“The trick of life is to have the courage to walk down the path that’s lit up in your heart”
– Atticus
None of us dreamt of a year that we have all just had. As a GP vet with 25 years experience, I never dreamt that I would be at this point in my career and life following a passion that 2 years ago never even entered my world. Plant-based feeding of both myself, my children and Ruff our family dog has become my passion. We are not perfect. My husband and 1 son remain eating meat and I still have to cook it, but the appreciation I have for the knowledge I have acquired this year about plant-based feeding in dogs is the highlight of my career.
All I now want to do is promote it and help as many owners as possible to transition their dogs to plant-based. I have proof through the countless wonderful owners who have touched my heart this year with photos, information and feedback about their dogs with how healthy and happy they are on their sustainable and very kind diet.
They say that to be truly happy, you need to have gratitude and I have to end the year with thanks to these wonderful people (and dogs) who have made such an enormous difference to my year and my outlook and hope for the year ahead.
Our little Ruff has to come first as my biggest motivating factor in all of this. Just like all of you, he remains the reason for us as a family to still carry on as such a close knit and happy family unit.
He has kept us all grounded, loved and happy. His simple acceptance of each family member coming and going and changes in all our work patterns, has kept us all calm and content.
He is a little rescue with not a nasty bone in his body and we just adore him…..just as you all love your own dogs!
As a family, we have struggled with the ups and downs of this year, but have come out stronger and better for it. Exams were cancelled, my son working as a carer at our local carehome suddenly became a ‘keyworker hero’; and I gained so much valuable inspiration from my vegan pharmacist son and teenage daughter who turned vegan this year. They were such a huge help when I had to confine for 2 weeks after working with a Covid +ve vet, keeping orders going out and helping with packing and producing. As a small family business, I feel so fortunate to be ending the year filled with such hope for our second year!
I feel such gratitude for 2 important women who have been my inspiration and support this year. The first is friend and business mentor Clare Knottenbelt. She has patiently taken me from very hesitant business starter, to truly believing in myself and my passion and taking it forward to start up my Just be Kind business.
Her own experience as a vet, mother, dog lover and business owner have been so beneficial to me and made me realise through her gentle patience and kind words, that we are all in the same boat and we all hold the same fears and concerns for our future, for our families and for our pets.
I still feel humbled and so enormously thankful for having made contact with the wonderful vet nutritionist Lisa Walther. When I came across a dead end in the UK with the top vet nutritionists here referring me to the US, I realised that the only way forward, was to look closer to home to find the perfect plant-based diet for dogs in Germany. They are so far advanced with the feeding of their pets, and everything is done with such accuracy.
Dr Lisa helped develop the VegDog supplement and I love working with her on the recipes that I have formulated for you the UK dog owner using ingredients we find here. Her e-mails to me are in broken english and all the recipes are sent in german, and I love the fact that I have even learnt a new language this year with all the translating I’ve been doing (well almost:)
“The biggest thanks I have is to all you wonderful dog owners whose kind words and details about your dogs have inspired me, made me cry and laugh at the same time and made me realise more than anything that plant-based feeding of dogs is the kindest and most sustainable way forward”
– Dr Arielle Griffiths MRCVS
Sarah the active Border Collie loves her daily Gold Dust
“Sarah is an amazing girl. Very intelligent and active, she just wants to please. We love her so much.”
Top 5 Trending Internet Pet Food Searches
All 5 top searches focus on pet health and sustainability with plant-based searches increasing by 70% in 2023!
What an exciting September!
We are just SO excited about September where we help you even more with feeding your dog a nutritionally sound plant-based diet
Did you know that fish don’t produce Omega 3?
Fish get it by consuming algae. Algae are tiny microscopic plants that turn sunlight into Omega 3 DHA. This Omega 3 has a number of benefits, for joints, skin, brain and heart. However, fish oil can often contain mercury, microplastics and other toxins that cannot be...
Her ears smell just like Cheesy Wotsits!
“She smells just like Cheesy Wotsits” I just had to laugh as she was right, Matilda’s infected itchy ears smelt just like Cheesy Wotsits!
Lottie’s plant-based diet has been a Game Changer!
We have not been back to the vets for her itchy ears for 4 weeks and counting! Which is incredible with what we’ve been through!
Supermarket shelves could run out of dog food – Hurrah!
Edgard & Cooper joining forces with Deliciously Ella, new Omni wet food, new oven-bake dry food from The Pack, Butternut Box plant-based sales soaring, Scrumbles on shelves in Sainsbury!
Pain reduced in just 3 days with GOLD DUST!
Inca seems to have more energy, there is a lot less stiffness in her hips (the main issue for her joints) and able to move more freely. I simply cannot believe this!
Louise’s fur finally grew back!
“Thank you for saving Louise” – Linda Dundee
See how palatable GOLD DUST is for your dog!
Our little Ruff absolutely loves the taste and smell of GOLD DUST – watch the video!
Why our dogs should NOT be eating pork or fish
The dangers of bioaccumulation of toxins could be harmful to our pets
19 year old Ruby walked again
I gave Ruby some Boswellia that I had in the cupboard, and I am amazed that she stood up and walked today for the first time in a long time