It’s strange, Julie won’t eat the Darwin’s, she loves plain ground chix/turkey from the grocery! So I had a new plan tonite. I made a meatball for her with a combo of Darwin’s and store turkey. She ate it, so I have hope of getting her to Darwin’s soon. The other 2 are baby steps, still. A bit of Darwin’s in the usual canned.
Yes, Darwin’s customer service has been good. I’ve gotten several “how’s it going?” emails from them as well. It’s been frustrating, you’re right! But I’m not giving up yet….
Pitlove-
You’ll have to make a throw up chart. LOL! I try to write down the day and name of food thrown up. If it shows up twice on the chart, I don’t buy it anymore. I don’t know if we will ever figure those darn cats out. Good luck at the vet. Sometimes they will suggest an Rx canned food just to settle the stomach and then transition back to their regular diet when ready. I don’t think you probably have much to worry about though. How’s the new litter box working out?
Jakes Mom- Bummer about the raw. It is always frustrating when you try out something that you are excited about and they don’t cooperate. That’s true for both our pets and our kids! They both sure can be brats! Glad to hear Darwin’s is being flexible with the auto delivery. I have auto shipments set up with chewy as well and they are also great about delaying and editing my orders.
I agree with Bobby dog. I would just stick with what’s working for her. Don’t drive yourself nuts. Vet visit would be a good idea but I wouldn’t worry about her, really. Probably just an ingredient that doesn’t agree with her, hard to figure out which one.
BTW, update on the raw transition…not going well, brats! Still only have Dustin eating it with enthusiasm. I delayed my first shipment. Darwin’s customer service is great, no problem with rescheduling. They sent me an email reminding me that the shipment was scheduled for the 10th and I replied, asking them to hold off for a couple of weeks.
You’re probably right about the 4% for your kitten, I was using adult %. You’d feed a kitten more calories, just like you’d feed a puppy more. I may try to heat it up a tad, as Darwin’s suggests, maybe get their noses more involved, lol.
I’ve never heard of a teacup cat, heard of some toy breed dogs referred to as a teacup. That’s cute! I think her weight is fine, too. My Julie is only about 7. I made a tiny “meatball” of raw and cook chix mixed together this am and Julie had to eat some raw altho she tried really hard to avoid it, lol.
I’ve read too that texture and even shape can be a huge factor for cats. maybe there is a way to make the raw mixture more chunky like canned food? im not really sure. it sounds like you have a lot of the difficult parts out of the way. i had such an easy time transitioning my kitten to wet food. she would get dry in the morning and canned at night and she actually PREFERED the canned food! it was awesome. she only weighs 6lbs at 8mos. Very small for her age but not underweight at all. vet told me she was a “teacup”??
darwins site recommended for her age feeding 4%. idk if thats right but it said about 2lbs a week if I remember correctly.
Your dog certainly could be different, however a normal healthy dog can efficently process a species appropriate protein, meaning animal meat and not corn. There are different sources of proteins that are used in commercial dog foods that while they are a source of protein they do not digest as well because they are not species appropriate. The rX food your dog is on contains protein, however the sources are corn and by-products which are not sufficent sources of protein. The by-products are the least of the problem because if paired with whole meat wouldnt be terrible, its the abudance of corn and rices that are difficult to digest.
I would highly consider a commercial raw diet. A little different than what L M suggested, however the maker of the commercial raw food usually works with a holistic vet ( i know Darwins does) to make sure all the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, etc are in the food at the proper levels, where as when you make the food yourself you need to be able to formulate those levels on your own which if you are new to it can be much more scary.
Despite recipes and all that, you still need to be careful when preparing your own homemade raw diet.
Bobbydog, I haven’t gotten far in my yard, either.
So far, my old guy is eating the Darwins, I actually witnessed it, not sure about anyone else. Altho, you know cats, he may decide tomorrow that he doesn’t like it anymore. Tried turkey and chix, duck is next.
