Providing your dog with fresh food has been gradually growing more popular over the past few years. Many dog parents are becoming more conscientious about what their pups are eating, which has led to an increase in companies that provide high-quality dog food subscriptions.
But reading through every fresh dog food company’s website and deciding which one is best for you and your dog can be time consuming.
So, we did all the work for you and developed reviews of the best dog food subscriptions available to Canadian dog owners. We hope that you find the right service that your dog will love and won’t take too much of a chunk out of your wallet!
Dry, raw mix, wet, freeze-dried raw, fresh, treats, bone broth
The best overall dog food subscription service in Canada is Open Farm. It is owned and operated in Toronto, Ontario, and the food is manufactured in Minnesota. Open Farm offers various options to choose from, including dry, raw, freeze-dried, and wet dog foods.
It also covers all life stages of dogs, from puppies to seniors, in addition to small and large dogs. The ingredients are all sourced from Canada and the U.S., with just a few exceptions. Each food item has a lot code, which when typed into Open Farm’s website, will tell you exactly where all the ingredients were acquired for your specific food.
To get started, you fill in a questionnaire, and you can customize your order with as many or as few items as you want. Open Farm offers free shipping if you spend over $50 or has a flat rate of $5.99. Unfortunately, it’s relatively expensive and does not ship to the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, or the Yukon.
Pros
Multiple dog food options, including fresh, raw, and dry
Great for all sizes of puppies, adults, and seniors
The best dog food subscription service in Canada for the money is NutriCanine. The plans start at $2.30 per day (for toy breeds), and it ships across Canada, but you’ll need to pay a shipping fee (except in Ontario, which is free). You can choose the Full Plan, which covers 100% of your dog’s diet, or the Topper Plan, for 50% of your dog’s diet.
It also has raw rood, including turkey, chicken, salmon, beef, or lamb, and gently cooked turkey, chicken, lamb, or beef recipes. Like with most of these subscription services, you fill in a questionnaire to customize your meal plan, and depending on your choices, you’ll receive 14 recipes to last 2 weeks in easy-to-serve and -store packages.
The food contains ingredients sourced from farms in Ontario and is free of artificial ingredients. However, every province must pay for shipping, with the exception of Ontario. While this service is affordable for small breeds, it won’t be quite as economical for large breeds.
Pros
Somewhat affordable
Raw or gently cooked recipes
Meals arrive in easy-to-serve and -store packaging
Tom & Sawyer offers nine gently cooked recipes to choose from, in which most of the ingredients are sourced from Canadian farms. Each recipe is cooked by culinary chefs and is lab tested. Animal nutrition experts are consulted to ensure that they are healthy and safe for your dog.
The menu plans also contain options for low-fat and renal support, as well as for dogs with allergies. The recipes are for adult to senior dogs, but Tom & Sawyer also offers a puppy booster, which is a supplement to be added to their regular food.
But you don’t get the label of premium choice without the premium price, and this subscription service is expensive. Plus, free shipping is only available to parts of Ontario, so the rest of Canada needs to pay for shipping.
Pros
Choose from nine gently cooked recipes
Most ingredients come from Canadian farms
Chefs, lab testing, and animal nutritionists help with each recipe
Includes low-fat, renal support, and allergy support options
Kabo offers gently cooked recipes with five hypoallergenic meats to choose from: salmon, beef, chicken, lamb, and turkey. There are also three different kibble flavours—chicken, duck, and turkey/salmon—and the ingredients are sourced from local suppliers.
This food can be fed to dogs of all life stages, from puppies to seniors, and to accomplish this, pet nutritionists develop the recipes. Kabo only uses fresh ingredients without artificial colours or flavours. But some of the recipes are fairly high in fat, and delivery can be hit or miss.
Pros
Five gently cooked recipes and three kibble flavours
The Lucky Dog Cuisine subscription service offers seven recipes of gently cooked food: beef and rice, turkey and rice, beef and barley, pork, seafood, beef and pasta, and turkey and potatoes. Lucky Dog started out in South Carolina and now has a location in Toronto, where it sources its ingredients from Canadian suppliers.
It uses all-natural products, such as yogurt, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins, and does not use any preservatives or additives. The food is also considered human grade.
But you need to call or email to customize your order, and the company essentially just sends 14-pound variety packs as the only option. Plus, it only ships free to southern Ontario.
Gently cooked, puppy food, raw dog food, grain-free dog food
The Healthy Barker is based out of Waterloo, Ontario, and offers a selection of different kinds of food: gently cooked, raw, grain free, and puppy. It sources from local suppliers and only uses hormone- and antibiotic-free meat and no artificial ingredients or preservatives.
