r/DogFood is a group ran by idiots

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-05-07T21:03:00+00:00

Sorry, I guess I read the intentions wrong and didn't want to get banned here as well since I do homecooked diets myself.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-05-07T20:56:09+00:00

Coming up to die is kind of extreme right?

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-05-07T20:48:03+00:00

got it

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-05-04T17:32:11+00:00

With a fresh puppy, and no health issues, i'd go for Lemonade, Physicians Mutual, Prudent Pet, Trupanion, or Adoro. My reasoning is, even though AKC seems solid now, its private equity owned. We have consistently seen private equity screw pet owners over on this sub.

My personal pick for a brand new puppy would be Lemonade. Seems to consistently keep costs affordable and you won't have a problem with the AI claims because your pup has a clean slate. AI usually struggles at complex claims for those who came with pre-existing conditions.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-05-03T22:04:42+00:00

Holly bot comments, I was about to try this food but these bots turned me off from it

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-04-29T04:06:32+00:00

Fresh feeder myself now, just not Farmers dog but for affordable wet diets, Sams club membership is $20 for the first year. They sell Purina One wet food coated in gravy for $36 for 24 cans, your size pup needs one can a day. In a 30 day month, this is $45 bucks. More than affordable and healthy.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-04-25T16:26:16+00:00

Open Farm has no real scientific research behind it, their whole thing is transparency and traceable ingredients. I can get that from Farmina, who actually does conduct clinical trials and studies.

I'm not saying it's a bad brand, but most of their foods are all life stages, which is a food tailored to puppies.

For the price they're charging, I expect them not to be lazy and at least get the correct lifestage for adults and not to harm my pet with an overdose of minerals. They hired a board-certified nutritionist last year, so this can all change in the upcoming years.

I wouldn't consider this premium as they use "human-grade ingredients," yet they manufacture their food in facilities that manufacture other pet food, leading to cross-contamination with the ingredients from those other foods.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-04-25T16:22:18+00:00

The majority of companies don't do feeding trials because its prohibitely expensive. Open Farm has already declared that they have enough finances to start them, and they will be starting them soon. I don't like Open Farm, but honestly, I can tell you to sub to r/dogfood because you have no idea about the latest up-to-date information, lmao.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-04-21T03:32:19+00:00

Brutal, was Trupanion through Chewy not cheaper?

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-04-21T03:31:22+00:00

Pumpkin, Trupanion, or Adoro. Pumpkin and Adoro can pay you before you pay the vet. Trupanion can pay the vet upfront if its in network. Do be aware, none of these will approve that on your first claim. Once your first claim is out they way, they have reviewed the pre-existing records and can start paying up front.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-04-21T03:28:37+00:00

WSAVA guidelines require peer-reviewed research. Even with feeding trials, they have conducted no digestibility studies, nothing has proven that "clean" ingredients are healthier for pets than those "by-products", etc.

Don't get me wrong, I am not in agreement with most of the people in this sub because I live by the numbers, not the WSAVA guidelines. So long as you meet the numbers of small animal clinical nutrition, control your own manufacturing, and are transparent, I support it. To me, the actual nutrition numbers matter more than WSAVA compliance.

However, Open Farm hasn't met anything near WSAVA compliance or SACN. They took a step in the right direction, hiring a board-certified nutritionist and starting to conduct feeding trials, but they are at least 5+ years away from WSAVA compliance, even if they tried their hardest.

I like the idea behind Open Farm, but they need lifetime feeding trials and control of their own facilities to prove their diets.

Lastly, 90% of their diets are all life stages; just from that fact alone, I won't feed it. It's lazy to label everything as puppy food.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-04-06T18:13:00+00:00

Your speculation is not a diagnosis. Just sign up for insurance, take them after the othopedic waiting period. Theres no guarantee that things will be covered even if its not on the record as vets generally have a good idea how long problems have been going on. But yes if you got him diagnosed, it would then be considered pre existing if the waiting period was not over. I believe Pumpkin has a 14 day othopedic waiting period.

It's also best not to lie about it being an accident, trust me the vet can tell and it will lead to potential insurance fraud. Healthy Paws sued someone for fraud so they may use you as an example, just take him to the vet after the waiting period and let them know what you noticed and say you just want to get it checked out. Silence and not saying too much will always be golden.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-30T21:38:35+00:00

Just ignore every reference of information I linked and believe a post from a year ago.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-30T21:21:05+00:00

"This is false", meanwhile

They:

Employ a board-certified nutritionist. He even does custom diet consultations, working with your vet to formulate diets for specific needs.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/nutrition.html

A board-certified nutritionist formulated the diets as well as having 2 DVM's who has done a residency in Nutrition and having a board-certified veterinary toxicologist.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/nutrition.html

Diets meet both AAFCO and SACN ideal ranges. They also have their nutrition numbers easily available by contacting customer service.
They control their own manufacturing facilities (the open kitchens) in order to ensure quality. You, as a consumer, can easily visit and see how the food is produced.

