Another Orijen question - transitioning off of it

[Doug and Beth]

I know there has been numerous posts about the lawsuit which has been causing panic everywhere. Our 6 year old doodle has been on Orijen since a puppy and we have never had an issue.  However, we are starting to panic a little also.  I contacted our breeder and although she's not a fan of any kibble anymore Orijen was her last recommendation.  She is also concerned about the lawsuit.  Having said that, the only food she is recommending as a back up is Earthborn and based on my research it seems like good food.  

I just got back from the pet store and they warned me that transitioning from Orijen to anything is tough because it's great quality food.  That coupled with the fact we are getting our second doodle puppy in two weeks, I want to be fully prepared. So my questions are...

1)  Has anyone transitioned from Orijen recently?  If so what did you transition to?

2)  How long did it take to transition?  I was planning on a week but not sure if that's enough time.

3)  Is anyone sticking with Orijen and if so why?

Thanks so much for the guidance...I am concerned and looking for help anywhere I can get it.

[Amy and Annabelle]

Annabelle is 3.5 years old. She has been on Orijen since I transitioned her off of the breeder food as a new puppy. I am also concerned. Not so much about the mercury as I feel you are going to get that in any of the food with fish in it, no matter the brand. It was the arsenic and lead that concerned me. Plus there was a price increase on Champion foods at my pet store. So I thought it was a good time to switch her to something else. I tried going with Fromm and she would not even try it. Wanted nothing to do with it. She would rather have nothing, than eat that. So she is still on Orijen regular formula at the moment. I may try Earthborn Primitive Natural, when this bag is gone. That was my next choice. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

We've had a couple of other discussions here about this: 

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/finding...

http://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/champion-foods-orijen-and-...

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/help-ka...

[Scotty]

Truman loves his Earthborn Primitive Natural. And I believe Karen has said that it has a similar profile to Orijen with all the meat based protein. Of all the Earthborn formulas I think it's far & way the closest to Orijen.

Also if you're going to try Earthborn sign up for their e-mail list & you'll get a $3.00 off coupon, plus the monthly e-mail contains a $3.00 off coupon as well so you'll get one every month if you keep using it. Also they have a money back guarantee if you or your pet aren't satisfied with the food, but you have to keep the packaging. So hold onto the bag until you're sure your dog is going to like it and it agrees with their stomach.

https://www.earthbornholisticpetfood.com/register  

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Yes, the Earthborn Primitive Natural formula has the closest nutritional profile to Orijen. However, the environmental group that is behind all this with the heavy metals rates it just as low as Orijen, due to the hihg fish content. So for those who are switching due to this lawsuit and the supposed reasons behind it, switching to Primitive Natural would not be an improvement: https://www.cleanlabelproject.org/products/earthborn-holistic-grain...

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

And in fact, they rate Orijen higher nutritionally: https://www.cleanlabelproject.org/products/orijen-original-chicken-...

[Doug and Beth]

Well who knows what to do then....seems like what vets and breeders recommend gets killed by this clean label project.  If it's the same might as well stick with Orijen then.  We started mixing the food this past Sunday and let's see how the transition goes.  

Once the dust settles and if clean label was wrong hopefully another group of people put a lawsuit against them for punitive damages.  That would be awesome if they were wrong all along

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I am really not taking this Clean Label Project stuff very seriously. As has been mentioned in past discussions, they are an environmental group with an agenda that really has nothing at all to do with dog foods or wanting pets to be healthy. 

[Jennifer and Jack]

I switched Jack off of Acana .. He is on Fromm Duck...   Jack also likes Stella and Chewy freeze dried food -rehydrated.   I personally am a fan of the clean label project in theory. While I don't agree with their gauge on nutrition, I greatly appreciate knowing what is in Jack's food that could potentially harm him.  

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

I really hesitate to trust their ratings system.  They give Purina products a 5/5 stars overall rating but if you look at the summary inside they get 1/5 stars for process contaminants and 1/5 for nutrition... so how exactly did they determine that product gets a 5/5 overall?

https://www.cleanlabelproject.org/products/purina-one-smart-blend-h...

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Becasue they have an agenda that has nothing to do with dogs or nutrition. They are trying to achieve their environmental goals by playing on the fears of pet lovers.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

It's ridiculous.  They also don't provide any specific details about WHY certain formulas have been given a certain # of stars for things, it's just the same definitions under every header.  

I'd love to see some comparisons between the actual levels of "contaminants" in these foods to human foods. I bet there isn't a big difference (if any) since the more trustworthy companies use quality ingredients.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I believe that's true about the levels in human food.