[Jess L]

I saw that there was a lawsuit against Diamond Dog Food, which makes other brands like Taste of the Wild. But this is a brand that you recommend. Are you aware of the lawsuit and what are your thoughts? Thank you.

[Mike Sagman]

Hi Jess,

Although there are many ways to rate a dog food, we’ve settled on using the only reliable information we feel we can consistently trust.

We read and interpret government-regulated pet food labels. Nothing more. And we do this in two simple

1. We study the ingredients list

2. We evaluate the meat content

And we tend to ignore virtually everything else.

As reviewers, we don’t test dog food. We don’t taste it. And we rarely trust marketing hype. Manufacturer’s claims. The fancy artwork on the package. Or legal matters.

However, in our members-only Editor’s Choice section, we do go beyond the label for a select group of dog foods we feel are among some of the very best brands available to the North American market.

You can learn more about how e rate dog food by visiting the following two pages on our website:

/choosing-dog-food/dog-food-reviews-problems/

/frequently-asked-questions/rate-dog-food/

Hope this helps.

[Mom2Cavs]

Jess, you may be right but where did you read about a lawsuit against Diamond? I don’t feed Diamond products anymore, but was just wondering. I do know that Blue Buffalo is being sued by Purina recently, but that’s it.

[Jess L]

Here is a link: http://www.thedogpress.com/DOGFOOD/Diamond-Pet-Foods-Lawsuit-Details_Staff-144.asp
Very disappointing to hear.

“In April 2012 Diamond began several recalls of its pet food products, among them yummy-sounding names such as Chicken Soup For The Pet Lover’s Soul, Taste Of The Wild, and ironically, 4Health.”

[Mike Sagman]

Hey Guys,

Here’s our own recent update regarding the Diamond lawsuit settlement posted on The Dog Food Advisor Facebook page just a few weeks ago:

https://www.facebook.com/dogfoodadvisor/photos/a.208003502546298.57384.153072514706064/789163534430289/?type=1

Hope this helps.

[Jess L]

Your website rates still rates Taste of the Wild highly. Should you not update this? What grain free dog foods are safe?

[Mike Sagman]

Based upon the label information only, Taste of the Wild still rates highly. Unless the label itself has changed, there’s no need to update this review. As I explain throughout this website, lawsuits, recalls, marketing, etc. have never had anything to do with any of our 800+ ratings.

However, companies with these kinds of histories will be (for the time being) ineligible for our Editor’s Choice designation. Over time and as their record improves, they could eventually become eligible once again.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 6 months ago by Mike Sagman.

[Erika L]

Hi All ~
We need some help, advice, or opinions would be great! We have been using the 4-health food for our dogs, we have 6, 5 labs and 1 German Shepard/Rottweiler, and we have discovered that the food is great but thought we could try something similar yet cheaper as we have a BIG grocery bill for our pups! We were using the chicken and rice formula of the other and decided to switch and try the CHK/Rice Diamond formula as it was pretty much the same yet cheaper! SO: at the store, discover price reduction on Diamond also package change. Who knows how long the old package had been on the shelves but because of the good deal we bought 4 bags! Since the change, I thought 1 of my labs had gotten ahold of something bad and now has worms, ie eating grass ALOT OF GRASS and then scooting her booty on the floor more than once! Pretty good indication right?! Until we noticed and began watching the others closer, all eating grass profusely and one of our other labs scooting his booty on the ground? What are the chances that ALL 6 dogs 85lbs plus that are ALL on heart worm meds also to help control the other worms have a worm problem??? NO!! Thinking we got ahold of some bad dog food as the actions of the dogs are all similar and it only just recently happened since the change in food??!! Thanks in advance for some help!!

[Jess L]

Erika,

I am not sure what it could be, but just in case you should maybe get a stool sample of your dogs. Also you could contact Diamond and see what info they have if they are keeping record of complaints and reports. I am stuck currently on what dog food to buy, since this brand has been recalled. I do not have many dogs as you do, but I do have 2 big dogs and another one coming soon. Cost is always a consideration, as well as safety and quality. Currently, I have switched to Flint River, but I cannot give you any personal feedback on this brand since I have not used it long enough.
All the best.

