Overview

Darwin's offers high-quality, raw meals designed for cats and dogs. It has 3 lines for dogs: the premium Natural Selections line featuring recipes made with pasture-raised, antibiotic-free meats, the value Biologics line using supermarket-quality meats, and the Intelligent Design line, targeting health concerns that require a veterinary prescription. For cats, you have a few options from the Natural Selections range.

All recipes are made with human-grade, USDA-approved meat and organic vegetables. They're also grain- and gluten-free. In addition, all meals meet AAFCO nutritional profiles, providing necessary protein, fat, and fiber while avoiding any fillers. During sign-up, owners can identify allergens to tailor feeding plans. 

Meals arrive frozen in BPA-free packaging with dry ice and clear storage recommendations. Weekly costs will vary depending on your pet's size, but this is a premium service, so expect prices to match. It can get pretty expensive if you have a larger breed with a big appetite. New customers can often get a significant discount on the trial box to try it out for less. 

Darwin's subscription model simplifies ordering, and it’s easy to amend your shipping frequency. The company provides strong email support and a robust FAQ section, although I’d have liked a live chat option. I found that there have been several recalls between 2016 and 2024 due to contamination, so I’d advise checking the latest FDA advice.

Despite its challenges, Darwin's stands out for its focus on raw nutrition and ingredient quality. If you want minimally processed meals tailored to your pet’s specific needs, this is a brand worth considering. 

Darwin's Meals: High-Quality Meals for Optimal Pet Health

Plans & Recipes: Choose Between 3 Food Lines for Dogs

There are 3 distinct food lines for dogs that cater to diverse needs, including: 

• Natural Selections, which stands out as the top choice among pet owners. This line boasts 5 recipes: chicken, lamb, turkey, beef, and duck. Impressively, the sourced meat is either cage-free or pasture-raised, with a strict no to steroids, antibiotics, or growth hormones.
• Biologics line, which is a more pocket-friendly alternative. It's crafted from conventionally grown meat similar to what you’d find on supermarket shelves. You can choose from 3 recipes: chicken, turkey, and beef.
• Intelligent Design, which targets dogs with specific health conditions. Exclusive to those holding a veterinary prescription, this line tailors meals to address various health challenges. There are meals for kidney, liver, cancer, and joint and musculoskeletal support.

For cats, you can choose from the Natural Selections line. There’s a choice of chicken, turkey, or beef. You can also opt for an Intelligent Design recipe that’s specially formulated to support cats with kidney disease.

All recipes are grain and gluten free. The questionnaire during signup covers allergens. You can choose to avoid these ingredients: chicken, beef, lamb, duck, and turkey. Your suggested feeding plan won’t contain any of these proteins.

Ingredients: Fully Human-Grade, Pasture-Raised Meats & Organic Vegetables

All of the ingredients used by Darwin’s are human-grade and USDA-approved. In the Natural Selections meals, all of the meat is pasture-raised and grass-fed, so your pet is receiving top-quality meat.

Each recipe has different vegetables and ingredients. These provide the necessary vitamins and nutrients. For example, in the dog recipes, cod-liver oil from wild-caught Alaskan codfish is added to provide additional vitamin D from a natural source. The cat recipes all contain taurine which is necessary for cats.

Let’s take a closer look at the Natural Selections Turkey for Dogs. The ingredients list is simple, with meat and vegetables.

It contains 74.64% antibiotic-free meat consisting of meat, livers, hearts, and gizzards. The hearts are a good source of nutrients because they’re muscle meat. The liver is a lean protein that provides vitamin A.

Organic vegetables make up another 24.66% including sweet potato, lettuce, carrots, seasonal squash, celery, and parsley. These give your pup food fiber and different vitamins and minerals.

Finally, the remaining 0.77% is the special nutrient mix. This includes organic flaxseed, sea salt, inulin, cod liver oil, and more. These ingredients are high in Omega-6 and Omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D.

