When you’re shopping through the ever-growing sea of commercial dog food selections, you might come across two developing companies—Primal and Stella & Chewy. If both of these are brands that strike your attention due to their similarities and dog-conscious recipes, we will break down all the details.

Two worthy adversaries, these companies have a ton to offer your pets on their own. Only you can decide which brand works best for your individual dog.

Sneak Peek at the Winner: Primal

We love both brands and recommend them to anyone. However, Primal just slid slightly into the lead. That doesn’t mean Stella & Chewy is a wrong choice—they make excellent recipes that work well for any dog. But Primal comes out slightly ahead, in our opinion. Find out why.

About Primal

Matt Koss is the founder of Primal. Since this dietary idea came from a place of passion, he has worked diligently to create species-friendly recipes for dogs. His dog Luna was diagnosed with early-stage renal failure in 2002. Her veterinarian recommended a dietary style called BARF.

This led Matt to develop Primal, sharing what he learned with other owners. He worked with a knowledgeable team of professionals to offer dogs a comprehensive diet that could potentially increase their lifespan and strengthen their health.

Company Mission

Primal pet food aims to give dogs a more natural eating experience to enhance their health. The idea is to create a canine-friendly diet that caters to specific aspects of internal and external care, strengthening our dog’s health and hopefully lengthening their lifespan.

About Stella & Chewy

Stella and Chewy got its name from two rescue dogs adopted by Marie Moody in 1997. She first adopted a dog named Stella. Then, she took in a sickly dog named Chewy. Because of his health issues, Marie was determined to help by feeding him a raw food diet—healing him completely.

Wowed by the transformation, Marie set out to help other pet parents by creating dog food that would give them 100% appropriate nutrition.

Company Mission

At Stella and Chewy, workers believe that dog and cat nutrition is of utmost importance. They believe in creating value recipes that cater to your animal’s instincts creating a better experience. Knowing the power of raw food healing, they offer a variety of meals and keep expanding.

3 Most Popular Primal Dog Food Recipes

*All Primal recipes are made with USDA-certified organic ingredients.  

1. Primal Pet Foods Freeze-Dried Chicken Nuggets

Primal Pet Food Freeze-Dried Chicken Nuggets are an excellent protein and nutrient-rich material source. The nuggets are versatile—you can use them as a topper, standalone meal, or treat.

These freeze-dried raw nuggets come plumb packed with protein, topping out at 47%. Primal combines a series of bones, meat, and organs for optimal health. The protein source is antibiotic, hormone, and steroid-free chicken.

In addition to such a high amount of protein, there are plenty of delicious, highly digestible fruits, vegetables, and gentle grains—like quinoa.

Primal has changed their recipe if you were familiar with their previous bags of chicken nuggets. So, make sure you do a quick sweep of the ingredients to make sure everything is still agreeable for your pooch.

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2. Primal Pet Foods Freeze-dried Raw Toppers

Primal Pet Foods Freeze-dried Raw Toppers make the perfect addition to any existing food item. These freeze-dried pieces can be rehydrated or left as is, depending on your dog’s preference.

This topper item is packed with live probiotics to support good gut health. It contains minimal ingredients, all healthy for normal adult dogs. However, you will want to quickly sweep the ingredients to ensure every element is safe for your particular dog.

This recipe contains 36% protein, making it an excellent booster and your dog’s daily diet. It’s also loaded with natural antioxidants and phytonutrients. These pieces make great training, reward, and supplemental snacks.

These snacks are for all life stages so that any pup can enjoy them.

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3. Primal Liver, Laugh, Love Simply Pork Flavored Crunchy Dog Treats

There are no hidden ingredients or weird byproducts listed in this product. It is 100% pork liver and nothing but dehydrated pork liver. This treat is a great source of protein, making it a nutrient-friendly boost for any canine friend.

You’re sure not to get any harmful pitfalls in this dog treat. It provides protein-rich nutrients that your dog craves, creating a savory snack. They serve as great motivational treats and can be given whole or in part.

These recipes have been both freeze-dried and slow-roasted for safety and flavor. Because they’re a single protein source, they can also work well for dogs with food allergies. However, this isn’t the best selection for dogs with dental sensitivity. It will just be too hard for them to chew.

3 Most Popular Stella & Chewy Dog Food Recipes

1. Stella & Chewy’s Wild Red Raw

If you’re looking for a delicious medley of multiple meat sources, Stella & Chewy’s Wild Red Raw is a stellar pick. It has a variety of flavors, textures, and nutrients to nourish your pup from the taste buds through the digestive tract.

Each protein source offers its own perks to the whole setup. You can add water and watch the food take form, rehydrating and offering a delicious feast. This might be one of the most savory recipes they offer when it comes to raw food sources.

