The Pets Table Dog Food Review: Our Experience with the Newest Fresh Dog Food Subscription Service
Disclaimer: This article is sponsored by The Pets Table, and some of the links below are affiliate links. If you purchase an item, we may receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. We only recommend products we know and love, and all opinions expressed here are our own.
Updated March 2024
Mike and I (Steph) have loved ordering Hello Fresh meal kits over the years. While we absolutely love cooking from scratch, sometimes we have no time to get to the grocery store. Between growing DJANGO, a dog accessories and apparel USA small business, being parents to two toddlers, and taking care of our adorable longhaired dachshund, Django, there's truly no time to spare these days!
I was thrilled when I heard Hello Fresh was launching a new premium fresh dog food delivery brand. The Pets Table, a subscription-based service offering premium fresh and air-dried dog food recipes, officially became available to customers in late May of this year. We have a ton of experience with high quality fresh dog food brands and are always on the lookout for a new, healthy option for Django.
We ordered The Pets Table for Django in early August and have been watching him spin for joy over the meals ever since our first box arrived at our front door. Here is our review of The Pets Table based on our experience feeding the fresh dog food recipes to our sausage dog. Since we're new customers, we'll be updating this article over the coming months as we continue to feed The Pets Table to Django.
Questions about The Pets Table? Want to share your experience with this fresh dog food company? Leave a comment below! We'd love to hear from you.
THE PETS TABLE CODE AND DISCOUNT LINK
You can currently get 50% off your The Pets Table order with this link. You can also enter code DJANGO50 at checkout for an immediate 50% off your first box. This code won't last long, so make sure you take advantage of it sooner than later.
What is The Pets Table?
The Pets Table is a subscription service that delivers fresh and air-dried dog food recipes straight to your door. Parent company HelloFresh launched this new dog food brand in May 2023, building on its already large meal delivery footprint in the United States.
The Pets Table currently offers human grade fresh dog food and minimally processed and less expensive air-dried dog food. All recipes are made with high quality animal protein and fresh ingredients. The Pets Table never uses fillers, preservatives, or artificial flavors.
Customers order The Pets Table directly from thepetstable.com. After entering a dog's basic information—name, age, breed, weight, activity level—The Pets Table calculates the dog's exact daily recommended caloric intake and allows customers to select their desired food plan.
How does the The Pets Table subscription work?
The Pets Table is a convenient subscription dog food service. When a customer places an initial order for The Pets Table, he or she is signing up for a recurring meal plan. The Pets Table will continue to ship the customer a box of dog food (and bill the customer accordingly) so long as the customer's plan is active. Customers can easily cancel their meal plan anytime from within their account.
Frequency of dog food shipments will depend on your dog's size and calorie needs. A large dog will need more frequent deliveries given the amount of food the dog consumes. A smaller dog like our 13lb dachshund Django eats smaller portions and therefore requires less frequent deliveries.
Above: Django is about to enjoy his Chicken Casserole with Green Beans fresh dog food from The Pets Table. The hearty chunks of carrots, string beans, and chickpeas are evidence of The Pets Table's gentle cooking process which preserves the nutritional integrity of each ingredient.
The Pets Table Recipes
The Pets Table offers two types of dog food: fresh and air-dried. Customers can decide whether they want to feed their dog 100% fresh, 100% air-dried, or a 50/50 mix of both. There is even a 50% fresh option for customers that want to use The Pets Table as a topper over a different dog food or kibble. This last option is great for dogs that have a specific dog food they already love and also for customers that want to save on the cost of a fresh dog food diet.
The Pets Table developed its recipes with veterinarians over the course of 2 years. All recipes are made in the USA. Their human grade fresh recipes are even cooked in FDA-inspected facilities that meet standards for human food development.
All The Pets Table recipes also meet standards set by the AAFCO’s (Association of American Feed Control Officials) Dog Food Nutrient Profile for all life stages. This means that when your dog is eating The Pets Table, he or she is getting a fully balanced meal with the recommended proportions of nutrients, vitamins, and minimals to support optimal canine health.
As for ingredient quality, you can see in the recipe lists below that all ingredients used by The Pets Table are high quality, whole, and natural. The Pets Table never uses low quality dog food ingredients or fillers—think animal digest, meat by-products, corn, and artificial preservatives—all which are unfortunately common in many low quality and inexpensive dog kibble recipes.
