# KetoNatural Pet Foods

Tearing down the house of carbs that is the modern pet food industry

## Elevator pitch
Ketona is a revolutionary dry dog food with 75% less carbohydrate than other leading "grain-free" brands. It is a truly first-of-its-kind product, with 5% of the carbohydrate content typical of an expensive raw diet but with the cost and convenience of kibble. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, we've begun selling Ketona through our website and are producing the first batches of our salmon recipe while ramping up our efforts to educate pet owners on the dangers of carbohydrate consumption.

- Canonical URL: https://wefunder.com/ketonatural
- Entity ID: wefunder:company:21937
- Last updated: 2026-06-23T05:01:16Z
- Generated at: 2026-06-23T06:05:12Z

## Quick facts
- Raised $127,500 in equity investment prior to proof of concept.
- Granted regulatory approval for two dry dog food formulations with less than 5% carbohydrate.
- Completed 2nd most successful pet food Kickstarter campaign in history for our "minimum viable product," with more than $11,000 in funding raised from 100 new customers.
- Founded by Daniel Schulof, the Dr. Atkins of the pet world and author of the only book ever devoted to the scientific benefits of a low-carb diet for pets.
- The founding team grew our sister company (Varsity Pets) to more than $1M in revenue and more than 20,000 paying customers without any third-party investment.
- In the two months since our "soft launch" -- operating with a limited budget, essentially no paid marketing, and selling only our minimum viable product --  our total revenues already exceed $15,000 and monthly subscriptions already exceed $1

## Active fundraises
- wefunder:fundraise:15605: 4(a)(6) successful (USD)

## FAQ
1. **A couple questions: How do you justify such a high valuation cap for such a new and unproven company? Looks like you only have about 50k worth of total assets and you are looking to take out a number of large loans on took of what looks like 20k in existing loans. What rate do...**
   - 1) "How do you justify such a high valuation cap for such a new and unproven company?" Given that our sales track record is so limited (even though our research/development and regulatory accomplishments are already quite significant), we think a valuation methodology grounded in overall market size is a fairer reflection of the risks and benefits of this investment opportunity than a methodology based on historical sales data. Pet food is a $28B/year industry in the U.S. If we can capture ju...
2. **It looked like the cost for a large bag of dog food (33 lbs) was $150. Is that correct? We buy grain-free natural dog food now and for ~$50 for an equivalent volume. How do you expect customers to pay this much of a premium for this product? Thank you,**
   - What you see on our website right now is actually a bit misleading. The only products we are selling at the moment are 4.2-pound bags of our chicken recipe. We offer them to customers through our online store, both individually and in multiples of two (8.4 pounds), four (16.8 pounds), and eight (33.6 pounds). These are just temporary options; once we have our larger 24.2-pound bags in stock (certainly within two weeks) we will drop these options and just offer the 4.2-pound bag and a 24.2-pou...
3. **Do you plan to pay a dividend? Do you have an exit strategy (IPO, be acquired, etc) or do you intend to continue to operate as a company with no exit?**
   - Thanks for your questions and your interest in KetoNatural! We don't have any plans to pay dividends in the short run. (As explained below, it is conceivable that we could begin paying dividends at some point in the future.) As for your question about exit strategy, I should begin by outlining at a conceptual level the possible ways that the KetoNatual story could end, for investor purposes: 1) Merger with or acquisition by a larger consumer products company, a larger pet food company, or som...
4. **I applaud anyone who wants to make healthier products for my dogs. My biggest concern for you guys is distribution. The shelves are filled, premium shelf placement is already bought or allotted to brands that generate high velocity turns, and the space is already hyper-competi...**
   - Hi Bernie. Thanks for your question and for your interest in KNPF. One comment that's relevant to your question (although it's not exactly an answer) is that DTC distribution is a very significant part of our strategy, particularly in the short run. The reasons for this are myriad -- (1) the industry is trending strongly in that direction already (I understand that Amazon's DTC pet food sales increased by more than 70% last year); (2) Internet-based marketing through advertising platforms suc...
5. **Love the idea. Can you comment on how you differ from Dr. Harvey's Keto brand or ketogenicpetfoods.com, which already sells on Amazon?**
   - Hi Bryan. Thanks for your question. As for Dr. Harvey's, my understanding is they don't sell kibble products, only "pre-mixes," freeze-dried raw products, and other foods that require preparation and careful handling. Ketona offers customers the same (or better) substantive nutritional content of these products, but with the convenience of a kibble. As for ketogenicpetfoods.com, to the best of my knowledge they sprung up right around the same time we did but we are already penetrating the mar...

