Lucky dog!
Fur mama Shannon Arney, 32, loves to whip up sumptuous meals of caviar, salmon and game in her home kitchen on a daily basis, but the fancy feasts aren’t for her to chow down on — the doting dog parent is cooking for her “fussy” Smithfield/border collie cross, Echo.
The Australian mom-of-three feeds her dog an entirely raw diet to make sure the pup receives the “best” nutrition. And she insists it doesn’t add much to her monthly food budget, either.
“When I bought her home it didn’t make sense that a dog should eat dry food all the time,” Arney explained to South West News Service.
“I wanted to make sure she had the best nutrition I could provide,” she continued.
Arney follows recognized guidelines for “biologically appropriate raw food” diets for dogs. Echo’s meal plans have the pooch eating 50% to 60% muscle meat, 10% to 15% bone, 15% to 20% plant matter and 5% liver.
A dog owner from Australia loves to feed her dog “extravagant” meals like caviar. Shannon Arney / SWNS
Shannon Arney, 32, feeds her dog, Echo, a raw food diet. Shannon Arney / SWNS
The dog mom wanted to provide her Smithfield/border collie cross, Echo, the best nutrition possible. Shannon Arney / SWNS“I started with pre-made raw meals and then I learned more about it and then started making the meals myself,” Arney explained to SWNS.
The key to keeping costs low? Echo eats a lot of what’s known as waste meat, which is non human-grade produce, like wallaby, mutton and tripe.
Arney buys this kind of meat from a pet butcher, and can get creative in the kitchen without breaking the bank.
“I find plating the food enjoyable,” Arney admitted. “I get told they look like Michelin star meals.”
And that they do — Echo’s meals are colorful to behold and show Arney’s close attention to the smallest detail, with leftover vegetables always added in.
A typical meal might include salmon tail or venison organ mix as its meat, accompanied by egg, enoki mushroom, radish, dragon fruit, garlic and heartsease flowers.
Despite the “extravagant” meals, she only spends between $33 and $52 per month on the food.
Arney provides her dog with a lot of “waste meat,” which is meat not meant for human consumption. Shannon Arney / SWNS
Fish is one of Echo’s favorite foods. Shannon Arney / SWNS
Echo is very loved by Arney and her family. Shannon Arney / SWNSHer dog won’t eat anything that’s mixed together, something Arney has to keep in mind when presenting the plates.
“I often keep the plant matter from our leftovers,” the 32-year-old explained. “So she’ll have the vegetables from our stir fry for example.”
The proud owner also revealed that some of Echo’s favorites include fish, mutton and berries.
The dog even tried caviar once, and was a huge fan.
Echo doesn’t like when her food is mixed together. Shannon Arney / SWNS
Arney said that she’s noticed a big difference in Echo’s appearance. Shannon Arney / SWNS
“I get told they look like Michelin star meals,” Arney told SWNS. Shannon Arney / SWNS“My middle child wanted to try it and didn’t like so we didn’t want it to go to waste and gave it to Echo,” Arney said.
Her three kids, 5, 8 and 10, adore Echo, and the owner admits the dog is “very spoiled” as well as “very loved.”
The mom-of-three hopes to inspire other pet owners to look into feeding their animals raw food diets, but acknowledges she’s “lucky” to get raw meat for a great price.
Beyond the plate appeal of the meals Arney crafts and the reasonable cost she creates them for, what’s most important is the visible difference Echo’s diet is making for her health.
“Her coat is incredibly soft and shiny,” Arney said. “Her teeth are immaculate pearly whites.”
