# Applaws Vs. Orijen



## GoldenShadow (Jun 15, 2009)

Looking at the ingredient list, Applaws seems better to me 

Any thoughts/opinions on the dry stuff guys? I did a thread a while ago about the wet stuff, only just found it so thanks for the replies on that...

Here are the ingredient lists for a typical Applaws and typical Orijen, which do you think better and why..?

*Applaws Dry Dog Food - 75% Chicken*

Ingredients: Dry Chicken Meat, Dry Potato, Poultry Oil, Fresh Chicken, Poultry Gravy, Salmon Oil, Beet Pulp, Dry Whole Eggs, Cellulose Plant Fibre, Brewers Dried Yeast, Cranberry Extract, Yucca Extract, Citrus Extract, Rosemary Oil Extract, Seaweed Extract, Chicory Extract, Sun-Cured Alfalfa Extract, Thyme Extract, Carrots, Peppermint Extract, Rosehip Extract, Paprika Extract, Turmeric Extract, Carob Extract, Fennel Extract, Dandelion Extract, Oregano Extract.

Typical Analysis: Protein 37%, Oils and Fats 20%, Ash 9.5%, Fibre 3.5%, Calcium 1.8%, Phosphorous 1.2%, Vitamin A 12,000 iu/kg, Vitamin D3 1,200 iu/kg,Vitamin E (a-tocopherol) 600 iu/kg. Copper (cupric Sulphate) 14 mg/kg. Contains Tocopherol rich extracts of natural origin. <18.5% Carbohydrates. No added colourants, flavourings or preservatives.

*Orijen Adult
*INGREDIENTS
Fresh deboned chicken, chicken meal, turkey meal, russet potato, fresh deboned pacific salmon (a natural source of DHA and EPA), herring meal, sweet potato, peas, fresh deboned lake whitefish, fresh deboned northern walleye, chicken fat (naturally preserved with vitamin E and citric acid), chicken liver, salmon meal, fresh deboned turkey, fresh whole eggs, fresh deboned herring, sun-cured alfalfa, salmon oil, chicory root, dehydrated organic kelp, pumpkin, carrots, spinach, turnip greens, apples, cranberries, saskatoon berries, black currants, choline chloride, psyllium, licorice root, angelica root, fenugreek, marigold flowers, sweet fennel, peppermint leaf, chamomile flowers, dandelion, summer savory, rosemary, sea salt, vitamin supplements (vitamin A, vitamin D3, vitamin E, niacin, vitamin C, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12), mineral supplements (zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, selenium), dried Lactobacillus acidophilus, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product.

GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
Crude Protein (min.) 40.0%
Crude Fat (min.) 16.0%
Crude Fiber (max.) 2.5%
Moisture (max.) 10.0%
Calcium (min.) 1.5%
Calcium (max.) 1.7%
Phosphorus (min.) 1.2%
Phosphorus (max.) 1.4%
Omega-6 (min.) 3.0%
Omega-3 (min.) 1.1%
DHA 0.6% 
EPA 0.3%
Carbohydrate (max.) 20.0%
Glucosamine (min.) 1200 mg/kg
Chondroitin (min.) 900 mg/kg
Microorganisms (min.) 120M cfu/kg

There is obviously a lot more stuff in the Orijen, is this good or bad?

They also have salmon meal as opposed to meat etc, some people have said meal is not as good, is it good really?

Which do you feel better and why ?


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## james1 (Sep 21, 2008)

Ive looked at this before, it does look good but I cant really tell the difference or justify the asking price for it. I know Orijen is heavily regulated by Canadian food laws and they are very good on their research analysis which is reassuring. Im pretty happy with how hes getting along with it so I wont be changing him 
There is also Omega oils, glucosomine and Chondrotin in Orijen looking at the list which I can see in Applaws


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## alysonandhedley (Oct 29, 2009)

I havent tried our dog on Applaws so I cant comment. I followed someone's personal recommendation for Orijen and I was really pleased it suited our pup. If I had to assess applaws vs orijen, I would check the ingredients, which youve already done, obviously there is some variation. Fresh chicken meat in orijen, they use all fresh meats which are sourced locally to them. Depends on whether this makes a difference, who knows? My next step if I was evaluating them both would be to do a net search and see if there is any data, or even reviews on either food. Lastly if I still couldnt decide I would get a trial size and see which suited my dog. 

I feed Orijen as it suits my dog and doesn't give him diarrhoea, that's not a scientific analysis but it is what is important to me. I think the only down side to it is that I have to buy it online. I wish I could get it locally. Cost isnt a huge factor, as having only a small Yorkie, he only eats small amounts anyway. If I had a huge dog it would be more important I suppose.