I think the cold might have something to do with them turning up their noses at first, since it disappeared a little later on. The literature I got from Darwin’s says the food can be cooked, sometimes cats just won’t eat raw or tummy can’t handle it. But I can cook a homemade diet cheaper than cooking Darwin’s so that’s not going to be an option for me! Might try cooking a bit of it “rare” to get them started if things don’t improve after a few more meals. They’re used to room temp canned or the Primal fd which I make with hot water. I was a mean Mommy this am, gave them a spoonful of raw on each plate and a bit less canned than usual so we’ll see what’s gone when I get home from work!
Dose Darwins dog food have a web site
Ya and I totally agree with their logic. I do agree that they should get different proteins and she already gets that with the canned. Im still going to think about it and definitely going to get the starter “pack” to see if she will even eat raw. So far Darwins is the company I’m most impressed with.
Sorry to hear that! Hopefully they will adjust to it. Do they get all canned as well or some dry and canned?
Pitlove, I heard from Darwin’s customer service. They set up the autoship with the combo proteins because it’s best for the cats to eat a variety of proteins. However, if you want a particular thing you can call or email and they’ll send whatever you want.
So far none of the cats seem thrilled with their new addition to dinner. I’ll keep offering it and see what happens. I suspect they may not be happy with the fact that it’s cold, as well as a new thing.
Jake’s Mom, thanks for the extra info. I had no idea you had to send the cooler back. I was under the impression that they let you keep it. I really don’t like that, which upsets me because I really really wanted to try Darwins. I check my emails nightly as well after work so it wouldnt be a problem for me to change the orders I just don’t want to get caught off guard.
I have a great little family owned pet store about 30 mins from me that I often by my dogs kibble at since they carrying Orijen and other really great natural brands. They also carry the Primal Raw food, so I can definitely look into that. They also carry Stella & Chewys.
Let me know how the Darwin’s goes! I really wish they made their ordering process more straight forward and streamline and allowed you to tailor your order every time.
Pitlove, I see what you mean, I went back on the Darwin’s site. The autoship doesn’t bother me that much. They will email a few days before they ship and I check emails every nite so it’s no problem for me to change or delay a shipment. I did shoot them an email asking about the availability of single proteins instead of the combos but have not heard back from them (just sent it last nite). I’ll let you know when I hear back.
I rec’d the food tonite. I have a couple of packages in the fridge, thawing. It’s packed very well, with a little dry ice. Everything was rock hard when it arrived. One thing you may not like is, they ask you to return the cooler box. Give you a return label so it doesn’t cost anything but may be inconvenient if you’re not near a UPS store.
I had another thought for you, too. Have you tried freeze dried raw? ( Sorry if you mentioned that in a previous post) I use Primal nuggets sometimes. Comes in a bag with chunks that you just crumble with your fingers and add a little hot water. Very convenient, and you could customize it for her with a bit more or less water depending on her preference. Look for it with the higher quality dry food, not in the fridge/freezer with the other raw products, also online, got mine at Chewy’s. Various flavors and bag sizes.
I’ll try feeding the kitties this weekend, when the stuff thaws. Wish me luck!
Jakes Mom-
Yes, my cats are fine. Thank you for your concern. I always worry about them getting out! It was actually kind of funny because it reminded us of the time when our previous dog went out a window on to the roof years ago. My husband came home and no one was home and our dog was on the roof in a panic. It was when my kids were young and we went up to the school to play without him and he was NOT happy about it. I guess he thought he was going to follow us anyway he could. He thankfully, he didn’t jump either! He would have gotten hurt. I think the cats could probably handle the jump without an issue. Just glad they didn’t!
Have you tried the Darwin’s yet? I’m real curious to see if they like it.
Pitlove-
I have used NW Naturals, Nature’s Variety, and Primal raw as toppers for my dogs. I have tried feeding a little to my cats here and there and they have not been interested so far. Most likely if it was in one of the dogs’ bowls, however, they would probably eat it right up! LOL! It might actually be cheaper for you. Canned cat food is way too expensive for what you get. Let us know if you try it out.
