PawPack is a monthly subscription box for dogs or cats. This is a review of the “large” dog box. (PawPack customizes your box to your dog’s size – my dog, Nyx, weighs 90 pounds. You can see Liz’s review of a past PawPack for small dogs here, although it appears they’ve revamped their subscription model a bit in the past few months.) PawPack focuses on eco-friendly, organic, and natural items for your pet.
PawPack sent us this box for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
The first look was pretty good – the box seemed full.
Here’s a photo of all the items inside. At first glance, this seemed light on the toys and heavy on the treats.
The Subscription Box: PawPack
The Cost: $35 per month on a month-to-month plan, with better deals for longer subscriptions. Shipping is free in the continental US and $10 for Alaska, Hawaii, the UK, Canada, and Australia.
The Products: Full sized surprise items each month along with various samples and other goodies. Everything will always be either Eco-Friendly, Organic, or All-Natural.
Ships to: US, UK, Canada, Australia
Check out lots of great boxes for dogs in the Pet Subscription Box Directory!
There wasn’t a list of products in the box, but a card detailing some of PawPack’s charity efforts was included. (Sorry about the glare in the photo. I’m still working on my photography skills!)
Canine Caviar Buffalo Paddywack – value $1.35
Clear Conscience TenderStikz Chicken and Cheddar – value $1.66
Clear Conscience TenderStikz Beef and Cheddar – value $1.66
PawPack doesn’t customize boxes for dogs with allergies, but they do promise to minimize common allergens. They rarely include chicken, according to their FAQ, and they include grain-free treats and chews when possible. Nyx is in the (hopefully) final weeks of her food allergy trial and we have had pretty good luck with beef-based treats in the past, so I know these will be popular.
The Buffalo Paddywack is made from free-range, grass-fed buffalo. It took a bit of digging, but I believe these are a product of India. (As far as I can tell, there haven’t been any issues with pet food from India the same way there have been with Chinese products.) The TenderStikz are made in the USA.
Earth Friendly Pet Company Cycle Dog Trail Buddy Treats (beef) – value $8
Himalayan Dog Chew Yaky Charms Dog Treats – value $2.19
Both of these are made in the USA. I’m glad to see more grain-free beef treats. (Cycle Dog has their own subscription box, too!) The Yaky Charms are a little unusual. They come in a popcorn-style bag and you actually pop them in the microwave (and let them cool) before giving to your dog.
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Earth Friendly Pet Company Cycle Dog Ecolast High Roller – value $12
Freezy Pups Kit (partial, large) – value $9 (?)
This roller toy is a squeaky ball. It’s supposed to float (can’t test that, as no Rottweiler I’ve ever had has been fond of swimming) and it’s made of post-consumer recycled material. Nyx likes it quite a bit and, wonder of wonders, she hasn’t managed to tear it to bits. I actually feel safe leaving her alone with it. (It’s also an appropriate size for a dog her size.)
A normal Freezy Pups starter kit comes with four flavor packets. You mix them with water and freeze them into bone-shaped ice cubes in the attached tray. This kit came with two flavor packets although many, many different refill packets are available on Amazon. Nyx is a huge fan of eating ice so these are a hit!
Sorry there aren’t any dog photos in this review. A dark purple toy in a black dog’s mouth doesn’t show up very well for the camera!
Verdict: I calculated a value of approximately $36 for the April 2015 PawPack box. That’s about what the box costs on a month-to-month subscription. However, most of these items, especially the treats, are not available individually – only in multipacks. The benefit of getting one treat or chew instead of the whole bag is seeing whether your dog likes it without losing the full purchase price if something is a miss. The other thing to consider is that many of these items are natural, eco-friendly, etc. So the bison from the bison treat is grass-fed, the toy is made from post-consumer recycled materials, etc. If those qualities are important to you, this could be a really good box. I also liked that the toy was durable and size-appropriate and the focus on grain-free treats that lack common allergens. Ultimately, whether this box is a good fit for you will depend on what you’re looking for. Also, it’s definitely a better deal if you sign up for a longer-term subscription.
What do you think of the April 2015 PawPack box? Do you subscribe to any dog or cat boxes?
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