The Pets Table's Fresh Dog Food Recipes
Django loves his fresh dog food meals from The Pets Table. The Pets Table currently offers 3 fresh recipes. Here are the full ingredient lists of each:
- Chicken Casserole with Green Beans: Chicken, Chickpeas, Chicken Liver, Carrots, Green Beans, Sweet Potatoes, Apples, Spinach, Salmon Oil, Sunflower Oil, Salt, Vitamins & Minerals, Yeast Culture
- Beef Stew with Carrots: Beef, Chickpeas, Eggs, Green Beans, Blueberries, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes, Beef Liver, Spinach, Sunflower Oil, Salmon Oil, Salt, Vitamins & Minerals, Yeast Culture
- Turkey Casserole with Broccoli: Turkey, Chickpeas, Sweet Potatoes, Broccoli, Carrots, Spinach, Salmon Oil, Sunflower Oil, Salt, Vitamins & Minerals, Yeast Culture
Click on each recipe above to view allergen information, nutrition information, caloric content per 12 oz pack, and a detailed list of included vitamins and minerals.
The Pet's Table Air-Dried Dog Food Recipes
The Pets Table offers 2 air-dried dog food recipes. For full disclosure, we've only tried the Chicken & Sweet Potato Recipe thus far. Here is the ingredient list of both:
- Chicken & Sweet Potato: Chicken, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes, Coconut Oil, Sunflower Oil, Vegetable Glycerin, Fish Oil, Animal Plasma, Whole Oats, Pearled Barley, Ground Flaxseed, Blueberries, Cranberries, Spinach, Dried Skim Milk Powder, Choline Chloride, Yeast Extract, Dried Chicory Root, Mixed Tocopherols, Vitamins & Minerals, Rosemary Extract
- Beef & Berries: Beef, Eggs, Carrots, Dried Apples, Vegetable Glycerin, Animal Plasma, Sunflower Oil, Fish Oil, Coconut Oil, Blueberries, Cranberries, Ground Flaxseed, Beef Liver, Chickpeas, Dried Skim Milk Powder, Spinach, Choline Chloride, Salt, Yeast Extract, Dried Chicory Root, Mixed Tocopherols, Tricalcium Phosphate, Vitamins & Minerals, Rosemary Extract
Click on each recipe above to view allergen information, nutrition information, caloric content per 12 oz pack, and a detailed list of included vitamins and minerals.
What is the difference between fresh dog food and air-dried dog food?
Fresh dog food is made from whole foods and other ingredients (healthy oils, vitamins and minerals) and is slowly cooked at low temperatures to preserve the nutritional integrity of each ingredient. When you look in a bowl full of fresh dog food (see our photos), you can see the individual, whole ingredients (chunks of carrots, green beans, etc). The most popular fresh dog food brands flash freeze pre-portioned fresh dog food meals and delivery them via insulated packaging to your front door.
Unlike fresh dog food which is not processed (just gently cooked), air-dried dog food is minimally processed and gently cooked. As you can see in our photos, the air-dried food resembles jerky. To make its air-dried dog food, The Pets Table grinds up all ingredients, cooks it gently in an air-drying oven which removes moisture, and cuts it up into the bite-sized pieces you can view in Django's dinner bowl.
Since air-dried dog food has a more cost-effective cooking process and a longer shelf life, it is a less expensive dog food option for customers than fresh dog food. For dog owners that want to move their dog away from highly processed kibble but don't have budget for fresh dog food, air-dried dog food is a great option to consider.
How is dog kibble different from fresh and air-dried dog food?
Unlike fresh dog food which is very gently cooked and air-dried dog food which is only minimally processed, dog kibble is highly processed. Why should we, the dog parent, care? Because highly processed food offers significantly less nutritional value than real, whole, and non-processed foods. In this DJANGO Dog Blog article, we explain in detail how dog kibble is made and how kibble ingredients lose their nutritional value during the manufacturing process.
Above: Django always drools over The Pets Table's Chicken & Sweet Potato air-dried dog food recipe.
Django's (and Our) Top Picks
So far we've tried all 3 fresh dog food recipes as well as the Chicken & Sweet Potato air-dried dog food recipe. If Django could choose, my guess is he'd eat the fresh dog food recipes 100% of the time. He literally spins around in circles whenever we pull The Pets Table fresh food out of our refrigerator! He also barks at us while we are preparing his breakfast bowl as if he's saying, "MOM, give me my food nooooow!!" It's very entertaining so long as he doesn't wake up one of his human baby brothers :)
I am a huge fan of the Mixed Plan where we do a 50/50 mix of fresh and air-dried. Why? For one, the cost savings are pretty significant, especially on a monthly basis. Scroll down for a breakdown of the numbers.
The cost of an all-fresh dog food plan are obviously something to consider if you're on a budget. Second, the nutritional content Django is getting from the 50% air-dried portion of his meal is undoubtedly a huge step up from any kibble he might be getting otherwise.
