Wellness Dog Food Reviews (Ratings, Recalls, Ingredients!)
About the Company
Wellness was first officially established in 1926 as a dog biscuit company called Old Mother Hubbard. Founded in Massachusetts, it originally distributed its products in the Northeast United States. In 1961, the company was bought by Jim Scott, Sr., who had a new approach for the company. He focused on creating 100% natural products for dogs with natural, home-style ingredients. After years of research in the 1990s, Wellness was officially introduced in 1997.
Today, the employee pets are their motivation to continue to create healthy dog diets. The brand focuses on a small amount of real, simple, and pure ingredients rather than the things it leaves out, like artificial flavors and fillers, to avoid common food allergies.
In 2007, Wellness Pet Foods created the WellPet Foundation to help support activist groups and organizations dedicated to healthy, happy lives for pets. The foundation donates time and money to pet research, charities, and sponsorships.
Dry Food
Wet Food
Rating
Wellness, as a brand, impresses me. If you take a look at its website, its philosophy is about as clear as you can get. Although the brand started as a baked dog treat company, it has completely transformed itself into a healthy, laser-focused dog food brand. I can get behind a brand like that. Additionally, its foundation is something to be proud of. Companies that go above and beyond just dog food are the ones that deserve to be noticed.
But aside from the company itself, its dog food leaves me, for the most part, impressed.
Pros
I rated Wellness a 4.5/5 because it does stay true to the types of ingredients it focuses on. I've looked at several popular recipes and they mimic what Wellness stands for, mostly. What you'll find are natural, real ingredients that should be in your dog's food to help him thrive.
The food are jam-packed with the nutrients you'd want in your dog food. These vitamins and minerals will help your dog's coat, skin, eyes, energy, digestion, and overall health. And, with the variety of Wellness products available, you can target your dog's dietary needs with one of many formulas. The brand is very versatile, with grain-free varieties, senior and puppy varieties, small and large breed varieties, and more.
Overall, the nutrient content and wholesome ingredients are enough for me to recommend Wellness as a good dog food for most dogs.
Cons
I've read a few reviews on Wellness dog food from customers who believe Wellness foods adds too many ingredients. One reviewer, for example, states that "the manufacturers throw in fancy-sounding ingredients for marketing reasons". Although I think most ingredients are good, healthy ingredients, I can see where the reviewer is coming from. One of the most important parts of the Wellness mission is to create dog food with minimal, simple ingredients. Customers who are really looking for this may be left down by some of the Wellness varieties. They don't want to see tomato puree, green tea extract, and yucca extract. Instead, they want just what their dogs need. And I agree; Wellness somewhat missed the mark here.
Wellness Dog Food Reviews of Ingredients
The Complete Health Grain Free Adult Deboned Chicken & Chicken Meal Recipe Dog Food is among the most popular of the Wellness brand. Here is its Guaranteed Analysis:
- Crude Protein (min) 26.0%
- Crude Fat (min) 12.0%
- Crude Fiber (max) 5.25%
- Moisture (max) 10.0%
- Calcium (min) 0.8%
- Phosphorus (min): 0.6%
- Vitamin A (min) 25,000 IU/kg
- Vitamin E (min): 200 IU/kg
- Glucosamine (min): 250 mg/kg
- Chondroitin Sulfate (min): 200 mg/kg
- Omega 3 Fatty Acids (Min): 0.76%
- Taurine (Min): 0.09%
The nutrients are right on target. Additionally, Vitamin A content in this food is one of the highest I've seen in a dog food. That's great, because this important vitamin aids in skin, hair, and vision health. To further aid in skin and coat health, it's packed with Omega-3 Fatty Acids from its ingredients.
This is one of the most popular varieties because of its grain-free status. Grain-free diets are important to many dog owners who worry about possible allergies and digestive issues from grains. Fortunately, the ingredients stay right on target with its purpose. Deboned chicken, potatoes, peas, chicken meal, and dried ground potatoes round out the top 5 ingredients. You can also find carrots, chickpeas, tomatoes, and spinach.
However, Wellness adds in a few questionable ingredients. Potatoes is one of them. Usually, if an ingredient is not specifically labeled as "sweet potato", it's a white potato. Although white potatoes aren't necessarily bad, it's better to opt for sweet potatoes for lower carb content. Additionally, "natural chicken flavor" is listed as an ingredient. Flavorings are typically not considered a needed additive in dog food. Unfortunately, there are so many things this ingredient can consist of, so it's best to not have it at all.
Wellness Dog Food Recall History
There is no history of a Wellness dog food recall in the last two years according to the FDA and Wellness dog food reviews.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, I'd recommend the Wellness brand to dog owners. Although there are a few ingredients I'd prefer not to see in a dog food, they're nothing proven to be harmful. In fact, they're found in many dog foods.
However, I do agree with some customer reviews that would rather see a more simplistic ingredient list. After all, Wellness states that a small number of ingredients is one of its focuses. But I didn't find that to be true with most of their formulas. Instead, there are several extracts and other ingredients that, if left out, would create a more simple approach.
Overall, I am pleased with the Wellness brand. Because of its commitment to its own pets, it's committed to providing the best health for yours. Additionally, it focuses on its foundation to help groups who want to provide healthy solutions for dog diets. This is a brand that cares about your dog, and that's something I can get behind.
