It All Started in an Animal Shelter

Issue #145

January 28th, 2025

Quick Hits:

🤣 The cutest thing on the internet

🔵 It’s not just humans, dogs can also get a case of the January Blues

👮 This is already a contender for the wildest headline of the year

🚙 Lyft partners up with Animal Planet ahead of Puppy Bowl

🐕 Meet Sirius, farm dog of the year

🐈 The Amazing Acro-Cats are on tour in a town near you

Marisa Hoskins is the founder of Puppy Gang Fresh Foods (acquired 2022) and is currently developing solutions for simplified international pet travel through her new venture, Paws Abroad.

They say life's biggest transformations often begin with a single moment of clarity. For me, that moment came in a Hong Kong animal shelter, looking into the eyes of a severely overweight former breeder dog named Kalinda.

When I first met Kalinda, she could barely walk. Years of poor nutrition and neglect in a puppy mill had left her with multiple health issues - thyroid problems, a hernia, and knee problems so severe that three veterinarians insisted she needed a $5,000 surgery to ever walk normally again. Along with my other rescue Harley, Kalinda became not just my companion, but my inspiration for revolutionizing how we think about pet nutrition.

The journey wasn't straightforward. Like many pet parents, I initially trusted the premium kibble brands recommended by multiple veterinarians. However as Kalinda's health continued to decline, I grew increasingly frustrated and began questioning the conventional wisdom around pet nutrition. If we know processed food isn't optimal for human health, why do we accept it as the standard for our pets?

Working with a holistic veterinarian opened my eyes to the transformative power of whole-food nutrition. Within just three months of switching Kalinda to a fresh, whole-food diet, the transformation was remarkable. She lost half her body weight (from 11kg to 4.6kg), completely avoided the knee surgery, and began running and playing with the energy of a puppy. Seven years later, she continues to thrive - a testament to the power of proper nutrition.

This personal victory revealed a glaring gap in the pet food market. While the statistics were shocking - 1 in 4 dogs developing cancer, 60% of North American dogs being obese - the solution seemed clear. Dogs needed access to the same quality of whole, fresh foods that had transformed Kalinda's health. This realization led to the founding of Puppy Gang Fresh Foods in 2019.

Working closely with holistic veterinarians and animal nutritionists, we developed premium, human-grade meals that were gently cooked to preserve nutrients while ensuring safety. Our commitment to quality was unwavering - we used only whole proteins, organic supplements, and fresh fruits and vegetables, with absolutely no preservatives or artificial ingredients. This dedication to nutrition eventually earned us recognition for creating the most nutritious pet food product in our market.

But creating an exceptional product was just the beginning. Our early launch at Woofstock, North America's largest outdoor dog festival, taught us a valuable lesson in business: having a great product isn't enough. Our initial sales were disappointing, despite dogs loving our samples. We had made a classic entrepreneur's mistake - assuming that solving our own problem meant we automatically understood our target audience.

The turning point came when we shifted our focus from product features to customer needs. Instead of just talking about ingredients, we started speaking to pet parents' deeper desires - the wish for more quality time with their beloved pets, the goal of preventing costly health issues, and the dream of seeing their dogs thrive. We reframed our premium pricing by highlighting the long-term savings in veterinary bills and the priceless value of extending their pets' healthy years.

We also recognized that not everyone could afford a complete switch to fresh food, so we marketed our meals as nutritious toppers - making whole-food nutrition accessible to a wider audience. Research showed that even adding some fresh, whole foods to a dog's diet could significantly impact their health. For example, one study found that simply adding green leafy vegetables to kibble reduced the risk of bladder cancer in Scottish Terriers by 90%.

This customer-centric approach, combined with our unwavering commitment to quality and sustainability (we eventually became a zero-food waste operation), resonated deeply with our community. By the end of 2020, our sales were taking off, and we achieved an incredible 354% growth in 2021. This success ultimately led to our acquisition by a sustainable food producer in Canada.

But the journey hasn't ended. Today, I find myself embarking on a new adventure in Thailand with Kalinda and Harley, tackling another challenge in the pet industry - international pet travel. The complex, costly, and often stressful process of relocating with pets has inspired my latest venture, Paws Abroad, designed to simplify pet travel and make it more accessible for pet parents worldwide.

Looking back, every step of this journey - from rescuing Kalinda to revolutionizing pet nutrition and now reimagining pet travel - has been guided by a simple truth: our pets deserve better. They deserve the best nutrition, the best care, and the ability to stay with their families wherever life takes them.

If you're interested in joining me on this new adventure and helping shape the future of pet travel, I invite you to visit https://www.pawsabroad.co/prelaunch for updates and early access to our platform.

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