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Protein/Carb Ratio - 9.5/109.5/10
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Quality of Ingredients - 10/1010/10
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Variety - 10/1010/10
Summary
Zignature lands on our list of top 10 best dog foods due to their impeccable quality of ingredients, sustainable sourcing, and strong focus on hypoallergenics. And our dog is obsessed with it! View on Chewy.com
- Made with high-quality fish protein as the #1 ingredient
- Fish protein is an excellent source of Omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins B12
- Limited-ingredient formula may make this a great option for a rotational diet
There are few things harder for a pet owner than seeing your dog suffer with food allergies and food sensitivities. Some dogs require a strict diet such as one that is grain free and not all companies provide food that suit their needs.
Zignature is a newer company and is still making a name for itself in the luxury dog food category, but their commitment to pet health and their hypo-allergenic guarantee is gaining them a steady following across the country. Pledging to be one of the healthiest foods on the market, without any of the foods known to trigger sensitivities in pets, Zignature is becoming the go-to choice for pet parents concerned about reactions from food-sensitive animals.
About Zignature
Zignature is owned by a company called Pets Global Inc, and creates high quality, limited ingredient pet foods at their plants in Minnesota and South Dakota. They may have started in South Dakota, but their pet food mission didn’t end there.
A key to the brands success has been their Physiologically Tuned™ diet, which according to their website “eliminates troublesome staples such as Chicken, Corn, Wheat, Soy, and Potatoes” in order to provide pets with “optimal hypoallergenic, low-glycemic nutrition.” They also make use of a meat-first philosophy, and claim that their recipes are derived from a more natural evolutionary diet, providing only the things that your dog is naturally programmed to eat, and supplementing this with essential oils, vitamins, and minerals for maximum health benefits.
Quality of Ingredients
Zignature prides itself on the high quality of the ingredients in their food, and as such only accepts the very highest quality product at their factories. The company website has an explanation of the benefits for every ingredient chosen to go into their foods, and Zignature promises to never include any unnecessary fillers in any of their foods, making it a great choice for animals that may have food sensitivities.
Full Ingredients and Analysis
To get a better analysis of what’s inside Zignature Dog Food, we sampled the Zignature Zssential Formula. Analyzing the first 10 ingredients in a dog food is a great way to understand the overall nutrient content of the dog food because AAFCO requires all dog food ingredients to be listed in order of predominance by their weight. Here’s a closer look at what’s inside Zignature Zssential Dog Food.
Full Ingredients:
Turkey, Turkey Meal, Salmon, Lamb Meal, Chickpeas, Duck Meal, Pea Flour, Peas, Sunflower Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid), Flaxseeds, Dehydrated Alfalfa Meal, Natural Flavors, Dicalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Salmon Oil, Salt, Dried Kelp, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Cobalt Proteinate), Vitamins (Vitamin A Acetate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement), Blueberries, Cranberries, Minerals (Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Cobalt Carbonate).
Since Zignature eliminates common ingredients such as chicken, corn, and potatoes, they have to find other protein and carbohydrate ingredients to fill the void. They do so by adding lots of high-quality meats (some are even exotic, but sustainable) such as turkey/salmon/lamb and chickpeas/peas. Overall, the Zignature Zssential formula has a really healthy nutrient content.
Available on Amazon: Zignature Dog Food
For being so precise when it comes to hypo-allergenics and completely eliminating common allergic ingredients, it may be surprising that this dog food is actually quite affordable in relation to the premium dog food industry. Zignature Zssential dog food runs about $2.22 per pound.
Zignature dog food contains the following ingredients that are great for your dog and so we thought we would bring them to your attention:
- Omega-3 fatty acids
- Salmon oil
- Lamb meal
- Sunflower oil
- Pea flower
These are all high quality ingredients full of protein and healthy fats that are crucial for keeping your dogs tail wagging and their fur shining. Their food is also low in saturated fats and high in vitamins and minerals.
If you have researched and read a lot of Zignature dog food reviews, or any other dog food reviews for that matter, you will know that pretty much all dog food brands use animal ‘meal’ as their source of animal protein in dry dog food.
Dry Dog Food Product Line
Zignature currently has a wide array of foods on the market that are more than suitable for dogs with any kind of allergy. The amount of different formulas alone ensure that dog owners can find a product that suits their dog best, and, as an added bonus, almost every dry formula, including the Zssentials line, has a corresponding wet food to provide some diversity at meal time.
See Related Topic: 7 Best Senior Dog Food
Dry Formulas
Zignature really sets itself apart from many other brands because of its wide range of unique protein formulas. There are currently thirteen different dry formulas (not counting Zssential formula) which make use of meats as diverse as kangaroo, guinea fowl, catfish, and goat, among others. Each of these meat sources has its own benefits too, which are helpfully spoken about on the company web page, and all of the foods promise that they will never make use of corn, wheat, soy, or any chicken products.
And not just that, but they are all also fortified with a number of vitamins and minerals, and every bag is guaranteed to meet or exceed the Association of American Feed Control Official (AAFCO) standards for Dog Food Nutrient Profiles, ensuring that your dog has a well-rounded meal in every bowl.
Zssential
The Zssential formula draws upon multiple sources in order to create a well-rounded, high-protein and low-fat meal that dogs love. Each bag is packed full of Turkey and Turkey Meal from the American Midwest, Salmon from the Northwest, Duck Meal from France, and Lamb Meal from New Zealand, as well as Vitamin B12, Riboflavin, and Omega-3 Fatty Acids, as well as other additives, to ensure that all of your pups nutritional needs are met at meal time and that your four-legged friend stays both looking and feeling good at all times. Like many of the other formulas put out by Zignature, the Zssential formula is also good for dogs with food allergies and contains no corn, wheat, soy, chicken, chicken eggs, or chicken by-products.
