Our dog, Boots, is a part of our family and we try to treat him as such. We care a lot about what goes on and into our own bodies, and we have been trying to keep that top of mind for him as well. We want our first baby to live a long and healthy life, keeping his diet and “beauty” products as clean as possible will hopefully help in that goal.
He has a very sensitive stomach so we give him Blue Buffalo Basics dog food which isn’t the cleanest, but we haven’t found anything else that doesn’t make him sick to his stomach. We try to add leftover eggs, fish skin, apples, and carrots to his meals every day in addition to a tablespoon of olive oil for a shiny coat. If anyone has a natural dog food for sensitive stomachs that you recommend, let me know! We are open to any ideas.
Here are some of our favorite natural dog products: Boots tested, dog mom-approved!
Brandless Dog Shampoo & Conditioner: It’s sulphate and paraben-free, contains no synthetic colors or fragrances, and no animal testing. We wash him with it and give it to our dog groomer when she comes too. It suds up nicely and makes him nice and clean without smelling like soap which I know he hates. They also have a tear-free puppy shampoo for $5 that I haven’t tried.
Bocce’s Bakery Daily Support Dog Treats: We buy the “breath” treats for Boots because his breath can get a little gnarly if we’re not on top of it. They are made of only oat flour, apple, and mint. Compare this to Greenies where the ingredient list consists of wheat flour, wheat gluten, glycerin, gelatin, oat fiber, water, lecithin, natural poultry flavor, minerals (dicalcium phosphate, potassium chloride, calcium carbonate, magnesium amino acid chelate, zinc amino acid chelate, iron amino acid chelate, copper amino acid chelate, manganese amino acid chelate, selenium, potassium iodide), dried apple pomace, choline chloride, fruit juice color, vitamins (dl-alpha tocopherol acetate [source of vitamin E], vitamin B12 supplement, d-calcium pantothenate [vitamin B5], niacin supplement, vitamin A supplement, riboflavin supplement [vitamin B2], vitamin D3 supplement, biotin, pyridoxine hydrochloride [vitamin B6], thiamine mononitrate [vitamin B1], folic acid), turmeric color.
Nature’s Miracle Odor & Stain Remover: At 3 years old, Boots doesn’t have many accidents but because of his sensitive stomach, it happens from time to time. And usually happens on carpets. Nature’s Miracle is actually a miracle worker and can clean out any kind of odor or stain without using harsh chemicals like the ones found in Resolve.
Skout’s Honor Daily-Use Deoderizer Spray: We go for hikes most mornings and when it’s warm out, Boots always jumps into the river which can make him smell like a, well, wet dog! I dry him off when we get home and spray him with this all-natural probiotic spray that doesn’t have too strong of a scent but makes him so fresh and so clean.
Nantucket Spider Natural Bug Repellant: I spray the human version on me and the dog version on Boots every time we go into the woods. It’s made from essential oils only, but it actually works. If I forget it, I’m covered in bug bites, but when I wear it, I have none. Plus I oddly like the smell…
Brandless Freeze Dried Chicken Breast Treats: Bootsie loves these treats and will literally leap from the other room if he hears us say chicken treat. I love that the ingredient list consists only of chicken. They also make chicken liver and salmon treats but the chicken breast has the least offensive smell and he’s into it so that’s our family favorite. Because it’s Brandless, they’re only $3/bag which is a lot more affordable than any other natural dog treats that I’ve seen.
Photo by Julia Dags.