[Beth J]

I recently sent a complaint to the makers of Taste of the Wild (Re: High Prairie formula).
I bought 4 bags a few weeks ago. The dogs had explosive diarrhea day one of opening using a new bag. The kibble looked different as well, almost like it was covered in small crumbs… I sent the codes from the back of the bags (they were all the same) for them to test, per their request.
I’ve been feeding my dogs this brand for quite some time and never had a problem until now. There is definitely something wrong with that batch. We’ll see what comes of it. Maybe another recall?

[Diane L]

Beth J,

What did you find out about your batch of High Prairie formula? I use TotW exclusively, and I currently have three dogs that all have some level of digestive upset. The last bag I bought was the High Prairie formula, and I suspect that may be the culprit. Unfortunately, I don’t still have the bag to get the batch code from.

[Beth J]

Hi there,
My little brother works for a pet food distribution warehouse, so I usually buy 4 bags at a time. I got the batch long before it hit the shelves at all the local stores.
I wrote a letter to TOTW/ Diamond and sent the codes from the back.
They reimbursed me for all 4 bags and said they would test it. That was in July. No recalls as of yet. Sad, they probably knew the results then, but were waiting for more complaints….

[Diane L]

I think I may still have the bag at home out for the trash pickup – I will have to see if I can dig it out and get the codes off it. I’ve already gotten one refund from the recall a couple years ago….. In the meantime, I’m looking at switching to another brand. Any suggestions?

Seems like it shouldn’t be this hard to feed our pets (and ourselves, for that matter!)

[Beth J]

I went to NurtiSource grain free chicken. One dog seemed to be allergic to something in it (2 paws turned pink, frequent/ obsessive licking, scratching) but the other dog did fine.
So I just recently switched them again, now to Diamond grain free White fish and sweet potato. I know TOTW and Diamond are from the same makers and wondered if they were made in the same plant (contamination issues) but they seem to be fine and it’s cheaper than TOTW. Good luck!

[crazy4cats]

Hi Diane L-
Have you ever given Victor grain free a try? I think it is similar to TotW both in price and ingredients. That is, if you are lucky enough to have it available in your area. I either have to order it online or special order it from a feed store which is about 20 miles away. But, my dogs do great on it and haven’t had any recalls that I know of. Good luck!

[Diane L]

Thanks to you both, Beth J and Crazy4Cats! I will see what I have available in my area. 🙂

[Zeljko L]

My boy eats Totw salmon and he is having perfect stool on it. Last week I bought another bag and I saw kibbles look different they are having some crumbs around and bag is full of crumbs. Previous kibbles had a plain surface and even at the end of bag there was no crumbs. Now my boy is having very smelly stool,soft and drinks lot of water. Last week he is parasite and giardia checked all negative,he doesnt get any treats and no eating anything except his food. So there is something in his food. I write an e mail to Totw they didn t responded probably it is a weekend.
This things makes me very upset! You want best for your baby and giving lot of love and money to provide them long lasting , happy life and someone is playing with us.
Zeljko

[theBCnut]

Diamond has a few different plants and they are known for doing things differently, so they can be very inconsistant from batch to batch.

[Diane L]

Zeljko L – I’m sure it is because it’s the weekend – I emailed them earlier in the week and they have been very responsive to me. In the meantime, hope your boy is feeling better soon! I found that using Purina FortiFlora supplement helped my dogs in getting over the digestive upset quickly.

[Zeljko L]

Diane L thank you for your concern,
He is better, his stool is slightly better but sill abundant..his digestive system is very very sensitive..after trying so many different brands this food was only food that agrees with his body ..I remember at the first transition time to totw salmon he had a soft stool but never abundant and smelly and after few days he had a perfect small stool so totw pacific stream was huge discover for us and i felt so relief..and now this..My biggest issue is I dont have many alternatives 🙁
I thing something is different in the food for sure..

[Mackenzie M]

Hi everyone,
This is the first time I have been on this site. After reading a few of the replies here, I am worried about the TOTW high prairie formula. My Newfie puppy had explosive diarrhea about a month ago and we could not figure out why…this thread seems to have answered that mystery for me. She is incredibly gassy on TOTW as well. What is another healthy alternative to TOTW?

