# JAMES WELLBELOVED "Kibble" UK experts!



## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

Hi just wanted to know if anyone in the UK/EUROPE feeds kibbles and if you have heard anything bad about JAMES WELLBELOVED food.


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

bumping up


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## MyBentley (May 5, 2009)

What an interesting web site for James Well Beloved dog food. I'm not in the UK, but I'm aware that it's a fairly common brand there.

First, I was surprised to see that no formulas contained chicken. Lamb and turkey seemed to be popular.

Can't say I was very impressed with the ingredients lists or the guaranteed analysis.

Lamb and Rice Kibble Adult: rice, lamb meal, barley, linseed, lamb fat, lamb gravy and so forth. protein 21% / oil 10.5%

Turkey and Rice Large Kibble: rice, turkey meal, oats, turkey fat, linseed, turkey gravy and so forth. protein 23.5% / oil 14.5%

Rice as the 1st ingredient and meat only listed once doesn't inspire confidence in it being a meat-based formula. Fairly low protein for the lamb and rice adult kibble and I'm really not sure what the "gravy" ingredient is all about. 

As with all formulas, I'm sure there are probably dogs eating it that seem to do well - it's just not something I would choose.


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

MyBentley said:


> What an interesting web site for James Well Beloved dog food. I'm not in the UK, but I'm aware that it's a fairly common brand there.
> 
> First, I was surprised to see that no formulas contained chicken. Lamb and turkey seemed to be popular.
> 
> ...


Thank you so much for your honest opinion. Yes, I also noticed that rice is the first ingredient which I understand is not a good sign. However, Amber is doing really well on it but she is only 3 years old.

I will consider changing maybe as she gets older. Would have appreciated a little bit more input but I guess your analysis is pretty good and was simple for me to understand. Thanks again.

PS: And also thank you BeauShel for the bump!!


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## honeysmum (Dec 4, 2007)

Hi I think Tanya used to feed this food try posting on the UK social group.:wavey:


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## msdogs1976 (Dec 21, 2007)

Dog said:


> Thank you so much for your honest opinion. Yes, I also noticed that rice is the first ingredient which I understand is not a good sign. However, Amber is doing really well on it but she is only 3 years old.
> 
> I will consider changing maybe as she gets older. Would have appreciated a little bit more input but I guess your analysis is pretty good and was simple for me to understand. Thanks again.
> 
> PS: And also thank you BeauShel for the bump!!


Your doing much better than I did with my golden in her early years. I just went with the big name commercial brands and assumed they were good. But after some education, I upgraded and moved on. I don't think this is the worst food in the world, at least it's not top heavy with corn.


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## MyBentley (May 5, 2009)

msdogs1976 said:


> Your doing much better than I did with my golden in her early years. I just went with the big name commercial brands and assumed they were good. But after some education, I upgraded and moved on. I don't think this is the worst food in the world, at least it's not top heavy with corn.


I probably should have included pretty much your exact words in my earlier post. Until a few years, I never bothered reading the back of a bag of dog food. First time I did, I remember saying "Gee, I didn't know dogs needed corn gluten, wheat flour and animal digest." So yes, the James WellBeloved would definitely have been an improvement over what I fed my dogs earlier in my life.


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

honeysmum said:


> Hi I think Tanya used to feed this food try posting on the UK social group.:wavey:


I will thank you. 
I have joined the uk group recently lets hope I do this right. 

Thank you all for your input.


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## Princess Buttercup (Apr 22, 2009)

Hey - Arden Grange or Orijen are other brands to consider. I have my guy on Orijen senior at the moment, and I think I'll try him on Arden Grange next. James Wellbeloved doesn't seem to be too bad, but a grain is the first ingredient. Arden Grange (well, the adult lamb and rice) is rated as a 4 star food on dogfoodanalysis.com, and is "recommended", as meat is the first ingredient. Orijen is a 6 star food, and quite high in protein. My guy has been on it for a few weeks now, and is doing well - his energy levels are much better than when I had him on Royal Canin or Hills Science Plan.


