Pet products & breeding
Books and taxes for freeze-dried pet treat makers.
An Amazon payout, a website order, a case of raw meat that shrinks to a fraction of its weight in the dryer, and the power bill for running four freeze dryers around the clock. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
August came in at $11,000. I tracked this month's meat cost against finished ounces, not raw pounds, so the real batch cost is accurate.
- Amazon FBA payoutAmazon sales
- Shopify website payoutWebsite sales
- Bulk protein orderRaw protein
- Freeze-dryer power billDryer operating cost
- Mylar bags and absorbersPackaging
Why your books are different
A freeze-dried treat maker's books go wrong in a handful of specific spots.
A generalist sees marketplace payouts and a meat bill. Your business runs on machines that take a day and a half per batch, meat that loses most of its weight in the process, and fulfillment fees baked into every payout. When the books miss that, the real cost per bag disappears.
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1
Freeze-dryer power costs hide in the utility bill
Each batch runs 24 to 40 hours in the dryer, and running several units at once adds real electricity cost that usually gets buried in a general power bill instead of being counted as part of what a batch of treats actually costs to make.
What we doEstimates and tracks freeze-dryer power as its own cost, so the true cost of a batch includes the electricity it took to make it. -
2
Yield shrinkage gets ignored in pricing
Ten pounds of raw meat can freeze-dry down to a small fraction of that weight, and pricing based on the raw pound cost instead of the finished ounce cost means a recipe can look profitable on paper while actually losing money once the real yield is counted.
What we doTracks cost per finished ounce, not raw input, so pricing reflects what a batch actually yields. -
3
Freeze dryers get expensed all at once
Scaling up production usually means buying more than one freeze dryer at several thousand dollars each, and treating that purchase like a regular supply cost instead of equipment misses how it should be handled for the year it was bought.
What we doBooks freeze dryers as equipment, so they get written off the way equipment should be, not lumped in with ingredients. -
4
Amazon and Chewy fees disappear into the payout
Amazon FBA and Chewy both take fulfillment and referral fees before a payout lands, so a deposit that looks smaller than what was actually sold hides the real cost of selling through those channels.
What we doBooks the full sale as income and the marketplace's fees as their own cost, so channel profitability is clear. -
5
Packaging gets treated like a generic supply
Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers are what keep a shelf-stable product actually shelf-stable, and lumped into general supplies with everything else, it is hard to see if packaging costs are eating into the margin on a lower-priced treat.
What we doKeeps packaging in its own line, tied to what it costs per batch.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a freeze-dried treat maker.
Set up once for how the business gets paid and what it spends. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Amazon salesFBA payouts, net of Amazon's fulfillment and referral fees.
- Website salesDirect orders through the brand's own site.
- Marketplace salesChewy or Etsy payouts, net of their fees.
- Wholesale accountsCases sold at a discount to boutiques and shops.
Money out
- Raw proteinMeat and organ bought before it goes into the dryer.
- Dryer operating costElectricity to run the freeze dryers through each cycle.
- Freeze-dryer equipmentThe dryers themselves, oil changes, and pump maintenance.
- PackagingMylar bags, oxygen absorbers, and labels.
- Marketplace feesWhat Amazon, Chewy, or Etsy keep before the payout lands.
- Shipping suppliesBoxes and mailers for direct and wholesale orders.
What we watch for you
- Cost per finished ounce
Real cost after yield shrinkage, tracked so a recipe's true margin is never a guess.
- Dryer power cost
Electricity per batch, tracked so scaling up dryers does not quietly eat the margin.
- Channel margin
What each sales channel earns after its fees, so you know where to put your energy.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things freeze-dried treat makers ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
Not quite. I track cost per finished ounce after the dryer, since a pound of raw meat comes out a lot lighter freeze-dried. That's the number pricing should actually use.
Amazon takes fulfillment and referral fees before it pays out. I book the full sale as income and their cut as its own cost, so you can see what selling through Amazon really costs you.
As equipment, not supplies. Whether to write the full cost off this year or spread it out is the accountant's call, so I flagged the purchase for them to look at.
The tax side
The tax side of a freeze-dried treat business.
Most of what matters here is equipment and inventory. A freeze dryer is a real piece of equipment, and product is not a deduction until it sells.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Freeze dryers and equipmentFreeze dryers and related equipment can often be written off in the year bought. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for equipment acquired after January 19, 2025, and Section 179 expensing goes up to $2,560,000.
- Inventory and cost of goodsRaw meat and packaging bought to make product are not deductible when purchased. They become a cost when the finished treats sell, which is why an accurate finished-goods count matters at tax time.
- Marketplace reportingAmazon, Chewy, or Etsy each send a 1099-K once sales cross $20,000 and 200 transactions, but every dollar sold is taxable whether or not a form arrives.
- The pass-through deductionMost profitable owner-operated food makers can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions freeze-dried pet treat makers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Freeze dryer oil and maintenance
- Mylar bags and oxygen absorbers
- Vacuum pump repair
- State feed registration fees
- Label design and printing
- Food safety lab testing
- Amazon FBA fees
- Shipping boxes and mailers
- Business liability insurance
- Farmers market and expo booth fees
- Electricity for production equipment
- Scale and moisture meter calibration
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A freeze-dried treat year, kept every month.
Dryers run year round, but orders and ingredient costs both swing with the seasons. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, feed registration renewals are checked, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether meat costs or dryer power have changed your real margin.
- October
Before the holiday orders
Ahead of holiday gift orders, Gus looks at production capacity and any new equipment worth buying before year end.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for freeze-dried pet treat makers. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions freeze-dried treat makers ask first.
Should I price my treats based on the raw meat cost per pound?
Not by itself. Gus tracks cost per finished ounce after yield shrinkage, since a pound of raw meat comes out much lighter once it is freeze-dried. That is the number pricing should really use.
Does the electricity to run my freeze dryers count as a real production cost?
Yes. Gus tracks dryer power as its own cost, so the true cost of a batch includes what it took to actually run the machines.
Why does my Amazon payout look smaller than what I actually sold?
Amazon takes fulfillment and referral fees before the payout lands. Gus books the full sale as income and Amazon's cut as its own cost, so you can see what selling through Amazon really costs.
I just bought more freeze dryers to keep up with demand. How does that get handled?
As equipment, not a supply cost. Whether to write off the full purchase this year or spread it out depends on your year, so Gus flags it for the accountant to decide.
Does packaging like mylar bags and oxygen absorbers matter for my margin?
Yes. Gus keeps packaging in its own line so you can see whether it is eating into the margin on a lower-priced treat.
My records are just marketplace reports and supplier invoices I have never organized. Can Gus start from there?
Yes. Send what you have and Gus will separate marketplace payouts from ingredient and packaging costs. Most makers see a clear picture within a cycle.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever