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Having four rescue dogs means my husband and I spend a lot of time researching, buying and trying dog food -- an especially tricky process, considering all four dogs are toothless, old and sometimes picky.
When Spot & Tango reached out with an offer to send us a month's supply of food to see how our pups reacted, I was excited to try something new that could potentially become a regular in our rotation. The process seemed convenient, and the soft food meshed well with our pups' special needs.
Here's how it all went.
Your first step when setting up a Spot & Tango subscription is to take the on-site quiz to customize the experience to your dog's needs.
You'll answer questions about how many dogs you have, their names and genders, breeds, weight, and body type (chubby, lean, just right) so they can determine an appropriate number of calories to include in each dog's meals.
Given our four dogs and their individual requirements -- frankly speaking, they're all toothless, crusty goblins with fluctuating particularities -- this process took around 5 minutes per dog but felt thorough and considerate, exactly what I'd expect when figuring out something so important to their health.
Due to the custom aspect of meal plans, baseline costs can range from $2 to $10 a day. This falls in the normal to upper range of the average dog's daily meal cost, not including the shipping you might pay with other brands.
Check Spot & Tango's approximate pricing breakdown to predict what you might pay.
Our shipment arrived just a couple of days later, safely packed in boxes filled with dry ice, so that even though I was at the office, it was safe outside my door until I arrived home.
Because of the extra packaging required to keep our dogs' food frozen, each box was slightly larger and heavier than you might get with shelf-stable food, but it was a fine tradeoff considering the convenience.
Since our food arrived frozen, we used two methods for preparation: Sometimes, we pulled out two days' worth of meals to thaw in the fridge ahead of time, and when we forgot to do so, we heated up the food by simmering the sealed packages in hot water.
We had a short trip planned with all four dogs in tow, so we were able to see how the food traveled. A few days' worth of food stashed in a small cooler with some ice packs provided the right amount of refrigeration for the food to stay chilled but lightly thawed, so mealtimes stayed simple on the road.
Of our four dogs, the two skinniest, Chico and Muffy, enjoyed the taste most and regularly finished their bowls without protest. Their respective weights stayed consistent throughout.
Chip and Tina, both a little "fluffier" than they should be, were more hesitant at first which actually became beneficial throughout our trial.
For Chip, mealtime can be tough due to his missing lower jaw. The consistency of the food and his slower eating pace led to fewer choking incidents versus some grainier, more tempting formulas.
For tiny Tina, loving her food too much can draw out mild aggression and too much excitement, both of which exacerbate her heart murmur. Since she wasn't inhaling her meal each time, she lost some weight and seemed more even-keeled overall.
Spot & Tango offers a convenient, valuable service to dog owners who want to streamline the feeding process and keep their pup on a regular feeding schedule. The customization is top-notch, the delivery is on-time and convenient, and depending on your dog's health and preferences, it could offer a streamlined way to feed your pup each day.