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## Lyceum (Sep 25, 2009)

I've been trying to find a feeding guide for applaws dog for a few weeks now (my cats are on both applaws wet and dry) but I can't find one. I even emailed applaws but haven't gotten a reply. So it's impossoble to compare how it stacks up in terms of how many days food you'd get out of applaws for your dog versus how many days a bag of orijen lasts. You get a kilo less applaws than you do origen in the big bags, and it's roughly the same price. 

I've just ordered some orijen for my dogs, but if applaws is better and works out cheaper I'd be happy to change them to it a few months down the line because the cats are doing excellently on it.


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## GoldenShadow (Jun 15, 2009)

Lyceum said:


> I've been trying to find a feeding guide for applaws dog for a few weeks now (my cats are on both applaws wet and dry) but I can't find one. I even emailed applaws but haven't gotten a reply. So it's impossoble to compare how it stacks up in terms of how many days food you'd get out of applaws for your dog versus how many days a bag of orijen lasts. You get a kilo less applaws than you do origen in the big bags, and it's roughly the same price.
> 
> I've just ordered some orijen for my dogs, but if applaws is better and works out cheaper I'd be happy to change them to it a few months down the line because the cats are doing excellently on it.


This is exactly what I was looking for, a feeding guide to weigh up how much he's end up eating...!

Its a toughie, they both look good, I want him on some wet which will be Applaws, so I'm not sure which to go for for dry stuff.

Thanks so far guys


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## GoldenShadow (Jun 15, 2009)

Had a more in depth look this morning.

Orijen go on about how unnecessary carbohydrates are, but still use 20% carbs and don't really offer as decent an explanation as I would like, its the company I'm not liking much at the moment from what I've had a look at...

Think it will be Applaws at this rate, I have also emailed asking for a feeding guide, so hopefully will get a reply...


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## Guest (Dec 21, 2009)

There are just TOO MANY dog foods to choose from out there!! lol!!

My brain aches just thinking about the different foods and what to feed 

In the end I settled for Burns, dogs do fine on it so why change it?

Ingredients just confuse me!! lmao  xx


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## katiefranke (Oct 6, 2008)

I have used the applaws dry for my cats for quite a while but recently swapped them to Orijen when I got this for my pup.

I like the fact that there is more than just poultry - don't know if it makes a huge difference, but the salmon oil is meant to be very good for them? And it replicates a varied diet by having a number of protein sources etc...

I don't know how the applaws biscuits are made as I havent had a response from the manufacturer after asking for this a couple of times along with a feeding guide...?

But i do know that the Orijen food is made at lower temperatures than normal biscuit-making process, so better for the food nutrients etc. Also, everything is brought in fresh that morning after being caught/killed and made into biscuits that day. I don't know if applaws is the same?

Also I liked that fact that they stated exactly where all their products came from. Canadian food standards are pretty high - all the food is human grade -and as far as I understand meat meals are ok if the source is named and it is human grade quality.

However, I do think that Applaws is good too...and would be my second choice if I couldn't get Orijen for any reason. My cats were very good on it, but they are just as good if not better on Orijen and it is easier for me to buy it along with the dog food when ordering them both together.

Hope that helps!

edit: meant to add that i love the applaws wet tins for my cats too...but unfortunately they contain rice? so cant give to maggie any more as seems to set off her allergies


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## Lyceum (Sep 25, 2009)

Tinsley said:


> Had a more in depth look this morning.
> 
> Orijen go on about how unnecessary carbohydrates are, but still use 20% carbs and don't really offer as decent an explanation as I would like, its the company I'm not liking much at the moment from what I've had a look at...
> 
> Think it will be Applaws at this rate, I have also emailed asking for a feeding guide, so hopefully will get a reply...


I just called applaws and they said they don't have a feeding guide to send, as there's a feeding guide on the bag, which is great, if you have a bag....not so much if you don't. So she couldn't send me a feeding guide.

She did grab a bag and tell me what my dog would need, my 19kg staffy x would need between 185g and 215g per day.


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## GoldenShadow (Jun 15, 2009)

Lyceum said:


> I just called applaws and they said they don't have a feeding guide to send, as there's a feeding guide on the bag, which is great, if you have a bag....not so much if you don't. So she couldn't send me a feeding guide.
> 
> She did grab a bag and tell me what my dog would need, my 19kg staffy x would need between 185g and 215g per day.


That's a good enough guide for me to go by, thank you! I will compare to what that would be for Orijen/AG etc and see what it is like


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## Lyceum (Sep 25, 2009)

Tinsley said:


> That's a good enough guide for me to go by, thank you! I will compare to what that would be for Orijen/AG etc and see what it is like


For me it works out quite a bit more expensive in the long run. So I think I'll stick to orijen.


