Thoughts on Orijen food?

[Zippo]

Both my dogs currently eat Earthborn Hollistic puppy, I did a lot of reading and I decided to go with Orijen for both pups, I bought a small bag to mix into what's left of the Earthborn Hollistic to make the switch as smooth as possible, was wondering what everyone thinks of this food?

PS also got the Orijen cat food for our 3 cats, these animals are more expensive then kids! lol

 

[JanS]

I haven't fed Orijen because it's not available here but I've heard nothing but good about it. I believe it's about the top rated kibble out there.

 

[Zippo]

I haven't fed Orijen because it's not available here but I've heard nothing but good about it. I believe it's about the top rated kibble out there.

It better be for the price! LOL

 

[AresMyDobie]

I've heard it's the best kibble out there

 

[WiglWerm]

I hear it is a great food but I think all dogs are different...My breeder had bought it for her blue boy and he did not do well on it.

 

[Archer]

I fed Orijen for years and loved it. They were solely manufacturing in Canada, but recently they opened a plant in the US (KY) and are now only selling to US customers out of the new plant. With the addition of the new plant came a change in ingredients as they only source their proteins etc from local regions. This caused their food to massively change. Many dogs have had issues with the change, mine included. Two of my dogs who were once ravenous eaters went off the food completely and were vomiting. This was a common complaint with the change, so they added dehydrated liver for palatibility and it caused more issues. The holistic food store I shop at says their Orijen/Acana sales have dropped by 50% since the change. Pretty remarkable. I do know people who never had issues with the switch, but since researching the change, I have discovered that Orijen is higher in copper content than most foods. Not an issue with all breeds, but Dobermans are prone to Copper Storage Hepatopathy (copper storage disease) and foods with high copper amounts should be avoided.

Is it a good food. Yes. I personally no longer feed it. Horribly dissapointed

 

[My2Girls]

@Archer can I ask what you feed your dogs? If you don't want to share that's fine I completely understand. I ask because Princess is completely bored with her food (Earthorn Holistic coastal catch) and the breeder started Shadow on a kibble that I'd like to upgrade from eventually. Raw is not an option at this time.

 

[Drogon]

When Drogon was pup we tried a bunch of different foods. Most gave him lose stool or gas. We finally tried Acana 'Pacifica'. As @Archer said Orijen/Acana (same company) changed formulas when they moved to US. Now Pacifica is Atlantica and Drogon went back to having lose stools. I stayed with Acana and switched to Lamb and Apple which has worked out well for us. He had some gas during the transition but has since cleared up and his stool is firmer than ever. He's 2 now.

 

[Zippo]

I fed Orijen for years and loved it. They were solely manufacturing in Canada, but recently they opened a plant in the US (KY) and are now only selling to US customers out of the new plant. With the addition of the new plant came a change in ingredients as they only source their proteins etc from local regions. This caused their food to massively change. Many dogs have had issues with the change, mine included. Two of my dogs who were once ravenous eaters went off the food completely and were vomiting. This was a common complaint with the change, so they added dehydrated liver for palatibility and it caused more issues. The holistic food store I shop at says their Orijen/Acana sales have dropped by 50% since the change. Pretty remarkable. I do know people who never had issues with the switch, but since researching the change, I have discovered that Orijen is higher in copper content than most foods. Not an issue with all breeds, but Dobermans are prone to Copper Storage Hepatopathy (copper storage disease) and foods with high copper amounts should be avoided.

Is it a good food. Yes. I personally no longer feed it. Horribly dissapointed

Wow, good info. What do you reccomend for food? I guess the same thing would happen with Acana and the copper/vomiting issues since it's made by the same company I believe?

 

[Drogon]

Dobermans are prone to Copper Storage Hepatopathy (copper storage disease) and foods with high copper amounts should be avoided.

I didn't know that. That would make me think feeding raw isn't a good choice for a Dobermann since meat is naturally high in copper.

I stole this from a different forum. A snippet from a 2013 letter from Orijen/Acana

"The copper content in our diets ranges from 9mg/kg to 30mg/kg. The copper content is listed in the full guaranteed analysis for all of our foods. Our diets are formulated to meet AAFCO specifications, the copper content of all of our diets fall within AAFCO requirements.
Dog food alone is not sufficient to produce an elevated hepatic copper concentration and cause liver disease in dogs, therefore in a healthy dog the copper content of our diets would have no adverse effects on the liver.
We do not make prescription diets. Prescription diets that are specifically formulated for liver disease generally will contain copper levels that are below AAFCO limits.
ORIJEN foods have higher meat inclusions than the ACANA formulas and thus will have slightly higher copper levels. ACANA Duck & Bartlett Pear contains 9mg/kg of copper, this is the lowest copper content available in our foods."

 

[Archer]

Wow, good info. What do you reccomend for food? I guess the same thing would happen with Acana and the copper/vomiting issues since it's made by the same company I believe?

