Sundays For Dogs vs. Badlands Ranch: Which Air-Dried Food Wins?

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Air-Dried Dog Food · Honest Comparison · U.S. Dog Owners Guide

Both use premium meats, skip the harsh heat of kibble, and have passionate followings. But they’re built differently — different founders, different ingredient philosophies, very different prices. Here’s what actually matters for your dog’s bowl.

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What’s New with These Brands

Badlands Ranch released its Raw Coated Morsels line in April 2025 — a kibble base coated in freeze-dried raw meat, grain-inclusive with oats and sorghum. Sundays has expanded its recipe count and continues to offer a custom meal plan quiz based on your dog’s size, age, and health goals. Both brands have updated pricing as of 2026: Sundays runs roughly $184/month for a medium-large dog, while Badlands Ranch can reach $288/month for the same animal — a gap that adds up to over $1,200 a year. Check each brand’s site for your dog’s specific cost before ordering.

🔍 Who Made These Foods — and Why It Matters

Sundays For Dogs was started by a veterinarian — Dr. Tory Waxman — and her engineer husband Michael. They built the brand out of frustration with what was available for their own dog and wanted something genuinely human-grade: food made in a USDA facility the same way you’d make food for people, not a pet facility spraying synthetic vitamins on extruded pellets. Badlands Ranch was founded by actress and lifelong animal advocate Katherine Heigl, whose family ranch in Utah inspired the name. She partnered with animal nutritionists to create a high-protein, superfood-forward air-dried formula. Both founders had real motivations beyond marketing. Neither is a corporate pet food conglomerate trying to ride a premium trend — and that shows in their ingredient lists. What separates them is philosophy: Sundays avoids synthetic supplements entirely, relying on whole foods for complete nutrition. Badlands Ranch uses a carefully selected set of synthetic vitamins and minerals added after processing to ensure AAFCO balance. Whether that difference matters to you — and to your dog — is the core of this comparison.

📋 Quick Answers — Key Facts Before You Decide

These are the questions most dog owners have when comparing these two brands, answered directly without the marketing language either company uses on their own sites.

