Vitamin—K

Protein Rich

Skin and Coat
Benefits

Rooted in our love for dogs

We only want the best for our dogs, that’s why all the decisions we make are backed by science.

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Approved and certified

Omni is nutritionally complete

So contains all the protein, fats, vitamins, and minerals for dogs to live a long happy healthy life

At Omni we routinely batch test our delicious complete range at the University of Nottingham to ensure it meets or surpasses FEDIAF (The European Pet Food Industry Federation) guidelines to contain everything a dog needs to thrive.

Omni is made to a fixed formula

Every new batch of our food is made with the exact same ingredients

which not only makes it an excellent choice for dogs with sensitive tums and allergies, but avoids the nutritional deficiencies that may come with swapping ingredients in and out depending on their wholesale price.

Omni is minimally processed

All of our premium ingredients are blended and steam-baked at regular oven temperatures to maintain their vitality

Rather than use unwanted leftovers and unrecognisable chemicals to make our food, we've made a point to be completely clean label - everything in our recipes is delicious enough for humans to want to eat!

Dogs love our food

We did a taste trial with over 250 UK dog parents feeding lots of different popular meat-based foods and 91% told us that their dogs ‘Love Omni’ and the majority told us their dogs preferred Omni to the meat-based food they were feeding previously

Omni is backed by science and research

Omni is the first UK plant-based dog food to have peer-reviewed research published that shows guardian reported health benefits for dogs eating our diets. These include observed improvements in stool consistency, skin and hair coat condition, and even reductions in anxiety and aggressive behaviour59

A recent study, based on data collected from dog guardians, found that vegan diets may be ‘the healthiest and least hazardous’ for dogs54, 55.Plant based diets also support dogs under high physical stress, such as racing sled dog populations7.

Dogs are omnivores

Dogs adapted to become omnivores many years ago2 and have all the hallmarks of an omnivore such as producing salivary amylase61, high levels of glucokinase62 , and having Type D tastebuds63

Dogs have also shown an excellent ability to digest plant proteins across many different studies35, 64-69

Did you know that an average size dog is responsible for 770 kg CO2 a year?

Owning a medium size dog has the equivalent carbon impact of driving a land cruiser SUV over the course of a year. That’s a big carbon pawprint and most of this impact comes from the meat in their diet

Pet food is estimated to be responsible for a quarter of the environmental impacts of meat production53.

The consumption of meat by our pets is thought to contribute 64 million tonnes of C02 emissions per year

That’s the equivalent environmental impact of 13.6 million cars53,56

Our vet formulated food is plant powered and meat free making it the better option for our pets and for the planet we love.

Sustainable & Attainable

Plant-based dog food eliminates the impact of meat industry data on file*

92%

less land

61%

less water

85%

less greenhouse
gases

0%

No antibiotics

If domestic pets went plant based an estimated 1 billion animals could be saved from slaughter a year

The resources used to create meat-based pet foods could be diverted to feed the entirety of the human populations of both New Zealand and Ireland!57

We make food that’s less carbon emitting

Dry, kibble based pet food is up to 7 times less carbon emitting than wet or fresh home cooked diets

Animal based proteins such as beef and chicken were singled out amongst the most carbon emitting ingredients58.

Meet our team of experts, scientists and vets

Billy

You’ll often find Billy running our online vet consultations that are available to subscribers and answering any questions you may have!

“I was drawn to the veterinary world through my love of animals and science. I’ve always had many kinds of pets and feel very lucky to be able to help animals in my day-to-day life. I currently have a rescue dog called Ro, who is the most human-like dog I’ve ever met."

Guy

As one of Omni’s Co-Founders, you’ll find Guy doing all sorts of things involved in the day to day running of our small business.

"I've been slightly dog obsessed ever since I was a young kid! Dogs bring so much joy to our lives and so dedicating my career to helping them enjoy a healthier and longer life has always felt a natural fit. I have a black Labrador called Bondie, I'm proud to say he has been thriving on Omni - and he just turned 15! It was him getting mouth cancer at 4 years of age that really got me questioning if there was a better way to feed dogs, and hence my journey with Omni began."

Mike

As one of our advisors, you’ll find Mike, a specialist in small animal clinical nutrition, giving us his advice and technical expertise on a number of things.

Miteki

You’ll often find Miteki coming up with all sorts of creative content ideas and answering any questions you may have!

“I became a vet because of my love of animals. Ever since I was young, I've loved the idea of spending my day surrounded by animals. An added benefit is that I can really help make their lives happier and more enjoyable. I have a rescue cat called Teeny Weeny- I feel like I've won the cat lottery."

Sophie

You’ll often find Sophie creating interesting veterinary information and answering any questions you may have!

“I have always loved animals and pestered my parents to have all sorts of pets. I was absolutely obsessed with our family dog and worried a lot about her when she wasn’t well but felt so reassured and safe by how kind the vet who looked after her was. That experience very much inspired me to help look after other people’s pets. I have a larger (and louder) than life Griffon Fauve de Bretagne who is the happiest and loveliest dog I know."

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FAQs

Don't dogs need meat?