Yup. Same company. I switched to Fromm and feed the Four Star Nutritionals Surf and Turf. My puppyes are on the Fromm Holistic GOLD puppy. Dogs Have better coats and muscle tone on it and zero gas issues. Dogs love it. Good company with zero recalls and based in the US. I was horribly dissapointed with the change in Orijen/Acana. If you are having success feeding the Orijen don't switch unless you want to. It is still a good food. The food manufactured in the US now receives a lower rating than the food processed in CA. I'm glad Champion Petfood stuck to their principles when they opened their plant in KY and kept it regionally sourced, but it messed it up for many.

@Drogon, I'm glad you found a variety that works for you

 

[Archer]

I didn't know that. That would make me think feeding raw isn't a good choice for a Dobermann since meat is naturally high in copper.

I stole this from a different forum. A snippet from a 2013 letter from Orijen/Acana

"The copper content in our diets ranges from 9mg/kg to 30mg/kg. The copper content is listed in the full guaranteed analysis for all of our foods. Our diets are formulated to meet AAFCO specifications, the copper content of all of our diets fall within AAFCO requirements.
Dog food alone is not sufficient to produce an elevated hepatic copper concentration and cause liver disease in dogs, therefore in a healthy dog the copper content of our diets would have no adverse effects on the liver.
We do not make prescription diets. Prescription diets that are specifically formulated for liver disease generally will contain copper levels that are below AAFCO limits.
ORIJEN foods have higher meat inclusions than the ACANA formulas and thus will have slightly higher copper levels. ACANA Duck & Bartlett Pear contains 9mg/kg of copper, this is the lowest copper content available in our foods."

Great info. I read something a while back about a group of Dobes having CSD as a result of being fed Orijen, but I can't put my finger on where it was. A show magazine perhaps. I'll look for it to share. I really feel their comment about CSD is a blanket comment for all breeds, but in a breed predisposed to CSD, I won't risk it myself

 

[Drogon]

@Drogon, I'm glad you found a variety that works for you

IMHO that is the key - just find a good food that works for your dog(s). Usually a trial and error method is the only way to find out what works.

 

[Drogon]

Great info. I read something a while back about a group of Dobes having CSD as a result of being fed Orijen, but I can't put my finger on where it was. A show magazine perhaps. I'll look for it to share. I really feel their comment about CSD is a blanket comment for all breeds, but in a breed predisposed to CSD, I won't risk it myself

That letter from Champion was to @MeadowCat. It looks like she did a fair amount of research on Dobes and CSD. I know she's not around here much but if you're in contact with her maybe she can help shed some light.

 

[Zippo]

Great info. I read something a while back about a group of Dobes having CSD as a result of being fed Orijen, but I can't put my finger on where it was. A show magazine perhaps. I'll look for it to share. I really feel their comment about CSD is a blanket comment for all breeds, but in a breed predisposed to CSD, I won't risk it myself

It seems like the copper comes from the meat, therefore would using the Orijen fish be a better alternative?

 

[Zippo]

Yup. Same company. I switched to Fromm and feed the Four Star Nutritionals Surf and Turf. My puppyes are on the Fromm Holistic GOLD puppy. Dogs Have better coats and muscle tone on it and zero gas issues. Dogs love it. Good company with zero recalls and based in the US. I was horribly dissapointed with the change in Orijen/Acana. If you are having success feeding the Orijen don't switch unless you want to. It is still a good food. The food manufactured in the US now receives a lower rating than the food processed in CA. I'm glad Champion Petfood stuck to their principles when they opened their plant in KY and kept it regionally sourced, but it messed it up for many.

@Drogon, I'm glad you found a variety that works for you

Do you have the copper content of Fromm surf and turf? I can't seem to find it.

 

[Zippo]

Yup. Same company. I switched to Fromm and feed the Four Star Nutritionals Surf and Turf. My puppyes are on the Fromm Holistic GOLD puppy. Dogs Have better coats and muscle tone on it and zero gas issues. Dogs love it. Good company with zero recalls and based in the US. I was horribly dissapointed with the change in Orijen/Acana. If you are having success feeding the Orijen don't switch unless you want to. It is still a good food. The food manufactured in the US now receives a lower rating than the food processed in CA. I'm glad Champion Petfood stuck to their principles when they opened their plant in KY and kept it regionally sourced, but it messed it up for many.

@Drogon, I'm glad you found a variety that works for you

I found some interesting info, the Fromm surf and turf contains 21mg/kg copper, Orijen Tundra is only 10, and Acana singles duck and pear is 9-15mg/kg, now I'm confused lol

 

[Tropicalbri's]

I also had my pups on Orijen but new formula had them not wanting to eat it along with soft stools. Was feeding Taste of the wild puppy but again loose stools and the gas was unbelievable. I am now on Earthborn holistic.
You have to find what works for them.

 

[Zippo]

I just contacted Earthborn, they replied right away.


Thank you for contacting us. In all of our Earthborn Holistic Pet Foods, there is 16 mg/kg of copper.

Thank you,
Jessica W.
Customer Service
Earthborn Holistic
Earthborn Holistic® Dog Food Formulas | Earthborn Holistic® Pet Food

Jessica Wildeman
Consumer Affairs Manager
Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc.

 

[Archer]

It seems like the copper comes from the meat, therefore would using the Orijen fish be a better alternative?

I was feeding Orijen 6 Fish. It was higher in Copper content than several of the others in the line