From Vet s Orders to Dog s Bowl Understanding Prescription Diets
The Farmers Dog Food Review 2024: Pros & Cons (Vet Approved)
The information is current and up-to-date in accordance with the latest veterinarian research.
Learn moreOur Final Verdict
We give The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food a rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars.If youre thinking of switching your dog to a fresh selection diet, chances are you have heard of The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food. When it comes to fresh diets, where does The Farmers Dog rank on the list of options? These grain-free, highly nutritious recipes are top-quality, according to our findings.
We looked at a combination of ingredients, consistency, appetite stimulation, and overall quality. We think youll be as pleased with The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food as we are. Lets get into all the details.
At a Glance: The Best The Farmers Dog Food Recipes:
| Rating | Image | Product | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Our Favorite |  | The Farmers Dog Chicken Recipe | Click to Save 50% | |
 | The Farmers Dog Beef Recipe | Click to Save 50% | ||
 | The Farmers Dog Turkey Recipe | Click to Save 50% |
The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food recipe portions are specifically tailored depending on your dogs age, weight, and dietary needs. When you input all your pets details, The Farmers Dog website will populate exactly what they recommend for your dog. This is the best way to get a good idea of what to expect in your dogs food. You can also check out our example recipes down below for specifics on ingredients.
They almost always send a combination pack of beef, chicken, and turkey recipes so your dog can sample all three. Afterward, you can specialize the recipe depending on your pups favorite chow.
The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food Reviewed
The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food has a stellar reputation in the pet food industry. They have taken on the task of creating specialized recipes tailored just for your pooch. Lets dive into the details to see if its worth it for you.
Who Makes The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food and Where Is It Produced?
The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food started with a beloved canine companion, like many pet food stories. Jada suffered digestive issues that left her owner Brett searching for solutions. After realizing all of the negatives of commercial dog food, Brett decided to make a change.
He teamed up with partner Jonathan to produce quality, fresh foods that nourish a dogs body. Today, all Farmers Dog recipes are made in the USA.
Which Types of Dogs Are The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food Best Suited For?
The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food is a terrific fresh daily dietary choice for virtually any canine. Being based on ultra-natural, limited ingredients, it helps to promote healthy, vibrant pets. After introducing your dog to The Farmers Dog, you should expect a shinier coat, leaner muscle, and overall vitality restored. These recipes aim to restore all of your pups natural vitality.
However, this food might not be suitable for dogs on specialized prescription diets. We recommend consulting with your veterinarian if your dog needs a special diet and you are considering The Farmers Dog.
Which Types of Dogs Might Do Better With a Different Brand?
If you are on a budget and dont think you can make this dog food work in your monthly expenses, your dog might need another diet brand instead. While not as fresh, a natural commercial brand with a modest price tag would be Instinct Raw Meals.
Also, if your dog has extremely strict dietary needs, youd want to check with your vet before making the switchjust to err on the side of caution.
Discussion of the Primary Ingredients (Good and Bad)
When you look through the ingredients of The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food, it might make you happy that the list is so short. Each recipe is grain-free and crafted with human-grade ingredients, serving only the most desirable recipes for your pooch.
All ingredient sources are USDA-approved and fit for human consumption.
Protein sources in The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food:
Fruits and vegetables in The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food:
- Brussels sproutshigh in fiber and antioxidants
- Bok choysource of vitamin A, iron, and magnesium
- Broccolicontains fiber and vitamin K
- Kalethis superfood has vitamin A, vitamin K, and folate
- Lentilsfiber-rich
- Sweet potatoexcellent source of beta carotene
- Chickpeassource of fiber, choline, and potassium
- Carrotloaded with vitamin A, Lutein + zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene
- Parsnipsource of fiber
- Spinachsource of vitamin A, iron, and potassium
Other useful ingredients in The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food:
- Tricalcium phosphate
- Sea salt
- Vitamin B12 supplement
- Choline bitartrate
- Taurine
- Amino acids
- Vitamin E
- Riboflavin
- Potassium iodide
- Pyridoxine hydrochloride
- Vitamin D3
- Folic acid
Specially Tailored Orders
The Farmers Dog has quite a different setup process instead of having recipes to choose from on a whole lineup of products. If interested, you plug in all the information about your dog, including cute personal details, so they get all the details about your pup.
The process:
- How many dogs you have and their names
- Your zip code
- Your information
- Your dogs age, spay/neuter status, breed, weight, activity level, and eating style
- Any health issues your dog has
- Current food
After, they give you a trial suggestion with recipes tailored specifically to meet your dogs needs. You can review each product listed, including ingredient menus, serving information, and caloric suggestions for your specific dog.
How Your Dogs Personalized Recipes Are Determined
After you put in all your dogs information and receive your suggested trial box recipes, you have a chance to review all the contents. The offer on the website allows you to have 50% off of your trial order to see if The Farmers Dog is right for you before you commit.
Each serving is packaged according to your dogs weight and health so you can accurately measure and serve. In addition, every recipe is made in the USA with USDA-certified human-grade ingredients, so no matter the recommendations, your dog is getting excellent, high-quality nutrition.
Delivery & Presentation
We love that The Farmers Dog puts pride into their quality and really treats your pup like a human. After all, they seem to understand that your dog is considered one of the family.
They send these fresh recipes right to your door packed with dry ice to keep items frozen. You receive all items along with a pamphlet of information and instruction. Deliveries arrive in a timely fashion, designed to ensure your dog never misses a meal between shipments.
Difficulty in Accessing Recipe Ingredients
The only thing we found about The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food has nothing to do with the quality. While the website is straightforward and well-designed, it lacks a feature we think is pretty important for browsing customers.
You cannot see recipes and the contents therein until you go through the process of putting in all your dogs details and your contact information. While this might be a good marketing tactic, it can be a pain if you want to look at the ingredients before considering this brand further.
A Quick Look at The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food
Pros
- USDA-approved, human-grade ingredients
- Fresh, minimally processed protein and vegetable sources
- Specially tailored recipes
- Excellent dog personalization
Recall History
After diligent research, we could find no information regarding recalls on The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food. You can rest easy knowing that its a recall-free brand you can trust.
Reviews of the 3 Best The Farmers Dog Fresh Dog Food Recipes
1. The Farmers Dog Chicken Recipe
The Farmers Dog Chicken recipe will work for most healthy, issue-free dogs, creating a bountiful feast they can enjoy. Producers keep this formula loaded with nutrition while adding as few ingredients as possible.
In each pound of food, there are 590 calories. However, the number of calories your dog needs will be a personalized amount, allowing you to measure it out accordingly. The guaranteed analysis of this product is 11.5% crude protein, 8.5% crude fat, 1.5% crude fiber, and 75% moisture.
USDA human-grade chicken is the first ingredient, but it also contains chicken liver and fish oil for an extra punch of vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids. They use veggies like Brussels sprouts, bok choy, and broccoli which help provide fiber, antioxidants, and natural vitamin sources.
Pros
- Contains whole protein and organs
- Ideal for healthy companions
- Excellent for skin and coat
2. The Farmers Dog Beef Recipe
The Farmers Dog Beef is a robust recipe that your pup is sure to enjoy. If they like a more savory flavor, the beef will appeal to their taste buds without issue. In this recipe, you can see the ground chunks of meat and veggies for an appetizing display.
Your package should come with detailed feeding instructions per your dogs weight. In one pound of this dog food, there are 721 calories. The guaranteed analysis of the product includes 11% crude protein, 8% crude fat, 1.5% crude fiber, and 72% moisture.
USDA human-grade beef is the first ingredient, with beef liver added for extra nutrition. It also contains sweet potatoes for easy digestion. It also contains kale, one of the healthiest greens around, power-packed with vitamins and minerals.
