TASTE OF THE WILD DRY DOG FOOD REVIEW

With an average score of 4.2, Taste Of The Wild’s Dry Dog Food line is considered a high risk dry dog food. This line loses food quality points for its somewhat high carbohydrate content, with an average of almost 34% (and in one food, 40%). Excessive carbohydrate is in indicator of low quality foods, used to keep costs down. Large amounts of starch can increase insulin levels, cause obesity and negatively impact gut balancSeveral Taste of the Wild foods contain an unnamed animal protein – specifically ocean fish or ocean fish meal. Anmal sources of protein are important but they should be named (eg salmon, beef, chicken). Unspecified protein sources are usually poor quality, especially meals, which are often made from rendered waste.  

Taste of the Wild loses ingredient quality points for added canola oil  in some recipes. Seed oils are typically high in omega-6 fats, which can cause systemic and gut inflammation. Seed oils are also highly processed. This line also loses ingredient quality points for added vitamin and mineral premix. Ideally, these nutrients should come from whole food sources and their inclusion on a label is usually due to poor quality or overly processed raw ingredients. Vitamin and mineral excesses, especially vitamin D and copper, can also result from vitamin premixes.

It’s also worth noting that the 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.  

This food’s safety score is lower because, like all kibbles, Taste Of The Wild is ultra-processed. The individual ingredients in dry dog foods are heated several times during processing, which can cause a significant loss of enzymes, vitamins, amino acids and phytonutrients. Processed foods are also linked to higher mortality rates in many species.

Rounding out the food safety scores, Taste of the Wild loses points for high pesticide or herbicide foods, often in the top 5 ingredients (peas, lentils, garbanzo beans). The food also loses ingredient safety points for natural flavor. This is often either animal digest or MSG, which are low quality ingredients with limited safety studies.

The label does not provide the omega-6:omega-3 ratio, which is a concern since AAFCO allows a very inflammatory ratio of 30:1.

There’s also a concern about ingredient splitting in these foods. This is the practice of splitting ingredients into sub-categories (like peas, pea protein and pea flour) to make them appear lower in the ingredient list. It’s often done to disguise the amount of lower quality ingredients in the food.

There’s no indication whether fish ingredients are farmed or wild-caught. Farmed fish is less nutritious and has a less favorable fatty acid balance than wild caught fish. Fish farming also threatens wild fish species.

Some Taste of the Wild foods contain a quality protein source like “pasture-raised venison” … but as a smaller ingredient that’s quite far down the ingredient list. The first ingredient is water buffalo. Water buffalo may suggest the food contains American buffalo (aka bison). Water buffalo is a completely different animal from Asia, and it’s a lower-cost source of protein.

Taste of the Wild foods all contain “glam” ingredients, like raspberries and blueberries. These are healthy-sounding ingredients shown  on the ingredient list below the salt. Any ingredient below the salt means it’s in tiny amounts and won’t benefit your dog. 

The Taste of The Wild Dry Dog Food does add and guarantee a decent amount of probiotics in the food.