When Tammy Doak’s two cats died due to a pet food recall in 2017, she was frustrated and saddened that her pets’ low-quality food could have led to their deaths. She has made it her mission to help other pet parents avoid tragic outcomes by educating them about pet nutrition and providing healthier pet food options.
After opening Bark Avenue Market & Bakery in 2009, Doak extended his studies to become certified as an Animal Naturopath with the goal of helping more dogs and cats thrive. The company also features a bakery where fresh-baked homemade treats are made. Bark Avenue takes birthdays seriously as they are always stocked with birthday cakes, cupcakes and cookies for customers’ best friends’ special day.
“I still have a lot of pets to help, because [pet owners] come to me when they’ve finished their leash on not finding any answers to their pet’s health problems,” says Doak. “By spending some time getting to know a customer’s pet’s history , we are able to work together to come up with some potential solutions.”
When pet owners bring in their furry friends who are struggling, Doak first recommends a pet intolerance test, which tests for 200 food triggers, 100 environmental triggers and energetic imbalances, such as overgrowth of yeast.
The goal of these tests is to find out what factors are causing issues in pets and help Doak and his team come up with a plan.
Since yeast overgrowth is a particularly common and ongoing issue in pets, Bark Avenue Market & Bakery offers many options that can target the issue including probiotics, herbal and homeopathic remedies specifically which targets yeast.
“Our goal is to get to the root of the issue rather than suppress the symptoms,” Doak said. “We believe that like humans, health begins in the gut with a healthy microbiome. Eating high quality fresh food while avoiding toxins can support the immune system, which can lead to a healthier pet.
Doak says many pet parents don’t realize how many toxins our pets are exposed to every day including pesticides and heavy metals. This makes it more important than ever to include a regular detox as part of their routine.
Bark Avenue Market & Bakery specializes in nutrition and carries a variety of fresh-frozen, raw, lightly cooked, freeze-dried, dehydrated foods, quality kibble and canned foods.
Doak says fresh food is healthier than traditional kibble because many lower-quality kibbles are cooked at very high heat, which reduces the food’s nutritional value.
“No matter how good a brand is, about 40% to 60% of a bag of kibble becomes sugar, because it’s carbs,” says Doak. “Part of the reason is because in order for a kibble to stay a kibble, a starchy binder is added. And like ours, diets high in carbohydrates, can lead to inflammation in the body.”
Doak said while pets are cute, cuddly and domesticated, their dietary needs are still like those of a carnivorous animal.
“DNA-wise, dogs are 99% related to gray wolves,” Doak said. “We don’t question what a gray wolf would eat in the wild. By feeding our pet carnivores a species-appropriate diet, we see a completely different pet.”
The business also carries raw goat’s milk, which has a variety of nutritional benefits and can be particularly beneficial for dogs who are not eating due to illness.
Doak said her mission at Bark Avenue & Bakery is to help as many pets as possible live longer, healthier lives, and the store is more than just a bakery. The business carries high-quality pet foods and supplements, making it closer to a Whole Foods Market for pets.
“We’re really about helping to change the lives of animals,” Doak said. “Everything we carry I check, and I’m very strict about what comes into my store. I have a high level of responsibility in selling these products, and if I can help people avoid what I went through, that’s the most important thing to me.”
Bark Avenue & Bakery is located at 5615 Colleyville Blvd., Ste. 230, Colleyville. As part of Doak’s mission, he started a podcast called Pets Who Thrive! dedicated to all things natural to help our pets thrive. The podcast can be found on Spotify and Apple.
For more information on foods, supplements and dog treats as well as beds, collars and more, visit barkavenuemarket.com or call 817-656-2275.
The story above was created by Senior Multi Platform Journalist Summer El-Shahawy with Community Impact’s Storytelling team with information only provided by local businesses as part of their “sponsored content” purchase through our advertising team.