Maybe I misunderstood your question or I misunderstood Darwin’s when I ordered last week. I ordered the $14.95 sample pack. It has all 3 proteins but wouldn’t you want that in a sample pack? They do set you up for autoship for future orders but you can cancel if she doesn’t like it, or change the timing of shipments anytime. There are also meal mixes you can get from several companies, just add to your own ground meat. Also Hare today and My pet carnivore are other raw companies a lot of people here use.
C4C, so glad you got your escapees without any problems!
thank you! She is very sweet. such the lap cat, but i worry she has seperation anxiety. not sure though.
also on a side note. im thinking about going raw with her and i looked into darwin’s. i was really annoyed to find out that they basically make up an order for you and you are forced into buying chicken duck and turkey from them all in one order and you don’t get to decide how many lbs you want or what protein you want and you HAVE to do auto-ship. I wanted to just try it out with her to see if she would eat it and that makes it impossible to do.
C4C idk if you know of any good commercial raw diets similar to darwin’s that doesnt do that.
if anyone else has suggestions to i’d like to hear it. im also wondering if feeding her raw since she doesnt eat much would be more cost effective than canned food.
I emailed Allprovide with some questions, and they sent me a free trial of the food for my puppy. He liked it, and it compared in appearance and texture to the other premade raw foods I’ve tried (or my dog has tried lol) – like Darwin’s, Bravo, etc. My very picky dog liked it. I was happy with the customer service, packaging, and responsiveness of the company. I would most definitely have ordered more to feed full time if I hadn’t decided to go homemade.
I agree with Marie, grinds would be the way to go. I have cats and a dog. I just ordered raw grinds (chix, turkey,duck) for the cats from Darwin’s. They asked for the cat’s weights and estimated the amount I needed. You just need to get yourself a scale and a calculator and do some math. The usual suggested amount is 2-3% of your dog’s weight per day. There are also premixes that you can mix into your own ground meat so you don’t need to worry about balancing supplements. Good luck, you’ll get a lot of good advice from the regulars here. I’m just starting raw too, have learned a lot.
Yep Marie. I don’t know if this is a short term thing or not. But if you want to get some Darwin’s with free delivery go to Amazon. I’ve got a feeling this is not going to be a regular thing. Somebody on a different blog emailed me about it.
I placed an order while it was free shipping. Marie, we feed rotationally so why not. I know some say it’s to high in fat and I agree with a lot of the raw that I feed but if we’re feeding in rotation and not all the time for ever single meal every day, why not? Free shipping? Yep!!!!
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This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by
Dori.
For anyone interested. Amazon is selling Darwin’s Dog Variety Pack Zoological’s 8 lbs. for $54.95 and their Natural Dog Variety Pack 8 lbs. for $59.95. Free shipping on either. They’re also selling 20 lb. variety packs but I don’t remember the cost. Also with free shipping. It’s only their dog foods, I don’t know anything about cats or if Darwin’s has a cat formula. Just putting on here for any dog people using or wanting to order Darwins.
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This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by Dori.
Sorry James S. Just saw your earlier post. I’m glad at least the diagnosis was for the more treatable one. What treatment has your vet suggested? Yes, Nature’s Variety Instinct Raw Frozen is a frozen food and one of the one’s I feed my dogs in rotation.
As to a list of commercial raw frozen foods, these are the ones that I use in rotation. I rotate brands and proteins within brands with the exception of fowl. One of my girls is intolerant of all fowl.
Answer’s Detailed Raw Frozen (Not always easy to track down but any store that carries any of the products can usually order it in for you from their distributor)
Primal Raw Frozen Formulas (My favorite of all frozen raw foods)
Vital Essentials Frozen Raw
Nature’s Logic Raw Frozen
OC Frozen Raw
Darwin’s Raw Frozen (only available on their site on auto-delivery plan)
Nature’s Variety Instinct Raw Frozen
(Nature’s Variety Instinct Raw Frozen will be the easiest to find as pretty much everyone carries it including the large stores like Petco and Petsmart.)
