If asked to “pick my poison,” I would definitely say chocolate—the darker the better. Unfortunately Spokespup Sharkita has the same inclination. As a former pet care professional and dog trainer, I should have perfected the art of pup-proofing, boast a model dog with sterling behavior, and possess a shortage of scary dog stories. But I’m only human, and Shark is very much a dog. As the owner of a pet food company I'd like to be able to say that my dog is highly discerning

Nine years ago, Alison and I embarked on a culinary adventure. For the entire month of March, we ate only Evermore and ingredients found within the food (with exceptions for coffee and wine). We committed to one solid bowl of dog food a day—streamed as a “live feed” on our website. In homage to Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me documentary, we named the project Evermore Me. Evermore Me was initially borne out of a certain amount of frustration. We were working tirelessly to put

Update 3/15/21: It looks as though the FDA has walked back their initial reporting on food-related canine DCM and grain-free foods as of September 2020. Check out this article with details on the update from Ryan Yamka, PhD, via northpointpets.com here. Please Note: Since we initially published this blog, the FDA has issued an additional headline grabbing update. The new information, including the names of 16 companies that are radically different from ours, does not substant

Recently an article entitled "Pets are Not Children So Stop Calling Them That" by M.A. Wallace appeared in New York magazine. It’s a snarky piece tailored to generate outrage as viral click-bait for what appears to be a completely manufactured baby vs. doggy culture war. The article came out a bit before Sharkita’s five-year “adoptiversary,”or as some people call it “gotcha day,” and inspired me to contemplate my own views on pet parenthood. I met Sharkita (then Jesse) in 201

After a shitty summer of health issues—including most recently a bout of pneumonia, of which I am now thankfully on the mend—I was finally ready on Labor Day morning to start running again with Sharkita. On our way to Prospect Park, Shark found an appropriate spot to do her business; however, this day was not business as usual. Holiday weekends tend to turn sidewalks into delectable doggy buffets, which unfortunately wreaks havoc on her digestive system. Instead of perfect fi

PART 4: LAYING ROOTS Continuted from Part 3: Enter Alison. Once we made the commitment to start a dog food company, it was a whirlwind of epiphanies, small triumphs and minor fumbles. Our first order of business was to formulate a food we could responsibly sell to the public, ensuring that it contained everything a dog needed to thrive. After intensive research, formulation and laboratory testing, we were pleased with our initial efforts and sent our feed application to the

PART 3: ENTER ALISON Continued from Part 2. It was August of 2009. I had just finished up a grueling but rewarding summer working as sous-chef at Camp Ballibay in northeastern PA. After 30 years in business, the camp had decided to shift from serving kids processed, pre-packaged food to making fresh, locally sourced, from scratch meals. The head chef and I created their new food program and co-ran the kitchen, and a very small team of people successfully pulled off a very la

PART 2: ENTER HANNA Continued from Part 1. It was 2008. I remember riding my bike into the relentless December wind down Van Brunt Street, an absurd amount of keys jangling from my belt loop. I remember being flagged down by two pedestrians with a request for my phone number to pass along to a sick friend in need of a dog walker over the holidays. I remember the phone call with a voice straining against infection on the other end. I will never forget our first meeting. Mary w

It’s been a little while since we’ve sent anything to our mailing list or published a new blog post. Far from a taking a summer break, we’ve been working our tails off. With baby Leyna and big brother Connor by her side, Alison has been busy sourcing our next production run with our new CA-based USDA “people food” kitchen—an easier commute for her than Denver and even closer access to our amazing ingredients. On the East Coast, Hanna has been braving the heat to (happily) sch

In the beginning of April, I recieved a message from my friends over at Badass Brooklyn Animal Rescue – they had recently rescued a pregnant dog who had just birthed a litter at Eva's Play Pup's Pennsylvania camp, an amazing country boarding facility and Badass Rescue partner. The mother, dubbed Rachel Ray, was suffering from severe demodectic mange. With seven mouths to feed, her immune system was not up to the task of even beginning to heal. I'm pretty familiar with mange a

As Mother’s Day draws near, we at Evermore are meditating a lot on the idea of birth and what it means to be a mom. By way of announcements, Alison has a daughter on the way—we’re looking forward to meeting her towards the end of this month (as Evermore officially enters the ranks of momtrepreneur-owned businesses)! However, while the little girl entering this world will be the first human child in the family, she will not be Alison’s first “baby.” Almost 12 years ago, she ad

At Evermore we embrace a creative DIY mentality and a sense of playfulness. While this has been our general attitude since day one, there was a time a few years back when Alison and I strayed from trusting our instincts and stopped enjoying running our own business. We got the notion that since we had grown a certain amount, there was a specific way we “should” be doing things and that some fantasy expert or magic bullet approach could solve any challenges we were facing on t