PetFlow: Pet Food Delivered on Your Schedule
So, I'm the resident dog food freak. I get it...crazy, but my dogs definitely have better nutrition than I do. If I look at a food or treat ingredient list, and don't see words that look like the type of food that you or I would buy at the grocery store (e.g. duck, chicken, rabbit, potato, carrot), my dogs aren't getting it from me.
I got my first Westie from a backyard breeder, and as most Westies not professionally bred, she had every allergy in the book. Food allergies are one of the worst, because as anyone who has a dog with food allergies knows, you'll find a food that works, then after a couple of years of smooth going, suddenly, the scratching, the chewing, and out comes all the hair.
I had to educate myself about canine nutrition out of necessity, and luckily, my vet at the time was a fantastic resource. After I had exhausted about everything out there, he suggested that I try the old BARF diet. As unappetizing as it sounds, for us it worked, and I became a true believer. About every 6 or so weeks, I'd take a Sunday, grind meat, fruit, veggies, offal, and all the other ingredients, and freeze enough single portions of food to last her. As a result, all of her skin problems, ear problems, scratching, and misery were gone for the remainder of her life.
We have very healthy youngsters, but now that our dog to human ratio is 2.5:1, home making dog food is a little overwhelming. If time and money were no object, I would probably continue to make the raw diet at home like I did for so many years. But you know, with a full time job and 5 times the mouths to feed, for us, it just isn't feasible. Plus, food selection is different than it used to be, and honestly, there are a lot of great and convenient options. We use biologically appropriate raw kibble, but I still make treats at home.
So, because we have to buy about 60 pounds of dog food every 6 or so weeks, we're trying out this service called PetFlow. The idea is that you can set up food delivery on whatever schedule you choose, and PetFlow automatically ships the grub. The service is available for dogs or cats. There are no commitments and you can change the service at any time. It's kind of like the book of the month club, except it's dog food, and you've told them exactly what you want and how often.
They carry a very comprehensive variety of food, and surprisingly carried pretty much everything we use. As far as price, it was about a wash for us. We blend food because I like a large variety of protein sources, and a couple of the bags were $2 or so less and one was $2 or so more. The shipping is flat rate, $4.95 regardless of quantity, although signing up today got me a free shipping deal, but the absence of sales tax did cut the price back down to slightly cheaper than what I'd buy in the store.
One of the most attractive aspects of it for me though is the fact that we don't have to make special trips out to haul the 60 or so pounds of food from the shop to the car, and from the car to the house. I believe this will be a huge time and energy saver for us. I have learned that a lot of people don't place that huge a premium on their time, but we have no choice, and having dog food show up on my door on a regular schedule should be a huge convenience. I'm pretty happy about the find, but if it sucks, I'll let you know.
I got my first Westie from a backyard breeder, and as most Westies not professionally bred, she had every allergy in the book. Food allergies are one of the worst, because as anyone who has a dog with food allergies knows, you'll find a food that works, then after a couple of years of smooth going, suddenly, the scratching, the chewing, and out comes all the hair.
I had to educate myself about canine nutrition out of necessity, and luckily, my vet at the time was a fantastic resource. After I had exhausted about everything out there, he suggested that I try the old BARF diet. As unappetizing as it sounds, for us it worked, and I became a true believer. About every 6 or so weeks, I'd take a Sunday, grind meat, fruit, veggies, offal, and all the other ingredients, and freeze enough single portions of food to last her. As a result, all of her skin problems, ear problems, scratching, and misery were gone for the remainder of her life.
We have very healthy youngsters, but now that our dog to human ratio is 2.5:1, home making dog food is a little overwhelming. If time and money were no object, I would probably continue to make the raw diet at home like I did for so many years. But you know, with a full time job and 5 times the mouths to feed, for us, it just isn't feasible. Plus, food selection is different than it used to be, and honestly, there are a lot of great and convenient options. We use biologically appropriate raw kibble, but I still make treats at home.
So, because we have to buy about 60 pounds of dog food every 6 or so weeks, we're trying out this service called PetFlow. The idea is that you can set up food delivery on whatever schedule you choose, and PetFlow automatically ships the grub. The service is available for dogs or cats. There are no commitments and you can change the service at any time. It's kind of like the book of the month club, except it's dog food, and you've told them exactly what you want and how often.
They carry a very comprehensive variety of food, and surprisingly carried pretty much everything we use. As far as price, it was about a wash for us. We blend food because I like a large variety of protein sources, and a couple of the bags were $2 or so less and one was $2 or so more. The shipping is flat rate, $4.95 regardless of quantity, although signing up today got me a free shipping deal, but the absence of sales tax did cut the price back down to slightly cheaper than what I'd buy in the store.
One of the most attractive aspects of it for me though is the fact that we don't have to make special trips out to haul the 60 or so pounds of food from the shop to the car, and from the car to the house. I believe this will be a huge time and energy saver for us. I have learned that a lot of people don't place that huge a premium on their time, but we have no choice, and having dog food show up on my door on a regular schedule should be a huge convenience. I'm pretty happy about the find, but if it sucks, I'll let you know.
posted by J at 1:21 PM
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