The others on the list are typically found in smaller more local type pet food stores.
I’ve recently won a bag of Steve’s Real Frozen Raw (very excited about that) and I’ll see how that works out with the girls. It just arrived yesterday so I’ll defrost some for their dinner tonight. I’ll let you know about that one after they’ve eaten it for a while.
The only two freeze dried foods that I use, but only infrequently, is Primal Freeze Dried and Vital Essentials Freeze Dried. I use Vital Essentials Freeze Dried Tripe Treats as their treats when I call them to “come” from the yard. I keep a jar with them near the back patio door and it’s the only time they get them.
I forgot to add that once in a while, not often, I feed The Honest Kitchen Zeal formula. It contains no fowl, no potatoes, no alfalfa. Is GMO free. The Honest Kitchen is made with all human grade ingredients and made in a plant that only processes human food. It’s all documented and the FDA allows them to use the information on their packaging. It’s the only company that the FDA has given it’s approval to.
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This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by Dori.
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This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by Dori.
Hi here’s just a few Limited Ingredients foods in the “Dog Allergy International groups” files that may work for dogs with food sensitivities… also when on a limited ingredient diet no other foods are given, nothing, no treats, no peanut butter to give meds nothing just their limited ingredient diet for 3 months, then if dog is doing real well then add a new ingredient & see if there is any reaction with new food..
Petcurean GO Sensitivity limited ingredients Venison.. Michele Dixson from Petcurean is in group & helps dogs with allergies..
Farmina Vet Life Hypoallergenic Fish & Potato
Performatrin Ultra Limited ingredients
Lily’s Kitchen Recovery recipe wet food limited ingredients
Canidae Grain Free Dry & Wet
Rayne Maintenace Diets
Addiction Nutri-RX Allergy HS
Natural Balance limited ingredient Dry& Wet
Zignature limited ingredient formulas
Merrick limited ingredient Dry & Wet
California Natural Hypoallergenic limited ingredients dry & wet
Darwins Raw
Ziwi Peak
Darwin’s is reviewed. Check on the review side under raw foods. If you are looking to see Darwin’s on the Editor’s Choice list, I doubt very highly that it will ever show up there because Darwin’s is not readily available to all. It has to be ordered from their web site on an auto delivery service and not everyone can afford the delivery fees which are not outrageous for a raw frozen food but when added to the cost of the food it’s a bit high for most. But anyway, Darwin’s cannot be bought in stores.
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This reply was modified 8 years, 12 months ago by Dori.
I too would like Darwins reviewed.
Beside Darwins, look at Vital Essentials and Primal.
Check out Darwin’s at http://www.darwinspet.com/
3 different types to choose from:
Natural Selections™ – free-range meats and organic vegetables
ZooLogics™ – conventional human-grade meats and vegetables
Intelligent Design™ Veterinary Meals for Dogs
I’m hoping there is a simple answer to this question. I have a very picky 15 week old labradoodle puppy. Right now, the only foods he will eat are Darwin’s raw beef recipe and my homemade food (following the Ottowa Valley Dog Whisperer recipe).
I’d like to get into 100% homemade, but I don’t have a meat grinder currently and would like to be sure of everything before I invest in one. I also don’t always have the time to sit and watch him eat his bones, so I’d like to have ground options for times when he doesn’t have my 100% undivided attention.
So, if I order chubs of pre-ground meats (such as Blue Ridge Beef, etc.) that has the correct ratio of meat to bone to organs, and mix that with my own fruit/vegetable and supplement blend (assuming I offer the correct supplements at correct dosages and add no additional calcium), then the inclusion of the ground bone should provide for the appropriate levels of calcium and phosphorus in the correct ratios, yes?