For a lower price, Healthy Barker also offers introductory samplers, which are either five samples of raw dinners or five samples of gently cooked. It ships free to Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, and Cambridge and has a $10 shipping fee for the rest of Canada.
Puppy Gang Fresh Foods has four recipes formulated by a holistic veterinarian. The recipes are beef, chicken, salmon, and turkey, and you can pick all four or any flavour that you want. You then choose if you want a small box with seven to 13 food packs, a medium box with 14 to 29 packs, or a large box with 30 or more packs. Each size saves you more if you subscribe—the large box saves you 25%!
Puppy Gang also offers snacks and supplements, and everything is made with fresh ingredients, with no artificial ingredients or fillers. However, the food is quite expensive and all the recipes are grain free. If your dog is sensitive to grains, this should work well for you, but if your dog has no issues with grains, you’ll want to find a different company.
Pros
Four recipes formulated by a holistic vet
Subscription saves money depending on the box size
Kafka’s Organic is based in Vancouver and sources all its fresh ingredients from local suppliers. It has six gently cooked recipes: beef, turkey, ocean fish, chicken, pork, and pumpkin with beef. The bone broths are chicken and beef.
Kafka is strong on transparency and ethical sourcing, and its meals are small-batch handmade. This means a great deal of care goes into the preparation of the food, and it follows vet-approved recipes.
But while it technically offers free shipping, you must spend a large amount to access it. In Vancouver, you must spend $120, the rest of B.C. has to spend $150, and the rest of Canada must spend over $200. Additionally, all recipes are grain free, so you’ll want to go with a different company if your dog is not sensitive to grains.
Pros
Fresh ingredients are locally sourced
Six gently cooked recipes and two bone broths
Strong in transparency and ethical sourcing
Cooked in small batches
Cons
Must spend a large amount of money to access free shipping
All recipes are grain free
Buyer’s Guide: Choosing the Best Dog Food Subscription Service in Canada
This buyer’s guide goes over various aspects of these services that should help you decide on the one that best suits your needs.
Shipping
Shipping isn’t always free unless you happen to live in the same area where the food is made. Otherwise, you have to pay high shipping fees. Most of these companies make fresh food that will lose its freshness and spoil quickly, so maintaining the quality of the food is essential, which helps explain the shipping price.
Some companies stock their food in pet stores in certain locations across Canada, so keep an eye out for that. It could help offset the shipping costs if you pick it up yourself.
Frozen Food
Gently cooked fresh food is what most of these companies produce, so most are frozen to preserve the freshness. You should think ahead about the storage space that you have in your freezer. You don’t want to purchase a large amount of dog food only to discover that it won’t all fit!
Expense
This type of food is expensive. These companies make food differently than more prominent pet food manufacturers. Locally and ethically sourced and wholesome ingredients make for pricier food, though the payoff is usually a healthier dog. But if you can’t handle the extra cost, you can opt for food that is not quite as expensive but still offers high quality for your pup.
Before you even consider changing your dog’s diet, you should speak to your vet. This is vital if your dog has health issues, particularly food allergies and intolerances. Your vet can guide you to the food that they think is most suitable.
You’ll also need to slowly transition your dog to the new food. Each of these companies will advise you on the best way to do this, but you can also speak to your vet about it.
If you read reviews of pet owners complaining that the food made their dogs sick, it’s possible that some of these people didn’t transition their dogs slowly enough—or at all!
Conclusion
Open Farm is the best dog food subscription for its multiple options and complete transparency on where it has sourced its ingredients. NutriCanine offers a number of options in its meal plans, with a choice between raw and gently cooked recipes. It sources its ingredients from Ontario farms and is quite affordable for small dog owners. Finally, Tom & Sawyer has a variety of recipes designed for things like allergies and renal support. The recipes are created by culinary chefs, with pet nutrition experts overseeing everything.
We hope that these reviews have enabled you to find the best dog food subscription service. Feeding your dog fresh food that you know is good for them and supporting a Canadian business is a win-win situation!
Kathryn was a librarian in a previous lifetime and is currently a writer about all things animals. When she was a child, she hoped to work in zoos or with wildlife in some way, thanks to her strong love for animals. Unfortunately, she's not strong in the sciences, so she fills her days with researching and writing about all kinds of animals and spends time playing with her adorable but terribly mischievous tabby cat, Bella. Kathryn is hoping to add to her family in the near future – maybe another cat and a dog.
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