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from Canyon, TX on 9/28/2008
We have two basset hound puppies who look beautiful, play hard, and sleep hard. They love their Instinct (kibbles and canned). Grain-free is the way to go! Although we spend more for top quality food, it is well worth it. These are our girls and they deserve the best. We have no complaints. They love their meals and howl if we are just a little late. They love us because of how we feed them and treat them. We highly recommend Instinct and so does our veterinarian!
from Archbald, PA on 7/14/2008
Our dog seemed to like the product and his coat did improve. Seemed healthy for our pet.
from Brookdale, CA on 6/16/2008
This food contains Montmorillonite Clay which is one of those ingredients that is essential to good health and is rare in packaged food.
from Houston, Texas on 5/9/2008
The food does break down to easy into a crumble that is somewhat messy but my four dogs love it.
from Cranberry Twp PA on 1/19/2008
I switched to this food after lengthy research into different foods. My two puggles are both doing great on it. Their coats are shiny and soft. My male puggle is complete muscle and my female puggle has lost 3 pounds on it. Both dogs have smaller stools as well. I will say that it is best to switch very slowly to this food though. I switched my pug too quickly and she got very sick with diarrhea for two weeks. We could not put her back on this food, it is too rich for her stomach. But for dogs without sensitive stomachs, its a winner!
from Arizona on 12/13/2007
I have been researching different foods for MANY years. My 10 month old Doberman likes this food best out of all kibble type foods. As far as kibble goes, it has the best nutritional value, that I have found. I LOVE that it is grain free, making it nutritionally supirior to all other kibble foods. I like that they dont hype the different "Age Stages". A nutritionally correct food should be correct for any life stage (after weaning off of nursing their mother, of course). And dogs dont need "DIET" food! They need more protein, less CARBS(not fat), NO grains(which ARE the 'bad' carbs, for dogs) and MORE excersize, is all!! I think an overweight dog would probably be at a healthier weight if switched to this food. Not enough excersize I think is the first culprit in an overweight dog, but too much grains/carbohydrates, I believe also play a BIG part in all the overweight dogs! Dogs' bodies dont contain enough of the enzyme that DIGESTS grains! I wish some people would lsiten to this! However, I feel that a RAW, species appropriate diet is BEST. Instinct kibble is definatly more convenient than a raw diet & would be the kibble that is closest to a raw diet (although it is still cooked like ALL kibble & ALL canned foods). It might be a good transitioner food for someone who is feeding their dog a lower quality dry kibble, that eventually wants to feed a raw diet.
Since my dog is still young, I still feed her twice a day(and actually dont think it hurts for a large dog to stay on 2 meals a day for life, to prevent BLOAT, if they are on a kibble diet, BUT if on a species appropriate RAW diet, they can eat once a day & even fast one day every week or two, because it contains more water& is more natural). I have a hard time getting her to eat it for breakfast. She prefers raw food over this(and any) kibble. If I feed her raw for breakfast, she is usually a little more likely to eat the kibble for dinner. My dog is a picky eater & when I first switched to this food she GOBBLED it down (compared to the *popular brand I wont mention* "Large Breed Puppy" kibble she USED to eat before this one, that she took FOREVER to eat). So she liked this kibble better than any other I tryed, but after trying the Nature's Variety RAW FOOD, she got much less interested in eating even this kibble. It has been a battle to get her to eat this kibble lately, because she expects the raw food & wants that instead. So I think I will switch her to a RAW ONLY diet soon. For people who dont want to feed a raw diet(for whatever reason), I would DEFIATELY recommend this food!! I think all people who feed a kibble instead of raw (or with raw) should be feeding THIS kibble!!
from Norfolk, VA on 10/24/2007
I feed my dogs Instinct dry food with a tablespoon of instinct wet, canned food. They love it and their digestive systems have no problems at all. I have a puppy and an older dog who eat this diet and it is great for both of them. Plus, it helps my older dog keep weight off and my puppy grow healthy and strong while getting great nutrition at the same time.
from Orange,CA on 9/21/2007
Good food with dog's health in mind.
from Hawaii on 8/31/2007
I have my dogs on a combination of this dry dog food and the Natures Variety Raw Food Diet. They love it! There was no tummy upset from the switch over and the transition was very easy for my picky eater. My picky eater is also allergic to flea saliva, so one flea bite and its a full blown problem. (If we let him, he would scratch until he had no hair!) Since switching, the problem seems to have improved a lot. My other dog, who is 12, seemed to be slowing down a bit in his old age. Recently, he seems to have lots and lots of energy to run around and play. I don't think I'll be switching their diets again anytime soon!