Last question – does any one have experience with Allprovide premade raw food? It looks to me like the puppy mix ha the appropriate ca:phosphorus ratio and has quality ingredients. It has 2.33g of calcium and 2.09g of phosphorus per 1,000kcal.
I think I have decided what I would like to do in terms of feeding my puppy. Background: he’s about 25 lbs, labradoodle, 14 weeks, should be around 65 lbs full grown. He is a picky and light eater, so I’ve been trying to do 4 meals per day but he just isn’t that interested in food so now it’s 3 meals.
This is what I’d like to do in my perfect world. Can anyone tell me if this would work or help tweak it?
–AM meal – either homemade or pre-made raw. I have a trusted recipe for homemade when I have the time to make some. Pre-made would either be Darwin’s or Allprovide, depending on which he prefers.
–Lunch – this is where it gets trick. He goes to day care 3 days per week, and they will only feed kibble. They will not mix anything with water, open cans, etc. Has to be non-perishable something. And if he doesn’t eat lunch, he will sometimes vomit, not to mention he is already bordering on underweight. So he needs something. The other 2 days my sister in law serves as our dog walker and can feed him anything I ask her.
–PM meal – I would like this to typically be RMBs, such as chicken backs/necks/wings to begin with and progressing from there. He already gets a raw chicken wing a couple times a week and loves it.
In order to figure out portions, would I just take each meal separately and divide it in 1/3? So give 1/3 of what would be a total day’s worth of food of each the pre-made/homemade, kibble, and RMBs? I would add his supplemental items either at breakfast or dinner – organ meats, probiotics, and sardines/fish oil/yogurt, etc.
I have looked into things like a “better” kibble – ziwipeak was the only thing I could find that seemed to fit the bill. However, their maximum calcium level in their “kibble” is like 2% which is way too high for a largeish breed puppy. Do you think I could get away with giving this at lunch and then having dinner on those days be meat without bones? Does it balance out like that, or is the calcium ratio a per meal type of deal?
Darwin’s shipping cost is per pound after the free trial. It’s cost prohibitive for me in CT. The trial was great though, on their old formula. Their meat turns brown though which I did not like. I order from Reel Raw and as long as I get 30 lbs the shipping is free plus their meat never turns color it seems.
The commercial raw foods that I feed are:
Primal Raw Frozen Formulas
Primal Pronto Frozen Formulas
Natural Variety Instinct Frozen Raw Diets
Vital Essentials Frozen Raw Food
OC Raw Frozen Food
Nature’s Logic Frozen Raw Food
Answer’s Detailed Frozen Raw Food
I used to feed Darwin’s but I stopped. They add more fat to the diets now and also lowered the protein level of their diets. And, of course, they raised their prices.
For a dehydrated, once in a while I’ll use The Honest Kitchen Zeal. It’s the only one that I feed.
As treats I only give them small pieces of fruits and veggies. Whatever I happen to have in the refrigerator or counter.
I don’t feed any commercial treats. Too many recalls, too many grains.
Please feel free to ask any other questions.
DF: I’d feed the Darwins. Most raw feeders I know would feed freezer burned meat so you’re good to go.
Re; bones; beef rib bones from ReelRawDog are my fave so far. I have 30 pounds of bones coming next week, free shipping.
My favorite place for bones is My Pet Carnivore. https://www.mypetcarnivore.com/index.php?lang=en
I’m on a local delivery route and I can get as much as I want for a $10 handling fee.
I just remembered the only raw that Sam really loves is tripe. I’ve got several containers of that in the freezer also. I’ve tried lightly cooking the Darwin’s for him, but would rather not. I’m going to start thawing some raw tonight. I WILL use up that Darwin’s one way or another!
Sorry for the hijack, Marie! 🙂
Sam, my Golden, won’t eat it. He’s OK with a for a meal (although it’s the one thing he won’t clean his bowl of) and then after that, he won’t touch it at a subsequent meal. Sniff. Walk away. He likes some raw, meaty bones, but just doesn’t get into eating raw. He prefers kibble with toppers.
