In this article, we will review 7 of the best GRAIN-FREE foods for Curly-Coated Retrievers.
Over the past decade, grain-free dog foods have become extremely popular. Some dogs have a gluten allergy, so these pets must eat foods that don’t contain grains.
But PLEASE do not start feeding your Curly-Coated Retriever grain-free foods without consulting your veterinarian. Many people wrongly assume that grain-free dog food is healthier, but this is not always the case.
If you determine that your dog definitely needs to eat food that doesn’t contain gluten or other grains, then keep reading! 🙂
7 Best GRAIN-FREE Foods for Curly-Coated Retrievers:
#1. Instinct
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Instinct’s mission for pet food is to “stick with what’s natural and keep it simple.” And as you will see, this company is ALL about RAW food. Their goal is to mimic the ancestral diet of wild dogs that consumed high amounts of unprocessed, lean protein along with ZERO grains (corn, wheat, soy).
Instinct offers a WIDE variety of grain-free foods that your Curly-Coated Retriever should love.
To see their entire list of different grain-free foods available, check out this page. Here you can explore all their options, which include frozen, freeze-dried, dry food, and canned wet food.
As you can see, no matter the style of food that your dog loves best, Instinct has a tasty option. Interestingly, they even offer kibble coated with freeze-dried raw protein for added nutrition and taste.
Lastly, Instinct can boast that they are the only raw pet food company in North America to achieve an excellent Safe Quality Food (SQF) rating and certification. In addition, every batch is tested by an external lab before leaving the facility. They have a zero-tolerance policy for pathogens.
Positives:
- Made in the USA.
- High in protein.
- Even picky eaters love it.
Negatives:
- Expensive – especially for large dogs that eat a lot!
- Raw meat requires extra care in handling and cleaning.
- Some people have complained about the smell.
#2. Orijen
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Orijen’s philosophy, ‘to nourish as nature intended,’ is fully apparent in their ingredients list. This grain-free food is packed with protein, in addition to having fruits, vegetables, fatty acids, probiotics, vitamins, and minerals.
The company boasts that its first five ingredients are always high-quality fresh or raw proteins, and none of its blends include meat by-products, fillers, or preservatives. Their diets are developed with the help of nutritionists and veterinarians who regularly post scientific research to substantiate the reasoning behind their pet-food blends.
Positives:
- The company stays current on issues, such as DCM, that may affect your pets.
- Recipes developed by nutritionists and vets.
- High-quality ingredients without meat by-products, fillers, or preservatives.
- If your Curly-Coated Retriever likes this dry food, you should also try the Orijen grain-free wet food. Most dogs can’t resist when the two foods are mixed together.
Negatives:
- Expensive, especially for large dogs like Curly-Coated Retrievers.
#3. Wellness Core Grain-Free – Large Breed
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In the opinion of many pet owners and veterinarians, Wellness Complete Health is one of the BEST grain-free foods you can buy for your Curly-Coated Retriever. This recipe provides comprehensive nutritional support for larger dogs and is prepared with a tasty mixture of chicken, turkey, flaxseed, vegetables, and other antioxidants and nutrients.
Wellness Core Grain-free contains:
- Chondroitin and glucosamine for strong joints.
- Lots of protein for lean body mass and muscle tone.
- Probiotics and fiber for digestive health.
- Omega fatty acids for skin and coat health.
Wellness ascertains that, due to their ancestry, dogs flourish on a natural diet with abundant meat and proteins. The company’s team of animal nutrition experts, veterinarians, and scientists develop recipes that are both nutritious AND healthy.
The only complaint I could find about this grain-free food is that some people said it made their dog extra gassy.
#4. The Honest Kitchen – dehydrated, grain-free
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The Honest Kitchen makes one of the BEST grain-free foods for Curly-Coated Retrievers around.
Believe it or not, their products contain honest-to-goodness, HUMAN-GRADE food! In order to provide your dog with the best nutrition possible, all of their pet food is made with ingredients you might find in your own kitchen. The recipes are created by the company’s team of veterinarians, along with a veterinary nutritionist. In addition, all products are 100% non-GMO.
