# Please HELP! Need your feedback!All these recalls, I'm going to try Acana for my pup!



## Nialr35 (May 9, 2012)

Hello people! :wave: I'm new to these forums and decided to create an account to get some help, opinions and advise. 

I have a 10-week old American Bulldog pup, his name is Rocky . So to make a long story short, I switched from Purina Puppy Chow(Breeder food *_*) to TOTW high prairie for puppies. My puppy had horrible diarrhea yet was very playful and had good appetite. He has all his shots up to date and I ruled out giardia, coccidia, among other parasites and was negative. 

So I decided to switch to wellness and it fixed his stools and everything was fine UNTIL I read that several "top quality" kibble brands are manufactured by a company called Diamonds and I figured out why my puppy had that horrible diarrhea until I stopped feeding him that with the help of metronidazole that the Vet gave us for him. Then I found out that Wellness has three manufacturers, one of them being Diamond :doh: AND that they had a recall about a week ago on their large puppy formula. So I said enough with this crap, I'm going to feed a non-diamond brand; yet, I didn't want to feed Blue Buffalo because I think it's overated and the ingredients didn't seem that great. I ultimately went with Nutro Ultra until I found something better. I know it might not be the best food available but it got the job done and I don't have time to feed RAW.

After almost two weeks of research, I decided to choose ACANA over ORIJEN because most dogs seem to do better on Acana than Orijen. Now seeing that I have a large breed dog, I did check the calorie intake levels, calciumhosphorus levels, fat levels and glucosamine/chondroitin levels and picked the wild prairie grain-free that is all life stages( sorry about all the background info, I just thought the more info I provided, the more concise the feedback would be). 

The questions is: Have you guys fed your puppies any of the grain-free Acana formulas? If so, how did they do? Any feedback/results on this brand would be appreciated. Do I really need to feed a "large breed puppy" formula or that is just a marketing thing? I was just a little concerned feeding such a young pup an all life stages formula, but hey the name says it all....I just don't know how young the pup has to be before they eat this. 

Thanks in advance guys!!! :wink:


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## sturd880 (May 7, 2012)

I cannot specifically answer your question about how old a puppy should be before using Acana. However, I will give this information:

Acana is a great brand. Please keep in mind, however, that Potatoes are high on the glycemic index and many grain free foods, including Acana, use Potatoes very high up in the ingredients list. This can cause a spike in blood/sugar levels and cause the dog to be hyper then crash suddenly. Sure, there are more long term effects such as diabetes but we're getting into scientific debate at that point and I'm not knowledgable enough to engage in that.

You should consider grain free foods that use carbs, and starches, that are lower in the glycemic index. Peas, chickpeas, split peas, lentils, chia seeds, etc fill this role. So does tapioca though not to as great of an effect.

Consider reading up on Horizon dog foods (Legacy, Amicus, Pulsar), Darford Zero/G foods, Dogswell's Nutrisca line, NutriSource grain free foods, and some specific varieties of Nature's Variety Instinct and EVO. Also consider Solid Gold Sun Dancer which has potatoes further down its ingredients list but offsets it with tapioca, chia seeds, and quinoa.

Ever since I switched my dogs from grain free w/potatoes to grain free w/ lower GI foods they have much more sustained 'regular' energy and no hyper-then-crash episodes.


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## Husky+BC Mom (Jul 13, 2010)

Acana has recently changed heir formulas placing potatoes higher up on the ingredient list than prior. However potatoes in dog food is really up to each individual person. When I was feeding Acana I always supplemented with raw so it was of little importance to me. As well... Acana is certainly not lacking on meat content.

If we are concerned with recalls and crappy manufacturers I would not do EVO at all, P&G bought out Natura. 

Personally I very much like Acana and Orijen. Natures Variety Instinct and Earthborn grain free would be a choice after those 2. You could also try out dehydrated food brands such as Grandma Lucys. I do think their "regular" line is too heavy on potatoes, but their pureformance variety is very nice.


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## Nialr35 (May 9, 2012)

Great feedback guys. :rockon: Although high on the ingredient list, Russet Potatoes contain high levels of antioxidants, rare for starchy plants. Russet potatoes are also Fat-free, very low sodium, Source of fiber, High in vitamin C, Cholesterol-free( most likely is why Acana uses them) but they have high levels of sugar content; yet like Husky+BC Mom said, Acana contains more than enough meat to compensate for all the protein it has to offer. 

Evo and Innova were good brands until they were bought out by P&G so they are out of my list just like TOTW, Diamond, Solid Gold, Kirkland(ew), Wellness, Canidae, among others. So cancelling out all those brands, the only one that are left are Acana, Orijen, Earthborn and Nature's Variety. I bought two small sample bags of Acana wild praerie and used them for his lunch and dinner feedings. I gave him around 80% wellness-20% acana and so far so good. Feces were slightly softer but I expected that from the change in food. I just hope it turns out ok feeding him this all life stage formula, stats wise looks good, but time will tell.


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## Nialr35 (May 9, 2012)

Anybody else feeding any of the Acana grain-free formulas to their pups?


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## DaViking (Apr 13, 2012)

Nialr35 said:


> Hello people! :wave: I'm new to these forums and decided to create an account to get some help, opinions and advise.
> 
> I have a 10-week old American Bulldog pup, his name is Rocky . So to make a long story short, I switched from Purina Puppy Chow(Breeder food *_*) to TOTW high prairie for puppies. My puppy had horrible diarrhea yet was very playful and had good appetite. He has all his shots up to date and I ruled out giardia, coccidia, among other parasites and was negative.
> 
> ...


On paper Acana Wild Prairie should be fine for your Am Bulldog puppy. But you never know until he has been on it for a while. I agree with @sturd880 in that legumes are a better choice (in most cases) for carbohydrates and dietary fiber than russet potatoes and will produce a lower glycemic load. However, in Wild Prairie's case, @ 25% carbohydrates it's not too shabby. Personally I would feed Horizon Legacy over Acana or Orijen but they have a more limited distribution in the US compared to Champion.


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## Me&MyMin (Apr 17, 2012)

Have thought about a commercial raw or freeze dried raw? They are excellent options and very healthy. Try natures variety, Stella and chewys, primal, ziwipeak, real meat company, paw naturaw.


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## Nialr35 (May 9, 2012)

I honestly never thought of that premade-raw food....I never really considered because I thought it would have too many chemicals to preserve it but I could be wrong as I never looked into it. I don't even know how much it would cost. I would like to feed raw as is the best for their system but it is very time consuming and some of the ingredients I would like to feed are rare to find( green tripe), oh well. 

Update: So far so good. I have been mixing Acana wild prairie since 3 days ago and my pup's poop is solid as a rock. I noticed it's darker and more solid than when he was on Wellness. He's been going about three times a day but overall no diarrhea or signs of upset stomach. I'm just waiting for him to stabilize 100% so I can increase the food intake a little bit more as I see his underweight due the the heavy diarrhea he had for three weeks and all these food changes. 

My last concern was how many people were feeding any of the Acana grain free formulas to their "young" puppies but I guess it's not bad for them since it's all life stages anyway... Anymore feedback is appreciated.


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## Crantastic (Feb 3, 2010)

Nialr35 said:


> Anybody else feeding any of the Acana grain-free formulas to their pups?


I feed Casper all of the gran-free varieties. His favorite is the Pacifica, so that's the one I buy most often. He does well on all of them; his coat is nice and glossy, stool is small and firm, he has a good amount of energy, etc. They're fairly interchangeable, so once your dog is used to one of them, you should be able to rotate if you like.


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## georgiapeach (Mar 17, 2012)

My poodle is currently on Acana Pacifica - no problems. I'm now rotating slowly to Innova Prime Grain Free, which doesn't have potatoes in it (lower glycemic index). I'll probably still keep Acana in my rotation. Instinct is also very good, but VERY pricey! I also like Wellness Core.

