| Website | Canidae |
| Available from | Pet Circle |
The Canidae are a reputable company, there’s no question about that. They won’t use any ingredients they don’t determine to be human-grade, and they avoid using fillers in their food. For our Canidae PURE dog food review we’ll take a look at the Real Bison formula, but consider the others in the range on par.
What the marketing says
Canidae claim to formulate their foods with “whole body health” in mind, with “no fillers, artificial ingredients, or artificial preservatives”. Their food supports healthy digestion with probiotics, healthy joints with glucosamine and chondriotin, skin and coat from Omega 3 & 6, and a healthy immune system from antioxidants.
What the labelling really says
Let’s take a look at the ingredients…
Bison comes first on the list which is what we would expect with a decent product. It’s a decent animal protein source, and to ramp up the meat in the food we find lamb meal as the second ingredient. Great stuff.
The next six ingredients, however, will likely be in similar quantities to the two meat ingredients. These are a combination of sweet potatoes, peas, lentils, carrots, pork meal, and tapioca. It’s good to see a mix, but it’s worth noting we have three meats to five non-meat ingredients. At least they’re balanced, and that’s a good thing compared to the many dog foods which are very little meat and a hell of a lot of wheat.
Sweet potato is a great source of carbohydrates, and preferable to regular (cheaper) potatoes. Peas are a good source of fibre and a nice ingredient to see in a dog food, but will also contribute to the protein in the food.
Canola oil isn’t the best choice of oil. I’d rather see fish or flax oil as a better alternative as they contain more omega-3, but Canola isn’t too bad. Omega fatty acids are required for good health as well as a healthy coat.
Canidae All Life Stages seems to have more meat in the ingredients, but the protein levels in the grain free variety is slightly higher at 25%. That’s good for a food, and suitable for dogs of most ages and breeds.
It’s great to see a range of inclusions to really support the health and wellbeing of your dog. This is where a pet food really stands out. As advertised they’ve included a range of ingredients to support joints, skin, and coat, with added probiotics to help your dog digest those vital nutrients.
Where to buy
Canidae PURE dog food review summary
I’ve found the Canidae PURE range to be excellent for dogs prone to allergies or itchy skin, so before medication give a bag of this a try.
This food is a great all rounder, with decent meat and carbohydrate content. It’s a food I’ve fed my own dogs and would happily feed again. It has shown to be a reliable, quality product with a well-deserved reputation.
We hope our Canidae PURE dog food review has been of use. Let us know if it has (or hasn’t!)
Ingredients
Bison, lamb meal, sweet potatoes, peas, lentils, carrots, pork meal, tapioca, canola oil, suncured alfalfa, natural flavor, minerals (iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite), vitamins (vitamin E supplement, thiamine mononitrate, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid), choline chloride, mixed tocopherols (a preservative), dried enterococcus faecium fermentation product, dried lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried lactobacillus casei fermentation product, dried lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, dried trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract.
Guaranteed Analysis
| Protein | (min) 25% |
| Fat | (min) 14.5% |
| Crude Fibre | (max) 4% |
| Carbohydrates * | Estimated 42.5% |
Great food. I cannot seem to find a retailer in Australia who sells it since the pandemic.
My cavalier had Canidae pure sky for 5 years, I mix it with Ziwipeak, and my dog loves it. His coat is always smooth and shiny, and he never had any skin issues with this food.
Recently I can’t find Canidae pure anywhere in Sydney, either online on in store. I don’t know if there is a supply issue or import issue? I bought a Zignature for him to try, but he totally ignored it, I don’t know what alternatives should I buy for my fussy boy.
Hi Mendy, it seems to be in stock at Pet Circle. Otherwise Taste of the Wild PREY is a very similar alternative to Canidae Pure.
Love Canidae as a kibble. Used it for a few years for my German Spitz and Keeshonds. Seems to be supply issues here in Western Australia so switch to Taste of the Wild and it’s just as good!