Pros
- Savory meal
- Contains organs and whole protein
- Easily digestible carbs
Cons
- Highest calorie content of all recipes
3. The Farmers Dog Turkey Recipe
The Farmers Dog Turkey has a unique blend of ingredients that nourish your dogs body. This recipe is smooth and healthful using USDA-certified turkey, chickpeas, carrots, broccoli, and parsnips. The formula is the least calorie-dense out of all the recipes. In one pound, there are 562 calories. The guaranteed analysis of the product contains 8% crude protein, 4.5% crude fat, 1.5% crude fiber, and 76% moisture.
The only downside to this recipe is that the parsnip might be an acquired taste for some pups. Dogs with big appetites might scarf this blend down without thinking twice, but others might dislike the strong vegetable flavor.
Pros
- TFD nutrient blend
- Terrific for digestion
- Lowest calories of all recipes
Cons
- Strong broccoli flavor might not work for picky dogs
What Other Users Are Saying
When you are paying for the best nutrition you can offer your dog, you want to make sure the company can live up to your expectationsand no one understands that better than us. To see what other users are saying, we checked out reviews of The Farmers Dog products. Heres what we found out.
- Users love the convenience of having wholesome meals delivered right to their door.
- Owners noticed a major improvement in their dogs energy levels, coat, and skin.
- Food from The Farmers Dog seems to fix a lot of problems related to picky eaters.
- It improved the overall livelihood of their older dogs lifestyle.
Of course, results from dog to dog will vary. But the general consensus gets a paws up from pooches everywhere.
Conclusion
All things considered, we think that The Farmers Dog is an excellent brand that will continue to impress customers for years to come. They have innovative delivery options, personalized diet packages, and impressive natural ingredients.
While it is a little higher priced than most dog food diets, the positives seem to greatly outweigh the negatives, making it worth your purchase. Remember, The Farmers Dog offers 50% off on your first order.
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Featured Image Credit: The Farmers Dog Food
Prescription Dog Foods: Do They Really Help?
The general concept of veterinary or prescription diets is sound; its well-accepted by all nutrition experts that nutrient levels and ingredients can be manipulated in various ways in order to have beneficial effects on animals (including humans) with specific health conditions. Weve known this ever since the 1930s, when veterinarian Mark Morris innovated the first diet for dogs who were suffering from kidney failure (see The Morris Family and the Dawn of Veterinary Diets).
Unfortunately, nearly a century later, the concept is in danger of being a victim of its success. In the past 15 years or so, there has been a tidal wave of prescription foods being brought to market. Pet food makers have been enjoying seemingly endless success by marketing foods to the owners of dogs of ever more specific descriptions theres a food being pitched for adult Yorkshire Terriers! theres one for Pug puppies! and this trend has spread to the veterinary foods.
There are so many products that even veterinarians are often confused about which food to recommend to their clients.
The development and marketing of these products got so out of hand, that in 2016, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) created a guidance document for its staff, intended to educate them (and, sort of subversively put pet food makers on notice) about the laws that apply to these products.
Prescription Diets for Dogs Defined
There are a few differences between a prescription diet and an over-the-counter food.
Prescription diets are defined as those that are labeled and/or marketed as intended for use to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent diseases and are labeled and/or marketed to provide all or most of the animals total daily nutrient requirements by serving as the pets sole diet. They are meant to be marketed by and used only under the direction of a licensed veterinarian, who bears the responsibility of ensuring that the pet receiving the diet has been properly diagnosed as suffering from a disease or other health condition for which the food would constitute an appropriate treatment. A veterinarian is also expected to provide periodic assessment of how the animal has reacted to the diet and to discontinue the product when warranted.
Consumers are not supposed to be able to purchase prescription diets without a prescription, due to the potential for misusing the product and/or misunderstanding its role in the treatment of the pets condition.
Theres one quirky aspect of the rules regarding the labels of prescription foods: They are not allowed to include any representation that the product contained therein can be used to treat or prevent disease. Discussion of that technical information and the specific factors of the food that are therapeutic or beneficial to pets with the diagnosed condition are supposed to be limited to veterinarians only. Thats why manufacturers of these foods maintain separate websites one for veterinarians and a separate one for pet owners that describe their products.
