Dog lovers, there is a new way to feed Fido! Our Fred Meyer store now sells Homestyle Select dog food by Freshpet. A start up company doing business since 2005, Freshpet is carving out a niche for those who love to pamper their dogs. Cat food is soon to follow.
This dog food is unlike anything I have ever seen! When I saw the display in the store, I did a double take and had to get a closer look, because I wasn’t sure it was really dog food that I was looking at. At the end of the dog food aisle, near the dairy case at Fred Meyer, stands a refrigerated cooler that looks much like one that typically holds soda pop. Except this cooler contains several different types of dog food.
Freshpet dog foods are made in Quakertown, Pa., and their goal is to make the best, healthiest, and most nutritious pet foods around. They use locally grown vegetables, and are truly all natural. Just like people foods, these dog foods also have expiration dates printed on the packages, and unlike canned or dry dog food, the Freshpet brand has a shelf life of 3 months. Once the product is opened, it can store in the refrigerator for a week and a half.
Facts About Homestyle Select
* They use fresh meat for maximum nutrients
* The vegetables are rich in antioxidants
* Homestyle Select contributes to a healthy immune system
* Brown rice aids digestion
* Flaxseed oil is added for a healthy skin and coat
* Contain vitamins and minerals for a complete and balanced meal
How They Are Prepared
Homestyle Select dog food has less processing than other dog foods, and they are cooked gently for the ultimate in taste and nutrition, because the vitamins and minerals are locked in. They are never heat-treated or pre-processed.
Varieties and Ingredients
There are three varieties of adult dog foods:
Chicken, Vegetable & Rice Dinner
Chicken, Vegetable & Rice with Turkey Chunks Dinner
Chunky Beef, Vegetable and Rice Dinner
For puppies, they have a Chicken, Vegetable and Rice Dinner
The key ingredients in these meals are chicken, turkey, beef, liver, carrots, peas, brown rice, and rice bran.
Freshpet dog foods do not contain any filler such as corn, wheat or soy. The meals are refrigerated, meaning they don’t have to depend on chemicals to act as preservatives. You will not find BHA, sugar, and propylene glycol in Freshpet products.
How To Serve
Our store had two different kinds of Freshpet dog food. The Deli Fresh Fresh Bites look like mini meatballs, and come in a clear plastic container. The second type, Homestyle Select, comes in a tubular shaped plastic wrapped package, much like hamburger is often found.
The Fresh Bites package contains 28 ounces and retailed for $6.99. Homestyle Select is available in several different sized packages, from 1 pounds to 6 pounds. The 1.5 pound roll retailed for $4.49.
Obviously, the Fresh Bites are ready to go, simply open the rectangular shaped plastic container and take out the portion size needed. When it comes to the Homestyle Select, you slice the roll, right through the wrap and all, and cut it up into the chunks. When you have removed the desired amount of dog food, you can either place plastic wrap around the end of the roll, or you can purchase a plastic cap that fits over the end of the roll to keep it fresh while storing it in your fridge.
Just like meats humans eat, these dog foods can be frozen and then thawed at a later date, but the company recommends that it tastes best fresh. Either variety can be mixed into a dogs dry food or served as is.
Thoughts
Our dog is already quite pampered. We made the switch from canned dog food available in grocery stores to the higher end and more expensive brands found only in pet specialty stores. Our dog won’t hardly eat dry food, and even when my husband feeds her canned food, he usually mixes in some leftovers from our dinner to make it more palatable for our Silky.
Knowing this, you can imagine it wasn’t too much of a stretch to go from this to the new Freshpet brand of dog food. I was sure our dog would love this, since she loves all people food (and this seems very close to human grade), but still I only bought the smallest 1.5 pound package just in case she didn’t care for it.
The type we tried was the Deli Fresh Chicken, Vegetable & Rice Formula. Our Silky absolutely loves chicken, and the Nutro brand canned foods she is used to is also chicken based. The roll looks like deviled ham, with chunks of carrots, peas and rice mixed in. It smelled pretty much like chicken too, much better smelling than typical canned dog foods. Just like I thought, our dog ate this like she was half starved, and wanted more! Looking at the ingredients, it’s hard to imagine any dog not liking this meal!
Ingredients and Nutritional Information
The ingredients in this chicken roll are: Fresh chicken, liver, fresh carrots, peas, rice bran, chicken broth, brewers rice, carrageenan, dried egg product, salt, dried kelp, flaxseed oil, garlic, taurine.
The crude analysis is:
Protein: 10.0%
Crude Fat: 8.0%
Crude Fiber: 2.0%
Moisture: 73.0%
Vitamins: Choline chloride, vitamin E supplement, niacin, D-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin D3 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement.
Minerals: Zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, copper sulfate, copper proteinate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, sodium selenite.
To Conclude
I was always surprised to see the moisture content so high in dog foods. The moisture content is 73%, but the company has a good explanation on their website that made absolute sense to me. Deli Fresh products contain natural fresh meat, which usually contains 70% to 75% moisture. Chicken breast has a moisture content of 74.6%. In comparison, they state, “there is 40% more nutrition per bite in Deli Fresh foods than in Hill’s or Iams’ canned dog food“.
If you have an older pet, an ailing pet, or simply a pet you like to spoil rotten, I think the new FreshPet Homestyle dog foods are worth checking out. Others who may take an interest in the new FreshPet dog foods are those who are angered and concerned by the contaminated dog foods that killed pets and put a scare in their owners within the past year. If this is a major concern of yours, this brand may be for you.
