Taylor Pond Farms is a raw food vendor with a booth at the Livonia Kennel Club and Oakland County Kennel Club dog show cluster in Novi Michigan in January. This was the second event the company had bought booth space and the second time they had been to the Rock Financial Showplace, the first time being for the Family Pet Expo in November, 2009.
The business didn’t start in pet food; owner Pete Moolhuizen got an idea to breed rabbits for meat for high-end restaurants on a trip to Europe. There he saw rabbit breeders doing well in that trade, so when he got back to the US, he started raising rabbits on their farm in Western Michigan. The business was doing well, and then one day he got a call from a dog owner asking what they did with the rabbit heads and feet, the parts that weren’t used by restaurants. At that time, they were just throwing them away. The dog owner offered to buy the leftover parts, word spread, and before long the business was offering a variety of meats strictly to pet owners. They had to stop raising their own rabbits because the demands of the business didn’t allow time to properly care for the animals.
Taylor Ponds sells through a network of distributors and their foods are strictly one-species per package, something that anyone who owns a dog with multiple allergies will appreciate. They are not complete foods in and of themselves, but can be fed as part of a raw diet along with other nutrients. Except for these shows, the company relies on their distributors, word of mouth and their website for promotion.
The Taylor Ponds website lists 10 different species of animal meat available, including rabbit, deer, duck, goat and fish. All meat is from US farms, except for some venison that is hunted. Their display at the dog show included a number of dehydrated treats including chicken and rabbit feet and beef trachea. The Moolhuizens found the serious dog people at the shows contained a higher proportion of raw feeders than the more pet-centric attendees at the Pet Expo. Barb told me she was surprised by requests for liver, which they did not bring to the show. They plan to add more events to their marketing plan, next stop will be the Detroit Kennel Club show in March.
I just read your website you two are teriffic keep up the real good work and i see you in Florida love your Mother
How could I become a distributor in the southeast at dog shows and what does it involve? Looking for a PRODUCT. agility and conformation.
I actually just heard the sad news that Taylor Ponds suffered several financial setbacks on top of one another and decided to close down. Their site, http://www.taylorpondfarms.com has a phone number posted if you want to reach the principals, Pete and Barb.
hey just wanted to say hi and hope everything is going well.i talked to some people when i went to lima ohio and they said that they got some treats for there dogs that had your name on them and the dogs love them.well hope you guys are doing well have a great day.