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Which is better — Sundays or Badlands Ranch? Sundays for most households · Badlands Ranch for picky eaters who love chunky texture · Sundays wins on price, customization, and cleaner ingredient profile · Badlands Ranch wins on variety of product formats and texture appeal
Across real-world testing from multiple dog owners and reviewers who fed both brands over extended periods, Sundays consistently comes out ahead in overall value and ingredient purity. It’s approximately $100+ less per month for a medium-to-large dog, offers a personalized meal plan, and achieves AAFCO balance using only whole food ingredients with no synthetic additions. Badlands Ranch is genuinely excellent food — 87% animal protein, no legumes or peas, no meat meals — and its chunky, jerky-like texture often excites dogs who find Sundays too uniform in consistency. For a picky eater or a dog who needs textural novelty to stay engaged with meals, Badlands Ranch has an edge in palatability. For the household managing costs and wanting the most transparent ingredient list, Sundays is the stronger overall pick.
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Is Badlands Ranch freeze-dried or air-dried? The Superfood Complete line is air-dried · The Superfood Nuggets launched in 2025 are freeze-dried · Raw Coated Morsels (April 2025) are kibble coated in freeze-dried raw · Three distinct formats now exist under the same brand
This is one of the most commonly searched questions about the brand, and it trips up a lot of buyers. Badlands Ranch’s original product — the one Katherine Heigl built the brand on — is air-dried at low temperatures to preserve nutrients without harsh heat. In 2025, the brand expanded. Superfood Nuggets are freeze-dried, a different process that removes moisture more completely and produces a lighter, crunchier product you can use as a standalone meal or a food topper. The newest addition, Raw Coated Morsels, is essentially a premium kibble base coated in freeze-dried raw meat — a grain-inclusive option for owners who want the raw-boost without fully committing to an air-dried or freeze-dried diet. Sundays, by contrast, has stayed focused on its core air-dried format across three protein options (beef, chicken, turkey). If you want multiple format options from one brand, Badlands Ranch now offers real variety. If you want simplicity from a single production method, Sundays keeps it clean.
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What is the best brand of air-dried dog food overall? No single “best” — it depends on your dog’s needs and your budget · Sundays and Badlands Ranch are both top-tier · Other highly rated options: Ziwi Peak (highest protein), Open Farm (best ethical sourcing), Stella & Chewy’s (widely available) · AAFCO compliance is the floor — look for companies with a full-time veterinary nutritionist
The air-dried category has grown dramatically and several brands now make legitimately excellent food. Ziwi Peak, the New Zealand brand, consistently earns the highest raw protein content of any air-dried food — often 96% meat, organs, and seafood — but at a price that makes even Badlands Ranch look affordable. Open Farm prioritizes traceability and ethical sourcing with QR codes on every bag linking to the specific farm. Stella & Chewy’s is widely available at major pet retailers including Petco and PetSmart, which matters if you prefer to buy in person rather than subscribe online. For the specific comparison in this guide, Sundays edges out Badlands Ranch on price-per-nutrient value. But your specific dog may tell you differently — if they prefer the texture of one over the other, that settles it. A food your dog refuses to eat with enthusiasm is never the best food, regardless of the ingredient list.
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Is Badlands Ranch better than The Farmer’s Dog? Different formats, different benefits · The Farmer’s Dog is gently cooked fresh food — kept refrigerated, portioned in pouches, highest palatability · Badlands Ranch is shelf-stable air-dried — no refrigeration, lighter to store · Fresh is nutritionally superior when feeding is consistent; air-dried wins for travel, travel days, and simplicity
This comparison comes up often because both brands are premium, celebrity-adjacent (The Farmer’s Dog ran a famous Super Bowl ad), and represent a step up from standard kibble. The Farmer’s Dog delivers portioned, pre-made fresh meals that go in your fridge or freezer — the gently cooked process retains nutrients well and the palatability is exceptionally high, particularly for senior dogs or dogs with appetite issues. The downside is logistics: you need refrigerator space, meal portions must be handled carefully, and if you travel or board your dog frequently, it’s more complicated. Badlands Ranch and Sundays don’t need refrigeration, travel anywhere, and can sit in a cabinet for months without degrading. If your primary concern is feeding the most nutritionally intact diet possible with least preparation, fresh gently cooked wins. If you want premium nutrition without the cold chain, air-dried is the practical answer.
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Is air-dried dog food actually better than kibble? Generally yes, for most dogs — especially in terms of nutrient retention, digestibility, and ingredient quality · Key difference: kibble is cooked at 400°F+ which destroys heat-sensitive vitamins · Air-drying stays under 165°F, preserving more natural enzymes and proteins · Higher calorie density means smaller portions — critical to avoid overfeeding
Standard kibble is produced through extrusion — raw ingredients are combined into a dough, cooked under intense heat and pressure, pushed through a die to create pellets, then sprayed with synthetic vitamins and animal fat to make it palatable. The nutritional value of the original ingredients takes a meaningful hit during that process, which is why most kibble bags list synthetic vitamin supplements in the ingredients — the process destroys enough natural nutrients that they need to be replaced. Air-drying removes moisture slowly at much lower temperatures, which preserves more of what was in the original ingredients. Both Sundays and Badlands Ranch use this approach. The practical result for most dogs: better coat condition, smaller stools (indicating better absorption), and more consistent energy. The caution: air-dried food is calorie-dense, so the portion sizes look shockingly small compared to kibble. Overfeeding is the most common mistake with these foods — follow the brand’s weight-specific guidelines carefully.
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Has Badlands Ranch dog food ever been recalled? No confirmed recalls in major tracking databases as of mid-2026 · A January 2026 report cited a specific lot recall — verify the lot code on your bag against fda.gov/pet-food-recalls before feeding · Sundays has had no recorded recalls
This is worth addressing carefully because it’s one of the most-searched topics about the brand. The FDA’s official pet food recalls database is the authoritative source and should be your first stop whenever you’re concerned about any dog food brand. DogFoodAdvisor’s recall tracker reported no Badlands Ranch recalls through early 2026. One third-party source cited a voluntary Class II Salmonella-related recall of a specific lot code (Lot #BHR010525A) in January 2026, but this was not confirmed across major recall trackers — the source may have been unverified or referring to a limited direct-to-consumer notice. The responsible approach: before feeding any bag of Badlands Ranch, check the lot code on the bottom seam against the FDA’s current recall list at fda.gov and the brand’s official website. Sundays, for its part, has maintained a clean recall record. The USDA-monitored facility and pathogen-kill step in their air-drying process are designed specifically to address the Salmonella risk that all raw-adjacent foods carry.
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Does Sundays for Dogs meet WSAVA guidelines? No — neither Sundays nor Badlands Ranch currently meets WSAVA’s full protocol · Both brands are AAFCO-compliant · WSAVA’s stricter standard requires a full-time PhD or board-certified veterinary nutritionist, feeding trials, and published research · AAFCO compliance means the food meets minimum nutritional requirements
WSAVA — the World Small Animal Veterinary Association — publishes the most rigorous set of questions for evaluating a pet food company. They ask whether the company employs a full-time PhD or board-certified veterinary nutritionist, whether the food was validated through actual feeding trials rather than just computer nutrient analysis, and whether the company has published peer-reviewed research. Most premium boutique brands, including Sundays and Badlands Ranch, do not meet this bar. AAFCO compliance — which both brands have — means the food is formulated to meet minimum nutritional profiles for the stated life stage and is a meaningful baseline. If your dog has a medical condition or is a senior or puppy where nutrition is especially critical, bringing the ingredient list to your vet is more useful than any online comparison. For healthy adult dogs, both of these foods will comfortably exceed what mass-market kibble provides.
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Where can I buy Badlands Ranch dog food and Sundays for Dogs? Sundays: direct from sundaysfordogs.com (subscription or one-time) · Badlands Ranch: badlandsranch.com (subscription), select retailers, and Amazon · Neither brand is carried at major pet chains like PetSmart or Petco as a standard stock item · Subscription saves 20–25% at both brands
Both brands primarily sell direct-to-consumer through their websites, which is where you’ll find the best pricing, the freshest stock, and subscription discounts. Sundays runs about 20% off on subscription and ships in nitrogen-flushed packaging to maintain freshness. Badlands Ranch offers a subscription discount and a 90-day money-back guarantee — if your dog doesn’t take to it, they’ll refund you, which essentially makes the first order risk-free. Badlands Ranch is also available on Amazon, which means Prime shipping and easy reordering, though subscription pricing on the brand’s own site tends to be slightly better. If you prefer buying in person, select independent pet boutiques carry Badlands Ranch; Sundays is almost exclusively online. For large dogs whose monthly food cost approaches $200+, doing the cost-per-pound math on both brands before committing is worth the five minutes of calculation.

