Raw Veterinary Diets

Energique Raw Veterinary Diets offers you a wide selection of high quality raw meat diets for your dog. Consult with your veterinarian which meal is suitable to support your dog.

Organically bound minerals, also called chelates, are minerals that are linked to an amino acid or other organic molecule. Research has shown that chelates are, in some cases, more effectively absorbed into the body than non-chelated (inorganically bound) minerals. However, this is dependent on the type of mineral, and the type of organic molecule that is being used to bind the mineral. In some cases chelated minerals are used differently in the body than the inorganically bound minerals. and may therefore be less effective once absorbed in the body. The assumption that organically bound minerals are by definition superior to inorganic forms is incorrect. When using vitamins and minerals in sufficient quantity and of good quality there is no reason to prefer chelates over inorganically bound minerals. In Energique Raw Veterinary Diets, some of the minerals (like copper) are present in chelated form. However, specific choices were made to only chose mineral chelates that are scientifically proven superior over the inorganic form.

If you suspect that your dog may react sensitive to a specific dietary ingredient, please consult the composition on the packaging to assure whether this ingredient is present in the diet of your choice. Energique is fully transparent about the ingredients that are used in the different diets.

Please consult your veterinarian to discuss the best dietary option for your dog. Your veterinarian can help you diagnose the problem and advise you on the suitable dietary option.

When you dog shows allergic complaints, it is important to determine, together with your veterinarian, whether the allergic reaction of your dog is caused by food. If it has been established that your dog is allergic to a component in its diet, it is important to find out which ingredients should be avoided. In the Energique Raw Veterinary Diets range, two hypoallergenic diets are available, one based on duck and the other based on insect protein (Bufallo worm) as the sole source of animal protein. Both products are formulated without wheat, corn and soy.

There is a difference between prebiotics and probiotics. Prebiotics is a collective name for indigestible carbohydrates (dietary fiber) that can be broken down (fermented) by specific “healthy” bacteria in the large intestine. Prebiotics are found in vegetables, fruits and grain products. Due to their structure prebiotics are not enzymatically digested and absorbed in the small intestine. Prebiotics can stimulate the growth healthy gut bacteria (probioticsin the large intestine.

These healthy bacteria will help the body in preventing growth of pathogenic bacteria in the gut. That is why prebiotics are important for healthy intestines, because they serve as source of energy for healthy bacteria, herewith stimulating their growth.

Probiotics are strains bacteria that are thought to be beneficial for gut health, like Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria in humans. The beneficial effects of probiotics are not always clear because the type of bacteria that are perceived as healthy can vary between animal species. Feeding of Yakult or tripe as probiotics is a popular trend to add probiotic bacteria to the diet of the dog. However, the question is whether the bacteria in Yakult are beneficial for the dog, as they are adapted to the digestion of people. The same holds true for tripe, as the bacteria present in the rumen are species specific for cattle.

The use of prebiotics, herewith stimulating the growth of the species specific probiotics in the animal's own intestinal tract is preferred.

Absolutely! The meaty backs that are processed in Energique Raw Veterinary Diets are finely ground and do not contain any compact bones (e.g. long bones) that are hard to digest. This assures the diets being safe to small breeds too. By only using the back parts of the animal, the diets are also guaranteed free of thyroid tissue.

When stored deeply frozen (at -18 degrees Celsius) and in an unopened package, the shelf life of Energique Raw Veterinary Diets is 2 years after production date (which is printed on the package). After thawing the diets in the refrigerator, the diets stay fresh for up to 3 days at a maximum of 7 degrees Celsius.

Energique Raw Veterinary Diets do not contain any colorants and/or flavoring agents. The color of the diet is thus solely determined by the natural ingredients. This may cause small color differences from batch to batch.

Veterinarians are regularly confronted with dogs that are fed with raw diets that contain throats of cattle or necks and ventral carcass parts of poultry. This predisposes dogs to ingestion of thyroid tissue, which may lead to a high concentration of thyroid hormone in the blood. This may cause serious health disorders in dogs, like weight loss, muscle wasting, unkempt coat, heart arrhythmia, and breathing difficulties.

In order to exclude these risks, the Energique Raw Veterinary Diets do not process any throats, necks, and ventral carcass parts in the diets. Only fleshed back parts of the carcass are used in the diets, to prevent presence of thyroid glands in the products.