During our review, our dog Sasha ended up loving this Zssential formula so much that we bought another bag; we now give this to her on a regular basis instead of Orijen as she seems to enjoy it more and have less hot spots (we’re thinking she may have started to acquire a sensitivity to potatoes).
Zignature Dog Food Costs
Zignature dog food is around the 70 dollar mark or under. This is a pretty standard price for dog food and matches the competition. In our opinion, this is a fair price for their food as the ingredients are high quality and diet specific.
How Long Does Zignature Dog Food Last?
That all depends on how much your dog eats. It can last as long as 2 and a half months or as little as 5 weeks.
Zignature Dog Food Recall History
Zignature dog food is owned by Pets-Global. They are a privately owned company that has been operating since 2010. We are impressed that to date, Zignature dog food has never been recalled.
Where to Buy
As a growing pet food company, Zignature is not yet carried by most major retailers, and might be a bit difficult to come by for some pet parents. Luckily, the company website does provide pet parents with a handy store locator, allowing them to find the smaller specialty shops in their area that carry the brand
Interestingly, the company website expressly states that Amazon.com and Jet.com are not authorized to carry their food. That shouldn’t deter interested customers from shopping online for Zignature formulas, however. Major online retailers like Chewy and Petstuff.com still carry the line and will deliver directly to your door.
Alternative
If you are looking for an alternative to Zignature for one reason or another, we recommend going for Nutrisca. Their food is made using ‘simple, real food ingredients’ that are grain free and won’t irritate your dog’s sensitive tummy.
Another great option is Victor dog food. They have an array of treats and meals to choose from from gluten free meals to yummy senior healthy weight food and puppy meals.
We have to mention NomNomNow, they are growing in popularity and when your dog eats their food you will understand why! They often have coupons and discounts available for you to use, in fact, here is one for 50% off your next purchase.
We hope our review helped you. Do let us know about your experience with Zignature or any other dog food company mentioned in this article.
One of our dogs, a spitz, had been very active for the three years she’s been with us, but suddenly became listless since grandma came to our house to visit. Grandma finally admitted she would feed our dogs scraps from the table, like fries and popcorn. The vet was right, our spitz has allergies, and so we fed her Zignature. After just two days, she became her active self again.
When Pogo was a puppy, we thought he was allergic to chicken. We always had to buy food from exotic meats like lamb and salmon, or kangaroo. Zignature offers a good variety of meats that other brands don’t, so we can keep Pogo’s diet diverse and healthy instead of giving him the exact same thing, day-in, day-out.
When I was a new doggy owner, I was suspicious of everything my dog ate. My dog is a Labrador, and I got her from my cousin when she was about seven months, and she already had a bad habit of chewing on everything she could get her teeth around (and I mean everything). That’s why I decided she should have the best dog food out there, and for us, it’s Zignature.
Worst food ever my dog is dying from heart disease he only are zignature and veggies. DO NOT FEED YOUR DOG THIS FOOD unless u want a dead dog maybe good for allergies but kills your babies off sooner than later.
I’m very sorry to hear about your pup, Amanda. That’s a very hard thing to go through. I’m not so sure we can assume Zignature is the reason for having heart disease though.
My sister-in-law fed my Shepherd ham and cheese during one of the parties held in our home. Since then, I noticed skin allergies on the legs and belly of my dog. She has never been active again even if we resumed with her regular diet. The vet told us to shift to dog food free from allergens, and that’s when we gave her Zignature Lamb variant. The vet was right, and now our little boy is fine.
I’m 34 now, and it’s my first time to own a dog again since I was a kid. Dog ownership is also a lot more serious these days. Gone are the days when your dog could practically live off of the family’s leftover table food. I know I should stick to a strict diet, but I can’t help giving my year-old lab a whole meal as a treat once in a while. So every so often, I get him a can of Zignature wet canned food. The only problem is getting him back to eating dry food after.
I often find myself switching dog food brands because my Jack Russell, Kelly, isn’t very food driven, and he doesn’t finish the recommended daily amount. With Zignature dog food, I can just switch variants since the brand comes in a bunch of different formulas. Now, I can be sure that Kelly gets the best quality ingredients, no matter how many times we switch up.
Zignature dog food is great for dogs with a sensitive stomach. My pups loved it. They had allergies to anything chicken, so I guess this is the perfect food for them. I ordered one bag of the trout and salmon formula and observed if they liked it. Yes, there were remarkable improvements, and I do not regret spending a bit more for Zignature.
Hi! My dog Telluride is a 3 year old Bulldog who has massive allergies! She is even allergic to all the hypoallergenic foods (even altimino from royal canon) the only food that works for her is Zignature Kangaroo!!! I even make her cookies out of the wet food! So thank you for this food! It is truly a life saver!
My 3-year old pug was raised on Royal Canine kibble made especially for pugs. As he got older, he started choking on pieces of kibble, so I tried a slow feeder, but still he choked. I switched to NomNom, and he reacted to the fish oil in their chicken meal, so I tried the beef meal, but it has big cuts of potatoes in it and he chokes and vomits them up; and the company would not agree to cut them smaller, so I decided to try Signature. He does not like the kibble, but boy does he like the canned Tout & Salmon. So as long as I can find a way to give him the right amount, I think we have found the right food. I am weaning him gradually from the NomNom.
I am very interested in this dog food. I have one question that I need answered. I see some of the varieties have peas and pea protein. From what I’ve read, that can lead to an enlarged heart. If that is true, why do you still use that in your recipe?
Thank you.