Our Peeves About Prescription Dog Foods
Though we love and believe in the concept of truly therapeutic foods, we have a few peeves with prescription foods, starting with the practice of making the technical information about the products inaccessible to owners. We believe that interested owners can and should be trusted with information about how the prescription diet is supposed to affect their dogs. We also think that giving owners access to this information would also help them discern the differences if there truly are any between the prescription foods and non-prescription foods whose labels may also wink and hint at certain nonspecific health benefits. Over-the-counter food labels probably read as more therapeutic than prescription food labels!
Our biggest pet peeve, though, has to do with the ingredients that tend to appear in prescription diets. These foods are full of by-products!
In a way, this is a legacy of the original inventors of prescription diets, the father and son veterinarians who developed all the original diets for Hills Pet Nutrition. Its unclear whether there were any nutritionally adequate dog or cat foods on the market before Dr. Mark Morris, Sr., formulated his first products. Dr. Morris graduated from veterinary school as the Great Depression dawned. There were shortages of food for humans, so you could be certain that what was left over for making into pet food was not the most appealing material. But Dr. Morris had something that few (if any) pet food makers at the time had going for him: a scientific mind, honed at the best veterinary college of its day, and knowledge about the nutritional requirements of animals. He, and his son after him, focused on meeting those requirements proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals from whatever foodstuffs were at their disposal, at the right price. Nutrients, not ingredients, became the Science Diet way and the companys formulators defend it to this day (though the marketing people have pushed for greater inclusions of ingredients that are more appealing to consumers (humanization is the industry parlance).
We dont think there needs to be a wall between these schools of nutritional philosophy. Of course the nutrients in a food are the most important thing but why cant they originate from less-processed ingredients?
We developed WDJs dog food selection criteria with the quality of ingredients as the most important factor. In prescription dog food, the factors that are responsible for the therapeutic action of the food are of the utmost importance; we can look the other way when we see powdered cellulose as a fiber source or corn gluten meal as a protein source when we know that there are other functional attributes of those ingredients that have qualified them for inclusion. (Though when lay people cant access the rationale for the inclusion of those ingredients, its frustrating!)
Fortunately, change is coming and the newly crowded veterinary-diet market affords consumers more options, even for highly specialized products.
The Morris Family and the Dawn of Veterinary Diets
The concept of pet foods formulated to benefit dogs with specific health problems was innovated by Mark L. Morris, Sr., a veterinarian who started his first practice in 1928 in Edison, New Jersey, after graduating from Cornell University. At a time when most veterinarians treated mainly livestock and working farm animals, Dr. Morris focused his veterinary practice, the Raritan Hospital for Animals, on the care of companion animals.
At that time, the nascent pet food industry produced two types of foods for dogs: baked biscuits and canned foods that consisted almost exclusively of horsemeat. Most people fed table scraps to their pet dogs; only more affluent, urban or suburban owners augmented their dogs diet of leftovers with a commercial dog food.
These products were anything but complete and balanced living conditions caused by the Great Depression meant that only the least-nutritive foodstuffs were going into pet food. Dr. Morris noticed that his veterinary practice saw an unusually high number of dogs with kidney disease, and he speculated that this had something to do with their diets, comprised mostly of poor-quality protein. He started conducting research on pet nutrition; he believed that he could better treat his patients by using proper nutrition from a balanced diet.
Dr. Morris worked with Dr. Jim Allison at Rutgers Universitys biochemistry department to develop techniques for diagnosing diseases in small animals and to develop and test recipes for better dog and cat diets; he started selling his first pet food formulas in 1939.
That was the same year that he met Morris Frank, a young man who had lost an eye in an accident as a young child and lost vision in the other in a boxing match as a teenager. Frank traveled to Europe in 1928 to acquire his German Shepherd guide dog, Buddy; shortly after he brought Buddy back to the U.S., Frank started Americas first guide dog school in New Jersey. In 1939, he and Buddy were The Seeing Eye guide dog schools national ambassadors though Buddy was by then an old dog suffering from kidney disease. Frank sought out Dr. Morris, desperate for anything that might help Buddy.