## Team
- Daniel Schulof (Co-founder and CEO)
- Nathan Mostow (COO)
- Michael DAmico (CFO)

## Recent posts
- Only Four Days Left! (2018-08-28T14:50:50Z)
- Time Is Running Out to Invest in KetoNatural Pet Foods! (2018-08-09T13:39:54Z)
- We Made It! (2018-07-08T13:07:06Z)
- July Update: Continued Growth, New Partners, SuperZoo Pet Expo, and More (2018-07-06T15:54:07Z)
- Another Sales Update: All Graphs Go Up and to the Right! (2018-06-05T15:11:43Z)
- KetoNatural in SELF Magazine (2018-04-17T16:08:11Z)
- What do real customers think of Ketona? (2018-04-16T16:18:39Z)
- Sales/Subscriptions Update (2018-04-04T15:31:19Z)

## Q&A
- Q: I applaud anyone who wants to make healthier products for my dogs. My biggest concern for you guys is distribution. The shelves are filled, premium shelf placement is already bought or allotted to brands that generate high velocity turns, and the space is already hyper-competitive...what's your strategy for obtaining sustainable, premium distribution and shelf space?
  - A: Hi Bernie. Thanks for your question and for your interest in KNPF. One comment that's relevant to your question (although it's not exactly an answer) is that DTC distribution is a very significant part of our strategy, particularly in the short run. The reasons for this are myriad -- (1) the industry is trending strongly in that direction already (I understand that Amazon's DTC pet food sales increased by more than 70% last year); (2) Internet-based marketing through advertising platforms such as Facebook Ads, Google AdWords, Twitter Ads, and others is one of our founding team's true core competencies; (3) our margins are significantly better on our DTC sales (and they'll get even better as our fulfillment network grows in size); and (4) we offer auto-ship subscription programs for our DTC customers, which improve brand loyalty and the expected lifetime value of each customer. We believe that we could be a $50M business without doing any traditional brick-and-mortar distribution whatsoever. That said, unlike other recent pet food startups (such as Ollie and The Farmer's Dog), we are not planning to exclude traditional distribution from our plans. (In fact, we've already been approached by approximately a dozen different pet specialty retailers, just through word-of-mouth.) Conceptually-speaking, the pillars of our strategy for making headway in this regard are (1) a wholesale sales pitch focused on the high price point and truly unique nature of our product (in terms of substantive nutritional content, there's simply nothing else remotely like it on shelves today); (2) the robust network of retailer contacts that we've collected through relationships with our various strategic advisors; and (3) an aggressive, guerrilla-style marketing program that will emerge primarily after seed-stage and Series A-stage fundraising rounds are complete, aimed at mimicking the advertising reach of leading brands, but on a much smaller budget (involving tactics such as clinical studies, veterinarian influence/education campaigns, viral video production, and a few other things that we probably ought not talk about here). Essentially, the model for our brick-and-mortar ambitions is Red Bull -- a brand that penetrated deeply into brick-and-mortar retail by using guerrilla marketing strategies to sell a more expensive and substantively new/different soda product. I hope that gives you a little bit of a sense of how we plan to make traditional wholesale distribution work for KNPF. Thanks again for your question.
- Q: A couple questions: How do you justify such a high valuation cap for such a new and unproven company? Looks like you only have about 50k worth of total assets and you are looking to take out a number of large loans on took of what looks like 20k in existing loans. What rate do you have on the loans and what rates can you expect on the new loans you are applying for? How do your profit margins (looks like 40-55% when selling retail) compare to the sellers of cheap carb-filled products? Are the founders eating a ketogenic diet (defined here as <5% caloric intake from carbs and a moderate intake of protein)? There is even more research saying it's good for people. What was the valuation of the previous funds raised with SAFE ($97,500 9/2017) and the common stock sold ($30,000 7/2017)? Why is this a separate company than Varsity Pets? Seems like it creates an unneeded possibility of a conflict of interest and pushes off the risk to strangers. Thanks in advance for your answers. Edit: fixed a typo, less than was mistyped as greater than
