Marty's Meals is a holistic pet-food company based in Santa Fe, NM and in Boulder, CO that makes a wide range of sustainably sourced raw and gently cooked food for both cats and dogs. Now, at first the link between pet food and Modern Home Economics might not be apparent, so let me explain.
I believe that good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle applies to the whole family, fuzzy faces included. Too often we end up spending thousands on our pets when they fall ill, and unfortunately a lot of these illnesses can be prevented through diet because just like us, good nutrition equals good health. I'm not saying that nutrition cures everything, but it sure does make a big difference in overall health. Food as medicine was the focus of my nutrition studies, and that concept is now being recognized as an important factor in health by medical doctors as well. This idea of how what you eat affects your health applies to our pets too.
When we first got our dog, Buster, we started feeding him a raw diet because through our research we had learned that it was one of the healthiest things you can do for your pet. There are a lot of different raw foods out there; usually at pet food stores you'll find either frozen raw patties or dehydrated raw food. As Sandy says in the interview, you can even make your own food too. While I am all about DIY'ing things, sometimes you just have to be realistic with what you have time for and what you don't, and I decided that I would rather find a good source to buy pet food rather than spending time making it.
While I did want to find a nutritious prepared pet food, I also really wanted to find a food company that ethically and sustainably sourced the ingredients used and I was really excited when I found Marty's Meals. Because at the end of the day it isn't just about what we are feeding our animals, it's so much bigger. Sandy says that "With every ingredient we source for our pet food, we consider what it means to our carbon footprint, to our customers and their pets, and to our local economy". You can read more about why avoiding factory farmed meats is important as well as Sandy's sustainable business practices here. Sandy goes into more detail in the interview so be sure to listen to the end to hear about Marty's Meals' triple bottom line.
I hope you enjoy today's episode! Head on over to the Marty's Meals Website for more information about their company and raw pet food. Do you feed your pet a special diet or is there anything in particular they love to eat? Let me know in the comments below!