# ACANA FOOD? ANY GOOD?



## Chilli monster

hI EVERYONE,

I had Chilli on Burns dry food for a while after she had problems with really soft poo before... it helped a bit but now she is really gassy, coat doesnt look that good, and she will eat it, but you can see it is not to her taste, and also it smells awful  ... 

I am thinking about switching her to TOTW High Prairie (back to TOTW, but when she was a puppy it wasnt going to well, or maby wetllands didnt suite her) or switching to ACANA...

what tyou think about ACANA?

Thanks a lot...


----------



## jakersmomma

I'm pretty sure Acana is made by the same company as Orijen. Okay, I just verified both are made and distributed by Champion Pet Foods out of Canada. I wondered because the packaging almost looks the same but Acana is less expensive. Jake is on Orijen and while it is expensive, I must say he has a wonderful coat and I've had no problems with his digestive system. Found this on the website listing the differences. Orijen is listed as a 6 star food and Acana a 5 star food on www.dogfoodanalysis.com. A 5 star food is GREAT compared to Purina, Iams and the like.

While there are many differences between ACANA and ORIJEN, both diets reflect our belief in “Biologically Appropriateness, and “Fresh Regional Ingredients”.

Five of the main points of difference are summarized below: 

1.MEAT CONCENTRATION: ORIJEN is made with 75-80% meat, while ACANA has between 40 to 65%, depending on the formula.
2.PROTEIN: ORIJEN diets range between 38% and 42% protein, while ACANA features protein levels of 27-34%.
3.CARBOHYDRATE: ORIJEN diets range from 18-22% of carbohydrate, while ACANA diets are typically in the 28-30% carbohydrate range.
4.AMOUNT OF FRESH MEAT: ORIJEN is made with up to 40% of fresh meats, compared with ACANA which ranges from 9-15% of fresh meats.
5.FRESH MEAT VARIETY: ORIJEN features a minimum of 5 fresh meats, compared to ACANA which contains 3 different fresh meat ingredients.
Put simply, we believe ORIJEN is the best dry dog or cat food worldwide. Although lower in protein and total fresh meat content than ORIJEN, ACANA provides unbeatable value and a price point that makes Biologically Appropriate pet foods accessible to a wide range of pet lovers.


----------



## kellygh

Acana is a fine choice. A quality food. As previously said, Acana is made by the same company that produces Orijen. Pumpkin is on Orijen, but I wouldn't have any reservations with Acana. A V breeder in our puppy class feeds her female Acana, and she is very happy with it. Her 4 y/o female is quite a looker too. Ultimately, it may be your dog that makes the decision. We have been through several food changes with both of our dogs, and both are eating foods that are different than what was suggested, breeder fed, or otherwise what we thought would be a good choice


----------



## Macaroni

We're just finishing transitioning our 11+ week old V pup over from the breeder food (Purina) over to Acana. We were looking to get it off Purina b/c of all the crap in it (lots of corn) onto a higher quality higher protein food. We did so on recommendation from our friends w/ 2 V's. Mac has loved it, and actually really sped up the process as he tends to leave most of the Purina, and only pick out the Acana kibble. It's also solidified his poops and he's doing so less often (more stuff he actually uses in Acana vs lower end stuff).

Anyway, from everything we've read and been told it's a great product. As mentioned by others its made by the same producers as Orijen. It's Canadian made w/ mostly local products, which being Cdn, made me happy. 

Anyway it's a great product by all my accounts, and we chose it over Orijen, because of price and a lower protein content (rightly or wrongly we didn't think we needed such high content for our puppy - he's a companion dog, not hunting, etc.

Best of luck w/ whatever you decide.

Regards


----------



## MaggieD

Macaroni-- when did you start the transition from purina to acana? How long should I mix the food before I switch it completely? I want the tansition to be as smooth as possible! Thanks!


----------



## DarDog

We just switched to Acana recently, and it is working well for Darwin!

One thing to note is, you will probably have to decrease the amount you feed - Acana is more dense than a lot of foods, higher calories, and it seems to be more digestible. For example, we were feeding 5 cups of Fromm 4 Star a day, and now we are down to 3.5 cups of Acana a day (Darwin is 9 months).

How old is Chilli? If she is still a pup you probably only want to stick with Acana Pacifica and Acana Prairie, as the Cah ratio is appropriate for growing "large" breed puppies, which, Vizslas are apparently considered. Acana Grasslands and the new Acana Ranchlands would be great for adult dogs (along with the other 2 as well).

As for transition, we did about 1 week. You might notice loose stools at first, but this is pretty common when switching to grain-free foods (I am not sure if Burns is grain inclusive, or not). If the loose stools continue once you have gone through the transition, you may have to decrease the amount of food further.


----------



## tiggers mum

Can I suggest that if you ever have any problems with Acana you could always look at feeding Fish4dogs Complete Diets, Fish and Potato or Salmon or Sardine?? I have fed Fish4dogs complete foods and their natural fish skin treats for years to my V and regularly use their training treats with my dogs. They are more pricey but you do tend to get what you pay for in the dog food market these days, the higher the quality protein amount the higher the cost. Best of luck!


----------



## Macaroni

RE: MaggieD

We had planned on doing a 3 week transition. 25/75 (week one), 50/50 (week two), 75/25 (week three). It's usually recommended to do min 2 week transition. At the end of week two (yesterday), we just scrapped the old stuff all together as he wouldn't eat it anyway. He just picked out all the Acana kibble. Mac didn't have any issues w/ upset stomach or stools so it was an easy decision. I would say it will vary on the dog...they all react a little differently. Plan for 3, but play it by year. 

We are currently using Wild Prairie. We did this b/c it has chicken ingredients. The cheap stuff (Purina Puppy Chow we were on) usually is based on some chicken byproducts so we thought it would upset his stomach less being more similar. We're likely going to switch to Pacifica for a try after. but once you've switched you can switch flavours easily. We were feeding 3 cups a day of the Puppy Chow. We're still feeding the same of the Acana, but he needs to gain the weight, so we'll adjust accordingly. 

Best of luck w/ it!


----------



## Chilli monster

Thank you everyone for your input.

Chilli is 13 months and we will go for Acana (money wise) if this will not work then next to try will be Orijen...

Thank you again...


----------



## Linescreamer

I have found that with Copper, he eats more food when I mix 2 or 3 foods together. Right now it's Origin - chick and fish, Natural Balance _ sweet potatoe and fish and California Natural - Chicken and rice. I have tried others Fromm, BG, Wellness, Evo....

The only thing that concerns me is if he is getting enough fat and carbs.


----------