The Pets Table Cost
We were happy to see that The Pets Table offers both its fresh dog food and air-dried recipes at competitive prices. The Pets Table is taking advantage of HelloFresh's already-established operational facilities and distribution network. From what we've read, HelloFresh's economies of scale allows The Pets Table to produce its dog food recipes at a competitive cost and therefore bring its meals to customers at competitive prices that match or beat other top fresh dog food brands.
Cost is a big factor for loving dog owners that want to leave kibble in the dust and switch their dog to a more nutritious fresh food diet. For many obvious reasons—sourcing high quality and fresh ingredients, small batch manufacturing, gently cooking process, priority shipping and delivery given perishable nature of meals—fresh dog food is simply more expensive than non-perishable dry dog food which can sit on a pet store shelf for months on end.
How much does The Pets Table cost?
How much does The Pets Table cost on a daily basis? Weekly basis? Here are cost estimates for The Pets Table as of September 2023. We break out daily and weekly costs for 3 dog breeds and sizes. Dog size seems to drive cost the most, so use our dog weights as good references for your own pup. When you are ready, tap on the link below to price out your dog's meal plan based on his or her specific breed, age, weight, and activity level.
Keep in mind that you get 50% off your first The Pets Table box with this link and code DJANGO50 at checkout—this will cut pricing in half for your first box!
The Pets Table Nutritional Info
As mentioned above, The Pets Table recipes were developed over a 2 year period with licensed veterinarians. All recipes are formulated to meet the standards set by the AAFCO’s (Association of American Feed Control Officials) Dog Food Nutrient Profile for all life stages, including growth of large size dogs (70 lbs. or more as an adult).
Here are the nutrient profiles of each The Pets Table fresh dog food recipe:
Our Verdict
The Pets Table is a great new addition to the fresh dog food industry. With the support of parent company HelloFresh, I wouldn't be surprised if The Pets Table ends up becoming the leading monthly subscription dog food brand.
We've had an excellent experience so far with The Pets Table, and Django absolutely loves both the fresh and air-dried recipes we've ordered from the website.
It seems clear Django prefers the fresh dog food recipes, but I'm a huge fan of the 50/50 fresh and air-dried ordering option so we can reduce our overall monthly dog food cost yet still give Django the nutritious meals he deserves.
If you're looking to introduce your dog to fresh dog food, I highly recommend trying The Pets Table. Definitely take advantage of their 50% OFF promo for new customers as well!
3 Responses
Deborah
Hi! I’m anxious to get my 2 year old English Lab (82 lbs) off of Blue Wilderness kibble, especially due to the chicken meal they incorporate in their Bison food. Murrow’s allergic to chicken, plus kibble just isn’t ideal. My budget will allow approx $120 a month, but not much more than that. I’m happy to add bone broth, frozen carrots and peas (do that now) to the freeze dried in order to lessen the monthly cost of going with any of the other alternatives. Any suggestions how I might be able to feed Murrow on Pet’s Table without breaking the bank?? He’s a big dog! Thank you so much. I’m eager to hear back!
Janine
Unfortunately, our pup has too many food allergies, so I would be unable to go with your pet food.
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DJANGO
February 05, 2024
@DEBORAH It’s very nice to hear from you, and it’s great to know you found our The Pets Table review helpful! Have you priced meal plans for Murrow on The Pets Table website? Also, are you interested in feeding him a 100% fresh dog food diet? Or a mix of fresh and air-dried dog food? Are you open to feeding Murray a mix of The Pets Table and one other brand to save on total monthly cost? Lots of questions, I know :)
Based on Murrow’s weight, a 100% fresh diet will unfortunately cost more than $120 a month, so you might consider a “50/50” meal plan (half fresh, half air-dried The Pets Table) OR a “Half Fresh” meal plan (50% The Pets Table fresh dog food and 50% another brand entirely). Doing the “Half Fresh” plan and mixing in a high quality dog kibble will definitely help bring down the cost the most.
You might even consider feeding Murray less of The Pets Table (i.e. 1/3 of his dinner bowl can be The Pets Table; 2/3 can be something else) to ensure you stick to the $120 monthly budget. The above “50/50” and “Half Fresh” options might still end up costing more than your monthly budget given his breed and size.
Also, rather than mixing in additional calories yourself (bone broth, frozen carrots and peas), we’d recommend instead mixing in a high quality dog food that meets the canine nutritional standards set by the AAFCO. This will ensure Murray is getting optimal nutritional content with every meal.
I hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any follow up questions. And please give Murray a huge cuddle from us <3
Steph