Please note that this grain-free dog food is dehydrated. To serve it to your dog, you just need to add warm water and wait three minutes!
Positives:
- It only uses ingredients that humans would consume.
- A 10 lb (4.5 kg) box makes 40 lbs (18 kg) of food once water is added.
- Up to 80% of their customers report improved energy, digestion, and skin/coat health.
Negatives:
- Three minutes might be a long time for your dog to wait for its food. 🙂
- The cost. As you can imagine, having a recipe that uses nutritious whole foods is expensive. But as you know, you almost always get what you pay for, and in this case, what you are paying for is VERY good.
- No dehydrated recipe specifically for large breeds.
#5. Bil-Jac Grain-Free Dry Food
Bil-Jac’s original frozen dog food recipe, with meat as its first ingredient, was introduced in 1947. Despite pressure from pet owners, the company held firm to its conviction to not make dry dog food until it could be the same quality as the frozen recipe.
Bil-Jac has given the same amount of attention to its grain-free recipe.
Their “Nutri-Lock” cooking system allows them to simmer the food in its own juices and gently dry it for maximum flavor retention. Bil-Jac admits that making small batches is neither fast nor convenient but rather a labor of love. As a result, they use only high-quality ingredients such as chicken, pea starch, pea flour, dried beet pulp, brewers dried yeast, pea fiber, and menhaden fish meal.
The founders are all veterans and donate a portion of profits to provide service dogs to America’s heroes.
And if you’re up for some fun, try the Bil-Jac “Two Bowl Challenge!”
So you know, there is no grain-free option specifically for large breeds.
#6. Blue Buffalo Freedom
DRY Kibble for large dogs | WET Food
Blue Buffalo Freedom is an excellent choice if you want quality, affordable grain-free food for your Curly-Coated Retriever.
It’s not as expensive as other options on this list, but it still contains quality ingredients, with CHICKEN listed first. And, of course, it does not have any grains that contain gluten.
Blue Buffalo Freedom offers both DRY kibble and WET canned food.
One unique thing about the dry food is that it contains what they call “LifeSource Bits,” which are cold-formed pieces that are a blend of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals carefully selected by veterinarians and animal nutritionists. The bits help support your dog’s immune system and maintain a healthy oxidative balance. Oxidation is a normal process that helps fight pathogens.
The Freedom wet food is the same high quality as the dry formulas. It goes without saying that they start with real chicken, then add healthy fruits and vegetables like carrots, peas, sweet potatoes, blueberries, and cranberries.
My dog loves it when I mix dry and wet food together! 🙂
Positives:
- The first ingredient is “chicken.” In addition, there are NO “by-product” meals.
- No corn, wheat, soy, artificial flavors, or preservatives.
- In my opinion, you get great value for your money.
#7. Purina Beyond Grain-Free
Beyond is Purina’s line of limited-ingredient recipes. And many of the flavors are grain-free!
For example, the wet food featured above has just FIVE ingredients – chicken, chicken broth, liver, lamb, and spinach – along with added vitamins and minerals.
If you’re looking for kibble, then check out their Beyond Simply Grain Free White Meat Chicken & Egg Dry Dog Food.
One thing I find interesting about Purina is their onsite Pet Care Center, where both dogs and cats are lodged in a home-like environment. The resident pets are treated with individual love and attention by staff and receive top-notch veterinary care. But they also have a job to do—they are Purina’s taste testers!
These feeding trials ensure that pets like the food they’re offered and provide valuable information on a pet’s physiology. Purina does not do any invasive research when studying pet health. They employ more than 500 nutritionists, veterinarians, behaviorists, engineers, and food scientists to help study pet health and happiness.
Positives:
- They have onsite taste testers! 🙂
*If this article was helpful, make sure you don’t miss these other posts about Curly-Coated Retrievers.*
Because of the huge variety of products available, selecting the BEST type of GRAIN-FREE food for your Curly-Coated Retriever is incredibly challenging. I hope this guide helped narrow down your choices today. 🙂
If you have time, we would love for you to answer the following question:
What grain-free food do you feed your Curly-Coated Retriever?
Please leave us a COMMENT below!