Natural Balance - Opinions Please

[Remarkabull]

Hi all,

As some of you know I have just moved to Darwin and can no longer get the dry food that I was feeding my dogs in VIC.

I mostly feed raw but like to have some dry for the days I can't be bothered or have run out of raw.

I have been looking around and have decided to try Natural Balance. Does anyone else use it? What do you think of it?

I will add that I am willing to try other brands but am looking for something 'holistic' or as close to as possible as my Dobe gets the runs if given food that contains more than the minimum amount of fillers.

Thanks in advance.

[G.G]

Hi all,

As some of you know I have just moved to Darwin and can no longer get the dry food that I was feeding my dogs in VIC.

I mostly feed raw but like to have some dry for the days I can't be bothered or have run out of raw.

I have been looking around and have decided to try Natural Balance. Does anyone else use it? What do you think of it?

I will add that I am willing to try other brands but am looking for something 'holistic' or as close to as possible as my Dobe gets the runs if given food that contains more than the minimum amount of fillers.

Thanks in advance.

dobesrock

Which dry food were you using in victoria

Have you tried Canidae they deliver anywhere in Australia

Edited October 20, 2010 by G.G

[JulesP]

I wasn't super impressed with the ingredients in Natural Balance. Assuming you are talking about the Australian version? You have rice as the first ingredient and it also contains corn gluten & oat bran.

[Remarkabull]

I wasn't super impressed with the ingredients in Natural Balance. Assuming you are talking about the Australian version? You have rice as the first ingredient and it also contains corn gluten & oat bran.

must be made OS then as the ingredients on the pack in the shop here state a meat meal (can't remember if it was lamb or chicken) as first ingredient then brown rice, then another meat meal in the first 4 ingredients. It sounded ok because there was no corn or beet pulp that i could see. the main fillers were oats/barley and brown rice. Will have to read the bag again before I buy it to double check!

I'll google it to see what website says. Brain isn't working properly, been a VERY long couple of weeks.

[Diva]

I think I know the one you mean, it's not the Aust made one.

Edited: Found the one I was thinking of. It's Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance.

if that's the one you are referring to dobes, this is the Ultra formula:

Chicken, Brown Rice, Lamb Meal, Oatmeal, Barley, Salmon Meal, Potatoes, Carrots, Chicken Fat (preserved with natural mixed tocopherols), Tomato Pomace, Natural Flavor, Canola Oil, Brewers Yeast, Duck, Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Salmon Oil, Whole Ground Flaxseed, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Spinach, Parsley Flakes, Cranberries, L-Lysine, L-Carnitine, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Kelp, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Manganese Proteinate, Manganous Oxide, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Riboflavin (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid.

Edited October 20, 2010 by Diva

[Remarkabull]

Yep thats the one! I was just on the website and was about to copy and paste the ingredients list on here but you beat me to it

Looks pretty good. Has anyone tried it? (the ultra, not the australian made one)

[Diva]

We got through a couple of small bags before the shop I was using stopped carrying it.

It was palatable to my fussy dogs and they did fine on it. I mostly feed raw, so it's hard to tell the effect of change in kibble unless it's very marked.

Edited October 20, 2010 by Diva

[Lollipup]

When you buy overseas made ones, do you have to worry whether they have been 'zapped' by customs when they arrive? I heard something like that on A Current Affair a while back.

[poodlefan]

We got through a couple of small bags before the shop I was using stopped carrying it.

It was palatable to my fussy dogs and they did fine on it. I mostly feed raw, so it's hard to tell the effect of change in kibble unless it's very marked.

Petbarn here has it Diva.

[Remarkabull]

I found it at the Petbarn here in Darwin. So far it is the only pet shop that I will buy stuff from as all the others sell pups and kittens.

It's also on one of those rewards programs - buy 10 get 11th bag free. Will give it a try and see what it's like as I don't like any of the other foods that I have seen available up here.

[Diva]

Petbarn here has it Diva.

Thanks, noticed they had lots back in stock last time I went in but I have a large bag of EP to get through before I buy more. At the rate mine get kibble that will be a while.

Re irradiation, if you search Tenille you'll find specific threads on the issue. Not all imported dog foods need to be, depends on the manufacturing method. Cat foods no longer are after the serious health impacts on cats. Don't think any impacts were noted on dogs.

[noisymina]

Could someone give me the link that lists those ingredients for "Natural Balance", please?

The site I get seems to have a different list, so I am confused. :D

ooops...

OK, IT's the Dick Van Patten one.

I tried one of those a while ago.

It seemed to have alot of garlic in it at that time. Not very impressed.

Edited October 20, 2010 by noisymina

[Sheridan]

Miss Mini is currently on it. She prefers it to Proplan, which she turned her dainty nose up at, but she doesn't love it like she does Eagle Pack.