FAQ
There are several ways to change your pet's diet. The ideal way is to do a slow switch where you start the first meal with 90% of your pet's old food and 10% of the new. Each meal after that slowly increase the amount of new food and decrease the amount of the old food. As long as your pet's stool is solid and well-formed, the switch is going well. If not, you may be switching too fast. Some switches may take 3 to 4 weeks to complete before your pet adjusts to a new diet depending on your pet's digestive system.
If you want a faster switch you have two choices. You could feed 100% the new food, only feeding less than the recommended serving for several meals. The second option would be to not feed your pet for 24 hours, and then start with 100% of the new food. Again, watch the stool to ensure the switch is going well.
We recommend periodically switching your pet's food and protein base (i.e. chicken, lamb, beef,etc.). This provides variety for your pet, but more importantly, it may reduce the likelihood of developing a food allergy over time. Some pets may not be able to rotate their diets due to existing allergies or other health concerns. Our nutritional counselors can help guide you through this process.
Like the foods packaged for humans, pet food packaging can be confusing and frustrating to understand. There are regulations in place as to what the manufacturer can state on the packaging. In general, "natural" and "holistic" are descriptions denoting the food is free of chemical preservatives, color additives, etc. Organic foods, on the other hand, must be certified organic by an agency before the manufacturer can call the food "organic". Organic foods are typically more expensive for this reason. These foods are antibiotic-free, hormone-free, pesticide-free when labeled organic. Some foods may have organic ingredients but may not be totally organic. The protein source may not be organic while the carbohydrate ingredients (oats, barley, rice, etc.) are organic. The package label will define this for you.
No, the raw diet cannot be cooked. This is a frozen diet that consists of ground meat, ground bones, fruits and vegetables. It is called the "ancestral" diet because the formulation is similiar to what animals ate in the wild before they were domesticated. This diet is very healthy because your pet gets its nutrients (calcium, phosphorous, etc.) in their natural state, nothing has been processed or "cooked out" of the food. The raw diet is excellent for pets with certain allergies, joint issues as well as picky eaters. This diet should be served at room temperature.
We are open Monday-Thursday 10 am to 7 pm, Friday-Saturday 10 am to 8 pm, and Sunday 11 am to 5 pm.
We are located in downtown Lake Worth at 525 Lake Avenue (on the southeast corner of Lake Avenue and L Street, across from Starbucks.
You can often find on street parking either on Lake Avenue or on L Street. If not there are two parking lots located behind Paws on the Avenue (accessed from L Street). Our staff is happy to help you to your car if you're purchasing food or any heavier items.