Shipping food?

[gooeydog]

Anyone here order their dogs' food online and have it shipped? Or even can list some companies with good reputations? I finally switched Goo's food completely over to Natural Balance a month and 1/2 ago, after hopping around from food to food trying to find one that didn't cause allergic reactions, or make her puke/get the runs/gas with no luck. She really liked it, and had none of the effects the other foods had caused, so I was hoping to stick with it for at least a while. Of course, things never work out the way they should, and when I went back to Petco to get more last week, they had NO cans (I know canned food isn't very healthy, but she's always gotten it, so I don't want to cut it out entirely. I mix 1 can, and 1 cup moistened dry for her evening meals, then leave out dry for her to pick at), so I had to get another kind (which she likes, but I don't, because the "emissions" while I'm trying to sleep at night are horrible). I've about ran out of decent foods to try, because there aren't any specialty-type stores nearby, and I can't get anyone to drive me out to one of the farther ones. I'm also not going to be switching her around everytime the store doesn't have the food (they didn't even know they carried that food :roll: ), so I'm really considering just ordering it and having it shipped. My two main concerns are:
1. Shipping charges... I can't afford to be paying twice the amount the food actually costs in order to have it shipped, though I am aware that food is a pretty heavy thing to ship, and they do have to charge some, how much is too much? And from what I've seen on some sites, it might be cheaper to get several cases at once, or would they all be packaged seperately anyway?
2. Quality of the food... I'd guess it'd be the same as if it was shipped wholesale to a store, but I'm still a bit worried that it may sit around longer than it should before they ship it out due to demand/lack thereof? Is this a concern with a reputable company? And if so, should they take the food back and exchange/refund? How about if the food is damaged during shipping?

I'm really hoping somebody here has experience with this, so if you do, don't be afraid to speak up :lol:

[Guest Anonymous]

I have ordered from www.petfooddirect.com. They do a pretty good job. You will just need to make sure that you order WELL in advance. Sometimes it takes up to 7 days to fill the order then you have to wait for it to ship. I would give yourself at least two weeks.

Glad Goo is doing well on NB. Its a good food. I really like rolls, they are great for stuffing in Kongs!

[Sanvean]

Macy eats NB and loves it, especially her "tubes" (that's our name for the rolls).

[Guest Anonymous]

Thanks much :lol: I liked the NB too because it didn't smell as much like dog food as most of the ones we'd tried (it was also reassuring that I could identify some of the ingredients in the actual food, little orange blobs of carrot, etc :roll: ). It's looking more and more like I'm going to be ordering some, so any more experiences would be appreciated :)

And K or any of the other mods, it's not letting me log in at all now :-?

[Guest Anonymous]

I have used www.epetpals.com in the past. I never had any problems, and without previous experience they seemed pretty fast. I don't know if they carry what you looking for.

shell

[Guest Anonymous]

have you emailed the manufacturer about other distributors in your area? info@naturalbalanceinc.com

as for problems with gas, have you tried supplementing digestive enzymes and probiotics? while good quality food is an important part of course, sometimes your dog just needs a little help digesting it properly.

plain yogurt with live cultures is an inexpensive remedy to try. if that isn't enough, try a supplement like nzymes bac pack or fastrack.

[courtnek]

depending on where you live, if you order it well in advance of the pup needing it and ship it standard ground slow-boat-to-China it usually isnt too terribly expensive.

It's the stuff that people need next day, and in 4 days, things like that, that gets really expensive.

[ellieangel]

For gas add charcoal biscuits to her food the charcoal absorbs the gas :wink:

[Horsefeathers!]

For one of our dogs who gets gas sometimes, no matter what he eats, we sprinkle a smidge of baking soda on his food. It has always worked for him.

Sorry, I can't help with the food shipping issue, Gooey, but I'm interested in seeing how it turns out. The place we buy our Wellness from often "didn't get it this week, but should have it next week..." (ok, so what do I do in the meantime?) and I'd been considering just ordering it online somewhere. The shipping charges are what has kind of put me off, too.