Canidae Dog Food (Dry)

by Mike Sagman
Share

Rating: ★★★★☆

Canidae Dry Dog Food receives the Advisor’s second-highest rating of four stars.

Currently, the Canidae product line includes five dry dog foods… four meeting AAFCO nutrient profiles for all life stages and one for adult maintenance (Platinum for seniors and weight loss).

  • Canidae All Life Stage
  • Canidae Beef and Fish
  • Canidae Lamb and Rice
  • Canidae Chicken and Rice
  • Canidae Platinum (3 stars)

Canidae All Life Stages Formula dog food was selected to represent the others in the line for this review.

Canidae All Life Stages Formula

Dry Dog Food

Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content

Protein = 27% | Fat = 16% | Carbs = 49%

Ingredients: Chicken meal, turkey meal, lamb meal, brown rice, white rice, rice bran, peas, potatoes, oatmeal, cracked pearled barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), millet, tomato pomace, natural flavor, flaxseed meal, ocean fish meal, choline chloride, suncured alfalfa meal, inulin (from chicory root), lecithin, sage extract, cranberries, beta-carotene, rosemary extract, sunflower oil, Yucca schidigera extract, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, dried Trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid, papaya, pineapple

Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 4.4%

Red items when present indicate controversial ingredients

The first three ingredients in this dog food are all meals… chicken meal, turkey meal and lamb meal. These particular components are considered meat concentrates and contain nearly 300% more protein than their respective fresh meats.

The next three items are rice ingredients… brown rice, white rice and rice bran. Although they’re a mixture of both high and low quality cereal grains, there’s a bigger issue to consider here…

The questionable practice of ingredient splitting.

You see, if you were to combine all three ingredients, the rice would (rightfully) occupy a higher position on the list… probably nudging out one (or more) of the prior meat items.

And this would significantly alter the profile of the finished product… something to keep in mind.

The seventh ingredient lists peas. Peas are considered a quality source of carbohydrates. Plus (like all legumes) they’re loaded with natural fiber.

What’s more, peas contain about 25% protein… protein that must be counted as a contributor to the total protein in this food.

The eighth ingredient is potato. Assuming they’re whole, potatoes are a good source of digestible carbohydrates and other healthy nutrients.

The ninth ingredient is oatmeal… a whole-grain product made from coarsely ground oats. Oatmeal is naturally rich in B-vitamins, fiber and is (unlike many other grains) mostly gluten-free.

The tenth ingredient lists barley. Barley is a starchy carbohydrate supplying fiber and other healthy nutrients. Unlike grains with a higher glycemic index (like rice), barley can help support stable blood sugar levels in dogs.

The eleventh ingredient is chicken fat. Chicken fat is obtained from rendering chicken… a process similar to making soup in which the fat itself is skimmed from the surface of the liquid.

Chicken fat is high in linoleic acid… an omega-6 fatty acid essential for life. Although it doesn’t sound very appetizing, chicken fat is actually a quality ingredient.

From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.

But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to have much of an effect on the overall rating of this product.

With two notable exceptions…

Tomato pomace is a controversial ingredient… a by-product left after processing tomatoes into juice, soup and ketchup.

Many praise tomato pomace for its high fiber and nutrient content… while others scorn it as a cheap pet food filler laden with pesticides found on the skin of the tomato before processing.

Just the same, there’s probably not enough tomato pomace here to make much of a difference.

Ocean fish meal is another meat concentrate. Unfortunately, this particular item is anonymous. The term “ocean fish” does little to properly describe this ingredient. What species? What parts?

Fish meal is commonly made from the by-products of commercial fish operations.

We are pleased to note that, unlike many fish meals, this particular item appears1 to be ethoxyquin-free.

The manufacturer appears to have applied friendly bacteria to the surface of the kibble after cooking. These special probiotics are used to enhance a dog’s digestive and immune functions.

This dog food also contains chelated minerals… minerals that have been chemically attached to amino acids. This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are generally found in better dog foods.

Canidae Dry Dog Food… the Bottom Line

Judging by its ingredients alone, Canidae appears to be a good dry dog food.

But ingredient quality by itself cannot tell the whole story. We still need to estimate the product’s meat content before determining a final rating.

The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 27%, a fat level of 16% and an estimated carbohydrate content of 49%.

If you exclude the lower-rated Platinum product, the brand reveals an average protein content of 26% and a mean fat level of 15%.

Together, these figures suggest an overall carbohydrate content of 51% for the full product line.

Below-average protein. Average fat. And above-average carbs… when compared to a typical dry dog food.