Bella, my Cavalier, will eat the Darwin’s, but I feel bad giving it to her and not him – even though he doesn’t like it. I should’ve fed it to her anyway.
Then, there’s also that part of me that says, it’s been in the freezer too long and isn’t good anymore.
Should I still use it?
My cat was on Darwins for about a year and yes if I remember correctly shipping was included in the price of the food and I am in the southwest US. My cat loved the food, but the high bone content made her severely constipated (expensive visit to the after hours ER), so had to stop feeding it. She’s now on high quality canned and doing well. Hope your animals do well with it if you decide to try it. It’s definitely worth trying the trial, 14.95 is a deal…for 10 lbs I think?
A breeder told me that she just ordered the $14.95 trial of Darwins, that the shipping is included in the price of the food, even future orders. Is this true? I know its free shipping with the trial but is it with future orders?
New dog… new to raw… new to healthy bone options… oh, mercy! So much to learn. Thank goodness for you all. I’ve ordered Darwin’s pre-prepared raw food so we can get going while I’m learning. When feeding a raw bone, do you take your dogs outside? (Trying to chill about it, but struggling with the idea of raw bones being smooshed all over the floor.) If they haven’t eaten it all in a certain amount of time, do you remove it? If they bury it, do you just leave it for a future discovery? I always thought I was a semi-intelligent person — may have just been kidding myself — but this raw diet / bone business has had me reading for days, and feeling sadly under-informed. Still, determined to figure it out. My sweet rescue pup deserves a little dinner love.
By the way. I have tried Primal and Natures Variety Instinct, over $100 still sitting in my freezer. If I think about raw meat I expect to see raw food and not a paste looking mushy something once defrosted. Also the smell is anything else than close to raw meat.
The only real raw food I found is Darwin’s. It was all real meat, unfortunately the meat was ground and dogs should get at least little chunks to satisfy their way of eating. Darwin’s uses 10% veggies in their food and veggies should not be offered to dogs as well. They don’t hurt but their body is not designed to digest veggies. Dogs are carnivores and their body is all made for eating whole carcasses, skin, feathers, fur, organs, in other words the whole prey. On their menu you can sometimes find some wild berries and grass, assisting in digestive disorders.When you see a dog eating grass he has an upset stomach.
I’m a new subscriber with a new AKC registered litter of beautiful and healthy standard poodle pups on NE end of Lake Washington near Seattle. I’ve been feeding my dogs Darwins for a number of years’ now and attribute the longevity of my oldest Rescue Poodle to that awesome and natural food prepared fresh right here in Seattle. It is delivered frozen in styrefoam coolers right to my door. I definitely think it should be added to the list of recommended food as I intend to recommend it to all of my new pet owners. I hope to see Darwin’s on the list of best foods for dogs and I agree that the customer service couldn’t be better.
I too would like to nominate Darwin’s. Great product. I have
to quit feeding it to my dog because my income is tight and I’m trying to find a cheaper, but still good product, but if I had the money, that’s the one I’d use. I admit I just found this website when I went looking to change my dog’s food, so there appear to be many products that would be good, but I felt very good about Darwin’s
To help resolve my dog’s food intolerance issues I finally moved to feeding raw. I determined that the binders (starches) in kibble were causing as many symptoms as the proteins and grains. I currently feed Darwins Natural Selection but I did go thru a variety of kibbles. If you are not comfortable moving to raw I will say that the freezes dried raw does make for an easy transition. Stella and Chewy seemed to have the best combination of ingredients and they have rabbit and pheasant if you want to use a unique protein. If you want to stay with kibble I found Brothers Complete Allergy Formulas on this website.
Some other resources that provided good information were:
Monica Segal who is certified in animal nutrition. For a relatively nominal fee you can download homemade recipes that are nutritionally balanced.
Dr. Karen Becker and Dr. Peter Dobias also offer good info.
Like on Facebook Canine allergies (environmental and food) it is a great support network.
