Introduction
Victor positions its products as “super premium dog food.” The phrase “super premium” sets a very high standard that should make many consumers pause and wonder whether they’re paying for excellent dog food or savvy marketing.
In the following review, we’ll take an honest look at Victor Dog Foods’ popular formulas to determine whether nutritional science backs the company’s claims.
Classic Victor Dog Food Formulas
Victor’s Classic line of dog food is designed for any breed. The formulas provide plenty of protein from multiple types of meat. They’re all-purpose kibbles that will meet the nutritional needs of most dogs.
The company has four Classic formulas that vary slightly.
Classic Hi-Pro Plus
One cup of Hi-Pro Plus contains 406 calories, which is fairly high. Victor says that Hi-Pro Plus suits dogs at all stages of life, but the amount of calories could make a sluggish, older dog chubby.
The 20% fat content is a little high, but growing puppies, as well as pregnant and lactating dogs, need the extra fat.
We definitely like that 88% of Hi-Pro Plus’ protein comes from meat, including beef, chicken, and pork.
As long as you keep an eye on your dog’s weight and make sure she gets plenty of exercise, Classic Hi-Pro Plus looks like a good option for most dogs.
Classic High Energy
Victor’s Classic High Energy formula contains 412 calories per cup, which is great for high-energy dogs that burn a lot of calories. The 24% protein (79% of which comes from animal sources) should keep hyper puppies and energetic breeds full between meals.
Classic Multi-Pro
Classic Multi-Pro strikes a terrific balance with 359 calories per cup, 10% fat, and 22.5% protein.
Once your adult dog reaches the stage of life that she looks at you funny when you throw a ball (as if she’s supposed to retrieve that for you), this is the type of food you want to buy.
The low amount of calories and fat will help your dog maintain a healthy weight. The high protein content will keep your family friend healthy.
Classic Professional
Victor Classic Professional dog food falls somewhere between the Classic High-Pro Plus and Classic High Energy formulas. With 400 calories per cup, it should meet the needs of energetic dogs at all stages of life.
About 26% of the food is protein (81% of which comes from animal sources). 18% of the kibble is fat, which is a little high for sluggish dogs but perfectly suitable for dogs that can’t wait to go for long walks.
Select Victor Dog Food Formulas
Cummings Veterinary Medical Center at Tufts University makes it clear that dogs are more omnivorous than carnivorous, which means they can and should eat more than just meat. This fact won’t surprise you if you have a dog that loves carrots, peas, and berries. Your pup will likely choose meat over fruit and veggies, but they have digestive systems that need nutrition from non-meat sources, too.
Victor’s Select Dog Food Formulas include a higher percentage of protein from plants and veggies. Most researchers agree that the variety will do good things for your dog’s health.
Plus, many of the Select recipes don’t include grains. Most dogs don’t need grain-free diets. They can digest grains just fine. If your dog has allergies to grain, though, you need to feed it a grain-free food. Otherwise, the poor creature will suffer with stomach pains, diarrhea, and other problems that neither of you will enjoy.
Select Grain Free Yukon River Canine
Select Grain Free Yukon River Canine hits all of the nutritional highlights for dogs. With 390 calories per cup, it’s suitable for all stages of life. Victor also gave this formula a low-fat recipe (just 16% fat) with plenty of protein (33%).
74% of the protein comes from meat sources. 26% comes from plants and veggies. As the name says, the kibble has zero grain in it.
Select Grain Free Chicken Meal & Sweet Potato Recipe
Select Grain Free Chicken Meal & Sweet Potato has a similar recipe to the Yukon River kibble. Your dog gets the same amount of protein and fat, and a similar caloric intake.
The biggest difference is that more of the protein comes from chicken than beef. If your dog prefers the taste of chicken and sweet potatoes, then this is a good option.
Select Grain Free Lamb Meal & Sweet Potato Recipe
With Select Grain Free Lamb Meal & Sweet Potato Recipe, your dog gets about the same amount of protein and fat as she gets from the other Select kibbles.
The no-grain formula makes it a terrific option for dogs that have problems digesting grains and gluten. Plus, some dogs prefer the taste of lamb to beef, chicken, fish, and other protein sources.
Select Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Formula
A cup of Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Formula gives your dog 372 calories, which makes it great for any breed with normal levels of activity.
The chicken and rice recipe includes 24% protein and 12% fat. Those are two more reasons to give it to dogs that have average energy levels. Less of the protein comes from meat sources, though. With this formula, 61% of the protein comes from meat, 22% from vegetables, and 17% from rice.
