Review Summary
Dr. Marty’s Pets food company founded by long-time veterinarian, Dr. Marty, whose focus for the past 45 years has been on creating healthy and nutritious all-natural foods for dogs and cats. Dr. Marty’s mission is to change the way we understand animal nutrition and care, giving pets the best chance at thriving and living long, healthy, and happy lives. Operating under the philosophy that true health is possible through real food, just as nature intended, Dr. Marty’s dog and cat food recipes are made with only real food ingredients containing high nutritional value, and zero added artificial preservatives or filler ingredients.
All of Dr. Marty pet food formulas are freshly made in North America using only carefully sourced ingredients from trusted partners. Its premium freeze-dried raw food is changing the game for pet owners everywhere—allowing them to feed their beloved dogs and cats high-quality, nutrient-dense, all-natural food that is lightweight, easy to store, and super convenient for pet parents as well.
As a dog mom who prioritizes feeding my fur baby only the best natural foods and treats, Dr. Marty’s mission is perfectly aligned with this objective—making their products the perfect fit for me and my Coco. Read on to learn more about the exceptional experience we had trying out Dr. Marty’s Nature’s Blend freeze-dried natural dog food.
What Exactly is Freeze-Dried Pet Food?
Freeze-dried pet food is made using a technique of preserving raw natural ingredients (such as fresh meat, real veggies, fruits, seeds, etc.) to create a finished product that is safe, lightweight, and shelf-stable. Naturally preserved to vaporize most of its moisture content, freeze-dried pet food is technically raw and packed with essential nutrients for your pets’ optimal health and wellness.
What Are the Benefits of Feeding My Dog Freeze-Dried Dog Food?
Most pet food is cooked extensively, often with methods involving high-heat cooking and dehydrating of the food, which results in stripping of much of its nutritional value throughout the process. Freeze-dried food is technically still raw and naturally preserved to keep more of the food’s nutritional content intact. This also means less artificial preservatives used, as well as less synthetic and filler ingredients added, all of which are harmful to your dog’s digestive system and overall health.
For pet owners, the convenience of having a safe and lightweight dog food that has a long shelf life is just another bonus to knowing their dog is getting the high-quality, healthy, and nutritious meals they deserve.
What is the Best Way to Prepare and Serve Dr. Marty’s Freeze-Dried Dog Food?
There are a couple different ways to prepare freeze-dried dog food. One great thing about Dr. Marty’s Nature’s Blend freeze-dried food is that it’s completely customizable to your dog’s liking. If your dog is a bigger fan of wet food, you can add some warm water (as much or as little as needed) to their bowl of freeze-dried food and mix it up before serving. It can also be served completely dry if your dog prefers dry food. It can even be used as a mixer and combined with their usual food if preferred.
What Ingredients are in Dr. Marty’s Freeze-Dried Dog Food?
All of Dr. Marty’s pet foods are made of premium, all-natural, real food ingredients. In this Nature’s Blend Essential Wellness recipe for dogs, the full ingredient list consists of turkey, beef, salmon, duck, beef liver, turkey liver, turkey heart, flaxseed, sweet potato, egg, pea flour, apple, blueberry, carrot, cranberry, pumpkin seed, spinach, dried kelp, ginger, salt, sunflower seed, broccoli, kale, and mixed tocopherols (natural preservative).
Is Freeze-Dried Food Recommended for All Dogs?
While all dogs can enjoy the many health benefits of freeze-dried food, it may take more getting used to for some dogs than others. Transitioning your dog from their usual food to freeze-dried food typically takes between 1-2 weeks, but it may take longer for certain dogs. It is generally recommended to try out freeze-dried food for a full 90 days to give your dog enough time to fully adjust, while giving you enough time to assess if it’s the right fit for them.
Dr. Marty Nature’s Blend Dog Food – Primary Ingredients
Dr. Marty’s Nature’s Blend dog food contains premium ingredients of only all-natural real food to ensure your dog is getting all the best nutrition in every bite. Let’s take a closer look at their Essential Wellness recipe with a detailed breakdown of ingredients by food groups.
