What is BARF diet?
Updated By PetymFacts checked against official sources on
Quick answer
A BARF diet, short for bones and raw food or biologically appropriate raw food, feeds a dog or cat uncooked meat, organs and bones, sometimes with vegetables. Vets warn that the claimed benefits are not backed by science, while the risks are well documented: germs such as Salmonella and Listeria, bone injuries and unbalanced nutrition.
Also called raw feeding, raw food diet, bones and raw food, biologically appropriate raw food, raw meat diet.
Key facts
- The claim that raw feeding is more natural or evolutionarily correct is not backed by science; its risks of bacterial contamination, bone injury and nutrient deficiency are well documented. WSAVA
- In FDA screening of over 1,000 pet food samples from 2010 to 2012, 15 of 196 raw samples tested positive for Salmonella and 32 for Listeria monocytogenes; most other food types had no positives. US Food and Drug Administration
- Freezing or freeze-drying raw meat does not destroy all the germs it can carry, and several organisations discourage feeding raw or undercooked animal protein to dogs and cats. Merck Veterinary Manual
- Homes with young children, elderly people or anyone with a weakened immune system should not feed raw meat to dogs or cats. WSAVA
- Dogs fed raw meat and bones showed no difference in gum disease from dogs fed dry or canned food, and hard bones can fracture teeth. WSAVA
What is in a BARF diet, and why do people choose it?
Raw muscle meat, offal and bones, fed uncooked, either made at home or bought frozen or freeze-dried.
Supporters say raw food is closer to what wild dogs and cats ate and gives shinier coats, cleaner teeth and smaller stools. The World Small Animal Veterinary Association's nutrition committee says the natural argument is not supported by evidence. Raw meat can be more digestible than commercial food, but so can a properly formulated home-cooked diet, which removes the germ risk.
Home-made raw diets carry the same problem as any home recipe: unless a veterinary nutritionist formulates them, they are easily short of essential nutrients, and a deficiency fed every day for months can harm a pet's health. The Merck Veterinary Manual lists nutrient imbalance, dental injury, and blockage or perforation of the gut among the risks of raw meat-based diets.
What are the common claims about raw feeding, and what does the evidence say?
You may have read
Raw bones keep teeth clean.
Myth
What the sources say
Teeth may look cleaner, but gum disease was no different in dogs fed raw meat and bones. Hard bones can fracture teeth and cause blockages or perforations anywhere in the gut. WSAVA
You may have read
Freezing raw meat makes it safe.
Myth
What the sources say
Freezing or freeze-drying does not destroy all the germs in raw meat. Merck Veterinary Manual
You may have read
Raw food is the most natural diet, so it must be healthier.
Myth
What the sources say
This is not backed by science. A complete and balanced cooked diet meets a pet's needs without the germ risk. WSAVA
You may have read
If my dog is healthy on raw food, nobody else is at risk.
Myth
What the sources say
Germs spread from raw food to hands, bowls, kitchen surfaces and people, so the owners handling it face a higher risk of infection. US Food and Drug Administration
If you do feed raw, how do you handle it safely?
Ask your vet first, and use a commercial raw product from a company with proper quality control and, ideally, feeding tests. Then handle it like raw chicken for the family table.
- Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds after touching raw food, bowls or the pet's mouth. US Food and Drug Administration
- Clean and then disinfect every surface and utensil the raw food touched, and keep raw pet food apart from the family's food. US Food and Drug Administration
- Do not rinse raw meat under the tap, which splashes germs around the sink. US Food and Drug Administration
- Do not let a raw-fed pet lick faces, and pick up and dispose of its stools carefully. WSAVA
- Thaw frozen raw food in the fridge, never on the counter in Indian heat, and lift the bowl promptly after the meal.
- Do not feed raw at all in a home with a baby, a toddler, an elderly person or anyone with a weakened immune system. WSAVA
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Questions owners ask
Is a BARF diet good for dogs?
- Vets' nutrition bodies do not recommend it. WSAVA says the claimed benefits are not backed by science, while the risks are well documented: bacteria such as Salmonella and Listeria, broken teeth and gut injuries from bones, and nutrient deficiencies when diets are not formulated properly. A complete and balanced cooked diet avoids these risks.
