Heritage Ranch Dog Food Reviews
Table of Contents
Purchasing pet food can be a pretty daunting task, especially considering that there are many different brands and types of diets on the market. Here we will be taking a closer look at h e b heritage ranch dog foods. We will be taking a closer look at the h e b brand as a whole, where their dog food is made, and whether or not there have been any recalls for this brand’s products.
Additionally, we will also be breaking down the ingredients included in this brand of dog food and explaining which ingredients are good for your dog. We will also be explaining which ingredients may not be as healthy for our pets.
If you are also interested in purchasing these products or similar pet food for your dog, then you are in luck! We are also going to be listing some of our favorite alternatives to heritage ranch and where you can buy Heritage Ranch dog products. Let’s jump right into it!
About Heritage Ranch
Heritage Ranch is a relatively new pet brand, and they are owned by a company called h e b. H e b is a grocery store chain and company that is located in various locations within the state of Texas in the United States. Like many other grocery store chains, h e b produces many unique food products that you can only purchase in their stores. This, of course, includes Heritage Ranch, which is their store’s brand of pet food.
Branding
Heritage Ranch brands themselves as a healthy choice for those looking for a healthy food to feed their pets. Currently h e b provide grain freed dog food along with many other special formulas. Of course, they offer a basic formula in both wet and dry varieties as well. This allows consumers to purchase different formulas depending on their dog’s needs.
Available Products
In addition to dog foods, h e b also sells pet treats that are also branded as healthy alternatives to other dog treats. Many of their dog treats contain peanut butter and fruits like apple and banana.
H e b does not only produce healthy grain and grain free dog products, though. In fact, h e b produces puppy food for puppies and younger dogs. In addition to this, h e b also produces a healthy weight formula for dogs needing to lose a few pounds or maintain a healthy weight. H e b states that all of their products contain quality ingredients that are free of artificial colors and flavorings.
We Think You’ll Like: Best Large Breed Puppy Food
How do they compare to other pet food brands?
Heritage Ranch is fairly similar to many other pet brands in that they produce a variety of products for both dogs and cats. This includes treats and foods with a variety of different formulas for both dogs and cats. Both wet and dry pet foods are produced by this brand as well.
In this article we will be focusing on the varieties of dog food that Heritage Ranch has on their product line. We will be mentioning both their wet and dry formulas. However, we will mostly be focusing on the dry food produced by h e b.
Heritage Ranch Brand History
In order to get into the history of this pet food line, we will also need to briefly explain the history of h e b, which is the owner of this brand.
H E B Brand History
H e b is a grocery store chain that also creates many of their own unique products. H e b runs a number of different stores throughout the state of Texas. These stores include h e b, h e b plus, central market, joe v’s smart shop, and mi tienda. The h e b company was founded in 1905, and they currently have around 100,000 employees company wide.
Heritage Ranch History
Heritage Ranch was established as h e b’s pet brand in 2015, which is also when their pet products hit h e b stores for purchase. As of now Heritage Ranch is regarded as a fairly decent and middle tear dog food that is both fairly healthy and convenient to purchase. There is a decent variety within their dog food product line, and they offer adult, healthy weight, and puppy dog food varieties. Plus, as of now there has not yet been a recall on these pet food products.
Where Are They Located?
H e b and their pet products are mainly available to those living in Texas. This mainly includes the San Antonio, Houston, and Austin metropolitan areas. H e b also supports local animal shelters by donating their pet food.
We Think You’ll Like: Stella and Chewy Reviews
Where is Heritage Ranch Dog Food Made
All of these products are made in the United States. This includes their wet and dry dog food products, along with all of their dog treat products as well. For many dog owners this adds some peace of mind, as our food production laws tend to be more strict than some other countries that commonly make dog food and treats such as China.
Heritage Ranch Dog Food Cost
The cost of h e b pet products varies depending on the specific type of dog food and the size of the bag or package. Like many other products, they tend to technically be more affordable when bought in bulk or in larger quantities.
Wet Food
Generally speaking, one can of wet dog food will cost you anywhere between one and two dollars. However, there is also a wet food variety pack that costs $17.39 for 12 cans.
Dry Food
When it comes to dry dog food the price ranges from $0.09 to $0.12 per ounce. Their grain free pet food formulas tend to cost slightly more than their regular adult dog foods. Similarly, their puppy, senior, high protein, and healthy weight formulas tend to cost a bit more than their regular adult dog food as well.
Heritage Ranch Ingredient Quality
When describing their pet products, h e b sates that their premium pet products are made with quality ingredients. On all of their dog foods, real meat is listed as the first ingredient on their ingredients list. Most of the time their second ingredient is a form of meat meal, which is then followed by other ingredients like dried vegetables, chicken fat, and brown rice. Here we will break down the ingredients that are most commonly found in h e b’s pet products, and explain how healthy they are for dogs.