Real Meats
The first four ingredients in this recipe are real meat: turkey, beef, salmon, and duck. Other meat ingredients include organ meat such as beef liver, turkey liver, and turkey heart. The Nature Blend’s Essential Wellness recipe contains an impressive 81% of real premium meat. These combined meat ingredients provide your dog with natural sources of protein, which provide a number of vital health benefits including growth of lean muscle, improved skin and coat health, and a healthy boost to the immune system. A high protein diet also supports your dog’s energy level, vital organs, and healthy lifespan.
Real Veggies
Loads of healthy vegetables are found in this recipe including sweet potato, carrot, spinach, dried kelp, ginger, broccoli, and kale. While many people may overlook vegetables as an important part of a dog’s diet, they help to balance it out by working alongside the proteins, amino acids, and other nutrients they get from meat.
Vegetables also contain vitamins and minerals that help with other important bodily functions such as hydration, metabolism, immune response, skin and coat health, bone development and repair, and liver function, to name a few. Nutrients from vegetables can also help prevent certain disorders and diseases down the line, helping to reduce inflammation, promote gut health, and kill cancerous cells.
Real Fruits
This recipe also contains real fruits such as apple, blueberry, and cranberry. Including fruits and vegetables in your dog’s diet helps to keep them strong and healthy by providing them with essential vitamins and minerals that naturally boost their immune system. Not only does this keep their overall health in check, having fruits as an ingredient in dog food offers a healthier alternative to other high-calorie dog food options that may lack the same nutritional content.
Because most pet owners don’t know which fruits and vegetables (or how much of them) are recommended for dogs, you really can’t go wrong with finding a trusted company like Dr. Marty that incorporates all the right amounts of healthy fruits and veggies into their recipes with your pet’s optimal health and wellness in mind.
Other Real Food Ingredients
Other natural ingredients that make up the Nature’s Blend Essential Wellness recipe by Dr. Marty include seeds (such as flaxseed, pumpkin seed, and sunflower seeds), eggs, pea protein, salt, and mixed tocopherols—a combination of natural forms of vitamin E that function as a safe and natural preservative preventing natural fats contained in the recipe from going bad.
Good Things to Know About Dr. Marty’s Pet Products
As a renowned veterinarian and best-selling author, Dr. Marty has made appearances on shows like The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Martha Stewart Show, Good Morning America, as well as his own documentary, The Dog Doc, it’s safe to say that Dr. Marty knows his stuff.
That’s why pet parents everywhere can trust that they are getting some of the best food, treats, and supplements in the market with Dr. Marty’s pet products. As the company’s philosophy is that true health is possible through real food, just as nature intended, their dog and cat food recipes are made of only real, wholesome, all-natural food ingredients. Likewise, all their recipes are free of any artificial preservatives, fillers, and other harmful additives to prevent health issues and premature aging. Even senior pets have shown to be more playful and youthful after switching to real, wholesome diets with quality food ingredients.
The product I tried on my 4-year-old chihuahua-terrier mix, Coco, was the Nature’s Blend freeze-dried dog food. This specially made recipe is made up of 81% protein from real cuts of premium meat to support multiple health functions in your pet. The recipe also contains real vegetables, fruits, seeds, and other superfood ingredients to improve your dog’s overall health and wellbeing.
As a freeze-dried recipe, the Nature Blend’s dog food is made and naturally preserved in such a way that maintains as much of its nutritional content as possible throughout the process. While most other dog foods are cooked extensively (often in high heat), which strips it of almost all of its nutritional value, the freeze-dried method ensures that the maximum nutritional value of the food stays intact until reaching your dog’s bowl.
