The Farmer’s Dog Food Review

The Farmer’s Dog was founded in 2014 after the founder discovered how beneficial fresh food diets were for helping his own dog Jada with her gastrointestinal issues. But the operation started small – with long-nights in the kitchen by the founders and hand-packed orders, since then the company has grown to employ over 100 people, and is one of the most popular fresh pet food delivery services online.

Farmer’s Dog food offers four different gently cooked diets for dogs, three of which are grain-free and include potatoes/legumes, and one of which is grain-free but contains only meat and vegetables. All recipes have been formulated to be complete and balanced for both adult dogs and puppies – including puppies over 70 lbs at an adult weight. Protein content of the diets is high at greater than 28% on a caloric basis, but fat and carbohydrate content varies by recipe. Carbohydrates are low to moderate (between 15-30% on a caloric basis), and fat content is high (between 39 to 54% on a caloric basis).

As all of The Farmer’s Dog recipes are high fat, high protein, and lower in carbohydrates they would be ideal for a highly active dog or a dog who is picky. All recipes are single-protein recipes, thus ideal for dogs with food allergies or sensitivities.

OVERVIEW:

Company Responded to Questions Asked via Email: No. The information gathered below was from their website December 2021.

Who formulated The Farmer’s Dog Food? The Farmer’s Dog Meals were formulated by an un-named board-certified veterinary nutritionist(s).

Where does The Farmer’s Dog source their Ingredients from? All ingredients are USDA certified fit for human consumption.

Where are The Farmer’s Dog Human Grade Dog Food Recipes Manufactured? In a USDA certified manufacturing facility. It is unknown if the facility also manufactures other food items than Farmer’s Dog.

What Quality Control Procedures does The Farmer’s Dog Lightly Cooked Dog Food perform on their foods? No mention was given on their website of specific quality control procedures including mycotoxin testing, or pathogen testing.

Has The Farmers Dog Invested in Digestibility or AAFCO Feeding Trials? No AAFCO Feeding Trials or Digestibility trials were mentioned on their website. They have performed an in-house feeding trial with bloodwork parameters evaluated with excellent results. But no formal research trials or published papers.

Are Full Nutritional Profiles Found Online for The Farmer’s Dog Recipes? Only guaranteed analysis is available for these products, it is unknown if full nutritional profiles were tested.

Has The Farmer’s Dog Food ever been Recalled? No.

RECIPES:

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ( FAQ )

Where to buy The Farmer’s Dog fresh Dog Food?

The Farmer’s dog is a direct to consumer lightly cooked dog food brand that ships within the USA. They offer a Menu of four different recipes created using fresh human-grade ingredients. When you sign-up for The Farmer’s Dog meal plan they ask for details on your pup so they can pre-portion meals in daily servings to make feeding simple and easy.

How do you store and feed The Farmer’s Dog?

The Farmer’s Dog is shipped frozen to your door on dry ice and will need to be thawed prior to feeding. To defrost you can place the daily pre-portioned dog meals into the fridge, and each meal should thaw within 24 hours. If by chance you forget to thaw your dog’s food you can do so quickly by either placing the food in cool water and rotating until completely defrosted. Or you can remove it from the package and place it in a microwave-safe container, then use the defrost setting on your microwave.

Do not leave foods to defrost on the counter or reheat foods on the stovetop – this is not considered food-safe and could cause issues.

Once the food is thawed it can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days, and the rest of the food should be stored in the freezer. Probably the easiest way to make sure you have food thawed is to place a new frozen portioned meal into the fridge each time you remove one from the freezer. This rotation of freezer – fridge – bowl takes a bit to get used to but becomes second nature with time.

For more detailed instructions on how to feed check out their website.

Is The Farmer’s Dog cooked Food Balanced for Puppies?

Yes, all the diets are complete and balanced for puppies, including large breed puppies.

The Farmer’s Dog vs. Kibble – how does it compare?

When we think about lightly cooked diets like The Farmers Dog vs. Kibble there are two main differences. The first has to do with the processing method, and the second the preservation method. Kibbled dog foods are processed in a way to remove moisture completely while cooking the food – this can happen either at low heat for a long period of time, or at high heat for short periods of time. Both cooking methods for kibble lead to a product that is highly processed. This is compounded when we consider some ingredients are cooked multiple times. Kibbled diets also add additional preservatives to maintain freshness and keep foods from going rancid once opened (and shelf-stable).

Lightly cooked foods are cooked for shorter periods of time at lower temperatures and do not add preservatives to keep them stable. Instead, they rely on the freezer to make sure the whole food recipes are fresh. Thus a fresh frozen food will need to be thawed prior to feeding, and will go bad within several days (just like our own food!).

Is The Farmer’s Dog a Raw Dog Food?

No, The Farmer’s Dog is not a Raw Dog Food, it is a gently cooked dog food brand. Lightly cooking the food removes the potentially harmful pathogens while maintaining the overall benefits of a fresh food diet – such as benefits to digestibility and the microbiome. 

Can The Farmer’s Dog be Used as a Topper?

Yes, The Farmer’s Dog offers a Topper Plan so that pet parents can offer as much fresh food as they are able according to their budget. The Farmer’s Dog can be given as a meal topper for picky dogs, as its high protein and fat content makes it extra tasty. You can also use The Farmer’s Dog Meals as a supplement to your pup’s regular kibbled diet if your pup has trouble maintaining their weight (like with older seniors or dogs undergoing chemotherapy).

How much does The Farmer’s Dog Cost?

Depending on the size of your pup and their activity level, and the recipe you choose the cost of feeding The Farmer’s Dog Food may vary. You can receive a free quote on their website by giving your dog’s information, and choosing the recipe that fits your dog’s needs. For a 50lb dog (who eats around 1000 calories per day) the price of Farmer’s Dog was about $9.92 per day or $297.60 per month for their Chicken Recipe (which is the least expensive).

Depending on what you are currently feeding Farmer’s Dog may be more or less expensive.

Are The Farmer’s Dog recipes Good for Dogs with Allergies?

As each of the recipes by The Farmer’s Dog are single protein meals they may be a good option for dogs who have food allergies. However, it is important to note that dogs can be allergic to any protein source – so it is highly dependant on what your pup is allergic to if these recipes may be helpful. As the most common allergies for dogs are chicken and beef, The Farmer’s Dog pork recipe may be the best choice for a dog with suspected food allergies.

For Dogs with environmental allergies, we typically want to choose diets that are highly digestible, that contain a high amount of omega 3 fatty acids, and that are high in protein. As each of these recipes contains fish oil and are high protein either The Farmers Dog Pork Recipe or The Farmer’s Dog Beef Recipe may be the best choice for a dog with environmental allergies. However as omega 3 content is not available online it’s hard to know if the amount would be therapeutic for environmental allergies.

Are The Farmer’s Dog Meals Good for Dogs with Loose Stools or Diarrhea?

There are many causes of loose stools in dogs so some dogs may find the restricted carbohydrate content and limited ingredients helpful for their loose stools (like those with food allergies). However, typically for most dogs with gastrointestinal disease, we look for highly digestible, low-fat diets – as all of The Farmers Dog recipes are high fat (with a fat content of over 40% on a caloric basis), these recipes would probably not be advised for dogs with fat intolerance or sensitivity.

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thecaninehealthnut@gmail.com

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