As a dog owner, you must have found yourself wandering through supermarkets or pet shops wondering which of the available foods is the best for your pup. Many dog owners would agree that a bit more information on the benefits and flaws of marketed canine food would be very useful. If you’ve been wondering if the Rachael Ray Dog Food range is worth trying for your pup, here is a detailed look at the brand.

About Rachel Ray

This dog food brand already has the name of its creator in its title – Rachael Ray. Rachel is an American TV personality and chef and she is the one who came up with the idea behind the Nutrish line of dog food. These dog food products are developed in cooperation with the Lang family’s dog food manufacturing company called Ainsworth Pet Nutrition.Langs’ company started off as a small regional dog food producer and later, spread its business to the whole of U.S.A. They’ve been operating for approximately 80 years and their products include various pet foods. Among them, there are dry kibbles, canned food and treats made from completely natural ingredients following Rachel’s recipes.

Ingredients Analysis

The company’s site stresses that the ingredients included in these recipes are exclusively natural and of high-quality and nutritive value. It is also stated that no poultry side products are used. Instead, only fresh, simple and healthy foods serve as the basis of the product in question. Meat proteins with little fat are on the top of the ingredients list, as well as high-quality chicken and other types of protein sources, such as beef, seafood and lamb.Moreover, a great deal of vegetables is used for the basis as well. So, they ought to be easily digestible and provide a balanced nutrition for your pet, according to the company’s description. Actually, you will find that much of the things posted on the company’s site are pretty much true. In fact, you won’t really find any low-quality ingredients such as fillers, meat side products, preservatives, etc.Also, the vegetables used in the process has quite a satisfying quality for an alleged high-premium food. In addition, many dog owners confirm the company’s description of the foods’ effects. Meaning to say, they see their pets become more energetic, their coats turn shinier and they seem simply happy with their meals. Hence, these owners don’t question the manufacturer’s statement about the quality and range of ingredients.However, despite the fact that the major ingredient is meat, the two others on the list are chicken meat or poultry by-products, which is the opposite of what the site states. Thus, it might be safe to say that the quality of the formulas is a bit questionable. On top of that, there are a bit more formulas which involve grains than promised. Moreover, while the site says that the used ingredients include fresh, vitamin-rich vegetables, finding as much rice, soybean meal and corn was quite unexpected.These elements make up a significant part of this line’s foods, but they aren’t as rich in minerals and vitamins. Hence, rather than being high-quality, extremely nutritive and easily digestible, this brand seems to be just an average dog food line.

Recall History

There haven’t been any Rachael Ray food recalls issued by the FDA so far. In fact, the only recall was a voluntary one by the company itself, back in 2015. The food in question was cat canned food.It is said that the reason behind this was a slightly higher level of vitamin D in the recalled series. As a result, the producer decided to withdraw it from sale just in case. Besides that, no other cases regarding the recall of products have been recorded since.

Formulas Offered

Dry Dog Food

The dry dog food group includes five different lines. The Super Premium Food for Dogs is mainly based on chicken, with the addition of vegetables, minerals and vitamins. Dish Super Premium Food for Dogs makes a balanced simple meal.On the other hand, the Just 6 line, as the very name says, is made of only 6 simple ingredients. Zero Grain Food for dogs has a self-explanatory name as well and lastly, there is the Peak Ultra Premium Food for Dogs.

Super Premium Food for Dogs includes:

• Real Chicken and Veggies Recipe
• Real Chicken and Brown Rice Recipe
• Real Beef and Brown Rice Recipe
• Little Bites Real Chicken and Veggies Recipe
• Turkey, Brown Rice and Venison Recipe

Dish Super Premium Food for Dogs:

• DISH Chicken and Brown Rice Recipe
• DISH Beef and Brown Rice Recipe

Just 6:

• Just 6 Lamb Meal and Brown Rice Recipe

Zero Grain Food for Dogs:

• Zero Grain Turkey and Potato Recipe
• Zero Grain Beef, Potato and Bison Recipe
• Zero Grain Salmon and Sweet Potato Recipe
• Zero Grain Chicken and Sweet Potato Recipe

PEAK Ultra Premium Food for Dogs:

• Open Range Recipe with Beef, Venison and Lamb
• Northern Woodlands Recipe with Turkey, Duck and Quail
• Wetlands Recipe with Chicken, Duck and Pheasant Dog Food

Wet Dog Food

Their wet food includes a number of stew-like formulas cooked on lower temperatures, which kept most of the ingredients’ nutritive values. The ingredients used for this line also involves a lot of meat and vegetables.

• Rustic Duck Stew
• Beef Stroganwoof
• Chicken Muttballs with Pasta
• Hearty Beef Stew
• Savory Lamb Stew
• Chicken Paw Pie

Treats for Dogs

In addition to regular dry and wet foods, Rachael Ray has a line of treats for your pet, made from chicken, beef and turkey, which taste like real delicacies. There are three groups of treats, as follows:

Tasty Real Meat Treats for Dogs:

• Turkey Bacon Recipe
• Sausage Bites
• Meatball Morsels
• Beef with Bison Burger Recipe
• Savory Pepperoni Recipe
• Homestyle Beef Recipe
• Beef Stuffed Riggies Recipe
• Roasted Chicken Recipe

Soup Bones:

• Real Beef and Barley Flavor
• Real Chicken and Veggies Flavor
• Real Turkey and Rice Flavor

Soup Bones Minis:

• Real Beef and Barley Flavor
• Real Chicken and Veggies Flavor

Source of Ingredients

This brand of dog food is made in the US, although the manufacturer is not quite clear whether all the ingredients are locally sourced, or if some are from abroad. The website attests that the chicken comes from US farms, but makes no mention of the other ingredients’ origin.Since it is not clear about where the real source of most of the ingredients are, we understand that some dog owners might be a little hesitant to buy their products. However, you are able to rest assured that at least their chickens are from the United States.

