Vigor & Sage gives new meaning to fine dining

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — For dedicated pet owners, taking care of furry friends requires choosing the perfect, high-quality health food for them.

Model-actress Tweetie De Leon stumbled upon "Vigor & Sage" through a friend, but it wasn't until the magic words "gluten-free" popped up that she decided to give it a try.

Although it is relatively new in the local market, she finally found a brand that would prove to be a suitable diet for her dogs, and one that she could definitely recommend to her friends.

De Leon has been feeding her dogs -- a chowchow, a boxer, and a Siberian Husky -- products from Vigor & Sage, a premium pet food brand originating from the Netherlands.

Vigor & Sage, which officially arrived in the local market in February, boasts of tasty recipes made of pure natural ingredients and healthy herbs, and is gluten free.

Specifically produced for cats and dogs, the brand offers a complete diet for pets by combining healthy protein options like salmon, turkey and chicken with carefully selected herbs such as seaweed, ginseng and green tea to name a few.

De Leon noted how her dogs have been "eating pleasurably" with the pet food brand.

"They all love this new fare that they're being served," she said.

"They eat Vigor & Sage with so much glee you'd think they were dog treats. This, of course makes me happy in turn - on top of the pleasant smelling after-meal breath they now all have," she added.

'Fine dining with herbs'

What sets Vigor & Sage apart from other pet food brand -- aside from using premium ingredients -- is its carefully selected herbs based on their nutritional and healing attributes.

"Unlike any other pet food, Vigor & Sage uses the purest natural ingredients with beneficial herbs in its recipes. They are tasty meals that have amazing health benefits for cats and dogs. In fact, we call it 'Fine Dining with Herbs' for pets," said Kirill Repin, Vigor & Sage international global business development director.

"We saw a lack of options locally whereas we've found that there is increasing awareness and standards among pet lovers for the ethical means of pet food production and transparency in product ingredients. We researched different products for a long time before partnering with Vigor & Sage. This is a company discerning pet lovers can trust. Everything is grain free, gluten-free, manufactured in and imported from the Netherlands," said Luis Mercado, president of Rubicon Crossings, the official distributor of the brand.

The initial available variants of pet food, for both dogs and cats include:

Dogs: Wolfberry Puppy, Ginseng for Regular and Small Breed Adult Dogs, Lily Root for Regular and Small Breed Adult Dogs, and Lotus Weight Control.

Cats: Oat Grass Hairball Control, Wolfberry Kitten, Ginseng Adult Cat, Lily Root Adult Cat and the Lotus Weight Control variants.

"The goal of the company is to find ways to assist in extending the life span of pets by finding the highest quality of pet food in the market through brands like Vigor & Sage," said Ricky Santillan, Rubicon Crossings general manager.

Exclusively distributed by Rubicon Crossings, Vigor & Sage will be available in select retailers in Metro Manila. Currently, it can be found at the Philippine Pet Birth Control Center, run by Dr. Maricelle Licuanan-Resurreccion, a well-respected veterinarian in the industry. It is also available online at Mog and Marley (mogandmarley.com), a premium retailer for pets that delivers free of charge within Metro Manila.

Check out its social media pages: @vigornsageph on Facebook and Instagram