Honest Kitchen Dog Food (Dehydrated)

by Mike Sagman
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Rating: ★★★★½

The Honest Kitchen Dog Food earns the Advisor’s above-average rating of 4.5 stars.

Not including the do-it-yourself meatless pre-mix (Preference), the Honest Kitchen product line lists 7 dehydrated raw dog foods, 4 meeting AAFCO nutrient profiles for adult maintenance and 3 for all life stages (Thrive, Embark and Love).

  • The Honest Kitchen Verve1
  • The Honest Kitchen Thrive2
  • The Honest Kitchen Zeal3 (5 stars)
  • The Honest Kitchen Love4 (5 stars)
  • The Honest Kitchen Keen5 (3 stars)
  • The Honest Kitchen Force6 (3 stars)
  • The Honest Kitchen Embark7 (5 stars)

Honest Kitchen Thrive was selected to represent the others in the line for this review.

Honest Kitchen Thrive

Dehydrated Dog Food

Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content

Protein = 28% | Fat = 21% | Carbs = 44%

Ingredients: Dehydrated free-range chicken, organic fair-trade quinoa, sweet potatoes, spinach, parsley, organic kelp, rosemary, tricalcium phosphate, choline chloride, zinc amino acid chelate, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, potassium iodide, potassium chloride, iron amino acid chelate, copper amino acid chelate

Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 6.8%

Red items when present indicate controversial ingredients

Estimated Nutrient Content
MethodProteinFatCarbs
Guaranteed Analysis26%19%NA
Dry Matter Basis28%21%44%
Calorie Weighted Basis23%41%36%

The first item in this dog food is dehydrated free-range chicken. Chicken is considered “the clean combination of flesh and skin… derived from the parts or whole carcasses of chicken”.8

Chicken is naturally rich in the ten essential amino acids required by a dog to sustain life.

The second ingredient is quinoa. Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) is not a true cereal grain… but is prized for its gluten-free seeds.

Compared to most other grain-type ingredients, it is high in protein (about 12-18%), fiber and other healthy nutrients. This is a quality non-meat component.

The third ingredient is sweet potato. Sweet potatoes are a good source of complex carbohydrates in a dog food. They are naturally rich in fiber, beta carotene and other healthy nutrients.

The next three items include a series of nutrient-rich vegetables…

  • Spinach
  • Parsley
  • Kelp

We note all the products contain chelated minerals… minerals that have been chemically attached to protein. This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are usually found in better dog foods.

Honest Kitchen Dehydrated Dog Food
The Bottom Line

Before we conclude, it’s worth noting The Honest Kitchen has taken the rather unusual step of applying for (and actually receiving) FDA approval to label its pet foods “human grade“.

The company only uses human-edible components and produces all its products in a human food manufacturing facility.

So, judging by its ingredients alone, the Honest Kitchen appears to be a superior dog food.

But ingredient quality by itself cannot tell the whole story. We still need to estimate the product’s meat content before determining a final rating.

The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 28%, a fat level of 20% and estimated carbohydrates of about 44%.

Due to its apparently higher meat content, Zeal was upgraded to our 5-star category.

As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 29% and a mean fat level of 16%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 47% for the overall product line.

Near-average protein. Near-average fat. And near-average carbs when compared to a typical dry dog food.

Free of any plant-based protein boosters, this looks like the profile of a dehydrated dog food containing a moderate amount of meat.

Bottom line?

The Honest Kitchen is a plant-based raw dehydrated dog food using a moderate amount of assorted and named species as its main sources of animal protein, thus earning the brand 4.5 stars.

Highly recommended.

Special Alert

Rice ingredients can sometimes contain arsenic. Until the US FDA establishes safe upper levels for arsenic content, pet owners may wish to limit the total amount of rice fed in a dog's daily diet.

A Final Word

The descriptions and analyses expressed in this and every article on this website represent the views and opinions of the author.

Although it's our goal to ensure all the information on this website is correct, we cannot guarantee its completeness or its accuracy; nor can we commit to ensuring all the material is kept up-to-date on a daily basis.

Each review is offered in good faith and has been designed to help you make a more informed decision when buying dog food.

However, our rating system is not intended to suggest feeding a particular product will result in specific health benefits for your pet.

For a better understanding of how we analyze each product, please read our article, "The Problem with Dog Food Reviews".

Remember, no dog food can possibly be appropriate for every life stage, lifestyle or health condition. So, choose wisely. And when in doubt, consult a qualified veterinary professional for help.

In closing, we do not accept money, gifts or samples from pet food companies in exchange for special consideration in the preparation of our reviews or ratings.

To learn how we support the cost of operating this website, please visit our public Disclosure and Disclaimer page.

Have an opinion about this dog food? Or maybe the review itself? Please know we welcome your comments.

Notes and Updates

04/17/2010 Original review
11/17/2010 Review updated
04/01/2011 Review updated (now compared with other raw dog foods)
05/05/2011 Review updated (edited to show dehydrated chicken)
07/27/2011 Review updated (updated to new percentages)
11/17/2011 Review updated (added Love)
11/17/2011 Last Update

  1. Adult maintenance, organic grains ↩
  2. All life stages, gluten-free ↩
  3. Adult maintenance, grain-free ↩
  4. All life stages, grain-free, gluten-free ↩
  5. Adult maintenance, low gluten ↩
  6. Adult maintenance, gluten-free, grain-free ↩
  7. All life stages, grain-free ↩
  8. Association of American Feed Control Officials ↩
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← Older Comments
  • Hound Dog Mom

    Since he needs to gain weight I’d continue with the 1/2 to 2/3 C. THK and if you want to add boiled chicken add about 1 oz. per day (1 oz. meat is approx. 2 tbs or 1/8 C.). “Add-ins” don’t have to be an exact science, just as a general rule you want to keep unbalanced add-ins to no more than 20% of the diet or you could throw off the nutritional balance of the food.

  • Sambo

    Thanks for the advice. When you say 20% of the meal I have a hard to quantifying that. Following the THK meal guidance my dog gets between 1/2 and 2/3 cup a day how much let’s say boiled chicken would I give him?

  • Hound Dog Mom

    You can add fresh meat for up to 20% of the meal without throwing anything off. Generally increasing the fat content is recommended for dogs having issues keeping on weight, however because your boy had a severe bout of pancreatitis fatty additions would probably be a bad idea. Kibble is more calorie-dense than dehydrated so you could try adding some kibble (Wellness CORE Reduced Fat might be a good option if you’re interested in Wellness), you could try adding in an extra meal each day to see if you can get him to eat more, you could also try adding a tiny bit of coconut oil (it’s a fat that I’ve heard doesn’t tend to irritate dogs prone to pancreatitis when given in moderation).

  • Sambo

    I have a 9 yr old maltese who suffered from severe pancreatitis after being on Nature Variety Raw. After being on a prescription diet we started him on THK Zeal and he loves it. He went from a little chunky 10lbs to now 7lbs! I feel like he lost a bit too much weight and I want to add a pound/pound a half back on. It’s seems as though he is always hungry now. I’ve read below some comments about adding things, but I’ve only had him for 8 months and not sure what to add to beef up the meal a bit. What do you guys add into the meal if your dog has lost too much weight? I was thinking Wellness Kibble, but would love some help! thank you!

  • vicky

    Love it.

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