Jonathan Hayes (Hayes Mushing)

Jonathan’s background is as interesting as he is. He has served as a U.S. Marine infantryman, was ordained at the age of 22, has been the frontman of a country-rock band, served as a Maine State Forest Ranger, has authored four books, raised eight children and is now a high school science teacher while finishing his graduate studies in conservation management at Antioch University.

On top of all this, he has spent more than two decades breeding, training and mushing Seppala Siberian sled dogs from his home in Maine. In the winter of 2021/22, he undertook one of his most challenging journeys yet — a 285-mile expedition across the north woods of Maine, for which he was profiled in the recent documentary, True North: Legends of Dog and Men.

It was on this journey that he realized he needed to make a nutritional change for his eight Siberian sled dogs.

“I was using a leading brand of kibble, and two days into the run, they wouldn’t eat it anymore, so we had to switch to meat,” Hayes recalls of the expedition. “After that expedition, I went on a quest to find a better dog food. That’s how I came to Native.”

Hayes feeds his team Native 4 during the active winter season, and relies on Native 2 and Native 3 during the off-season. Upon switching, he saw an immediate difference in being able to keep weight on and better metabolize the food.

Watch his story

Favorite products of Jonathan

Native Level 2 | Native Level 3 | Native Level 4

Follow Jonathan on his journey to Iditarod

Jonathan will be competing in multiple races throughout 2023 to qualify for the Iditarod in 2025. Be sure to follow along on our Native Dog Food social channels.

Native Facebook | Native Instagram