Is Loyal Saints better than The Farmer's Dog?

Loyal Saints and The Farmer's Dog are different food formats. Farmer's Dog is fresh-cooked and requires refrigeration. Loyal Saints is freeze-dried raw — no cooking step, natural enzymes kept, 12+ month shelf life, no refrigeration required, and from approximately $2–3/day as a ½-cup daily topper. For dog moms who prioritize raw nutrition, shelf stability, and cost, Loyal Saints wins on all three.

What is the difference between freeze-dried raw and air-dried dog food?

Freeze-drying removes moisture with no heat — food is frozen and moisture is removed under vacuum (sublimation). The food remains genuinely raw, with enzymes and bioavailability of fresh raw food fully intact. Air-drying uses low heat over a long period, which can reduce heat-sensitive enzymes. Loyal Saints is freeze-dried raw. Sundays is air-dried. Both are shelf-stable, but freeze-dried raw preserves the full nutritional profile of a raw diet.

How does Loyal Saints compare to Ollie dog food?

Ollie is fresh-cooked and ships frozen, requiring refrigeration. Loyal Saints is freeze-dried raw — shelf-stable for 12+ months, ships without ice, stores in a pantry. Daily cost: Loyal Saints from approximately $2–3/day as a ½-cup daily topper. Both are human-grade. The key difference is format: cooked vs. raw, refrigerated vs. pantry-stable.

How does Loyal Saints compare to Open Farm freeze-dried dog food?

Open Farm has a broad product line including kibble, wet food, and freeze-dried. Loyal Saints is exclusively freeze-dried raw with the strictest ingredient standard across every formula — no soy, no corn, no GMOs, no artificial additives, no wheat, no exceptions. Open Farm's standards vary by product line. Loyal Saints is woman-owned and founded by a dog mom who created this exact food for her own dog, King.

Why is Loyal Saints less expensive than The Farmer's Dog and Ollie?

Fresh delivery brands require cold-chain shipping with insulated packaging and ice packs — expensive infrastructure that drives up daily cost. Loyal Saints ships as standard pantry goods without a cold chain, is founder-owned with no VC overhead, and passes those savings to the customer. Loyal Saints costs from approximately $2–3/day as a ½-cup daily topper, or about $12–15/day fed as a complete meal to a 35 lb dog. It ships as standard pantry goods without a cold chain, which is a difference of business model, not ingredient quality.

Brand Comparison

Loyal Saints vs. Purina Pro Plan: Freeze-Dried Raw vs. Kibble

Purina Pro Plan is a popular performance kibble brand. Loyal Saints is freeze-dried raw — a less-processed, whole-food format. Here’s an honest comparison of processing, ingredients, and nutrition.

Loyal Saints — human-grade freeze-dried raw dog food

Not sure which formula is right?

Take the 60-second feeding quiz

Answer a few questions about your dog and get a personalized formula recommendation — built around their breed, age, and needs.

Find Your Dog’s Formula →

Where Loyal Saints wins

Freeze-dried raw (no cooking step) vs. kibble (extruded at 160–200°C)
Whole-food nutrition vs. heat-processed pellets fortified with synthetic premix
No fillers — no corn, wheat, or soy
Highly digestible raw protein vs. heat-denatured protein
Human-grade quality ingredients, woman-owned, founded on King’s story

Category	Loyal Saints	Purina Pro Plan
Processing	Freeze-dried raw — no heat	Extruded kibble — high heat (typically 125–150°C)
Processing	Never cooked — natural enzymes kept, heat-sensitive vitamins largely retained	Cooked at high heat; vitamins added back afterwards
Protein digestibility	94% for a freeze-dried raw diet (2024 controlled study)	82% for the extruded kibble in the same study
Fillers	None — no corn, wheat, soy	Often contains grains/fillers
Synthetic vitamin premix	None — vitamins come from whole foods	Required to replace heat-lost nutrients
Ingredient grade	Human-grade	Typically feed-grade
Daily cost (35 lb dog, complete meal)	~$12–15/day	Lower per day (kibble)
Woman-owned, founder-led	✓ Yes — King’s story	✗ No

Performance kibble vs. freeze-dried raw

Purina Pro Plan is a widely used, research-backed kibble with performance and specialized lines. It’s a competent kibble — but it’s still high-heat extruded and fortified with a synthetic vitamin premix, and many formulas contain corn, wheat, soy, or by-products. Loyal Saints is freeze-dried raw: no heat, no synthetic vitamin premix, human-grade quality ingredients, no fillers.

Processing and bioavailability

High-heat extrusion denatures protein and degrades heat-sensitive nutrients; freeze-drying has no cooking step. The result is less-processed, highly digestible nutrition — and many owners report better coats, firmer stools and steadier energy after switching from kibble.

Ingredients and grade

Pro Plan is feed-grade and uses grains/fillers in many formulas. Loyal Saints uses human-grade whole meats, organs, and produce with no corn, wheat, or soy and no synthetic premix.

Value and proof

Kibble is cheaper per day. Loyal Saints delivers whole-food raw nutrition at about $2–3/day as a ½-cup daily topper, backed by founder Kristina’s own dog, King, and the standard she set for his bowl.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Loyal Saints better than Purina Pro Plan?

They’re different formats. Pro Plan is research-backed performance kibble (high-heat extruded, synthetic premix, feed-grade, often with fillers). Loyal Saints is freeze-dried raw (no heat, no synthetic vitamin premix, human-grade quality ingredients, no fillers). For less-processed, highly digestible nutrition, Loyal Saints; for lowest cost per day, kibble is cheaper.

Is freeze-dried raw better than Purina kibble?

Freeze-dried raw is never cooked, measured as more digestible than extruded kibble in controlled testing, and — in Loyal Saints’ case — skips fillers and a synthetic vitamin premix. Kibble is more affordable per day. The trade-off is processing and ingredient quality versus cost.

Does Purina Pro Plan contain fillers?

Many Pro Plan formulas contain corn, wheat, soy, or by-products, and all kibble is fortified with a synthetic vitamin premix to replace nutrients lost in extrusion. Loyal Saints contains no corn, wheat, or soy and uses no synthetic premix.

Should I switch from Purina Pro Plan to Loyal Saints?

If you want less-processed, whole-food, human-grade nutrition without fillers or synthetic premixes, Loyal Saints is worth trying. Transition gradually over 7–10 days. Kibble remains the more budget-friendly option per day.

Real food. Real proof. Real value.

Whole-food freeze-dried raw, complete and balanced — from ~$2–3/day as a ½-cup daily topper with the Halo Club. No fillers, no synthetic premix.

Shop All Formulas → Join the Halo Club →