DALLAS (KDAF) — There’s a new pet food in town – the raw version! Actually, RAW by Canines First, a nutrition-based pet store has been in business in Dallas for almost a decade.

Owner, Greg Raupers said nutrition plays just as big of a role in your pet’s health as it does in your own health, so he wanted to serve the community by offering raw pet food.

He explained what he believes makes raw food better than traditional dry food kibble brands.

“To start, the commercially made raw food manufacturers use real ingredients equal to what humans eat.  They never use rendered meals, which are not fit for human consumption.  Just to get in our store, the brands have to use antibiotic and hormone free meat from the US or Europe and it only gets more selective from there on out,” Raupers said.

In addition to the meat, a lot of the manufacturers use organic produce, he said.

“Because the ingredients are unrefined, unprocessed and uncooked, the food retains all of the bio-available nutrients that your pet is able to transfer into a better coat, less shedding, whiter teeth, fresher breath and fewer allergies,” Raupers said.

Raw isn’t just frozen food. There are also shelf stable, freeze dried versions of the food.

“Freeze dried is the same product with the water removed from it without adding any heat. A lot of customers just getting into raw choose to “top” their kibble with freeze dried raw because of the convenience.  The dogs love it and it often times gets them to finish their bowl in one sitting,” Raupers said.

He also answered questions about safety concerns with raw food.

“As long as you follow normal cleaning protocols, everything is safe. You wash your cutting board after cutting chicken so wash the dog bowl after each meal…it’s the same chicken in both cases so follow the same cleaning techniques. Also, commercially made raw diets are a lot different than the DIY diets that some vets are concerned about because some DIY families don’t follow the strict health and safety standards in sourcing and processing of the raw ingredients that the commercially made brands follow,” he said.

RAW by Canines First is in Inwood Village, behind the Inwood Theater in Dallas.

To learn more, go to www.rawbycaninesfirst.com