Seeing as this was my first time trying out freeze-dried dog food, having that bit of knowledge was very reassuring to me as a dog mom who prioritizes feeding my dog only the best quality of all-natural foods and treats. Not to mention, the ease and convenience of having lightweight, shelf-stable bags of dog food that don’t take up a ton of space in either my freezer or pantry was a major plus.
Pros
- High-quality dog food containing premium whole foods as ingredients including real cuts of meat, veggies, and fruits
- Naturally preserved with the freeze-dried method to maintain optimal nutritional value
- Full of vitamins and minerals to support lasting health
- Contains zero artificial preservatives, filler ingredients, or other harmful additives
- Naturally delicious flavor that dogs love (Coco was an instant fan!)
- Lightweight, shelf-stable, and super convenient to store in your home
Cons
- Not much variety, as only one flavor is available of the Nature’s Blend recipe
- Though well worth it, can be a bit on the pricier side for pet parents on a budget
Ingredients Analysis
| Crude Protein (min): | 37% |
| Crude Fat (min): | 28% |
| Crude Fiber (max): | 4% |
| Moisture (max): | 6% |
| Calcium (min): | 0.5% |
| Leucine (min): | 2% |
| Omega 3: | 2.5% |
| Iron: | 40 mg/kg |
| Vitamin A: | 50,000 IU/kg |
Calories Per Cup Breakdown:
| ½ cup: | 128 calories |
| 1 cup: | 256 calories |
| 2 cup: | 512 calories |
Our Experience With Dr. Marty Nature’s Blend Dog Food
There are several reasons why I rate Dr. Marty Nature’s Blend freeze-dried dog food a full 5 out of 5. Having done my research on the company beforehand, everything about their mission to provide premium all-natural pet food checked out with my own objectives as a dog mom to only feed Coco the crème de la crème of dog food and treats.
With that, I was confident that what I was feeding her was quality stuff that would only do her little body good. It was just a matter of whether Coco would like it too. Which she did! Not only did she instantly like the taste (she sometimes takes some warming up to something new), I could tell that her body also took well to it in several ways.
For one, her energy level seemed to take a boost. While Coco has always been an active and energetic dog whenever I take her out to walk or run, even her mood was noticeably more upbeat and chipper throughout the day while just hanging around the house. Coco can also be pretty introverted when it comes to other dogs, keeping to herself for the most part. Lately, she has become a bit more outgoing and friendly towards some of our neighborhood dogs that we pass by regularly
I also noticed her digestion seemed to improve significantly, as she seemed to go #2 more often during walks. Aside from the initial adjustment period of transitioning from her old food to Dr. Marty’s freeze-dried food, her poop also appears to be much healthier these days (without getting too graphic)—which is always a good sign of healthy digestion. The fact that she adjusted so well, and rather quickly, to this food is just another indication of its high quality.
Finally, as a pet parent, I have been introduced to a whole new world of freeze-dried dog food. I had never entertained the thought of trying any before, but now that I’ve experienced the ease and convenience of it, I am a fan. More importantly, knowing the many health benefits it offers Coco, as well as how much she liked it, I will definitely be looking into more freeze-dried food and treat options for her moving forward.
Conclusion
When it comes to healthier alternatives to your usual store-bought dog kibble, Dr. Marty’s Nature’s Blend freeze-dried dog food is a worthy contender. Not only was Coco a big fan of the taste, taking to the flavor right away and licking the bowl clean each time, her health and wellness benefited from it in several ways. She is noticeably happier and healthier with a bit more pep in her step these days. That is enough reason for me to try out more of Dr. Marty’s products—like their various dog treats and supplements.
For my fellow health-conscious dog parents (and cat parents too, although I didn’t personally try any of their cat products) who also prioritize feeding their fur babies food and treats of the utmost quality—all-natural, made with real food ingredients, no preservatives or additives, and tasty/edible for your dog—I can personally attest to Dr. Marty’s Nature’s Blend recipe being all these things and more. It is my humble opinion, from personal experience, that both you and your pet(s) will not regret trying out one or more of Dr. Marty’s Pets products.
