Billy And Margot Information
Billy And Margot was founded and launched in 2012 by Marie-Helene Sawle and sold ice cream style treats for dogs.
Marie-Helene Sawle and her brand were featured on the popular TV show Dragons Den where she attempted to acquire investment for her brand.
You can see a clip from their appearance below.
Deborah Meaden took advantage of this opportunity and invested in Marie and her brand.
Since then, the brand has expanded beyond chilled treats and now sells the traditional varieties of dog food, including dry food, wet food, and chilled food.
It is not clear exactly where Billy And Margot’s recipes are produced, especially given that they are sold worldwide and not only in one region but we did find some evidence that some of their production takes place in the United Kingdom.
Billy And Margot’s products are available for purchase from hundreds of retail stores across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.
Their recipes are also available to purchase from many large pet food websites like PetSmart and Amazon.
They were previously available on the largest pet food website, Chewy, but on a recent review, it appears they are not longer available. We aren’t sure why they stopped stocking the brand, but it is an interesting observation.
Billy And Margot Product Range
While Billy And Margot may have originally only sold dog treats, their range has expanded to a moderate size.
They have a small range of dry dog food. This range includes some common ingredients as well as some unusual and unique ones.
The wet dog food range is the largest and includes Canned Dog Food and dog food pouches.
Billy And Margot have two puppy food products. These are very similar to the adult equivalents, which could make the transition straightforward.
Chilled dog food is not a variety that most brands produce, but Billy and Margot have a small range. Chilled dog food is a premium product but one which can be highly nutritious and enjoyable.
Lastly, Billy And Margot’s range of dog treats is split into three categories: Dental Treats, traditional dry treats, and Chilled Treats.
Billy And Margot Nutrition
Billy And Margot employ a canine nutritionist by the name of Marie Jones. Billy And Margot claim that all of their products are designed and conceived by this nutritionist.
Billy And Margot’s dry dog food recipes’ nutritional profile is reasonable but not as satisfactory as some of their competitors.
The proportion of carbohydrates could be noticeably lower, and the proportion of protein and fat could be higher. This kind of nutritional profile would better reflect a dog’s natural diet.
Billy And Margot Ingredients
High-Quality Meat & Fish Ingredients
- Chicken
- Lamb
- Beef
- Salmon
- Wild Boar
- Venison
- Kangaroo
Ingredients like Chicken and Salmon are staples of dog food and can provide excellent nutrition, high in protein and fat. These ingredients feature high up on the ingredient list in Billy + Margot recipes, which is a positive trait.
Other meat ingredients such as Kangaroo and Venison are far less common features in dog food recipes.
These ingredients are generally targeted toward dogs with severe allergies and sensitivities, as dogs are much less likely to have been exposed to them in the past.
Some know these ingredients as Novel Meats. Find out more about the use of Novel Meat ingredients and Hypoallergenic Dog Food in the following articles.
Best Hypoallergenic Dog Foods Guide
Other Notable Ingredients
Billy And Margot’s primary plant-based ingredients are the popular legume ingredients like Peas, Lentils, and Chickpeas.
These legume ingredients are used industry-wide and can provide carbohydrates, fiber, and high protein levels for a plant-based ingredient.
Unfortunately, Billy And Margot do make use of Pea Protein. Pea Protein is a Pea By-product and is often used by pet food manufacturers to boost the overall level of protein in a formula.
Protein from Pea Protein is considered inferior to animal or fished based protein as it does not contain all the needed amino acids and is less easily absorbed.
Find out more about Pea Protein in our article Peas, Pea Protein, Pea Flour, and Pea Fiber in Dog Food.
Some Billy and Margot recipes make use of Chicken Fat. This ingredient is primarily used to enhance the flavor of a pet food recipe and boost the proportion of animal fat present.
Chicken Fat is chosen over alternatives thanks to its low cost and high availability.
Learn more about Chicken Fat in Chicken Fat In Dog Food.
Flaxseed is a regular in pet food recipes thanks to the fact it is an excellent source of the Omega 3 Fatty Acids. These fatty acids are believed by many to provide several health benefits to humans and dogs alike.
Examples include an improvement in the condition of a dog’s skin and coat and a reduction in the risk of certain diseases.
Learn more about Flaxseed and its benefits in Flaxseed In Dog Food.
Alfalfa, which is also known as Lucerne, is an ingredient that is found in pet food in tiny quantities.
Alfalfa can provide vitamins and minerals at high levels that some believe can provide health benefits to dogs.
Read more about Alfafa in Alfalfa In Dog Food.
Billy And Margot Animal Testing
At this time, we have no information on whether Billy And Margot participate in testing on animals.
However, we suspect that they do not participate in laboratory or invasive testing.