⚖️ Side-by-Side Comparison

A direct breakdown of the factors that matter most to dog owners choosing between these two brands.

Category	☀️ Sundays For Dogs	🏔️ Badlands Ranch
Founded by	Dr. Tory Waxman (veterinarian)	Katherine Heigl (actress / animal advocate)
Processing method	Air-dried (human-grade facility) ✓ USDA	Air-dried; also freeze-dried Nuggets & Raw Coated Morsels
Meat content	~90% animal protein Slight edge	87% animal protein
Synthetic supplements	None — whole-food balance only Cleaner	Contains added synthetic vitamins & minerals
Protein recipes	Beef, Chicken, Turkey (3 options)	Beef, Chicken + Nuggets + Raw Coated Morsels More variety
Customization	Personalized meal plan quiz (breed, age, weight, health goals) Winner	Standard feeding guide only
Approx. monthly cost (medium dog)	~$184/month $100+ less	~$288/month
Texture & dog appeal	Uniform, crumble-style — most dogs eat enthusiastically	Chunky, jerky-like — exceptional for picky eaters Texture win
Grains / legumes	Grain-free, legume-free (quinoa in beef)	Grain-free, legume-free in air-dried line Tie
AAFCO compliant	Yes — all life stages	Yes — adult maintenance
Recall history	No recorded recalls Clean record	No confirmed recalls in major trackers — verify lot code at fda.gov
Money-back guarantee	30-day return policy	90-day money-back guarantee Longer window
Where to buy	sundaysfordogs.com (direct only)	badlandsranch.com, Amazon, select retailers More accessible

🐾 Your Situation — Which Food Makes Sense

My dog is a picky eater who keeps walking away from their bowl

PICKY EATER

Start with Badlands Ranch. The chunky, jerky-like texture is a consistent winner with dogs who refuse to engage with uniform crumble-style foods. Multiple dog owners who tested both brands found that even finicky eaters who were lukewarm about Sundays showed genuine meal excitement with Badlands Ranch — the chunkier consistency seems to register more like a treat than a meal, which can be exactly what a reluctant eater needs to reset their relationship with food. The 90-day money-back guarantee means you can buy a bag, give it a full month-long trial, and return it if your dog still won’t eat reliably. If your dog takes to Badlands Ranch, you’ve found your answer. If they won’t eat that either, the next step is a conversation with your vet to rule out underlying nausea, dental pain, or a medical reason behind the food refusal — because true appetite loss can signal something that needs clinical attention, not just a tastier food.

