Best Dog Food for Golden Retrievers: Review & Top Picks

Do you love your Golden Retriever?

Well, then, you should only be feeding your doggy friend the best dog food for Golden Retrievers! As it’s the quality of the food that plays a huge role in your doggy friend’s overall well-being.

Golden Retrievers are really fun and loving big doggies that are very active.

And you know what that means, right?

Yes! Your doggy needs the right amount of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates to stay healthy and happy.

So, let’s get right to business, shall we?

The Best Dog Food for Golden Retrievers: A Trailer

So, here’s a list of the top five best dog food for Golden Retrievers that I’ll be getting into detail on.

But, before we get to the main part of the article, i.e., the reviews, we also need to talk about quite a lot of things.

So, here’s a quick preview of the five of the best dog food for Golden retrievers that we’ll be doubling back to later in the article.

But first, let’s all about a few other things that you really need to know about feeding your Golden Retriever.

And I promise you I’ll tell you stuff that you didn’t know before.

So, let’s talk!

The Food Confusion: What Other Owners Say?

If you’ve met another Golden Retriever parent, I’m sure you’ve compared notes with them—from grooming to feeding.

And, if you ask five different Golden Retriever owners, all of them will recommend five different dog foods. Some may even suggest you try foods curated for other breeds, but never try that!

Every breed is different and has different nutritional goals. Golden retrievers are energetic, intelligent, playful, and have a luscious coats. They’ve got really different nutritional requirements than, say, a Labrador Retriever.

So, what should you do?

Well, there are three things you need to care about when looking for dog food.

Let me walk you through them…

But the most important thing of all is that you should talk to your vet before making any kind of tweaks in your dog’s diet!

After all, your Golden Retriever isn’t a human! And the nest dog food for Golden Retriever may not be human food at all!

So, keep your Goldy happy and healthy.

Macros & Golden Retrievers: The Carbohydrates, Proteins, and Fats

Whether you’re a human or a dog, it’s not just the calories that matter. It’s their source that matters more.

What does this mean?

The calories we get from food are sourced from the three main macronutrients- carbs, proteins, and fats.

So, what we need to do is tweak these macros according to your doggy’s age, height, activity level, etc. and curate a diet that’s the best for them.

So, what do we do?

I’ll help you out, don’t worry! I’ve got this.

Protein

The best food for your Golden Retriever should have at least 30% protein. Lesser amounts of it shouldn’t be acceptable at all.

Fat

You may think that fat isn’t all that important, but the best dog food for Golden Retrievers should contain approximately 12-18% fat.

Carbohydrates

Carbs can be adjusted according to the activity level of your doggy. The least amount of carbs that your Goldy’s food should have is 30-35%. No less!

Apart from that, foods rich in omega fatty acids are really important as well! They help keep your doggy’s coat healthy and shiny.

Olives, too, are really great for your Golden Retriever. And you should try and feed olives as a snack for some of that extra shine!

Moving on…

Golden Retriever Food: A Review

So, one glove doesn’t fit everyone. The same is true when it comes to food for your doggy.

Your dog may just eat anything and everything in sight, but there’s a reason. Are you aware of it? Let me just spell it out for you…

Dogs love food.

So, you see, they really don’t care about the nutrition they’re getting from the food. All they care about is yummy in their tummies.

What I’m trying to say is that it is your job to buy the best food for golden retriever to keep your friend happy and satisfied!

And I get how incredibly hard it can be to find the best dog food for Golden Retrievers. There are so many brands, so many “breed-specific” dog foods, natural alternatives, and even vegan dog foods!

Now, now…

When you go to the pet shop, you must be utterly confused as to what you should buy for your doggy friend!

And that is what I’m here for. I’ve got a list of the very best dog food for Golden Retrievers, and I’ll share it with you.

And mind you, these dog foods are actually very nutritious and are really good for your Goldy.

So, let’s take a look at the macros, shall we?

• Steer clear from filler ingredients like corn, soy, rice, etc.
• Always aim for a high meat content
• Count those macros

You’re not a nutritionist. I get it, and I get how hard it must be for you to look at these numbers and be really dumbfounded because you don’t know what they mean.

