Rayne Nutrition Canned Diet Dog Food Review

Rayne Nutrition Canned Diet dog food has a score of 5.8/10 and is considered a moderate risk dog food. There are 3 recipes that average 47% protein and 21% carbohydrates as calculated on a dry matter basis. These are specialized diets that pet owners can order online, as long as they provide their veterinary information to confirm that they’re suitable for their dog’s needs. However, the quality and safety of ingredients in these recipes could be improved to provide better quality and less processed ingredients that would be safer for dogs with existing health issues. 

Overall, these recipes have high carbohydrate levels for a wet dog food. Dogs have no nutritional requirement for carbohydrates but they’re added to dog foods for energy, texture and taste. Excessive carbohydrate is an indicator of food quality as it can be used to reduce manufacturing cost. Foods that are high in carbohydrates can raise insulin and cause obesity. Some studies also show changes to their gut bacteria in dogs fed a high carbohydrate diets. 

The company repeats on the website that they use whole food ingredients, fresh meat, fruits and vegetables. However, while these recipes have considerations for at-risk dogs, there’s a noticeable absence of fruits and green leafy vegetables, along with their phytonutrients and antioxidants. After the first 5-6 ingredients, there is an extensive list of 25 or more added vitamins and minerals. It’s preferred that vitamins and minerals come from whole food sources that include the full spectrum of cofactors, which makes them safe and bioavailable for health-compromised dogs. While a couple of added vitamins and minerals are acceptable, five or more implies the food is of poor nutritional value.

It’s also worth noting that this line contains sodium selenite as a source of selenium. Dogs need selenium, and it’s usually added in very small amounts. However, some research suggests that sodium selenite may be associated with potential toxicity, so selenium yeast is the preferred form of this mineral.

These recipes lose additional ingredient quality points for using seed oil. Sunflower oil is highly processed and inflammatory, as it’s high in omega-6 fatty acids, which can cause systemic and gut inflammation. However, it’s good to see marine microalgae used as a source of omega 3 fatty acids.

On the ingredient safety side, these recipes lose points for being highly processed. Canned foods are heated before and during canning, which will cause significant losses in some active enzymes, vitamins, amino acids and phytonutrients.

Potatoes are used in these recipes, which is a concern. In addition to being high in carbohydrates, potatoes are a common GMO crop. There are limited safety studies on genetically modified and Roundup Ready crops although they are lacking in nutrients compared to non-GMO foods. GMO crops also strip nutrients from soils, carry increased pesticide risk and may be involved in bee die-off. 

Both bell peppers and potatoes are crops known for high pesticide or herbicide residues. Pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers pose a significant health risk to plants, animals and soils. Foods with the largest reported amount of residue are penalized, including crops that are known to be spray-dried with glyphosate. If peppers and potatoes were organically sourced, it would remove the GMO herbicide/pesticide risk for dogs with health issues eating these foods. 

Rayne does not use undisclosed animal proteins in its palatants, but natural flavor is used in several recipes. Rayne lists the ingredients of its natural flavor as yeast, sodium chloride, vegetable oil (not from corn or soy), dextrose, potassium sorbate and mixed tocopherols (preservatives). It should be noted that dextrose is a sugar.  

All Rayne canned diets go through an FDA-prescribed “kill step” for bacteria during production. Dermatology products undergo third-party ELISA testing to detect trace-level contaminants such as beef, pork, chicken, fish, milk, and soy. This is noteworthy because many pet foods have been shown to contain proteins that weren’t on the label. 

The following concerns don’t cause a loss of points, but should be noted.

Ingredient splitting occurs in one recipe. This is a technique of splitting ingredients into sub-categories (like potatoes and potato starch) to move certain ingredients higher or lower on the ingredient list. This is often used to disguise the amount of lower quality ingredients in the food, such as corn, potatoes or peas, and moves desirable ingredients, like proteins, higher.

Rayne doesn’t state the omega-6:omega-3 ratio in their foods. While this is true of most foods, AAFCO allows a very inflammatory limit of 30:1, which is a concern because diets high in omega-6 fats can cause chronic inflammation and disease.