[Diane L]

Mackenzie M – I took Crazy4Cats advice and tried Victor grain free, the Salmon and Sweet Potato formula (victordogfood.com). It’s similar in price to TotW, and so far it seems to be fine. The kibble pieces are smaller than TotW, more like a cat food size, and I wondered how my bigger dogs would like it, but it seems not to be a problem for them. The biggest problem seems to be finding it – there is only one feed store in my locale that carries it.

[Beth J]

Hi all, I have an update if it is at all helpful… I think I get the dog food before it hits most stores. (I get it from a pet food distributor my brother works for). Since the bad batch of TOTW High prairie formula in July, I have tried 3 other grain free dry dog kibbles. Since then, my dog has developed an allergy to chicken leading me back to TOTW, now Pacific Stream (Salmon, no Chicken in it). The kibble looks normal, (no crumbs in the bag to be found), no explosive diarrhea and my GSD is happy. I have been mixing 100% pumpkin in with her food to make all transitions easier on her stomach and no issues (about 1-2 tbsp per feeding). I wonder if they had a contamination in the plant and did a clean up? But hang in there. I think it will be back to normal soon.

[Diane L]

Apparently they have made recent changes that might affect dogs with sensitive digestive systems. From TotW website FAQs: http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/faq/#290 There are several comments there that might apply to this situation.

I’ve changed over to Victor for now – we’ll see how that goes.

[pugmomsandy]

I used to use TOTW Pacific Stream a couple years ago. I remember the kibble changed about 3 times while I was feeding it. Sometimes darker, sometimes greasier, sometimes a different shape!

[Jess L]

We feed raw, fresh food. We also feed dry in the evenings and wanted a reliable, high quality dry food. I have long researched and looked for a reliable dry food and now have found it. It is Orijens, grain-free and whole prey. They are family owned from Alberta, Canada, but sold select retailers in the US. You can go to their website and see where it is available, near you. Good luck.

[Susan]

“Holistic Select” Adult & Puppy health grainfree Salmon & Anchovy, Sardine meal recipe…
here’s their link… http://www.holisticselect.com/product.aspx?pet=dog&cat=5&pid=71

[Xavier G]

@BethJ and everyone else. My Oldie English Bulldogge also has an allergic reaction on his the inners of his paws and we cannot figure out why. Red and licking alot. Recently also his poop has been very soft. ( i dont know if because we got a new pup maybe the excitement) But anyway, weve been giving him Natural Balance since a pup, but recently switched to Diamnd Naturals, (but after reading this maybe well just toss it) then the vet put him on some I/D prescription food but its not seem to be working. But we also found out we were not giving him enough of the antibiotics they gave us so idk. but any info fromanyone would be appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Environmental allergies? You may want to consult a dermatologist.

via the search engine here: /forums/topic/lab-with-food-allergies-any-help-is-appreciated/

/forums/search/allergies/

I don’t necessarily agree with all of the opinions expressed.

[Xavier G]

ok thanks for y0ur input Red. I was already considering that since just now joining the forum and reading alot of those exact replies.

Thanks again,

[Xavier G]

I also must say that my dog constantly digs his feet in the dirt when he uses the bathroom. pees or poos, which leads me to beleive he might hav an allergy to dirt or grass or a certain type of grass or dirt etc. idk but i feel like ever since weve had him hes been licking at his paws etc and i also feel that as long as weve had him hes also been doing the kicking thing with his paws (back and front).

