# Northwest Naturals and the price of raw food



## Liffey (Jan 12, 2017)

I want to switch to Northwest Naturals. (My dog is eating Ziwipeak/Fromm + eggs). I'm seeing a new holistic vet on Monday May 15th and I have a feeling he will tell me to switch to raw - which at this point I am _soooo_ on board with. Anyone feeding this food? I have also heard about Bravo - any experience with that? 

If someone could point me to any info about the pricing of the frozen 2lb and 5lb chubs for Northwest Naturals products or can tell me about how much they pay to feed their dog per month, that would be helpful - for some reason I'm having a hard time finding any frozen pricing (presumably because you can't ship/order it online). I will check out a few pet stores in the area that carry it, and maybe see if I can get some samples. 

Ziwipeak is astronomically expensive but I would like to feed it sometimes or use as treats or a topper if my guy does well with that plus raw. Anyone doing this? 

My dog is 85lb, moderate activity, the N.N. site says he should be eating approximately 2lb a day. If you're feeding N.N., have you found their chart to be accurate? 2lb seems like a lot. Has anyone heard of trying to feed raw and the dog not *liking* it or wanting to eat it?? My dog is an incredibly fussy eater but he does love eggs and tripe, and of course the occasional meat table scraps when we visit my parents. I'm a little worried about him not wanting to eat it, but if he doesn't want to eat raw meat, he's not a real dog and I'm at a total loss!


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## Momto2GSDs (Mar 22, 2012)

My sister's Golden would not touch raw.
But every other dog I've used it on (Maltese, Italian Greyhound, GSD's) went mad for it.

I use to keep either NW Naturals, Primal or Bravo in my freezer in case I ran out of my own meat mix, but now I keep Ziwi on hand. My dog's liked them all.

Here is a list I put together several months ago. Maybe it will help.

*RAW FOOD SPECIFICS*
These are all quality foods. Your choice depends on what specifics (such as organic, manufacturing practices =HACCP, GMP, or Anti-Pathogen Treatment=HPP, ect.,) are important to you AND the price per pound. 
There are even more expensive products out there.

*Darwins: *This is delivered to your home: 
Why Darwins: https://www.darwinspet.com/why-darwins/ 
2 Choices:
Natural Selections™ is our premium line of raw dog food. This grain-free, gluten-free mixture of free-range meats and organic vegetables will provide complete and balanced nutrition for your dog. All the meat used to produce Darwin’s Natural Selections™ were raised cage free or free-range, were grass fed, and are free of steroids or artificial growth hormones. 
Natural’s Selections: Beef - $5.45/lb: https://www.darwinspet.com/product/raw-dog-food-ns/ 
Or
ZooLogics™ is our more economical line of raw dog food, made with conventionally-grown meats and vegetables from the same farms that supply your supermarket 
Zoologic’s: Beef - $4.35/lb: . https://www.darwinspet.com/product/raw-dog-food-zl/

*Bravo:* Discover Balance Raw Diet | Beef Frozen Raw Dog Food Diet - Bravo Pet Food Find a store: Find a Bravo Retailer - Bravo Pet Food 
*Bravo Safety: **http://www.bravorawdiet.com/foodsafety.html* 
*Bravo faqs: **http://www.bravorawdiet.com/faqs.html* 
*Price per **www.petflow.com** : Bravo Balance (complete diet) Beef CHUB = 5#’s = $28.98 (note there are different Bravo blends. "Balance" is the complete diet.)
*

*Northwest Naturals: *Beef ? Northwest Naturals Find a store: Store Locator
*What makes NW Natural’s different? **http://nwnwordpress1.nw-naturals.net/wp/the-northwest-naturals-difference/* 
*Price per **http://www.petfoodzoom.com/northwest-naturals-6-lb-beef-formula-nuggets-raw/** : *
* 6#’s = $28.00 *
http://nwnwordpress1.nw-naturals.net/wp/store-locator/ 
*NOTE: you need put your zip code in the store locator above to see if it is in your area.*

*Primal: *Complete Raw Diets for Pets: Canine Beef Formula Find a store: Primal Pet Foods: Store Locator
Feeding Calculator to give you an idea of how much you would feed per day: 
Feeding, Transition and Safety for Raw Dog Food Diets
Primal Safety: Feeding, Transition and Safety for Raw Dog Food Diets 
Primal Ingredient Benefit: Feeding, Transition and Safety for Raw Dog Food Diets 
Price per Primal Pet Foods Canine Formulas Raw Dog Food Primal Pronto Beef Bag = 3#’s = $23.00
_Primal Chicken, Duck, Pheasant, Turkey & Sardine are HPP_


*Stella & Chewy's: *


90-95% meat, nutrient-rich organs and bone
Grass-fed, cage-free, wild-caught or farm-raised protein
100% organic fruits and vegetables
No grains, gluten, fillers, added hormones or antibiotics
100% complete and balanced for all life stages
*HPP Processed (inactivates pathogens and harmful bacteria)*
 Store Locator: https://www.stellaandchewys.com/where-to-buy/ https://www.stellaandchewys.com/ 
12# Bag = $65 at Chewy https://www.chewy.com/stella-chewys-stellas-super-beef/dp/137612 


_You may find other commercially prepared brands in your area, *but *the description *MUST SAY*: meets the AAFCO standard for *complete and balanced nutrition for all life stages*._


Moms


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

If cost is a barrier, look into Vital Essentials (which uses conventional meat, not antibiotic-free). Their 5# chubs are under $20. The beef one contains green tripe. Chicken is cheaper than beef. Otherwise you're looking at $30-40 with some brands--depending on the protein. 

