Choosing the best dog food for your pooch isn’t an easy matter, especially with all the dog food brands, food choices, and more on offer. If only all dog food was quality and choosing the best for your furry best friend was easy, right?
Luckily, for you, we’re comparing Kirkland Dog Food vs Blue Buffalo today, so if you need to decide between these two brands, it’ll be easy.
In general, when choosing the best dog food, you want to ensure that the ingredients are high quality and the first ingredient on the label is protein (and not protein meal, since this isn’t a sufficient protein source for your dog).
You also want to feed your dog fruits, vegetables, and grains to ensure your pooch eats a healthy, balanced meal and gets all the nutrients in the form of minerals, fiber, protein, fat, carbohydrates, and vitamins they need to grow and/or be healthy.
Avoid any fillers like corn, wheat, or soy that don’t add anything to the food but actually just cost you more in the long run in terms of vet bills (when your dog doesn’t get the nutrients they need because of these fillers).
You may need to choose a specialty food if you have a puppy, a senior dog, a dog suffering from allergies, a pooch with a sensitive gut, or one with joint or other health issues.
Kirkland dog food, sold by Costco, has two ranges to choose from (Kirkland Signature – Super Premium and Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain – Grain Free) in a variety of flavors or formulas in canned and dry food.
On the other hand, Blue Buffalo has six ranges you can choose from (Blue Life Protection Formula, Blue Wilderness, Blue Basics, Blue Freedom, Blue True Solutions, and Blue Natural Veterinary Diet) and a variety of flavors and in dry and wet food.
So let’s see how these two brands stack up against each other.
The Advantages Of Kirkland Dog Food!
One of the first advantages of Kirkland dog food is that it’s less expensive when compared to Blue Buffalo by an average of $15-$20 (this depends on where you buy and what deals or promotions are available).
The second pro of Kirkland is that the brand has had fewer recalls. There have only been two to date; one in 2007 because of a potential melamine contamination and the other in 2012 due to a potential salmonella contamination.
Kirkland works hard to ensure they produce only the best quality food for your dog to meet your dog’s nutritional requirements.
This brand offers a grain-free product line, which is ideal for pooches that are allergic to grains like barley, millet, and oatmeal.
There is also dry food (kibble) and wet canned food, so you can choose the type of dog food that works best with your dog. Kirkland also offers dog food that’s specifically designed for dogs of all ages.
They have a food that’s ideal for puppies, adult dogs, senior dogs, small breeds, and a Healthy Weight formula designed for overweight dogs to help with calorie control.
Another benefit of choosing Kirkland dog food for your pooch is that real protein is the first ingredient listed on the label for all of their food products except the Healthy Weight one, which aims to be lower in calories and high in fiber.
The rest of the recipes are all boosted with important vitamins and nutrients like glucosamine, chondroitin, vitamin E, potassium, folic acid, riboflavin, and more to ensure your dog eats a healthy meal that meets their nutritional requirements.
The Advantages Of Blue Buffalo Dog Food!
Like Kirkland, Blue Buffalo also strives to only use the highest quality and natural ingredients in all their dog food recipes.
The first ingredient of their recipes is real protein, and Blue Buffalo doesn’t use any chicken by-products, corn, wheat, soy (aka fillers), or artificial preservatives and flavors in any of their product lines.
Blue Buffalo’s wholesome formulas are specifically created for your dog’s age, size, or other dietary requirements.
For example, Blue Buffalo has a product line called Blue Freedom that doesn’t contain any grain allergens; plus, there are some grain-free food options in the Blue Wilderness and Blue Basic product lines.
The Blue True line is ideal if your dog needs help with their digestive care, skin and coat, or have joint issues. The brand’s Blue Veterinary Diet line has specific products to help with your pooch’s weight management, provide kidney or gastrointestinal support, and more.
All of Blue Buffalo’s dry dog food products contain Lifesource Bits, a cold-formed blend of antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins to boost your dog’s immune system and ensure your dog’s nutritional needs are met.
The wet dog food contains extra vitamins and minerals in the form of flaxseed, fruits and vegetables, and supplements.
Is Kirkland Dog Food Or Blue Buffalo Dog Food The Best Option?
Both Kirkland dog food and Blue Buffalo dog food meets your dog’s dietary needs in terms of providing an adequate amount of protein, carbohydrates, healthy fats, and other vitamins and minerals that dogs need to live a healthy life.
For both brands, protein is the first ingredient on the label. However, Kirkland only uses “normal” protein sources like chicken, lamb, and turkey, while Blue Buffalo uses these proteins and more novel ones like salmon, duck, trout, rabbit, bison, halibut, venison, and more.
For your wallet, Kirkland is a kinder choice, especially if you have more than one dog to look after.
Your dogs will still benefit from eating high-quality natural ingredients on a Kirkland diet, even though Blue Buffalo has more product choices and specialized product lines that cater for specific health concerns.
Lastly, Kirkland has only had two brand recalls compared to Blue Buffalo’s nine recalls to date. While both brands try to only provide quality to their customers, two recalls in Kirkland’s 50+ year history sounds a lot safer than nine recalls in Blue Buffalo’s history of almost two decades.
Conclusion
It looks like the writing’s on the wall with this Kirkland dog food vs Blue Buffalo dog food comparison. Kirkland wins because it is the least expensive, also uses high-quality, natural ingredients, has grain-free food products, and has only had two recalls. If your pooch, however, needs a specialist diet, then Blue Buffalo is the better choice since the brand offers more tailored dog food options.
