# Nature's Variety



## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

I realized I don't really know a whole lot about them. Is there anything really 'bad' out there that's happened to them? The most I know is they've had a recall, but seemed to handle it well. I remember seeing once on another forum, a set of questions that someone asked them, and they answered really in depth and well.

But I really have no idea where their food is manufactured, what the general consensus is on them, etc.

As much as I love Fromm, I just think it always ends up being too many ingredients for Jackson. It's always one thing or another ... on their grain-frees, his poos were softer, now he's on the grain inclusives and doing well in all regards except the major eye running/eye goop/tear staining. I recall Fromm doing this in the past, so I'm almost certain it's the food.

I lovelovelove Fromm, so I'm not even sure yet if I'm going to experiment with something else. He's on his 5th small bag of Fromm right now.

But was interested in the NV LID's possibly. He always did well on Acana, but hesitate to go back because I was irritated at a few things I heard about the company lately, as well as their price increase and bag decrease. 

Duck Meal, Tapioca, Peas, Canola Oil (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid), Natural Flavor, Montmorillonite Clay, Coconut Oil, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Vitamins (Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, d-Calcium Panthothenate, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement), Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide, Sodium Selenite), Choline Chloride, Green Tea Extract, Rosemary Extract. 
Calories
444 per cup



Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min): 29.0%
Crude Fat (min): 16.5%
Crude Fiber (max): 3.0%
Moisture (max): 10.0%
Calcium (min): 1.7%
Phosphorus (min): 1.3%
Vitamin E (min):100 IU/kg
*Omega 6 Fatty Acids (min): 0.7%
*Omega 3 Fatty Acids (min): 2.5%


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## lauren43 (Feb 6, 2011)

I tried this with Tess a while back but used Natures Variety Instinct and I believe it was the fish formula. She did fine on it, no better or worse than the other foods we tried. One of the things that turned me off about this food is that they do source their rabbit from China. But other than that I don't know much about the food..


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## monster'sdad (Jul 29, 2012)

There is no animal fat in that food and the ratios are very odd. I don't see any reason to put coconut oil in dog food.

NV is owned by a private equity group. 

It is expensive and most of the formulas have high ash which is a quality red flag for me. Based on the calcium and phosphorous levels this one appears to be high in ash as well.


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## riddick4811 (Nov 2, 2011)

I was never really impressed with the results from any of Fromm's 4 star line. I know it is a good company, but my dogs just didn't do well on their foods. 

I don't know much about the company for Natures Variety, but my dogs have done better on Nature's Variety than Fromm. Casper used to eat the Nature's Variety Instinct rabbit before it went up over $20 a bag and put it out of my price range. The Nature's Variety Prairie beef is popular on my Greyhound board. 

Jack (Boston Terrier) is eating NV Instinct Raw boost chicken right now and doing fine on it. Glossy coat, small poop, no gas or digestive upsets, plenty of energy/endurance, and some rock hard muscles.


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## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

I'm very happy with the results of feeding the Instinct boost to my foster/rescue who needed to gain about 15 pounds. Small poops and he loves the kibble


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## _unoriginal (Apr 8, 2012)

I don't know anything about them really but my dog, Carter (Dogo), does very well on the NVI LID lamb formula. He's got some serious allergies to everything and this has helped a ton. We switched from Blue Buffalo Basics (grain-in, fish-free) to Taste of the Wild (grain/fish/poultry-free) to NVI (grain/potato/fish/poultry-free) and the majority of his health issues have ceased. I'd like more info on where it comes from, however I don't know what I would do with that information as Carter handles the food well.


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## Savage Destiny (Mar 16, 2011)

monster'sdad said:


> There is no animal fat in that food and the ratios are very odd. I don't see any reason to put coconut oil in dog food.
> 
> NV is owned by a private equity group.
> 
> It is expensive and most of the formulas have high ash which is a quality red flag for me. Based on the calcium and phosphorous levels this one appears to be high in ash as well.


Duck fat is hard to get ahold of and expensive. They're not using a different type of animal fat because it's meant to be an allergy formula and your average consumer cannot grasp the fact that fats won't trigger allergies. 