Dr. Morris formulated a special diet for Buddy, canning it in glass jars in his kitchen with the help of his wife, Louise. Legend has it that the dogs health improved and soon, this formula dubbed Raritan Ration B was in great demand. Frank sent Dr. Morris a canning machine and a commission for thousands of orders. By 1948, with the popularity of the food growing and no doubt, wearying of operating the canning machine Dr. Morris took his formula to a Topeka, Kansas, canning company, the Hill Packing Company (named after its founder, Burton Hill), which had been canning dog food (as well as horse meat for human consumption!) since 1930.
The business relationship thrived and by 1948 became a partnership, Hills Pet Nutrition. Raritan Ration B was given a new name, Canine k/d (for kidney diet). Dr. Morris continued to create new formulas for diets that addressed pet health problems and Hills produced, packaged, and marketed them. In 1951, Dr. Morris moved his laboratory to Topeka, where new products are developed and tested at the Hills Global Pet Nutrition Center to this day.
Mark Morris, Sr., was instrumental in the founding of the American Animal Hospital Association. He also established the Morris Animal Foundation and served as president of the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Mark and Louise Morris had two children, Mark Jr. and Ruth. Mark Jr. earned a doctorates degree in veterinary medicine in 1958. After serving in the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps, he completed a Ph.D. in veterinary pathology and biochemistry. Later, he joined Hills Pet Nutrition, where he expanded the companys offerings. In 1968, he oversaw the development of a new line of dog and cat foods called Science Diet, formulated with preventative health in mind. Mark Jr. was a founding member of the American College of Veterinary Nutrition and co-authored Small Animal Clinical Nutrition, the definitive textbook for companion-animal nutrition.
Hills Pet Nutrition has been purchased by large corporations twice: Riviana Foods bought the company in 1968, and in turn was purchased by Colgate-Palmolive in 1976. Hills is currently ranked fourth on the list of the largest pet food companies in the world, with $2.5 billion worth of sales annually.
Recommendations for Prescription Dog Food Use
We cant (wont) tell you which companys prescription diets to choose for your dog; only a veterinarian can do that! But we encourage you to dig in for (and prepare to pay for) an extended conversation with your veterinarian about any prescription diets she may recommend for your dog. Wed suggest the following discussion points if your veterinarian recommends a prescription diet for your dog:
- The first thing to ascertain is whether your vet can describe what, specifically, the product offers to your dog. What are the specific attributes that are therapeutic for your dogs condition? Its not enough to just point owners toward a kidney diet any time there is a dog of any age with almost any sort of abnormal urine test result.
- Ask follow-up questions. If, in the example above, your vet suggests that her recommended kidney diet has lower-protein, and that your dog should be on a lower-protein food, ask her what amount of protein she thinks is suitable for your dog. Many kidney diets have protein levels that are very low, far too low for a young or middle-aged dog in the early stages of kidney disease so low, in fact, that dogs who are fed these diets for a long time start losing muscle mass as their bodies attempt to function without enough dietary protein. Its easy to find foods at any level of protein she thinks is appropriate, with higher-quality sources of protein than are typically used in prescription diets.
- Buy a small amount of the food for the first time. Many prescription diets are not very palatable.
- If your dog wont eat it, dont fall for the Hell eat it if he gets hungry enough speech. If your dog is not well, going hungry will not improve matters. As soon as possible, ask your vet for a more palatable alternative.
Alternative Dog Food
Starting below, weve listed all the prescription dog foods currently on the market in a searchable database. Weve included the complete ingredients list, as well as the protein and fat content, of each of the foods on this list. We strongly suggest that you compare the ingredients of all the products that are formulated for whatever condition your dog is being treated for. Then ask your veterinarian if she could investigate the technical information for your preferred product and perhaps prescribe it for your dog, too.
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