Taste of the Wild Dog Food: Review

Taste of the Wild is a top-selling, family-owned dog food brand under the Diamond Pet Company umbrella. The founders started out of a desire to create a high-quality, affordable pet food that mimicked the way the ancestors of our pets ate. Taste of the Wild offers grain-free, protein-focused food that a dog’s inner wolf or a cat’s inner mountain lion would crave. They currently have nine different dry dog foods and five types of canned dog food. 

Each formula is designed by in-house vets to come up with food that is as close to the ancestral diet as possible. As such, they produce dog food based on the geographic diets of ancestral dogs, inspired by places like Canyon River, Pine Forest, Sierra Mountain, Appalachian Valley, and more. For example, the Appalachian Valley recipe is targeted to small breeds, featuring region appropriate animal proteins like venison and lamb. 

More than just including above-average protein, every Taste of the Wild Dry Canine Recipe is enhanced with K9 Strain® Probiotics. And probiotics are an incredibly beneficial ingredient to improve your dog’s digestive health. 

Taste of the Wilds makes their food across five state-of-the-art facilities in the USA: two in California, one in Missouri, one in Arkansas, and one in South Carolina. They form close relationships with suppliers and have a careful vetting process, even when some ingredients are sourced from overseas. But you can rest assured—Taste of the Wild solely uses ingredients that are both sustainable and humanely raised.

Now that you have more background on Taste of the Wild as a brand, it’s time to dive deeper into their dog food. To help you better decide on whether their products are the right fit for your canine, we’ve reviewed their highest-rated dry and wet dog food below.

Taste of the Wild makes this grain-free recipe using real venison, it is the top ingredient, followed by other whole foods to support lean muscles and overall nutritional requirements. With 28% protein it beats out many top competitors, it also has high-fat content, which is a good thing in this case, because it is full of omega-3 and omega-6, which is good for cardiovascular health, as well as skin and coat health. 

You’ll be glad to know that there are no grain, corn, wheat, filler, artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives in this recipe. Making it a good choice for dogs with sensitive stomachs, as many of the aforementioned ingredients are rampant in the dog food industry, and can trigger sensitivities. A nice touch is the K9 strain probiotic blend, which along with the limited ingredients is going to be so sweet for your dog’s gut!

Customer reviews:

“My dog loves it. Will order again”

Guaranteed analysis:

• Protein (min): 28.0%
• Fat (min): 15.0%
• Fiber (max): 5.5%
• Moisture (max): 10.0%

Nutritional Info
Ingredients: Venison, lamb meal, garbanzo beans, peas, lentils, pea protein, pea flour, egg product, canola oil, fava beans, tomato pomace, natural flavor, ocean fish meal, salmon oil (a source of DHA), salt, DL-methionine, choline chloride, taurine, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, yucca schidigera extract, dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, dried Bacillus subtilis fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation procuct, dried Bifidobacterium animalis fermentation product, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid. Contains a source of live (viable), naturally occurring microorganisms.

Wet dog food is not the Taste of the Wild’s forte, unlike their dry food. It is still a solid product that is fairly limited in its ingredient composition. It is made with fowl, which is fairly unique. Fowl if you don’t know is a blend of duck, turkey, and quail. This gives this recipe a nice blend of proteins, fats, and amino acids. The recipe is also supplemented with a healthy amount of easily digestible fruits and vegetables, full of antioxidants to help keep nasty health issues away.

The bottom line for this product is that it is below average for guaranteed analysis composition, above average in quality of ingredients. So if you want to give your dog high-quality ingredients in a unique formula that should be easy on their digestion, then this is a solid choice. Mixing Taste of the Wild’s dry and wet foods is our preferred method of feeding, you get all the high-quality ingredients, and the right amount of protein.

Customer reviews:

“My people started getting me Taste of the Wild when my last kibble was discontinued a couple years ago. I eat it right up! This is my first bag of the Pine Forest flavor. It doesn’t taste like a pine forest and I should know, because I live in one. But it does taste like the deer that I like to bark at from inside my fence which is cool. My people get me a different flavor with each order and I am excited to taste what comes next! I am a fit 9-year old, about 60 pounds and a 25-pound bag lasts me 10-11 weeks.”

“I have always fed this brand. My Mini Schnauzer is 11 years old.She decided she didn’t like it so tried some other brands that weren’t grain free. She started itching in a matter of days. Switched back to this brand, but this new flavor and she loves it. She doesn’t itch any more.”

Guaranteed analysis: 

• Protein (min): 8.0%
• Fat (min): 3.5%
• Fiber (max): 1.0%
• Moisture (max): 82.0%

Nutritional Info
Ingredients: Duck, duck broth, chicken broth, chicken liver, dried egg product, chicken, potato starch, potatoes, roasted duck, roasted quail, smoked turkey, peas, ocean fish, guar gum, natural flavor, sodium phosphate, salt, flaxseed oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), potassium chloride, inulin, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, blueberries, raspberries, choline chloride, yucca schidigera extract, zinc amino acid chelate, iron amino acid chelate, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin E supplement, copper amino acid chelate, manganese amino acid chelate, sodium selenite, cobalt amino acid chelate, niacin supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, vitamin A supplement, riboflavin supplement, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement, potassium iodide, pyridoxine hydrochloride, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid, rosemary extract.

Taste of the Wild has had only one recall to-date. In May 2012, they were one of the 14 brands that Diamond Pet Food recalled due to potential salmonella contamination.