Coconut oil actually has a lot of good benefits- it's a source of medium chain fatty acids not found in other oils. Melon gets coconut oil daily in addition to vitamin E and fish oils, because without it he still gets dandruffy.


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## monster'sdad (Jul 29, 2012)

Savage Destiny said:


> Duck fat is hard to get ahold of and expensive. They're not using a different type of animal fat because it's meant to be an allergy formula and your average consumer cannot grasp the fact that fats won't trigger allergies.
> 
> Coconut oil actually has a lot of good benefits- it's a source of medium chain fatty acids not found in other oils. Melon gets coconut oil daily in addition to vitamin E and fish oils, because without it he still gets dandruffy.


Ummmm, not sure why they don't use animal fat but for $2.75lb they should be able to fit the cost in if the fat is as expensive as you say. 

The only benefit from coconut oil is calories and its good for a dog with a pancreatic problem but that's about it. I just don't see where it fits in, and as far as this food is concerned I think the huge imbalance of Omega 6 & plant based Omega 3 is somewhat weird.

What is the value of medium chain fatty acids? That gets thrown around a lot but there is never is any explainantion. I think what you will find is that much of the benefits originate from the trade organizations that promote coconut oil for the countries that export it.


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## dr tim (Mar 27, 2011)

Coconut oil caught a wave for a short time in the performance world but has passed on, it seems. The medium chain fatty acids have a theoretical advantage of being assimilated quickly into a dog, especially one that is uinder the stress of exercise, competition, etc., versus a long chain fatty acid. Calories are what you speak of as to the benefit for these dogs and it is an expensive way of providing just calories. Animal fats supply this very effectively and much less costly than coconut oil in this case. Proper training of the dog (exercise and nutrition) can adjust for this issue of fat digestion versus needing some majic gold bullet to feed the dog the morning of a competition. It is amazing how dogs will convert their metabolism to utilizing fat effectively given time. Their mitochondria are really amazing.

In a case of pancreatitis, for example, or another disease called lymphangiectasia these medium chain fatty acids can be a benefit but besides that, I am unsure that it brings a lot to the table besides some window value, honestly.


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## InkedMarie (Sep 9, 2011)

Brit, Boone did very well on the NV lid turkey. I found it to be too expensive, the only reason we stopped. I'm now paying a similar amount for his current food but he's doing better on this.


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## SaharaNight Boxers (Jun 28, 2011)

I honestly like them as a company. I like their "philosophy." The only reason I never used their foods was the citric acid. I do like their formulas though. I'm not as worried about the high ash because they use a greater amount of meat so I would expect the ash to be higher. It seems like every dog on their formulas does fantastic.


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## DaViking (Sep 27, 2011)

The omega-3 vitamin E balance looks wonky to me and too much minerals coming from the clay. I'd prefer the use of enzymes and/or probiotics over montmorillonite clay. Also, a canola and fish oil combination would be better imo. I don't understand why it need to be so expensive. $2.75/lb is what you see for small bags for small and toy breeds.


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## DaViking (Sep 27, 2011)

SaharaNight Boxers said:


> I honestly like them as a company. I like their "philosophy." The only reason I never used their foods was the citric acid. I do like their formulas though. I'm not as worried about the high ash because they use a greater amount of meat so I would expect the ash to be higher. It seems like every dog on their formulas does fantastic.


The extra ash here doesn't come from the meat meals but from the use of clay. Could be some from poor meals too but the flip side of clay is ash.


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## monster'sdad (Jul 29, 2012)

DaViking said:


> The omega-3 vitamin E balance looks wonky to me and too much minerals coming from the clay. I'd prefer the use of enzymes and/or probiotics over montmorillonite clay. Also, a canola and fish oil combination would be better imo. I don't understand why it need to be so expensive. $2.75/lb is what you see for small bags for small and toy breeds.


$2.75 is in the large bag, it is close to $4 in the small bag.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

Thanks everyone!

As for the coconut oil, Jackson did have a pancreatitis attack once, or so we think (from a lot of fatty people food). So if it's good pancreatic issues, that's a plus in my book!

