Blue Basics Dog Food Review: Nourishing Your Canine Companion with Quality Ingredients

Blue Basics is a healthy dog food brand from the company Blue Buffalo. The company believes that dogs deserve a diet that closely mimics what they ate as wolves in the wild. Their food includes meat as the primary source of protein, no fillers, and little to no grain.

Blue Basics is one of their limited ingredient lines, and the goal with this food is to help dogs with food sensitivities. If your dog is frequently vomiting, has low energy, or flaky skin there may be ingredients in their food that does not sit well with them.

This food is intended to limit the number of ingredients you expose your pup to and as a result decrease the chance that they’ll have an allergic reaction to anything.

Blue uses real meat as the primary source of protein in their Blue Basics line, and the food contains no by-products, corn, wheat, soy, dairy, or eggs.

In this article, Blue Basics Dog Food Review, we’re taking an in-depth look at Blue Basics and whether or not their limited ingredient diet is the right choice for pups across the country.

 

Brand Quick Look

• Parent Company: Blue Pet Products, Inc. – a subsidiary of General Mills, Inc.
• Founded in: 2002
• Made in: Wilton, Connecticut
• Made by: A variety of manufacturers, CJ Foods, Ainsworth, ProPet, Triple T, and more.
• Available at: Chewy, Amazon, Petsmart, Target
• Types of Food: Dry, wet, treats
• Real Meat in First 5 Ingredients? : Yes
• Recalled in Past? : No

Behind the Brand

The story of Blue Basics starts with the Bishop family dog named Blue. He suffered from cancer, and they wanted to find out more about how they can help their dog feel better and get back to good health.

Upon researching pet food manufacturers and ideal diets for dogs, they discovered something shocking; they noticed that so many pet foods contain corn, wheat, and soy as the primary ingredients and sources of nutrients.

At that point, they knew what they had to do. They had to create an all-natural pet food company that thrives on using real meats and vegetables to keep your pet lean, strong, and healthy.

The Bishop family set out on a mission with the help of animal nutritionists and veterinarians to create a healthy pet food company called Blue Buffalo.

Fast forward, today Blue is one of the leading pet food companies nationwide, and their reputation truly speaks for itself.

Blue Basics Dog Food Reviews

Now let’s take a deep look into three food options from Blue Basics. We’re going to see what the reputation is in regard to the ingredients, flavor, packaging, and more.

1. Grain-Free Salmon and Potato

This food has an excellent reputation online with a near five-star review on chewy and a four-star review on Amazon across 400+ reviews. The food contains Glucosamine which helps support joint function, calcium for strong bones, and omega fatty acids for your pups’ skin and coat.

Some of the first ingredients in the food are salmon, peas, potatoes, pea starch, and salmon meal. It’s great that they stick by the protein in the food because a lot of other food companies claim that the bag contains salmon as the protein, but the food has chicken meal as its third ingredient.

Online reviewers say that this food has helped their dog with their allergies and their pups enjoy the flavor. Some also say they switched to Blue Basics after using other foods for years and they immediately noticed a difference in their dog’s behavior.

Critical reviews express concern about frequent formula changes, and that vet’s do not recommend Blue Basics. We have seen many reports stating that professionals do not like the Blue Buffalo brand in general.

---

2. Senior Turkey & Potato

For seniors, and especially ones with food sensitivities, less is more. It keeps older dogs in good health, despite the limited number of ingredients, with each carefully selected meat or produce.

This recipe has hundreds of reviews on chewy.com and has, as of today, garnered 4.5 stars out of 5 and a rating of 96% recommended. The formulation features taurine, which maintains heart health; glucosamine and chondroitin to support mature dogs with possible joint pains and overall mobility; and enough proteins and carbs to keep seniors active and playful.

The first five ingredients are promising. It starts with deboned turkey followed by oatmeal, brown rice, potatoes, and peas. Turkey is often given as an alternative to pups who are sensitive to chicken.

It’s quite similar in nutritional content and there are no significant differences in the levels. The second to the fourth ingredients are easily digestible carbs that give dogs plenty of energy throughout the day.

To raise up the animal protein even more, a sixth ingredient is another meat product — turkey meal. It’s good that Blue Basics has stuck to a single animal protein source. Although there seem to be more plant-based protein and carbs overall than meat.

However, according to many reviewers, this recipe has helped their pets have a healthier digestive system. Stools have become more regular and firmer, while gas passing has decreased. Some have also remarked that the formulation has helped their pups show mobility improvement.

---

3. Healthy Weight Turkey & Potato

This kibble is crafted with less calories to help your chunky pup maintain an ideal body weight while keeping the number of ingredients down so that even sensitive pooches can enjoy its benefits.

Turkey is the single animal protein source, and it leads the meal. Further down the list are peas and turkey meal to give the formula an added protein boost (although it’s still on the low end of average at 20%).

