# Nature's Variety Instinct vs Fromm



## nabbyg116 (Nov 24, 2008)

Okay, so, I'm currently feeding Blue Buffalo large breed puppy food, but need to switch over to an adult food for my Rottie/GSD. I'd like to stay within the same price range as Blue Buffalo, but switch to a kibble that offers more protein to my dog's diet. I have found that Nature's Variety Instinct and Fromm are within the same price range as BB. Anyone have experience with either of these 2 brands, and what would you recommend....or is there another kibble you would recommend that is similar?
Thanks!


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## InkedMarie (Mar 11, 2009)

While it wasn't Instinct, Nature's Variety recently had a recall. Fromm has never had one. For that reason alone, I would try Fromm first.


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## mcdavis (May 1, 2012)

We've been feeding Fromm for around 6 months now and like it a lot more than BB.


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## Salina (Sep 2, 2012)

i feed Fromm to both of my dog. i tried Wellness and Innova before, but love love Fromm. I feed the grain-inclusive one...i switch flavors with every bag within the four-star line and they never have any issues.


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## nabbyg116 (Nov 24, 2008)

Awesome, I was leaning more towards Fromm as it were just because I know they have their own facilities that are closely managed. Anyone have experience with Earthborn? It's about the same price range as Fromm and seems very high quality as well.


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## mcdavis (May 1, 2012)

Earthborn was my second choice but only because it wasn't as widely available in my local area - they both seemed like really good options.


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## nabbyg116 (Nov 24, 2008)

mcdavis said:


> Earthborn was my second choice but only because it wasn't as widely available in my local area - they both seemed like really good options.


Yeah, they are both available at the same store in my area, so I'll probably decide once I'm there. I'm actually leaning a little more towards Earthborn due to the high protein content and I really like that the first 3 ingredients are all meat.


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## zhaor (Jul 2, 2009)

For what it's worth, Instinct has much better formula ingredient makeups than Fromm. In terms of ingredients, I would rank it Instinct, Earthborn Primitive Natural, then Fromm and the other Earthborn formulas.


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## luvmyfurballs (Mar 5, 2012)

My dogs eat Fromm and love it. I do give them Natures Variety Instinct(Premade Raw) on occasion too.


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## nabbyg116 (Nov 24, 2008)

Anyone have any opinions on Acana grain free? My local pet store offers it, and I know it's supposed to be a pretty good food.


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## kafkabeetle (Dec 4, 2009)

Thought I'd just drop by and share my experiences with Nature's Variety Instinct. Sydney's been on it for about two months now and we're nearing the end of the bag. She's had good, small stools and a shiny coat. All in all I'd say she did quite well on this food. However, she has developed some doggie odor that she never had before. I thought it was just because she'd been spending a lot more time outdoors and getting dirty lately (which is still possible) but some of the smell seems to remain even after a bath. It's not terrible...just when you think of a hound scent, that's what she smells like. We're trying Back to Basics next, so we'll see if the smell goes away. 

I've been suspecting that maybe the food is a little too high in fat...my logic is that if high fat can help with dry coat issues, then too much fat could potentially contribute to the production of excess oil that causes an odor? I have no idea, that's just a wild guess because the high fat content is really the only feature that makes this food distinct from other similar ones she did great on, so I'm starting there.

Anyway, to the OP: I'd really choose any of the foods you mentioned with confidence.


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## Jacksons Mom (Mar 12, 2010)

NV has formulas very high in ash, has had a recall or two. For that reason alone, I'd pick Fromm first. However I do not think NV is a bad company, and they seem very knowledgable, and handled the recall well. But if I had to choose, Fromm I would definitely trust more.


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## dexterborg (Nov 16, 2012)

I'd go with Fromm


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## tdc (Nov 21, 2012)

I would go with FROMM!!


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## nabbyg116 (Nov 24, 2008)

Jacksons Mom said:


> NV has formulas very high in ash, has had a recall or two. For that reason alone, I'd pick Fromm first. However I do not think NV is a bad company, and they seem very knowledgable, and handled the recall well. But if I had to choose, Fromm I would definitely trust more.


I am curious how you determine the ash level in foods. Is it labeled on the food, and where? I actually ended up buying a bag of Nature's Variety Instinct, but will probably end up going with Fromm due to the overwhelming response in this post, and I really like how well their facilities are managed. One of the biggest reasons I actually decided to go ahead and try Nature's Variety Instinct is because of the amazing ingredient make up of the food. It does seem better (strictly ingredient wise) than Fromm, but I guess you sacrifice some QC with a larger company....
I actually e-mailed Nature's Variety and got an almost immediate response stating the following:

"Ash is the inorganic (non-carbon) mineral portion of any substance. When referring to dog and cat food, "ash content" is the mineral matter, such as magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, iron, and copper.

The ash content in all of our kibble diets (Instinct & Prairie) averages between 10-12%. Nature’s Variety takes steps to secure only protein meals of the highest quality and the formulation of our diets is a collaborative effort between our Nutrition Council composed of veterinarians and our Research and Development Team. We take great pride in our diets and formulas and we stand behind our products every step of the way. We do realize that is it important for you to have faith in the product you feed your dog and ultimately, you have to feel comfortable feeding our products and make the decision if it is the right food choice for your dog."


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## xxxxdogdragoness (Jul 22, 2010)

Earthborn isn't good enough for the money you pay for it. I went with back to basics & my hard keeper Josefina has done marvelously on it.


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## kafkabeetle (Dec 4, 2009)

dogdragoness said:


> Earthborn isn't good enough for the money you pay for it. I went with back to basics & my hard keeper Josefina has done marvelously on it.


Really? Because I'd say Earthborn Primitive Natural is pretty comparable to Back to Basics. I just paid $38 for a 13 pound bag of BTB Pork. You can get Earthborn on Amazon for $29 for a 14 pound bag. I don't agree that Earthborn is of inferior quality, but even if it were, it's still significantly cheaper.


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## Little Wise Owl (Nov 12, 2011)

nabbyg116 said:


> Anyone have any opinions on Acana grain free? My local pet store offers it, and I know it's supposed to be a pretty good food.


It is. The ingredients are high quality, regional, and it isn't as rich as its sister product "Orijen". When I don't feed raw, I go for Acana instantly. I know a lot of other people have had tons of success with this food.


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## xxxxdogdragoness (Jul 22, 2010)

The primitive naturals is good ... But the other formulas are t IMHO ... EBPN is the only formula I would use & sinc I'd like to rotate ... I had to switch. The others are too full of plant based protein IMO


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## nabbyg116 (Nov 24, 2008)

Well, just wanted to update. I have successfully switched, very slowly (over 2 weeks) from Blue Buffalo Puppy to Nature's Variety Instinct. Roxy has been on Nature's Variety Instinct exclusively now for about 2 weeks. It is one of the only foods I've offered my dog that she will eat in less than 5 minutes. This is the ONLY food we've tried that didn't give her loose stools too. She consistently has firm, small poop now, which is something she hasn't had since I adopted her a year ago. Looks like we've finally found a food that agrees with my dog's stomach, which is awesome. As much as I like the idea of Fromm, I think we'll stick to NV Instinct. I like that it's meat based and high in protein. We've gone from Nutro Max (which I now realize is just an average, if not, below average food), to Life's Abundance, to BB puppy, to Nature's Variety Instinct, so I won't be switching anymore unless it becomes a necessity.


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## InkedMarie (Mar 11, 2009)

Nabby, sounds like you found a food for her and it's a good food!


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## georgiapeach (Mar 17, 2012)

You might want to rotate protein sources occasionally to avoid her developing sensitivities.


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