Don’t worry, that’s my department!

Here at PetDT, we only talk about the best of the best dog foods. And we’ve got strict criteria while creating a list for you. So, the best dog food for Golden Retrievers has passed the following tests:

• Good/ideal macros
• Good quality ingredients used
• The overall meat content in the food

Now, I’m sure you’d like to finally delve into the main topic. So, the question is if you’re ready.

Let’s look at the best dog food for Golden Retrievers, shall we?

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So if we look at just the ingredients, I feel that Wilderness Blue Buffalo High Protein Duck Formula Dry Dog Food is an above-average dog food.

So, what I mean to say is that the Wilderness Duck Formula kibble has really high-quality ingredients in it, and it’ll prove to be one of the best food for Golden Retrievers.

But that’s not all that we talk about.

Let’s move on to the number of macronutrients or macros this best food for a Golden Retriever puppy contains.

Wilderness Blue Buffalo Duck Formula dry dog food simply has a near-average level of fat, an above-average level of protein, and a below-average level of carbs in it.

What is this sorcery!?

I feel that this dog food is the best dog food for Golden Retrievers. And especially so for lazy Goldies…

But that’s not all, folks!

The meat content is also something that we should be talking about. This certainly is something that you should never ignore.

So, let’s get on to that…

If we try and single out the content of meat in pea protein, chia seed, alfalfa, peas, and quinoa, this one has a notable amount of meat in it.

And that, my friend, is a fantastic thing.

But that’s still not all.

We need to finally talk about one last thing that’ll help you make an informed decision about this kibble.

The pros and cons! They are really important when you’re discussing something as important as dog food.

So, without digressing more…

Let’s talk pros and cons, shall we?

Pros:

• This also has a lesser amount of fat which makes it a perfect choice for senior Golden Retrievers
• This dog food has above-average protein making it a good choice for less active Goldies
• A notable amount of meat

Cons:

• May cause diarrhea
• Below average carbs

I really feel that this one’s the best dog food for Golden Retriever puppies as well as dogs.

What about you?

Let me know your thoughts in the comments section…

On to the next one…

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When we look at just the Merrick Grain-Free Dog Food ingredients, it looks like an above-average dog food product.

And that’s the good thing as this means that the ingredients in Merrick Grain-free Dog food are actually very good.

This dog food has an almost average amount of protein, a solid near-average fat content, and finally, a below-average level of carbs only when we go on and compare it to other dog food available.

There’s more, though.

When we try to single out the amount of protein you get from animals instead of vegetables and other stuff, this one contains a significant amount of meat.

And you know that’s a good thing, right?

In fact, it’s a great thing!

Pros:

• An average amount of protein
• Lesser amount of fat
• A Significant amount of meat

Cons:

• None

What does this mean?

Merrick Grain-Free Dog Food is a great meat-based food for your Goldy! And I feel this deserves to be on my list of the best dog food for Golden Retrievers.

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Well, if you look at the ingredients of the Wellness CORE Dog food only by its ingredients, Wellness CORE Natural Grain-free Dog food is an above-average dog food.

But that’s not just what we look at, is it? There are a lot of factors that need to be considered as well, so we’ll discuss them, too.

As you may know, macronutrients are really important when you’re looking at anything edible.

So, we should talk about those macros…

Wellness CORE Natural Dog food contains an above-average level of protein, an average level of fat, and a below-average level of carbs when we go on and compare it to other dog foods in the market.

But! Hold on! That’s not it!

There’s another factor that we need to talk about as well. Any guesses?

The meat content!

When we try and isolate the protein content found in flaxseed and legumes, I feel that Wellness CORE Natural dog food has a significant amount of meat in it.

Worth every single penny, am I right?

But there’s more to it!

