Royal Canin..........what do you think??

 It's very very palatable for most dogs. If you buy it, you notice that it has a really strong smell - apparently they use extra stinky stuff like liver to coat the outside of the kibbles to make them more appetizing.

IMO it's not a terrible food, but it's too grain-heavy for my liking. It saved my butt when I couldn't get Rascal to eat kibble (he loved the RC), but he also had really dry skin and dandruff while he was on it. It's also freaking EXPENSIVE. I switched from RC to Timberwolf Organics and my dog, my wallet and I couldn't be happier!  

 For comparison value, I was feeding him the "Mini Beauty" formula (I thought it would help with his dry skin, but it didn't) - you'll notice a lot of "fillers":

Ingredients
Chicken, brown rice, brewers rice, chicken meal, chicken fat, corn gluten meal, dried egg powder, natural chicken flavor, dried brewers yeast, rice hulls, dried beet pulp (sugar removed), salmon oil, soya oil, potassium chloride, calcium carbonate, salt, sodium tripolyphosphate, taurine*, borage oil, choline chloride, L-lysine, Vitamins [dl-alpha tocopherol (source of vitamin E), inositol, niacin supplement, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of vitamin C*), d-calcium pantothenate, biotin, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), riboflavin supplement (vitamin B2), thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), vitamin A acetate, folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin D3 supplement], DL-methionine, L-cystine, Trace Minerals [zinc proteinate, zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, sodium selenite, calcium iodate], tea (green tea extract), L-carnitine, preserved with natural mixed tocopherols, rosemary extract and citric acid.

Cita

It saved my butt when I couldn't get Rascal to eat kibble (he loved the RC), but he also had really dry skin and dandruff while he was on it.

Ollie was on it for a short time, and it made his skin super dry too.  He was constantly biting and scratching himself.  I didn't use it for long and have found a food that he both loves to eat, and that seems good for him, skin and all (Eagle Pack Holistic Duck and Oatmeal.)

I actually like Royal Canin a lot for their special formulas. However, unless you need a specific formula, it’s not a great food for the price.

IMO, none of the better foods at Petsmart are that great for the price, particularly Avoderm, which is very grain heavy and has wheat as the first ingredient of some of their formulas. By Nature has better ingredients but is even more expensive…. same with Blue Buffalo. Nutro Ultra is ok if your dog can handle multiple protein sources.

Quite honestly, if I were stuck with only Petsmart to buy food at I’d buy Nutro Natural Choice and supplement with extra meat.

sooner

Quite honestly, if I were stuck with only Petsmart to buy food at I’d buy Nutro Natural Choice and supplement with extra meat.

Eek. I wouldn't. I should have specified the Avoderm Natural formulas (other than the vegetarian one). No way the ingredients in this:

Nutro Natural Choice Chicken Meal, Rice & Oatmeal:Chicken Meal, Rice Flour, Ground Rice, Rice Bran, Poultry Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of natural Vitamin E), Oatmeal, Soybean Oil, Sunflower Oil (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of natural Vitamin E), Natural Flavor, Dried Beet Pulp, Potassium Chloride, Dried Egg Product, Dried Kelp (source of Iodine), Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Ascorbic Acid (source of Vitamin C), Biotin, Niacin, Garlic Flavor, Manganese Oxide, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement (source of Vitamin B2), Vitamin A Supplement, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Mononitrate (source of Vitamin B1), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (source of Vitamin B6), Chondroitin Sulfate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex(source of Vitamin K activity), Calcium Iodate, Folic Acid.

Are better than this-Avoderm Natural Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Adult Dry Dog Food:Chicken Meal, Ground Whole Brown Rice, Ground Whole Rice, Oatmeal, Rice Bran, Chicken Fat (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Ascorbic Acid), Avocado Meal, Flax Seed, Dried Alfalfa Meal, Avocado Oil, Herring Meal, Lecithin, Natural Flavor, Rosemary Extract, Sage Extract, Bromelain, Papain, Dried Bacillus Subtilis Fermentation Product, Dried Aspergillus Oryzae Fermentation Product, Monosodium Phosphate, Choline Chloride, Ferrous Sulfate, DL-Alpha Tocopherol Acetate (Source of Vitamin E), Zinc Oxide, Sodium Selenite, Manganous Oxide, Riboflavin Supplement (Source of Vitamin B Complex), Copper Sulfate, Zinc Methionine, Iron Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Cobalt Proteinate, Niacin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Source of Vitamin B6), Calcium Iodate, Thiamine Mononitrate (Source of Vitamin B1), Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement.