Many smaller pet food brands avoid disclosing detailed information about their testing or trials for fear of customer backlash.
However, this has led to some in the industry being concerned that dog food recipes are not being tested sufficiently.
We believe that testing on animals is a cruel and outdated practice and one which we hope will be severely reduced or eliminated.
Billy And Margot Recalls
Based on our research (FDA, AVMA, DogFoodAdvisor), we have information that leads us to believe that Billy And Margot’s products have been recalled in the past, and they are not a recall-free brand.
This recall took place in September 2020 and involved their dry dog food recipe – Wild Kangaroo + Superfoods.
The specific batch in question was the 4lb bags of food with a lot code of: V 07 Feb 2020.
The recall was voluntary, which means the company was not mandated to do so but instead did to err on the side of caution. The justification for the recall was because of the potential of Salmonella contamination.
Salmonella is a serious threat to pets and humans, which is why if there is a risk of it being present in food, strong precautions are made. Salmonella can cause symptoms such as Nausea, Vomiting, Diarrhea, or Feber.
Consumers must be vigilant for any future issues from Billy + Margot, as there is no guarantee that there will be no future recalls.
This risk is especially true for frozen or raw foods, which can have an increased risk of contamination if they are not handled and stored correctly.
Best of Billy And Margot
Kangaroo + Superfood Blend Review
Kangaroo + Superfood Blend contains Kangaroo and Chicken. While we have no objections with Chicken and believe it is a high-quality ingredient, this is unusual for a formula that uses Kangaroo and may make it unsuitable for those dogs with severe allergies and sensitivities.
Chicken is one of the most common allergens, and many dog owners feed Kangaroo formulas to avoid Chicken.
However, this mix of Kangaroo and Chicken provides an extremely satisfactory proportion of protein, which would be suitable for the vast majority of dogs, regardless of activity levels.
The level of fat in the formula is below average, but this is understandable given that Kangaroo meat is very low in fat.
This lack of fat could make the formula appealing to dogs attempting weight loss or looking to avoid weight gain.
The formula makes use of the usual legume ingredients such as Peas, Lentils, and Chickpeas to provide carbohydrates and dietary fiber. Sadly, it also includes Pea Protein, which is a low-quality ingredient.
Beef Recipe With Superfoods Review
While much of the focus on Billy + Margot is on their frozen food or their exotic ingredients, they do produce some excellent recipes with more common ingredients, such as the above wet dog food recipe with Beef.
The recipe uses a large portion of Beef and Chicken to provide an excellent proportion of protein and fat.
A mix of Carrots, Sweet potatoes, Peas, and Potatoes are also present, which, when combined, provide a modest proportion of carbohydrates and fiber and help hold the food together in a consistent texture.
Billy And Margot Featured Articles
Best Dog Food With Kangaroo – Billy and Margot are one of a select few brands that sell dog food with Kangaroo meat.
Kangaroo meat is appealing to dogs with severe allergies and sensitivities and can act as a Novel Meat.
Find out more about Kangaroo and the best formulas on offer in this article.
Billy And Margot Full Product Range
Dry Dog Food
Salmon + Superfood Blend
Salmon + Superfood Blend (Small Breed)
Lamb + Superfood Blend
Chicken + Superfood Blend
Chicken + Superfood Blend (Large Breed)
Kangaroo + Superfood Blend
Wet Dog Food
Beef Casserole With Superfoods
Lamb Casserole With Superfoods
Kangaroo Casserole With Superfoods
Beef Recipe With Superfoods
Lamb Recipe With Superfoods
Kangaroo Recipe With Superfoods
Venison Recipe With Superfoods
Boar Recipe With Superfoods
Puppy Food
Chicken + Superfoods Recipe
Chicken Recipe With Superfoods
Chicken + Superfoods Recipe (Large Breed Puppy)
Chilled Dog Food
Chicken, Vegetables + Superfood Blend
Beef, Vegetables + Superfood Blend
Lamb, Vegetables + Superfood Blend
Dog Treats
Dental Treats
Strawberry & Mint Tea Flavour (Large – Xlarge Dog)
Apple & Green Tea Flavour (Large – Xlarge Dog)
Iced Treats
Banana & Honey Recipe
Banana, Apple & Carrot Recipe
Strawberry & Apple Recipe
This will be the first time I have tried this so I will let you know how my dogs like it
My dog likes the chilled food a lot, however it smells really rotten! Is it just me? I checked the food for expiration dates-nothing was past expiration but it smells like rotten garbage! 😳
Maria, I came on here looking for an explanation of the rancid smell! My dog is incredibly finicky but she loves this food!! I almost can’t stomach cutting it up for her but I love her like my kid and feed it to her since its the only dog food she likes! I’m actually considering Just Food For Dogs but they are not local to me. I’ll have to drive about an hour just to get get food. I’m torn. I would love to know what the disgusting smell is of Billy and Margot is!