With no evidence of any plant-based protein concentrates, this is the profile of a kibble containing only a modest amount of meat.

Although Canidae kibble resides at the lower end of its category for meat content, the product’s lack of any crucial Red Flag items (just barely) qualifies the line for its current rating.

Bottom line?

Canidae Dry Dog Food is primarily a grain-based kibble using only a fair amount of poultry, lamb or fish meals as its main sources of animal protein… thus earning the brand four stars.

Highly recommended.

Those looking for a better kibble from the same company may wish to check out our review of Canidae Grain Free Dry Dog Food.

A Final Word

This review is designed to help you make a more informed decision when buying dog food. However, our rating system is not intended to suggest feeding a particular product will result in specific health benefits for your pet.

For a better understanding of how we analyzed this product, please be sure to read our article, “The Problem with Dog Food Reviews”

Remember, no dog food can possibly be appropriate for every life stage, lifestyle or health condition. So, choose wisely. And when in doubt consult a veterinarian for help.

Have an opinion about this dog food… or maybe the review itself? Please know… we welcome your comments.

Notes and Updates

12/06/2009 Original review
07/17/2010 Review updated
11/09/2010 Updated (ethoxyquin free)

  1. Reader Comment, 11/9/2010 ↩
Dog Food Advisor IconThe Dog Food Advisor publishes independent reviews to help pet owners make better choices when shopping for dog food.


Tagged as: , , , , , ,
← Older Comments
  • Rebecca

    Hi Joedeebrown, 
    That doesn’t sound like enough to me. I entered your dog’s weight, activity level, and the All Life Stage formula’s calories per cup on the Dog Food Calculator. It recommends feeding 3 cups a day for an 85lb senior dog. I would go by that as a starting point, and then weight your Lab in a few weeks to see if you need to adjust the serving size.

  • Joedeebrown

    Would my Senior 85 Black Lab really be happy with eating only 2 cups a day that this dog food reccommends?

  • Mary Lou

    Hi Kat ~  I honestly don’t know if it was tomato pomace or not.  Our bichon has not had tear stains since it was removed from his diet, and it can just be absolute coincidence.  Now, when we got him, the breeder said avoid beet pulp.  I never fed him a food with beet pulp ~ so who knows.  The food he eats now has neither; so there you go.  :)

  • melissa

    Kat-

    I don’t think its one ingredient for all dogs. My white dog gets the stains only on certain foods, some have beet pulp, some do not.

  • Jan_Mom2Cavs

    Foods may not have been proven to be the cause of tear stains, but from experience I have found that when eating certain brands of foods my dogs have less or more stains, depending on which food.  For instance, they can eat a food with beet pulp and be fine, and even tomato pomace.  I have also found that adding a pre/probiotic and enzyme supplement helps them with the staining the most, no matter what foods they’re eating.

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com Mike Sagman

    Hi Kat,

    There are many pet owners who passionately believe that food is the primary cause of tear stains on light colored fur. However, I’ve never been able to find any scientific studies that prove this to be the case.

    For example, some blame these reddish-brown stains on beet pulp. But beet pulp isn’t even red. It’s actually white in color.

    Most professionals attribute these facial stains in light colored dogs to the overproduction of tears (or some functional problem with the tear ducts). To learn more, you may wish to consult this short but factual article about tear stains by Drs. Foster and Smith.

    Hope this helps.

  • LabsRawesome

    If you are having a problem with red staining on the dog’s fur, try fish oil. It cleared up my Springer’s red stained belly.

  • http://BrothersComplete.com Richard Darlington

    Kat

    I can back Toxed up on this. Beet pulp is pure white, tasteless, and odorless – it’s actually a great prebiotic and encourages beneficial bacterial growth in the colon. 

    Tomatoes are in the nightshade family and could easily contain the toxin Solanine, as can potatoes. 

    We’ve had great success with tear stains by eliminating grain and potato. However, since almost any toxin can cause the tearing it can also be additional things. Mary Lou went through quite an involved  process of elimination to finally help her little dog stop itching and reacting to toxins in the food.

  • Toxed2loss

    Kat,
    It’s not the beet pulp. It’s toxins.

  • Kat

    I’ve heard it’s the “beet pulp” in food that affect the tear stains.

  • Geopugs

    I have 5 dogs on Caindae ALS, my 4 pugs seem to do great on it, but my English Pointer has loose stools and really Bad Gas! I’m thinking he is allergic to something in the ingredents-any one have any suggestions to a different brand for my pointer!? We did try Caindea Grain free-but he again had loose stool.

