Once I decided to change Chester and Gretel’s diet to grain-free, I dove into researching the different options out there. When I started I didn’t know much beyond” it’s a good thing to do.” I started out with some basic research. After that, the extensive research began.
As you have seen in some of my past posts, I tend to geek out on researching stuff – the best gear, the best outdoor clothing, the best food, etc – so this is a warning that I may have gone a little overboard here. Ha, ha. My hope is that someone out there finds this information useful.
I picked some of the most popular grain-free brands and spent a lot of time researching them. I found most of my information on DogFoodAdvisor.com and specific manufacturer websites. I found some conflicting information between the two but the numbers didn’t vary significantly. I used amazon.com or other online price search to come up with the average price per pound. I put this chart together so they could be compared all in one place.
| Product | Protein % | Fat % | Carb % | Fiber % | Calories/cup | Price/lb |
| Canidae Pure Elements | 34 | 18 | 26 | 3 | 498 | $4 |
| Wellness Core Original | 38 | 18 | 36 | 4 | 421 | $2.32 |
| Evo Small Bites | 42 | 22 | 12 | 2.5 | 537 | $2.39 |
| Evo Red Meat | 42 | 22 | 15 | 2.5 | 537 | $2.50 |
| OrijenAdult | 42 | 20 | 30 | 3.3 | 460 | $3.5 |
| Avoderm Grain Free | 24 | 13 | 54 | 5 | 360 | $2.73 |
| Acana Grasslands | 36 | 20 | 36 | 3.5 | 430 | $3 |
| Taste of the Wild (TOW High Prarie) | 32 | 18 | 36 | 4.4 | 370 | $2.3 |
| Great Life Grain Free Buffalo (Also potato free) | 30 | 13 | 25 | 4 | 431 | $2.38 |
| Nature’s Domain (Costco similar to TOW) | 27 | 16 | 50 | 3.3 | 340 | $0.80 |
The current, traditional kibble I feed Chester and Gretel, Avoderm, contains 29% protein, 11% fat, 52% carbs, 3.9% fiber and 360 calories/cup. That is really quite good for a traditional kibble but because I am making a change, I wanted to make some improvements.
The first, major improvement would be to significantly reduce the carbohydrates. It was hard for me to find recommended carbohydrate amounts for active dogs online. All of the information I found that gave exact numbers did so for protein and fat only. Based on my basic research and the fact that carb percentages aren’t listed, I going with the theory that less is better. I don’t want to drastically cut them out right away though. To me, a 15% reduction in carbs over what we currently feed is significant. I circled the carbohydrate levels in the foods above that were 37% or less.
Next, I wanted one with significantly more fat since most of the energy for active dogs comes from fat. I found out that “to optimize the performance of a hardworking dog, it is best to feed a performance food that contains 20 % fat” to maintain a healthy weight. Our current food contains 11% so that definitely needs to be increased. I then circled the fat content of those foods, that got circles based on carbs, that were 18% or greater.
The protein in Avoderm is already fairly high for standard kibble it recommended that hardworking dogs get at least 30% of their calories from protein. I then circled the protein content of those foods, that got circles based on carbs and fat, that were 30% or greater.
Calories are important for me since I don’t want to have to reduce the amount of food I give them much or any since I already only give them about ¾ cup a day. Since the vet said they could stand to gain a little weight, a slight increase in calories won’t hurt them. The consensus I found on the internet is that an active, 10 lb dog needs 400 to 450 calories a day. That is 40 – 90 more calories than our current food. I then circled the calories of the foods that previously received circles that were between 360 and 450 calories/cup.
I looked at which foods received a circle under all 4 categories above. I was left with three brands: Wellness Core Original, Taste of the Wild High Prarie and Acana Grasslands.
All three foods were between $2.30 and $3.00 per pound and 3.5 to 4.4 grams of fiber – both which were acceptable to me. I decided to pick the one that is in the middle protein-wise which is Acana Grasslands so that is the one we are going to start with.
It’s a bonus for me that Health Mutt carries the Acana brand because I would like to shop there to support a great independent pet store. For those times that I am crunched for time, Mr. Chewy’s carries it too.
The bottom line is that there is not ONE best food out there for your dog. Each dog is different. I have found that Acana Grasslands is likely to be the best choice for small, active dogs like us. However, we may have to try a few before we find the true best fit.
For now, we will will keep you posted on how Acana Grasslands is working for us.
Seattle DogSpot says
Great post with lots of great info. We feed our dogs Acana as well (we mix it with frozen raw patties).
AdventureJess says
That was about a week’s worth of research. Ha, ha. I had to find a way to cram most of the good stuff into one post without writing a novel. I’ll let you know how Acana goes for us.
Mary and Roxy says
You, are the research queen. Great informative post. I hope they love the new food.
AdventureJess says
“Research Queen”. ha, ha. A nice way to say “obsessive”. Even I have limits though. I had to stop because it started getting more complicated…..not making more sense. I plan to continue to look into grain-free but just at a slower pace.
Jessie in Canada says
Excellent choice. This food is made in Alberta, which is where I am from. We have been feeding Acana for almost 2 years and we love it. My Frenchie gets the Lamb and Apple and his allergies have almost disappeared and my high energy Bugg gets the Adult dog.
Tootsie says
Very informative post! I agree with Mary and Roxy: you deserve the title of Research Queen. And you’re not at all obsessive; you’re just very thorough 🙂
May I ask…where exactly did you take that gorgeous photo of Gretel?
AdventureJess says
I took that picture at the top of Rattlesnake Ledge here in Washington. It is one of our favorite go-to hikes here in Washington because it is close to the City, not super hard and the views are amazing on a clear day.
susan lacey says
I recommend the book “Chow Hounds” for more info about dog food and the dog food industry – written by a veterinarian.
AdventureJess says
I just checked it out. Our personal problem is keeping the weight on (and not losing muscle) so I probably won’t buy it. It does look like it might have some interesting general information about manufactured dog food so I might swing by the book store to take a look at it. Thanks.
Katie says
This was so interesting! I hope this works great for Chester and Gretal!
Snoopy@snoopysdogblog says
Wow Jessica,
Great research and that table was cool!!
My food (Costco) is on there and my Mum noticed it’s got one of the higher levels of Carb, you mentioned keeping the carb levels low, just wondering why? We’ve never done this kind of intensive research, so it’s really interesting 🙂
Have fun
Your pal Snoopy 🙂
AdventureJess says
Everything I have read so far says that dogs don’t get their energy from carbs like we do. It’s just a filler and ads bulk to the food. They get their energy primarily from fat and some from protein (because they are primarily carnivores). Protein also lets them repair and built muscles. Lower carb food contains more protein and fat by design so a lower carb food means there is more of the good stuff they need.
Snoopy says
Cool, thanks for the info. 🙂
Your pal Snoopy 🙂
Amy@GoPetFriendly says
I haven’t heard of that one – I hope it works great for Chester and Gretel. We did try the Wellness Core with our boys and Buster must have been allergic to something in it – he was acting like we gave him caffeine! As if he didn’t have enough energy before … that food made him unbearable. We didn’t even finish the bag before we switched again.
AdventureJess says
Funny you say that because we have been transitioning to grain-free and they have been eating almost 100% grain free these last few days. Chester has been way spunkier than normal. Full of piss and vinegar really. I can’t say it can be attributed to the food at this point (we had a bout of spring-like weather last week) but perhaps?
2browndawgs says
It sounds like you have done all of your homework. Hopefully this food will be the perfect fit. 🙂