by Tom Ken
Freeze-dried dog food consists of meat with optional fruits and vegetables, which are specially prepared by a freeze-drying machine. This process freezes then sublimates (via vacuuming) to extract most of the moisture.
These steps ensure the dog food flavors and nutrients are retained while also extending the shelf life. That said, the various varieties of these foods contain different ingredients and flavors, and in this review, we cover the best freeze-dried dog foods that you can buy for your pet.
Contents
IMAGE | PRODUCT | FEATURES |
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1. Vital Essentials Mini Nibs Dog Entrée (Best Overall) |
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2. Stella & Chewy's Super Beef Meal Mixers Dog Food Topper (Best Budget) |
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3. Stella & Chewy's Raw Dinner Patties (Best Patties) |
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4. Primal Dog Food Chicken Formula (Best Natural) |
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5. Stewart Raw Naturals Grain Free Dog Food (Best Balanced) |
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6. Sojos Complete Natural Raw & Dehydrated Dog Food (Best Large Pack) |
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7. Instinct Raw Boost All-Natural Dog Food Toppers (Best Topper) |
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Vital Essentials' Mini Nibs takes the overall best position it has a high protein content (49%) and all this is sourced 100% from the USA. The protein is turkey meat, bone, and organs, and the high protein level ensures your dog builds up a healthy muscular body.
The food comes in a raw form and this helps to promote digestive health, oral health, and a strong body frame with strong bones and firm muscles.
It is dry but does not require rehydrating before feeding. However, you can rehydrate the meal to increase its quantity while also softening it and infusing back the flavor.
Due to its high protein content, a transitioning schedule is included on the pack to help you shift from the old dog food. This can take up to 10 days depending on your dog. On the downside, the product is only designed for small dog breeds.
Pros:
Cons:
Freeze-dried dog food doesn't have to be expensive. You can get an affordable pack like this Super Beef Meal Mixers from Stella & Chewy's . The meal is chicken flavored and consists of 95% cage-free chicken meat, which is very healthy.
This meat is blended with chicken organs, bone, organic fruits, and vegetables to give your dog a healthy, 100% balanced mix. As such, it is ideal for supporting healthy growth in all life stages for all kinds of dog breeds.
Feeding can be done in a dry or rehydrated form, in which this requires 1/2 cup of water per cup of food. There is a feeding guide on the pack that clearly shows you the dog weight to cup/scoops to serve, which should be referenced for day-to-day feeding.
The only problem is that the ground bone can pose a risk if they get stuck on your dog's throat.
Pros:
Cons:
If you prefer serving your dog large chunks of food, then you should check out Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried raw dinner patties . As the name suggests, this dog food comes in the form of patties, which are easy to feed.
These patties contain 95% grass-fed beef and are minimally processed to maintain a 100% complete and balanced diet that is ideal for dogs in all growth stages.
Additionally, they are fortified with vitamins and minerals and are enhanced with probiotics and antioxidants to help improve the immune and digestion systems.
However, with a minimum of 35% fat, this might cause your dog to gain excessive weight if the feeding ratio is not strictly followed.
Pros:
Cons:
Aside from having an extensive composition of organic fruits and vegetables as part of its ingredients, Primal's dog food is primarily flavored and made using meat from naturally raised chickens.
Basically, this means the chickens are raised without being fed/injected with hormones or antibiotics.
That said, the organic ingredients include kale, carrots, yams, sunflower seeds, etc. and the food is fortified using naturally-derived vitamins and minerals. These help to boost your dog's immune system for better health.
All in all, the food offers a complete, balanced diet that is ideal for all growth stages and is suitable for all dog breeds. The only problem is that the food has a high-fat content, which is 37% at a minimum.
Pros:
Cons:
Judging by its ingredient composition, Stewart's Raw Naturals offers the most balanced dog food solution because it contains 80% protein, 18% fruits, and veggies, and 2% vitamins and supplements.
These ingredients are processed via cold pasteurization, which does not destroy enzymes. Instead, it inhibits the growth of most decay-causing bacteria and pathogenic microorganisms in the food.
Lamb is used as the single protein source in the diet, which is lean and is easily digestible. However, ground lamb bone is also included and these small fragments can harm your dog if they get lodged in the throat.
Pros:
Cons:
Coming in a large 7-lb pack, Sojos' dog food is quite a lot and it can be rehydrated to make up to 40 lbs. of food. This means it expands close to 6 times in size and therefore, you can make multiple servings using a single bag.
Additionally, rehydrating brings back the flavors and textures so that your dog can enjoy the meal as it was originally.
That said, the bag has a beef recipe that is balanced by several organic ingredients like sweet potatoes, parsley, and pumpkin. This ensures your dog gets a complete diet with proteins, vitamins, and minerals.
The only problem is that the pack is quite expensive, but this is because of the size. On the bright side, the product is made in the USA using the highest quality of globally sourced ingredients.
Pros:
Cons:
Instinct's Raw Boost Mixers is meant to be given as a treat or as a topper over the main dog food to enhance the diet quality. That said, it is composed of very healthy ingredients that include cage-free chicken and a wide variety of fruits and vegetables.
These ingredients give the treats healthy proteins for muscle building and natural antioxidants that help to boost the immune system. Furthermore, it lacks grains, corn, wheat, which are not good for allergic or food-sensitive dogs.
The ingredients are minimally processed to maintain most of the nutrients, and this also helps to preserve most of the natural flavors, vitamins, and minerals from the raw meat.
However, with ground bone as part of the ingredients, the food contains bone fragments that can get stuck on your pet's throat.
Pros:
Cons:
If you want your small breed dog to thrive, Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried dog food is a good option to consider. It has a high quality 95% cage-free chicken recipe with a high protein content (48%) that promotes healthy muscle growth.
The food is balanced using an assortment of organic fruits and vegetables, omega-rich chia seeds for building a healthy skin-and-coat, and probiotics to help with digestion.
Key Features
We recommend K9 Natural's dog food for those who have a mix of different dog breeds at home. This is because the meal is 100% complete and balanced, which is certified as fit for all dog breeds in all growth stages.
That said, the product has a lamb recipe and it has a palatability guarantee that is ensured to satisfy even the pickiest eaters. You can use it as a whole meal or as a tasty topper to blend it with other flavors.
Key Features
If you have an adult dog that prefers a beef recipe, Merrick's Backcountry is worth checking out. The food is safely made in the USA and it has a beef recipe that can be served either as the main meal or as a mixer (topper).
The beef is fortified with minerals and vitamins, which assist in boosting the immune system.
Key Features
For a sick or injured dog, you should serve it with this freeze-dried dog food because it has a 20% supplement recipe. This helps to increase the uptake of various healthy nutrients to boost the healing process.
On top of that, the meal is grain-free and gluten-free and does not have any added hormones or antibiotics, which makes it a very healthy meal.
Key Features
Nulo's raw dog food has a probiotic advantage because it has patented GanedenBC30 probiotics that support the immune system and improve digestion in sensitive dogs.
It is composed of 83% beef, beef organs, and beef bones, which give a very meaty smell and taste. This is more than enough to entice even the pickiest eaters. That said, the food can be served as the main meal or side dish.
Key Features
Steve's Real Food's Raw Nuggets offers a healthy, versatile food mix that can be fed to your cat or dog. This is because the raw nuggets are fortified using raw goat milk, vitamins, minerals, which offer vital nutrients to keep your pets strong and healthy.
The food is beef flavored and the meat used is purely from grass-fed cows that are not exposed to hormones or antibiotics. As such, the meat is of very high quality.
Key Features
With 95% duck meat, bone, and organs, Small Batch's Small Bites has a very meaty flavor that is ideal for enticing picky eaters. The meal contains no grains or fillers but has probiotics for aiding in the digestion process.
The remaining 5% is made up of healthy organic nutrients such as mushrooms for boosting the immune system, as well as sesame seeds, salmon oil, and coconut oil for providing omega 3, 6, and 9. These are ideal for creating and maintaining a healthy coat.
Key Features
Rounding up the list is TruDog's Feed Me and this is the closest you can get to feeding your dog pure meat. It consists of 99% beef, beef organs, and beef bone, which gives a very tasty flavor that is sure to entice even the pickiest eaters.
Other than that, the food has antioxidants and minerals for balancing the diet and boosting immunity.
Key Features
The most important factor to consider before buying freeze-dried dog food is your dog's breed and age. These foods have different nutritional values that are suitable for feeding different dog breeds at their different life stages. This is usually indicated by the manufacturer.
Even though some can be universally fed to any type of dog at any age, at times specialization is recommended because it gives your pet the exact nutrients that it needs.
For instance, Vital Essentials' Mini Nibs has a high protein content that ensures small dog breeds build up a muscular body.
Due to quality issues, you should check where the dog food is made from before buying. Most people prefer buying food made in the USA, Canada, Western Europe, New Zealand, or Australia because these countries have stricter quality control standards.
We highly recommend getting freeze-dried dog food made in these countries because you can be assured that it will not have unhealthy ingredients and pollutants.
The main component of dog food is meat but there are different meat varieties. What you need to look at is the meat quality.
For instance, hormone-and-antibiotic-free meat is very safe for your pets. Cage-free chicken is also good because it has a better nutritional profile as compared to battery chicken.
Other ingredients like organic food, vitamins, antioxidants, minerals are usually added in to balance the diet, and the more they are, the healthier the food. For this, you can check out Stewart's Raw Naturals , which adds on omega oils to make it very healthy.
It is worth mentioning that the fat content in freeze-dried food is usually quite high (above 20%) and therefore, it is recommended for active dogs. For sedentary dogs, look for food with less than 10% fat.
Dehydrated dog food has more moisture in it, which results in a shorter shelf-life. Additionally, this food has fewer nutrients and does not retain the smell, taste, or texture as it was originally.
On the other hand, freeze-dried dog food has much less moisture, which gives it a longer shelf-life. Because it is prepared without heating, most of the nutrients, taste, smell, and texture is retained.
Yes. Since it retains most of the nutrients, it is very good for your dog. Additionally, most don't contain gluten, grain, soy, artificial preservatives, colors, and flavorings.
Not all. Some are made using raw meat while others are made using cooked ingredients. You can choose either but most pet owners prefer the raw type.
Once the ingredients are mixed up, the process begins by freezing the mix to solidify the water inside. The frozen mix is then placed in a strong vacuum, which converts the solid water (ice) directly into a gas (sublimation). This extracts most of the moisture, leaving it at less than 10%.
Depending on the moisture level, the food can last up to 15 years without being refrigerated. In most cases, the drier it is, the longer the shelf life that it has.
However, the taste and texture will change over time (especially after opening the pack) and therefore, you should feed it to your pets within 3-4 months after opening.
This is not necessary but is recommended. Not only does water help to bring back the flavor, taste, and texture, but it also increases the food quantity. If you serve it dry, be sure to place a bowl of water nearby for your dog to drink.
Open Farm Freeze Dried Raw Dog Food, Humanely Raised Meat Recipe with Non-GMO Superfoods - Walmart Link
360 Pet Nutrition Freeze Dried Raw Complete Meal for Adult Dogs, Made in The USA, 16 Ounce - Walmart Link
ZIWI Peak Air-Dried Dog Food - All Natural, High Protein, Grain Free and Limited - Walmart Link
Primal Pet Food - Freeze Dried Chicken Nuggets Dog Food 14oz Bag with WoWing Pets Pendant - Walmart Link
Stella & Chewy's Freeze-Dried Raw Dinner Patties - Walmart Link
Orijen Freeze-Dried Dog Food, Original, Biologically Appropriate & Grain Free - Walmart Link
Nature's Diet Simply Raw Freeze-Dried Raw Whole Food Meal - Makes 18 Lbs Fresh Raw Food - Walmart Link
Vital Essentials' Mini Nibs - Walmart Link
this Super Beef Meal Mixers from Stella & Chewy's - Walmart Link
Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried raw dinner patties - Walmart Link
Instinct's Raw Boost Mixers - Walmart Link
Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried dog food - Walmart Link
K9 Natural's dog food - Walmart Link
Nulo's raw dog food - Walmart Link
Steve's Real Food's Raw Nuggets - Walmart Link
Small Batch's Small Bites - Walmart Link
Open Farm Freeze Dried Raw Dog Food, Humanely Raised Meat Recipe with Non-GMO Superfoods - eBay Link
360 Pet Nutrition Freeze Dried Raw Complete Meal for Adult Dogs, Made in The USA, 16 Ounce - eBay Link
ZIWI Peak Air-Dried Dog Food - All Natural, High Protein, Grain Free and Limited - eBay Link
Primal Pet Food - Freeze Dried Chicken Nuggets Dog Food 14oz Bag with WoWing Pets Pendant - eBay Link
Stella & Chewy's Freeze-Dried Raw Dinner Patties - eBay Link
Orijen Freeze-Dried Dog Food, Original, Biologically Appropriate & Grain Free - eBay Link
Nature's Diet Simply Raw Freeze-Dried Raw Whole Food Meal - Makes 18 Lbs Fresh Raw Food - eBay Link
Vital Essentials' Mini Nibs - eBay Link
this Super Beef Meal Mixers from Stella & Chewy's - eBay Link
Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried raw dinner patties - eBay Link
Instinct's Raw Boost Mixers - eBay Link
Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried dog food - eBay Link
K9 Natural's dog food - eBay Link
Nulo's raw dog food - eBay Link
Steve's Real Food's Raw Nuggets - eBay Link
Small Batch's Small Bites - eBay Link
To conclude, Vital Essentials' Mini Nibs is the overall best freeze-dried dog food because it is 100% made in the USA using high-quality turkey meat. It also has a high protein content that is recommended for all growth stages.
However, if you have a sick or injured dog that requires a balanced meal, Stewart's Raw Naturals adds on omega 3 and 6 to make it very nutritious. Natural organic ingredients are also very healthy and Primal's dog food is packed with these. Be sure to check it out.
About Tom Ken
Tom has worked with many veterinary surgeons as a nurse at different veterinary clinics throughout his life.
There, he provides care for sick animals; such as: dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, hamsters, guinea pigs, and sometimes reptiles.
He has good work ethics and gentle hands; hence, the doctors as well the pet owners have come to love his presence alot.
With this site, he aims to help the readers ensure their pets' wellbeing, learn how to care, and proivide medical treatment as needed.
Joshua received Veterinary Technician Degree at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN.
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