Review of Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain Dry Dog Food
Rating:
Kirkland Nature’s Domain Dog Food receives the Advisor’s second-highest tier rating of 4.5 stars.
The Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain product line includes the 6 dry dog foods listed below.
Each recipe includes its AAFCO nutrient profile when available… Growth (puppy), Maintenance (adult), All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.
Nature’s Domain Turkey and Sweet Potato was selected to represent the other products in the line for detailed recipe and nutrient analysis.
Label and nutrient data below are calculated using dry matter basis.
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient ContentProtein =
Ingredients: Turkey meal, sweet potatoes, peas, potatoes, canola oil, tomato pomace, flaxseed, natural flavor, salmon oil (a source of DHA), salt, choline chloride, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, Yucca schidigera extract, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Bifidobacterium animalis fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus reuteri fermentation product, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 4.4%
| Estimated Nutrient Content | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Protein | Fat | Carbs |
| Guaranteed Analysis | 24% | 14% | NA |
| Dry Matter Basis | 27% | 16% | 50% |
| Calorie Weighted Basis | 23% | 33% | 44% |
The first ingredient in this dog food is turkey meal. Turkey meal is considered a meat concentrate and contains nearly 300% more protein than fresh turkey.
The second ingredient is sweet potato. Sweet potatoes are a gluten-free source of complex carbohydrates in dog food. They are naturally rich in dietary fiber and beta carotene.
The third ingredient includes peas. Peas are a quality source of carbohydrates. And like all legumes, they’re rich in natural fiber.
However, peas contain about 25% protein, a factor that must be considered when judging the meat content of this dog food.
The fourth ingredient is potato. Potatoes can be considered a gluten-free source of digestible carbohydrates. Yet with the exception of perhaps their caloric content, potatoes are of only modest nutritional value to a dog.
The fifth ingredient is canola oil. Unfortunately, canola can be a controversial item. That’s because it can sometimes (but not always) be derived from genetically modified rapeseed.
Yet others cite the fact that canola oil can be a significant source of essential omega-3 fatty acids.
In any case, plant-based oils like canola are less biologically available to a dog than fish oil as a source of quality omega-3 fats.
The sixth ingredient is tomato pomace. Tomato pomace is a controversial ingredient, a by-product remaining after processing tomatoes into juice, soup and ketchup.
Many praise tomato pomace for its high fiber and nutrient content, while others scorn it as an inexpensive pet food filler.
Just the same, there’s probably not enough tomato pomace here to make much of a difference.
The seventh ingredient is flaxseed, one of the best plant sources of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Provided they’ve first been ground into a meal, flax seeds are also rich in soluble fiber.
However, flaxseed contains about 19% protein, a factor that must be considered when judging the actual meat content of this dog food.
After the natural flavor, we find salmon oil, which is naturally rich in the prized EPA and DHA type of omega-3 fatty acids. These two high quality fats boast the highest bio-availability to dogs and humans.
Depending on its level of freshness and purity, salmon oil should be considered a commendable addition.
From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.
But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of this Kirkland product.
With 3 notable exceptions…
First, chicory root is rich in inulin, a starch-like compound made up of repeating units of carbohydrates and found in certain roots and tubers.
Not only is inulin a natural source of soluble dietary fiber, it’s also a prebiotic used to promote the growth of healthy bacteria in a dog’s digestive tract.
Next, this recipe contains sodium selenite, a controversial form of the mineral selenium. Sodium selenite appears to be nutritionally inferior to the more natural source of selenium found in selenium yeast.
And lastly, this food includes chelated minerals, minerals that have been chemically attached to protein. This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are usually found in better dog foods.
Based on its ingredients alone, Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain Dog Food looks like an above-average dry product.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 27%, a fat level of 16% and estimated carbohydrates of about 50%.
As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 27% and a mean fat level of 16%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 49% for the overall product line.
And a fat-to-protein ratio of about 58%.
Above-average protein. Near-average fat. And near-average carbs when compared to a typical dry dog food.
Even when you consider the protein-boosting effect of the peas and flaxseed in this recipe, and the legumes contained in other recipes, this still looks like the profile of a dry dog food containing a notable amount of meat.
Nature’s Domain Dog Food Recalls: What You Need to Know
A few years back, on May 4, 2012, Diamond Pet Foods performed a voluntary recall of the Kirkland Signature Dog Food from Costco due to potential Salmonella contamination.
Diamond Pet Foods offered free replacements or refunds for dog owners who purchased products included in the recall. The Food and Drug Administration confirmed the recall several days later.
Healthy Weight Dog Formula Formulated with Chicken & Vegetables
As we were just talking about overweight dogs, here is the perfect diet food for them with low-fat. A better choice for dogs with digestion problems because it is extremely fibrous and has probiotics. Provides great joint support.
However, due to being a low-fat diet, it has only one meat source and hence should not be fed to all types of dogs.
Kirkland dog biscuits are produced by Diamond Dog Foods and sold at the enormous retail market Costco.
Taste of the Wild vs Nature’s Domain by Costco’s Kirkland Signature
As Costco is the only place where you can buy Kirkland dog food, there has always been a debate and confusion about who makes Kirkland dog food. Naturally, most people assume Costco is the sole owner and producer.
There is no blame game because recently Kirkland dog food and signature dog food have been earning hoards of good reviews. They have already taken the place of being known as ‘ low-cost premium food for dogs ‘.
And such a renowned dog food brand can only be found in Costco. This is the reason for all the confusion among shoppers. However, according to our research on all the data found on the Web Kirkland’s owner is Diamond Pet Foods.
Let’s get deep into the details about who makes Kirkland signature dog food, how good are they in the year 2022, and lists of their best dog foods along with important small details(AAFCO) of each.
Diamond Pet Foods manufactures this top branded Kirkland dog food for one of the largest retail stores Costco. Moreover, Diamond Pet Foods has two owners, one named Richard Kampeter and the other person is Gary Schell. They both are also the founders of Schell & Kampeter Inc..
They let this new line of pet food be born from the thought of producing nutritious and balanced pet food at an affordable price. Now, we can see their success on this.
Kirkland dog food is mainly composed of two types. One of them is the grain-free variant and the other comprises different types of whole grains and seeds along with other common ingredients. The name of these two types are:
Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain is the one that is free from grains. This also answers one of the most frequently asked questions about who makes Kirkland grain-free dog food?
What things do we want while deciding if a product is good or bad? As customers, we want our product to be as premium as possible within our price range. Congratulations! You get the best of both worlds with Kirkland dog food.
Furthermore, their recall histories will also be mentioned so that you can decide for yourself they are worth buying. On the other hand, please consider watching this video to help yourself differentiate Kirkland from another dog food brand:
As discussed, these are one of the most affordable good quality dog food that can be found in the market. Costco mostly sells bags of 40 lb Kirkland’s dog food. Guess how much they will cost you. Though prices may vary from time to time, we will mainly show you the average range that it varies.
The answer is around $40. That means you are only paying a dollar for each lb. According to us, this is extremely budget-friendly given the exclusive quality.
Yes, you read that right. These bags of dog food contains no preservatives, no artificial flavors, and no artificial colors at all. So, you can simply say: they are actually who they showing they are!
Alongside all the good things, this brand has two recall histories. They were in March 2007 and May 2012 for melamine contamination and salmonella contamination respectively.
Association of American Feed Control Officials is the abbreviation for AAFCO. Kirkland is known to meet AAFCO standards ensuring a complete balanced diet for your puppy.
The AAFCO symbols are A, M, G, S, and U. These stand for All Life Stages, Maintenance (adult), Growth (puppy), Supplemental and Unspecified.