# Just Want Facts - Taste Of The Wild



## Brown314 (Jun 18, 2010)

Well Im switching my guy over to an adult food, and I was recently in Tractor Supply and picked up a bad of TOTW Bison formula, he loves it...I mean loves it.

Now, I know Diamond owns them now but Ive done my research and everyone has a different answer to that...such as Diamond only handles the bagging, Taste Of The Wild has their own processing plant that Diamond dosent involve in...and another one that Diamond does everything.

So what is it, and from what I understand people say they are a bad company but why? Also has TOTW changed since Diamond bought them?

If I shouldn't feed Axel this food, what grain free food should I feed? Raw is out of the question btw.


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## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

Brown314 said:


> Also has TOTW changed since Diamond bought them?
> .


Diamond didn't buy TOTW from anybody, it has always been made by Diamond. Diamond does manufacture TOTW, they don't just bag it on behalf of somebody else.

Me, I've got no issues with Diamond. I feed another food made by them and am very happy with it. I fed TOTW and had only one problem, I got one bag of food that was a different color and smell than the other bags I had fed, my very sensitive tummy boy got sick from the sudden change.


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## lanaw13 (Jan 8, 2011)

Diamond was involved a recall years ago… Read this
Diamond Dog Food Recall and Aflatoxin / Melamine in Pet Foods - FAQ
But realize it is on another companys website…. And this:
snopes.com: Diamond Pet Food Recall

More authoritative:

Pet Food Recall Products List
List of recalls for Pet Food Products from DIAMOND

I did weeks of research, and I am feeding my dogs and cat Diamond Naturals and TOTW. I really believe in going grain-free, eventually they will all be grain free. I am doing a slow transition on all dogs except Chopper, who is a cancer survivor and she is eating TOTW now.
I am not going to dwell on what happened years ago, my dogs sure don't. A lot of people "don't like" Diamond…. but there were plenty of other foods involved in the Menu foods recall….. that people "like"!! This article has a list of the foods affected by the Menu foods recall:
2007 pet food recalls - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Do your research, make your own decisions….


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## Whiteshepherds (Aug 21, 2010)

Emoore said:


> Me, I've got no issues with Diamond. I feed another food made by them and am very happy with it. I fed TOTW and had only one problem, *I got one bag of food that was a different color and smell than the other bags* I had fed, my very sensitive tummy boy got sick from the sudden change.


We got a case of the canned food (High Prairie) not too long ago and the cans were mislabeled, it was fish. (not sure what it's called)


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

I also feed TOTW, Stosh absolutely loves it. I agree with Emoore and lanlaw, the recall was years ago and my dog is doing well on it so I can't see boycotting it forever. Stosh needs a grain free and limited chicken intake so I'm sticking with it. Diamond also makes 4Health, available at Tractor Supply. Our breeder has been using it and it happy with it, along with the raw meals they feed. Like Emoore says, do the research and go with what works for your dog.


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## mygsdandme (Jan 4, 2011)

I also feed TOTW, right now they are eating the High prairie(Bison) and no problems.
I am not that concerned about a recall a few years ago, there are way more human food recalls that we hear hear about every couple of months or so...ground beef, eggs, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese...well you get the idea.


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## Rott-n-GSDs (Jul 7, 2010)

The facts:

Diamond owns and has always owned TOTW. They are in charge of the manufacturing. (Opinion: I've always thought they avoided putting the Diamond name on the TOTW product to get away from bad publicity).

TOTW has been involved in a couple of "voluntary recalls" because... well... because I don't really know why. I DO know that people's dogs were having diarrhea and vomiting issues, and some were refusing to eat it altogether. I spoke with a few different Diamond reps and got different answers each time. "There is too much protein in the food." "There is an alternate protein source in the food." They would NOT identify the "alternate protein source.

I also know plenty of people who feed and have fed TOTW without issues. My only personal experience with it was when Luna was younger, and she got loose stool from it and never was able to get used to it. 

