Canine Caviar

[SaltyDog]

In the last week or so, a couple of posts have brought up Canine Caviar.

This is the dry dog food forum, so why not have a discussion about it.

The facts are this....it is a renderless food with the first ingredient in dehydrated form, so the named meat source is trully the first ingredient. All the formulas have over 520 K/cals per cup. There is one grain free version, but it does have peas in it which could be pushing the protein percentage.

The claim is that it is cooked for only 6 seconds, stating it is a "raw" kibble. Another claim is that the owner of the company had a Great Dane live to be 17 years old on this "formula". A third claim is that there are no known cases of bloat on this food.

It is corn free, wheat free, GMO free. Currently the food is produced by Ohio Pet Foods.

It is not an overly high protein food, but it does provide a fantastic amount of energy.

Open for discussion.

[CorgiPaws]

I'm not a *huge* fan of CC, and I do think the calories per cup are really all the hype there is about it.
I don't pay much attention to kcal/cup. The reason being: it simply doesn't matter. I'd be looking at ingredients, protein, carbs, and company reliability, not kcals.

I get the whole "more calories means you can fed less of it!" but that really doesn't appeal to me at all. I could take a million supplements a day, and eat hardly nothing... but that doesn't make it healthy. I feel this is the kind of think CC is. COndensed artificial nutrition. (granted, that's what all commercially packaged foods are- canine and human alike) I also like to see named meats rather than just meat meals. I don't mind there being some meals, but I am more drawn to real meats.

That being said, it's by no means awful. I just feel there are better options as far as kibbles go. That's all.

[wrangler1]

Its a good food for sure, the venison & pea is very very expensive and probably not worth it. The prior post makes no sense at all, particularly the comment about fresh meat in kibble, but I won't go into that again some people can't grasp a simple concept. Likewise the comment on calories is bizarre.

CC is a companion food though. If you don't hunt or trial those Weims it should be ok. The chicken version is pricey as well.

So, its good but franky your dog would do just as well on Ohio's house brand Master & Pet Supreme for less than half the price.

Thumbs up on the co-packer.

[SaltyDog]

I'm only bringing this food up for discussion. I fed this food for about a year with good results.

My current feed is Honest Kitchen (both dogs), Evo Chicken/Turkey (adult Weim), and Orijen Large Breed Puppy (puppy Weim).


Also to Linsey, Canine Caviar has no meals in it. I'm a bit confused as to what you were saying. Canine Caviar has one meat source in dehydrated form.

[Unosmom]

canine caviar venison/split pea

Ingredients
Venison Meal, Split Pea, Canola Oil, Dried Pumpkin, Whole Ground Flaxseed, Sun-Cured Alfalfa, Venison Tripe, Dried Beet Pulp, Coconut Oil, Borage Oil, Primrose Oil, Sun-Cured Kelp, Sodium Chloride, Lecithin, Whole Clove Garlic, Parsley, Peppermint, Limestone, Dried Chicory Root, Taurine, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Papaya, Rose Hips, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Niacin, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Zinc Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (a source of vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Thiamine, Methionine, Biotin, Folic Acid, Sodium Selenite, L-Carnitine, Beta Carotene.

[CorgiPaws]

The prior post makes no sense at all, particularly the comment about fresh meat in kibble, but I won't go into that again some people can't grasp a simple concept.

Actually, the prior post makes a whole lot of sense.
I like to see NAMED MEATS (not just meals) at the top of ingredient lists. Why? Meat meals contain very little meat, and are more or less the remains of the carcass AFTER the meat is removed for the human food market. I'm not against meat meals, by any means, as I like to see animal products over plant products, however, to see fresh meat on the list is important.
So what if the weight is inclusive of water? That's what MEAT is. I don't understand this mentality of trying to condense nurtients. So, before you go off running your ignorant mouth about being so superior and others around here not able to grasp simple concepts, realize that YOU make very little sense around here more often than not.

Likewise the comment on calories is bizarre.

What "sets CC apart" is its calorie content. I PERSONALLY am just not impressed about it. So what? more calories per cup? neat. I'm not all about feeding my dogs as little quantity as possible to get by, and that's the novelty of CC. I don't buy into it. I'm not sure how that doesn't make sense.


My point, which so easily waved over your head, is that I find it to be righ there with other "decent" foods, but the things that ate supposed to "set it apart" just don't impress me. I'm sorry you can't "grasp that simple concept.

CC is a companion food though. If you don't hunt or trial those Weims it should be ok. The chicken version is pricey as well.

What? not enough corn for those hunting dogs?

