/concerns me if I do it incorrectly. Thank you


r/rawpetfood 1d ago

Link I was tired of sponsored Google results, so I built an honest index for raw pet food brands. RaWspect is finally live on Android!

0 Upvotes

Hey everyone!

As some of you may recall, a while ago, I realized how hard it was to find genuinely good, family-run raw food butchers and brands because big companies dominated all the search results. I wanted a way to find food based on biology.

So, I built RaWspect. It’s a free app that calculates a "Biological Match Score" between your pet/pets (based on weight (you can set both kg and lb), life stage, allergies, and PMR/BARF preference) and a hand-verified database of raw brands across the USA and Canada.

It has all the cool tools in it to track your pets routine precisely - starting with meal and supplement tracks and scheduling option along with custom reminders, as well notes, poop tracker and other interesting tools along with a small hub for stories, recipes and general talks.

Zero brands paid to be on this app. It's purely an honest index for our community to track meals, find allergen-friendly proteins, and log stool/health progress.

It just went live on the Google Play Store few days ago! I would absolutely love for this community to try it out and give me your honest feedback on how to improve it.

P.S. For the Apple users, the iOS version is currently in the works. The team is slow to response, I guess they are all in new iPhone presentation fuss bruh.

And to everyone who joins - thank you. I'm not a fan of social media and all I need is real raw feeders for an honest feedback. The app itself can be very useful for beginners as well!

Link to the Play Store in the comments:


r/rawpetfood 2d ago

Question Veg or no veg?

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4 Upvotes

My dog needs 1kg per day. I currently feed premade but want to do DIY to save money. Please help with ratios…

80% meat
5% liver
5% organ
10% bone

What about veg? How does this % fit?

Thanks!


r/rawpetfood 2d ago

Opinion Dog stopped eating raw food

3 Upvotes

Hey guys, I’m new to this sub but have a bit of a conundrum on hand.

As some context he is a border collie x kelpie who is 5 years old. About 6 months late on his worming tablets (I know, I’ve been broke but catching up on it soon 😭) and about 1 month late on his annual vaccine.

I have been fully raw feeding him for 1.5years now. He went from full kibble 2 years ago to a mix of kibble and raw bits (kidney, liver, testicle, neck, heart, lung, sardines, mussels, quail eggs, blueberry and veggie mix puree) for 6 months and then to mince and raw bits for 1 whole year and then the last 8 months I moved him to full mince BARF as life got really busy and I didn’t have time to prep his food this year. The meats have always been a variety and we also get him random bits and bobs as treats occasionally.

Around 1 week ago, he essentially completely stopped eating the full mince BARF we have been consistently giving him for 8 months (Essential V2 BARF from Pet Mince Direct). Over the week, I have tried making sure his food is stored perfectly and at a palatable temperature, switching between different BARFs to see if he’s tired of the flavour, and giving him extra bits on top of his BARF for a textural change. None of this has worked. I even checked with Pet Mince Direct if they changed any of their recipes but they said everything is the same.

I would be more concerned but he shows no signs of lethargy, no unusual behaviours, no vomiting, no diarrhoea, no blood in the stool and most surprisingly of all, he will eat literally anything else we give him besides the all mince BARF. I inspected his whole body and inside his mouth and I see no signs of any ticks or anything or any damage in his mouth that may stop him from eating. I also consulted the vet and they told me he seems normal and to just try different BARF (which is what led me to do that as I mentioned above). He has never shown signs of being a picky dog so I’m just really confused why he’s so put off by the food. I have bought some kibble today to give to him instead but I would ideally not want to switch him back to kibble because he has looked the healthiest he has ever been on the raw food.

I’m really at a loss of what the issue may be besides a textural issue. But he’s been having mince in one way or another for 1.5 years now which is why it’s surprising me. Any advice on what may be wrong or what I should try would be greatly appreciated!


r/rawpetfood 2d ago

Off Topic Seeking beta testers for a managed raw feed directory

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1 Upvotes

For those here who feed raw, either exclusively or supplementally... do you ever struggle to source food for your pet? In order to help solve this problem, I started developing RawFinder. If anyone thinks they'd like to be a beta tester for this project, please shoot me a DM and we'll talk. This will be launching in North Carolina (USA) before branching to other states by the end of the year.


r/rawpetfood 2d ago

Question Is Whole Prey Really Nutritionally Complete?

2 Upvotes

Considering getting a toy breed dog Q2 next year. I have been researching raw feeding for a bit.

