[Kathy]

My german shepherd has thrived on Acana Regionals (Grasslands and Wild Prairie) and Orijen dry foods until they changed to their Kentucky plant. She got really sick on the Meadowlands, which has replaced Wild Prairie. Compared to the Wild Prairie it smelled rancid. I am so mad that they moved their plant and changed what food they source. So now I’m trying to find a new grain free food that is similar to Acana/Orijen. I tried Fromms game bird dry formula but she seems to get itchy on it. If you recently and successfully changed from Acana or Orijen to something else, what food are you feeding? My local pet store gave me samples of First Mate’s specialty dry foods (chicken meal with blueberries and australian lamb meal), Zignature lamb, Zignature duck, Kasiks free run chicken meal formula as well as their lamb formula, and Carna4 green free duck and also their chicken. I’ve also considered trying the Kirkland brand (Costco-Diamond) as I’ve had some friends have good luck with it. I am aware they had a recall back in 2012. Most importantly I’m trying to find a high quality food for a sensitive eater with sufficient protein for a working dog (she’s my guide dog). Thanks for the feedback!

[anonymous]

I have small breeds, but, my neighbor’s dog is doing very well on Zignature, I might avoid the trout, I have heard it is higher in sodium. How about the kangaroo?

My dogs do well on Nutrisca salmon and chickpea as a base, I add a bite of cooked chopped chicken or something, plus a splash of water.

[Kathy]

Thank you for the reply, anon101. I did see the kangaroo and thought that was interesting. I could see perhaps trying it. I’ll also look up Nutrisca products while I’m in this search mode. Another thing I’m worried about is getting her set on some food and then having it mutate again or go away. Some of these foods I don’t know how long they have been around. It would be nice to find another food supplier that has been around for the long haul. I thought that was Champion Foods (Acana/Orijen) and look where that got me. 🙂

[anonymous]

Check chewy dot com for prices and reviews.

PS: I always go back to Nutrisca, as my allergy dog does well on it (in conjunction with treatment from a dermatologist) but my terrier likes it, and even my senior (peke) that recently passed away at age 16 did well on it. They all had normal lab values during their routine checkups. I have been using this product about 5 years now. My terrier also gets Dogswell Vitality kibble mixed in with good results, same company as Nutrisca.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 11 months ago by anonymous.

[Kristen L]

Kathy, I have tried absolutely everything, and I mean that, and even though my dog still has at least a couple symptoms on everything, I can tell you ones I liked. My dog just finished the nutrisca salmon, and I do like that one, but he still chews his paws like crazy and seems itchy all over. I do think the zignature is a high quality food. I have the salmon on it’s way now from chewys. But I am going to try something different because he is still really itchy on the Nutrisca. I have no idea if it’s the salmon or chickpeas, or what, but I think it’s a good food nonethless. We’ve tried all flavors. I judge it based on my dog’s poop and if they seem super excited to eat, and my research on this website. I try to stick with the low glycerin foods, but honestly, I’ve run out of foods to try. I liked Earthborn, Zignature, Nutrisca, and Acana. Good luck.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 11 months ago by Kristen L.

[anonymous]

@ Kristen L
Sounds like environmental allergies. I would make an appointment with a veterinary dermatologist. Check the search engine here: /forums/search/environmental+allergies/
Food can only do so much, come back if you have more questions.

[Kathy]

I’ve been reading reviews for the past hour on chewy and also the german shepherd forums. This Zignature stuff looks really good and I have a couple of sample packs here, so I will see what she thinks. Nutrisca also looks like a good food. I did feed her some of the First Mate a little bit ago and she gobbled it up. I don’t like the fact that the stuff is so calorie laden though. It has less protein and more calories per cup (> 500 kcal/cup). Nutrisca has the highest amount of protein (32%) which is similar to Acana. It’s also the closest in terms of kcal per cup, although it’s more than Acana. Zignature seems to be somewhere in the middle there. So I think I have some good options to try. Sorry you’re having such a rough time with your pup, Kristen. I hope you can find a solution soon.

[Susan]

Hi Kathy, have a look at “Canidae” Pure Formula’s, Canidae use human grade ingredients & a lot of dogs who suffer from skin or food sensitivities do really well on the Canidae Pure range especially Canidae Pure Sea, also look at all their Pure formulas some don’t have the Lentils, Chickpeas etc Protein is 32% min depends on which formula..
Look for brands that have similar ingredients to the Acana formula he did well on… Zignature is high in cabs, salt & peas, pea fiber, pea protein, pea flour, lentils..

