Spring Cleaning Goes to the Dogs

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

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Winner Announcements!

Thanks to all of you who aided me in getting my Spring cleaning started early. I was thrilled to see the enthusiasm for handing off some excess Natural Balance goodies. And I'm sure our winners will be thrilled as well. We've got a nice package of Natural Balance treats and accessories for both woof and meow all packed up and ready. I just need addresses and off they will go in the mail.

Today's winners of our Natural Balance packages are Tiffany B. taking the dog prize, and Our Safe Haven receiving the cat prize. We'll be in touch soon. Watch your spam file, or write me at AllThingsDogBlog@gmail.com.

Thanks to Natural Balance for providing all these great goodies--treats, bowls, Tshirt, and tote bags. Great stuff for Fido and oh so yummy! You can let them know how much you appreciate your prize by leaving them a note on Facebook or Twitter. Thankfulness is good for the soul!

Finally, watch for our upcoming review of the Bottle Buddy dog toy, coming Wednesday. 

Happy tails!

As a Natural Balance Insider I have been supplied with these products for this giveaway. I was compensated to run this giveaway and other promotional events on my blog with sponsored travel to industry events and food for my pets.

Emptying the Natural Balance Shelf

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

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You're Giving it All Away? No!!!!!

Spring is on the horizon for those of us in Florida, although I realize that many of you may be shaking your heads and wondering which planet I live on. Our 74 degrees as I write this is probably not even a dream for many of you. Nevertheless, I have begun to think about Spring Cleaning. This can and does include checking the expiration dates for all edible samples, pet food, and treats that I have received from sponsors, swag bags and the like. I hope you will regularly do the same for your pet's health and safety.

Today I'm kicking off a giveaway that features Natural Balance products. You'll find two prize packages detailed on the Rafflecopter below. Both Fido and Fluffy have a chance to win in this fun giveaway, so jump right in if you have either a dog or a cat in your home.

The Rafflecopter entries include a variety of options for social media involvement. Pick your favorites, or use them all. It's your choice, but do remember that this is all for fun. Only use those entry methods that you find enjoyable to make sure you're always smiling when you're entering. :)

During these months of snow, rain and generally unacceptable walking weather, I'm sure at least some of you could make use of these goodies that are an overflow on my own shelves. The dog treats will be a perfect reward at training time, which is a great way to keep your dog active and busy when the weather doesn't allow for outdoor play. 

This giveaway will remain open for entry for 2 weeks, closing at midnight Sunday, February 23. I'll announce the winners on Monday, February 24. Be sure to stop by and see who the lucky dog and cat owners are. Maybe you!

As you begin your entries to win the goodies in this photo, here's an important tip. The Rafflecopter is a wonderful tool, but can sometimes hide beneath the social media icons below, not coming out to do its job. It will Come When Called if you do it this way:  Click on the post title above to refresh this post, and you'll find that the Rafflecopter will wag its tail and be ready to play again.

As a Natural Balance Insider I have been supplied with these products for this giveaway. I was compensated to run this giveaway with sponsored travel to industry events and food for my pets.

Natural Balance Dog-Friendly Culture Breeds Committed Pet Food Makers

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

© AllThingsDogBlog.com

Meet My New Friends at Natural Balance

You know how you can walk into a business's facility and immediately form an opinion? Of course you do! Today I toured Natural Balance. As I walked past reception and into the the hallway the first thing that was front and center was the pet-friendly culture. Nearly every office door has a doggie gate. One office was shared by 4 pups who were thrilled to have me visit and say hello, although none no more thrilled than I was.

The General Manager's dog, Chloe, joined us in the conference room for a couple of

meetings and chose my lap--yes I was smiling--to hang out on. Let's say we bonded. There was a moment there when I wasn't sure but what she'd be smuggled out in my tote bag :)  I'm pretty sure Tanner and Oliver would have approved.

Our tour, enjoyed together with The Dog Files', Kenn Bell, covered all the usual stuff--the

© AllThingsDogBlog.com
Kenn Bell of The Dog Files

office, manufacturing, warehouse and distribution, and the best part, the Buy with Confidence Lab. I've mentioned this before but never actually gone into the process in detail. I'll do that in a follow up to this post, as it is even more comprehensive than I anticipated. To say I was impressed would be downplaying my opinion of what they are doing--raising the bar on the pet industry's communication of product quality assurance.

The Lab and Quality Assurance Director, Steven Lunetta, shared the story of why the Buy with Confidence Lab is so important in a multitude of ways. Raising the bar on industry standards not withstanding, he very loyally stated that the existence of the lab is largely due to providing a sleeping pill for Joey Herrick. You may laugh, but he was serious, and the sentiment was sincere. Here's the story as best as I can retell it. My apologies to Steve if I botch any details:

A number of years back the Melamine recalls flooded most of the pet food industry, after beginning in our human food supply. Natural Balance's Joey Herrick voluntarily paid for 22 dogs to have Dialysis treatments for the remainder of their lives when the damage to their kidneys was permanent. Not every pet food brand can say they were that dedicated to their customers' pets during this disaster that struck many pet food companies. 

As the story goes, the whole mess kept Joey up nights, and the Buy with Confidence Lab concept was born as a way to help him sleep, worrying less about potential hazards like this catastrophic incident. Today it is much more than a sleeping pill for Joey. 

