The Lab Brats family does not shy away from our feelings on dog food. Due to the numerous amounts of almost toxic dog foods there are on the market, we are always searching for dog foods that not only provide our pups with everything they need to stay healthy and happy but also those that are easy for dog owners to prepare and won’t break the bank. One dog food that definitely peaked our interest is called Proportions – the whole food nutrition program for your dog.
What is Proportions Dog Food anyway? Their website sums it up very simply:
Every dog is unique. Now you can feed them that way, with custom Proportions whole food meals just for him!
Proportions has created a convenient, easy way for anyone to feed a whole-food diet. Simply pour the 3 separate pouches of Hearty Stew, Crunchy Blend and Harvest Mix into his bowl and stir. Because of the delicious pumpkin soup, there’s no need to add water!
Feeding Proportions is so easy, there’s no need to switch your dog’s food while traveling, at doggie day care or with pet sitters. Even the kids can do it!
The Lab Brats Blog was asked to write a review of the product and, of course, Dakota and Cheyenne have to try everything out before we will give it our 8 Paws Up! To make this easier for other dog owners, let’s break down this 4-day starter kit review in areas we really care about, shall we?
Packaging & Delivery
- Plain brown box – no need to refrigerate
- Each meal came with a picture of our dog and the number of calories of the meal printed on the individual boxes
- Materials included about the company & special offer coupons
Preparation
- Each meal came in its own box
- Each component of the meal was in its own airtight bag (1 stew, 1 vegetables, 1 kibble)
- Open bags, mix, serve!
Dog’s Thoughts
- Wanted to eat the packaging box
- Kept climbing on counter while we prepared the meals
- Loved it!
Dog Owner’s Thoughts
- Easy to prepare
- Stew smell was overpowering to humans
- Broccoli was included in the vegetables, which concerned us, as it is toxic to dogs in high quantities
Overall the product truly rocked but we had a concern about not only the broccoli being included in the meal but the waste in packaging. A lot of cardboard was used for individual packaging and the bag that contained the dry kibble had blue ink that came off in flakes on our hands as we were opening it.
The greatest concern for us, personally, was transitioning their dog food from the dry kibble they are currently on to Proportions. There is an 11-day transition from the old to new dog foods that isn’t as simple as weaning off the old dog food. For Proportions, the dog owner must slowly transition with portions of the new meal. For example, days 1-3 will require you to reduce your dog’s current food by 1/3, add a full serving of Proportions Stew and serve. The kibble and vegetables in the prepackaged meal go to waste in the first 1-3 days and then just the vegetables are wasted until day 7. That’s a lot of waste and a lot of preparation for our family.
So I guess you are wondering – would we recommend this to other dog owners? If you can get over the extensive packaging and 11-day transition, then we most certainly recommend this whole dog food nutrition program. The Lab Brats loved the food, it was tailored to their specific health and dog breed needs and it was so easy to prepare.
Proportions custom dog nutrition program gets 7 out of 8 paws up!
Visit Proportions today for a FREE Dog Food Trial with coupons for a FREE 10-Day Starter Kit & 25% off your first month!
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I went through the questions to get the custom blend for my dog and because of his many allergies, it said I had to use my own kibble AND it would be $130 per month (every 4 weeks) for the stew and veggies. Too pricey for my budget! I never found anywhere that actually said what was IN the stew or veggie mix.
Chris – We had to receive the food in order to read the list of ingredients. I would definitely recommend you contact the company if there is any lack of information on their website. Ingredients are definitely on the “must know” list for dog owners.
Hello Shannon,
Thank you so much for the review! We are very happy your dogs loved their Proportions meals!
I wanted to clear up a little confusion in regards to the Starter Kit. What you received for your dogs was a Risk Free Trial of two meals. The Starter Kit we send FREE with your first month’s order is sent with the exact amount of stew pouches and Harvest Mix pouches needed to transition over a 10-day period. A small portion of the Crunchy Blend kibble is wasted during days 1-3 of the transition phase. We recommend using the leftover kibble as an alternative to less nutritious treats.
We have found the best way avoid stomach upset, especially for dogs used to an all kibble diet, is to transition over a 7-10 day period. The rich ingredients can take a few days for the dog’s body to adjust to, but transition time can vary from dog to dog.
We also wanted to thank you for your honest feedback on the Crunchy Blend bags, we have since changed the bags to white and silver packaging and the flaking color is no longer a problem.
In regards to the broccoli in the Harvest Mix, we feel that such a small amount will not be in any way toxic to dogs but do understand your concern about larger quantities. Broccoli contains antioxidants that are believed to help prevent Cancer in dogs and the reason they are included in the meal.
We thank you again for the post. We always welcome any and all feedback!
Proportions Customer Care Team
Bekky – thank you for the further information on Proportions. The Lab Brats loved the dog food and we are glad to know that the crunchy blend bags have changed to white and silver packaging. Also, I fully agree with the broccoli as far as it’s smaller quantity in the dog food. I wonder if Proportions will be offering a couple of options for the freeze dried vegetable packages for owners with such concerns.
Thanks again for letting us sample your product!
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