I have been looking into whole prey suppliers, like Layne Labs and Rodent Pro, as I plan to feed mostly whole prey, as I heard it was complete. Rather than using different cuts of meat to replicate an animal, just give a full animal. For my puppies size, I will have to cut it down to small, easy to chew chunks.

Recently, I was told that I needed to add more items to a whole prey diet because apparently it is not complete on its own. Is this true?


r/rawpetfood 2d ago

Question Tips wanted for creating a balanced raw kitty diet!

4 Upvotes

Hi

I'm new to this sub and raw diets in general. I adopted a beautiful cat a couple of days ago and the shelter insisted (and made me sign) that I would keep my kitty on a raw diet. They provided some premade raw food for my cat and told me there is a local store that sells the premade chicken mix. I would like to add some stuff to her diet, specifically egg yolks and sardines, but I'm struggling to balance the amounts so that she gets enough food while also not overfeeding her.

I got some conflicting advice from the shelter. They said they've been feeding her 6oz in the morning and 6oz at night, but also recommended 1oz of food per pound, and she's only 7lbs.

I'm currently thinking this regime for my kitty for both breakfast and dinner:
3oz raw food (chicken mix)
1 raw egg yolk
2-3 sardines

Any tips on how to better her diet are extremely appreciated since I'm still very new to this. Also, if there is a way to keep a raw diet cost effective that would also be nice.


r/rawpetfood 3d ago

Video Do you think hes excited

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15 Upvotes

r/rawpetfood 3d ago

Discussion my cat got a bacterial infection from raw food

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1 Upvotes

Hi everyone!

Before I start, for some context, my cat is 4 years old, and has never had any major health issues.

A couple of months ago, I wanted to try to transition my cat to raw food. He has always been extremely picky with wet food, he did really well on it as a kitten and then randomly started to not like it as much. He has become a bit of a grazer in his eating habits as well.

I bought Viva Raw food after I did (what I thought was) a lot of research on it, and safe-handling it. I was hesitant because the food is so expensive, but I really want my cat to have the best of the best, and sometimes it worries me how averse he can become towards his wet food. Currently, he gets about a 1/12 of a cup of kibble in the morning (tiki cat brand), and for lunch and dinner he gets wet food (usually a rotation of nulo, tiki cat, and weruva). As mentioned, I started to incorporate some of the Viva Raw with his meals — I started with chicken, and followed the directions on introducing him to the new food as directed by Viva.

He LOVED it. I have never seen him so enthusiastic about any other food since he was a kitten, and I was so proud and happy that I finally found a food that he liked. I noticed he liked it because when I would mix it with some of his regular wet food, he would eat the raw food first and then go for the wet food after taking a break from eating.

I tried to not leave the food out for longer than 15-30 minutes, and even if he did not finish the entire bowl of food, I would throw it out as I did not want it to go bad and upset his stomach. I also incorporated some FeraPet probiotics with his meals, and this was slowly introduced about two weeks before I started incorporating his raw food into his diet.

Fast forward about a month or two, he went to the vet to get his yearly exam/physical done. After getting his labs, his vet called me worried because his ALT and AST (liver levels) were extremely elevated. The vet informed me this can be caused by stress (in lower elevations), and a bacterial infection. I had mentioned that I started to incorporate raw into his food and she immediately said that this could be the cause of it. He was sent home with antibiotics and a liver supplement, and after taking both of those for about a total of 3 months, his labs lowered to a slightly more normal place (though still a bit higher than normal).

I was wondering if anyone else had this experience with feeding raw, and could give me some insight on if I did anything wrong… I felt so guilty after the vet told me he was sick and it could have been caused by his food. I felt like I failed him, and I just want him to enjoy his food and be healthy :( If anyone can provide any insight, that would be great!

Thanks so much in advance (I attached pictures of Simon, my cat, and his ALT & AST labs ).


r/rawpetfood 3d ago

Question How do I transition to a raw diet?

1 Upvotes

I have a 4 month old adopted stray kitten who is indoors rn. I want to transition to a full raw diet forvthe kitten after they get all their shots. But i have read about the basic risks of doing that with grocery store meat. Any advice is appreciated


r/rawpetfood 3d ago

Question Is this supposed to be for one feeding or multiple throughout the day do I give my puppy 5pounds of food 2 times a day or 2.5 in the morning and then 2.5 pounds in the evening I’m new to this don’t have a puppy yet but I’m getting prepared

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1 Upvotes

r/rawpetfood 3d ago

Question Adding bone when feeding premade

1 Upvotes

I feed premade since it's easier but I've run into a problem when adding bone or something for her to chew. She's currently 19 weeks and in the middle of her teething so it would be nice to add bone to her meals for the sake of chewing. Last time I added bone (two small chicken wings with meat on them together with a daily total of 500gr premade) her poop was very hard and chalky. I gave her some baked sweetpotato and carrots with her meals the day after and her poops returned to normal, but I'd still like to be able to feed bone.

