What makes raw food safe?
To answer the question “Is raw dog food safe?” and understand what makes it safe for dogs to eat, there are six main areas to consider.
1. Rigorous safety checks & production
Ingredients are frozen at source and remain frozen until it’s time to serve, preserving shelf life of the ingredients.
Raw dog food should be routinely tested for salmonella, making sure there is no bacteria present that can harm dogs, or their families.
Our food is regularly checked to the highest industry standards and beyond. This is taken extremely seriously to create the healthiest dog food possible in the safest way, while giving our customers peace of mind.
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2. Sourcing quality
We take pride in careful sourcing and keeping supply chain transparency, as well as buying every ingredient based on quality, rather than price.
This is why Co-founder and supply director, Tony, knows every supplier by name and has developed great relationships that help to ensure quality in every meal.
Our nutritional philosophy explains this in more detail.
3. Safe storage throughout
With raw dog food, safe handling and storage is essential. This is why all of our ingredients are frozen at source and remain frozen throughout the factory and distribution process.
By keeping meals frozen until they are defrosted by our customers for feeding, this works to protect the nutrients and ensure a safe shelf life of every product.
Frozen meals should be put straight into your freezer upon delivery. Defrosted food will stay fresh in the fridge for 4 days.
4. Your pet’s immune system helps
Cats and dogs have a wide range of natural defences against all types of bacteria, which is why they don’t often get ill from sniffing the bottom of a fellow dog, investigating animal poo, or licking something mysterious that they find on a walk.
Dogs neutralise the majority of pathogens with their saliva, with their acidic stomach acid and friendly balanced army of gut bacteria taking care of the rest.
Feeding a raw diet can actually help to support the gut bacteria, assisting with digestion and supporting dogs’ immune systems.
5. Safe handling is important
Our food is handled in the same way that food is handled for human consumption. Defrost a meal by placing it at the bottom of your fridge for 24 hours. Defrosted meals should be stored in an air-tight container at the bottom of the fridge.
Food is packaged so it can be safely defrosted at home in the fridge, without the need to even touch it. At feeding time, it’s as simple as scooping the required amount of food onto your dog’s chomping board using clean utensils and putting the rest back in the fridge.
6. Alternatives can be less safe
The way that our food is made, handled and stored means it is carefully controlled to make it as safe as possible.
Contrastingly, storing alternatives such as kibble at room temperature, cooked dog food, or making DIY raw which does not undergo quality control checks can be less safe, allowing bacteria to grow.
Did you know?
A recent study to support the question is raw dog food safe? into cross-contamination and raw dog food safety by the University of Helsinki showed that over approximately 90 thousand years of raw feeding, (13,000+ households over 7 years), there were “potentially” 2 cases of transmission.
Both of these cases were DIY raw where the chances are significantly higher. The owner is performing all of the preparation themselves, rather than simply scooping the pre-prepared and balanced food from a container into a bowl.
In fact, when they drilled down on the data, more households were contaminated by children returning from nursery than feeding their dogs raw.
How to feed raw safely at home
With our raw dog food, preparation is simple. Every delivery includes containers of frozen food, which should be put in the freezer as soon as possible.
Here are some easy tips to stay safe when feeding raw dog food at home:
- Remove a container from the freezer and place it in the fridge for 24 hours before feeding, allowing it to defrost at a controlled temperature.
- At meal times, simply scoop the required amount of defrosted food into your dog’s bowl and place the remaining food straight back in the fridge. It can be stored safely in the fridge for four days.
- After meal times, you should clean your dog’s feeding bowl or surface in hot soapy water, or place it in the dishwasher.
It really can be that simple to ensure high standards of food hygiene at home.
Safe clean up:
- Preparation areas should be wiped down with antibacterial sanitiser.
- Always dispose of packaging carefully.
- Wash and dry your hands thoroughly after handling raw food.
- Spray pet feeding surface with appropriate cleaner and wipe or steep in hot soapy water.
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Discover Our Raw Dog FoodFAQs
Raw vs kibble vs cooked
A common question from those considering feeding a raw diet is ‘Is raw dog food safe?’ The great news is that a raw diet can be fed safely. Let’s look at the reasons why raw dog food is safe for canine consumption, as well as being safe for the families that feed it to their pets.
Which is safest?
The main issue with raw feeding is when it is not done properly. For example, when some people make their own raw food at home, they might not create a nutritionally balanced diet, which can cause pets to develop deficiencies.
With DIY raw, there can also be issues with temperature control and the quality of ingredients.
What are the problems with raw feeding?
The best way to feed raw dog food safely is to buy raw dog food and puppy food that follows strict testing and is handled in line with human standard food hygiene processes throughout the supply chain.
Defrosting frozen raw dog food at a controlled temperature in a fridge and feeding it within four days is essential, making sure all food that is fed is fresh and safe.
How do you make raw dog food safe?
Yes! We routinely test for Salmonella so you, your dog and your family are safe. All of our food is regularly checked to the highest industry standards and beyond. This is rigorous and taken extremely seriously.
We’re also the only raw pet food brand in the UK with both RawSAFE and UK Pet Food certifications. This means you can be confident that each and every Bella+Duke raw meal is made to the highest safety standards.
You will also practice safe food hygiene as you always would with any raw meat you would eat yourself.
Furthermore, we have specifically packaged the food so you can defrost safely at a controlled temperature overnight in the fridge, and you don’t even need to handle the meat.
Read more and have a look at behind the scenes of our state-of-the-art factory on our Manufacturing Excellence page.