Nutrition: Meals Contain Every Nutrient Your Pet Was Designed to Eat

The raw food diet provides all the nutrition your dog needs. There aren't any extras that their gut may struggle to process. The recipes all have around 13% protein (except for the liver support formula), 6-12% fat, 1% fiber, and the rest is moisture. The options range from 28-44 calories per ounce.

The Turkey recipe contains:

• Crude protein min 14%
• Crude fat min 7%
• Crude fiber max 1%
• Calories per ounce = 31

All recipes are balanced and tested to meet or exceed the AAFCO nutritional profiles. All the food is minimally processed because it’s raw, so the diet is close to what your pet was designed to eat. The vital nutrients aren’t cooked out of the food, so the animals are able to enjoy all the good stuff without any of the fillers.

What Makes Darwin’s Different

There are a couple of features that make Darwin’s Pet Products unique.

Darwin’s Uses High-Quality Ingredients

Darwin's is different primarily due to its ingredient selection. It opts for superior choices like cage-free or pasture-raised meats, ensuring no steroids, antibiotics, or growth hormones taint the food. Recipes also contain organic vegetables. 

Darwin’s Offers Prescription Diets

Addressing specific health concerns, Darwin's has carved a niche with its Intelligent Design line. Exclusive to pets with health conditions, recipes are crafted under expert guidance and are available solely through a veterinary prescription.

Unboxing: Meals Arrive Frozen With A BPA-Free Container for Storage

The food arrives frozen in a recyclable cardboard box. It also contains dry ice and insulation. Everything is fresh and contains no preservatives, so the food must be stored in the refrigerator or freezer on arrival. The food will last for up to 48 hours in the refrigerator provided that the recommended temperature is maintained.

Each recipe is frozen in 2 lb packs that contain 4 patties. You need to separate the individual patties for thawing. Keep in mind that the feeding and handling guidelines aren’t printed on each patty, so make a note of them for future reference.

It’s worth noting that if you have a pet under 4 months old, cooking is required. Darwin’s recommends lightly sauteeing the food for 8 to 10 minutes before serving. This is to minimize any risks associated with raw food and protect their delicate immune systems. For older pets, no cooking is needed.

You’ll also receive a BPA-free container for defrosting and storing food in the fridge. You can also use other plastic containers. The frozen patties last for 6 to 12 months in the freezer but are best consumed as close to production as possible.

Prices: It’s Not Cheap, but You’re Paying for Quality

Let’s look at pricing for a small dog or cat weighing 10 lb. They need just over 2 lbs of food per week. For cats, this costs between $18.57 per week for the Chicken recipe to $23.69 a week for the Beef recipe. For a dog, you’re looking at spending between $12.52 for the BioLogics Chicken recipe and $25.78 per week for the Natural Selections Lamb recipe.

Larger dogs weighing around 40 lb such as a Border Collie, need just over 6 lbs of food a week. This will cost between $35 and $65 every week, which may not be manageable on some budgets.

It’s good to see that Darwin’s ships to all the US states, including Alaska and Hawaii. But shipping costs are significantly higher. In fact, it costs $150 per order! So I’d recommend getting a very large freezer to store a large order.

New customers can take advantage of the introductory offer. Currently, you’ll be able to enjoy this offer: Get Your Trial Box For 50% Off. Recurring orders are activated when you sign up, as it operates as a subscription style service.

Shipping & Delivery: A Simple Subscription Service

Darwin’s Pets is a subscription service, so you don’t have to remember to place future orders. Reminder emails will be sent before your orders ship in case you want to make any changes or updates to the order.

How regularly your order ships will depend on the animal and how much food they’re receiving. This could be as often as every 2 weeks for dogs or as infrequently as every 10 weeks for a cat.

Darwin’s uses UPS to complete its shipping. Everything is packed with dry ice in insulated coolers after being frozen on-site in vacuum-sealed packages, so you won’t have to worry about the food during shipping, but it’s a good idea to try and be home when your delivery arrives so you can store it straight in the freezer.

