Wafcol is the one that I had to ditch after they changed their recipe..........it really set Jimmi's allergies off again.

Just a ponder on the comment earlier that the mousse and kibble no longer had that fishy smell.........Fish4dogs now have a supplier that uses human consumption grade salmon; if you think about it you would never buy fish that ponged to high heaven so that might explain the difference in the old and new kibble and mousse. Whether some dogs agree on preferences is a different matter.

I use a salmon and potato kibble, which is a golden acres (sole by many different suppliers under their own brand). Can give you the best supplier details i have found for it. My two changed from Wainwrights to this one.

EXACTLY!!!!

Especially I've e-mailed several food companies for advice etc.

Anyway I'd still go through it all again, just for my boys!

Just wanted to say thank-you to everyone for your advice and links.

Have had a good look, am impressed especially I've never come across some of them (not even on search engines!?)

Canagan looks brilliant - But I have to ask - what is the difference between this and Orijen?

I'm now seriously considering of purchasing Orijen. But obviously I'd have to try it out first as it is down to my dogs, whether they like it or not!

Once again thank-you!

Look forwards hearing your opinions about Orijen & Canagan

Now I've got a headache...!

Also found Eden Dog Food really good & convincing.....

But is it as good as Orijen?!

I don't know what to do now!!!!!

I haven't examined the ingredients in detail yet, but to me the most obvious difference between Orijen and Canagan is mainly that Canagan is made in the UK and Orijen is made in Canada and shipped over. Environmentally I don't know which is better - the carbon footprint of shipping the Orijen is obviously considerably more, but for all I know their salmon over there may be more sustainable.... who knows.

I too (well, my dog) was disappointed with the new F4D so I'm also looking around for an alternative. I like the look of Canagan and Orijen, so think I may order some small bags of these and other various different foods and make up my mind then.

Anyway, talking of the new F4D recipe, I emailed them and asked them about it and got this reply:

<<Having recently updated the packaging in accordance with new packaging regulations, we have also taken the opportunity to review the formulation. We’re confident that the new recipe is a better formulation as advised by both our vet (with a PhD in nutrition) and our external technical consultant who has many years’ experience in premium pet food and is recognised as a leader in his field of expertise. We believe it is important to focus on the technical high ground and not be influenced by playing games with fish percentages. Feeding trials have new Finest scoring ahead of old Finest in ‘blind’ feeding trials so palatability is better but also pea provides for longer satiety. All in all, the formulation of new Finest is an improvement we’re proud of. Here are some of the reasons why;

Pea Flour has been introduced into Fish4Dogs Complete due to its nutritional benefits. Pea Flour is a low sensitivity Carbohydrate, and is therefore unlikely to cause any digestive problems. The advantage of using pea is it provides a more balanced glycaemic index as it is a Low GI Carb. Low GI Carbs act by breaking down Carbohydrates slowly, releasing Glucose more gradually into the Bloodstream. Low GI carbs can help lose and manage weight, increase the body's sensitivity to insulin, improve diabetes management, reduce the risk of heart disease, improve blood cholesterol levels and prolong physical endurance. The Pea Flour also contains protein and is a form of protein with a different amino acid profile which complements the Fish.

Our sourcing of fish has moved to Norway and the quality of Norwegian farmed fish is the highest in the world. As you have noticed with the change of description to “Ocean White Fish”, we use a variety of white fish, not only cod. This has indeed been the case for some time as cod is becoming overfished. Although our Complete Foods now contain slightly lower percentage of fish meal, we now use single species Salmon Meal. Not only does the use of Salmon Meal from Norwegian farmed fish provide a more sustainable product, it also gives a higher quality fishmeal. As a result the protein content of the food has not changed.>>

I was impressed with their response in terms of customer care (though I can't imagine why they don't have a statement about the change on their website), but sadly my dog seemed to prefer the old recipe!

I feed mainly fresh food but I do buy a small amount of kibble, the little 1.5kg bags of salmon F4Dogs .

A few weeks ago I opened a new bag of kibble and it looked very dark and had a distinct burnt smell. I contacted F4Dogs and they arranged to send another bag free of charge which they did very promptly. It didn't smell as much but that was pretty much the same as the previous bag and I was convinced they had changed the formula or overcooked a batch.

From reading the posts here it looks like I didn't imagine things and the formula has indeed changed.

I hate it when companies mess around with a good product and end up spoiling it..

ETA I notice the site layout has changed too and the small bags are not now immediately obvious you have to search for them .

Again thank-you for your replies!

Has indeed helped.

But I've got one more question to ask!!! (If you don't mind sharing) Did try and search this on this forum using 'search engine' but not much came up.

What's the difference between Orijen or Canagan and Applaws ?

Applaws claim to be the only dog food with most percentage of meat etc BUT so does orijen and Canagan...?!

What do you think of applaws - do you think this is worth trying out?

My plan is to try out sample packets and see which ones my dogs love the lmost. But I'm trying to narrow it down to 2/3 different products to try out!

Can't decide which one!

Also I understand they are all Complete foods and do not require anything else. Especially this could imbalance their intake etc. BUT I have to give/mix kibbles with meat for my spaniel otherwise he will not eat it at all.

What I normally do is - half the kibbles daily amount and add half of wet - so it kinds of balance it out.( I know not idea or exact) But they've not had any problems with Meat + Dry together.

So this is also another important consideration when it comes to choose which kibble.
Do any of you do this? If so what meat do you use?


Also 2 times a week they have meat + vegetables only (without kibbles) as a variety + they love it.

Any advice or tips. with regards to mixing meat with kibbles, I would be greatful! Thank-you!

I know some purists say you should never mix raw food and dry (because they are digested at different rates) and complete brands say adding anything destroys the balance. But frankly that seems daft to me. Like you say, two half portions of complete food added together makes one complete meal, doesnt it?! The things I eat are digested at different rates (and are not balanced at every meal) as are the things animals would eat in the wild, surely.

Mine get a mix of raw and complete dry, with occasionally tins of wet (eg Butchers Tripe) for convenience if we're away or whatever, plus various snacks and treats (bonios, dentastix etc) which are not nutritionally balanced!

Each dog and owner is different of course, so you just need to do what you feel is right and what works for your animals.

I started using the Simpsons one in August I got the salmon and potato and have just got the Lamb and potato for a try.

The dogs semm to like it and they do seem to be doing well on it. Although I only feed kibble in the morning with tripe in the evening

Hi Barnet I think that was a myth perpetrated by the pet food companies and it never seemed logical to me.

I have fed everything over the years from sheeps head stew and raw paunch in the days before kibble was invented to the diet I feed to my single dog now which is a mixture of fresh/raw/ kibble. That way I hope to avoid any nutritional deficiencies or excess of anything