Natural Balance Dog Food, Lamb Formula, 4 Pound Roll

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I've used this product for 9 years, ever since we went through puppy training with my dog. Since then, it's been a relatively healthy treat and a good tool for behavior reinforcement. I say relatively healthy because so many dog treats are full of wheat and other grain fillers. The Amazon product ingredient listing is for the OLD formulation. Let's examine the first 8 ingredients of that formulation:

Lamb, Lamb Hearts, Lamb Kidneys, Lamb Lungs, Whole Wheat Flour, Rice Flour, Lamb Fat (Preserved with mixed Tocopherols and Ascorbic Acid source of Vitamin C) Sucrose.

The first 4 ingredients are lamb, and so the inclusion of wheat and rice flour as the fifth and sixth ingredients, while not optimal, is allowable for texture. The lamb fat is perfectly good for a dog's diet, while the eigth ingredient, sucrose (table sugar) is not healthful at all. Presumably it was added for palatability, but as the eight ingredient overall, it might be an acceptable concession.

Now, check out the new formulation's first 8 ingredients, from the Natural Balance web site:

Lamb Lungs, Wheat Flour, Sugar, Lamb, Wheat Bran, Lamb Hearts, Salt, Rice Flour.

Only 3 of the first 8 ingredients could be considered optimal for canine health: the rest is filler or worse. Wheat flour and sugar displace two meaty ingredients in the top 4, and SUGAR is now the third ingredient overall. SUGAR. Folks, this is NOT good for your dog. They've taken a mostly healthy treat and made it sweeter, pumped up the filler grains, and even increased how much salt is in it. This isn't a MEAT roll any longer, it's basically meat-flavored Doritos. AVOID this at all costs if you care about your dog and keeping him healthy for a long time.

It's too bad that my dog loves this so much, because now I will have to buy a better, more healthful product, or make my own treats. SHAME on Natural Balance for junking up their product at the expense of the animals' health.

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Agree with previous description of this item as "puppy crack". We have a 5 month old mini schnauzer mix who is happy to ignore us on walks, tugging on the leash with perceived strength of a small grizzly bear in order to reach the "OMG I HAVEN'T SMELLED THIS ONE YET" leaf 10 feet away.

We cut up pieces of this lamb roll (about 5mm cubes) to use as treats, and once he smells it he transforms into the "OMG OMG. GIMME. I'LL BE GOOD. GIMMEEEEEEEE!" dog we all wish we had. He'll follow right next to us on walks, eyes upward in hope/greed.

Tips:

Satiate yourself before you handle the meatlog, lest you be tempted to try it! It smells delicious.

Cut off only as much as you think you need that day, as smaller pieces tend to dry out (even in tupperware in the fridge) and lose their ultra-attractive smell. Alternatively, cut larger pieces and tear off smaller ones as you go.

Consider the 2.5 lb or 1 lb versions if you have a small dog. We have a 15 lb pup who goes on 3+ walks a day and we estimate the 2.5 lb log will last us several months.

I have no experience with using the meatlog as his regular meal as I would prefer it stay high-ranked on his list of "OMG AWESOME STUFF".

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The ingredient list above is incorrect. Ordered this and discovered third ingredient is sugar and the crude protein is listed as 11%. Not as high as you expect from that meaty list of ingredients they display here. Here is the list from their website:

Lamb Lungs, Wheat Flour, Sugar, Lamb, Wheat Bran, Lamb Hearts, Salt, Rice Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Egg, Glycerin, Lecithin, Dicalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Natural Smoke Flavor, Ascorbic Acid, Natural Flavor, Powdered Garlic, Vitamin E Supplement, Kelp Meal, Brewers Yeast, Calcium Disodium, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Rosemary Extract, Canola Oil, Sodium Erythorbate, Vitamin A Supplement, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Sodium Nitrite, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Mononitrate, Folic Acid, Natural Mixed Tocopherols.

My dog does go nuts when I open it.

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I first came across the Natural Balance dog food rolls while in obedience class with my first dog. She could be picky about the treats, but a few weeks into class one of the trainers tried giving a small piece of roll to her. She LOVED it and would do ANYTHING for it! After that I immediately went out and bought one, and have used it to help train my second dog, too. The best way for using it as a treat is to cut off a small slice (maybe a quarter-inch thick), then cut that into small squares to make them bite size. Perfect for dog training!

Another way I use it now is with the dog food. I don't use it as a straight feed for my dogs because it would cost me too much. I found what works great is adding it to their dry food. I feed my dogs Natural Balance Ultra Premium Dog Food and I use a grater/shredder and shred some of the roll and mix it in with their food. Even the pickiest of eaters will probably eat their food then.

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I have a very picky eight year old dauchand who would never eat regular dog food. We tried everything from Iams,Science Diet,and Eukenuba and Gretchen would have none of it. She hated "dog food". I read about Natural Balance while on the internet and went to the pet store ASAP and bought her a beef roll. When I got it home and opened it I was surprised that it actually smelled good just like a summer sausage. Gretchen loves it!! For the past three months this has been her primary food and she really loves it and it does not end up in the trash like all the other dog foods that she has tried that she would have nothing to do with. This really is a great product for a picky dog.