Summer, Canicross, overtraining and why your dog doesn’t need to work all the time. “But they’re a working breed. They NEED to run.” We hear it all the time. Pointers need miles. Huskies need pulling. Collies need jobs.Spaniels need to be constantly busy. And if you share your life with an active dog, there can be an enormous pressure attached to that little word: Need. You need to walk them for hours. You need to tire them out. You need to give them a job. You need to consta

(A completely factual account... according to the dogs.) Disclaimer:The following blog has been dictated entirely by six dogs. Katie has merely agreed to type because, despite several attempts, paws remain spectacularly bad at keyboards.The opinions expressed are entirely our own...Especially Opal's. Hello humans. We've been having a meeting. Mainly because every morning our humans disappear for what feels like approximately 47 years and then come home saying things like... "

"Katie... is this treat healthy?" I must answer that question at least 5 times a day. And honestly? I love that people ask it, because it tells me one thing... You care. You want to do the best for your dog, but somewhere along the way, I think we've accidentally made ourselves a little anxious about treats. We've become obsessed with finding the healthiest, the leanest, the most natural, the lowest fat, the highest protein, the superfood-packed treat... ...and I can't help w

"Feed your dog as nature intended." "Dogs are wolves." "Their digestive system hasn't changed in thousands of years." If you've ever looked for a new dog food, chances are you've seen these phrases. A majestic wolf stands on a mountain. Snow falls. The music swells. Then... a bag of dog food appears. It's brilliant marketing. It tells a simple, emotional story. Your dog is a wolf... so surely they should eat like one? As someone who spends every day talking to dog owners, I c

Walk into almost any pet shop today and you'll notice something straight away—grain-free dog food is everywhere. It's one of the questions we're asked most often at Pickles Pet Pantry: "If grains aren't bad, why are so many of your recipes grain free?" The honest answer might surprise you. It isn't because we believe grains are harmful. In fact, we don't. Good quality, properly cooked grains can be an excellent ingredient in a dog's diet. Ingredients such as oats, rice and ba

Last week, Jack and I stood in a room full of incredible people at the MK Inspiration Awards. We were finalists in four categories. By the end of the evening, Jack had been named Inspiring Athlete of the Year and I had somehow been handed the award for Upcoming Entrepreneur of the Year. Truthfully? We’re still not entirely sure how that happened. Because when we look at Pickles, we don’t see awards. We see dogs. We see Fred. We see Winston. We see Opal. We see Shelby. We see

At Pickles Pet Pantry, many people know us for dogs, nutrition advice and muddy Canicross adventures… But what many don’t realise is parrots are part of the Pickles story too. Our family’s first parrot was Lucy, a Macaw who joined the family during Dave’s childhood Lucy Belonged to Dave's grandad and joined the family when he passed away, she became a pillar of the family even copying Katie & Sister when they shouted "MUUUUUUM" and remained part of our lives right through int

When “viral” became more important than “valuable” There’s something we need to talk about in the pet world. Not because we want drama.Not because we think we know everything.And definitely not because every piece of advice online is bad. But because somewhere along the way, the pet industry became very loud. Open TikTok and within 30 seconds you’ll find: someone diagnosing behaviour problems, someone claiming vets “don’t understand nutrition”, someone insisting one ingredien

Creating a pet-friendly garden sounds simple. Then your dog eats a flower. Your tortoise samples the borders. Your rabbit discovers landscaping. And suddenly you’re stood in the garden centre holding three hanging baskets while panic-Googling whether they’re toxic. The good news? Creating a beautiful garden that works for dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, tortoises and other small pets absolutely is possible. The less good news? Plant safety isn’t black and white. Some plants

Chaos. Mud. Hair. Emotional damage. 10/10 would still recommend. At Pickles Pet Pantry we live with: four dogs four enormous personalities multiple strong opinions and approximately 63kg of emotional instability at any given moment And honestly? People romanticise multi-dog life a lot. They imagine: peaceful woodland walks matching harnesses cosy evenings perfectly behaved group adventures dogs sleeping beautifully together And yes… sometimes it is like that. Other times you’

