California Natural vs. Wellness Simple Solutions?

wishiwas

wishiwas

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We finally broke down and had allergy testing done on our Cocker with bad allergies. And well, she's pretty much going to have to end up with a very simple food. As far as foods go, she is allergic to chicken, turkey, duck, barley, potato, carrots, peas, and I may be forgetting something but I think that's it.

So I was looking at the Wellness Simple Solutions Rice & Venison and the California Natural Lamb & Rice. Everyone at the pet store vehemently supported the Wellness, but neither were in store, so I couldn't look at the ingredients at the time. Looking at them now, it seems to be the California Natural might actually be better? Especially if it would be okay to use the puppy formula?

I realize Nutro also has a few formulas that would work, but she did not do very well back when she was eating Nutro Lamb & Rice several years ago, so I'm not too eager to try it again..

Wellness Rice and Venison
Ground Rice, Deboned Venison, Rice Protein Concentrate, Sunflower Oil (Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols, A Natural Source Of Vitamin E), Flaxseed

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Crude Protein (Not Less Than) \t21
Crude Fat (Not Less Than) \t12

California Natural Lamb Meal and Rice Puppy
Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Sunflower Oil, Rice, Natural Flavors, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins/Minerals, Salt, Taurine, Rosemary Extract

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Protein \t26
Fat \t16

California Natural Lamb Meal and Rice Adult
Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Rice, Sunflower Oil, Natural Flavors, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins/Minerals, Taurine, Rosemary Extract

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Protein \t21
Fat \t11

ETA: If it makes any difference, she is currently on Orijen until I get the new food. So this is going to be a huge drop in protein. It's too bad.. she seemed to be losing a little weight on grain-free. Raw unfortunately is not an option, as she is really my family's dog, not mine.
 
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darling poodles

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Someone once gave me a VERY sick St Poodle. I finally got her better again and fed her Cal Natural, that was the ONLY food she could eat without getting sick again so I am all for Californa Natural!!
 
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wishiwas

wishiwas

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I decided we are going to give the California Natural a try. I can't see that they are that different in quality, and the CN is a lot cheaper. I'd still love to hear anyone's opinions, though.

Poor girl, I switched her to Orijen thinking the grain-free would help her allergies, and it's basically made up purely of stuff she's allergic to.
 
sharky

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Originally Posted by wishiwas

We finally broke down and had allergy testing done on our Cocker with bad allergies. And well, she's pretty much going to have to end up with a very simple food. As far as foods go, she is allergic to chicken, turkey, duck, barley, potato, carrots, peas, and I may be forgetting something but I think that's it.

So I was looking at the Wellness Simple Solutions Rice & Venison and the California Natural Lamb & Rice. Everyone at the pet store vehemently supported the Wellness, but neither were in store, so I couldn't look at the ingredients at the time. Looking at them now, it seems to be the California Natural might actually be better? Especially if it would be okay to use the puppy formula?

I realize Nutro also has a few formulas that would work, but she did not do very well back when she was eating Nutro Lamb & Rice several years ago, so I'm not too eager to try it again..

Wellness Rice and Venison
Ground Rice, Deboned Venison, Rice Protein Concentrate, I try to avoid it as it can be chemically made
Sunflower Oil (Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols, A Natural Source Of Vitamin E), Flaxseedpotential allergen often not tested for

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Crude Protein (Not Less Than) \t21
Crude Fat (Not Less Than) \t12

California Natural Lamb Meal and Rice Puppy
Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Sunflower Oil, Rice, Natural Flavors, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins/Minerals, Salt, Taurine, Rosemary Extract

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Protein \t26
Fat \t16

California Natural Lamb Meal and Rice Adult
Lamb MealIf she has a inflamation issue this will likely make it worse, Brown Rice, Rice, Sunflower Oil, Natural Flavors, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins/Minerals, Taurine, Rosemary Extract

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Protein \t21
Fat \t11

ETA: If it makes any difference, she is currently on Orijen until I get the new food. So this is going to be a huge drop in protein. It's too bad.. she seemed to be losing a little weight on grain-free. Raw unfortunately is not an option, as she is really my family's dog, not mine.
Click to expand...
I would choice the wellness as venison is less likely to cause issues than lamb

other than the lamb and rice the new nutros would NOT work the "limited " ingredient ones have potato

can she have sweet potato ?? Natual balence has improved their fish and sweet potato ... they also have a lamb and rice
 
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wishiwas

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It says no white potatoes. I don't think they tested for sweet potatoes, I'd have to look at the detailed list again. Would a fish diet be okay when she had a pretty stubborn UTI recently? I don't know if it's like with cats where you tend to avoid fish for that reason?