How Darwin's Works (Step by Step Guide)

When you sign up for Darwin's, you’ll get an introductory offer. Your first order is a new customer kit that’s offered at a discounted price. Following this shipment, future orders are automatically set up to be shipped every 2 to 9 weeks, depending on the amount of food your dog needs.

How to Sign up (4 Easy Steps)

1. The first step is to complete your pet’s profile. Questions include weight, activity level, allergies, and ailments. It takes about a minute to complete.

2. You’ll receive your recommended products and the cost per week.

3. Create an account to proceed with your order. This involves adding your email and a password. Then you can enter your shipping details.

4. Check your order summary. Here you can see what you will get in your future deliveries and how often your orders will be shipped.

It’s useful to find out how much you’ll pay and how often. To confirm your order, click on Payment and enter your credit card details.

Managing Your Subscription

It’s simple to make changes or cancel your order. This is important if you need to use up the meals you already have or wish to increase the amounts. Your account on the website gives you access to make all the changes you need. For additional support, contact Customer Services.

Customer Service: No Live Chat, but FAQs & Email Support Are Helpful

The customer care team at Darwin's are available from 6 AM to 6 PM Pacific time, Monday through Friday. There’s also an email address and a contact form on the website. I was disappointed to find that a live chat feature isn’t available.

The FAQ section covers a lot of great information. You can find out how to help transition your dog to a new type of food and research why a raw food diet is the right choice for your family pet. There are also plenty of useful articles on the blog.

I contacted Darwin’s by email as the site wouldn’t accept my details on the contact form. I received a very lengthy and detailed reply just a few hours later. I appreciated that an agent took the time to assist me with my questions and answered them fully.

Darwin's Recalls: Several Recalls Between 2016 & 2024

Darwin’s has had several recalls over the last few years, with products recalled due to potential contamination of salmonella, E. coli, and listeria. In September 2024, the FDA recommended that Darwin’s recall certain lots of its Natural Selection Chicken recipe for dogs and cats after testing positive for salmonella and listeria. However, Darwin’s have not recalled the products. Note the lot numbers on your packages to check if they’re affected and do not feed these to your pet.

How Darwin's Compares to Other Pet Food Services

• Darwin's vs. The Farmer’s Dog: The Farmer’s Dog recipes are a better option if you’re concerned about handling raw food. Its recipes are gently cooked and formulated by board-certified veterinarians.
• Darwin’s vs. Ollie: Ollie's recipes include a range of superfoods and undergo minimal processing, preserving the integrity and nutrients of the ingredients. It also caters to diverse dietary needs and allergies.

The Bottom Line: Is Darwin's Worth It?

Raw food diets like Darwin’s work well for many cats and dogs. With no preservatives, additives, hormones, or grains, it’s a diet that helps your furry friend absorb all the necessary nutrients with none of the extras. 

Darwin’s is a good option if budget isn’t a concern. It uses high-quality ingredients, and there’s a good choice of proteins to try. However, if you have a larger breed of dog, it can be an expensive choice. Check out our list of the best dog food delivery services for some other great options.

FAQ

What is the best raw food diet for dogs?

The best raw food diet for dogs prioritizes high-quality, unprocessed ingredients. This ensures a balance of meat, bones, and organs. With high-quality ingredients, Darwin's Natural Selections is a noteworthy option.

How do I switch my dog to a Darwin’s raw diet?

Transitioning your dog to a raw diet like Darwin’s should be gradual. Start by mixing small portions of raw food with their regular diet and gradually increase the raw portion over 7-10 days.

Can dogs with illnesses eat a raw diet?

Darwin's Intelligent Design recipes are tailored to dogs with various health concerns. You’ll need a veterinary prescription to order these meals. For dogs with specific illnesses or medical needs, it’s essential to consult a vet.