FWIW, not all Wellness products have been recalled. If your dog is doing well on it, I'd stick with it. Bully/buldog breeds have notoriously bad tummies, in my experience (I've had boxers and a boston terrier), and if you find something that works, hang on to it with all your might!!


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## Nialr35 (May 9, 2012)

georgiapeach said:


> My poodle is currently on Acana Pacifica - no problems. I'm now rotating slowly to Innova Prime Grain Free, which doesn't have potatoes in it (lower glycemic index). I'll probably still keep Acana in my rotation. Instinct is also very good, but VERY pricey! I also like Wellness Core.
> 
> FWIW, not all Wellness products have been recalled. If your dog is doing well on it, I'd stick with it. Bully/buldog breeds have notoriously bad tummies, in my experience (I've had boxers and a boston terrier), and if you find something that works, hang on to it with all your might!!


You are totally right about the tummies. I went through a 15lb bag of wellness super 5 mix puppy but after finding out that Diamond is one of wellness' manufacturers, I decided to change foods. So far Acana is great, the feces are solid yet sometimes a bit soft at the end, but it's probably because I'm still in the food change process adding some wellness which makes it a little "overfeeding" because I feed about 35% less using Acana compared to Wellness. On the other hand, I have heard GREAT things about Pacifica. Apparently most people use that one. I will try it eventually after my pup has gotten used to the Acana brand. :clap2:


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## PackMomma (Sep 26, 2011)

I've always been happy with Acana, I've rotated through all of their grain-free all life stages line. I dont' feed my dogs kibble on a daily basis, and as of late I have been mixing 2-3 kinds together at a time, and in that mix I include and rotate through Acana, Nature's Variety Instinct, Fromm's & NOW!. I usually try to mix 3 proteins for variety and keep them interested in kibble because they are raw fed so they lose interest in kibble easily but I find that if I mix a bird protein (chicken, turkey, duck) with a red meat or rabbit, and then a fish, they enjoy it. My mix at the moment is NV Instinct Rabbit, Acana Pacifica and Fromm's Beef Frittata. The next mixture will include NOW! which is chicken/turkey based, and probably NV Instinct Salmon and Acana Ranchlands or something... for the amount of kibble i feed these brands seem to do well for my dogs.


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## hargyle (Mar 21, 2012)

I feed Origen puppy - I also have a bulldog X mastiff - it took a while to get him sorted out (smelly farts, loose stool etc) but now that we are on a different schedule hes just fine. I love this food, use it as treats and I give it to the cats too. I have been told many times that large breed puppy is not always required, depends on the pup - so long as they are growing and having fun no worries.


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## hamandeggs (Aug 11, 2011)

Biscuit (40 pound muttsky) eats Acana Ranchlands. I think it's great.

Query for those who feed Pacifica: I was thinking about rotating to that one next. But, does it smell fishy? My husband says he can't deal with fish-based foods because they stink. Anyone?


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## georgiapeach (Mar 17, 2012)

I think all the varietes stink, actually. You could try getting a sample bag and see how you DH handles it. You can at least use them for treats if you decide not to get a big bag.


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## hamandeggs (Aug 11, 2011)

georgiapeach said:


> I think all the varietes stink, actually. You could try getting a sample bag and see how you DH handles it. You can at least use them for treats if you decide not to get a big bag.


That's true. I do think even the Ranchlands smells kind of icky, compared to TOTW anyway. I think our local doggy store has samples so maybe I'll try that.


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## Crantastic (Feb 3, 2010)

hamandeggs said:


> Query for those who feed Pacifica: I was thinking about rotating to that one next. But, does it smell fishy? My husband says he can't deal with fish-based foods because they stink. Anyone?


Yes, it definitely does! Casper and Crystal love it, though. I was recently dogsitting a little pom and I offered her a few kibbles. She excitedly rolled all over the stinky things and then wolfed them down.


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## Nialr35 (May 9, 2012)

Awesome guys, I will try a bag of Pacifica after this Wild Prairie is done.


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