OC Raw is another brand to look at.


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## Liffey (Jan 12, 2017)

Thanks to both of you! I've never heard of OC Raw. I went to the local (fancy) pet store and they said they can order Northwest Naturals and it's $20.99 for 5lb. After tax that's about $23.50, which makes it $4.70/lb. That's prohibitively expensive for me - it could be up to $270/month to feed him. 

I'll see what my other options are. There's an Agway nearby that is probably cheaper. Ziwipeak is about the same price as frozen raw, looks like. 

I'd rather feed him meat that is free of any hormones/antibiotics. If I'm going to have to spend a lot of money, I may as well spend an additional 10% or so, and get the better quality product. 

I wish he wasn't such a picky eater! I will see what the vet says about how to transition him to raw and which one he recommends (I think Answers?) and go from there.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

They're giving you a good price on NWN!

Only Natural Pet (onlynaturalpet.com) in Colorado has introduced a line to compete with Ziwi recently. It's called "Max Meat," and is a little less expensive that Ziwi (about $10/lb vs. $14-15/lb for Ziwi). You might look on their website or even give them a call (they're very nice to deal with by phone). They have tons of coupon codes out there (right now it's $20 off $100), plus 3% back from Ebates. They sell other brands too (Ziwi, THK, etc.).
Air Dried Dog Food ? Real Meat | Only Natural Pet MaxMeat

You can also save some money by using a base mix (The Honest Kitchen has several; several other brands do too). The Sojo's base mix with grain is the least expensive of them because they sell it in large bags. You add water to mix it up into a porridge, then add fresh meat. The combination is a complete meal. I feed THK's Preference (no grain) that way.


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## Liffey (Jan 12, 2017)

Magwart said:


> They're giving you a good price on NWN!
> 
> Only Natural Pet (onlynaturalpet.com) in Colorado has introduced a line to compete with Ziwi recently. It's called "Max Meat," and is a little less expensive that Ziwi (about $10/lb vs. $14-15/lb for Ziwi). You might look on their website or even give them a call (they're very nice to deal with by phone). They have tons of coupon codes out there (right now it's $20 off $100), plus 3% back from Ebates. They sell other brands too (Ziwi, THK, etc.).
> Air Dried Dog Food ? Real Meat | Only Natural Pet MaxMeat
> ...


I'll check out Max Meat. As far as base mixes go, it's a 0% possibility. He will not eat any flavor of Sojos, Grandma Lucy's, Stella & Chewy's, Honest Kitchen... he literally sniffs it and backs away or leaves the room lol. He's the pickiest eater I've ever met.


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## Liffey (Jan 12, 2017)

Products 

The prices here are amazing. I sent them an email with some questions. It could cost me only $150/month to feed him if this place works out!


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Liffey said:


> Products
> 
> The prices here are amazing. I sent them an email with some questions. It could cost me only $150/month to feed him if this place works out!


They sell Blue Ridge. Since you don't want to feed conventional meat according to your post above, you should dig into their reputation and sourcing (not just the sales rep's CLAIMS about sourcing). The reason to dig a bit is that there was a little bit of controversy involving Blue Ridge from a few years back.

Past controversy discussed here:
http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/b-r-f-raw-feeding/582065-so-blue-ridge-raw-no-longer-good.html

And over at DFA (scroll down to the comments with an allegation about the owner's "other business" -- all unsubstantiated, but pretty troubling):
Topic: Blue Ridge Beef Raw Dog Food

I'd really like to know if those allegations are based on facts or not. I've never yet seen a good explanation for WHY is it so much cheaper than other brands of raw beef, given what human food-grade meat sells for. 

There are some people here who have fed BR, so before placing an order you might want to post a new thread to see what recent experiences are with it, since those threads are several years old.

BR could be a good company who fell victim to internet rumor-mongering about 4D meat. Or they could be something else. It would be nice to find out, either way.


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## Liffey (Jan 12, 2017)

Magwart said:


> They sell Blue Ridge. Since you don't want to feed conventional meat according to your post above, you should dig into their reputation and sourcing (not just the sales rep's CLAIMS about sourcing). The reason to dig a bit is that there was a little bit of controversy involving Blue Ridge from a few years back.
> 
> Past controversy discussed here:
> http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/b-r-f-raw-feeding/582065-so-blue-ridge-raw-no-longer-good.html
> ...


Yeah absolutely. I just did a quick google search on Blue Ridge and saw that they had a listeria recall from earlier this year. So that's kind of a no-go for me. 

Tiffany, who runs this company, emailed me back in a quick response to a few of my questions and told me that the bottom section of that products page where it says human-grade meat, is sourced from a local farm butcher that raises grass-fed meat. I don't know if it's organic, but the fact that it's human grade makes me feel better - should it? I'm new to the raw thing... Grass-fed could also mean they got to eat grass for 1 hour a day or they were on pasture for their entire life... Unfortunately I think it's nearly impossible to know about this unless you spend a month on that particular farm where that particular cow comes from.

Then again, if you're buying meat that's been processed into kibble, you have even less information about the circumstances under which those animals were raised and slaughtered.

I'll ask this new vet if he knows about this company and has any thoughts on where to source the meat from. I definitely want to take my time and do it right and make sure I gather as much information as I possibly can before I make any decisions.


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