Lotus Natural Dog Food?

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

I was at my local store today buying new food for Tacky.  They have a new line called Lotus dog food.  Here is the link:  http://www.lotuspetfoods.com/faq.php

 

It is made in Canada & the USA - all ingredients come from North America, except lamb from New Zealand.  They say it is "baked instead of extruded".  I am mainly looking at this for Taquito - they have a Senior Recipe that has the right amount of protein, phosphorous and sodium (what I must pay attention to for kidney issues).  I brought a sample home and he went crazy.  Probably because it is chicken based instead of his usually fish Solid Gold Adult food.  It smelled quite yummy though.  He was all smiles.

 

I like the ingredients used in all the recipes, protein ranges from 24% to 27% for all except the Senior.  Here is the Senior Recipe ingredients.  Thoughts?  Feel free to tell me this sucks :)

Chicken, Whole Ground Rye, Whole Ground Brown Rice, Pollock, Ground Barley, Oat Meal, Dried Egg Product, Pea Fiber, Oil Blend (Soybean oil, Olive Oil, Salmon Oil; Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols, and Citric Acid), Brewers Dried Yeast, Pumpkin, Calcium Carbonate, Apples, Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, Spinach, Blueberries, Flaxseed, Garlic, Salt, Potassium Chloride, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (a source of Vitamin C), Zinc Proteinate, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chondroitin Sulfate, Iron Proteinate, Dried Chicory Root, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Kelp, Vitamin E Supplement, New Zealand Green Mussel, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Lactobacillus Lactis, and Lactobacillus Casei fermentation solubles, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Niacin, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Pantothenate, Folic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Source of Vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement and Rosemary Extract.

Crude Protein (Min)	18.0%
Crude Fat (Min)	8.0%
Crude Fiber (Max)	4.5%
Moisture (Max)	10.0%
Vitamin E (Min)	100 IU/kg
Omega 3 Fatty Acids* (Min)	0.30%
Omega 6 Fatty Acids* (Min)	2.00%
Glucosamine Hydrochloride* (Min)	600mg/kg
Chondroitin Sulfate* (Min)	500mg/kg
Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C)* (Min)	250mg/kg
Ash	4.05%
Calcium	0.61%
Phosphorus	0.50%
Sodium	0.15%
Magnesium	0.15%

 

 

 

 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The ingredients look okay. I'd like a statement from the company that the food is ethoxyquin- free.

I was also trying to find the Solid Gold nutritional info to compare the Omega 3 & 6 ratios with this food, and I can't find that info anywhere. Got the analysis, but no Omega 3 or 6 info. Do you have a bag with that info on it?

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Karen, it is ethoxyquin free:

6. HOW DO I KNOW THAT LOTUS IS REALLY ETHOXYQUIN FREE?
Lotus only purchases proteins that are specified by the manufacturer to be preserved with vitamin E, citric acid, and rosemary. This means all our fish, fish meal, chicken, chicken meal, lamb, lamb meal, duck, and duck meal are all naturally preserved. We do this even though we could claim our food is natural by just adding a natural preservative to the food and not worrying about how our proteins are preserved. We feel it’s necessary to go the extra mile and commit to never buying proteins that are preserved with things like Ethoxyquin, BHT, or BHA even though they are cheaper. 

 

Omega 3 or 6 info on the Solid Gold - trying to find my detailed analysis.  Hold on a sec...

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Omega 6:  1.7%

Omega 3:  .3%

 

I am going to still buy the Solid Gold, but thought if this is comparable, I could have a backup and give him some variety - poor guy doesn't get much of that.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Yep, it's close. The Solid Gold has a teeny bit better ration, but not significant enough to make much difference, especially if you alternate between them. I'd say it looks like a good food, and one that we could recommend.

[KC]

I don't know if this helps,  but since we sometimes add an egg or yogurt to Milo's kibble, I liked the fact that Acana did not have citric acid in it. I was told that you should not moisten kibble that has citric acid in it as it can cause bloat and other problems.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The presence of citric acid in dry dog food is one risk factor in bloat, even if it isn't moistened. Moistening it increases the risk. So you have to look at your dog's overall risk of developing bloat when making decisions on foods. If you have a very large, deep chested dog Lab who bolts his food and is at high risk for bloat, you would want to avoid feeding anything that adds to that risk. Tacky is at very little risk of bloat, because he's a chihuahua.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Not a big risk - he's a little dood that takes about 20 minutes to finish 1/4 cup of food...hehe.

[Frannie & Callie]

I actually get Lotus for my fosters (for the past 4 fosters). The baked formula seems to be very stomach gentle for these guys who are just coming off of shelter food (and it is evidently quite yummy to them). The owner of Inman Park Pet Works is very into pet nutrition (above and beyond just making a buck) and she had recommended it when I was wanting to feed a quality food but didn't want to break the bank (it's not cheap, but not as expensive as Orijen).

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Good to know - thanks!  I think a 6 lb. bag is $16, so it is actually more $ than Solid Gold.  I just like being able to have a comparable backup that is nutritious.  The easy on the stomach comment helps too - he had the sample and it didn't even phase him, so I think you are right.