Does your dog need to lose some weight? But you're struggling
written by Stef | Diet

Did you know… 

One of the best things to help with joint health for your pets, yes that's dogs, cats or your small furries. is to be a healthy weight. Overweight pets are at risk of developing a variety of health concerns, including diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease and certain cancers. I don’t want to be a Debbie downer but carrying excess weight can be detrimental to musculoskeletal health, as it can put added pressure on weight-bearing joints such as the hips and knees. For every extra ½ kg of body weight, an approx  2 kg of pressure is placed on each knee joint (in humans, we take what we know and can translate that into our pets joints). This extra pressure is particularly problematic for pets too.

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Closure of our Burley Store
General

Change is the only thing that’s constant. Change can be scary but new growth comes from change. With that said, sadly from W/C 30th January our little Burley shop will be closing. The last open day at this shop will be 28th January 9-4pm.

 There’s been a lot of change since 2020…  

 

 
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The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
General

Well this year has FLOWN by, can you even believe it is December all ready! I must confess I need to get my Christmas shopping done, the only thing I have bought so far is a Haypigs Treatball. Speaking of Piggies we had our first Small Animal Wellness day at Stefs! 

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Mariah Carey Season
General

Dare I mention that Mariah Carey season is nearly here and I have even heard whispers that people have started their Christmas shopping already! Well within good reason actually because Stef is going to bankrupt me with all the amazing Christmas stock she has got in! There’s no time like the present to get ready for the holiday season from presents to planning your dog's Christmas Dinner. 

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Stefs top tips to get though spooky season
General

This time of year can be so frightening for so many, take a look at my top tips to get you though this time of year with your pets. 

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Spooky Season
General

Spooky Season is here, it is one of my favourites for so many reasons! Dog walks in the sunshine, but there's a little bite of cold in the air, meaning it's officially jumper season. Not just for me but for the dogs too! It's important to keep the cold off your dogs, especially those who have musculoskeletal conditions, (find out why in the Groundhog Day blog)

Stef has gone shopping MAD with lots of Halloween themed toys, some of my favourites are,

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Edition Dog Live & Doggy Library
General

After two long years of delays due to the pandemic, a new holistic dog show has burst onto the scene and it did not disappoint! Having subscribed to Edition Dog for years I knew both myself and Stef were in for a treat with this show! Edition dog is packed full of thought provoking articles on how to provide a more natural and holistic life for your canine companion. Advice on training, nutrition, disease info and first aid there's something for everybody that's for sure.

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Holidays and a Cuppa
written by Yasmin Porritt | General

The 6 weeks holidays may involve you travelling further afield with your pooches, I definitely feel over the past few years that more venues are more accommodating with bringing your furry friend along. A question that comes up often is how do you raw feed if you’re going away? I have done it and it was actually pretty easy! Here are some of my top tips for trips away with your pooch.

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Plastic Free July
General

July is here and we are in the full throws of summer! The weather has been fabulous, with the odd monsoon chucked in for good measure. I hope you’ve all been safely enjoying the sun, check out last month's blog for tips on keeping your pooches safe in the heat. It’s Plastic Free July, a topic very close to Stefs Pet Pantrys heart. Stef is a little eco warrior and is constantly striving to make her business as environmentally friendly as possible, whether it’s using wool cool packs to keep orders frozen, or turning cardboard boxes into packing material. Now my version of Plastic Free July is a little different, I go head to head with my arch nemesis,

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Summer Heat Safety
General

Well I’ve already had sunburn, which means it's officially summer time! Not that I would encourage anyone to get sunburn, on the contrary its sun cream time! The weather is glorious in Yorkshire, of course with the odd shower but on the whole it's rather lovely. Now although I love the warmer months, it is super important that we are aware of the dangers of heat. Every year we see the same things across social media, no dogs in hot cars, check the pavement temperature ect but STILL we have dogs suffering from fatal heat stroke so I thought this blog would be a good opportunity to touch base on keeping our pooches safe in the heat.

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Loving them too much?
General

May is the last month of spring, meaning summer is nearly here! Last month we held the star studded joint birthday party for Stefs Tinkerbell and my Lily and Rodney. Tinkerbell has turned twelvty and doesn’t look a day over two. Lily and Rodney have turned four and dressed in their finest for the party. Myself and Stef spent 10 hours hand sewing dog party dresses, embellished with 108 silk flowers… I’m not joking! Some would call it a bit extra, we call it being a dog mum!

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Enrichment and Lickmats
General

Signs of Spring are all around us, bright colours break through our flower beds, from their winter slumber. Birdsong fills the air along with the gentle buzz of bumblebees setting out for a day's work. The nights are getting lighter and sometimes if we’re lucky we have warmer weather and more sunlight. I don’t know about you, but I adore the warmer weather and Spring is a taster of the Summer that's on the horizon. A gentle sunny Sunday afternoon is perfectly paired with time pottering in the garden with the dogs.

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Crufts & Crates
General

March can only mean one thing, the biggest event in the doggy calendar and that is Crufts!

After having a year off due to tha pandemic I CANNOT wait to get back on that green carpet. Crufts 2020 was the first time taking my own dog Lily to do our Good Citizen Bronze Award, one of my proudest moments with my girl! This year myself and Stef will be seeing what this world renowned show has to offer.

Prepping for a Crufts visit is like preparing for a Marathon, here are my top tips for Crufts 2022!

