Black Gold Dog Food Reviews, Coupons and Recalls 2024
Quick Guide
The Black Gold pet food company was founded by two brothers, Don and John Allen, who spent most of their lives delivering dog food for their father who owned a dog food company. The pair also owned AA Kennels, one of the country’s finest American Foxhound kennels, known for producing international field and bench champions. In 1995, the pair decided to develop their own line of dog foods designed to provide the nutrition dogs need to look and to perform their best. They named the company Black Gold after one of their father’s Foxhound champions and set forth in their mission to produce and manufacture high-quality formulas at an affordable price point.
This company was family-owned and -operated for nearly two decades but was acquired by Pro-Pet, LLC in 2015. Pro-Pet, LLC has taken the brand to a new level, improving the quality of the products and increasing their distribution. According to the company website, Black Gold is now not only one of the best dog foods in the country, but also one of the most readily available. The company website also states that Pro-Pet, LLC would not “promote a product that [they] do not use [themselves] – nor one not proven worthy of [their] reputation.” Though there are many pet foods out there that claim to offer excellent quality, this brand offers measurable results. The Allen brothers claim that, at their own kennels, they have been able to reduce their dog food bill by 35% and their cleanup by more than 50% simply by feeding their own products.
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Latest Black Gold Recalls:
There are many ways to evaluate the quality of a pet food brand. Not only must you look at the type and quality of the ingredients they use, but you should also take into consideration their manufacturing methods. Black Gold doesn’t provide much information about the specifics of their production, however, so you must make inferences from the information available. Looking at the recall history of a brand is one way to do that. This company has not had any recalls in their more than 20-year history. It is worth noting, however, that Pro-Pet, LLC did have a recall for several products in 2014, though this was before they acquired the Black Gold brand. The two products affected came from Pro-Pet’s Ohio plant and they tested positive for salmonella.
Black Gold Dog Food Coupons 2024
One of the main benefits that this company offers their customers is affordability. There are many premium pet foods on the market that are very expensive, but Black Gold is one that claims to be a premium brand but still offers an affordable price point. You can save even more money on this brand’s products using Black Gold dog food coupons. You may be able to find them on the company website or their Facebook page – independent retailers also sometimes offer dog food coupons.
Black Gold Reviews
Though at one time this brand was sold primarily through feed stores, it has now become available around the country thanks to its acquisition by Pro-Pet, LLC. The Pro-Pet company is privately owned and managed by a team of pet food professionals. This company claims to “specialize in the manufacture of premium and super-premium, private label pet foods” and they have production locations in Ohio, Kansas City, and Minnesota. When evaluating the quality of Black Gold pet food, you have to consider that the brand is now manufactured by a separate company. You must also take into account the ingredients they use and the quality of their products. This brand gets mixed reviews because some of their products are healthy and well-balanced, made with premium ingredients. There are, however, other products which are not made with quality ingredients. In the end, it is up to you to decide what you want to feed your dog and whether this brand is the right choice for you.
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Is the Black Gold Brand Good for My Dog?
Unfortunately, there is no simple way to answer this question. If you are looking for an inexpensive brand of dog food, Black Gold is one to consider. Before you buy any of their products, however, you should evaluate them for quality. This brand does offer some grain-free and corn-free products which seem to be decent products, but they also offer recipes at the other end of the spectrum – recipes loaded with corn and wheat. This brand markets themselves as a premium pet food company but that just goes to show you how important it is for you to do your own research to determine the quality of a pet food before you buy.
Dry Food: Black Gold offers four different product lines for dry dog food – Grain-Free, Corn-Free, Premium Blends, and Basic Blends. The Ultimate line of grain-free dry foods is one of the brand’s newest offerings and it includes recipes made with alternative protein and carbohydrate sources like chicken, salmon, sweet potato, and white potato. The Corn-Free lineup includes four premium recipes, including a puppy recipe and a performance blend. The Premium Blends line of products includes four premium-quality recipes at an affordable price and the Basic Blends line is made up of naturally wholesome dog foods designed for affordability.
Here is a list of dry food recipes available for dogs:
- Super Blend
- Performance Blend
- Large Breed Puppy
- High Energy Blend
- Professional Blend
- Trainers Blend
- Bites & Bones with Healthy Squares
- Kennel Blend
- Grain-Free Salmon & White Potato Formula
- Grain-Free Chicken & Sweet Potato Formula
- Ultimate Puppy Formula
- Ultimate Performance Formula
- Ultimate Chicken & Rice Formula
- Ultimate Lamb & Rice Formula
Wet Food: This brand currently doesn’t offer any options for wet food products.
