Orijen Dog Food Review and Updates

Our friends Mr Chewy and Brent at MrChewy.com asked us to write an honest review of one of the Orijen products they sell.  They sent us a free bag of the Orijen Six Fish Dry Dog Food that we requested.

As usual, the box of requested food was received extremely quick!  We DO love MrChewy.com!

I'm not going to go into a lot of details about Orijen or Orijen Six Fish dog food.  I have links at the end of this review has are very specific.  The Orijen website is excellent, please visit.

Orijen is made with only the freshest regional ingredients.  Their foods are matched to the digestive systems of both dogs and cats. Orijen brings peace of mind to owners by promoting peak health of their pets in addition to containing natural flavors that pets crave.

Active dogs require a meat-based diet, rich in animal protein and fat. Champion Petfoods uses free-run poultry, wild caught fish and free-range red meats for Orijen. Coupled with these fresh meats are fruits and vegetables, health-boosting herbs and balanced mineral content for the healthiest meal pets can get.
Orijen is grain-free for more controlled blood sugar levels and excludes ineffective nutrients from plant oils as compared to other brands.

Champion works closely with local farmers, fishermen,  food processing innovators and the scientific community to produce the highest quality products. Arriving fresh from the region each day, the meat is never frozen and never exposed to heat or chemicals.  The harvested fruit and vegetables are ripe with vitamins and enzymes and antioxidants. The natural herbs help strengthen organs and tissues while supporting the digestion process of your pet.

All these fresh ingredients are processed  under the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's highest food safety standard. Even the ingredient suppliers are approved by the US Department of Agriculture.


I have a reason for reviewing Orijen Six Fish.  If you have followed our blog, you know that until Minnie was diagnosed with Pancreatitis last summer,  I made their food, the raw diet with raw meaty bones.  The vet said Minnie would be better off on a prescription kibble.  There was no way I wanted Minnie to go through what she had gone through with pancreatitis, so without much hesitation  I decided to make the switch for Minnie to her prescription kibble.  Then the big decision was what food would I feed Mack.  Mack has a BIG allergy problem, from head to tail, which was one of the main reasons I was making their food. I reviewed a lot of written material, talked to a lot of "dog" people including our vet and talked to the folks at our local Whole Pet Central pet food store about what food would be best for Mack and his allergies.  Our local store provided me with some samples, one of which was Orijen.  After a trial period for each food, Mack did the best on Orijen.  Orijen is high in protein, low in carbs and grain free.   We started out with Orijen Senior.  I now mix a combination of Senior and Six Fish.  He LOVES it. His has maintained a healthy weight, which is hard to do in a neutered, senior pug who likes to sleep on the couch and watch TV!  He has been able to completely stop his oral medications for his allergies.  His stools are nicely formed and I wish I could say they don't stink, but they still do....one could always wish.

I have included some reviews of Orijen below along with the website for Champion Pet Foods of Canada that make Orijen Six Fish.  I don't believe that Orijen foods are anymore expensive than most premium pet foods. Mack has been on Orijen for over 6 months now and is doing extremely great!  Our foster, Miss Daisy, also got the Orijen.  For the month she was with us, she did great on it.  We sent her off to her new home with some Orijen for a good start.

If you have any questions about our review of Orijen, please just ask!

Dog Food Adviser Orijen Review

Dog Food Chat

Orijen Six Fish Dry Dog Food










We wanted to bring to your attention one of the great benefits of using MrChewy.com. The Refer Your Friends Donation Program.  See the details below:

So if you decide to use and try MrChewy.com, please use this code:

KATH2016

 Minnie and Mack's account has a total of $20 for donations!  We thank everyone that has participated.

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We want to thank everyone for all the well wishes for our Grandmother.  She was ill again this past week, but has recovered nicely so we haven't been able to visit our favorite blogs too much.

Miss Daisy is doing well with her new family.  They are promising to send us a picture!

Hopefully, things around Casa Cooper will calm down and hu-mom can keep us updated on our blog, too!

We hope everyone enjoys this holiday weekend.  The weather person is promising us some SNOW tomorrow.

Love,  Minnie : )

Minnie Update #1

I just talked to the vet.  Minnie's blood work came back normal, the pancreas levels were normal. So it doesn't look like pancreatitis. Just some kind of intestinal upset.  She has had no more vomiting and only one more bout of a little diarrhea. Minnie has had some medication to ease her discomfort and is now curled up in her kennel with IV going, etc. She was dehydrated.  I will check back about 4-5PM this afternoon to see how she's doing and if/when she can come home.

Thank you all for all the thoughts and prayers!