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## Ruby'smom (Feb 4, 2008)

a few of us on the UK site feed Skinners 
we have had Ruby on it for a while now and she loves it
dont know anything about James Wellbeloved though sorry


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

Princess Buttercup said:


> Hey - Arden Grange or Orijen are other brands to consider. I have my guy on Orijen senior at the moment, and I think I'll try him on Arden Grange next. James Wellbeloved doesn't seem to be too bad, but a grain is the first ingredient. Arden Grange (well, the adult lamb and rice) is rated as a 4 star food on dogfoodanalysis.com, and is "recommended", as meat is the first ingredient. Orijen is a 6 star food, and quite high in protein. My guy has been on it for a few weeks now, and is doing well - his energy levels are much better than when I had him on Royal Canin or Hills Science Plan.


Thank you so much for that useful website!!! Indeed I will consider Origen or Arden Grange and any other that are suggested..

Money is not a problem we are paying £28-£34 per 7.5Kgs for JWB so Origen is not that much more expensive... I have a little time to do my research as I will only do the switch over in July when I am on a 6 weeks holiday and that I can monitor Amber throughout the day.

Thank you again (sorry for saying thank you so much but I really truly appreciate it so much when I get a reply/good information).


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

Is the Canadian food Acana available there??? It looks really good and one of the breeders on here feeds it and really likes it. It has a more moderate protein than Orijen which suit many dogs ( in the 30's). http://www.championpetfoods.com/acana/


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

Thank you again. I will indeed investigate the rating of Acana and Skinners thanks to Princess Buttercup's website. 

I know it will not happened tomorrow but I'll get there in the end with your support and advice. 

  

Thank you msdogs1976, your kind words means a lot.


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## MyBentley (May 5, 2009)

Penny & Maggie's Mom said:


> Is the Canadian food Acana available there??? It looks really good and one of the breeders on here feeds it and really likes it. It has a more moderate protein than Orijen which suit many dogs ( in the 30's). http://www.championpetfoods.com/acana/


There are 2 lines of Acana: one with grain which looks pretty good; and the other called Acana Provincial which is grain free. It comes in 3 formulas: chicken, lamb or fish. The Acana Provincial Prairie Harvest is part of my dogs' kibble rotation and they do really well on it. Protein is 34% and fat is 17%. I like that they are made by Champion Pet Foods - same as Orijen.

At this time, the Acana line is only available in Canada and some portions of the U.S. On their web site they say they will have international availability soon. Maybe an e-mail to the company will give you more specifics.


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## Tanyac (Jun 18, 2008)

I've come a bit late to this thread sorry about that!

I had both my dogs on James Wellbeloved, as it was a recommended food, and I still think it is much better than anything you can buy in a supermarket. They were doing fine on it, but not very cost effective when feeding 2 dogs. I gave mine Duck and Rice Hypoallergenic.

I changed to Skinners about 6 months ago, which has similar ingredients and half the price. They are doing very well on it. Since Izzie's pregnancy, I've been adding raw minced tripe to both, which they absolutley love even though it stinks to high heaven! I guess it depends on how deep your pockets are at the end of the day, there are some really good quality foods out there with a little research. Some people even feed a raw diet, now that's something I'd love to do, just don't think I'm brave enough just yet!


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

I am consideraring the following two products from Arden Grange. What do you think? Bearing in mind what Amber is used too which product will suit her best? My only concerns are calorie counts and the size of the kibbles (Amber eat fast sometimes and I worry about choking). 

Currently looking for stockings.

*Adult Large Breed: with fresh chicken & rice *

Ingredients

Chicken Meal* (min 27%), Whole Grain Rice (min 26%), Whole Grain Maize, Chicken Fat*, Beet Pulp, Fresh Chicken (min 5%), Dried Brewers Yeast, Egg Powder, Fish Meal*, Linseed, Fish Oil*, Minerals, Vitamins, Nucleotides, Prebiotic FOS, Prebiotic MOS, Cranberry Extract, Chondroitin Sulphate, Glucosamine Sulphate, MSM, Yucca Extract, L-Carnitine. * Preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extract. 
Typical Analysis

Protein 24%, Oil 14%, Fibre 2.5%, Ash 7%, Moisture 8%, Omega6 2.51%, Omega3 0.36%, Vitamin A 15000 IU/kg, Vitamin D3 1000 IU/kg, Vitamin E 100 IU/kg, Calcium 1.25%, Phosphorous P 0.85%, Copper 20 mg/kg (as Cupric Sulphate). 