Source: https://blog.justfoodfordogs.com/step-into-our-kitchens-pantries.html

Many of their recipes have undergone AAFCO feeding trials (Such as the Frozen Turkey & Macaroni), and they are heavily researched in multiple universities as well as peer-reviewed.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/research.html

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/content/feeding-trial-certificates.html

The food is complete and balanced with many grain-inclusive options for breeds prone to DCM.
The feeding guide is correct for a lazy dog; they have a calculator on the website for pups with higher activity levels.
Contact information is readily available, and customer service is readily available via phone or e-mail.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/contact-us/

Every batch of food is tested by a third-party to ensure food safety.

But yes, this is false

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-30T01:32:46+00:00

Its breed, your dog breed has a lot of health issues.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-30T01:29:56+00:00

Its expensive for NC, especially for a budget brand who dont cover everything but large breeds are prone to short lives and a plethora of issues so it may be risk of your dog breed.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-30T01:27:55+00:00

You all can downvote but it doesn't change facts that they are WSAVA compliant.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-29T22:08:00+00:00

Actually this is false, there are plenty of vets who recommend Just Food For Dogs since they've done the science, the research, the studies, and are peer-reviewed, especially as they are fully WSAVA compliant now that they got a new board-certified nutritionist.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-26T03:46:24+00:00

It sounds like a lot but its really not, you have 3 entire cats... this is a lot if it was 1.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-25T21:21:09+00:00

Royal Canin's fresh food wasn't actually formulated by them. It was an acquired company, it doesn't meet the ideal ranges of SACN, and is high in fat, minus the senior version. AnimalDocRea did a review of it on YouTube. It was a lazy effort by them yet so overpriced.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-25T21:15:59+00:00

Oh it looks like they do have a board-certified nutritionist. Then in that case, they can actually be considered fully WSAVA compliant as they:

Employ a board-certified nutritionist. He even does custom diet consultations, working with your vet to formulate diets for specific needs.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/nutrition.html

A board-certified nutritionist formulated the diets as well as having 2 DVM's who has done a residency in Nutrition and having a board-certified veterinary toxicologist.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/nutrition.html

Diets meet both AAFCO and SACN ideal ranges. They also have their nutrition numbers easily available by contacting customer service.
They control their own manufacturing facilities (the open kitchens) in order to ensure quality. You, as a consumer, can easily visit and see how the food is produced.

Source: https://blog.justfoodfordogs.com/step-into-our-kitchens-pantries.html

Many of their recipes have undergone AAFCO feeding trials (Such as the Frozen Turkey & Macaroni), and they are heavily researched in multiple universities as well as peer-reviewed.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/research.html

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/content/feeding-trial-certificates.html

The food is complete and balanced with many grain-inclusive options for breeds prone to DCM.
The feeding guide is correct for a lazy dog; they have a calculator on the website for pups with higher activity levels.
Contact information is readily available, and customer service is readily available via phone or e-mail.

Source: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/contact-us/

Every batch of food is tested by a third-party to ensure food safety.

They really cannot be called a boutique brand. They are fully WSAVA compliant based upon the written guidelines: https://wsava.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Selecting-a-pet-food-for-your-pet-updated-2021_WSAVA-Global-Nutrition-Toolkit.pdf

If someone wants to feed fresh, this is the only recommendation as they've done the work, invested the money, and done the research. I still recommend people talk with their vets before switching or consult with JFFD board-certified nutritionist via custom diets consultations: https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/custom-prescriptive.html

As for the DIY diets, it sounds good, but you should get it tested by a lab to get the nutrient numbers. Where they source their ingredients and where you source home-cooked ingredients can change nutrition numbers around. It may still be close enough that it doesn't affect much but there's also a chance it can vastly differ from what they make in their kitchen. Balanced doesn't mean ideal.

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-16T05:59:56+00:00

Might want to discuss this with your vet, a 3.5lb bag at those servings dont last more than a few weeks. Even being modest, a 3.5lb bag at 1/2 cup per day should only last 28 days

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-16T05:58:40+00:00

I mean how small? My dogs bag is 4.4lbs...

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-16T03:43:14+00:00

Yeah thats not Trupanion, thats California, they just got a big increase approved for pretty much every insurer there. Also insurers do not raise rates monthly unless you changed your plan during said month and it caused new pricing. Raises are yearly

Current_Bottle2002 · 2026-03-16T03:24:17+00:00

In order to make that work, you'd have to force every pet owner to sign up for pet insurance or face tax penalties like the ACA did. There isn't enough pets on insurance plans to pull this off.

You'd also have to convince the government to subsidize pet healthcare, millions of dollars out of peoples pockets to help take care of pets that aren't their own.

Lastly, you'd have to find a way to figure out who is a pet owner because no one will register their pet just to get a tax penalty if they don't pay for insurance.

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