Review of Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried Dinners
Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried Dinners receives the Advisor’s second-highest tier rating of 4 stars.
The Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried Dinners product line includes the 13 raw dog foods listed below.
Each recipe includes its AAFCO nutrient profile when available… Growth (puppy), Maintenance (adult), All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.
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| Product | Rating | AAFCO |
|---|---|---|
| Stella and Chewy’s Chewy’s Chicken Freeze Dried Dinner | 5 | A |
| Stella’s Super Beef Freeze Dried Dinner | 4 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Surf N Turf Freeze Dried Dinner | 4 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Venison Blend Freeze Dried Dinner | 5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Dandy Lamb Freeze Dried Dinner | 2.5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Absolutely Rabbit Freeze Dried Dinner | 5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Duck Duck Goose Freeze Dried Dinner | 2.5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Tantalizing Turkey Freeze Dried Dinner | 2.5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Remarkable Red Meat Freeze Dried Dinner | 2.5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Puppy Chicken and Salmon Freeze Dried Dinner | 5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Puppy Beef and Salmon Freeze Dried Dinner | 4.5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Purely Pork Freeze Dried Dinner | 2.5 | A |
| Stella & Chewy’s Simply Venison Freeze Dried Dinner | 3.5 | A |
Recipe and Label Analysis
Stella and Chewy’s Chewy’s Chicken Freeze Dried Dinner was selected to represent the other products in the line for detailed recipe and nutrient analysis.
Label and nutrient data below are calculated using dry matter basis.
Stella and Chewy's Chewy's Chicken Freeze Dried Dinner
Freeze-Dried Dog Food
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content
Ingredients: Chicken with ground bone, chicken liver, chicken gizzard, pumpkin seed, organic cranberries, organic spinach, organic broccoli, organic beets, organic carrots, organic squash, organic blueberries, fenugreek seed, potassium chloride, dried kelp, sodium phosphate, tocopherols (preservative), choline chloride, dried Pediococcus acidilactici fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Bifidobacterium longum fermentation product, dried Bacillus coagulans fermentation product, zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, taurine, calcium carbonate, vitamin E supplement, thiamine mononitrate, copper proteinate, manganese proteinate, sodium selenite, niacin supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin supplement, vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 5.3%
Red denotes controversial item
| Estimated Nutrient Content | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Protein | Fat | Carbs |
| Guaranteed Analysis | 48% | 28% | NA |
| Dry Matter Basis | 51% | 30% | 12% |
| Calorie Weighted Basis | 38% | 53% | 9% |
Ingredient Analysis
The first ingredient in this dog food is chicken. Chicken is considered “the clean combination of flesh and skin… derived from the parts or whole carcasses of chicken”.1
Chicken is naturally rich in the ten essential amino acids required by a dog to sustain life.
This item includes ground bone, an excellent source of natural calcium.
The second ingredient is chicken liver, an organ meat sourced from a named animal and thus considered a beneficial component.
The next ingredient is chicken gizzard. The gizzard is a low-fat, meaty organ found in the digestive tract of birds and assists in grinding up a consumed food. This item is considered a canine dietary delicacy.
The fourth ingredient includes pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds are rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals and, more importantly, linoleic acid — an essential omega-6 fat.
The fifth ingredient lists cranberries, a nutrient-rich fruit that’s also high in fiber.
The next ingredient is spinach. Due to its exceptional vitamin and mineral content, spinach exhibits a remarkably high nutrient Completeness Score2 of 91.
Next, we find beets, the root portion of a sugar beet plant. As the name implies, beets contain a high concentration of sucrose (sugar).
The eighth ingredient lists carrots, which are rich in beta-carotene, minerals and dietary fiber.
The ninth ingredient includes squash. Squash is a nutritious addition high in complex carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber.
From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.
But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of this product.
With 3 notable exceptions…
First, we note the inclusion of dried fermentation products in this recipe. Fermentation products are typically added to provide enzymes to aid the animal with digestion.
Next, taurine is an important amino acid associated with the healthy function of heart muscle. Although taurine is not typically considered essential in canines, some dogs have been shown to be deficient in this critical nutrient.
Since taurine deficiency appears to be more common in pets consuming grain-free diets, we view its presence in this recipe as a positive addition.
And lastly, this food contains 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.
Nutrient Analysis
Based on its ingredients alone, Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried Dinners looks like a superior raw product.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 51%, a fat level of 30% and estimated carbohydrates of about 12%.
As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 45% and a mean fat level of 35%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 12% for the overall product line.
And a fat-to-protein ratio of about 79%.
Which means this Stella & Chewy’s product line contains…
Above-average protein. Above-average fat. And below-average carbs when compared to a typical raw dog food.
Free of any plant-based protein boosters, this looks like the profile of a raw product containing an abundance of meat.
However, with 53% of the total calories in our example coming from fat versus just 38% from protein, some recipes may not be suitable for every animal. In addition, this same finding also prevents us from awarding the brand a higher rating.
Our Rating of Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried Dog Food
Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried Dinners is a grain-free raw dog food using a generous amount of named meats and organs as its dominant source of animal protein, thus earning the brand 4 stars.
Highly recommended.
More Top Picks
Has Stella and Chewy’s Dog Food Been Recalled?
The following automated list (if present) includes all dog food recalls since 2009 related to Stella and Chewy’s.
- Stella and Chewy’s Dog and Cat Food Recall of December 2015 (12/12/2015)
- Stella and Chewy’s Dog Food Recall of July 2015 (7/5/2015)
- Stella and Chewy’s Stop-Sale Order and Potential Dog Food Recall (7/3/2015)
You can view a complete list of all dog food recalls since 2009 here.
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More Stella and Chewy’s Brand Reviews
The following Stella and Chewy’s dog food reviews are also posted on this website:
- Stella and Chewy’s Dinners Dog Food Review (Raw Frozen)
- Stella and Chewy’s Raw Blend Dog Food Review (Dry)
- Stella and Chewy’s Raw Coated Kibble Dog Food Review (Dry)
A Final Word
The Dog Food Advisor is privately owned. We do not accept money, gifts, samples or other incentives in exchange for special consideration in preparing our reviews.
However, we do receive a referral fee from online retailers (like Chewy or Amazon) and from sellers of perishable pet food when readers click over to their websites from ours. This helps cover the cost of operation of our free blog. Thanks for your support.
For more information, please visit our Disclaimer and Disclosure page.
Important FDA Alert
The FDA is investigating a potential link between diet and heart disease in dogs. Click here for details.
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The Best Senior Dog FoodsReferences
- Association of American Feed Control Officials ↩
- Completeness Score is a measure of a food’s relative nutrient content and is computed by NutritionData.com from the USDA’s National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference ↩
05/19/2021 Last Update