  - A: 1) "How do you justify such a high valuation cap for such a new and unproven company?" Given that our sales track record is so limited (even though our research/development and regulatory accomplishments are already quite significant), we think a valuation methodology grounded in overall market size is a fairer reflection of the risks and benefits of this investment opportunity than a methodology based on historical sales data. Pet food is a $28B/year industry in the U.S. If we can capture just 0.1% of that market (one out of every one thousand pet-owners) by the time the company is mature, then the company's value will likely exceed $120M (given the annual revenue multipliers used in other recent pet food exits). That alone would represent AT LEAST a 20x increase on the valuation used in connection with this round of investment. And we think that's a sufficiently attractive incentive to counterbalance the significant risks inherent in investing in such a new venture. (Or, to approach it another way, we estimate that there are already AT LEAST one million dog-owners in the U.S. who believe strongly in the healthfulness of low-carbohydrate diets. If we can make loyal customers out of just 10% of that universe by the time the company is mature, then its overall value will likely exceed $300M.) But, more importantly, remember that it is entirely possible (indeed, it seems that you believe it is likely) that investors in this round will get their equity at a valuation well BELOW the cap. For instance, our efforts to raise funding from institutional investors in the coming year may only yield offers at, say, a $3M valuation. In that case, investors in this round will get their equity at a much lower price than the $6M valuation cap. So if you truly believe that savvy institutional investors won't agree with the valuation rationale set forth above (but you like our underlying business), it seems that's actually something of an argument in favor of investing in this round. Frankly, we think the more pertinent valuation-related issue is whether the discount rate on offer is a fair reflection of the risk that investors in this round are assuming but which our next round of investors will be avoiding. And, in that regard, we think a 20% discount is fair and reasonable -- we will be actively seeking investment from institutional partners in the very near future (so the company likely won't have much time to change between this round and the next one) and, in our experience, 20% discounts are common at this stage in a company's lifecycle. 2) "Looks like you only have about 50k worth of total assets and you are looking to take out a number of large loans on took of what looks like 20k in existing loans. What rate do you have on the loans and what rates can you expect on the new loans you are applying for?" We have no existing loans -- the $20k liability on our balance sheet is an inventory account payable that will be paid off in the next 1-2 weeks. We expect that the $80k in term loans that we have applied for will carry annual interest rates of about 8.5% and 60-month repayment terms. 3) "How do your profit margins (looks like 40-55% when selling retail) compare to the sellers of cheap carb-filled products?" We can't speak to this with great specificity but based on feedback from advisors with extensive experience in the pet food industry, we do know that 50% gross margins are at least reasonably common in the dry pet food market. As you can imagine, margins vary widely across the industry. 4) "Are the founders eating a ketogenic diet (defined here as >5% caloric intake from carbs and a moderate intake of protein)?" Yes, all of our founders believe that ketogenic diets are healthful for human beings too and we all try to eat that way at home. 5) "What was the valuation of the previous funds raised with SAFE ($97,500 9/2017) and the common stock sold ($30,000 7/2017)?" The complete terms that were offered to these "proof of concept" round investors are disclosed in our Form C. The SAFEs all used a $4M valuation cap and a 30% discount rate. The common stock was a flat $2M valuation (because that investor was unfamiliar with SAFEs). 6) "Why is this a separate company than Varsity Pets?" A number of reasons: (1) the equity breakdown of Varsity Pets is not a fair reflection of the contributions of the various founders to KetoNatural; (2) the core business of Varsity Pets doesn't scale nearly as effectively as the core business of KetoNatural and we don't want to have to choose between (a) having to spend money scaling something that doesn't work in that way or (b) having a rinky-dink pet toy company dangling off of a pet food brand that aspires for international prominence; (3) we believe we'd lose more than we'd gain by asking prospective investors to analyze the risks and benefits of investing in Varsity Pets in addition to those associated with KetoNatural; and (4) for a host of specific reasons, we strongly believe that the Varsity Pets brand is the wrong fit for this pet food venture -- we'd prefer not to explicitly associate the jokey/playful/plucky-upstart tone of VP with the very serious field of evidence-based pet nutrition. Thanks for your questions.
- Q: Hi! I have moved since I invested. Could you update my physical address on file, if you have any? Thanks!
