ONE-ON-ONE
How Sandra Bosben changed how thousands of dogs eat
It all started with Marty, a standout superhero in the world of dogs.
The Rottweiler rescue was starving 鈥� 鈥渉e was literally eating bottle caps鈥� 鈥� and bearing a scar from a pit bull fighting ring when Sandra Bosben adopted him.
Bosben nursed Marty back to health, but learned later that he had degenerative joint disease due to his rough start in life. He wasn鈥檛 expected to live beyond the age of 9.
Instead, the once-sickly object of Bosben鈥檚 affection lasted until he was nearly 17 鈥� wowing his vet, who compared Marty鈥檚 blood work to that of a much younger dog.
The secret: a diet that Bosben learned how to prepare from an Australian animal nutritionist, using only organic, non-GMO ingredients.
鈥淗e could barely walk, and he was hardly eating,鈥� she says. 鈥淪o I make this recipe for Marty, and literally within a week, he was like a different dog.鈥�
Word of mouth took over, and Bosben began making the recipe for more and more people until she eventually turned it into a business called 鈥淢arty鈥檚 Meals.鈥�
It has since been renamed Shine Pet Food Co., and it just celebrated its 15th anniversary. There are stores in Santa Fe and Boulder, Colorado, as well as online sales. And the company鈥檚 30 employees are trained by a veterinarian and a nutritionist.
Cats are included in the product lineup 鈥� 鈥渢he litter box smell goes away immediately,鈥� Bosben says.
The company鈥檚 popularity, she says, comes from a balanced diet that includes no factory-farmed products and packaging that is all recyclable.
鈥淧eople come in, they try the food, they see a difference in their pet鈥檚 blood work and they see a difference in dental health, longevity, level of energy, and they want that,鈥� she says.
It doesn鈥檛 hurt that people adore their animals.
鈥淵ou know, in my generation, baby boomers, their kids have moved out. They get dogs. I have people come in the store all the time who say, 鈥業 know I shouldn't say this, but I like my dog better than my children.鈥欌��
Did you expect to see this kind of success?
No. This animal nutritionist from Australia was staying with me when Marty was not doing well. She writes down this recipe and says, 鈥淔eed this to your dog.鈥� Literally, within a week, he was a different dog. I said, 鈥淵ou know, you should really start a dog food company.鈥� She said, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to start a dog food company. You start a dog food company.鈥� I was doing business development for a big contractor at the time.
What was your vision when starting?
Once I realized it was actually going to be a sort of viable business, the goal was to at least increase transparency in the pet food industry, because the transparency is abysmal. People have no idea what they鈥檙e feeding. And so I felt really strongly about changing that. And also, I鈥檝e always believed that food is medicine and that we should be supporting and consuming organic products. There鈥檚 enough studies out there now that really show that it makes a difference.
What are your best sellers?
Our organic beef, our organic turkey, our organic chicken. We have 44 organic certified products.
What about the cost?
Of course, it鈥檚 more expensive than kibble. We talk about the value of the food and not just the cost. Over time, a dog has far fewer health issues 鈥� they live, on average, three years longer. Their dental health is night and day. The money that people spend on vet bills, illness and dental issues are, over time, more expensive than what you would spend on a food that can support and sustain health.
Do you eat organic yourself?
One hundred percent.
What are you proud of?
There are so many people who write me emails, thanking us for the changes in their animals. I had people come in at our 15-year-anniversary (celebration on April 4) who lost their pet 10 years ago and came in just to say, 鈥淭hank you.鈥� You know, when that vet handed me Marty鈥檚 blood work when he was 16 and said, 鈥楲ook at what you鈥檝e done.鈥� Yeah, it started there. It was a proud moment and, and it鈥檚 been a proud moment every day ever since. It鈥檚 hard to explain what it鈥檚 like to have the privilege of doing this.
Whom do you look up to?
Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, who dedicated his life and business to preserving the environment. I would like Shine to be the Patagonia of pet food.
What has made you successful?
I believe in it. I love it. I know it to be true.
What鈥檚 your advice to someone wanting to start a business?
Don鈥檛 give up. Sometimes there鈥檚 a closed door, and that means don鈥檛 go in that door. It doesn鈥檛 mean beat the door down. It means keep going, and then the next door will open, but that鈥檚 different than giving up. To have the passion or the desire to pursue something 鈥� it doesn鈥檛 mean it鈥檚 going to be successful in the traditional sense. It means that you鈥檙e going to have a great opportunity and you鈥檙e going to learn something. It鈥檚 not a failure, it鈥檚 a stepping stone into the next thing.
Do you have any regrets?
No. I feel pretty lucky that I鈥檝e been able to just follow my heart. I鈥檝e lived in really bad neighborhoods in East Oakland and really hard things happened. I injured my back and was off work for five years. I lost everything. But you know, sometimes I think, 鈥淥h, I should have had that kind of taco instead of this kind of taco.鈥� Honestly, that鈥檚 probably my greatest (regret). I feel really lucky. I think if we just follow our heart and just try to be a decent human being, there isn鈥檛 much to regret.
Ellen Marks, a former Journal editor, writes One-on-One profiles and Scam Watch. You can reach her at emarks@abqjournal.com.