Real Meats
Of course, seeing real meats on a dog food ingredient label is something that dog owners typically want to see, and most higher quality dog foods will list a real meat as their first ingredient. Real meats include real chicken, beef, lamb, and varieties of fish. Animal protein is seen as the first ingredient in these products, and real meat content as the first ingredient is best.
Meat Meals
Meat meals are also a common ingredient in edible dog products, and they are essentially left over parts of an animal that get ground up to be used in pet products. Meat meals actually contain a lot of protein, and they are healthier for dogs than some people may believe. Lamb meal, chicken meal, and beef meal are all seen on many of Heritage Farm pet products. However, chicken meal tends to be the most commonly used meat meal type. Meat meals are a convenient way for companies to incorporate extra animal protein in dog foods.
Dried Peas
Dried peas are a very common ingredient that is frequently used in dog food. Dried peas provide dogs with a healthy source of carbohydrates. Some people may confuse dried peas for pea protein. Unlike dried peas, pea protein tends to be a much more controversial ingredient.
Dried Chickpeas
Dried chickpeas are often used as a replacement to brown rice in animal feeds without grain. This is a cheap filler that is fairly easy for animals to digest. It also adds some nutrients to the formula.
Dried Sweet Potatoes
Dried sweet potatoes are a great, natural way for companies to add some extra fiber and nutrients to animal feeds.
Dried Carrots
Like dried sweet potatoes, dried carrots add healthy nutrients and fiber to dog food.
Dried Blueberries
Dried blueberries mainly add some extra vitamins and minerals to the formula. It also adds small amounts of fiber.
Dried Cranberries
Like Dried blueberries, dried cranberries add some vitamins, minerals, and fiber to animal feeds.
Pea Protein
As we have mentioned previously pea protein tends to be a bit of a controversial ingredient in pet products. This is because even though there is decent protein content in pea protein, it is less nutritious to dogs than many other protein sources tend to be. As a result, many people view this ingredient to be an unneeded filler. It is undisputed that other protein sources like chicken and chicken meal are a healthier source of protein for dogs.
Chicken Fat
Chicken fat is actually removed from chicken during the boiling process, and it is then added to pet products to add more calories and nutrients. While real chicken and chicken meal add protein to a dog’s diet, chicken fat adds a lot of the nutrients that tend to be lost from cooked chicken and chicken meal. These ingredients include omega 6 fatty acids and linoleic acid.
Beet Pulp
Beet pulp is yet another fairly controversial ingredient due to its high sugar content. Beet pulp is essentially an inexpensive filler that also adds sugar that is not necessary. Plus, it does not add any additional nutrients either.
Flaxseed
When looking at the ingredient list you will likely see Flaxseed on many pet products. Although flaxseed may seem to be a filler to many dog owners, it actually contains many important nutrients like omega 3 fatty acids. Additionally, flaxseeds are also a decent source of soluble fiber and protein. Although flaxseeds are not as good of a protein source as chicken, it does add some additional, healthy protein content.
Fish Oil
Even though fish oil does come from fish, its main purpose is not to actually add to protein content. Rather, the main purpose of fish oil is to add some essential nutrients that are specifically only found in fish and fish oil. Some ingredients that are rich in fish oil include EPA and DHA type omega 3 fatty acids. These fatty acids are incredibly healthy for dogs and promote healthy skin.
Dried Egg Product
Dried egg product is mainly added to dog products as a way to boost the amount of protein that it contains. Dried egg product is commonly found in edible dog products, and it is not very controversial.
Brown Rice
Brown rice can be found in the dry dog food that is not grain free. In fact, brown rice is an incredibly common ingredient that is used by this brand in their regular adult dry dog food. Brown rice is easily digestible and mainly adds carbohydrates to the product. Although this is often seen as a filler with low nutritional value, it is better than many other fillers out there.
Brewers Rice
Brewers rice is essentially the left over pieces of rice from processing whole rice. Brewers rice does add some carbohydrates to a dog’s diet, but it is also widely considered to be an inexpensive filler that is otherwise low in nutritional value. This is commonly used as an additive along with brown rice to make the formula less expensive to produce. This is a fairly common ingredient, and it is not necessarily a red flag if used in a small or moderate amount.
Vitamins and Minerals
Like any other good dog food, this brand includes many vitamins and minerals in the products in their product line. These are essential to a healthy diet for dogs. Here are some of the vitamins and minerals that are included in this dog food.