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## katiefranke (Oct 6, 2008)

One thing i noticed is that with the applaws biscuits for the cats, i had to feed pretty much what they suggested on the feeding guide...but with Orijen, i feed way less and i think most other people on here seem to say the same...you can usually take the lower end of the orijen feeding scale and take a small amount off and this is what is a good amount for most dogs...so bear that in mind if comparing costs Tinsley.


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## GoldenShadow (Jun 15, 2009)

katiefranke said:


> One thing i noticed is that with the applaws biscuits for the cats, i had to feed pretty much what they suggested on the feeding guide...but with Orijen, i feed way less and i think most other people on here seem to say the same...you can usually take the lower end of the orijen feeding scale and take a small amount off and this is what is a good amount for most dogs...so bear that in mind if comparing costs Tinsley.


When we tried Orijen he was on pretty much what the bag said, with our Arden Grange he is on about 235grams when recommended 340ish.

Compared with the AG guideline the Applaws says he would need to eat less than the AG anyway. He was younger when on the Orijen but I'm tossing up which one to have an experiment with..! He does OK on the AG ocean white fish but he doesn't really love it.

Applaws and Orijen have similar protein levels and so I guess I would neeed to feed a relatively similar amount, I don't go by the bag at all really, as you can see with the Arden..!

Oooh its hard one :huh:


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## katiefranke (Oct 6, 2008)

Tinsley said:


> Oooh its hard one :huh:


I don't think you can go far wrong with either


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## alysonandhedley (Oct 29, 2009)

I asked for a sample of Applaws, just for curiosity's sake.

[email protected]


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## bird (Apr 2, 2009)

Personally I'd say choose with your gut feeling. Like others here I swopped Arden Grange for Orijen and FOR ME it was a mistake. The boys were still hungry on it.  they are both around the 16kg mark and were fed 300gm a day with Natures Menu mixed in. They started to scrounge. Not just looking at the foodbin for more but hanging around the table/kitchen and anywhere else that there was food. Whilst I will partly accept this from Arnie as hes very food orientated, when Alf, who is not food orientated started to beg I swopped back to AG.


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## GoldenShadow (Jun 15, 2009)

bird said:


> Personally I'd say choose with your gut feeling. Like others here I swopped Arden Grange for Orijen and FOR ME it was a mistake. The boys were still hungry on it.  they are both around the 16kg mark and were fed 300gm a day with Natures Menu mixed in. They started to scrounge. Not just looking at the foodbin for more but hanging around the table/kitchen and anywhere else that there was food. Whilst I will partly accept this from Arnie as hes very food orientated, when Alf, who is not food orientated started to beg I swopped back to AG.


Thank you.

Rupert did have problems with Orijen too, but I put it down to his age mostly. From a bit of research I've done, the company as a whole I'm not that sold on..I think I may well try Applaws.

He does OK on his AG one, but the Applaws looks to have a few better ingredients. I was going to try other AG ones (he is on the sensitive one) but they have maize in


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## bird (Apr 2, 2009)

Tinsley said:


> Thank you.
> 
> Rupert did have problems with Orijen too, but I put it down to his age mostly. From a bit of research I've done, the company as a whole I'm not that sold on..I think I may well try Applaws.
> 
> He does OK on his AG one, but the Applaws looks to have a few better ingredients. I was going to try other AG ones (he is on the sensitive one) but they have maize in


You're welcome, I know people here rave about Orijen, but what suits one dog doesnt suit another, the boys are back on AG and the scounging has stopped.


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## james1 (Sep 21, 2008)

bird said:


> Personally I'd say choose with your gut feeling. Like others here I swopped Arden Grange for Orijen and FOR ME it was a mistake. The boys were still hungry on it.  they are both around the 16kg mark and were fed 300gm a day with Natures Menu mixed in. They started to scrounge. Not just looking at the foodbin for more but hanging around the table/kitchen and anywhere else that there was food. Whilst I will partly accept this from Arnie as hes very food orientated, when Alf, who is not food orientated started to beg I swopped back to AG.


It is a roast beef dinner with all the trimmings for them, so if they know they can get more they will happily take it. You shouldnt have given into puppy eyes  Once they know you will give in they will come back for more without doubt, 300g was plenty, but if its stopped with AG then thats great i suppose


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## bird (Apr 2, 2009)

I didnt give in to the puppy dog eyes james, whilst I dislike seeing ribs on dogs I dont want overweight ones. It wasnt just at the feedbin they scrounged at crisps and every other food stuff that was going, now they're back on AG the scrounging has stopped. They just were not full on orijen, they may have adjusted if I'd left them on it for a bit longer but having just got Alf up to standard regarding his weight I just was not prepared to take the risk of knocking him back.


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