You can also add them as a dry topper on top of regular food. You can even use this recipe as a standalone option. It’s really up to you and whatever works best for your dog.

However, you’ll have to be careful with dogs prone to gaining weight—this recipe is pretty high in fat.

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2. Stella & Chewy’s Meal Mixers

If you want to spruce up the same old daily meal, Stella & Chewy’s Meal Mixers works wonders. It’s perfect enough for a standalone snack if you want to use it for rewards or training.

We want to point out that this particular product has quite a high-fat content. It’s best for dogs who don’t have any dietary restrictions and aren’t already overweight.

These toppers are designed to soothe allergies rather than trigger them, so even sensitive pups can enjoy them. This is an excellent appetite enhancer, and we think most dogs can benefit from these freeze-dried pieces. Although some dogs are sensitive to specific proteins, so read the label to be sure.

Once again, you have to be careful how you ration these tasty snacks. They are super high in fat and can quickly pack on the pounds if your pups have one too many.

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3. Marie’s Magical Dinner Dust

If you want a flavor and not so much a texture that’s packed with all the goodies, your pup might like Stella & Chewy’s Marie’s Magical Dinner Dust. This flavor booster is like adding that salty Ramen packet to your boring noodles—it gives it the zing your dog craves.

Not only is this little packet full of flavors–the possibilities are endless. It has a high kick of protein, landing at 44.0%, but 35.0% of fat—so watch frequency. You can sprinkle it on top of your dog’s meal or hydrate to make it a yummy broth—it’s delicious either way.

This is a raw booster intended to mix with a regular dog food diet. So if your dog isn’t quite ready to make the switch, it’s an excellent enhancement to empower any dish.

Recall History of Primal and Stella & Chewy

Primal has had three recalls in total. In May 2011, some cat food was recalled due to Salmonella contamination. In March 2015, feline food was recalled for low thiamine levels. Primal had one major recall in 2017 for issues with bone grind size.

Stella and Chewy have had a few recalls, starting in 2015. The first case was for Listeria contamination for lot # 165-15. The second recall case for Stella & Chewy’s was in 2016. The company voluntarily recalled several dog and cat food cases because of potential Listeria contamination again.

Primal and Stella & Chewy Comparison

Let’s tally up the score.

Overall Quality—Primal

Both Primal and Stella and Chewy have incredible recipes that offer a wild-like eating experience for our domesticated bodies.

While they are both highly revered companies with comprehensive recipes, Stella and Chewy tend to have higher fat content, which might not be compatible with several canine breeds and structures.

Company Backstory—Primal

As with most beginning stories, pet nutrition usually comes about with a person or group of people who are very passionate about that nutrition. This usually comes from a personal experience with a pet, requiring a more holistic natural approach to food due to health issues.

Both Primal and Stella and Chewy’s were inspired by pets who had owners that really cared about their longevity and overall quality of life. However, Primal’s backstory tugs at the heartstrings.

Recipe Content—Primal

Stella and Chewy’s had a more extensive protein variety in their recipes. However, the Primal aim is to create singular or minimal protein sources to cater to dogs who also have allergies to specific meat sources.

So here, it really just depends on the current state of health of your dog. If they are looking for more of a flavor enhancement experience, Stella and Chewy’s might be the one to pick.

However, if you’re looking for sustenance to nourish your sensitive dog, Primal is a perfect choice.

Recipe Lines—Primal

Both Stella and Chewy and Primal take the raw aspect to another level. Offering excellent protein, top-notch quality recipes, these brands work to provide a variety and change up the pace.

Ultimately, we thought Primal had slightly more substance than Stella and Chewy—but believe us, it was close.

Price—Stella & Chewy’s

When it comes to price, Stella and Chewy’s win that battle. Using very similar ingredients and recipe styles, they should be equally affordable. However, Stella and Chewy’s is well under the average Primal dish. So, it works best for tighter budgets.

Availability—Stella & Chewy’s

Both Stella and Chewy and Primal are available in pet shops and online. However, Stella and Chewy’s seems to have a more comprehensive range of availability than Primal.

Best Overall—Primal

Again, we think these are two fabulous raw food options for pet parents to consider. Both deserve credit and praise for creating a substantially healthy meal for our canines. Each product line proves the careful way each brand was crafted.

However, Primal gets the big vote because it outdid Stella & Chewy’s by a slight, slight margin.

Conclusion

We thoroughly enjoyed both of the dog food brands we had the pleasure of reviewing. Both are comprehensive lines of raw and well-researched dog food meals, treats, and other goodies. No matter which brand you go with, you will love the results—and so will your pooch.

But we prefer Primal to Stella & Chewy’s because we think it suits a wider range of dog needs.