The high ash is somewhat concerning to me. As is the price. But price isn't a huge deal to me, if I find something he does really well on.

I think I'm going to do a food search again unfortunately. The eye boogers are pretty bad, and he just always seems hungry lately. Like extra hungry and whiny too since being on Fromm, I don't know if there's a connection. It just sucks because everything else is perfect - poops (though it took longer to get harder/more solid, than most other foods), coat, etc.

I got a few samples yesterday at the pet store.... yesterday and today I fed him Go! grain-free Senior recipe (I liked the protein/fat ratios better in the senior). He loves it, and poop was perfect last night and today. But the price sucks (It was like $22 for 6lbs). I also have a sample of the new Acana recipe (Prairie). He used to eat Acana, he ate it for probably 2 years, and always did best on it. The main reason I stopped was after reading some things about Champion I was uncomfortable with, and also because of the change of formula... but we'll maybe feed the sample and see how he does on the newer formula, if it's much different than the previous one.


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## meggels (May 30, 2010)

Have you ever tried Earthborn's Great Plains Feast? I know we've talked about Earthborn's formulas a few times but dunno if you tried them.

I've rotated Abbie between a lot of foods but am just going back to GPF for awhile, and she's been on it for a month now and it really is the food she does best on, I believe.


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## CoverTune (Dec 20, 2011)

I fed the LID Lamb to my pups for a while before making the move to raw and they did really well on it. Stools were good, coats were nice, and they seemed to enjoy it. If I ever go back to kibble, I'd definitely go with it again.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

meggels said:


> Have you ever tried Earthborn's Great Plains Feast? I know we've talked about Earthborn's formulas a few times but dunno if you tried them.
> 
> I've rotated Abbie between a lot of foods but am just going back to GPF for awhile, and she's been on it for a month now and it really is the food she does best on, I believe.


I think we did try it, with a sample bag. He loved it, and I don't remember any problems during the sample bag, but I think I remember not really liking the amount of peas it. It has like pea protein, peas, and pea fiber pretty high up.

My dads dog ate Earthborn Meadow Feast for a 15lb bag and did well. Jackson would eat it when we visited over there with no problems.


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## DDBsR4Me (Jan 23, 2012)

I fed the Instinct Salmon to my boy for a few months (maybe 2?) until we got a bag that smelled bad/rancid. I returned it to the store and was done with it after that. Now my pet food store won't even sell NV due to the issues they've had with them - and that it doesn't appear that they want to do anything to fix the problems.


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## _unoriginal (Apr 8, 2012)

DDBsR4Me said:


> I fed the Instinct Salmon to my boy for a few months (maybe 2?) until we got a bag that smelled bad/rancid. I returned it to the store and was done with it after that. Now my pet food store won't even sell NV due to the issues they've had with them - and that it doesn't appear that they want to do anything to fix the problems.


That's crazy! Carter's been on it for a little over a year and we've never had any issues with it.

The only thing I can think of that's weird is that the kibble size has gotten bigger in the last couple of bags. I posted about it on the NV Facebook page and someone else commented that she noticed the same thing but the page wouldn't comment on it. I also asked a supposed NV rep on another forum about it and s/he also ignored my question. I need to email the company about it.


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## DDBsR4Me (Jan 23, 2012)

_unoriginal said:


> That's crazy! Carter's been on it for a little over a year and we've never had any issues with it.
> 
> The only thing I can think of that's weird is that the kibble size has gotten bigger in the last couple of bags. I posted about it on the NV Facebook page and someone else commented that she noticed the same thing but the page wouldn't comment on it. I also asked a supposed NV rep on another forum about it and s/he also ignored my question. I need to email the company about it.


My boy was doing fine on it up until that bag and really seemed to like the food. When he wouldn't eat it, I started wondering and that's when I noticed that it smelled bad. 

My brief experience with their customer service dept. was good. I sent them an email about the ash content and they were quick to respond. 

I feed Orijen 6 Fish now.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

Oh yeah! I do remember the rancid food issue. There was a few different formulas with the problem, now I recall.


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