That is a better Avoderm than some I've seen but still...

Nope the Nutro isn't better, but you’re paying $29.99/40-44 lbs of the Natural Choice compared to $36.99/35 lbs of the Avoderm. I’m not paying that for chicken, rice, rice, oatmeal, rice, unless like Eagle Pack, I know what percentage meat meal it is. At least you get what you pay for with the Nutro, then you can supplement it and probably still come out better.

The Nutro Ultra contains menadione too.

ETA: I was looking up kcals, and the Avoderm says 360 and the Nutro says 338, but the feeding recommendations for a 50 lb dog are 3 1/2 cups for the Avoderm and 2 1/4 for the Nutro????
 

sooner

The Nutro Ultra contains menadione too.

Before we knew better, we used to feed Nutro Natural Balance Large Breed formula (which contains corn gluten meal), with some home cooked as a treat, to our mix.  Then we got our GSD rescue, he had some skin issues.  Vet said it was Atopy, but I had a suspicion the food wasn't helping.  A dog park pal told me that GSDs don't do well on foods containing corn, so we tried several Ultra premium foods and had either skin or tummy issues, or both.  Finally, we tried the RC Maxi GSD formula and it saved us! 

Ingredients
Chicken meal, brown rice, rice, chicken fat, oatmeal, soy protein isolate, natural chicken flavor, powdered cellulose, dried beet pulp (sugar removed), sodium silico aluminate, anchovy oil (source of DHA), soya oil, potassium chloride, calcium carbonate, dried egg product, sodium tripolyphosphate, DL-methionine, L-tyrosine, taurine*, salt, dried brewers yeast extract (source of mannan-oligosaccharides), vitamins [DL-alpha tocopherol (source of vitamin E), L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of vitamin C*), inositol, niacin, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of vitamin C2), D-calcium pantothenate, biotin, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), riboflavin (vitamin B2) supplement, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), vitamin A acetate, folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin D3 supplement], choline chloride, glucosamine hydrochloride*, marigold extract (Calendula officinalis L.), Trace minerals [zinc proteinate, zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, sodium selenite], tea (green tea extract), chondroitin sulfate*, preserved with mixed tocopherols (source of vitamin E) and citric acid, rosemary extract

I'm going to stick my neck out there... a lot of times you can save money by ordering high-quality less-costly dog foods online. Canidae is one food that's highly recommended and economical, I buy my Timberwolf Organics online (free shipping!), and I think most dog foods have online ordering options. Then you're not constrained by what may or may not be at Petsmart, no matter where you live.   Honestly while I don't think a lot of Petsmart foods are terrible, IMHO they're horribly overpriced for what they're offering, and I'm sure the pet store takes a good cut of the proceeds.

I have had nothing but good results with Royal Canin.  Some of their formulas could be considered "grain heavy," but not all of them--especially compared to some "holistic" foods. 

For instance, the formula I have used for Wolfie:

Royal Canin Mini Special 30

Chicken meal, chicken, brown rice, brewers rice, chicken fat, corn gluten meal, dried egg powder, dried beet pulp (sugar removed), natural chicken flavor, dried brewers yeast, brewers rice flour, salmon oil, soya oil, fructo-oligosaccharides, potassium chloride, flaxseed, vit/mins (no menadione if that is an issue for you)

Protein- 30%, Fat 22%

The only thing I don't like about RC is the price for the general public.  I can get it discounted, but in pet stores I think it is ridiculously overpriced.   

     This summer, we purchased a pup who'd been eating Royal Canin puppy food ... she had no muscle mass, a very dingy coat and runny stools, goopy eyes. Needless to say, we threw out the sample of food we recieved, which did have a pungent odor to it. Her coat is still a bit dingy, but on other (cheaper) foods she's doing so much better.   

Royal canin is at best a mediocre food; some of their formulas are downright deliberately misleading. Look at their so-called "high protein" formulas, bags of corn gluten and grain.

coco also LOVED it and when she was sick, it helped to have a food she somewhat was eager to eat...

however, it gave her constant soft serve pooh...and as soon as she was well enough, i switched her off... HUGE difference!  And she would eat much less of a different food which in the end saved a LOT of money....even though she's a small dog anyways and feeding her barely hurt my shallow pockets.