No, Energique Raw Veterinary Diets are not suitable for cats. Cats generally have a higher protein requirement than dogs, and need extra additives in the diet, such as taurine. Many of the conditions for which RAW diets have been developed are specifically tailored to changing needs in the dog and are not optimally suited to tret the same disease conditions in cats.

Energique Raw Hypoallergenic Insect has a very low fat content, making its slightly drier in structure compared to the other RAW diets. This has major advantages in the treatment of chronic complaints in the gastrointestinal tract, but has a disadvantage when it comes to smoothness and taste of the diet. To help a picky eater transfer to the Hypoallergenic Insect, we advise you to add some lukewarm water to the diet. This way extra fragrances are released from the ingredients, and the diet becomes less dry.

Contrary to popular belief, using five or more different animal species to formulate a diet is not an adequate measure to assure a complete and balanced diet. There is little variation in nutrient composition between animal material from different animal species and also from different body parts of the same animal. The table below shows the nutritional composition of some ingredients and animal species frequently used in BARF diets(Dillitzer et al, Br J Nutr, 2011, USDA database (https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/)). From this table it can be concluded that the variation in (micro) minerals and vitamins is very small. Using a variety of animal species or carcass component is no direct solution to prevent mineral and vitamin deficiencies in the diet.

Mixing kibble and fresh meat can be regarded as a safe option. The stomach pH normally becomes low enough for proper digestion, and there is no such thing as "sagging or floating in the stomach". The stomach is not a glass of water, but an organ that is constantly in motion to mix the food slurry with the digestive juices. So feel free to mix your dog’s kibble with some fresh meat. However, when handling regular raw meat, always ensure good hygiene to prevent contaminating your own environment with potential harmful bacteria as much as possible.

With regard to pressed or extruded kibble, both can be mixed with raw meat without any problem. However, if your dog is treated with gastric acid inhibitors or has a history of reacting sensitive to feed changes, be more cautious with feed changes and mixing different feed products, and try to find a type of food that will suit your dog best.

Research has shown that the stomach pH of the dog does not differ when it is being fed kibble or raw meat. This seems only logical, as in the stomach protein digestion takes place, involving enzymes that are optimally effective at these lower pH values. The stomach contains sensors that closely monitor the acidity of the stomach and stimulate the release of extra gastric acid when the stomach pH becomes too high. In this way the acidity of the stomach is optimally adjusted to the size and type of the meal, so that the enzymes can optimally function and an effective digestion can take place.

The added minerals and vitamins are not synthetic. After all, you cannot "make" iron, copper, manganese or zinc in a laboratory. These are elements from the periodic table. As far as the vitamins are concerned, these are extracted from natural sources such as yeasts, fungi or produced by bacteria. Synthetically fabricated substances, like the anti-oxidants BHT or BHA, are not used in Energique products.

The preservation of the Energique/RAW Veterinary Diets is achieved by deep-freezing, and the vitamins (eg. vitamin A and vitamin E) are only added to cover the needs of the animal and not to keep the products fresh. Energique/RAW Veterinary Diets are guaranteed free of aromatic substances, colorant and flavoring agents.

At Energique, we routinely perform nutrient analyses on all our diets by sending samples to independent accredited laboratories. This gained us some knowledge with regard to nutrients imbalances that frequently occur in raw materials of animal origin. We add these vitamins and minerals to our diets, so that your dog can enjoy a complete and balanced meal on a daily basis.

It may be interesting to realize that this also happens in human nutrition. Growing children are prescribed extra vitamin D drops because experience has shown that there are otherwise shortages in the diet, which adversely affects the bone growth of children. Iodine-containing salt is added to our bread so that we do not develop an iodine deficiency. Our margarine is enriched with vitamins A and D, so that we can consume sufficient amounts of those vitamins as adults.

Some raw feed manufacturers and owners adhere to the philosophy that adding vitamins and minerals would not be necessary, as a wolf does not receive extra vitamins and minerals in nature. However, research has shown that animals in nature are faced with deficiencies (shortages) in nutrients on a large scale. This is one of the reasons why the lifespan of an animal in nature is significantly reduced compared to their domesticated counterparts. So, if an animal receives a specific diet on a long-term basis, then this diet will have to contain additional vitamins and minerals to keep the animal healthy on a longer term. Our vitamins and mineral mixtures are completely tailored to our products to provide these supplements in a balanced way. We thus made a conscious decision not to follow the trend that vitamin and mineral additions are "not natural", but to make good and complete products instead, which you can safely to your dog for a long time.