- Q: Hello, I invested $250 to get the perk. I have not received any of the dog food. Do you know when the investors can expect to receive it? Thanks.
  - A: Hi Eric. We actually sent all the perks out quite a while ago. I'm not sure what happened to yours but I'll be happy to just re-send it. Looks like we owe you two of our 4.2-pound bags. Please e-mail me at daniel AT ketonaturalpetfoods DOT com and let me know your address and whether you prefer chicken or salmon recipe. Cheers, Dan​
- Q: Yes, Daniel, to my recollection our discussion is thus far accurate. I'm merely missing the documentation on things. Can you help me recover that which is missing, please? my email has not changed, yet my physical address has. Thank you for reaching out so quickly.
  - A: Hi Aaron. I actually don't think you're missing anything. The investment vehicle through which you invested in KetoNatural is a SAFE, so the precise number of shares you are going to receive won't be defined until the next investment round (when a firm valuation is assigned to the company for purposes of that investment). At that time, all WeFunder investors will receive their equity in documentary form. Does that make sense?
- Q: To Whom It Would Concern: For some reason I have yet to receive information to confirm the investment made in ketonaturals. Please reach out to me at the nearest convenience. thank you kindly. AC
  - A: Hi Aaron. According to our records, we have you down for having invested $100 in early May at the primary SAFE terms offered in connection with the WeFunder campaign. Is that consistent with your records? Cheers, Daniel
- Q: What percentage of the protein in your product is animal-derived and what percentage is derived from plants? Do you have any plans to change the recipe in light of the FDA report that legumes (such as peas) are suspected to interfere with assimilation of taurine, leading to heart disease in the pets fed them?
  - A: Hi Susan. The short answers: (1) the ratio of animal protein to plant protein in Ketona is at least 7:1 and likely higher (chicken makes up about 70% of our formula and pea protein only makes up only about 8%); (2) no, we have no plans to change the formulation in light of the FDA's new investigation because we don't believe the investigation in any way suggests that our formulation is problematic. The long answer: Please see my lengthy, in-depth blog post about this topic (link: http://www.theoptimaldog.com/2018/08/14/the-facts-about-grain-free-diets-and-canine-dilated-cardiomyopathy-part-one-the-evidence-and-how-it-has-been-misinterpreted-by-leading-veterinarians/). A note: As you'll see from my blog post, I take significant issue with how news of the FDA's investigation has been framed by the media and by members of the veterinary community. One of the many things I have a problem with is the fact that the issue is being framed as one of inclusion (i.e., does a formula contain "too many" legumes or not) as opposed to one of exclusion (i.e., does a formula contain sufficient amounts of animal protein or not). There is zero evidence to suggest that legumes in any way "interfere with" the absorption or utilization of taurine. There is, however, evidence that relying on legume-based protein sources INSTEAD OF animal-based protein sources might be causing an uptick in DCM cases (because animal-based protein sources include certain DCM-related amino acids that plant-based proteins do not include). But the issue isn't whether a product contains legumes or not, it's whether the product contains animal protein or not. This is a subtle difference with very significant consequences -- particularly for a product like Ketona, which uses peas as our primary binder but also uses more animal protein than about any kibble on the market today. You can reach me directly at daniel@ketonaturalpetfoods.com if you have any further questions about this subject. Cheers, Daniel
- Q: 1. Could you provide an update on total revenues and monthly subscriptions? 2. Are you raising funds outside of WeFunder to support the business? 3. From my perspective, this seems like a clean investment story in a sector with a lot of growth. I'm surprised that the raise hasn't gone better. What do you think investors are missing?
