I currently feed Orijen, but whilst buying fish skins off Fish 4 Dogs at LKA, I spotted their complete food. To me the food does look good, but I would love to hear your opinions.

The ingredients for the salmon variety are as follows:
Salmon 32%, Potatoes 26%, Herring Meal 22.5%, Salmon Oil 7.5%, Beet Fibre 2.5%, Minerals and Vitamins 1.7%. The cod variety is exactly the same except cod replaces the salmon.

Analysis: Protein 26%, Oil 11%, Fibre 2.5%, vit A 15,000u/kg, vit D3 1,500, vit E 125,copper 18mg/kg, salt 0.73%, plus full compliment of 30 essential vitamins and minerals.

The price seems extremely good, around £25 (15kg) with free delivery if ordered at shows, or £28 - £30 if you buy six bags by phone. I feel a bit guilty considering a change but with Orijen costing just under £58 for 13kg, there is a huge cash incentive.

Hi,
I've just had a look on their website and for the finest salmon food, its coming up at £39 for 12kg. Not sure how it compares to the Origen because I'm not too good at working the nutritional values out.....will be interesting to see how it fares though. Two of my local pet shops do the fish 4 dogs treats so I'll see how it compares with the Origen on here and then perhaps enquire as to whether they can supply it - I dont go to shows except Crufts once a year so thats not an option and six bags is too many for me to buy at once because having a small breed, my two boys don't eat huge amounts and it would go out of date I would imagine.

Worth a mention that Berriewoods do great prices for Orijen

both foods are above average if you compare them to other foods in the market- its just down to preference really ( by your dogs!!) and see which they do best on

I feed both Orijen and Fish 4 Dogs on rotation. The dogs love both foods and I don't have any problems alternating between the two. My older girl tends gains weight on the Fish 4 dogs so need to feed her less than recommended amounts .. the extra carbs from potatoe  obviously help expand her waistline !!

Berriewood has great prices for the Orijen and I buy 3 bags of the "vat free" working food from Fish 4 dogs to get the 10% discount

K

Well i've taken the plunge and bought a bag of each variety. Jade seems to love it, but I will have to watch her weight, as she's a bit like me and puts weight on easily. My friends boy is really fussy but he is tucking into it dry, which is something he has never done. We ordered 6 bags and it was appprox £28 a bag. I did check Berriewoods on their price of Orijen, but when I added the postage, it was similar price to Zooplus, but thanks for the tip anyway.

how are your dogs doing on the fish 4 dogs?  Thinking of trying this for my 2 cockers.  Found a site that sells it cheaper than fish 4 dogs own site.  free delivery over 30 pound and next day delivery if ordered before twelve noon. www.bowmeows.co.uk

I can't buy in bulk as dogs will take quite a while to get through it.  How are your dogs poops since being on it?

My  youngest cocker( 4month old)  is doing very well on the puppy Fish4dogs.She had been on Proplan but kept scratching (no medical reason for scratching).Since she has been on this she has been fine and eats it all.

what are the ahem 'poops' like on it please?

seems ok,firm

thanks for your replies sandyp.  will order some tomorrow i think and some sea jerky - that's also reduced price on that site.

I had a look at this food a while back but the literature and information on the website is totally different to what it says on the packaging.. ( well the ones I looked at a show)  the numbers did not stack up..     A better good on comparison is Arden Grange Fish and potato.. more fish and more oil..    Price is also good if you buy direct from them.

Hi, Between us we now have five dogs on it, and they are all doing really well. Even the two fussy ones will eat it dry and seem to really enjoy the taste. Poops are great. We use the fish skins as treats as well, and have had no problems at all.

Hi Blue
I am a bit surprised at your post. In what way was the information different. From what I can see Arden Grange Fish and Potato contains Potato as it's main ingredient (min. 42%), then white fishmeal (min. 26%), whereas the Fish 4 Dogs contains Salmon or Cod as it's main ingredient (30.5%), then Potato at 30.5%, then Herring Meal at 21.4%. By my simple maths, this means Fish 4 Dogs contains virtually double the fish than Arden Grange. Maybe you have seen something I havnt.
Jenny

The website was wrong a while back but has since been changed to show the correct ingredients. I ordered a bag of the food online and it said nothing about yeast and listed barley as an ingredient. When the bag showed up brewers yeast was listed, but no barley. I had one person from the website tell me barley used to be an ingredient they used but no longer did, and then I was passed on to their specialist who told me that barley had never been used in the product and it was a total error! Either way, no yeast allowed for my itchy dog so I got a refund and put the food in a charity box at our local supermarket.

It also bugged me that they wouldn't tell me what the fish they use is preserved with..?

Hi Jenny,

I would need to have a look at it again. One of my freinds and I had looked at it as an alternative to AG but the the bags we read were different to what was listed on the bags and the numbers just did not add up right. It was about 6 months ago but I am confident in our finding that Fish 4 Dogs was definately not better ingredients than AG fish and potato..

I'll see if I can find it.

Arden Grange : Ingredients

Potato (min. 42%), White fishmeal (min. 26%), beet pulp, chicken fat*, linseed, fish oil*, dried brewers yeast, egg powder, minerals, vitamins, nucleotides, prebiotic FOS, prebiotic MOS, cranberry extract, chondroitin sulphate, glucosamine sulphate, MSM, yucca extract *Preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extracts.