We have used canidae for 2 years now until one of our dogs was violently ill last week. Googling canidae reveals alot of owners experiencing the same symptoms. Will never buy again.
this seems to be out of stock everywhere 🙁
What the heck is going on?
It’s the people that import Canidae into Australia, they only import once a month, so as the month is ending so is Canidae formula’s until another shipment comes the beginning of the new month, it’s been happening for years now & people & shop owners have had enough & are sick of it & stock Taste Of The Wild now so when they run out of Canidae they put people onto TOTW & people stay with TOTW…. apparently Pet Circle were suppose to be importing Canidae into the country but I don’t know if Pet Circle did, someone told me if you wanted to make money import Canidae anyone can import Canidae into Australia, My Pet Warehouse are the only ones with Canidae’s new formula’s, it took Canidae Australia 1-2 yrs to bring the new Canidae Pure formula’s into Australia, I kept emailing Canidae America asking them why hasn’t Australia got the New Pure Wild & Pure Meadow & they said it’s up to the people that import Canidae into Australia they can pick which ever formula’s & treats they want to bring into Australia……
My boy does really well on the Canidae Pure Meadow Senior & TOTW Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb… always rotate between 2 different brands this way you have 2 formula’s your dog does well on & can buy if one runs out…..
Try Pet circle and My Pet Warehouse (online). I had no choice but to buy from Pet Circle last time as My Pet Warehouse had limited supply. They seemed to be stocked up now. Check their websites as the prices will vary from week to week.
Maybe try an online store like my pet warehouse? I checked their stocks and they have plenty left.
After a lot of research, I bought a bag of Canidae Pure Sea for my one year old Cocker Spaniel when I needed to switch her to adult food.
It’s been about 6 weeks now, and the result is a bit of a mixed bag. On the positive, I love the natural ingredients. On the negative, my dog doesn’t seem too fussed on it. She eats it sometimes, and leaves it others. This could be just because she’s become a bit fussier in her diet though….
After a checkup with my vet on the weekend, and finding out she doesn’t have great teeth (which is very worrisome for a 1 yr old), I will be looking for an alternative dry food with larger biscuit size. The Canidae food is so small that there’s a good chance she swallows them whole, and looses any benefits from having to crunch them between her teeth.
Can anyone recommend a similar high quality food with larger biscuit size?
I use Canidae Pure Sea, but mix it up with some Big Dog Barf Raw Kangaroo, Turkey or Fish (other flavours available) and she (German Shepherd) seems to love it. She had a few skin issues on her belly with the previous biscuit, however the above combination now seems to work and her skin/hair are back to normal. She wasn’t a huge fan of any small dry biscuit, but mixed with a bit of raw big dog barf meat and her food started to disappear quickly. I don’t put in a lot either, a third of a pattie mixed with her biscuits does the trick.
As far as teeth go, I’ve tried a few things, but the vet still recommends a clean every now and then.
Stay Loyal and Ivory Coat have good size kibble, quite good for crunching up!
Kibble tends to shatter on impact and is unlikely to do much of anything to the teeth, some kibbles have the toothpaste ingredient sodium tripolyphosphate that is the most likely reason the dogs have white teeth and not the kibble itself, however the ingredient isn’t one you want to use on dogs, we spit our toothpaste out after all.
Your better off getting her a bone or if she can handle it a chicken wing (weekly or even less so it’s quiet fatty can cause pancreatitis if used too often) (chicken necks have been mentioned same with frames and feet) or simply brush her teeth yourself, unless she’s one of those dogs who wouldn’t get caught dead with your hands anywhere near her face.
When I watch Rusty eat kibble or even Anja they smash it with their back teeth, so their side teeth don’t get any action and to be honest their teeth aren’t any better off on it, Rusty’s are still yellow and her breath still stinks.
They can’t tolerate bones so unfortunately I have no real choice with them other than to get them cleaned every few years at the vet.
I’m just wondering if Canidae is irradiated when it is sent to Australia from California. Many thanks!