Lots of people think dogs require meat in their diet but there is scientific evidence to prove that dogs thrive on plant-based diets (7, 11, 31, 54). In fact some of the longest living dogs on record were fed entirely plant-based, like Guinness World Record holder Bramble, who lived to the age of 25 (16, 17). In one study reported by world renowned vet and professor of animal welfare at The University of Winchester Dr. Andrew Knight, the median life expectancy of plant-based dogs was reported to be almost 13 years old (11), which is above average (32) and in certain parts of the world like India and Sri-lanka dogs have also been thriving on plant-based diets for generations (18). 

Moreover, a recent peer reviewed study that monitored thousands of dogs eating various diets found that those on vegan diets lived up to 18 months longer than those eating conventional meat-based diets (54). Another research group found that dogs eating vegan diets required fewer lifetime medications and needed to visit the vet less frequently for health concerns (55). There’s now even data to show that plant-based dogs experience health benefits that their meat-eating counterparts don’t, such as improvements in gut health, resolution of skin complaints and reduction in anxious behaviours like aggression (59). One study also showed that dogs suffering from vitamin D deficiency after being fed a variety of popular meat based diets saw a resolution in their deficiency after switching to a vet formulated vegan dry food diet (72). The take home message is that dogs do not require meat, they need protein but this can come from delicious plant-based sources too (4, 5, 6, 31).

But aren’t dog’s carnivores?

Dogs are in fact nutritional omnivores as demonstrated by a robust scientific study published in the reputable journal, Nature (1,2) in which it was shown that they have 30 copies of the AMY2B gene responsible for digesting plant-based foods. 

They have also evolved relatively long intestines (21) (almost as long as humans) and relatively flat surfaces on their molars (22, 31) which they use for digesting and chewing a whole range of foods. Dogs also have other hallmarks of an omnivore such as producing salivary amylase (61), high levels of glucokinase (62) ,and having Type D tastebuds (63).

The common misconception that dogs are carnivores probably arises from the fact that they are classified in the order Carnivora but so are plenty of other species like bears, skunks, racoons who are omnivores and even the giant panda who thrives on a plant-based diet (20).

Is plant protein digestible to dogs?

Absolutely yes, studies which have looked at how much protein dogs can absorb from plant-based and fungi-based foods like soya and yeast demonstrated over 75% digestibility which is on par with meat-based foods (23, 24, 25, 34, 35, 64-69). Both these protein sources also contain all 10 essential amino acids (36, 37) that dogs need to thrive.

Isn't there too much fibre in plant-based food?

The average amount of fibre in a commercial dog food diet is between 2-4%. Omni’s plant-powered recipe has a fibre content of 3% which is on par with meat- based diets. In our taste test trials with over 200 dog guardians, 100% of participants reported that their dog’s stool consistency was either ‘normal’ or ‘perfect’ and there were no reports of any digestive upsets*. Additionally, recent peer reviewed research that was published in a scientific journal showed that out of 100 dogs eating the Omni diet for up to a year, 90% with watery faeces saw an improvement after switching from a meat-based diet to Omni and 86% of dogs with soft faeces became more firm/normal after switching to Omni (59).

Can I mix omni with other meat-based diets?

We are proud that our recipes are nutritionally complete and so include everything your dog needs to thrive. This means Omni can be fed as a sole ration. For those not quite ready to go fully plant-basee, we also fully support a 'flexitarian approach' like meat free lunches or using Omni as a mixer. Every little helps to bring some of the health and environmental benefits of plant-power to meal times.

Can plant-based food provide the essential fatty acids dogs need?

All the essential fats and oils that dogs need, including omegas 3 and 6 are found in a variety of both meat and plant-based foods (28, 31). Omni’s recipe is rich in plant-based sources of these nutrients so provides the necessary essential fatty acids required to thrive.

I hear a lot about feeding raw meat, isn’t that better?

Feeding raw meat to dogs has become a very popular trend in recent years, but most vets will warn against this practice. This is because the cooking process is vital to help kill off dangerous bacteria like E coli, Salmonella and Campylobacter (9) and various parasites that have necessitated several food recalls from the market and caused serious illness and even death in both dogs and their owners (40, 41, & 42). A published scientific paper randomly analysed various raw dog food brands in the UK, the results showed alarming rates of contamination with salmonella and other pathogens, ordinarily removed with cooking (71). 

Although raw meat diets can offer dogs high amounts of protein they tend to be high in animal fats which make their coats shiny but could mask the appearance of other nutritional deficiencies which may take time to manifest. Meat alone is a poor source of certain vital nutrients dogs need to thrive like calcium and vitamin D and there is no evidence that feeding raw versus cooked meat confers any advantages. Most official regulatory bodies advise against feeding raw due to safety concerns around food borne illness - this includes the PDSA, Public Health England, the BVA, the British Medical Journal and various others. 

From an evolutionary perspective, cooking food has dramatically reduced the rates of foodborne illness in humans and the same principles apply to dogs. Some studies even show that the digestibility of certain ingredients improves when ingredients are cooked rather than fed to dogs raw.

References

      * Data on file

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  2. Axelsson E., Ratnakumar A., Arendt M.L., Maqbool K., Webster M.T., Perloski M., Liberg O., Arnemo J.M., Hedhammar A., Lindblad-Toh K. (2013) The genomic signature of dog domestication reveals adaptation to a starch-rich diet. Nature; 495:360–364. doi: 10.1038/nature11837
  3. The European Pet Food Industry (FEDIAF) Nutrition [ Accessed on 3 June 2021] Available online: http://www.fediaf.org/self-regulation/nutrition/
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