Natural Balance Dog Food: Review

Natural Balance is a mid-range pet food brand that brings animal health science experts and pet parents together to create quality, premium, species-appropriate pet food. It was founded in 1989 by Dick Van Patten and Joey Herrick. In 2013, the company merged with Del Monte but was quickly acquired by J.M. Smucker. They source fine ingredients from all over the world, from places like France, India, New Zealand, Canada, and the U.S. And all their products are made in the U.S.

Natural Balance was born out of Van Patten’s inspiration to create quality pet food and fill the growing demand for organic, filler-free food with no by-products. Pet owners can choose from a wide range of premium pet food products that use high-quality meat, gluten-free formulas, limited ingredient diets, and more. 

Natural Balance shines with their Feed With Confidence program. Their promise is that every batch of food and treats are tested to ensure quality and safety. But they go a step above by giving you the opportunity to find the testing results of your pet food, simply by entering your product 10-digit UPC and 7-digit Lot Number. 

Natural Balance also has a non-profit charity program to give back to pet rescuers. They provide cash to qualifying rescues in exchange for Proof of Purchase UPCs and original receipts. 

Now that you know more about Natural Balance, it’s time to dive deeper into their diverse line-up of products. To help you better decide on whether their dog food is the right fit for your canine, we’ve reviewed their highest-rated dry and wet dog food below. 

Natural Balance offers a very nice limited ingredient dry dog food. It is composed of lamb and brown rice, it is gluten-free and has lamb as its first ingredient, where it gets most of its 22% protein. Although not as high in protein as other dry dog foods, the fact that it is a limited ingredient diet is the main benefit of this product.

Limited ingredient recipes are great for dogs with food sensitivities, and especially if you want to avoid foods with unnecessary fillers. So if your dog has a sensitive stomach, no matter what breed, this is a solid American made food.

Customer reviews:

“My boy has so many food allergies that it’s hard to find food that he can have. The food we were getting for him suddenly became unavailable everywhere, and since I didn’t want him to starve, I decided to change his food. After a fairly exhaustive search, I settled on this one. He inhales it and his allergies aren’t any worse so I guess we’ll call this a win”

“My Dog loves it. thrives on it. All skin reactions from another food are gone. He’s back to the active boy he’s always been. Thank you chewy for your delivery to my door.”

Guaranteed analysis:

• Protein (min): 22.0%
• Fat (min): 12.0%
• Fiber (max): 4.0%
• Moisture (max): 10.0%

Nutritional Info
Ingredients: Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Brewers Rice, Rice Bran, Canola Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Lactic Acid), Lamb, Dried Tomato Pomace, Brewers Dried Yeast, Natural Flavor, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Source of Vitamin C), Inositol, Niacin, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Beta-Carotene, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin), Minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganese Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Choline Chloride, Citric Acid (Used As a Preservative), Rosemary Extract.

Caloric Content

3600 kcal/kg, 370 kcal/cup

This canned dog food is great for all life stages and dog breeds. Coming in a pate texture, your dog will love eating this on its own, or having it added to their kibble! It has meat-based products as its first 3 ingredients, so your pup will be getting protein from real beef, and moisture from beef broth (yum!).

With no artificial ingredients or by-products, this is a nice option for dogs with stomach sensitivities. It has added Vitamin A and Vitamin B12 to support healthy immune functioning. A unique feature of this food is added Yucca Schidigera extract, which is a supplement that aids gastrointestinal health and can reduce stool odor, which is a win if you’re picking up your dog’s poop on your walks.

Customer reviews:

“Switched to this blend when previous selection was no longer supplied. The dogs love it!!”

“My 4 dogs love this food and they seem to be very excited to have this wet food mixed in their dry kibbles. My Treeing Walker Coonhound has a very sensitive digesting system and we went through several brands of food, but his poop looks very healthy with his food. Thank you.”

Guaranteed analysis: 

• Protein (min): 12.0%
• Fat (min): 5.0%
• Fiber (max): 1.0%
• Moisture (max): 78.0%

Nutritional Info
Ingredients: Beef, Beef Broth, Beef Liver, Potatoes, Carrots, Brown Rice, Oat Bran, Canola Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Dehydrated Potatoes, Vitamins (L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Source of Vitamin C), Vitamin E Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Niacin, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid), Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Sulfate, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Guar Gum, Sodium Tripolyphosphate, Dried Kelp, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Natural Smoke Flavor, Menhaden Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Taurine, Choline Chloride, Carrageenan, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Parsley, Rosemary Extract.

Caloric Content

1200 kcal/kg, 205 kcal/6-oz canm, 440 kcal/13-oz can

In 2012 and 2010, the brand recalled several dry dog food products because of potential salmonella contamination.

Natural Balance was one of the numerous companies involved in the melamine recalls of 2007. And Natural Balance maintains that their manufacturer, American Nutrition Inc. was responsible for adding rice protein concentrate without their knowledge. As a result, this led to several dog and cat canned food being recalled due to the high protein concentrates. 

Since this recall, Natural Balance has improved their food safety process by committing to transparency. Their “Feed With Confidence” program was established to give consumers access to laboratory results of their pet food products. This is what sets Natural Balance apart from the competition, as no other pet food company offers a service like this.