Can raw-fed dogs make people ill?
- Yes. The FDA found raw pet food was more often contaminated with Salmonella and Listeria than other pet foods, and germs spread from the food to hands, bowls and surfaces. Homes with young children, elderly people or anyone with a weak immune system should not feed raw meat to pets.
Are cooked bones safer than raw bones?
- No bone is risk-free. Hard bones, raw or cooked, can fracture teeth and, swallowed whole or in shards, can block or pierce the gut anywhere along its length. Ask your vet about safer chews, and never leave a dog alone with a bone.
Should a puppy be fed a raw diet?
- Talk to your vet first. A puppy needs a food that is complete for growth, and home-made raw diets risk nutrient deficiencies when they are not formulated properly, on top of the germ and bone risks. If you want a home-prepared diet for a puppy, ask for one formulated by a veterinary nutritionist.
Keep reading
Related terms
More in nutrition
- Complete and balancedComplete and balanced is a pet food label claim that the food contains every nutrient a dog or cat needs, in the right amounts and ratios, so it can be fed as the whole diet for a stated life stage. Foods without it, labelled complementary or for intermittent feeding, are treats or toppers, not meals.
- Grain-free dietA grain-free diet is pet food made without cereals such as rice, wheat or maize, usually using peas, lentils, other pulses or potatoes instead. Grains are not fillers and most pets digest them well. Since 2018 the US FDA has looked into reports of heart disease, called DCM, in dogs on such foods, without proving a cause.
- Home-cooked dog foodHome-cooked dog food is a dog's main diet made in the family kitchen, such as rice, dal, eggs, chicken and vegetables, instead of a commercial food. It can be healthy if it is complete and balanced, but most generic recipes are not: a UC Davis study found 95% of 200 recipes short of at least one essential nutrient.
- KibbleKibble is dry pet food: dough cooked and shaped under pressure, then dried to about 10% water. It is the cheapest and easiest way to feed a dog or cat a complete diet, keeps at room temperature, and can be measured exactly. Choose one labelled complete and balanced for your pet's life stage.
- Resting energy requirement (RER)The resting energy requirement, or RER, is the number of calories a healthy pet needs in a day lying at rest in comfortable surroundings. Vets calculate it from body weight as 70 times the weight in kilograms to the power 0.75, then multiply it by a factor for life stage and neutering to estimate daily food.
- TheobromineTheobromine is a bitter natural chemical in cocoa, from the same family as caffeine. Dogs clear it slowly, so a chocolate snack can build up to a poisonous level, causing vomiting, restlessness, a racing heart, tremors and seizures. Cocoa powder and dark chocolate carry the most. If a dog eats chocolate, call a vet straight away.
- Treat allowanceA treat allowance is the share of a pet's daily calories that can come from treats, chews, toppers and table food without unbalancing its diet or causing weight gain. Vets' nutrition guidance puts it at no more than about 10% of the day's calories, with the other 90% from a complete and balanced food.
- Wet foodWet food is canned, pouch or tray pet food, sealed and then heat-sterilised, and roughly 68 to 78% water. It is tasty, filling and adds water to a pet's day, which can help cats with urinary problems, but it costs more per calorie than kibble and spoils quickly once opened, especially in Indian heat.
- XylitolXylitol is a sugar alcohol used to sweeten sugar-free gum, mints, sweets, some nut butters, toothpaste and medicines. In dogs it triggers a large release of insulin, so blood sugar can fall sharply within 10 to 60 minutes, and some dogs go on to liver damage. Any amount eaten is a reason to call a vet straight away.
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Sources
Each source was opened and read on the date shown. How Petym checks its sources
- WSAVA: Frequently asked questions and myths (Global Nutrition Committee) (opens in a new tab)
- US Food and Drug Administration: Get the facts! Raw pet food diets can be dangerous to you and your pet (current as of 22 February 2018) (opens in a new tab)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: Dog and cat foods (full review November 2023, updated June 2025) (opens in a new tab)