[buddy97]

Actually, the prior post makes a whole lot of sense.
I like to see NAMED MEATS (not just meals) at the top of ingredient lists. Why? Meat meals contain very little meat, and are more or less the remains of the carcass AFTER the meat is removed :

as said before, named meats in kibble contribute virtually no meat. there is no standardized definition of meat meals and many are better than others. orijen has stated directly that their named meat meals are made from mostly muscle meat. some of the definitions of meat meals that are getting thrown around may indeed apply to the lower quality meat meals.

EVO large bites:

Ingredients
Turkey, Chicken, Turkey Meal, Chicken Meal, Potatoes, Herring Meal, Chicken Fat, Natural Flavors, Egg,Apples, Carrots, Tomatoes, Cottage Cheese, Alfalfa Sprouts, Dried Chicory Root, Taurine, Lecithin, Rosemary Extract, Vitamins/Minerals, Viable Naturally Occurring Microorganisms

virtually all the "meat" in this food is turkey meal and chicken meal, then some herring meal and very little chicken and turkey.

there is not a single dog food i know of that uses named meats to achieve a high level of meat in their food. if that bag of evo got a significant portion of its meat content from chicken or turkey, i can assure you the amount of fresh chicken and turkey they would have had to start out with is so tremendous that it wouldnt be a $60 bag of food...more like $160.

...its just a feel good tactic by the manufacturers. they know people like to see those meats listed first..they also know they can do that (because of current labeling laws) without them contributing much meat to the product.


....and guess who has have been the strongest in their opposition to changing those labeling laws...the big pocket companies that like to say "chicken as the real first ingredient" on their grocery store foods.

as far as CC using the term "raw kibble"...........sure there is raw kibble, i saw the scarecrow carrying a bag of it down the yellow brick road for Toto.

even if kibble was made with only fresh meats to begin with , the processing to make kibble degrades to the point that to pretend its some type of alternative to raw is ridiculous.

[CorgiPaws]

as said before, named meats in kibble contribute virtually no meat. there is no standardized definition of meat meals and many are better than others. orijen has stated directly that their named meat meals are made from mostly muscle meat. some of the definitions of meat meals that are getting thrown around may indeed apply to the lower quality meat meals.

Right. I get that. Like I said before, I am not against meat meals, I just like to fresh meats right there along with it. Is that a crime? My issue with *only* meat meals, is that you can't even be sure of what you're getting. Thus, I like to see FRESH MEATS up there somewhere, too.

[magicre]

what method of processing do these companies use?

do they lightly cook then dehydrate? do they take the slurry with the fringe on top and the meal and cook it for days on end at high temperatures?

how is this food processed?

talking about the parts by themselves means something, but how those pieces put together into kibble means everything....

[buddy97]

Right. I get that. Like I said before, I am not against meat meals, I just like to fresh meats right there along with it. Is that a crime? My issue with *only* meat meals, is that you can't even be sure of what you're getting. Thus, I like to see FRESH MEATS up there somewhere, too.

right, you like to see fresh meats listed. i get that. but it is only a phycological satisfaction. i think everyone overestimates how much meat is left when you lose 70% of its weight. they arent really contributing much to the food at all. what you are getting is whatever meat is being provided by the named meat meals. the sprinkling of named meats in the product are miniscule. its like buying a car because it has a mercedes emblem on the hood, but the engine is a chevy.

now, if they changed labeling requirements to post production weights and there was a dog food still listing a named meat first, that would be something else.

if you want to know more about how the meat meals are made that are being used by your manufacturer, ask them. orijen was pretty upfront about how they make their meals, and where they source some of them.

that EVO i listed earlier really looks like:

Ingredients
Turkey Meal, Chicken Meal, Potatoes, Herring Meal, Chicken Fat, Natural Flavors, Egg,Apples, Carrots, Turkey, Chicken, Tomatoes, Cottage Cheese, Alfalfa Sprouts, Dried Chicory Root, Taurine, Lecithin, Rosemary Extract, Vitamins/Minerals, Viable Naturally Occurring Microorganisms

...probably about as much turkey and chicken as tomatoes and carrots, which is to say very little. it doesnt make me feel better to see those meats listed because i know i could just toss a tiny portion of chicken breast on the kibble and be adding a heck of alot more meat than those listed meats provide.

anyone that doesnt like that a super high percentage of the meat in their kibble comes from named meat meals (and it does in any high protein grainless kibble) should be seriously considering feeding raw or at least adding some of it to the diet.

BUT, i get it...it makes you feel good to see them listed.