Keep the Tail Wagging is supported by pet parents. I occasionally earn a commission (at no additional cost to you) when you click through an affiliate link to one of my favorite products. Thank you for your support. Read More
Over the past couple of months, I've been testing out a new raw feeding app created by Kristin Clark of Raw Pets Thrive. The app, Raw K9s Thrive, is a simple way to help pet parents transition to raw and feed a more balanced raw diet to our dogs.
The app is easy to use, it has a ton of information, and it's free.
Benefits of a Raw Feeding App for Pet Parents
When I was new to raw feeding, I quickly became overwhelmed and wanted someone to give me a recipe or step by step instructions on what I should feed to my dogs and how much. The two main questions I receive through this blog are…
- Do you have balanced raw food recipes for dogs?
- How much raw dog food can I feed to my dog?
Despite the mountain of information and a plethora of raw feeding calculators online, pet parents are still overwhelmed when it comes to managing their dog's diet and nutrition at home. That's why a raw feeding app is beneficial – it takes away some of the complications by giving pet parents a few steps to follow to get them started down the path to feeding a species appropriate diet.
Why is this review biased? Because the beautiful brain behind this app is a dear friend of mine and I'm a sucker for any product or service that I believe will successfully encourage people to improve the quality of their pet's diet.
What I Love About Raw K9s Thrive
With Raw K9s Thrive, Kristin Clark has managed to create a reasonable balance between providing people with steps to help them get started feeding raw while leaving room for pet parents to do their research and customize a diet to meet their dog's specific needs. The following is a list of my favorite features of Raw K9s Thrive.
Proteins
What surprised me most about Raw K9s Thrive is that variety in proteins. I expected an app with three proteins: chicken, turkey, and beef because these are the most common proteins that people source. Raw K9s Thrive also has rabbit, green tripe, and sheep. I like the wider variety of proteins to appeal to people who are raising dogs that can't eat poultry or beef.
Weight Measurement
The meal plans are delivered in grams and ounces, and we can expect kilograms in a future update. While I'd prefer to see pounds + ounces, the current measures work for most pet parents, and it's easy to convert to what I need.
Dog Diseases
Raw K9s Thrive contains a library of dog diseases, and it provides a definition, symptoms, and possible solutions for each disease. This is a rabbit hole that you can easily fall into, and it's obvious that the author put in a lot of work and care when creating this app.
Organization
Raw K9s Thrive provides a place for notes, 5-week meal plans, and the ability to set reminders. The app even takes into account if you plan to fast your dog or not. I'm a busy person and get easily overwhelmed by life, and this app was easy to figure out, and I think it would be simple to put into practice if you plan to feed DIY raw.
Resources
Many questions users have about raw feeding or using the app are covered in the “Resources” section. This was another rabbit trail that I followed as I received a peek into the brilliant brain of another raw feeder. The best part was the list of vitamins and minerals. AMAZING!!!
Community
And there is a community page that allows users to share status updates, images, and engage in discussions with each other.
What I'd Love to See
After more than five years as a raw feeder, I wondered if I would find this app to be beneficial – would I use it with my dogs? The answer was a fast “Yes!” The resources and disease section alone has me hooked. And raw feeding isn't something you learn and then stop; I've found that I'm always learning and as I delve deeper into the nutritional aspect (macro and micronutrients) of my dogs' diet, I believe that this app will become even more useful as I'm planning my dogs' meals.
In a future update, I'd love to see (I'd pay a premium price for these)…
- more proteins
- a bone percentage calculator (or information)
- social media sharing capabilities
- macro and micronutrient breakdown of each meal
My Petty Complaints About Raw K9s Thrive
Nothing is perfect despite my desire for everything in my life to run like a well-oiled machine. What surprised me is that my biggest complaints are really small; especially when compared to the great things this app brings to raw feeding.
What's my issue? The images!!! I'm not sure if my images are too big or too small, but each one uploads to the side (see above) and it's the strangest thing. So I'm going to contact Kristin (disclosure, she's a friend of mine) to see what I did wrong.
Not Holding My Breath for These Updates
Nutrients in Vegetables
When asked what type of meal plan that we want to feed our dogs, we're given three options – commercial raw, prey model raw, and whole prey raw. I wish there were an option for BARF. However, I can understand why there isn't. How can anyone anticipate the nutrients we're adding to our dogs' diet given the number of different vegetables we can add along with the numerous amounts and combinations.
Premade Raw
Another update that would be challenging to add. I feed a combination of DIY and premade raw dog food because I'm able to source both through a local raw food co-op at an affordable price. This desire is redunkulous because of the vast number of premade raw brands out there (and it's always growing). Plus, if you're feeding premade, do you need to a raw feeding app?
Final Thoughts on Raw K9s Thrive
Knowing Kristin Clark, I know that this is just the first version of her raw feeding app and it's amazing. She's a dog nutrition nerd (did you watch our video up top?) and a perfectionist and I predict that this app will become a powerhouse and a must have in our community as it helps more people feed their dogs a species appropriate diet.
You can download her app in the Google Play Store and on Apple iTunes.