The Wellness is very expensive.. I think the CN was going to come to almost a $1/lb cheaper. Cost isn't normally a big issue when it comes to their food, but right now with the cost of getting the testing done and all they are about to pay for allergy shots it is.

I don't know if our pet store can get Natural Balance or not, I'll have to ask. Though, the ingredients list I'm looking at includes potato fiber.. and some of the other ones have potato protein.. does that count as normal potato?

I've already asked them to order the CN, so I guess we'll be trying that either way. If it doesn't agree with her, I'll give it to the other dogs and get her one of the others..
 
sharky

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some fish might be okay just like kitty uti I would hesitate...

sweet potato s and yams are not related protein wise to the potato
 
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wishiwas

wishiwas

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Originally Posted by sharky

some fish might be okay just like kitty uti I would hesitate...

sweet potato s and yams are not related protein wise to the potato
Click to expand...
Yes, but the ingredients list for the NB also includes "potato fiber".. is that one normal potato? It doesn't specify that it is sweet potato, so I'm assuming that part is from regular potatoes?
 
sharky

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i would also assume that ... darn
 
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wishiwas

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They have the Canidae at our pet store, but it has potatoes and alfalfa, so she can't have it. We're giving the CN Lamb a try.. in the process of switching right now. She LOVES it. She gobbles it down like we're giving her candy.


One of CN's fish formulas would be okay for her too, I think the salmon, I just hesitate on it because of her UTI. But we will probably try that one next if the lamb doesn't work out. The venison is just SO expensive - almost $3 a pound!
 
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fuzmugly

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Originally Posted by wishiwas

she is allergic to chicken, turkey, duck, barley, potato, carrots, peas
Click to expand...
Was your dog tested? I would be interested to know the process you went through to determine the dog's allergies.
 
ckblv

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My dog is very allergic to most of what your dog is. I have been feeding mine
California Natural Herring and Sweet Potato for a few years and she is doing well on it. I don't like Rice in dog food, but that is just me. No nutritional value and it is the first ingredient in the one you mentioned.
I, also, give my Lucy the allergic dog, Transfer Factor, it balances the immune system. Great stuff. I give her the Human Transfer Factor XS in capsule form, one a day, open the capsule and sprinkle over her food.
My cat with kidney disease gets Feline Transfer Factor, she is doing awesome on it and my other two dogs get Canine Transfer Factor as a supplement. I swear by the stuff, especially for kidney disease and allergies.
My Lucy is 40 pounds, since starting her on the XS Human Transfer Factor and the California Natural, her licking and licking and licking has decreased
dramatically.
Good luck


Originally Posted by wishiwas

We finally broke down and had allergy testing done on our Cocker with bad allergies. And well, she's pretty much going to have to end up with a very simple food. As far as foods go, she is allergic to chicken, turkey, duck, barley, potato, carrots, peas, and I may be forgetting something but I think that's it.

So I was looking at the Wellness Simple Solutions Rice & Venison and the California Natural Lamb & Rice. Everyone at the pet store vehemently supported the Wellness, but neither were in store, so I couldn't look at the ingredients at the time. Looking at them now, it seems to be the California Natural might actually be better? Especially if it would be okay to use the puppy formula?

I realize Nutro also has a few formulas that would work, but she did not do very well back when she was eating Nutro Lamb & Rice several years ago, so I'm not too eager to try it again..

Wellness Rice and Venison
Ground Rice, Deboned Venison, Rice Protein Concentrate, Sunflower Oil (Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols, A Natural Source Of Vitamin E), Flaxseed

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Crude Protein (Not Less Than) \t21
Crude Fat (Not Less Than) \t12

California Natural Lamb Meal and Rice Puppy
Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Sunflower Oil, Rice, Natural Flavors, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins/Minerals, Salt, Taurine, Rosemary Extract

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Protein \t26
Fat \t16

California Natural Lamb Meal and Rice Adult
Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Rice, Sunflower Oil, Natural Flavors, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins/Minerals, Taurine, Rosemary Extract

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Protein \t21
Fat \t11

ETA: If it makes any difference, she is currently on Orijen until I get the new food. So this is going to be a huge drop in protein. It's too bad.. she seemed to be losing a little weight on grain-free. Raw unfortunately is not an option, as she is really my family's dog, not mine.
Click to expand...
 
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wishiwas

wishiwas

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She had a blood test done to test for a big list of allergens. Unfortunately, it is definitely not a cheap process. She was allergic to so many things, and her allergies bothering her so much, that we made the decision to start her on allergy shots. More expensive! But it really seems to be making a difference for her already.

I hesitated on the fish formulas because she had a pretty bad UTI when she was on a fish food before. Probably a coincidence, but I hate to chance it. Also, CN's herring formula would not work for her because it has barley in it.
 
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