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Groundhog Day
written by Yasmin Porritt | General

January has gone in a flash, New Year's resolutions have either stuck fast or are a distant memory as we move into February. For me personally I don't set resolutions, but intentions and the same goes for my dogs. My intentions are to keep providing a happy, full and varied life, providing enrichment from different aspects of our dog's life. Groundhog day is here and I think sometimes it's good to review and reflect on our habitual patterns when sharing our life with our dogs.

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Meet Yaz our resident Canine Massage Therapist.
written by Yasmin Porritt | General

Where did it all begin?

Hi there! I’m Yaz, very nice to meet you. I am a proud mother of the Gang of Thugs, Lily, Rodney and Peggy. Not forgetting Nancy and Patty the guinea pigs, Evil Charlie the bird and Flo Rida the snail. I am Stefs Pet Pantry’s resident Canine Massage Therapist. My job can be met with elation or sometimes a puzzled face, fear not! Allow me to explain about what I do. The same reasons we as humans may go for a massage, to destress or to soothe a sore muscle is the exact reason why dogs come to see me. 

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Raw feeding Cats?
written by Stef | Diet

Feeding our felines raw is often overlooked. When we talk about feeding raw to our pets, most think about feeding our canine friends. In fact, it’s really about feeding a species-appropriate diet to all animals. Our feline companions are obligate carnivores. What does this mean? People refer to cats as being obligate carnivores to put more emphasis on the fact there is little difference between them and any other meat eating predator. They need to eat meat to thrive.

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Raw food, how do I choose?
Diet

So you’ve finally decided to feed a fresh, raw diet but the choice is overwhelming. Right here at Stefs, we work with 30+ raw manufactures, bringing us a choice of over 3000+ raw products. I’m hearing you, where do I start? If you’re at the very beginning, start with our starter guide. This is our new to raw section. Here we explain how to transition and what to feed. Our job is to help you find everything you need to nourish your pet.

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Pet Dental Health Month
Diet

Given the awareness month we are in, we thought we’d share our views on why the diet is so important for oral hygiene for dogs and cats, especially puppies and kittens! But not forgetting ferrets, rabbits and our many species of pets we choose to keep now-a-days. Although is blog is mainly about our beloved dogs, cats.

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What is the power of food?
Diet

Does food affect your pet’s health?

You must have been hiding under a rock if you haven’t seen or heard the health benefits sweeping the nation relating to fresh food. But yet the only medical professionals still advising that fresh foods are damaging, are vets. All other health professionals are recommending that we eat less junk, highly processed, sugary foods.

Now the most popular way to feed our pets is with kibble. Why? Mainly because we believe our pets are receiving the correct nutrition from that bag. I’m sure 99.9% of people will have, at some point, fed kibble. This includes me, and yes I was hooked on the kibble claims too. In my opinion, their marketing is second to none. Really, there’s no expense spared on that.

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They are refusing to eat?
Diet

So must of us will experience a fussy eater at some point in time. They could refuse something they have eaten for months, or turn their nose up at something the first time it’s offered, which means we usually don’t offer it again. Perhaps they’ve gone off food after being poorly, or what about a classic case of visiting a friend’s house who feeds kibble and your dog snaffles it all up, but once they’re home, they’re refusing their raw food?

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Raw Feeding My Puppy
Diet

Getting your puppy off to the right start Congratulations on your new bundle! I bet all you’re doing right now is taking lots of pictures and videos! (That’s going to come in very handy.)

Now you’ve got your little bundle home, it’s time to think about what you’re going to feed them. You might have already planned what you’d like to feed them, or you might be undecided and want some more information. That’s where I come in — I’m here to explain all.

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What should I Include in a raw diet?
Diet

The most important piece of information I can give you is that balance is achieved over time. This can be over a week or a month. So stop worrying, you don’t need to feed a complete, balanced meal every time. What was your last meal? Was it complete and balanced?

In fact I have never met anyone that achieves a perfectly balanced meal 365 days a year 2/3/4 meals a day. If you do have a perfect recipe, it becomes imperfect as feeding this alone wouldn’t give variety. 

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Is your dog poorly?
Diet

So whilst im writing this, my puppy (ok might be stretching the truth, she’s 9YO) is currently in the vets in a critical condition. This got me thinking about after care, what do we do? What do we feed? As usual i’m already preplanning what I will be feeding when she gets home. It’s keeping my mind busy to think about after care, while i feel hopeless right now. But i realise that it could be helpful for others too.

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What is a raw diet?
Diet

The most important piece of information I can give you is that balance is achieved over time. This can be over a week or a month. So stop worrying, you don't need to feed a complete, balanced meal every time. What was your last meal? Was it complete and balanced?

In fact I have never met anyone that achieves a perfectly balanced meal 365 days a year 2/3/4 meals a day. If you do have a perfect recipe, it becomes imperfect as feeding this alone wouldn't give variety. 

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Should i feed vegatables?
Diet

Should you be feeding your dog vegetables?

Well, firstly, I’m going to take you on my journey – when I started raw feeding 12+ years ago, we always fed meat, bone, offal and blended fruit/veggies. The fruit and vegetables accounted for roughly 20% of my dogs’ diets. I also made special infusions and spent hours and hours researching. Then, along came a pre-made meal (with veggies) which was going to save me a lot of time. And I can’t tell you the hours I saved when we switched. But then along came a new ‘fad’ which said you shouldn’t be feeding your dog vegetables.

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Stefs Raw Feeding Guide
written by Stef | Diet

When transitioning your dog onto raw, regardless of their age, we would advise starting slowly. It’s very important to prepare your dog’s gut for the transition onto a fresh, raw diet.

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