I am often asked which dog food is better. Taste of the Wild or Canidae? Which one is more nutritionally sound? Which one will help my dogs live longer and be healthier, stronger, and with a good quality of life? and Which one will give me less poop to pick up in my yard? So here we go into the comparison of these two awesome dog foods:
COMBO BREAKER! (insert dramatic drum roll and rim shot) These two awesome brands are made by the same company! I know, pretty big shocker huh. They look so different though- until you read the labels… now it all makes sense.
To start this off right let’s talk about price per pound. For those who aren’t familiar with this concept, it’s simply how much you pay for a pound’s worth of food. It varies widely across brands and size bags. A two-pound bag of one brand is going to cost less per pound than their ten-pound bag which will cost less per pound than a 50lb bag… you get the idea.
Price per Pound: Taste Of The Wild = $1.57/per lb Canidae = $2.09/per lb
That may not seem like a huge difference just yet- keep reading more ahead!
Next up let’s look at meat content and meat meal content in each brand’s formula:
Canidae All Life Stages Dog Food Ingredients: *Deboned Turkey, Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Ground Brown Rice, Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Peas, Tomato Pomace (source of Lycopene), Potatoes, Ocean Fish Meal, Flaxseed (source of Omega 3 and 6 Fatty Acids), Natural Flavor , Eggs, Alfalfa Meal, Salt , Choline Chloride, DL-Methionine, Potassium Chloride, L-Lysine, Carrots , Apples , Blueberries , Cranberries , Vitamin E Supplement, Sweet Potatoes , Barley Grass , Dried Seaweed Meal, Yucca Schidigera Extract, L-Carnitine, Beta-Carotene, Organic Kelp Meal,, Parsley , Rosemary , L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), Thyme , Chicory Root Extract, Chia Seed , Colostrum, Fish Oil, Hydrolyzed Yeast, Copper Sulfate, Iron Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Niacin Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Acetate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement: Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Tocopheryl Acetate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Calcium Carbonate, Magnesium Amino Acid Chelate, Folic Acid , Chondroitin Sulfate.
Flaxseed (source of Omega 3 & 6 Fatty Acids), Dried Tomato Pomace (Source of Lycopene), Natural Mixed Tocopherols added to preserve freshness. **Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles
Taste Of The Wild Dry Dog Food Ingredients: *Bison, Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Peas, Lettuce, Lentils, Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, Apples, Salmon Meal, berries`, Dried Ground Beet Pulp, Canola Oil (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Tomatoes, Flaxseed (source of Omega 3 and 6 Fatty Acids), Natural Flavor, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Cassia Gum, Choline Chloride, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Beta-Carotene
Tomatoes are the ONLY Source of Lycopene in this food – no other vegetables are present. **Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles
So Canidae has a higher amount of meat/fish both in their ingredients and their meat content. It also contains organs that TOTW does not have- a huge plus in my opinion as I believe organ meats are extremely important to a dog’s diet and should never be left out. However, TOTW has a couple of winning factors that Canidae doesn’t: 1)Dried Beet Pulp-this is the only source of prebiotics found in either food.
Prebiotics help promote healthy gut flora as well as enhance digestion and nutrient absorption which aids your dog’s overall health and immune system response, 2)Tomatoes- not many dog foods include this veggie but it’s an excellent source of lycopene, 3)added vitamins/minerals/antioxidant and 4)flaxseed- a great source of omega fatty acids.
Canidae gets the win in ingredients and meat/fish content but TOTW has added beneficial items that Canidae does not have.
In price per pound, they are pretty comparable to each other- with Taste Of The Wild being a hair cheaper for a lower amount of food. I feel that when it comes down to it, both of these brands offer an excellent pet food option and there isn’t too much difference between them that would make someone choose one or the other over the other.
Both are trusted well-known pet foods that provide high-quality ingredients in their formulas. It’s just about preference on what your dog needs from his diet and which food will help you meet those needs best. For example, I have a dog with allergies so my top priority is finding food that will help control her symptoms and keep them under control as well as provide her body with the nutrients it needs.
After doing lots of research and trying several brands, Taste Of The Wild is what works best for us- but other brands would work just as great or possibly better for some dogs depending on their individual preferences/needs.