Is A Pup Above or The Farmer's Dog better for dogs?

Effectively tied at A/90 vs A/90 on the v15 rubric. Both are A-tier gently-cooked DTC dog food brands. A Pup Above leads with sous-vide cooking method (lower temperature), beef bone broth at #5 for natural collagen, and stew-like wet format with visible whole-food vegetables. The Farmer’s Dog leads with sweet potato + lentils carbohydrate base (lower glycemic index), broader DTC scale with maximally-personalized subscription, and multi-variant protein-rotation automation. Pick A Pup Above for sous-vide philosophy and bone-broth-collagen support. Pick The Farmer’s Dog for lower-glycemic-load carbohydrate and subscription convenience.

Is sous-vide cooking better than gently cooking?

Sous-vide is a specific subcategory of gently cooking. Sous-vide applies low temperature (130-180°F) in vacuum-sealed bags over extended times. Other gently-cooked methods (used by The Farmer’s Dog, JustFoodForDogs Pantry Fresh, Ollie) use various low-temperature steam, oven-bake, or covered-pot cooking approaches. The sous-vide subcategory generally runs at the lowest temperature end of the gently-cooked spectrum, preserving slightly more thermolabile vitamins and proteins. All gently-cooked methods eliminate pathogens to safe levels. The structural difference vs sous-vide is incremental but real. For maximum nutritional preservation within the gently-cooked category: sous-vide.

Why does The Farmer's Dog use sweet potato and lentils instead of russet potato?

Sweet potato and lentils have substantially lower glycemic index than russet potato. Russet potato GI is ~85 (high GI — rapid blood sugar spike); sweet potato GI is ~50-60 (moderate GI); lentils GI is ~25-30 (very low GI). For dogs with insulin resistance, diagnosed diabetes, weight management needs, or owners specifically prioritizing lower-glycemic-load carbohydrates, the sweet-potato-and-lentils carbohydrate base is structurally aligned. Russet potato (used by A Pup Above) is widely tolerated by healthy dogs without insulin-resistance concerns and provides similar caloric density to sweet potato, but the glycemic-index difference is structurally meaningful for owners specifically managing GI-related nutritional considerations.

A Pup Above vs The Farmer's Dog: Which Is Better for Your Dog?

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The short answer: Effectively tied at A/90 vs A/90 on the v15 rubric. Both are A-tier gently-cooked DTC dog food brands with USDA-inspected human-grade kitchens, batch-by-batch pathogen testing, and AAFCO substantiation. A Pup Above leads with sous-vide cooking method (lower temperature than oven cooking), beef bone broth at #5 for natural collagen and minerals, and stew-like wet format. The Farmer’s Dog leads with sweet potato + lentils + carrot as the carbohydrate-and-fiber complement (no russet potato), broader DTC scale, and integrated subscription based on dog’s individual nutrition needs. Pick on cooking method, carbohydrate preference, and brand-scale priority.

The scores

A Pup Above Texas Beef Stew Sous-Vide: A (90/100) — Beef, Beef Liver, Russet Potatoes, Tomatoes, Beef Bone Broth.

The Farmer's Dog Beef Recipe: A (90/100) — Beef, Sweet Potato, Lentils, Carrot, Beef Liver.

How the ingredients compare

The top-five ingredients reveal the formulation split between these two products:

A Pup Above: Beef, Beef Liver, Russet Potatoes, Tomatoes, Beef Bone Broth

The Farmer's Dog: Beef, Sweet Potato, Lentils, Carrot, Beef Liver

Both products earn effectively the same v15 score, but the ingredient lineups tell different stories about how they got there — that is where the actual pick decision lives.

Where A Pup Above pulls ahead

Sous-vide cooking method (lower temperature than oven cooking): A Pup Above uses sous-vide — cooking food in vacuum-sealed bags at temperature-controlled low water bath (130-180°F) for extended times. The method preserves more thermolabile vitamins and bioavailable proteins than higher-temperature oven cooking, while still eliminating pathogens to safe levels. The Farmer’s Dog uses low-temperature steam-and-water cooking; both are “gently cooked” categorically but sous-vide is the lowest-temperature subcategory. For owners specifically prioritizing sous-vide cooking philosophy, A Pup Above is structurally aligned. Shop on Amazon →

Beef bone broth at #5 for natural collagen and additional moisture: A Pup Above includes beef bone broth at #5 — supplies natural collagen (glycine and proline amino acids supporting joint cartilage and gut lining repair), natural minerals (calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium leached from bone during slow simmering), and additional moisture. The Farmer’s Dog recipes don’t include named bone broth at a primary ingredient position. For dogs with joint sensitivity benefiting from bone broth collagen or dogs needing extra hydration support, A Pup Above is structurally specialized.

Stew-like wet format with whole-food vegetable visibility: A Pup Above Texas Beef Stew is a chunky stew format where owners can visually see the whole-food vegetables (potatoes, carrots, peas, tomatoes) in the food. For owners who value visual confirmation of whole-food ingredients in the recipe (some owners specifically dislike the homogeneous mash format used by some gently-cooked DTC brands), A Pup Above’s stew format is structurally aligned.

Where The Farmer's Dog holds its own

Sweet potato + lentils + carrot (no russet potato) for lower-glycemic-index carbohydrate: The Farmer’s Dog uses sweet potato + lentils + carrot as the carbohydrate-and-fiber complement — structurally lower-glycemic-index than A Pup Above’s russet potato (russet potato has GI ~85; sweet potato has GI ~50-60; lentils have GI ~25-30). For dogs with insulin resistance, weight management needs, or owners specifically prioritizing lower-glycemic-load carbohydrates, The Farmer’s Dog’s carbohydrate profile is structurally aligned. Shop on Amazon →

Broader DTC scale + integrated subscription based on individual dog profile: The Farmer’s Dog is the largest gently-cooked DTC brand by subscriber count, with integrated subscription that calculates portion size and recipe rotation based on the dog’s individual weight, age, activity level, breed, and feeding goals. A Pup Above operates at smaller DTC scale with less-integrated subscription customization. For owners wanting maximally-personalized portion-and-recipe automation, The Farmer’s Dog is the structural pick.

Multi-variant protein rotation across Beef, Chicken, Turkey, Pork: The Farmer’s Dog offers Beef, Chicken, Turkey, and Pork recipes with subscription rotation across variants. A Pup Above offers Texas Beef Stew, Porky’s Luau (pork), Turkey Tuscan, Chicka Chickpea (chicken), Shepherd’s Pie (lamb), and others. Both support protein rotation; The Farmer’s Dog’s subscription automation makes rotation more frictionless. For owners following protein-rotation diet philosophy with subscription convenience priority, The Farmer’s Dog is structurally aligned.

The bottom line

Effectively tied at A/90 vs A/90 — the pick comes down to cooking-method philosophy, carbohydrate-tolerance, and brand-scale priority. Pick A Pup Above for sous-vide cooking (lowest-temperature gently-cooked subcategory), beef bone broth for natural collagen and additional moisture, stew-like wet format with visible whole-food vegetables, and female-founded DTC brand sourcing. Pick The Farmer’s Dog for sweet-potato-and-lentils carbohydrate base (lower glycemic index), broader DTC scale with maximally-personalized subscription, and multi-variant protein-rotation automation.