Thanks for the answers guys! Just contacted Canidae and they quickly responded saying they do not irradiate! They cook their food at 115 degrees for 30mins which eliminates bacteria etc. Comforting to know!
A wile back I contacted Canidae in California in regards irradiating there food.
Got the same response as you did, Dana. Irradiating causes cancer in dogs, stay away from Pet food / ingredients from Asia.
I can confirm Canidae products aren’t irradiated.
That’s a pretty low temperature that’s good, some are cooked so high I doubt there’s anything left in there except ashes haha.
Someone commented very recently on a website I visited just now saying they do not and the website also saying thank you for not irradiating your food.
I’m almost certain it isn’t
Sorted my dogs itching out within 2 weeks. He was on supercoat before
I tried Canadae dog food after extensive research into the best dog food for my epileptic dog. I purchased a large bag of Canadae after travelling an hour to the store and when l was preparing my dogs evening meal that night! I noticed the Canadae dog food pellets contained clumps of mouldy pellets throughout the bag. I couldn’t feed the product to my dog and had to drive an hour to exchange the product the next day. I notified Canidae to alert them of there defective product and after a few days they responded by asking me to place the bag in a box being delivered by a courier and they would send some dog treats for my troubles. I informed them l had already returned the product to the place of purchase and l haven’t heard anything further from the company. No treats for my trouble or should l say damage control. I purchased this product because of the supposedly high quality and because it is Australian made. After my dog has finished the bag of product l guess l will be changing to a different product that follows through with there customer service.
Hi Tracey, that’s unfortunate. I very rarely hear of issues with Canidae. Most manufacturers are prone to issues with mould on occasion, and it only takes a small hole in the bag combined with a humid environment during transport or storage to cause this to happen. Canidae use paper-based packaging too, which I imagine wouldn’t help. Canidae is actually made in Southern California and imported to Australia by a company called Holistic Pet Foods P/L.
I had my sheltie n Canidae grain free (she loves the sea one) but it is difficult to get unless ordering onlne,- I,was grabbing Apleaws after reading your review of that and she has been quite happy with that although she has gained a bit of weight in the past few months I,think,that is due to reduced series as she is pulling up lame when she runs, rather than either foods.
As Applaws is less than half the price of Canidae, I,am wondering if Canidae is a superior product or if she will be K on Applaws for most of the time,- I,figure I can grab a Canidae every 3/4th time to mix it up a bit – is Applaws OK as main/staple,dry food,all the time or is Canidae the way to go?
Thanks again for this brilliant site – I have sent the link to all of my doggie friends
Cheers
Hi Deb, yes Applaws is a balanced diet. You can certainly mix it with Canidae – I recommend mixing foods.
Canidae grain free pure foundation puppy vs taste of the wild high prairie puppy? Which do you think is better for a 10 week old lab pup?
Hi David, they’re both good. You could rotate between the two for added variety.
Canidae is bringing out 4 new Grainfree flavours Pure Meadow-Senior fat is 10%, Pure Resolve-Weight Management fat is 9%, Pure Fields-Small Breed all have 9 ingredients & Pure Wild-Wild Boar with only 7 ingredients…. http://www.canidae.com/dog-food/dry
My fussy Sheltie also likes the Pure Sea formula, usually I gave to combine dry and wet foods thoroughly to get her to eat her dry but she has no problem with this.
I love Canidae (and my dog does too), I feed him the PURE Sea formula and I’ve never seen him healthier. When you open the bag you can smell the salmon so you know it’s excellent quality! And only 10 ingredients – that’s fantastic for dogs with sensitivities to certain things.
I would recommend the sea for particularly fussy dogs, otherwise the Elements is a good place to start!
switching to canidae was the best decision I have made for my best buddy. He was the fussiest of eaters but now gets very excited at meal times. I have tried a few different varieties in this range and I am happy with them all (oh well my dog is)
His coat is the best it has ever been, soft and glossy and he looks fabulous.
I highly recommend Canidae Grain Free to all