*Premium: rich in fresh chicken*

Ingredients

Fresh Chicken (min 19%), Chicken Meal* (min 19%), Whole Grain Rice, Potato, Chicken Fat*, Beet Pulp, Egg Powder, Fish Meal*, Dried Brewers Yeast, Linseed, Fish Oil*, Minerals, Vitamins, Nucleotides, Prebiotic FOS, Prebiotic MOS, Cranberry Extract, Chondroitin Sulphate, Glucosamine Sulphate, MSM, Yucca Extract. * Preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extract. 
Typical Analysis

Protein 26%, Oil 17%, Fibre 3%, Ash 6%, Moisture 8%, Omega6 3.76%, Omega3 0.6%, Vitamin A 18000 IU/kg, Vitamin D3 1250 IU/kg, Vitamin E 130 IU/kg, Calcium 1.12%, Phosphorous P 0.8%, Copper 20 mg/kg (as Cupric Sulphate).


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

Hi Dog, I used to feed JWB but like Tanya swapped to Skinners Duck and rice as it is half the price and very similar...we only just swapped and things are going well so far. I don't think JWB would rank as a high quality food in the US but over here it is thought of very highly and is one of the best available...we just do not have access to very high quality kibbles over here and most, if they want a kibble that is mainly meat based, have to order in Orijen...but it works out about £47 ($78) for 13.5kg...my finances just will not stretch to that...a bag that size would last less than 3 weeks! Its a shame I can't stretch that extra bit for Orijen as when you compare the ingredients to JWB or Burns it seems to be worth it...JWB is the most expensive bag of rice you will ever buy!! 

I'm no expert in analysing ingredients but I think Arden grange is on a par with JWB as far as meat content/protein go...maybe slightly better...I would go for the premium one out of those two...it really does come down to what you can afford and how well your dogs do on it. JWB has kept mine very healthy and looking good for a number of years.


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## honeysmum (Dec 4, 2007)

Hi Dog I feed Orijen, on the zoo plus website if you order 2 bags of 13.5 kilo called the economy pack it is £10.00 cheaper than buying one bag then if you type in stock-up in the coupon you get another 5% off it I have just had some delivered invoice was for £79.70 which works out way cheaper than JWB if you were paying £34.00 for 7.5kilo.
Good luck with whatever you choose,trying to find a food that suits your pocket and your pet is a nightmare.:uhoh:


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

My first choice was Orijen too but I was worried about not being able to get it easily - from a shop... Is the Zoo plus website reliable? How is the delivery service? Do they deliver on Saturdays?

PS: I am thinking of changing Amber's food because she seem still hungry after eating. I think she needs something more meaty!!


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## honeysmum (Dec 4, 2007)

I order the 2 sacks I ordered Tuesday it was here on Thursday, and when I am a few days into second bag I re order but I am also feeding a GD if it is out of stock it will say on the site when it is due in and they will e mail you, its delivered by DHL I think and as I know the delivery driver I just tell him to leave at side of house if I am not in. Mutley and Mog also sell it also a couple of other sites but have not seen it in stores.


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

Dog said:


> Money is not a problem we are paying £28-£34 per 7.5Kgs for JWB so Origen is not that much more expensive...


This probably isn't important but wowza...you were paying up to £34 for a 7.5kg bag?? That is exactly what I used to pay for a 15kg bag...I think Pets at home do a 15kilo for about £39?? Anyway...just suprised at differences in prices up and down the country, thought it would be pretty standard! 

Have you considered a complete wet food? I was very impressed in pets at home when looking at Wainwrights trays of food...looked to be about 60% meat...they were on offer for 7 trays for £4.50, so I stocked up as I always like to add a bit of wet food to the kibble (it also bulks up the meat content)

Here's the ingredients for the Duck and rice flavour tray (the one I stocked up on yesterday!)