- vitamin E supplement
- vitamin A supplement
- iron amino acid complex
- zinc amino acid complex
- copper amino acid complex
- manganese amino acid complex
- riboflavin supplement
- folic acid
- calcium iodate
- niacin supplement
- potassium chloride
- choline chloride
- copper sulfate
- zinc oxide
- ferrous sulfate
- sodium selenite
- d calcium pantothenate
- dicalcium phosphate
- pyridoxine hydrochloride
- thiamine mononitrate
Vitamins like vitamin A and minerals like potassium chloride are essential for a dog’s health. These are often added to dog food in the form of supplements because there is not enough of these nutrients in animal protein, fruit, or green vegetables. As a result, it is always good to see things like vitamin e supplement and sodium selenite in animal foods.
Yucca Schidigera Extract
There are some other ingredients commonly added to animal feeds that are only really there to aid with digestion. A good example of this is yucca schidigera extract.
Citric Acid
Citric acid is a preservative that is commonly used in pet food. Although high amounts of citric acid can be toxic to dogs, the amount used in pet products is deemed to be safe for consumption by the FDA. This is especially true when a dog only eats a moderate amount that is recommended in their serving size.
Guaranteed Analysis
A guaranteed analysis in these kinds of products refers to the amount of nutritional value in the product based on saving size. The Guaranteed analysis for this product is as follows.
- 25% protein
- 15% fat
- 41% Carbohydrates
- 5.6% fiber
Top Heritage Ranch Product Line
H e b produces a moderate amount of formulas in their product line. Although there are some differences to each of these different formulas, generally the difference is mentioned in the product’s name. For example, grain free means that there are no grains included in the dog food recipe. Here are some of the top dog foods produced by h e b.
Heritage Ranch Adult Dog Food
This is the basic adult dog food. There are many different flavors of their basic dry formula to choose from including chicken and brown rice and lamb and brown rice. There is also adult wet food available in a variety of flavors as well.
Heritage Ranch Grain Free Dog Food
Their grain free dry formula replaces brown rice with dried chickpeas. This is a great choice for those looking for a food without grains.
Heritage Ranch Puppy Food
Their puppy formula also contains brown rice and chicken, but the nutritional value is specifically created for a growing puppy. Puppy food is best for puppies and growing dogs.
We Think You’ll Like: Best Grain Free Puppy Food
Heritage Ranch Healthy Weight
Heritage Ranch’s healthy weight formula is made for dogs that need to either lose weight or have some trouble maintaining a healthy weight.
Heritage Ranch Terrain High Protein
H e b has also recently introduced a high protein formula. This formula contains more animal protein. This type of dog food is only recommended for adult dogs.
Alternatives to Heritage Ranch Dog Food
This is an excellent dog food for those who are looking for a decent formula that is also affordable and convenient to purchase. However, this pet brand is only available to those living in Texas that also have access to an h e b store.
Luckily there are some other dog foods that are similar in price and quality that are also available in nation wide stores like Walmart and Target.
Iams
Iams is a dog food brand that is of similar quality to Heritage Ranch, and it is also pretty close in price. Plus, there is the added convenience of this brand being available in many different pet stores and grocery stores. Not only is this brand available in every pet store chain, but you can also buy it at Walmart and Target.
Nutro
Nutro is another dog food brand that is incredibly similar to Heritage Ranch in branding, ingredients, and price. Nutro also brands themselves as being a healthy dog food that uses natural flavor and quality ingredients. In addition to pet store chains, Nutro is also available at Target.
Rachael Ray’s Nutrish
Rachael Ray’s pet brand Nutrish is yet another option that is fairly similar to Heritage Ranch and is available in many different stores. Not only is it similar in price, but it also has very similar ingredients like chicken fat and real animal protein. However, this may not be a good option if your dog is sensitive to corn, wheat, or soy.
Blue Buffalo
Blue Buffalo is also an alternative to Heritage Ranch that is similar in price, branding, ingredients, and availability. This is a good option for those with pets that have some special dietary needs as well. This is because they have many different formulas available in both dry and wet food form. Blue Buffalo also tends to use natural flavor, chicken fat, and vitamin e supplements in their products.
Where to Buy Heritage Ranch Dog Food
You can purchase these dog foods from h e b stores and on the h e b website. Unfortunately, there are currently only h e b stores in the state of Texas.
Heritage Ranch Dog Food Recalls
As of now, there have been no recalls on any of the Heritage Ranch products. This is great news and is sure to bring animal lovers using their products some peace of mind.
Conclusion
Heritage Ranch is a fairly good dog food that is of decent quality and affordable to many pet owners. It also has the added benefit of being convenient to purchase for those with access to an h e b store because you can purchase it while you are grocery shopping. This pet brand is also a great choice for those looking for a grain free dog food, as they have many of these products available.
