Why We Don’t Sell Individual Cans of Pet Food Online

One of the most common questions we receive is:

Why can’t I buy individual cans of identity pet food online or create my own mix-and-match case?

We completely understand why pet parents want this option.

Cats and dogs can be selective. Their preferences may change unexpectedly. Some pets need a carefully managed protein rotation, while others have food sensitivities or dietary restrictions. Families with multiple pets may also want to purchase several recipes without committing to a full case of each one.

From the customer’s perspective, building a custom pet food variety box with a few cans of one recipe and a few cans of another seems simple.

However, picking, packing, and shipping individual cans from a fulfillment warehouse is considerably more expensive and complex than shipping factory-sealed cases.

Why identity Pet Food Is Sold Online by the Case

Our canned dog food and cat food recipes arrive at our fulfillment warehouse in manufacturer-sealed cases.

Shipping sealed cases allows us to:

• Keep fulfillment labor under control
• Protect cans from damage during transit
• Maintain accurate inventory
• Reduce packaging waste
• Ship orders more efficiently
• Keep the cost per can as low as possible
• Preserve product quality throughout fulfillment

When a customer orders a full case, a warehouse employee can select the sealed case, place it into the appropriate shipping package, and prepare it for delivery.

A custom mix-and-match pet food order requires a very different process.

Why Shipping Individual Pet Food Cans Costs More

To create a customized box of individual cans, our fulfillment team would need to:

• Open multiple factory-sealed cases
• Pick individual cans from several recipes
• Track inventory from partially opened cases
• Inspect each loose can
• Protect cans with bubble wrap or other packaging
• Assemble each customer’s unique assortment
• Verify that every recipe and quantity is correct
• Manage incomplete cases and loose inventory
• Replace cans damaged during picking or shipping
• Reconcile inventory across many open cases

These additional requirements would add approximately $.50 to $1.25 in cost to every can.

Those costs come from increased warehouse labor, more complicated inventory management, additional packing materials, product damage, shipping weight, incomplete-case inventory, and greater fulfillment time.

Because canned pet food is heavy, loose cans also require additional protection. Without their original case packaging, individual cans are more likely to move, collide, dent, or become damaged during shipping.

Ultimately, we would have to pass these additional costs on to customers. That would make our already premium pet food significantly more expensive.

Why We Don’t Offer Fully Custom Mix-and-Match Cases

We have carefully evaluated the possibility of allowing customers to build custom pet food cases online.

The challenge is not simply creating a website feature that lets customers choose recipes. The larger challenge is the warehouse operation required to fulfill thousands of unique mixed-can combinations accurately and safely.

A fully customized case would increase:

• Picking time
• Order-verification requirements
• Inventory discrepancies
• Packaging costs
• Product damage
• Warehouse waste
• Shipping complexity
• Overall cost per can
• Forecasting and accuracy with millions of possible combinations

We do not believe it would be fair to advertise the convenience of individual-can ordering without also being transparent about the substantial price increase it would require.

Our goal is to provide high-quality pet nutrition while keeping our products as accessible as possible. Shipping sealed cases remains the most efficient way to offer identity directly to customers nationwide.

Where to Buy Individual Cans of identity Pet Food

Independent neighborhood pet stores are the best place to purchase individual cans of identity dog food and cat food.

At a physical retail store, customers can select individual cans directly from the shelf. The retailer does not need to wrap each can, create a custom parcel, or ship a heavy mixed assortment across the country.

This makes local pet stores much better equipped to offer:

• Single cans of cat food
• Single cans of dog food
• Mix-and-match pet food selections
• Smaller trial quantities
• Customized flavor or protein rotations

Any independent neighborhood pet retailer in the United States can request access to identity products through our wholesale distribution partners.

Find identity Pet Food Near You

You can search for nearby retailers using our store locator:

Find an identity Pet Nutrition retailer near you

Store locations are displayed based on prior purchasing activity reported to us by third-party distributors.

Because independent retailers manage their own inventory and purchasing decisions, product availability can vary by store. A listed retailer may carry only certain identity recipes or may temporarily be out of stock.

We recommend calling ahead before visiting to confirm that the store currently carries identity and has your preferred recipes available.

Our customer care team is also happy to help identify the nearest store currently carrying the recipes you need.

Ask Your Local Independent Pet Store to Carry identity

We are actively expanding our retail presence through independent neighborhood pet stores across the United States.

If there is a local pet store where you would like to purchase individual cans of identity, please send us the store’s name and location. Our team can contact the retailer and provide information about ordering through our wholesale partners.

It also helps when customers request identity directly from their local stores.

Independent pet retailers frequently rely on customer demand when deciding which new pet food brands and recipes to carry. Even a simple request can make a meaningful difference.

You can ask:

“Can you order identity Pet Nutrition products through your distributor?" or "Have you Contacted identity Pet Nutrition about selling their products?”

Any independent pet retailer in the United States can request access to our products through participating wholesale partners or directly from identity Pet Nutrition.

Why Local Pet Stores Are Important

Independent pet stores play an important role in making specialty pet foods more accessible. Neighborhood pet retailers are where new and innovative brands are commonly discovered. 

They allow pet parents to:

• Purchase individual cans before committing to a full case
• Build a personalized recipe rotation
• Try new proteins in smaller quantities
• Replace a recipe a pet suddenly stops eating
• Receive personalized product guidance
• Support a locally owned business

For customers who need greater flexibility, local retail is generally the most practical and economical solution.

Why We Continue to Offer Full Cases Online

Selling sealed cases online allows identity to make our full product line available to pet parents throughout the country, including customers who may not yet have a nearby retailer.

Case-based online ordering helps us:

• Reduce fulfillment and packaging costs
• Limit shipping damage
• Maintain better inventory accuracy
• Reduce unnecessary packaging
• Fulfill orders more quickly
• Keep the cost per can lower
• Offer reliable nationwide availability

We recognize that full-case purchasing is not ideal for every household.

It can be especially difficult when a cat or dog changes preferences after only a few cans, when a pet needs a varied rotation, or when multiple pets in the same household eat different recipes.

Our decision not to sell individual cans online is not based on a lack of interest in flexibility. It is based on the operational reality that picking and shipping individual cans would substantially increase the price of every can.

As identity continues to grow, we will keep evaluating new variety packs, packaging formats, retail partnerships, and fulfillment options that could provide greater flexibility without making our products prohibitively expensive.

In the meantime, purchasing individual cans through an independent pet retailer remains the most affordable and practical way to build a customized selection of identity recipes.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I buy individual cans of identity pet food online?

At this time, identity canned pet food is sold online in sealed case quantities. Shipping individual cans would require additional labor, packaging, inventory management, and damage protection, adding an estimated $1.00 to $1.50 to the cost of each can.

We offer pre-made Disovery Boxes which include individual cans of multiple recipes. These are great for trial and sampling. Our Discovery Boxes can be found at the following links: