# Authority Dog Food, opinions? Experiences?



## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

My dog used to eat Blue Buffalo and then went to Nature's Recipe. I lost my job and my parents are helping as much as they can, but they aren't willing to spend the price tag for the dog's food (understandably). 

I've been in dogfoodadvisor.com and don't wanna go below the 3 star rating. 
Sad thing is, everything that doesn't have corn (which I really wanted to avoid) or any other nasty ingredient, is very similarly priced to the ones I used to buy. Authority Lamb Meal has corn oil, and it's sold for $33 for a 34lb bad (perfect pricing). I have a rottie so I need a big bag. I understand the whole "the better quality, the less you feed, the more it lasts" trust me, I do. That's why I didnt mind paying for the better food, but it isn't my money, so I can't demand much :\ 

So any good/bad experiences? Specifically from switching to a lower quality food? Nature's Recipe is also a 3 star food, but I consider it a better quality. Opinions? 

I can't buy online, YET. But maybe in a couple of months I can. So any online options on a better food at similar price (less than $35 for a LARGE BAG) would be appreciated. Puerto Rico isn't big on animals, so PetSmart is literally the only option for me right now. 

Thanks!


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## BostonBullMama (Apr 20, 2013)

We buy Authority, Toby has NEVER had an issue on it and only eats about 2.5 cups a day (even though we serve 3). He definitely gets his fill, is gaining weight appropriately, his stools are finally normal (we had a lot of issue when we first got him), and he's got a great shine on his coat. Lots of energy too.

I have ZERO complaints about authority pet food. My cats eat it too and they're all doing fantastic as well.


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

I can think of other corn-free foods that are more affordable than Authority. . .but I don't know if you can find any of them there :/. So probably that's your best bet. It's not a bad food if your dogs do OK with corn.


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

Willowy said:


> I can think of other corn-free foods that are more affordable than Authority. . .but I don't know if you can find any of them there :/. So probably that's your best bet. It's not a bad food if your dogs do OK with corn.


Yeah thats what Im scared of. None of the food she's had has had corn


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

Look at petsmarts Simply Nourish brand.... Very good price. I think it's like the same price as Authority... But no corn wheat or soy... It's a very nice food for the price.. I'd put it above blue buffalo as far as quality... Less carby


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

Zilla said:


> Look at petsmarts Simply Nourish brand.... Very good price. I think it's like the same price as Authority... But no corn wheat or soy... It's a very nice food for the price.. I'd put it above blue buffalo as far as quality... Less carby
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


 I'll look into it, thank you!

---
Looked into it. It's $46 for a 30lb bag  I can't go beyond $35 x.x


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## NicoleIsStoked (Aug 31, 2012)

I wouldn't feed simply nourish for all the money in the world. The ingredients may look impressive for the price but if you call the company you'll find out that its because its made in china. Personally I would rather feed crap like iams than simply nourish. At least it's made in the USA. 
As for authority, I fed it to my dog until he was a year old and he did fine on it. No complaints whatsoever. He grew at a good pace, had good poops and nice fur. I only switched because I got a promotion and could afford a little bit better especially since my dog is small. 
Corn is really not the end of the world. Most dogs tolerate it fine, but as mentioned the lamb flavour doesn't have ground corn in it. The food has no byproducts, no artificial colours and is made in the USA. Can't go wrong for the price.


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

How can you say Simply Nourish is made in china.... It's a petsmart brand and so is authority.... So how do you know authority isn't made in china too??? 

And that stinks for the price. It's 40 dollars here for a 30 lb bag.... 


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

It says right on the petsmart website that its made in the USA.... So I'm not sure where your getting your info 


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## NicoleIsStoked (Aug 31, 2012)

Authority is made in the USA. If you call the number on the back of the bag of simply nourish you can ask them. It's made in china. I have called the number myself. That's where I'm getting my info. I was going to switch my dog onto it until they told me that. And the canned varieties clearly state Product of Thailand.


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## NicoleIsStoked (Aug 31, 2012)

Authority specifically says made in the USA. Simply nourish says distributed by pacific coast blah blah blah Phoenix, Arizona. Distributed by and and made in are two very different things.


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## BostonBullMama (Apr 20, 2013)

Many pet products can claim places like canada and the USA in their labels, always read the fine print if you're concerned about where your pet foods are coming from. I know there was a chicken jerky that was advertising as being manufactured (or something..) in Canada, but it was actually MADE in Japan. They can and will mislead you.


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## luv mi pets (Feb 5, 2012)

I have fed Authority in the past. Every once in awhile I will still buy it depends on the budget. Kids and cars can at times wreck havoc on the best of any budget.  Dogs/cats did fine and no health issues were noted. Sometimes at petsmart you might get lucky and find better foods marked down due to getting close to expiration date. 
Heres to hoping your situation changes soon.


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

If you go to a simply nourish dog food on petsmart.com it clearly says at the bottom of the description made in the USA.... But regardless I don't understand why you would trust authority when it's a petsmart brand also only a crappier version.... I would rather feed Purina Selects than Authority... At least it has no corn


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

The cans are made in Thailand i will say that though.... But so are Authority dog treats..... 


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

Regardless when it comes to any food that says made in the USA... That doesn't mean they didnt source their ingredients from China..... For example... Lot of people don't know it but blue buffalo is one of only 4 companies that do not tell anyone where exactly they source their ingredients..... All the other companies do... Now if they arnt getting their stuff from china.. Why wouldn't they tell you??  tricky tricky... That's why I won't touch them with a ten foot pole... So shady and overrated... 


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## NicoleIsStoked (Aug 31, 2012)

I heard that about blue. Bummer. What are the other 3 brands?


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

By Nature, Stella & Chewys, and PetGuard.... The fact Stella and chewys is like that is a huge bummer.... It's a nice food... My cats like the taste... It's SUPER expensive though.... 


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

I'm not sure if those three refused sourcing but I know they refused to provide typical nutrient data for Dr Lisa A. Pierson commercial food chart.... Had to go back and read it again... But I know blue buffalo doesn't disclose sourcing... 


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## georgiapeach (Mar 17, 2012)

Authority also makes a grain free food (PetSmart's regular brand, not the Simply Nourish one), which rates 4 stars on Dog Food Advisor. It's a chicken based food, so as long as your dog's good with that, it's a decent food at a great price. I tried it, but my dogs can't eat chicken based kibbles unfortunately. I don't like the look of Simply Nourish's ingredients - the Salmon variety has sweet potatoes listed as the first ingredient, instead of salmon. 

I'm now feeding Tractor Supply's 4 Health grain free, which comes in 3 varieties. It also comes at a great price and rates 4 stars. From what I've read, this kibble is not made by Diamond anymore.


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

luv mi pets said:


> I have fed Authority in the past. Every once in awhile I will still buy it depends on the budget. Kids and cars can at times wreck havoc on the best of any budget.  Dogs/cats did fine and no health issues were noted. Sometimes at petsmart you might get lucky and find better foods marked down due to getting close to expiration date.
> Heres to hoping your situation changes soon.


Yeah the bad thing with the sometimes cheaper food is that maybe by the time I need to buy more, it'll be expensive. That's why I'm ignoring the sale going on in Authority right now and judging it by the standard price. But for sure I'll go down the isles to see if I can find anything corn free cheaper x)


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

Zilla said:


> If you go to a simply nourish dog food on petsmart.com it clearly says at the bottom of the description made in the USA.... But regardless I don't understand why you would trust authority when it's a petsmart brand also only a crappier version.... I would rather feed Purina Selects than Authority... At least it has no corn
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


You mean Purina Pro Plan Selects? I can't find them on the website  But I'm going to the store today so I'll check price! ;D



Zilla said:


> Regardless when it comes to any food that says made in the USA... That doesn't mean they didnt source their ingredients from China..... For example... Lot of people don't know it but blue buffalo is one of only 4 companies that do not tell anyone where exactly they source their ingredients..... All the other companies do... Now if they arnt getting their stuff from china.. Why wouldn't they tell you??  tricky tricky... That's why I won't touch them with a ten foot pole... So shady and overrated...
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Oh that sucks! I'm glad I took her off Blue then D: That's scary.


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

georgiapeach said:


> Authority also makes a grain free food (PetSmart's regular brand, not the Simply Nourish one), which rates 4 stars on Dog Food Advisor. It's a chicken based food, so as long as your dog's good with that, it's a decent food at a great price. I tried it, but my dogs can't eat chicken based kibbles unfortunately. I don't like the look of Simply Nourish's ingredients - the Salmon variety has sweet potatoes listed as the first ingredient, instead of salmon.
> 
> I'm now feeding Tractor Supply's 4 Health grain free, which comes in 3 varieties. It also comes at a great price and rates 4 stars. From what I've read, this kibble is not made by Diamond anymore.


My dog has done great with lamb and chicken! So I'll definitely see what price range these are in  Thanks!


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

JanJanBunny said:


> You mean Purina Pro Plan Selects? I can't find them on the website  But I'm going to the store today so I'll check price! ;D


Yep that would be the one... Corn wheat and soy free I believe it is




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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

Looks like they have more than one formula now. I know they just changed bags so I'm not sure if they are all there yet... All are corn wheat and soy free. All the bags that say "select" are I mean. They have Chicken and Brown Rice, Turkey and Barley, Duck and Rice, and it seems they have a select grain free one too... According to their website anyway. This line is the only thing I would EVER even consider from purina... I'm happy not all of their stuff is complete junk. They are comin around at least... 