*Ingredients:*

Fresh Duck (Min. 65%), Duck Liver (Min. 5%), Brown Rice (Min. 5%), Minerals, Vitamins, Seaweed, Chicory Root. With Antioxidant EC Additives. 

*http://www.petsathome.com/find/cate...-2f03+wet+foods/product-is-923615#ingredients*


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

Hi Emma, well spotted I obviously forgot to type "15Kgs after 7.5Kgs" in my following statement: We are paying £28-£34 per 7.5Kgs-*15Kgs *.

Sorry, I don't know anything about wet food. May I ask why you suggested this option now? Hard enough finding the right dry kibbles so why should I suddenly go for wet food?


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

Dog said:


> Sorry, I don't know anything about wet food. May I ask why you suggested this option now? Hard enough finding the right dry kibbles so why should I suddenly go for wet food?


It was just a thought...I only looked at Wainwrights in Pets at home yesterday (it caught my eye as it was on offer) so hadn't looked at the ingredients until then. As it is a complete food it is just another alternative to dry food so thought you may want to consider it. I would love to feed a wet food 100% of the time as I know for definite the dogs prefer the texture and taste (it is has a more appealing smell/texture to them over dry kibble pieces, they go crazy for it!) the only reason I don't is because it would work out quite expensive for 2 large(ish) dogs (I think they would need 2.5-3 trays each a day) but as you said earlier that money is not really a deciding factor then thought it was worth a mention for Amber...there is no reason why you should suddenly go for wet food anymore than you should go for orijen or arden grange. Other good quality complete wet foods are Nature diet or Nature's menu.


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

Hi Emma, thank for the explanation. However, for me "wet food" is canned food and I have always been happy with dry kibbles and after *my poll *a while back I do not wish to change to wet food (eventhough money is not an issue when it comes to Amber's wellbeing):

http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com/showthread.php?t=16577&page=5&highlight=type+food


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

Dog said:


> Hi Emma, thank for the explanation. However, for me "wet food" is canned food and I have always been happy with dry kibbles and after *my poll *a while back I do not wish to change to wet food (eventhough money is not an issue when it comes to Amber's wellbeing):
> 
> http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com/showthread.php?t=16577&page=5&highlight=type+food


yeah, I understand. I used to think of all wet food as those horrid canned foods like 'Butchers 'or 'Pal' (probably containing about 5% actual meat and god knows what else!) but 'complete' wet food _is _totally different...infact if it is a food with more meat you are after for Amber you are much more likely to find it in a tray food like Nature diet or Nature's menu than most readily available kibbles in this country (if you didn't want to have Orijen shipped in from Canada as it is not produced over here) 

I think many people also assume that wet food is worse for the teeth but some pros believe that kibble is more likely to stick to the teeth for longer once it is all crunched up and cause more plaque...that is just something I read though! 

But anyways...if you are definitely sticking with dry then I would say Orijen as first choice (I have used zooplus in the past and they are very reliable with delivery but then very suddenly stopped supplying the brand I was then using so had no choice but to change food.) If you want to stick to a kibble readily available over here then I would go with the premium Arden grange food.


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

Emma&Tilly said:


> yeah, I understand. I used to think of all wet food as those horrid canned foods like 'Butchers 'or 'Pal' (probably containing about 5% actual meat and god knows what else!) but 'complete' wet food _is _totally different...infact if it is a food with more meat you are after for Amber you are much more likely to find it in a tray food like Nature diet or Nature's menu than most readily available kibbles in this country (if you didn't want to have Orijen shipped in from Canada as it is not produced over here)
> 
> I think many people also assume that wet food is worse for the teeth but some pros believe that kibble is more likely to stick to the teeth for longer once it is all crunched up and cause more plaque...that is just something I read though!
> 
> But anyways...if you are definitely sticking with dry then I would say Orijen as first choice (I have used zooplus in the past and they are very reliable with delivery but then very suddenly stopped supplying the brand I was then using so had no choice but to change food.) If you want to stick to a kibble readily available over here then I would go with the premium Arden grange food.


Thanks! A lot to think about!


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