If you’re looking for American Journey dog food at your local supermarket or pet supply store, you’re looking in the wrong place. This brand of dry dog food is owned by Chewy, the popular online pet supply retailer, and is sold almost exclusively through the company’s website.
Since Chewy cuts out the middleman, the company is able to produce and sell its own products at a competitive price. Despite containing high-quality ingredients, these formulas are often significantly less expensive than the competition. Combined with the ability to give customers set-it-and-forget-it automatic pet food shipments, American Journey is certainly one of the most convenient pet food brands around.
Overall, these products are a great option for dogs requiring both grain-free and grain-inclusive diets. However, there are limitations on whether this brand is truly the best option for your canine companions.
Our Rating of American Journey Grain Free Dog Food
American Journey Grain Free is a dry dog food using a significant amount of named meat meals as its main source of animal protein, thus earning the brand 5 stars.
Review of American Journey Active Life Dry Dog Food
Rating:
American Journey Active Life Dog Food receives the Advisor’s second-highest tier rating of 4.5 stars.
The American Journey Active Life product line includes the 16 dry dog foods listed below.
Each recipe includes its AAFCO nutrient profile when available… Growth (puppy), Maintenance (adult), All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.
American Journey Active Life Chicken, Brown Rice and Vegetables 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: Deboned chicken, chicken meal, brown rice, rice bran, peas, barley, natural flavor, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), flaxseed, suncured alfalfa meal, fish oil, dried plain beet pulp, dried tomato pomace, dicalcium phosphate, salt, calcium carbonate, dried egg product, carrots, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, l-threonine, blueberries, cranberries, dried kelp, choline chloride, taurine, dried chicory root, mixed tocopherols (preservative), iron amino acid complex, zinc amino acid complex, vitamin E supplement, ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, Yucca schidigera extract, copper amino acid complex, copper sulfate, sodium selenite, manganese amino acid complex, vitamin A supplement, niacin supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin supplement, manganous oxide, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, biotin, calcium iodate, folic acid, rosemary extract
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 6.7%
| Estimated Nutrient Content | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Protein | Fat | Carbs |
| Guaranteed Analysis | 25% | 15% | NA |
| Dry Matter Basis | 28% | 17% | 48% |
| Calorie Weighted Basis | 24% | 35% | 41% |
The first ingredient in this dog food is chicken. Although it is a quality item, raw chicken contains up to 73% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.
After processing, this item would probably account for a smaller part of the total content of the finished product.
The second ingredient is chicken meal. Chicken meal is considered a meat concentrate and contains nearly 300% more protein than fresh chicken.
The third ingredient is brown rice, a complex carbohydrate that (once cooked) can be fairly easy to digest. However, aside from its natural energy content, rice is of only modest nutritional value to a dog.
The next ingredient includes rice bran, a healthy by-product of milling whole grain rice. The bran is the fiber-rich outer layer of the grain containing starch, protein, fat as well as vitamins and minerals.
The fifth ingredient lists 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 sixth item is barley, a starchy carbohydrate supplying fiber and other healthy nutrients. However, aside from its energy content, this cereal grain is of only modest nutritional value to a dog.
After the natural flavor, we find chicken fat. Chicken fat is obtained from rendering chicken, a process similar to making soup in which the fat itself is skimmed from the surface of the liquid.
Chicken fat is high in linoleic acid, an omega-6 fatty acid essential for life. Although it doesn’t sound very appetizing, chicken fat is actually a quality ingredient.
The ninth 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.
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 American Journey product.
With 6 notable exceptions…
First, we find 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.
Next, this food includes alfalfa meal. Although alfalfa meal is high in plant protein (about 18%) and fiber (25%), this hay-family item is more commonly associated with horse feeds.
In addition, beet pulp is a controversial ingredient, a high fiber by-product of sugar beet processing.
Some denounce beet pulp as an inexpensive filler while others cite its outstanding intestinal health and blood sugar benefits.
We only call your attention here to the controversy and believe the inclusion of beet pulp in reasonable amounts in most dog foods is entirely acceptable.
Next, we note the use of taurine, an important amino acid associated with the healthy function of heart muscle. Although taurine is not typically considered essential in canines, some dogs have been shown to be deficient in this critical nutrient.
Since taurine deficiency appears to be more common in pets consuming grain-free diets, we view its presence in this recipe as a positive addition.
Additionally, 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.
This product also contains 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.
And lastly, we note the inclusion of 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.
Based on its ingredients alone, American Journey Active Life Dog Food looks like an above-average dry product.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 28%, a fat level of 17% and estimated carbohydrates of about 48%.
As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 28% and a mean fat level of 15%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 49% for the overall product line.
And a fat-to-protein ratio of about 55%.
Which means this American Journey product line contains…
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, flaxseed and alfalfa meal, this looks like the profile of a kibble containing a notable amount of meat.
Which Types of Dogs Might Do Better With a Different Brand?
The most notable gap in American Journey’s dog food catalog is a lack of small breed-specific formulas. Although many owners have no issue feeding their small and toy breeds traditional dog food, these formulas often aren’t ideal.
If you’re looking for a high-quality small breed dog food, then some better options might be the Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Small Breed Dog Food or the Nutro Wholesome Essentials Small Bites Dry Dog Food.
FAQ
What company makes American Journey dog food?
Is American Journey dog food highly recommended by all the critics?
American Journey Grain Free is a dry dog food using a significant amount of named meat meals as its main source of animal protein, thus earning the brand 5 stars.
Do dogs like American Journey dog food?