Last week marked one year since I adopted my sweet, brown, curly-haired Chesapeake Bay Retriever into our home and family. We have always enjoyed the breed and their fun-loving demeanor, as well as their fervent passion for the water, even in the frigid cold! Our last Chessie, Rocky, just passed away, after living 13 wonderful years experiencing outdoor adventures such as hiking, camping, kayaking, and even surfing. Yes, we taught our dog to surf the waves to shore! This time around, with busy lives and hectic schedules, I decided to try something new – doggie adoption, in hopes of bypassing that time-consuming puppy stage. I looked into Chesapeake Bay Retriever rescues and breeders all around, when finally I found my Taylor! She came to me as a four-year-old mama of two litters, and I thought life would be smooth sailing from there. Boy, was I wrong! Due to the facts that Taylor was locked up in her crate (barely big enough to fit her body) for nearly all hours of the day and night, had to compete with nearly two dozen other dogs for attention, and never really got outdoors for anything other than to get a drink of water and to relieve herself, she was anything but the Chessie breed I had known with Rocky.

In the days after bringing her home, Taylor would not leave the corner of the yard, wouldn’t eat, and hardly took a drink of water. In addition, she growled and shook anytime someone got near her, and at night, she would shriek and howl, keeping the neighbors and myself awake for hours on end! At a loss for what to do, but not wanting to return her to where she came from, I took her to the vet to see if she could help. Not to my surprise, the vet just wanted to prescribe calming drugs and run a whole host of expensive tests. By this time, I had already long begun my own nourishing health journey, but had not done much research on the importance of animal nutrition. However, this situation lit my fire, and I took Taylor back home and began searching for ways to treat her holistically. I gave her everything from homeopathic remedies in raw milk (which she lapped up with no protest!), essential oils for animals, lots of hugs, petting, gentle words, and probably most important of all – good nourishing food, which is what I am going to discuss more today. If nourishing food had helped treat and maintain my own health, I was confident it could do the same for my doggie!

Here at Radiant Life, we are proud to be introducing a line of nourishing, whole food, pet treats for dogs and cats. Just as it is so important for us to have quality options for nourishing foods, supplements, and other household items for humans, we are committed to researching and scouting out the best products for our furry friends too! If you are reading this blog, you likely are already following, or at least interested in a more holistic lifestyle, but if you are like how I was, maybe you just have not had the opportunity or thought to check into the importance of quality ingredients for pets as well. When I first began reading what goes into many store-bought, conventional dog foods, I was disgusted! Not to mention, some of the dog foods are not even made and produced in the USA. Quality is all about sourcing too! So let us take a look at what actually is in these pet foods, and some of the health risks they pose for our dogs and cats.

It is no surprise that the pet food industry is worth over $28 billion dollars. And with the increasing number of pets in American homes today, there is more and more of an incentive to lower the quality of the food, thus being able to make larger quantities with even more of a profit margin. The most dangerous, and yet common ingredients in pet foods today include things like carrageenan, propylene glycol, GMOs, rendered fats, corn, soy, and a tremendous amount of grains. My stomach is already turning! Recently I got a coupon in the mail for a free pound of treats at the “gourmet treat bar” at one of my local pet shops. Out of curiosity, I went over there and read labels. Food dyes, processed vegetable oils, and some of the nasty things listed above were all present. Sure does not sound “fresh” or “gourmet” to me! Of course, I did not even take the “free” treats. That is because I know that cheap food comes with a big price to health. (1) (2)

Today, as a result of poor quality food, animals face many of the same diseases as humans do. These include obesity, kidney, liver, and heart disease, as well as cancer. The sad part is, they are all on the rise! The real reality is that pets prefer and thrive on that good, old, traditional diet, just like humans do. Even though the conventional pet “food” is right at their paws, able to effortlessly be eaten, most cats and dogs are willing to actually work to get what they know to be real food. (3)

It is so important to make sure our pets are getting just the same quality in their diets as we are. The new treats that Radiant Life has to offer contain just one simple ingredient – real food. There are many options to choose from such as chicken, beef, duck, and cod, to suit your pets’ preferences. One year later, and after changing up Taylor’s diet, and working tirelessly to love her, and heal her the right way, I am delighted to say she is blossoming into the sweetest, most gentle companion a dog lover could ask for! She now freely runs the yard, chasing the bunnies that dare to jump the fence. She goes on long walks at the beach, wags her tail, and jumps up to give constant, daily hugs. We recently introduced her to some of the various kinds of treat options here at Radiant Life, and she had no preference, gladly welcoming every one of them and sitting so pretty for more! As you can see from the pictures of her, she loves her new life by the ocean as a California Chessie!