from Butte, Montana on 8/20/2007
My dog is 4 years old. She had a TPLO surgery one year ago that I'm am NOT satisfied with the results, it has caused more problems than I was originally dealing with. By her not using the leg she had the surgery on it accelerated the arthritis in her other leg. So I decided to try a grain free diet to see if that would help with the inflammation. I have been feeding her this product for about two months and she has made alot of improvement. She was also overweight and has lost alot of weight with this food. I highly recommend it!!
from Hawaii on 8/20/2007
I've recently started switching my two dogs over to a combination of this dry dog food and the Nature's Variety RAW food diet. So far it seems to be going very well. No signs of tummy upset and they seem to love it!
from East Bay, California on 8/6/2007
My dog absolutely devours this food, so I cannot fault it, especially when he is quite picky about other dried foods; however, I prefer Nature's Variety raw diet just because with the raw, my dog has itty-bitty chihuahua sized poo's, and with this kibble, he has great, big German Shepherd-sized poo's. So, obviously, more filler in this one than the other.
from Arizona on 6/23/2007
After transitioning our Border Collie from natural balance to Natures Variety Instinct Dog Food we have seen a big difference. Her coat again glistens, her stools are firm, and she absolutely loves it! I love the high quality ingredients and the assurance of knowing our dog gets the best nutrition available. You can rotate within the natures variety lines to give interest and change to feeding times without risk of digestive upset.
from Lansdale, PA on 5/31/2007
I have 2 10 year old beagles and a 1 year old mini schnauzer. Switching their diet to this food has totally changed their lives and behavior. My one beagle is like a new puppy! A year ago she could barely jump up on the couch, now she's running around constantly with my mini like she's 1 again! It's incredible. And it also helped with my other beagle who had gas a lot of the time and always had allergies, this cleared it right up within weeks! This is amazing and I will never switch!!
from Marion, Indiana on 4/18/2007
I have 6 year old German Shepherd that was diagnosed with excocrine pancreatic insufficiency last year, she cannot digest fats or carbs. She was litterally starving to death before our eyes, at the same time she ate like a horse and her appetite was ravenous !
We had bloodwork done on her and found out she had E.P.I.
The vets wanted her on Science diet GI, but she continued to lose weight and her stool was yellow the consistency of mashed potatoes. It was not until I started feeding Raw Instinct, with pancreatic enzymes crushed and sprinkled over the food. that she returned to the beautiful healthy dog she was before she got sick. Her coat shines, she has gained 7 pounds and she has boundless energy. Her stools have returned to normal and She begs for breakfast and supper !
Thank you Nature's Variety for this wonderful food. You saved my baby !
[1 of 1 customers found this review helpful]
from Southern Minnesota on 3/16/2007
I started feeding Innova EVO but the local pet supply store was no longer able to special order it for me. I switched to Nature's Variety RAW INSTINCT and have been pleased with it ever since. I suppliment this with their frozen RAW food (medallions) and have had good results.
[1 of 1 customers found this review helpful]
from LA, CA on 2/28/2007
My dog is on the "raw diet" (aka BARF) but it gets very expensive so I started feeding this kibble as well to cut back on the raw meat costs. It is so tasty to my dog and healthy for him. I don't feel guilty feeding this because it is cost effective AND healthy!
[3 of 3 customers found this review helpful]
from Jackson, MS on 12/1/2006
My American Eskimo had pyoderma and is very sensitive to dog foods. Her stomach can't even handle some dog treats. I didn't want her on the food that the breeder gave me because I felt it wasn't healthy. The food that I wanted to switch her to did not agree with her stomach at all. I kept trying to find a dog food that was healthy for her as well as agreeable. I went through 4 different dog food brands before I found this brand. It's grain-free and delicious! It's all life stages and with three dogs at three different life stages it's wonderful! Delta's stomach immediently agreed with the food and her pyoderma has cleared up. She has a beautiful shiny coat and I am thankful for this brand.
[3 of 3 customers found this review helpful]
from Ulysses, KS on 11/28/2006
Within 3 days my dogs allergies and rashes that she suffered with were gone.