Hu-mom (Kathy)
and Mack

Minnie Needs Your Juju

Minnie is in the hospital.  Yesterday she started with diarrhea after her dinner.  I talked to our vet and she said to give her Pepcid as normal and made an appointment to see her at 10AM today.  After dinner she was lethargic and then about 10PM the vomiting started then she got back under the covers and went to sleep so I decided we didn't need to make a trip to the ER vet. She had pancreatitis this summer and she was exhibiting some of the same symptoms.  Somehow, I fell asleep and when I woke up at 6AM Minnie was not under the covers where she usually sleeps. I turned on the light and saw blood everywhere.  Minnie was standing next to my side of the bed trembling.  I couldn't determine which end the bloody mess came out of.  I took her immediately to the ER Vet.  They admitted her and are running tests and getting Minnie more comfortable. I was told to check back around 9-10AM today to check on the results of the tests and see where we go from here.  The vet did say her vitals were good and strong, and hopefully, she might only need to stay until tonight or tomorrow morning.  She said  it might not be pancreatitis maybe just an intestinal upset.  You could tell Minnie was feeling terrible. There's nothing worse than being a pet parent and having a pet in pain. But I know she will be taken care of properly and made to feel better quickly.

I will post updates as I receive them.  Thank you for your juju!

Kathy (hu-mom)

Minnie the Miracle Doggie!!!

After a very long (almost 3hours) vet appointment, Minnie was tired when we got home. 

Minnie had her follow up appointment following her hospitalization for pancreatitis.  She had an examination, blood work and an ultra sound. After all of that was done, we met with Dr. Miller.  She said Minnie was a miracle!  Her severe pancreatitis had markedly improved since her last ultra sound on July 16. "Mass effect of pancreas reduced in size by 1/2".  There was no adhesion to the stomach wall and no tumor. This was the best news we could have heard.  Dr. Miller said that Minnie is 1/3 of the way back to being normal.  Our next step is  another follow up in one month with our regular vet and have some blood work done if she continues to improve. We are slowly adding in kibble, Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Low Fat to her boiled chicken and white rice. We can start her back on 2 meals a day instead of 3/4 a day. Minnie will have to be on a rather bland diet for the rest of her life but that is a small price to pay for health! and no more medications!!!  Minnie can begin to have short walks when it's not hot out.  (We were able to go on a short walk after dinner tonight.)  Again,the vet techs and  Dr Miller commented on how good and cooperative and sweet Minnie is/was.  That is always nice to hear!

I knew Minnie was feeling so much better yesterday.  She was playing by herself with her new tennis balls, throwing them and chasing them.  She also was cuddling with us on the bed, upside down, playing with a stuffie like a cat....

All of the Blogville crossed paws and warm thoughts have certainly made a difference in Minnie!

Thank you, thank you!

Minnie Update 3

Minnie was able to keep down the chicken she had at 3PM.  At 9PM she is scheduled to be offered a little more.  Things are looking up!  I will check in with the doctor about 7:30AM tomorrow morning and see if she can come home.

Once again, many thanks to everyone for caring.

Kathy (hu-mom to Minnie and Mack)

Minnie is Sick - We need the power of the paw!

Minnie threw up early this AM and again around 10:30 AM today.  She was not herself at all.  On the way home from work, she could  not get comfortable in her car seat.  We were able to get in to see the vet this afternoon.  After checking her out and xrays, the vet did not find anything.  

She said if she gave her any anti-nausea meds it might cover up the symptoms.  She said to keep her off food until at least tomorrow morning.  As the afternoon wore on, Minnie got worse.  When someone came to the door, she did not get off the couch to greet them.  She started shivering and really acted like she was in pain.  I called the doctor back and was told to come right in.  We got there quickly.  Blood was drawn.  Certainly levels were high.  She was diagnosed with pancreatitis and would need to go the specialist vet to stay since our vet did not have overnight care.  Before we left the regular vets, she gave her a pain killer, thank goodness.  So we drove to the ER vet which took us about 40 minutes in rush hour. After about 20-30 minutes the pain meds took effect. The ER vet examined  her and came to the same conclusion.  Minnie will be there at least over night so she can get fluid, pain killers and antibiotics, and a ultra sound tomorrow, etc.  There is no "silver bullet" treatment for this.  On a scale from 1-10, Minnie is a 5.  The vet said she should be OK.   This is where we need the power of the paw!  This can be fatal.....

Minnie at our 1st vet appointment this afternoon, feeling bad....

Minnie after the pain killers took effect on the ride to the ER vet.

After the pain killers kicked in, she was so tired, she had a hard time keeping her head up. Even her little lips were stuck but at least she was not in so much pain. 

We are keeping our fingers crossed that she will be a lot better tomorrow and will be able to come home!  This all happened so fast!  Yesterday she was fine.....