[Susan]

Hi Xavier G, Dogs kick & dig in the ground after going to the toilet cause they are marking the spot, when I first rescued my boy, I thought what’s he doing, every time he poos he kicks & kicks the grass or leaves when he’s finished pooing…..change your dogs kibble to a limited ingredient kibble like “California Natural” Lamb & Rice it has just 4 ingredients, so less chance of your boy having a reaction to an ingredient, food sensitivity can cause sloppy poos, itchy red skin ears & paws….. feed nothing but the limited ingredient kibble & use the kibble for treats for 1 month & see if there’s a difference also bath weekly in Malaseb medicated shampoo,… What’s the antibiotic for??? give a probiotic before bed or first thing in the morning on an empty stomach, when stomach acid is low & don’t give the probiotic 3-4 hours before or after the Antibiotics …. http://www.californianaturalpet.com/products/1211

[Xavier G]

Hello Susan, the antibiotic is because inbetween his paw digits he has a bad alergic reaction to what we do not know yet. As for the soft stool I feel like it started when we got the new pup. (althoug it can just be coincedental) So we have been feeding him Natural Balance since he was a pup and around 2 months ago we got a new puppy, i noticed his stool soft around that time. But we were also looking to change his food around the same time because we were trying to save money since we now had a second dog. So we started him on Diamond Naturals and his poop stay soft and maybe even got a lil softer. I may have transitioned it to soon but idk. So then we took him in for his regualr yearly visit and mentioned it to vet. The vet prescribed I/D prescription food for the soft stools, she said it should help. The antiobotic is for the redness in between his toes. i thnk it might be infected or just bad enough she wanted to prescribe antiobotic. and i think she said his poop could be soft because of the irritation in the toes so thats that. So i dont know what to do. His poops is still soft and his toe are still red but we were also not giving him the correct amount of meds so we are going to start giving him his (two) doses starting tomorrow. I just want to get his poop normal and his poor paws back to normal. Not to mention his dry cracked nose. (luckily we have a great cream, ointment for that) but as for the other things were still working on the them w not much luck. I will look into your recommended food more in detail. i need to find a food that will help him or maybe its not the food idk anymore.

[Susan]

Hi Xavier G, my boy gets the red in between his toes & red just after the big pad, he gets it when he eats kibbles with corn & maybe chicken? he was put on a vet diet for his IBD Eukanuba Intestinal, the Eukanuba Intestinal helped his IBD & he was pooing firm poos but got real red toes & paws, vet kept saying grass allergies, then I changed his kibble to a Gluten, Dairy, Sugar & Potato free, fish kibble & his paws cleared up within 2 days, so I looked at the ingredients in the Eukanuba Intestinal & it had to of been either the Gluten corn, Maize or the chicken……just before bed I was putting Cortic-DS 1% cream hydrocortisone acetate 10mg/g you buy over the counter at chemist, I was putting cream in between his toes with a cotton tip & on the fur/skin just after his big pad, then I was putting on socks, when he’d wake up in the morning his paws would be all clear, no red in between his toes or red about the big pad, then I’d feed him the Eukanuba Intestinal kibble for breakfast, then go on his morning walk come home & he’d start licking & licking his paws, I’d look & his paws would be red again, finally worked out it was his kibble, he was sensitive to an ingredient….. also I’d bath in the Malaseb Medicated shampoo when his paws were red it helped his paws ……
I’d change his kibble to a limited ingredient kibble with a different protein (Fish) & carb (Brown rice) something he hasn’t eaten before….. I find limited ingredient kibbles with brown rice work the best for Patch & bathing his paws/body in the Malsaeb shampoo, I think Walmart sell an antifungal/anti bacterial dog shampoo with the same ingredients as the Malaseb but I can’t remember the name, it started with a M cause a lady was saying how they have the same ingredients & is cheaper & helped her dogs red paws…….
The Antibiotics will not fix the red paws, not if he’s reacting to a food ingredient…also fish oil capsules or give some sardines in spring water as a treat…
if you cant afford the California Natural Lamb & Rice try the “Racheal Rays Nutrish Just 6” Lamb Meal & Brown rice sold at Walmart http://nutrish.rachaelray.com/dog/dry-food/just-6-lamb-and-brown-rice … its gluten free, corn, wheat, soy, free, no preservatives, byproducts fillers etc …

[Katie D]

@Xavier G
We had a Weimaraner with the same symptoms. She had a lot of different allergies. I mean her vet records were like a novel and we were advised by many vets to give her a Benadryl daily for them. You can try going without it in certain seasons and see if it’s possibly just seasonal but it really helped Abby.

[Author]

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