The company chose to redouble their efforts to assure that virtually nothing gets out of the warehouse unsafe. Every batch of food delivered is tested thoroughly for  nine toxins and released only when cleared for every single one. Samples of each 80,000 lb. batch of food are taken from numerous spots in the batch, and to my surprise, the ENTIRE batch is dumped if this co-mingled grouping of samples tests positive for any of the toxins. There is zero tolerance for any of the items on their target list. More about this in my next post that covers the Buy With Confidence Lab results in more detail.
As a member of the 5-person NB Insiders, I was invited to visit and tour the Natural Balance facilities, taking as many photographs as I wished to take. While this trip and tour were paid for by Natural Balance, I have not been told what to say, or asked not to share anything that I saw. The information in my posts about this experience comes wholly from my perspective. I was encouraged to ask questions and probably asked too many :)

Natural Balance's Tillman Visits Memphis

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

courtesy Natural Balance TV
Tillman Visits the Grand Ole Opry

Friday's episode of Who Let the Dogs Out features a trip to Nashville and many of its legendary spots. Join Tillman and friends as they explore the area, chow down and get a back stage tour. 

The show airs on Hallmark Channel at 1 PM ET. Check local listings for other time zones. You can watch a preview of the episode below:


You can join the Natural Balance team as well as some of the NBInsiders, for a viewing party on Twitter, using the #TillmanTV hashtag. To keep up on other venues, try following @TillmanSkates on Facebook and check out the show's website at the link above. Enjoy the show!

As an NBInsider, I receive sponsorship to industry events and the opportunity to receive Natural Balance products for Tanner and Oliver. They love their job as product reviewers.

Natural Balance Offers Gft Package

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

courtesy Natural Balance
Front View of our Celebration Basket

We're tickly all over right now. As a part of our celebration over joining Natural Balance's team of insiders, All Things Dog Blog has a huge gift basket giveaway to offer you. This is one of those baskets that will keep you in treats through Summer, so listen up.

The folks at Natural Balance want all of my readers to have a chance at this basket that will include treats and samples of most of their foods. Your pooch can enjoy a Tapas style dinner, sampling numerous flavors in the Natural Balance line, and wrapping up this feast with his choice of Tillman Treats or other goodies included in the package. You really don't want to miss out on this opportunity.

So, just to be certain you're not skipping this giveaway, I'm going to pull out all the stops. Every possible entry method I can think of will be offered to give you plenty of options for joining in. Pick your method or try them all. It's your call!

© AllThingsDogBlog.com
Patches Chooses the Indoor Formula
for a Healthier Senior Lifestyle

Natural Balance is a leader in natural pet food, with a full variety of food and treats that show off a focus on your dog's nutrition. Meow can be included as well. Our 15-year-old Patches has joined the fun to see what all the excitement is about with the dogs in my home. The whole furry family is getting in on the action. I'll be sharing more about their experiences in the coming months.

In addition to this giveaway, I'm eager to get on with the business of sharing some of the really cool things that Natural Balance is doing, not the least of which is handing out coupons to my readers at the link. Their causes, activities, and work with military and service dogs are so impressive. Watch for many more posts sharing updates on their terrific culture of giving back. 

Enter the giveaway below by using the nifty Rafflecopter form. Sometimes this form is a bit persnickety and will play hide-n-seek. You can coax it out by simply clicking on the post title above, and it will jump right back into position. Have fun and good luck!

Happy tails,

As an NBInsider, I am sponsored to attend industry events and am honored to be offered the opportunity to share many of their stories with you. This giveaway is provided by them as an opportunity for Natural Balance to reach out to you. There is no purchase required to enter the giveaway above. Good luck!

Natural Balance Names Insiders Group

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

courtesy NaturalBalanceinc.com

The tide is turning at All Things Dog Blog. You may have noticed that a new flag is flying over this posts column. Today the names of a small group of pet blogs have been named to be the official Natural Balance Insiders--your source for all things Natural Balance.

As an NB Insider, All Things Dog Blog will be privy to information including pet industry news, Natural Balance announcements, and all the fun with Tillman and company. Watch for my regular posts sharing various updates on Natural Balance, the latest on Who Let the Dogs Out and more. 

Tanner and Oliver will be experiencing a bit of excitement as well, and so they should be. They are the mascots of this blog, while sharing their own thoughts at 5 Minutes for Fido, acting as our product reviewers, photo models and more. Their enthusiasm for their new food--Natural Balance Organic Formula--is already apparent. The first bag I picked up last week was eyed with curiosity. When I opened it, their noses shifted immediately into high gear, moving in for a super sniff. If their tails could talk, you'd know that they have already made their decision; this food rocks!

© AllThingsDogBlog.com
Yup! That's the One!

I made the mistake of telling the boys that a welcome package is expected from Natural Balance and I'm afraid I've created a door-watching twosome. They're glued to the street scene, watching for the excitement to arrive any time now. As I write this, we've gotten lucky. Our loyal Fedex delivery guy appeared with the deliveries the boys awaited, just as Tanner's drool was getting out of hand. ;)

The boys and I look forward to having some fun sharing all the goings on with Tillman the skateboarding dog, Norman the scooter dog, and all their pals. Secretly, I think Tanner wishes he could be out there showing off his extreme Fetching skills. It's sort of tough to take a swimming pool with us for demos, so I've got to help him understand that we'll be doing all of our Fetch demonstrations right here in the comfort of his very own swimming pool, or sometimes at the dog park. Either one works for Tanner.

While Tanner is working on his Fetch game, I'll be sharing all the Natural Balance details with you. Strap on your seat belts; this is going to be a great ride, powered by Organic Natural Balance!

Oh, and P.S.: Oliver asks that you stop in at his blog, 5 Minutes for Fido. He insisted on writing his own announcement and will be posting from time to time in a series he's calling 5 Minutes for Natural Balance. I wonder where he got that creative title?

As a NB Insider, I will attend industry events on behalf of Natural Balance, and share news with you about the Natural Balance family of products, their mascots, charities and causes.