🍖 Chunky texture = treat-like appeal for picky dogs ✅ 90-day money-back — real risk-free trial 🩺 Persistent refusal: rule out dental pain or nausea with your vet 💡 Try warming the food 10 seconds in microwave to increase aroma

I’m switching from kibble and worried about stomach upset during the transition

TRANSITIONING FROM KIBBLE

Go slowly — 7 to 10 days minimum, regardless of which brand you choose. Air-dried food is significantly more nutrient-dense and higher in protein than most kibble, and even dogs with cast-iron stomachs can develop loose stools if you switch cold turkey. The standard transition is 75% old food / 25% new for days 1–3, then 50/50 for days 4–6, then 25% old / 75% new for days 7–9, then 100% new. With Sundays specifically, the brand’s custom meal plan questionnaire will account for your dog’s current diet in its feeding recommendations. Badlands Ranch provides standard feeding guidelines by weight. One practical note: both foods look like tiny portions compared to what you were scooping from a kibble bag — this is normal and correct. Air-dried food is roughly three times more calorie-dense by volume than dry kibble. Feeding the same cup-sized scoop you used with kibble will cause rapid weight gain. Use the brand’s weight-based guidelines and weigh your dog monthly in the first few months.

📅 7–10 day gradual transition — don’t rush it ⚖️ Air-dried portions look tiny — this is correct, don’t double them 🐾 Softer stools for first 1–2 weeks are normal as gut bacteria adjust 📞 Persistent vomiting or bloody stool = call your vet immediately

I have a senior dog with a sensitive stomach or joint issues

SENIOR DOGS

Either brand can work well for seniors — but Sundays has an edge because of its meal customization. You can tell the Sundays quiz that your dog is a senior with digestive sensitivity or joint stiffness, and the meal plan can account for that in its protein selection recommendations. Both brands avoid the common kibble fillers — corn, soy, wheat, legumes — that can aggravate sensitive digestive systems. Neither brand contains the peas and lentils that the FDA has been investigating in connection with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), which is a meaningful point for large-breed senior dogs in particular. The high digestibility of air-dried food means smaller, firmer stools — a real quality-of-life difference for owners of incontinent seniors or dogs who struggle to absorb nutrients from kibble. If your senior dog has a specific medical condition (kidney disease, pancreatitis, heart disease), bring your shortlisted food to your veterinarian before switching — their protein and phosphorus levels may need to be adjusted from what either of these brands provides as standard.

🦴 No peas/lentils in either brand — important for seniors ☀️ Sundays: custom quiz can flag senior/joint-health needs 🩺 Medical conditions: show ingredient list to your vet first 💊 Separate joint supplement may still be needed alongside either food

I want to use one of these as a food topper rather than a full meal

FOOD TOPPER USE

Badlands Ranch Superfood Nuggets (freeze-dried) are purpose-built for topper use. The freeze-dried format is lighter, crunchier, and easier to crumble over an existing meal than the air-dried original. A small amount over your dog’s regular food adds real meat protein, natural enzymes, and the treat-like smell that makes many dogs suddenly finish a bowl they’d been ignoring. Sundays works as a topper too — particularly useful sprinkled over wet food or fresh food for dogs who need more caloric density — but it’s really designed as a complete replacement meal, so the math on portion sizing gets a bit more involved when you’re mixing it. The practical approach: if you want to stick with your current food 80% of the time and just boost nutrition and palatability, Badlands Ranch Nuggets or Sundays in small amounts works. If you decide to go full air-dried for the main meal, both brands provide feeding guidelines that make this straightforward.

🏔️ Badlands Nuggets (freeze-dried): ideal topper texture ☀️ Sundays: works as topper but designed as a full meal replacement 📏 Topper portions: 10–20% of total daily calories maximum ⚖️ Adjust main meal size down when adding a calorie-dense topper

My main concern is budget — which is more affordable long-term?