Diamond has recently eliminated ethoxyquin from their foods (including TOTW) so I wouldn't hestiate as much to feed it now (if I didn't feed raw). I do think there are a lot of better options out there (like Acana Provincial), but it certainly isn't the worst food out there, either.


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## LaRen616 (Mar 4, 2010)

I feed my GSD and my 3 cats TOTW, I rotate all 4 formulas for the dog and rotate the 2 formulas for the cats.

We have had no problems.


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## rjvamp (Aug 23, 2008)

Brown314 said:


> .....
> 
> Now, I know Diamond owns them now but Ive done my research and everyone has a different answer to that...such as Diamond only handles the bagging, Taste Of The Wild has their own processing plant that Diamond dosent involve in...and another one that Diamond does everything.
> 
> ......


I was told by someone who fed Natural Balance that a rep told them the same thing. I find it hard to believe food would be made, come down a conveyor belt of sorts and get all piled in a truck or some other container to be taken to a plant to be unloaded and then bagged by a pet food manufacturer that makes other foods. I just don't believe it. I've seen enough manufacturing plant videos to know that bagging is the last step. And this would be highly unlikely and also a rather expensive step in the process to haul food to another plant. Also, how can a production run, date and time stamp be accurately put on a bag? It can't - that would be a bagging stamp them....not a production run stamp. If a company is making the kibble they are bagging the kibble.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

It kills me that people boycot a food because of a recall. Out of curiosity, do you keep a list of all the human foods that are recalled and then never eat those, and then go so far as to recommend that others don't either?


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## Rott-n-GSDs (Jul 7, 2010)

Rerun said:


> It kills me that people boycot a food because of a recall. Out of curiosity, do you keep a list of all the human foods that are recalled and then never eat those, and then go so far as to recommend that others don't either?


A single recall would not bother me, but multiple recalls tend to raise a red flag. I particularly pay attention to how the company handles the recall. I was NOT at all impressed with the way Diamond/TOTW handled the most recent issues. They seemed to try to cover it up... and did not even officially announce anything. If someone had an issue and called them, they would give a coupon for a free bag.... that's pretty much all they did. 

Diamond is a company that has been notorious for recalls and has done all they can to try and cover them up/disguise their name in order to make money. THAT is what I take issue with.

However.. I feed my dogs raw so the point is really moot with me. My dogs also eat a lot better than I do so, no, I don't pay as close attention to my own food as I do theirs. The quality standards behind food made for human consumption are A LOT higher than the highly inadequate standards behind pet food manufacturing, therefore it makes more sense to pay more attention to dog food, IMO.


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## PaddyD (Jul 22, 2010)

mygsdandme said:


> I also feed TOTW, right now they are eating the High prairie(Bison) and no problems.
> I am not that concerned about a recall a few years ago, there are way more human food recalls that we hear hear about every couple of months or so...ground beef, eggs, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese...well you get the idea.



Ditto. Switched from Orijen to TOTW with good results. Orijen was too rich for Abby... lots of gas and loose, smelly stools.


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## sable123 (Jul 11, 2010)

Rerun said:


> It kills me that people boycot a food because of a recall. Out of curiosity, do you keep a list of all the human foods that are recalled and then never eat those, and then go so far as to recommend that others don't either?


Read the reports from the investigation. It was much more than aflatoxin.


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## CHawkins (Jul 12, 2010)

The majority of the people I know who feed their dogs TOTW say their dogs are gassy. I haven't tried it so....


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## HankGSD (Oct 28, 2010)

We use TOTW Sierra Mountain formula with absolutely no complaints. Orijen caused constant runny stools. We have no problems with gas on TOTW.

Tried TOTW for the cats and they hated it. Diamond refunded my money.

Maybe the company is more conscientious now because of the past recall. Many companies have had recalls including Blue Buffalo which is what I now feed the cats.

TOTW works for us and I'm comfortable with it.


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## CassandGunnar (Jan 3, 2011)

CHawkins said:


> The majority of the people I know who feed their dogs TOTW say their dogs are gassy. I haven't tried it so....