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

Pro Plan is crazy expensive, IMO. I have a coupon for $3 off a bag and a $6 Purina check for Pro Plan cat food. . .and even with $9 off it's still too expensive for me to justify buying it . I picked up a bag of the dog food for a friend last time I went to the city and it was $16 for a 6-pound bag (she has tiny dogs so the bigger bag would go stale) . So it probably costs more than Simply Nourish, although I haven't priced the big bag of dog food.

Petsmart's selection isn't terrific. Are there any other pet stores around? Sometimes even the small boutique-y pet shops that look expensive have decent prices on food.


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

Hmm I didn't think it was so expensive... Haven't really wanted to look at pro plan a whole lot I guess :lol: I think the big bags are more reasonable... Slightly cheaper than the simply nourish I think... I'll check it out when I go to work today 


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## Zilla (May 11, 2013)

Looks like the Selects are more expensive... Go figure it's not crap so they charge more haha. It's 53 dollars for a 33 pound bag of the pro plan selects turkey


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

Zilla said:


> Yep that would be the one... Corn wheat and soy free I believe it is
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Very expensive x.x Boo budget cut!


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

Zilla said:


> View attachment 72218
> 
> 
> Looks like they have more than one formula now. I know they just changed bags so I'm not sure if they are all there yet... All are corn wheat and soy free. All the bags that say "select" are I mean. They have Chicken and Brown Rice, Turkey and Barley, Duck and Rice, and it seems they have a select grain free one too... According to their website anyway. This line is the only thing I would EVER even consider from purina... I'm happy not all of their stuff is complete junk. They are comin around at least...
> ...


Yeah I saw them yesterday, they're actually more expensive than the food I was feeding her before (which I consider better quality). The bad thing about Purina is that you pay for the name, not the quality


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

Willowy said:


> Pro Plan is crazy expensive, IMO. I have a coupon for $3 off a bag and a $6 Purina check for Pro Plan cat food. . .and even with $9 off it's still too expensive for me to justify buying it . I picked up a bag of the dog food for a friend last time I went to the city and it was $16 for a 6-pound bag (she has tiny dogs so the bigger bag would go stale) . So it probably costs more than Simply Nourish, although I haven't priced the big bag of dog food.
> 
> Petsmart's selection isn't terrific. Are there any other pet stores around? Sometimes even the small boutique-y pet shops that look expensive have decent prices on food.


Yeah, I went yesterday and scouted the isles and Pro Plan is way expensive. Specially for their sucky ingredients.

And no other food stores. There's feed stores for horses, chickens and such. Puerto Rico isn't a fan of animals. We care for our chickens because of cock fights and horses? Pfft, they need to look good for the annual group ride carnival thingy. But the rest of the year they roam around the city, crossing the streets and getting in accidents and such. I saw the huge difference between US and PR when I moved to WA. There were dozens of smaller, family owned pet stores that I loved to go into and buy things from. But here? You would go broke if you decided to open a pet store, people think it's RIDICULOUS to buy anything that's over $10 for a pet.


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## JanJanBunny (Feb 23, 2013)

Zilla said:


> Looks like the Selects are more expensive... Go figure it's not crap so they charge more haha. It's 53 dollars for a 33 pound bag of the pro plan selects turkey
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App



Yeah  They're expensive T__T I went ahead and just bought myself Authority. The 34lb bag cost me $35 with the petperks. I got mad though cuz I wanted to buy the Lamb meal one, cuz that one has corn oil as the I think 6th ingredient. But they only sell that (in that store, which is the closest to me, 15 miles away) in Mini Chuncks. My dog would've died of hunger lol So I was forced to buy the Chicken meal one with Corn as the 4th ingredient, boo. 

My dog eats cardboard, leather, mangoes, poop... so I hope that adding corn to her diet wont be a big deal! Once I get a job, I'll go straight back to Nature's Recipe. She's great in it!


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## meggels (Mar 8, 2010)

JanJanBunny said:


> Yeah  They're expensive T__T I went ahead and just bought myself Authority. The 34lb bag cost me $35 with the petperks. I got mad though cuz I wanted to buy the Lamb meal one, cuz that one has corn oil as the I think 6th ingredient. But they only sell that (in that store, which is the closest to me, 15 miles away) in Mini Chuncks. My dog would've died of hunger lol So I was forced to buy the Chicken meal one with Corn as the 4th ingredient, boo.
> 
> My dog eats cardboard, leather, mangoes, poop... so I hope that adding corn to her diet wont be a big deal! Once I get a job, I'll go straight back to Nature's Recipe. She's great in it!


Why would your dog have died from hunger? Mini chunks is most likely, just a smaller kibble size, but still the same kibble.


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

Yeah, some foods have smaller kibbles (even if not marked "mini chunks") and my dogs (the biggest is a 110-pound Rott) do fine. They also seem to manage to eat the cats' kibble quite effectively . So don't worry about that, and if you want to get the lamb kind next time, it really shouldn't be a problem.


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