Treats: In addition to their wide variety of dry food products, this company also offers two recipes for dog treats – jerky sticks and baked strips. The first of these is made with beef as the primary ingredient and the second relies mostly on wheat and corn ingredients with bacon flavor.
Here is a list of treats available for dogs:
- Jerky Sticks
- Bak’n Strips
Individual Recipe Review: Black Gold Dry Formula
This Ultimate Grain-Free Salmon & White Potato Formula is one of two grain-free recipes and it is described as an “ultra-premium blend for dogs”. According to the company website, this recipe features alternative protein and carbohydrate sources as well as natural sources for omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. This formula is supplemented with prebiotics and probiotics for balanced digestion and an optimal calcium/phosphorus ratio for healthy bones. With antioxidants from fresh berries, this formula helps to fight inflammation and it includes plenty of phytonutrients as well. Formulated for dogs in all life stages, this recipe has plenty of DHA for brain development as well as glucosamine and chondroitin for joint support. It offers high digestibility and exceeds your dog’s needs for protein and fat.
This recipe starts off strong with both salmon meal and menhaden fish meal as the top two ingredients. These ingredients are protein-rich and complete proteins, at that. This means that they contain all of the essential amino acids your dog needs in his diet. It’s also important to note that these are meat meals, not fresh meats. Fresh meats contain up to 80% moisture by volume so that when the product is cooked, most of the moisture is lost the final volume of protein provided by that ingredient is often much lower. Meat meals, on the other hand, are already cooked to a moisture level around 10% (or 12% for this recipe) which makes them a much more concentrated source of protein. This recipe also contains some supplementary proteins in the form of dried egg product and potato protein. Unfortunately, potato protein is a plant protein which means that it offers lower biological value for your dog – it is unclear how much this ingredient contributes to the total protein content of the recipe.
The main source of carbohydrate in this recipe is dried potato, supplemented by dried peas and sweet potato. All of these are gluten-free and grain-free carbohydrates so they offer your dog good digestibility. In addition to providing carbohydrate energy, these ingredients also include some dietary fiber for digestive support. There are supplementary sources of fiber as well, such as flaxseed meal, alfalfa meal, and dried chicory root. There are also dried carrots, dried cranberries, and dried blueberries – these ingredients contribute natural sources for key nutrients as well as fiber. They are also rich in antioxidants which help to protect your dog’s cells against free-radical damage.
The remaining ingredients in this recipe consist primarily of fats, flavors, synthetic supplements, and probiotics. The main source of fat in this formula is chicken fat, a highly nutritious ingredient and a rich source of alpha linoleic acid. Chicken fat is also very calorie-dense so it provides your dog with a concentrated source of energy. In terms of supplements, this recipe includes vitamins and minerals as well as dried fermentation products. The vitamins offer lower bioavailability to your dog than natural sources for the same vitamins would, but it is good to see that some of the minerals are chelated. Chelated minerals are those which have been bound to protein molecules, making them easier for your dog’s body to digest and absorb. The dried fermentation products act as probiotics, helping to support your dog’s healthy and regular digestion.
Overall, this Ultimate Grain-Free Salmon & White Potato Formula has a guaranteed analysis as follows:
- Crude Protein (Min) – 32%
- Crude Fat (Min) – 18%
- Crude Fiber (Max) – 5.5%
- Moisture (Max) – 12%
- Calcium (Min) – 1.2%
- Phosphorus (Min) – 1.0%
- Chondroitin (Min) – 90 mg/kg
- Glucosamine (Min) – 120 mg/kg
- Omega-3 Fatty Acids (Min) – 1.5%
- Omega-6 Fatty Acids (Min) – 3.5%
- Calorie Content – 402 kcal/cup
Bottom Line:
Overall, the products this brand has to offer are all over the spectrum in terms of quality. The Grain-Free and Corn-Free product lines offer balanced nutrition and seem to be made primarily of decent ingredients. Many of the other products – including those belonging to the “Premium Blends” product line – rely heavily on low-quality fillers like corn meal and ground wheat. This brand justifies the ingredients used in these lower quality products by stating that they are for hunting dogs who need more protein and carbohydrate in their diet. It is perfectly possible, however, to meet these needs through the use of higher quality ingredients. It would seem that this brand is more concerned with keeping their own price point down while still attempting to marketing their products as “premium” pet foods. There are some recipes that meet this standard but many that do not.