We have fed TOTW in both Wetlands and (currently) Pacific Stream. Have not noticed either of our dogs being gassy. We switched from Nutro to TOTW Wetlands at first because of a food sensitivity in Gunnar. It didn't get any better so we switched to Pacific Stream. Everything cleared up and we believe it was a chicken sensetivity.
Cass ate up the rest of the Wetlands before we switched her to Pacific Stream. No problems with her either. 
We just didn't want to feed different foods to two dogs.


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## lanaw13 (Jan 8, 2011)

sable123 said:


> Read the reports from the investigation. It was much more than aflatoxin.


Can you post a link?


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## Olivers mama (Oct 13, 2010)

I think we've tried all the foods out there, based upon what I read here & everyone's opinions...

Ziva was having horrible problems with loose stool & we spent big $$ testing her for everything under the sun. She had no ailments, but the vet suggested probiotics. She's been on Natural Balance (with probiotics) & TOTW Pacific Stream for 4 months now with raw added every once in awhile. She is doing splendidly. Nice shiny coat, less shedding, smaller poops & has (I hope) FINALLY stopped growing...a tall girl & 96 lbs.

Our 4 housecats also eat a mixed blend of both TOTW recipes & their coats are shinier now, too.

We live in CA - every week, some food is being recalled. If we avoided every recalled food we've had in the last couple of years, we'd probably only be eating bread.

And it's funny that, held within this thread, I see ads for Purina...go figure.


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## misplacedsooner (Jun 5, 2010)

sam loves 3 blends of totw kibble so i got him the newest one, i think its like roasted lamb?? he does NOT like it at all so we will be mixing bison or pacific stream with it til gone and wont be buying that flavor again.


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## PaddyD (Jul 22, 2010)

CHawkins said:


> The majority of the people I know who feed their dogs TOTW say their dogs are gassy. I haven't tried it so....


Abby will get gassy if she overeats or eats too fast. If we restrict her intake she is fine.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

I was feeding raw when I had only Abby and lived in an area where many different raw ingredients were readily available and affordable. With a second dog and having moved to an area where raw variety was less accessible, I went looking for a quality grain-free kibble.

I think I've tried all of the good kibbles - Orijen, Evo, you name it. I keep going back to Taste of the Wild and have been feeding only Taste of the Wild for about two years now because I get the best results with it in terms of stools, how well it's liked, etc.

The only formula I've experienced gassy dogs on has been the Wetlands, the one with duck. That one is too rich. I've had good results on the others and am currently feeding either the Fish one or the Lamb one.

I also feed Taste of the Wild to my three cats. I recently decided to give the new fish formula cat food a try (Wild Canyon River) ... yeah ... you'd figure they'd enjoy a fish type food since they LOVE sardines, but they will not touch it. They will eat all the kibbles of the TOTW Rocky Mountain Feline Formula and leave the other ones. XD So now they're back to Rocky Mountain and the outside strays get the Wild Canyon River...


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## Washu (Apr 20, 2007)

I've tried all 4 formulas with my dogs. The High Prairie (bison) and Wetlands (duck) were too rich for Dooku. All 3 of my dogs are doing great on the Pacific stream (fish) and the newest formula, Sierra Mountain (lamb). Ranger used to get bad gas before I got him a special bowl to make him eat more slowly.

Three of my four cats are fed the Rocky Mountain Feline, and are doing very good on it. The other cat has allergies and issues with urinary crystals, so she can't have TOTW.


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## HankGSD (Oct 28, 2010)

AbbyK9 said:


> I also feed Taste of the Wild to my three cats. I recently decided to give the new fish formula cat food a try (Wild Canyon River) ... yeah ... you'd figure they'd enjoy a fish type food since they LOVE sardines, but they will not touch it. They will eat all the kibbles of the TOTW Rocky Mountain Feline Formula and leave the other ones. XD So now they're back to Rocky Mountain and the outside strays get the Wild Canyon River...


That's interesting because my cats also wouldn't touch the Wild Canyon River. After that fiasco, I was not willing to try the other cat formulas.

Still loving the Sierra Mountain canine formula though!


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