Typical Analysis

Protein 25%,oil 14%, fibre 3%, ash 7%, moisture 8%, omega6 4.89%, omega3 1.27%, vitamin A 15,000 IU/Kg, vitamin D3 1,000 IU/kg, vitamin E 100 IU/kg, calcium 2.3%, phosphorous P 1.4%, copper 20mg/kg (as cupric sulphate)



Now look at the Analysis on the Fish for Dogs. http://www.fish4dogs.com/cm/nutrition.htm[/url] Why is the protein so low if it has so much fish,   it has lower oil content and I think the salt content is not far off 1% is very high. Salmon and cod are not excessively salty fish I am sure.. well AG has a lower salt content.

 

>  Why is the protein so low if it has so much fish?

Thats exactly what I thought when I saw the ingredients-although once water is removed from the cod or salmon it must mean you're not left with much-if you see what I mean.Whereas Arden Grange uses fishmeal which is already higher in protein.

the fish 4 dogs looks a better food to me going on the ingredients.  It's 55% fish.  My bag came today and the dogs had a few pieces and they went mad for it. 

I'll let you know how we get on with it

Thanks for that Blue. It may just be me, but looking at the ingredients, I still think Fish 4 Dogs looks a superior food. Prior to feeding it I did run it past a friend who is a vet and he said it looked a very good food, and one that he was happy for me to give a go. I don't know enough to say which is better food, but our dogs seem to be doing great on it. I guess what suits one, won't necessarily suit others.
Hopefully someone more knowledgable on nutritional values/levels will be along to comment.

Why not contact them and ask? I did, and found them extremely helpful, to the extent that they said their product might not be suitable for my dog and recommended other manufacturers'. You don't get more honest than that in business!

Exactly.. things are often not as they seem.

I tried the Fish4dog with my girls a while ago and they went mad for it for the first few bags then they gradually went off it and in the end would not look at it at all. So we went onto RC and have never looked back!
Aileen

AG uses fishmeal, which is dried fish meat. Fish4Dogs seem to use normal fish meat, which means including all the moisture content. It is therefore well possible that AG actually contains more fish due to it being weighed when dry than Fish4Dogs where the fish is weighed fresh including moisture content. That may be why AG is higher in protein!

AG uses fishmeal, which is dried fish meat. Fish4Dogs seem to use normal fish meat, which means including all the moisture content. It is therefore well possible that AG actually contains more fish due to it being weighed when dry than Fish4Dogs where the fish is weighed fresh including moisture content. That may be why AG is higher in protein!

That is exactly it. I don't think it is as a quality food as AG F&P.

Fish 4 Dogs don't only use normal fish meat, either of their varieties contain 21.4% Herring Meal PLUS 30.5% Fish or Salmon...... whereas AG only contains 26% white fishmeal, so from what I can see there is definitely more fish in the food than Arden Grange.

I just hope our dogs don't go off it, as Merlot's lot did, as they are all doing great on it and can't get enough.

I guess we all like to feel we are feeding the best and I was really happy with Orijen, but since trying the Fish 4 Dogs have been equally pleased with it and at less than half the price, i'm not complaining.

I think you are looking at the analysis incorrectly..which in my opinion is what they want people to do.. the true break down of the Nutritional Analysis needs to be looked at as well as the ingredients. That analysis doesn't in my opinion make the Fish 4 dogs a better food.

Compare like for like analysis..I don't think you are.

Fish 4 Dogs don't only use normal fish meat,  what is normal fish meat?   All the fish ingredients are fish.  

so from what I can see there is definitely more fish in the food than Arden Grange.   That is impossible if the nutritional analysis says there is almost equal protein in the Fish 4 Dogs and AG food.  If it had a lot more fish the % of protien would be higher and it is not.

AG use a MINIMUM of 26% White fishmeal   True analysis measured out as Protein 25% & oil 14%  using potato as the carb.. salt is lower and the beet fibre is lower ( some people like beet and a lot dont)

Fish 4 dogs true analysis has Protein 26% and oil at 11%  not the % you would expect if there was a lot more fish in it is it?

I am not knocking the food completely never used it as I think there are better foods on the market for similar prices if not cheaper..

Their cat food looks better than the dog food :-)

but since trying the Fish 4 Dogs have been equally pleased with it and at less than half the price, i'm not complaining 

Prices I have seen don't suggest it is half the price. It is more expensive that AG for a start..

Fish 4 Dogs do not do free delivery , I guess you can pick up at a show but I personally get anything I need delivered so for home delivery

Fish for dogs works out to be £3.66 per Kilo 
Arden Grange works out to be £2.53 per Kilo
Origen using the 5% off code at Zoo plus is £4.07   and Origen fish actually has a real Protein level of 45% protein so it truely does have all that fish in it..

As I say I have no preference but I hate seening someone possibly being misled..

Points noted but I think I will stick with it as it seems to suit our dogs and has been given the thumbs up by my vet, who is a personal friend who I trust implicitly. With regard to price we pay anything from £20 - £25 a bag at shows, or approx £28 when we purchase 6 bags, this includes delivery.

If you buy Orijen direct it's £3.33 a kilo

Really what does it matter. if it suits your particular dog, go for it!