We have to talk about the pros and cons, remember? Let’s just jump right into it and get it over with…

Pros:

• The dog food contains a significant amount of meat in it, a good source of nutrition for the Goldy
• Less fat content for lazy dogs or seniors
• An above average protein
• Average amount of carbs

Cons:

• Can cause an upset tummy 

All in all, I feel that this one really is one of the best dog food for Golden Retrievers, and you should really consider buying this one.

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When we look at just the ingredients, I feel that Wilderness Blue Buffalo High Protein Dry Dog Food is an above-average dog food.

This means that this one’s got good quality ingredients, which is always a really good thing.

Now, we should talk about the macros in it. Are you ready?

Wilderness Blue Buffalo dog food simply has a near-average fat content, an above-average protein content, and a below-average carb content.

So, what does this mean?

I feel that this dog food is the best dog food for Golden Retrievers. Especially the senior doggies as well as those lazy bums.

We aren’t done yet, though. Not even close…

We need to talk about the meat content as well!

If we try and single out the content of meat in peas, pea protein, quinoa, alfalfa, and chia seed this one’s still got a notable meat content.

Now, that’s what I call value for money.

There’s more to it!

We need to weigh all the pros against the cons. Are you ready for something like that? I’m sure you are.

Let’s talk pros and cons, people…

Pros:

• His dog food has above-average protein making it a good choice for less active Goldies
• This also has a lesser amount of fat which makes it a perfect choice for senior Golden Retrievers
• A notable amount of meat

Cons:

• Below average carbs
• May cause diarrhea

I really feel that this one’s the best dog food for Golden Retriever puppies as well as dogs.

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This one’s the last on my list for the day!

Wondering why I’m talking about this brand again? Well, because it’s that good.

And no, I am in no way affiliated with the company.

Anyhow, if you try to rate Wellness CORE Dog food by its ingredients alone, this one definitely is an above-average kibble.

Obviously, I feel that this one’s one of the best food for Golden Retriever as well. And we should get into that.

Wellness CORE Natural Dog food contains an above-average level of protein, an average level of fat, and a below-average level of carbohydrates compared to other everyday dog foods.

But I think you know that just like you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, you shouldn’t judge dog food by its ingredients or macros.

So, without further ado, let’s talk about the meat content; what do you say?

Ready?

When we go ahead and single out the level of protein in legumes and flaxseed, I feel that Wellness CORE Natural dog food has a significant amount of meat in it.

A great thing, right?

And now’s the right time to talk about the pros and the cons. So let’s start, shall we?

Here are the pros and the cons:

Pros:

• Average amount of carbs
• Less fat
• An above-average protein
• A significant amount of meat

Cons:

• May cause vomiting 

So, what does this all mean?

Well, Taste of Wild Canine Formula deserves a top spot on my list of the best food for Huskies available. I love the fact that this food contains a good amount of protein in it as well.

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So, What Is The Best Dog Food For French Bulldogs?

I really hope that I have helped you in finding out the best dog food for Golden Retrievers. Here at PetDt, we try to pick only the best out of the best dog foods that have the right amounts of everything that your doggy friends need.

That being said, you shouldn’t rely on just kibble! You can give your Golden Retriever extra nutrition by feeding them some olives, bell peppers, tuna, etc.

But, give them just as treats!

I’d finally like to say that you should never compromise with your dog’s food and never buy a cheaper alternative just because. If, however, you find yourself in a financial situation, here’s a list of the best cheap dog foods that’ll help you out. If you are looking for more options, consider organic food or if you’re up to a kitchen adventure, homemade meals!

Always keep your Golden Retriever your top priority!

So, here’s the best dog food for Golden Retrievers. Let’s take one last look, shall we?

● Wilderness Blue Buffalo Duck Formula Adult Dog Food
● Merrick Grain-Free Dry Dog Food
● Wellness CORE Natural Grain Free Dry Dog Food
● Blue Wilderness Blue Buffalo High Protein Food 
● Wellness CORE Natural Grain Free Dry Dog Food: Large Breed

Did you find the best dog food for Golden Retriever? Let us know in the comments below, and tell us how your Goldy likes it!

And don’t hesitate to leave a comment if you’ve got any questions or concerns. And we’re always open to feedback as well!