  - A: Hi Howard -- Thanks for your questions. A few responses: 1) Last month's DTC revenues were just a little over $30,000. And I estimate that we currently have 140-160 auto-ship subscribers. (I can't tell you precisely because Amazon doesn't report these numbers to us, so I have to make some inferences based on our Amazon sales performance trends.) We'll grow again this month, likely ending up around $35,000. I estimate our 12-month DTC revenue run rate to be about $750,000, assuming that we don't make significant changes to our marketing budget. Any expansion into wholesale distribution would only add to that. 2) We've raised a total of just about $400k for the business so far. This has come from debt financing (~$70k), WeFunder (~$60k), and high-net-worth angels/friends (~$300k). And as soon as we close the WeFunder campaign, I'll begin work on our next financing round -- to be led by a CPG-focused, early-stage VC firm and targeting $1-2M. If/when we secure that next round of financing, we intend to increase our marketing spend by 500% -- so it will likely have a very significant impact on our revenues and growth. 3) We were only targeting a total of $50-107k, so we've met our goal and we're squarely within the zone that we were hoping for. We're a very early stage company (having only been selling product for about half of a year) and I think that scares some folks off. Plus the SAFE concept is not always something that prospective investors are familiar with. But that's all speculation. Bottom line is our financing strategy is going perfectly according to plan at this point -- we've done everything we've aimed to do and we've got the money we need to do the things we want to do going forward. Best regards, Daniel
- Q: I see you guys are gaining traction quickly as monthly revenues continue to surge. How fast can product be made to support the demand? Can your manufacturing partner ramp up to sales in the millions easily?
  - A: Oh yes. Our manufacturer produces more than $400M worth of food every year. They make product for some of the biggest names in the industry and can easily handle our production needs for the foreseeable future. Cheers, Dan
- Q: Perhaps you could offer KetoNatural on long distance pet airways flights? https://wefunder.com/pet.airways
- Q: I have another product recommendation for you...A special High Fat & other Nutrient Mix product for Pregnant Dog`s as there Nutritional Needs change when a Dog is Pregnant & Nursing...You might consider a Cat formula product for general meals & when Pregnant also...You can confirm this with a vet of your choice.
- Q: Hello Daniel, Based on your linked-in profile it looks like you are running two businesses this one and Varsity pets. It is hard running one business let alone two. How can investors be sure your focus is 100% on this business? Also Nathan Mostow dosen't have this business listed on his linked in. It dosen't seem like he is very involved?
  - A: Hi Konstantin. For the past six or seven years, Varsity Pets has been a source of passive income that essentially runs itself. It requires very little day-to-day management (it was created in the tradition of Tim Ferris's "Four Hour Workweek"), just a little oversight to make sure the "autopilot" doesn't go off course. Consider that I spent four years researching and writing a very rigorous book while also "managing" VP. Trust me, it's just not a time suck in any meaningful way. As for Nathan, he's part of the founding team but he is not a paid employee of KetoNatural. That's why he doesn't have the company listed on his LinkedIn profile. He does contribute significantly to KN (his responsibilities include strategy-level decision-making, digital marketing, sales) but he's not a full-time employee. Thanks for your questions and for your interest in our company. Daniel
- Q: As a scientist myself, I appreciate your evidence-based approach to designing your product. Have you happened to have read the book “Gulp” by Mary Roach? Having recently read this book, I couldn’t help but think back to a chapter that discusses pet food while reading about your company. (Here’s a link to an excerpt: https://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-03/chemistry-kibble). This brings me to my question: do you happen to know anything about the degree to which your product is palatable to dogs? Have you tested this and if so, can you comment on the degree to which dogs like the taste of your product?
  - A: Hi Dan. Thanks for your comments and questions. I haven't read the Mary Roach book, but I can certainly comment on the palatability of our product. In short, it's hugely palatable to dogs. We tested it with palatability panels last summer and had great results. And we've been selling it to consumers since December 2017 and have received almost exclusively positive feedback on palatability. For instance, all 21 of the Amazon reviews for Ketona are 5/5 stars. Dogs love the stuff. Thanks again! Daniel
- Q: I have something i want to share with you that i think might be of benefit but i would like to do so in private, so do you have a contact email ?
  - A: Sure. You can send me an e-mail directly at daniel [at] ketonaturalpetfoods [dot] com. Cheers, Daniel
- Q: I heard that short hair dogs & pit bull`s matablism goes way up in cold weather, think of Winter & the fat contant of there food need`s to go up allot higher for these breed`s & with pit`s it needs to go way up. I thought this might be a idea for a seperate winter -or- cold climate formula for these type of Dog`s ? Just trying to help.
  - A: Thanks for the idea! Good thought!