Good luck and don’t lose faith. Even when you think things are going well a hot spot or ear infection shows up and you adjust again.
Here’s what I did. I was very nervous because my GSD had had terrible digestion problems and the vet was pouring down HILLS WD formula (which is sawdust) in him which made me cringe.
I ordered an air dehydrated dogfood called BIG DOG NATURAL. You can Google it. My homeopathic vet recommended it and Darwin’s to me and HE suggested that I start out with Big Dog because it has fermented vegetables in it and that is outstanding for the digestive track. One morning I started cold turkey on it. They LOVED IT. I have an 11 yr old Golden and a 2 yr old GSD. They licked the bowl for almost a minute! I was amazed. So that fast they were on RAW FOOD. I took it carefully for two or three weeks – they had NO PROBLEM with that food, and it is air dehydrated RAW! Then one day I just gave them chicken. Raw. I followed the guidelines and gave the golden 17 oz and the GSD I had to end up giving him 2 1/4 pounds per day. I got the butcher to quarter the chickens (Whole Foods $7.99 and I would pick through the chickens and get a 5 pound one). He would quarter it for me. NOW I do all that myself. I get chickens at Costco that are non chemical/ no hormones. $1.09 a POUND! You have to have a set of scales to weigh out the proportions. And I cut the nub off the chicken drum sticks. Put the piece(s) in a bowl and voila. You need to give 10% organs and 1/2 of that must be liver. I also give them Mercola’s probiotics, a fish oil cap and garlic caps. Happy Dogs.
Good Luck.
Linda S. The reason that Darwins would never be on the list is that it is considered a food that is not readily available to all. Because it has to be ordered and delivered, it makes it not readily available and shipping for raw dog foods is incredibly expensive. Most people don’t have the money to feed commercial raw foods and pay for the shipping. I understand that it pretty much has to be expensive to ship raw because of the packing and speed of delivery that are involved but it’s not economically feasible for everyone. I’m a commercial raw feeder myself but I buy them at my local “boutique type” dog food stores.
I was shocked not to see Darwins on the list…I Would like to nominate Darwins…LOVE THE FOOD!
Thanks for posting on TQDF Margaret, I’ve have been feeding my English Mastiff their product for about 5 months now. In the past I’ve used Darwins and Hare Today, but the shipping charges were getting out of hand. My dog seems to enjoy TQDF, the price is much better, I just didn’t have any feed back on the company or the product, so thanks
Michael,
where is thi auto ship from? I had autoships with Darwins Raw, Chewy.com and The Honest Kitchen; there was no fee to cancel. I would never use a company that did that.
I totally agree about dog food manufacturer being a big contributor to inhumane housing practices with food animals!!
I don’t consider feeding practices that the animals don’t understand or feel harmed by to be inhumane, but they may be unethical, which is a whole different, but relevant, issue. I, also, wouldn’t consider over 1 hour travel time to be inhumane anymore than I think it’s inhumane for my kids and myself to travel in the car for more than 1 hour, but there are limits, and travel conditions are another matter, definitely inhumane sometimes.
I don’t think from reading what is stated about Darwin’s that you can assume that they aren’t humanely raised, by your standards. Feeding cattle feed while on range doesn’t mean there isn’t grass, etc., but it may mean that it isn’t enough grass for them to be totally grass fed. They don’t say anything about antibiotics, hormones, travel time, etc., so I don’t know what the practices are.
I don’t know of any raw dog food manufacturers that are up to your standards. But you might want to check out Hare Today and see if you might think they are close enough. They aren’t complete foods though. Good luck in your quest!
I have no input on Raw Bistro, but Darwin’s is only available on their own site through an auto subscription. They have no need for distributors or retail shop fees or retail facilities. Maybe that’s how they keep their costs in check. Also they have reduced their protein levels in some of their foods and raised the fat levels. It’s the reason I stopped feeding Darwins. I’ve never fed Raw Bistro so I no nothing about them.
