Bow wow factor

“It began with a casual conversation,” says Ashwin Kashyap Raghuraaman. “A friend’s dog wasn’t eating properly and I suggested he try just chicken and rice. It worked and he said, ‘Why don’t you start a business with this” That’s how Raghuraaman got into the business of dog food. On March 11, he launched Bow Chow, which he assures me is “regular dog food. Just chicken and rice in equal quantity, fortified with vitamins and minerals.”

But getting to this point wasn’t a cakewalk. Raghuraaman comes from an orthodox vegetarian family. “I have had dogs all my life but we fed them thayir sadam and packaged dog food. As a kid I didn’t have control over this. Even chicken-flavoured packaged dog food had to be kept outside the house. However, despite being orthodox, my dad is very supportive of my business. He helps me with funds but just cannot accept what the business is all about.” So he couldn’t make his experiments at home.

He also needed to find dogs on whom he could try his recipes. “I actually tried with my three dogs first before I realised they were useless. They would eat anything, even stones.” Finally, through word of mouth, he found 20 dogs and a kitchen. “An older friend had a house in Race Course. His outhouse had a kitchen, which he allowed me to use. I would go there after my run and cook. And what did I know about cooking chicken?”

So the friend became teacher, told him what parts he could use and what he to discard. “I even wore gloves while chopping,” he laughs. “Over time, the uncle got so used to the routine that he would get up and start cooking even if I didn’t turn up.”

Once the food was ready, he would deliver it personally. Evenings were allocated for follow-up calls, asking for feedback, photos and videos. He tried using vegetables, fish oil, and ragi before zeroing in on the recipe he now uses. He also got advice from Dr Pasupathy at the Animal Nutrition Department of Chennai’s Government Veterinary Hospital.

Once the recipe was finalised came the question of shelf life. “I thought of freezing the stuff but then where would I keep it? I can’t even take it inside my house, let alone put it in the freezer. A friend suggested a technology to extend shelf life. I don’t want to talk about it; it’s the only secret I have in this business.”

Cooked by a chef  

Everything else, he says, is in the open. He now leases a five-star cooking facility in Tiruppur with a chef. “So my food is gourmet,” he grins. “I get a chef, an assistant chef and three people to pack.” He has an open kitchen policy so that his clients are aware of what’s going on. “I don't use any chemicals. Everything is 100% organic.”

Each packet of Bow Chow is a single meal. “Just cut it open and put it in the dog’s bowl; that’s it. You just have to keep it in a cool dry place. I buy chicken from friends who are poultry farmers. The only addition is the mineral feed, which he gets from Haryana.” Why so far away? “Local companies making animal feed supplements want bulk orders, 25-30kg. I need 2-3. It took me a while to find all that I needed including the pouches to pack the food in. I buy just 1000 or so at a time.”

Weighing and packing each packet individually  

The food has been tested in a laboratory for shelf life, nutrition, toxic substances, allergens... “I have done my due diligence. I don’t want something to happen to the dog. I am a dog owner myself. I know what it feels like,” he says firmly. While the lab gives the packaged food a shelf life of 60 days, Raghuraaman declares it as 45 days.

Raghuraaman offers monthly subscription packages (named after his first customers Harley, Jerry, Kabali and Kim) across Tamil Nadu but is willing to ship packets across India. As of now, he has customers in Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchi. The pet-friendly Craveyard Cafe in Chennai stocks Bow Chow in case customers who bring dogs want to try it.

Ask him why the subscription is restricted to Tamil Nadu, he says, “I can ship the packets to any pin code that India Post reaches but what worries me is the possibility of a delay. I can ship whatever quantity a customer wants but I don’t want to extend the subscription to other states till have better logistics in place.”

How competitive is he in terms of pricing? Raghuraman is emphatic that he is more economical. “If you look at the premium dog food range, it costs around 642/kg. The semi-premium category around 433/kg and the budget ones around 270/kg. Whereas, even if someone opts for the 1kg subscription, it works out to 125/kg. I may be in business but, in the final reckoning, I put pets before profits.”

One of Bow Chow’s first customers  

He has plenty of stories about the first few months. “Initially I was using chicken pieces and an eight-month-old cocker spaniel choked on one. So I decided to pulverise the meat. So now it’s put through the keema machine.” His original recipe was 500gm of chicken along with 250gm of rice and 250gm of ragi. “One dog turned out to be allergic to ragi. So that was dropped.” He hosted a local Barkathon, a get-together of dog owners, to let people know about his product. He also catered for a dog’s birthday party. “A couple who are good friends of mine were hosting a party for their dog. So they suggested that I serve Bow Chow for all the dogs that came. It was a great opportunity to spread the word.

Where it’s available

Bow Chow is available in packs of 400gm, 600gm, 800 gm and 1kg. It’s available online at https://www.facebook.com/bowchow.in/ or https://www.instagram.com/bowchow.in Raghuraman can be contacted on +916381 955 232