Oatmeal, brown rice, and potatoes provide your dogs with complex carbs that leave him feeling fuller longer while providing him with enough energy to last him a whole day of play.

While meat is the first ingredient (which means it makes up the largest part of the recipe), it is kind of overwhelmed by the number of carbohydrate ingredients. Second to the fifth are all produce as well as the seventh ingredient.

Higher-quality dog foods usually contain more meat-based protein sources with a few non-meat products (legumes or grains or potatoes) to balance it out.

The omega fatty acids, which are responsible for keeping dogs’ fur and skin healthy, are found from two oil sources — canola and fish. While canola is a safe and non-toxic oil (humans use it!) with lots of benefits, it is highly processed.

It goes through a lot of processing to turn it into the oil that we know. Fish oil, on the other hand, is far more natural and better for your dogs.

While we might not be fully satisfied with an ingredient or two in this formula, pet parents who’ve tried it on their dogs seem to like it. A common thread among them is that the food has helped their chubby fur buddies lose some weight.

It has also reduced instances of gas and runny stools. It’s also a little more affordable than other limited ingredient diets.

---

4. Small Breed Lamb & Potato

Formulated exclusively for my little mouths, this recipe gives pups an appropriate blend of nutrients that’s perfect for bodies with fast metabolism. Since small dogs go through their energy stores faster than bigger canines, the nutrition content in this formulation is higher.

The animal protein content here is much better when compared with other Blue Basics recipes. The first ingredient is deboned lamb and followed right up with lamb meal. It’s always best when the first five ingredients of a recipe features more than one animal protein source. It’s due to this that the minimum crude protein content is at 22%.

The two carbohydrate sources — peas and potatoes — don’t come in until the third and fourth slots, which means that they don’t overwhelm the animal protein but still have ample presence to provide pups with plenty of energy.

Crafted with Blue’s Lifesource Bits — which are a select combination of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals — your small pup’s nutritional needs are fully supported. It is free from corn, soy, wheat, dairy, or eggs, which are all common causes of allergies in dogs. The recipe also does not contain byproduct meals or artificial flavors and preservatives.

As for dog owner reviews, 98% recommend this formulation and it has garnered a 4.8 stars out of 5 rating. Most seem to be pleased that their dogs loved the taste. Another thing that they agree on is that their pooches who have itchy skin seem to have improved on this formulation.

---

5. Lamb and Potato Moist Food

On Chewy and Amazon, this food from Blue has a 4 – 4.5-star review across 1,700+ reviews. The formula is the same as every other food we’ve touched in the article; it limits the ingredients to help dogs with food sensitivities, and the food is supposed to contain its protein throughout with nothing else.

Some of the first ingredients in the can are lamb, lamb broth, lamb liver, potatoes, peas, and pumpkin. We find their packaging and advertising to be congruent with expectations, and that’s part of why they have such an excellent reputation. If the food says lamb and potato, it contains mostly lamb and potato.

Online reviewers state that they love the fact that the food contains no chicken because their dog is allergic. They said another food they purchased said no chicken but included chicken by-product. Others say it’s great for picky eaters with sensitive stomachs.

Most of the critical reviews state that the food doesn’t look appetizing, has a strong odor, and is very dry.

---

6. Duck & Potato Moist Food

Created for adult pups but also ideal for sensitive canines, this wet food recipe uses duck (a novel protein) as its single source of animal protein.

Real duck is combined with fresh fruits and veggies to provide dogs with a more natural source of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. It does not contain any dairy, grain, corn, byproduct meals, soy, wheat, or artificial preservatives or flavors

Fresh duck starts off the list of ingredients followed by duck broth to add moisture. Potatoes come next for some carbohydrate boost. A dog’s body turns the carbohydrates into glucose, which they can then use for energy. Peas (as the fourth ingredient) contribute fiber, carbohydrates, and protein along with vitamins A, K, and C.

Fish oil provides most of the fat content. Fat is a major source of energy in the body, and it also protects your pooch’s organs, helps his body absorb nutrients, and supports cell growth. Fish oil is also a significant contributor of omega-3 fatty acids such as EPA and DHA, both of which have many more health benefits than plant-based omega-3s (ALA).

This would have been a close to perfect recipe for us but for the inclusion of carrageenan. The carrageenan you find in pet foods are considered food-grade but several studies have found that food-grade can degrade in the stomach when mixed with stomach acid.

Once degraded, carrageenan can cause ulcers and tumors. Although the studies haven’t been conclusive so far, it would be better to be safe since there are many better alternatives to this ingredient.

As for customer reviews, this recipe seems to help pups with allergies from flares. Picky pets also seem to love the taste and thrive on the formulation.

---

7. Whitefish & Potato Moist Food

Designed to appeal to fish-loving canines, this recipe uses a fatty fish as its single animal protein source. It then combines the fish with veggies and garden fruits to create a balanced meal that is nutritionally appropriate for adult pups of all breed