About
Hi, I’m Barbara Rivers — Welcome to K9sOverCoffee
I help you learn about raw feeding, dog fitness, and traveling with dogs — because a healthy lifestyle goes beyond the bowl.
Meet Your Host
On the blog, I help you learn about raw feeding — from meal prep and homemade recipes to raw feeding for puppies, thanks to my Labrador puppy Pepper.
Having said that, I’m a self-taught raw feeder as I’ve been feeding my dogs raw dog food since 2015, and began making my own in 2016.
In 2020, I deepened my raw feeding knowledge through a course led by veterinarian Dr. Marion Smart and Labrador breeder Dana Scott from Dogs Naturally Magazine, and in 2024, I started working for a leading German raw dog food brand called BARFER’S.
In 2026 through early 2027, I’m enrolled in a raw dog (and cat) food nutrition certification course at THP School, founded by raw feeding pioneer Swanie Simon.
You’ll also find content on dog fitness and traveling with dogs, because a healthy lifestyle goes beyond the bowl. Having said that, I worked as a professional dog walker and pet sitter in VA and NC for almost a decade, spending 6 years of that time running my own pet services business in NC. That said, I know a thing or two about walking dogs and keeping them fit, ha!
The K9sOverCoffee Blog — How It All Started
Disclaimer: This section contains affiliate links. I may earn compensation when you click on the links at no additional cost to you.
The K9sOverCoffee dog blog was born in August of 2014, featuring Missy and Buzz, my then-two Boxer mixes. At the time, I was looking for a creative outlet, and since I’ve always enjoyed writing, blogging was the answer.
The idea was for me to write about my dogs while having a cup of coffee — and for readers to enjoy my blog posts while having one!
I clearly remember sitting inside at the dining room table of our rental in Central NC when I hit the publish button for the very first time. And yes, of course I had a cup of Joe next to me!
This was a few months before Missy’s first cancer diagnosis, in August of 2014. After Missy’s cancer diagnosis, treatment and recovery throughout late 2014/early 2015, the blog’s focus has been on dog health. I use a combination of daily physical and mental dog exercise as well as species-appropriate, raw dog food.
The latter helped Missy be in remission from cancer for 3 years and outlive her oncologist’s life expectancy by 2 additional years. Unfortunately, she was re-diagnosed with the disease in early 2018 and got her wings in late April.
When my now ex-husband and I got divorced, Buzz moved in with him and lived with him in Texas until he passed in December 2025 at the ripe old age of 14 years of age. I got occasional updates, but I tell you what — it was very hard not seeing Buzz grow old in person.
There’s not one day that I don’t think of both pups, and they will continue to be missed dearly until the day we meet again.
Meet My Dogs: Wally and Pepper
In January 2019, I welcomed a new furry friend into my life. He’s a loveable 38 lb Feist mix that I named Wally West. Feists are squirrel hunting dogs bred primarily in the Southern US. You can read more about him in my blog entry Introducing Wally West.
I switched him over to raw dog food as soon as I adopted him as he has lots of food sensitivities that cause him to be super itchy when he eats those foods. Besides eating, he loves to explore the outdoors, and you can often see him wearing a dog backpack or a weighted dog harness.
In late July 2025, Wally became a big brother to a 3 month old Labrador puppy, Pepper. She’s a black Lab who shares his love for raw dog food.
Below is a picture of both pups on Pepper’s very first road trip to the Baltic Sea, just 3 weeks into living with her new pack.
My Raw Feeding Resources
Here’s where to find more of my raw feeding content and community:
- Browse my homemade raw dog food blog library — a collection of everything I’ve learned over the years
- Browse my raw dog food YouTube channel — meal prep, recipes, whole prey, raw meaty bones, and puppy raw feeding
- Join the Raw Feeding K9sOverCoffee Facebook group — connect with fellow raw feeders
- Follow on Instagram and Pinterest — daily glimpses into our raw dog food life
- Sign up for my free weekly raw dog food newsletter
Happy raw feeding,
your friend Barbara