Available Sizes

Just like previously, we will also separate this section into three categories, namely Dry Dog Food and Wet Dog Food so that we can discuss each in detail.

Dry Dog Food

Rachael Ray’s dry dog food comes in multiple sizes, depending on the flavor or recipe you are going to purchase. For example, their Real Chicken & Veggie recipe as well as the Real Beef & Brown rice on come in 3.4, 6, 14, 28 and 40-pound bags.On the other hand, others come 5.5, 13, 26 or 28-pound bags.

Wet Dog Food

Similarly, their wet dog foods come in different sized tubs for bigger breeds like the Shollie or Saint Berdoodle). Or smaller Shih Tzu breeds as well. For instance, their Tasty Real Meat Treat come in 3 and 12-ounce bags. However, other wet foods come in 4.2, 6.3 or 12.6 ounces.Since it’s somewhat difficult to enumerate all their products, we suggest that you go through their website in order to see and compare the available sizes they have for each flavor.

Pros

Uses Real MeatThe first and foremost reason why we love Rachael Ray is because of the fact that they use real meat in their dog food products. As we all might be aware, there are some brands that use artificial meats. Thus, having a brand give us real, raw meat – like chicken, for example – gives us a sense of relief.Moreover, when you look at the ingredients, you will see that meat comes first in their products. This fact is also another plus point for Rachael Ray.CharityAnother reason why we support this brand is because a good amount of their proceeds are given to charity, or similar organizations. These groups that Rachael Ray donates money to are the ones that truly care about pets – the ones that help animals in every way they can.In addition, this doesn’t apply on to their dog food products, but to their cat food as well. So, whatever pet you have at home, you will be able to help provide animals a better life just by buying from Rachael Ray.The TasteRachael Ray’s dog food products taste amazing and you know this to be true when you see your dog’s enthusiastic, wagging tail once it’s meal time. This doesn’t come as a surprise though, especially knowing how these dog foods are full of natural ingredients that taste good.There is VarietyOne thing we appreciate when it comes to dog food is variety and that is what Rachael Ray provides us. There are many dogs out there with different needs – some have allergic reactions to certain ingredients, while some may need more specialized recipes.Thus, it’s great to know that Rachael Ray has a wide range of products for us to choose from. As you know, they have wet and dry foods and others available, with different flavors as well. So, no matter what you are looking for, there’s a chance you will find it there.

Cons

Filler IngredientsUnfortunately, despite the delicious and natural ingredients that Rachael Ray dog foods have, there are still some fillers included. For example, there were still soy meal, corn gluten meal, rice – among others – found in the recipes.In fact, the brand markets their dog food products as free from fillers, which makes it even more disappointing that it’s not exactly true. Even though these might still be plant-based, it doesn’t really add or benefit your dog.Moreover, some recipes include controversial ingredients such as beet pulp and peas. However, we believe that as long as it’s only in a minimal, limited amount, then it shouldn’t cause any problems.Picky Eaters Won’t Like ItSadly, if you have a dog that is a picky eater, then there’s a high chance that it will not eat Rachael Ray’s dog food. In fact, even though many dogs enjoy eating these dog foods, many owners of dogs who are picky eaters have noticed that their pups just don’t like them.Therefore, if you know that your pooch is picky, then we recommend that you try for a different brand. After all, we wouldn’t like it if the money you used to purchase just goes to waste – along with the dog food.

Bad Reports

Even though Rachael Ray hasn’t had any major recalls, there have been reported cases where dogs who have eaten their products experienced really bad problems afterwards. However, it ranges from minor to quite severe cases.For example, some dog owners said that their furry friend had diarrhea after eating. On the other hand, there were some who said their dogs had kidney failure.Moreover, even though we know that the top ingredients are real chicken, we just aren’t sure where exactly the lower ingredients come from. In fact, the animal fat they have listed down is unnamed.Although, we can’t really say for sure that these illnesses were directly related to Rachael Ray’s dog food, it is still safe to say that these reports are quite worrying. So, it might be best to keep an eye out.

Overall Rating

Based on everything that we have written about regarding Rachael Ray – from their ingredients, sources, flavors and more – we have decided on an overall rating for the brand. That said, we have decided to give Rachael Ray at least 4.5 out of 5 stars.Undoubtedly it is a great brand, but there are just little things that we think they can improve upon.

Conclusion

All the opposite information and opinions considered, we can certainly say that this line of dog food is at least of average quality and consists of a wide range of both dry and wet foods. On top of that, even delicious treats – all of which come at a reasonable price.Furthermore, we wouldn’t advise blindly believing only one side of the review, since every dog is unique, with different biological predispositions for good or bad reactions to different foods. This includes liking or disliking them as well. This is why we recommend trying those you think would be best for your dog and let them tell you if it’s suitable for their body and taste buds or not.You certainly can’t go that wrong, since there is a wide range of flavors and various formulas adapted to specific dog needs. More importantly, the fact that there haven’t been any recalls of this brand should be enough to put your mind at rest.

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