Freshly delivered, exclusively on subscription.
Join over 50,000 Aussie dogs!
Try Scratch Food
Premium dog essentials and 100% natural treats for a happy pup and a happy home.
Shop ExtrasAlmost half the Aussie dog population is classed as overweight or obese. You don’t need Weight Watchers to help your woofer shed the kilos – just high-quality grub full of the good stuff, tailor-made to your dog.
Scratch kicks the complication out of weight loss with 3 premium recipes, a personalised feeding guide & wholefood ingredients to get your dog energised again.
Without applying much pressure, you should be able to feel your dog’s last two ribs. For short-coated breeds the last rib should be visible.
This rule varies between breeds – for leaner dogs like greyhounds or whippets, it’s normal for ribs to be more easily spotted. 👀
Has your pup got love handles? Chubby dogs are likely to have fat deposits here and there, especially behind the neck, on the hips and on their tum. Take a look at their underside: a healthy dog should have a tucked up abdomen, behind the ribcage but before the hips.
From above, your skinny legend should have an hourglass shape.
There are a few telltale signs of an overweight mate. Unusual or frequent panting, wheezing during/after exercise and struggling to get up after sitting or sleeping could all be a sign of a chunky mutt.
If your dog avoids play or tires out way quicker than they used to – or should for their age – it could be a clue that their weight needs some intervention.
Still not quite sure?
Vets have put together a body condition chart to compare your dog’s figure to – like a chubby cheatsheet just for your dog.
Most brands of diet dog food are just designed to fill your dog up. It’s not uncommon for the most popular brands of diet grub to be packed full of ‘vegetables fibres’ (what kind of veggies anyway? 🌽), wheat and barley to get more bang for the manufacturer’s buck.
The end result is like a dog diet shake: bland tasting grub with bog-standard ingredients and less nutritional value.
Your old mate doesn’t need a chalky protein shake to shed the kilos. Scratch focuses on building a feeding plan specific to your dog and all the things that actually matter – like their daily activity, their exact weight, current body condition and age.
Scratch takes a holistic approach to diet dog food by calculating your dog’s ideal meal plan and bringing back that puppy energy with whole, nourishing ingredients.
Picking good grub for your overweight dog shouldn’t limit you to the diet food aisle.
With a personalised feeding plan you can focus on the stuff that suits your dog best – like a sensitive gut, skin or coat issues, allergies and food intolerances.
Our most popular option for dogs of all ages - even large breed pups.
For any woofer that can't seem to shake tummy, skin or joint issues.
Clean, mean recipe full of hypoallergenic lamb and some nutritious ancient whole-grains. Great for very active dogs.
Whole, Aussie ingredients
Dry dog food, but not as you know it. With no stores and less mark-ups, we spend up to 45% more on sustainably-sourced Aussie produce.
One chomp and your dog’s old diet will feel like junk.
Better for your pup, and the planet
Sustainable ingredients are just the start. We also donate 2% of our revenue towards environmental and dog welfare charities.
It’s just how we do business.
Proudly, sustainably independent
We deliberately keep things small and sustainable. We believe that work should be calm, flexible and rewarding.
The result? A small but mighty team who genuinely care about you & your dog.
We also transitioned her brother Duke to the Kangaroo Scratch and he too is looking healthier and dropped weight as well. Buying Scratch was hands down the best thing we have ever done for our dogs”
We found Scratch online & haven’t looked back.
Gretel is on a weight loss diet right now & it was easy to transition her to this new food, continuing to control her calories.
4.9/5 Average Rating from
over 40,000 Aussie dogs
That depends! Your dog’s current weight, how often (and how intensely) they exercise and their age can all impact how much food they need to lose weight. Check out our feeding calculator for a rough guide to how much Scratch they need to shed the pounds.
Traditionally people have turned to wet food to help shift stubborn kilos. Canned food naturally has a ton more water than dry kibble, briefly filling your dog up more than a bowl of dry food would. This solution is short-lived though, as liquid moves out of your dog’s tum quickly and has practically no nutritional value.
You don’t need to make sacrifices to get your dog back to a healthy weight. High-fibre, nutritionally dense dry dog food like Scratch can do the same thing – without the junk.
Yes and no. Is tasteless food chock full of filler and with a low meat content good for your dog? We don’t think so.
You don’t have to turn to a bag labelled ‘diet food’ to help your dog. Scratch calculates a perfect meal plan for your pup, without skimping on whole Aussie & energy boosting ingredients.