Select Ocean Fish Formula with Salmon
Ocean Fish Formula With Salmon has the same levels of fat and protein as Select Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Formula. With Ocean Fish, though, more of the protein comes from salmon, which should mean that your dog eats more amino acids that increase proteins bioavailability.
Select Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Formula
Some dogs have allergies to meats like beef and chicken. In fact, beef is one of the most common food allergens for dogs. The more beef she eats, the more likely she is to develop an allergy.
Not many dog foods use lamb as a main source of meat protein. That difference makes Select Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Formula a good choice for dogs that have problems digesting beef and other meats.
Select Beef Meal & Brown Rice Formula
Beef Meal & Brown Rice Formula only gets 2% of its protein from vegetables. 77% of the protein comes from meat sources, which some owners will prefer. The food gets 21% of its protein from gluten-free grains.
With 357 calories per cup, Select Beef Meal & Brown Rice Formula is also a good option for moderate-activity dogs.
Purpose Victor Dog Food Formulas
Victor developed its Purpose line of dog food to meet the needs of pets with unique health needs. If your dog has joint problems, for example, you will probably get better results by choosing a Purpose formula.
Purpose also has formulas for dogs that need low-calorie or low-carb diets.
With six Purpose formulas, Victor provides kibble for practically any dog with special dietary needs.
Purpose Performance
Active dogs need plenty of calories and nutrition to thrive. Victor Purpose Performance kibble gives your dog excellent energy and nutrition with 399 calories per cup and plenty of protein sourced from beef, chicken, and pork.
If you have a hunting dog, this is a terrific option for you. Victor formulated Purpose Performance for dogs that love to romp, hunt, and run agility courses. The ingredients also get fortified with amino acids, vitamins, and minerals to help your dog recover after a day’s work.
Purpose Nutra Pro
Purpose Nutra Pro contains more protein than nearly any other Victor dog food. 38% of the food is protein, 92% of which comes from meat sources. The nutrient-dense food is made from chicken, blood meal, whole grain millet, fish, pork, carrot, tomato, and other healthy ingredients.
Your dog also benefits from the formula’s niacin, B12, vitamin A, riboflavin, and vitamin D3 supplements.
Purpose Senior Healthy Weight
As dogs get older, they usually lose interest in aerobic activities. Many still enjoy walks in the park. They may even chase after the occasional rabbit. Playing fetch or grabbing frisbees out of the air, however, no longer sound like as much fun.
At this point in a dog’s life, you may need to cut back on calories to prevent weight gain. Senior Healthy Weight has 360 calories per cup. That’s practically diet food compared to Victor’s other formulas, which tend to have about 400 calories per cup.
Victor’s low-cal food doesn’t skimp on nutrition, though. It contains glucosamine and chondroitin to improve long-term joint health. Plus, 5% of the formula’s protein comes from vegetables, including peas and tomatoes.
Purpose Grain Free Active Dog & Puppy
On the other end of the spectrum, you have dogs and puppies that want to run, jump, and chew 24 hours a day. These high-energy dogs need to eat plenty of calories to maintain a healthy weight.
Each cup of Purpose Grain Active Dog & Puppy contains 384 calories. The formula’s high protein content (33%) should keep your energetic dog feeling full throughout the day.
This Victor kibble doesn’t contain any grains, so it’s suitable for dogs with sensitive tummies. It does, however, get 23% of its protein from plants and vegetables, which means your dog gets complete nutrition from every serving.
Purpose Grain Free Hero Canine
A hero needs plenty of protein, minerals, and vitamins. Purpose Grain Free Hero Canine puts your dog’s nutritional needs first with a recipe based on beef, peas, sweet potato, chicken, fish, and garbanzo beans. It’s a unique formula that’s 33% protein and 16% fat.
At 383 calories per cup, Grain Free Hero Canine makes a good food for adult dogs that don’t crave as much activity as they once did. They’re still very active for adult dogs, but they don’t run and hunt as much as they did as young dogs.
This is about as close to perfect as kibble gets for adult dogs that you want to stay active and healthy for years to come.
Purpose Grain Free Ultra Pro
Purpose Grain Free Ultra Pro dog food isn’t messing around. It’s 42% protein and 22% fat. Nearly all of the protein (89%) comes from animal sources. The remaining 11% comes from vegetables like peas and sweet potatoes.
A cup of the food contains 414 calories.
