Raw, Fresh and Kibble - What Should You Feed Your Cavoodle?
We know first hand just how fussy cavoodles can be and a common question we get asked from Cavoodle owners “what should i feed my cavoodle”. Should I give them kibble, raw or fresh food?
We asked that question to Chef Esther at Jack and Chelo and she shared some interesting insights to help you work out what is best for your cavoodle.
Jack and Chelo are a Tasmanian dog food brand that make delicious meals for dogs, using the best quality Tassie meat and seafood. Chef Esther started the biz in 2019 after the diagnosis of cushings disease in her little maltese shihtzu named Jack. Esther now has a full production team, commercial kitchen and warehouse, and ships her meals Australia wide.
She's super knowledgeable in fresh feeding, raw, kibble and treats, and breaks it down in simple terminology to easier understand. We've asked her to answer some hot topic questions!
Q. What is the difference between Raw, Fresh and Kibble?
A. I'm a chef by trade, so everything I learnt was from a food safety position first, then taste/ flavour and then nutrition. At a very simple high level, Raw is uncooked in its natural state, fresh meals are cooked and taken to a low temperature, but hot enough to ensure pasteurisation, and lastly kibble is heated to very high temperatures which reach a sterilisation point.
Q. Are all of these foods safe from a food safety point and nutritional point of view?
A. Raw feeding can be very safe, but it has so many variables, including where you source the meat from, and how it is handled. Some dangerous bacteria such as salmonella and listeria can be found in raw meat and fish, and without cooking, it can't be killed. Many vets will advise against it because of these risks. Nutritionally, it can be a great source of nutrients as nothing has been depleted during the cook step.
Fresh cooked meals such as ours, are cooked at 90 degrees which not only kills dangerous bacteria, but it ensures the temperature is not high enough to destroy the nutrients found in the food itself. It is safe for dogs, but also safe when you or your children touch it (my toddler is always playing with my dog's food bowl- so this puts my mind at ease!). Nutritionally it is a super powerful way to feed your dog, with nutrients, colour and flavour retained.
Kibble as stated above is "sterilised" which doesn't sounds great does it. Sterilisation essentially kills off all living bacteria and good things for your dogs gut biome. It kills off all nutrients, so the manufacturers have to add back in synthetic vitamins and minerals to make it balanced for your dog. It is also often very high in carbohydrates and starch- don't be fooled by the images of steak and chicken breasts on the front of the pack!
Q. There seem to be so many fresh food options these days- what makes Jack and Chelo stand out from the others?
A. Such a great question and so many things set us aside from the others!
I think as I mentioned above, this business was started by myself from a 'chef' mindset. The meals weren't just created to tick the boxes on a nutritional spreadsheet, they were created for my two little dogs Jack and Chelo and I went through trial and error as to what combinations they liked and what they didn't.
I was able to use chef techniques, which we still use to this day! We add our house made bone broths into every meal for flavour, we add whole pieces of meat that you can actually see, we slow cook our lamb shoulder on the bone and then pull it by hand, and then finally each pack is cooked sous vide, ensuring a stable slow cook process which keeps all that delicious flavour and juices in each bag. The effort we go to for each meal is above and beyond what other fresh food options do in my opinion.
Q. Would Jack and Chelo meals suit cavoodles or oodle breeds?
A. 100% and in all honesty I started this business with the small dog front of mind, knowing how fussy they are! (It was only after 12 months in business that I removed our "small dog" tagline because we started getting requests for larger packs for big dogs).
Our meals are nutritional balanced to meet AAFCO standards for all life stages (see more on that in the puppy question below), and in fact they exceed the standards. We have brilliant reviews online about how dogs are thriving on our food.
Q. How about if I have a fussy eater?
A. I can say confidently that our Jack and Chelo meals are fussy dog approved! Yes, I know, some dogs are insanely fussy. So I won't claim that they will eat all our flavours, for example, he fishy one and the wallaby are often less popular, What I would say if you have a fussy eater is to start off with the chicken chia meal (our best seller), then the beef and then the chicken and egg recipe. These 3 tend to appeal to the fussy dogs most, with our lamb and spinach meals coming in closely behind.
Top tip (If you don’t do this already), heat our meals for 20 seconds in the microwave. Dogs are instinctively driven to eat by their sense of smell. If the
food smells good, they will give it a try. Smell is released through heat- therefore heating food releases more smell and signals for your dog to eat it.
Q. I've just got a new puppy, when could I start them on your food?
A. Great question! Some breeders are actually weening their pups onto solids with our food! It is totally safe to use our food from this moment, but every change in your dogs diet has to be gradual. Find out from your breeder what they have been eating. If they have had some form of fresh food that's great. The transition time won't be as onerous. Just start with 25% our food every second day and build it up to every day, then 50%, then 75% and so on. Their tummies need time to adjust.
In terms of meal selection, 4 of our 6 meals are balanced for puppies. For puppies we recommend sticking with the two chicken flavours, the lamb and the wallaby. Both the beef and salmon are balanced for adult dogs only, so the official recommendation is to just start these from 12 months of age. (However- side technical note, our beef and salmon meals are still very safe to feed puppies, however as they are not balanced for them, it can't be their sole diet every day.)
Q. Where can we find out more?
A. You can find a bunch of into on our website www.jackandchelo.com.au
This shares all theingredients of each meal, plus we have a great range of single protein treats, with the meat sourced from our gorgeous island state of Tasmania.
Be sure to follow us on socials too! I am most active on instagram and facebook. There are some videos there you can watch, about deep diving into our ingredients and other quirky doggo stuff!
Q. Oh lastly you said you deliver Australia wide? How do the deliveries come?
A. Yes! We've been servicing most states for the past 4 years with Australia and now have courier services that deliver door to door using chilled freight. Your order will come on a day you select (probably between Friday-Monday) in a chilled truck, and left at your front door in an insulated box. Orders need to be received by Sunday midnight, to arrive the following weekend. The meals inside will be frozen ready to pop in your freezer.
Use the code MYCAVOODLE to get $20 off your first TWO subscription orders
We hope this answers your questions about the differences in food types and what might best for your cavoodle