My boy does excellent on “Holistic Select” Adult/Puppy Salmon, Anchovy & Sardines grain free, “Taste Of The Wild” & the “Canidae” formulas… also make sure the Omega 3% is 1/2 or a bit more then 1/2 of what the Omega 6% is, a lot of kibbles are not balance properly & the Omega 6% is too high & the Omega 3% is too low causing skin problems with dogs.. Baths-weekly baths are the best you wash off ally allergens, pollens & dirt…I use “Malaseb” medicated Shampoo excellent for their paws…
http://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products

[Kathy]

Thanks, Susan, for the suggestions. I will also check out those products!

[Rusty T]

I could not get my dogs to eat the Orijen, but I introduced them to it after they switched to the Kentucky Plant. Prior to that, mine were on Blue Buffalo Rocky Mountain Wilderness Red Meat Formula for Large Breed Dogs. I tried different five star brands, but our German Shepard / Husky mix refused everything. (He grew up on the Blue Buffalo, because that was the only thing our Lab, who has since passed would eat.) I’d give up for a while, and then try again. I tried every flavor of the Orijen, and he just looked at me like I was nuts. He’d eat it only in the evening meal when I mixed it with a half can of the Holistic Selects Meat Pate, and even then he wasn’t crazy about it. Then I tried I And Love And You Nude (not the Naked Essentials). He took to it right away. It is grain free and you can buy it on Chewy. Of course our other dog, a rescured German Shepard will eat anything.

Both dogs have been on the I and Love and You Nude for 3 months now, and they are thriving.

[Susan W]

Check out the VeRUS website. There’s a lot of great information on the sourcing of their foods, etc. I’ve found that VeRUS is a great quality dog food at a competitive price when compared to other premium dog foods. Also, VeRUS has never had a recall – unlike most premium brands – and they’ve been making dog food for almost 30 years. What I REALLY like about VeRUS is that their food doesn’t stink. I haven’t run across ANY other dog food that doesn’t smell like dog food. I used to live in a town where chickens were processed & you could smell the burned feather/body part smell when the wind shifted. That’s what other dog food brands smell like to me – regardless of the name on the bag, there’s always at LEAST at trace of that smell. VeRUS doesn’t have that smell. Their food with a fish base smells like TetraMin fish food to me (fresh fish smell). The non-fish based foods don’t seem to have a scent to them that I can discern. You can also grab a handful of VeRUS and not end up with sticky/greasy crumbs all over your hands. They send free samples, too.

[Caryl R]

I have switched my dogs from Orijen to Timberwolf Organics. They are doing great on it. I have read some complaints about their customer service but I have not experienced any problems. One draw back is they don’t sell it on Chewy. You have to buy it direct from their website unless you have a store near you that sells it. It is less expensive then the Orijen and I feel it is a great food for the price.

[Janel H]

hi there Kathy… was wondering what you ended up trying? in the same boat as you are after being in orijen for several years. we tried Canidae pure sea but the staining on my three little white doggies send to be worse on that than orijen. we tried Acana right after they switched and had horrible allergies (one’s hair still isn’t growing back right in one spot!)to it so I’m hesitant try the new orijen 6fush formula since it seems fairly similar.

[Kathy]

Hi Janel — I ended up with Zignature Zessential as her primary food for now. Their single protein foods are good as well, but she’s always done well on multi-protein source food like Acana or Orijen, so I went with the Zessential for the daily food. She really likes it and she has done well on it. It has a higher protein amount than the single protein foods by Zignature, so closer to what she was used to before. I don’t know if I’ll keep her on that for the long haul, but for now it seems to be a good choice. I know that some reviews have mentioned that it has helped their dogs with allergies, but I’m sure it all depends on the dog and what it is sensitive to. I’m sorry you and your pup also have had a rough time after Champion moved their production to Kentucky. I keep hoping I can go back to Champion and their foods, but for now I just don’t trust them.

Kathy

[Ashley H]

I know I’m a lot late for this post, but was hoping to help incase anyone needed it! We try and use a minimalist diet for our dog with allergies. It isn’t a kibble, but works well! Great company and human grade ingredients. It’s called Honest Kitchen. They have a couple types of protein sources and limited ingredient diets. We have also used Open Farm and my sensitive guy does great on the fish formula. I’ve also heard ziwi peak and Timberwolf are excellent. Good luck to all!

[Author]

Posts