It does smell pretty rotten but we have opposable thumbs and they have sensitive sniffers. I’m sure the smell to them is like, “BONUS!!”. We bought a roll of chicken meal from PetsMart today and when I cut into it the smell was overwhelming (rancid-like) and, to our surprise, it was indeed expired. Hard to tell if the printed dates are just a ‘sell by’ date or a ‘do not use past’ date which is why I Googled and got to here. The roll, among other items, was brought out to curbside delivery by a PM employee because of all this COVID-19 crap. So we ended up throwing it away and figured we’d try another brand later rather than take the chance of making our dogs sick and having to deal with that mess. I realize they’ll eat their own poop sometimes so take the above statement with the appropriate grain of salt.
The smell is terrible. I thought mine was expired but it wasn’t. My dog then started getting terrible and really bad smelling diarrhea. I recommend PetFresh.
I am fairly new to this brand. I agree with all the reviews regarding the horrible smell. My dog does love it. Kia, is a 4.4 oz. Papillon and very finicky eater. Wonder why the manafactor doesn’t respond to any of these reviews.
My two large breeds (Australian shepherd/chocolate lab and husky/bulldog) love the kangaroo kibble! The pouches with gravy were the biggest hit but they also thoroughly enjoy the chilled food choices. One issue I’ve run into is the inconsistency with the cheaper chicken kibble which greatly contrasts the quality of the other flavors and has an uncharacteristically dark appearance and unappealing smell that my pups despise eating! It has given them diarrhea on several occasions and I would not recommend purchasing that particular bag. I have noticed a significant improvement in energy and overall health after switching from Instinct Raw.
My husband says the refrigerated lamb roll “smells like *ss”, whether or not the expiration date has been reached. We find the chicken and beef varieties to have a less offensive odor. However, our large-breed Leos love all the varieties, the stinkier the better, and we’ve had no stomach upset or other issues. We do feed a combination diet, and do diet rotation regularly, so their stomachs are used to change. You might try Petfresh Select, which is sold in refrigerated rolls, less expensive, and highly rated by DogAdvisor.com.
We’ve tried all three of the fresh food – lamb, chicken, and beef. ALL OF THEM smells rotten!!! In that order of from worst to bad. They are not expired. Just smell like death. Every time we handle the food, we gag!!!! It takes very thorough wash to get rid of the stank. If you get the juice on you, that’s it. Unless you take a shower, you WILL smell like garbage. I don’t know why these food smells so awful. We’ve tried other fresh foods and none of them have this problem. I give it two stars only because our dog seems to love them.
Can anyone tell me if it’s OK to slice up a big roll into portions and freeze them separately? Also, when you first. The package does it pop? Is that normal? Thank you so much for any help!
I tried Billy and Morgot Salmon and Superfoods recipe because my Bernese Mountain Dog was tired of her normal food from 4Health. My dog is now chewing her hair out and has a rash that never existed before this food. She doesnt see other dogs, she stays in our yard so the only new thing was this food. I’m disgusted to think it was the food I got her, but a good indicator for me that this food is rancid was when I went back to PetSmart and they didn’t even have the brand on the shelf anymore. I’m beyond upset that this food was ever stocked. And my beautiful dog is now miserable going through soaking baths, having to have vinegar put on her skin as well as added to her water, having to spray her 5 times a day with Burts Bee’s Anti-Itch Spray just so she doesnt lose her mind. Would never reccomend.
Sounds like your dog has an allergy, it’s not the food. My dog is allergic to salmon and any other kinds fish and has this reaction to anything with fish in if
While pea protein is being called inferior source recent studies are showing that pea protein is very beneficial in humans and animals with kidney disease
I just started my 16 year old, 25 lb. dog on the kibble food today. He went right for it and licked the bowl clean both times, unlike the previous food. I didn’t notice any odors from the dry kibble, must be the wet variety others are referring to as rancid or stinky in the reviews?
I would like it if the manufacturer Billy and Margot listed the Kcal/cup for the food on the packaging and the website in addition to the vague cups of food per 11 lb. increment of the dog weight.
my dog 11 month old collie/german Sheppard cross refuses to eat this in kibble or tin versions – tried different flavours but its a no go here?
Hi there
My dog (Molly) loves the Billie and Margot range, I happily purchase the wet food as the tins are recyclable, however sadly the other packaging for dry food which Molly enjoys is not recyclable therefore we have chosen to not purchase again until this is addressed. Such a shame!
James