Victor made Grain Free Ultra Pro for extremely active dogs that need grain-free diets. With so much protein, it will help your dog build strong muscles. The added nutrients should slow the aging process, help your dog recover from injuries and fatigue, and keep her coat beautiful.
This is serious food for dog’s that spend a lot of time running outdoors. When given to the right dog, it’s an excellent option. When given to a lazy dog, though, it will lead to weight gain. Know your dog before you choose this formula!
Victor Canned Dog Food
A lot of owners avoid canned dog food because they worry that they will introduce too much fat and too many calories to their pet’s diet.
Wet food also has other drawbacks. Once you open the can, you have to use it within a few days. The wet food also doesn’t clean your dog’s teeth the way that hard kibble does.
Many people worry about the higher price of canned dog food versus dry kibble.
Despite the above disadvantages, canned food does have some benefits. For example, the moisture content of wet food can keep dogs hydrated when they eschew water. Some dogs are weird that way. They never seem to drink enough water, even when they play outside on hot days.
Wet food can also appeal to dogs that don’t have appetites. Canned food tends to have a stronger aroma than dry food. The smell can entice picky or sick animals to enjoy a meal.
Let’s not forget that canned dog food also makes a good option for dogs that have lost many of their teeth. You can’t expect a toothless dog to chew dry kibble. The poor animal will end up hurting itself trying to eat.
You can avoid the disadvantages commonly associated with canned dog food by choosing formulas that don’t contain a lot of fat and calories. Victor offers several canned options that meet those specifications to keep dogs healthy.
Grain Free Cuts in Gravy with Chicken and Vegetables Stew
Grain Free Cuts in Gravy with Chicken and Vegetables Stew sounds like a decadent treat that you might not want to give your dog. In many minds, “gravy” means a lot of fat.
Fat only makes up 5% of this canned food from Victor. A cup of the stew contains 358 calories, which makes it a good option for growing dogs and older dogs that have started to slow down a little.
Since you don’t get any grains in this formula, you don’t have to worry about upset stomachs.
Grain Free Cuts in Gravy with Beef and Vegetables Stew
Grain Free Cuts in Gravy with Beef and Vegetables Stew is very similar to the grain-free chicken recipe. Instead of getting most of its protein from chicken, though, it uses beef.
The slight change means that your dog gets a few more calories (365 per cup). It’s such a small difference that it shouldn’t affect your dog’s weight, though. Just keep an eye on your dog and take her to the vet regularly for check-ups.
Grain Free Turkey and Sweet Potato Stew
Grain Free Turkey and Sweet Potato Stew is the canned food you want for older or inactive dogs. A cup of the food only contains 331 calories. It’s practically a diet food for dogs.
Fewer calories doesn’t mean that Victor skimps on nutrition. The formula gives your dog plenty of protein, potassium, zinc, iron, copper, manganese, thiamine, and lysine.
Lamb and Rice Formula Pate
If you have a highly active or rapidly growing dog that will only eat wet food, then Lamb and Rice Formula Pate should work well for your household. Each cup of the food adds 575 calories to your dog’s diet.
Keep this recipe away from small dogs. With so many calories, even the friskiest chihuahua will gain weight. A dog that weighs more than 70 pounds, though, needs enough calories to fuel its body. Even young dogs that will eventually reach 70 pounds or more will benefit from Lamb and Rice Formula Pate. It takes a lot of calories to grow!
Chicken and Rice Formula Pate
Chicken and Rice Formula Pate is another good option for large and growing dogs. It has 490 calories per cup. 9% of the food is protein to encourage muscle development.
Ingredients like chicken meat, chicken livers, and egg will keep your dog coming back again and again.
The Final Say on Victor Dog Food
Victor makes so many dog food recipes that you can almost certainly find one that fits your dog’s needs.
By choosing a high-quality formula that’s right for your dog, you can potentially avoid the health problems associated with aging.
No diet can guarantee health, though. Make sure you can avoid your dog’s medical needs by finding a pet insurance policy that matches your budget. Vets can charge a lot for their services and medications. The right pet insurance policy will protect you from unaffordable bills.
Related Content
I had both of my 13 yr old golden retrievers on victor healthy senior and now one of them won’t eat it.
She is losing weight and I. The past has had liver problems
What dog food do you recommend to help her gain weight without hurting her liver
Hi Faith, I would recommend asking your vet because an older Golden with liver problems might have further complications. Better safe than sorry, wish I had a better answer but a licensed veterinarian is the way to go!