A completely scientific Pickles investigation At Pickles Pet Pantry we spend a lot of time discussing: canine nutrition behaviour enrichment welfare training biomechanics But today we ask the truly important question: If all of our animals were released into the wild… who would actually survive? This investigation has been conducted using highly advanced scientific criteria including: survival instincts hunting ability cardio adaptability emotional stability scavenging potent

Or: How We’re Probably About To Upset Half The Pet Food Industry At Pickles Pet Pantry, we spend a lot of time talking about pet nutrition. And honestly? The deeper you get into the industry, the more you realise modern pet food marketing is a fascinating mix of: science innovation genuinely brilliant nutrition clever wording emotional storytelling and occasionally… complete nonsense wearing earthy coloured packaging. So today we thought we’d do something dangerous. Happy Dog

Honest Pickles opinions incoming… At Pickles Pet Pantry we spend a lot of time talking about dog welfare, behaviour, nutrition and movement. And honestly? Sometimes the biggest changes come from the simplest swaps. The pet industry is full of products that are: outdated over-marketed poorly designed or simply not built with canine welfare in mind So here’s our honest Pickles take on 5 things we personally wouldn’t choose for our own dogs… and what we’d swap them for instead.

The Science, Safety & Welfare Behind Our Choice at Pickles Canicross Club At Pickles Pet Pantry and Pickles Canicross Club, one thing you’ll notice very quickly is this: We do not run dogs attached to collars. Not because it’s “trendy.”Not because we’re trying to sell harnesses.And certainly not because we believe owners using collars are bad owners. We simply believe that when we know better, we should do better — especially in a sport where dogs are actively pulling, accele

Because social media influencers & opinions aren’t a nutritional qualification!!! At Pickles Pet Pantry, we’ve always had a slightly complicated relationship with raw feeding. Not because we “hate raw.”Not because we think kibble is automatically superior.And definitely not because we believe there’s only one correct way to feed dogs. Here’s a little Pickles secret: Between our own dogs, rescues, sport dogs and nutrition work… we’ve fed: raw wet food kibble cold pressed hydro

At Pickles Pet Pantry, we believe pet nutrition should be transparent, evidence-led and uncompromising in quality. Which is why we’ve made the difficult decision to discontinue our Italian Buffalo DOGGOD recipe following ongoing outbreaks of Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) across parts of Europe. This was not a popularity issue — in fact, it was one of our most loved recipes. Instead, this decision has been made entirely around responsible sourcing, ingredient reliability and mainta

When the temperature rises, our dogs feel it too. Whether you’re heading out on a Canicross adventure or just enjoying a sunny garden day, keeping your dog cool, hydrated, and mentally enriched is key. One of the easiest (and most fun) ways to do that? Homemade frozen dog lollies. They’re simple to make, cost-effective, and you can tailor them to your dog’s taste, diet, and training needs. Plus, they double up as enrichment—win-win. 🥜 Peanut Butter & Banana Pops You’ll need:

Cats have a reputation. Independent. Aloof. Slightly judgemental. And while… yes, sometimes they are all of those things—most of what looks like “attitude” is actually just very normal, very scientific cat behaviour. So if you’ve ever thought:👉 “Why is my cat doing that?” Let’s paws for a moment and break it down properly 👇 👀 1. The Slow Blink (a.k.a. The Cat “I Love You”) You make eye contact…They slowly blink…Then look away like they’ve got important business elsewhere.

🐰 What Your Rabbit Is *Really* Doing ( And Why Your Furniture Is at Risk ) Rabbits are often seen as quiet, simple little pets… Until they: * Launch across the room sideways * Redesign your skirting boards * Or aggressively throw a toy like it owes them money If you’ve ever watched your rabbit and thought, “What on earth are you doing?” Good news: they’re not random. Bad news: your furniture is still in danger. Let’s break down what’s actually going on 👇 🐇 1. The Random Zo

🐰 Are You Feeding Your Rabbit Right? (Let’s Talk About It) Rabbits might be small… but their diets are *not* simple. In fact, they’re one of the easiest pets to accidentally get wrong— not because people don’t care, but because there’s a lot of confusing (and sometimes very cute-looking) advice out there. So let’s hop to it and break it down properly… Pickles style 👇 --- 🌾 1. Hay Isn’t Just Important… It’s Everything If your rabbit had a food pyramid, hay would be the enti