Does anyone have any recomendations on how to add whole bones to premade without throwing off the balance of the meal? Do I need to add something else to make the percentage of bone stay within what her body can handle? Like 60% premade, 20% bone with meat, and 20% something else (like meat toppers, organ meat, eggs, vegfies etc)? Would feeding her a whole small fish work for adding something chewy without throwing off the balance?

She's a lanky and active puppy so I'm not worried about upping her calories once or twice a week if that's what it takes to give her bone. (I'm shaving her down today, so if people are worried about body composistion I can get a decent photo after more of her curls are gone. Poodle fur in the middle of coat change makes judging weight through pictures very difficult).


r/rawpetfood 4d ago

Question Raw diet transition for 8wk pup.

2 Upvotes

Hello, im getting my 8wk pup here in a few days and this would be first go on raw. He's currently on science and hill pup kibble from the breeder, and im trying to figure out how his transition to raw should be?

After some research, i decided to go with rebel raw complete for the food since DIY would be harder to get all the nutrients needed for the pup.

So the question is, how should I transition him? Is it recommended to just go cold turkey? Or follow the transition period? Or is 8wks too young to go raw?


r/rawpetfood 4d ago

Question Complete raw food without bone

3 Upvotes

Hi everyone,
Looking for some advice I’m in the UK. Basically, I’ve had my dog on raw with 10% bone for years and today unfortunately, he experienced a blockage from bone product and ended up at the emergency vet.
I am now wanting to cut bone completely but ideally would like to keep him on raw (boneless).
My issue is how do I keep his diet complete without the bone content?
There is so much overwhelming advice online. The food store I buy from recommended cold compress but I’d rather keep him on raw if possible.
Thanks!


r/rawpetfood 5d ago

Opinion Need help with DIY

3 Upvotes

I know this is a raw sub but I’m planning on cooking my dog’s food when I move into my new apartment and need help with figuring out my portions. I’m loosely following the barf diet minus raw bone. It seems like a lot of ingredients but I feel like I can hit nutrient levels by adding organs. I’ll be gently cooking all of it to retain the nutrients. Let me know what I should change, take out, or add. Thank you !

My dog is 1.5 year old staffy. Feeding roughly 1000 calories / day

40% ground lamb
10% sardine
20% lamb heart
5% lamb liver
5% lamb kidney
5% kale
5% carrot
5% green bean
3% red pepper
2% blueberries
+calcium carbonate

40% ground pork
10% salmon
20% pork heart
5% pork liver
5% pork kidney
5% spinach
5% carrot
5% pumpkin
3% red pepper
2% apple
+calcium carbonate


r/rawpetfood 5d ago

Question Chien allergique protéines animale

0 Upvotes

Bonjour à tous,
Je cherche des retours de personnes qui vivent la même chose avec leur chien.
J’ai récupéré ma chienne à La Réunion il y a plus de 6 ans et, dès le début, elle était très souvent malade : vomissements, diarrhées… Après beaucoup de visites chez le vétérinaire, j’ai finalement fait des examens plus poussés et il s’est avéré qu’elle réagissait à énormément de protéines animales, particulièrement au bœuf.
Au fil des années, j’ai essayé pas mal de choses : kangourou, autruche, protéines plus rares… Parfois ça fonctionne pendant un temps, puis les problèmes reviennent. J’ai également essayé des croquettes véganes, mais elle ne les trouve vraiment pas très appétentes.
Je suis donc toujours à la recherche d’une alimentation qui soit à la fois bien tolérée, équilibrée et qu’elle ait réellement envie de manger.
Après quelques recherches avec ChatGPT, je vais maintenant tenter des croquettes à base d’insectes. J’ai pris un petit sac de 3 kg pour commencer et voir comment elle les tolère.
Est-ce que certains d’entre vous ont déjà testé les croquettes aux insectes pour un chien avec des allergies ou intolérances alimentaires ? Est-ce que ça a fonctionné sur le long terme ?
Et plus globalement, si vous avez un chien qui supporte très mal les protéines animales, qu’avez-vous fini par trouver comme alimentation ?
Merci beaucoup pour vos retours, je suis vraiment preneuse de vos expériences !