Our story
We are a small family business that was founded out of the need to feed our own dogs with high-quality food. But what preceded the idea of producing our own food and launching the Complete BARF brand on the market?
I was born into a family with a strong cynological background and grew up with dogs since childhood. My mother was the main supporter of my love for them. In 2008, I registered my own FCI kennel and, among other things, I devoted myself to breeding and showing large livestock guardian dogs from Turkey, the Turkish Kangal Dogs. The nutrition of a large breed is one of the important keys to the proper development of a dog not only during the growth period, but above all to maintaining good physical condition and good health throughout its life, whether the dog is under a workload or not. If we leave aside the historical "pre-kibble" period of feeding dogs from the youth of my grandmother and mother, when they used to buy meat for dogs directly from slaughterhouses or wherever else it was possible, the dogs in our house were fed practically exclusively with kibbles during my childhood and adolescence. Raw and cooked diets were relatively unpopular at the time, especially among veterinarians. There was not much literature on the subject, especially of high quality one, and relevant sources on the historical internet were also scarce.
My first Kangal female Luna was also initially fed with kibble. The best I could find. And on the advice of veterinarians, I supplemented it with various supplements in the form of tablets and powders as well. She thrived relatively well in her first months as a puppy, but that changed soon. During her adolescence, we struggled with loss of appetite, excessive shedding and weight loss, and we dealt with everything with various veterinarians. It wasn't a thyroid gland, hormonal disorder, kidneys, or anything else. My questions about a possible change in diet were answered at most by a recommendation of a different brand of kibble. I don't remember where I came across the website of one Rhodesian Ridgeback breeder from Czech, Mrs. Kateřina Novosádová, but what is certain is that following her advices and recommendations on the website (which later became a source for her well known book), I started feeding Luna with BARF (Bones And Raw Food - basically raw meat, offals and bones with vegetables, fruits and natural supplements as various herbs etc.). And it helped her amazingly. My mixing of vegetable and fruit side dishes and precise weighing of all ingredients were initially viewed with distrust in our family, but the results spoke for themselves. From an emaciated and half bald bitch with no energy, she became a multiple show champion and mother of no less beautiful and successful, but above all healthy offspring, which spread all over the world.
Over time, as more dogs joined the pack and I felt more confident to experiment more with feeding, I tried everything possible. Feeding with various side dishes, without side dishes, with or without grains, I tested various more or less natural supplements, herbs, and gathered experience in foreign literature and among breeders. I would like to say that I collected valuable knowledge from veterinarians too, but at that time, they still tabooed BARF in most cases. In the end, our dogs and their health results were a great guide. And not only them. Since we also had a few goats, sheeps, pigs and poultry "running around the yard" at that time, I had an opportunity to learn some things also from them.
At the same time, since my youth, with larger or smaller breaks, sports have accompanied me in my life, whether recreational or top-level. And with it, again, questions of nutrition. These intensified while studying physiotherapy at the Faculty of Physical Education and Sports of Charles University in Prague and later during several years of work as a physiotherapist abroad, when I no longer had Kangals and delved more into the issue of the influence of nutrition on the performance and health of us, humans. It was confirmed to me once again that proper nutrition is one of the keys to success.
After my return to the Czech Republic in 2019, my partner Sebastiaan and I bought a French Bulldog Tobi and the most important chapter of our journey together, leading to the founding of Complete BARF, began. Tobi was soon joined by a Cane Corso, Rocky, who struggled with East West Deviation during his teenage and later developed, among other things, degenerative heart valve disease. I tried everything possible on both dogs again, but this time only in the area of BARF and natural supplements, apart from Rocky's various joint nutrition and other preparations. Subsequently, Sebastiaan came up with a great idea to get a third dog, an American Bully - it was his long-standing dream. I had never heard of such dogs and, honestly, I didn't really want another four-legged friend either as we also had three cats around us who had joined us by fate and I remembered how much time and work a large pack would take. Three dogs and three cats are still less than a pack of twelve livestock guardian dogs with a few farm animals around, but each individual dog is always a big responsibility.
The history of the establishing of our American Bully kennel belongs to another page, but what is certain is that Sebastiaan, as well as the absolutely great family character of this breed, fully convinced me. Since 2021, when we imported the first female and male from the USA (from a number of other dogs that came to us from US after them), our dogs and of course the children have completely directed our lives and our life path. In the meantime, new frenchie friends have also joined the little guy Tobi, so the issues of nutrition and its effect on health have been and are on the agenda on daily basis. Curing an ill or injured dog is unpleasant, exhausting, and can be quite expensive financially. Curing a multiple pack is many times more challenging. Both the American Bullies and French Bulldogs are breeds that are relatively sensitive to the quality of their diet, and at the same time, they can prone to various diseases. That is why, from the beginning of their keeping, we have been looking for the best solution for everyone in everyday nutrition, which, if properly composed, has a very positive and preventive effect on health. Among our dogs, in addition to Rocky the cardiac patient, there was also one allergic and one kidney patient, picky bulldogs, dogs that came to us as puppies with sensitive digestion or individuals with orthopedic problems. Solving various post-operative conditions and subsequently rapid recovery was not uncommon for us. We changed different suppliers and brands of meat for dogs, tested various supplements and additives again, I looked for information on the now-overwhelmed internet (with often unfounded and false information) and again turned to foreign literature on dog nutrition, now already available at a very high level.
Over time, without even fully admitting it, I have been making all the food and supplements for our dogs myself. From pure input raw materials, the quality of which I am able to monitor, in proportions and recipes that were compiled based on the results of scientific and veterinary studies and consultations with veterinarians, who already look at feeding dogs with BARF completely differently than several years ago. The dogs themselves, their taste buds, health test results and overall vitality have the last and most important say in the production of our food. In 2024, I began canine physiotherapy studies with Mrs. Kateřina Plačková to further expand my professional horizons and gain a better insight into the functioning of a dog's body, which is inextricably linked to its nutrition.
The demand among the owners of our puppies and our friends led us to the idea of enabling other breeders and pet parents to buy their four-legged companions the kind of food and supplements that they had been missing on the market until now. Many months have passed since the initial idea for our own brand of food to the actual production and the final product, and it would never have been possible for Complete BARF to be created if I had not had the best partner and patient support by my side, Sebastiaan, who, among other things, diligently participates not only in the successful running of the household, the care of our children and dogs, but also in the functioning of Complete BARF.
My driving force is the knowledge that I am creating something beneficial and that I can help dogs to have stronger health, which brings them satisfaction and at the same time it gives the satisfaction and more happiness to you, a pet parent or breeder. Successes associated with the performance or great appearance and exterior qualities of dogs, to which high-quality food and supplements contribute, are then just the icing on the cake.
Lenka