BUDGET-CONSCIOUS

Sundays is significantly less expensive, and the gap grows with dog size. Based on current pricing, Sundays costs approximately $103 less per month than Badlands Ranch for a dog of similar size — which is over $1,200 saved per year, every year. Both offer subscription discounts of around 20–25% compared to one-time purchases. If Badlands Ranch is the food your dog absolutely prefers and Sundays isn’t working, the cost difference is simply the price of what works. But if you haven’t tried Sundays yet, start there — the ingredient quality is arguably higher (no synthetic supplements), the customization is better, and the cost savings are real. One option worth considering if you love Badlands Ranch but find it tight: use it as a topper a few times a week while feeding a high-quality but more affordable dry food as the base. This isn’t the optimal nutrition strategy, but it’s significantly better than standard kibble and far more sustainable for your wallet long-term than feeding Badlands Ranch as the sole food every day.

💰 Sundays: ~$103/month less per medium-large dog 📅 Subscription saves 20–25% at both brands 🏔️ Badlands Ranch as a topper: premium nutrition at lower cost 📊 Do the cost-per-ounce math before committing — both sites show feeding charts

🏆 The Bottom Line

Sundays For Dogs is the better overall pick for most households — lower cost, cleaner ingredient philosophy (no synthetic supplements), vet-founded, and a personalized meal plan that no other air-dried brand offers at this price point. It’s made in a USDA-monitored facility to human-grade standards and has maintained a clean safety record since launch.

Badlands Ranch is the better choice if your dog needs textural excitement — the chunky air-dried format often converts picky eaters that haven’t responded to other premium foods. Its newer product lineup (Nuggets, Raw Coated Morsels) gives it real format flexibility. The 90-day money-back guarantee is genuinely generous and makes a first-time purchase essentially risk-free.

If budget allows, trying Sundays first is the sensible starting point. If your dog turns their nose up, Badlands Ranch is an excellent backup with a long enough return window to find out.

📍 Find Local Resources

Looking to buy locally, get a vet’s opinion before switching, or find a pet store that carries premium dog food brands? Use the buttons below to search near you.

✅ Checklist Before Switching to Either Brand

Step 1: Know your dog’s current weight and check the feeding calculator on both brand websites before you order — air-dried portions are much smaller than kibble by volume.
Step 2: Check the FDA’s pet food recall database (fda.gov) and the brand’s website for any current lot-code notices before opening a new bag.
Step 3: Plan a 7–10 day gradual transition mixing old and new food to avoid digestive upset.
Step 4: Weigh your dog monthly for the first two months — overfeeding calorie-dense air-dried food is the most common mistake and can cause rapid weight gain.
Step 5: If your dog has kidney disease, pancreatitis, allergies, or any chronic health condition, show the full ingredient list and guaranteed analysis to your vet before switching.

🔗 Quick Reference

☀️ Order Sundays: sundaysfordogs.com 🏔️ Order Badlands Ranch: badlandsranch.com 📋 FDA pet food recalls: fda.gov/animal-veterinary/recalls 🔍 AAFCO nutrition standards: aafco.org 🐕 WSAVA nutrition guidelines: wsava.org 🏪 Badlands Ranch on Amazon: search “Badlands Ranch Superfood Complete” 📊 Dog food recall tracker: dogfoodadvisor.com/recalls 🩺 Find a board-certified veterinary nutritionist: acvn.org

💡 One Thing Most Comparisons Don’t Tell You

The single most reliable test for any premium dog food — air-dried, fresh, or freeze-dried — is a 30-day trial on your actual dog. Both Sundays and Badlands Ranch offer money-back guarantees long enough to complete this properly. Watch for four things: coat condition (should look shinier after 3–4 weeks), stool consistency (should firm up and decrease in volume), energy level (should be consistent, not spiking and crashing), and enthusiasm at mealtime (your dog’s honest review counts more than any ingredient list). If all four move in the right direction, you’ve found your food.

This comparison is for informational purposes only. Pricing, ingredients, and product availability for Sundays For Dogs and Badlands Ranch change frequently — verify all details on each brand’s official website before ordering. This page has no affiliation with either brand. Always consult your veterinarian before making major changes to your dog’s diet, particularly for puppies, pregnant dogs, or dogs with medical conditions.

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