  • Mary Lou

    Terriann ~ Somewhere on one of these many threads, I have written my feelings on tear stains with our Bichon ~ who has not had them in quite awhile. For our pup, I honestly believe it was the tomato pomace. I have no proof other than his eyes. Too me it’s kinda like ~ eat too many carrots and you can turn orange. Eat too much tomato pomace and you can turn red! Haha ~ I have no clue if that is true, but it is for our pup. : )

  • melissa

    Julianne-

    My dogs did great on the Canidae ALS as well, until 3 mths or so ago they too came down with wicked runs-same scenario. I switched to Acana grain free and Pro Pac-both foods they are doing fine on-

  • Gordon

    I wonder if it’s the saponins from the non fresh tomatoes etc in kibbles that may be the root cause of tear stains? I’m thinking more and more that it is likely that tomato pomace can directly cause tear stains.

    Both my dogs, get a little in their very part time rotation when eating Earthborn kibble and previously ate it when they were eating Artemis, but never had any such problems. Still, to those dogs more prone to it, it could very well be the tomato pomace?

  • Terriann

    Jan- thank you for the feedback. We had them on Kirkland Lamb and Rice- more fillers that is good for them. BUT – he did not have the tear stains. I will give it a month of so more and see how he does. the tomatoe and the cranberry could possibly be causing it. I am planning to call the store we purchased the Canidae and ask him what he thinks. Stanley is just a sweet as he can be though…. proud parent.

  • Gordon

    Julianne – Why not try the Canidae grain free kibble version? That one doesn’t contain rice. Or better still, why not introduce more raw foods to your dog’s diet? You did say that you did add some chicken and veggies in the mix. Why not resume that idea. With the veggies, make sure they’re well mashed, juiced or pulped.

  • Julianne

    I have a 9 1/2 year old lab that has been fed Canidae ALS for her entire life. She had some tummy issues (throwing up bile first thing in the morning) when she was a pup and we remedied that by throwing in a little chicken and veggies along with her food. She has always had a sensitive stomach but has never had troubles with Canidae. I have always been a loyal, devoted customer. 2 months ago she came down with a case of HORRIFIC runs. We medicated 3 times, but it keeps coming back. We have finally realized it is probably NOT a parasite. She will no longer eat her food and my other little dog hasn’t been eating with much enthusiasm either. I hate to stray away from Canidae as I have had such a good experience with it but the vet is thinking she’s developed a sensitivity to something in the food. I cannot even begin to guess what it might be other than the rice? I have never been able to giver her rice without troubles…what do you guys recommend I try?

  • Jan (Mom to Cavs)

    I need to start previewing my posts LOL….I meant to say that the thing I did that eliminated the tear stains THE BEST was to start feeding premade raw…it’s a more natural diet, of course. I still use kibble as snacks and treats, though.

  • Jan (Mom to Cavs)

    @Terriann…you are right, imo, the ACV can’t hurt. What food did you switch from? Did your bulldog have tear stains at all before then? It actually could still be part of the “switching” or detox process from the other food making the tear stains. Give it a good month or two. It, however, could be an ingredient in the new food causing it. Compare the labels and see if you can spot a difference right off the bat. Sometimes it’s hard. You can also add a probiotic/enzyme supplement that might help with tear stains. This has helped my dogs in the past. One kibble my dogs get tear stains from is Nature’s Variety Instinct. They do better on the Prairie (which is weird because Prairie does have grains…who knows?) but I tend to stay from NV kibble all together. They eat the NV premade raw just fine, though. All dogs are different, but some kibbles I’ve used that don’t produce tear stains on my dogs are Halo, Earthborn Holistic grain frees, Now!, Fromm 4Star. But the thing I did to eliminate them was to switch to premade raw!

  • Terriann

    We recently switched to Canidae ALS for our two Boston Terriers and a French Bulldog. Stanley the bulldog is getting really dark tear stains. I was hoping the Canidae would reduce his all over itchy issue, including his ears. So far it has not gotten any better. I started adding a teaspoon of unfiltered apple cider vinager into their water hoping that will help and knowing it can’t hurt. I would love feedback on the tear stains. Also, just an FYI- their stools are less frequent and nice and firm. :)

  • melissa

    Tawny-

    Blue(all varieties) did the same thing to my dogs. They can however eat Acana w/out issues-try another food!! The Acana, Before grain, and a host of others can be gotten usually in small sample size bags to try out(which I did) before buying a big one!

← Older Comments