Here’s the scoop on our food of the month, Stella & Chewy’s Frozen Raw Dinners, 25% off throughout June at our Newbury Street (Boston) or Portland Me store.  Limit one per flavor/size per visit.  More interested in a before & after?  Read this recent Stella & Chewy’s story in the NY Times Well Pets Blog.

Ideal for:  all dogs and cats.  There’s plenty of taurine to make this a fine choice for cats (though because the food is about 5% fruit and vegetable, some cats prefer the Stella & Chewy Freezedried Cat Dinner).

Format:  Frozen, raw patties; completely balanced (you don’t need to add anything).

Suggested portion for 25# dog:  7 small patties or 1.25 large patties.  You can buy S&C in small patties (3# bag) or large patties (6# bag).  Use their feeding calculator to estimate portions for any size cat or dog.

Average cost/day:  For 25# dog, $3.50 (3# bag) or $3.15 (6# bag).  With our food-of-the-month savings, the cost comes down to $2.36-$2.63/day.

Suggested portion for 10# cat:  3.5 small patties.

Average cost/day:  Normally $1.75/day; during June, $1.31/day.

Flavors:  Chicken, Beef, Goose, Lamb, Surf & Turf.

What makes this food unique:

– Their patented HHP process kills pathogens (salmonella, E coli) without heat or irradiation, so all the heat-sensitive enzymes and nutrients remain intact.  You can actually track each bag’s lab results online.  Dogs and cats are rarely affected by these pathogens, but people are, as we witnessed in the recent pet food recalls.

– Extremely high palatability

– ‘Guaranteed Clean’ ingredients.  All their meats are naturally-raised meats; no hormones or antibiotics.  Suppliers must provide a letter of guarantee stating that their foods are fresh & unadulterated.

– The food is made in their own plant in Wisconsin.

– Excellent mixture of meats, organs, and organic fruits and vegetables.  No grains, fillers, artificial colors/flavors/preservatives.

Animals who can benefit from a raw diet:  All animals benefit from switching from a highly-processed diet to a high quality, clean, raw diet.  Particularly good candidates are animals who are overweight, finicky; or who have allergies, skin issues or digestive problems.