is an
American commercial
Pet Food manufacturer located in
Pacoima ,
California and established in
1989 by actor
Dick Van Patten . The company markets itself as "Food For a Lifetime" and promotes itself as having "the finest food you can buy for your pet." The current President is Joey Herrick and Vice President is Frank Koch.
Natural Balance began in 1989 when Van Patten was a guest on s,
Alligator s, and every kind of animal you could imagine. The drummer and Van Patten had an idea of making a health food for dogs. At the time, Van Patten played tennis with a woman
Veterinarian and she said the food had to have no filler, no
Wheat , no
Corn , no
Soy and no by-products.
The company lost money at first, as they expanded their markets, things picked up when
Petco opened 625 stores.
On Dick Van Patten
All NB products use only human-quality ingredients while excluding
Meat By-product s, potential
Allergen s, and artificial colors, flavors and preservatives such as
Ethoxyquin ,
BHA , and
BHT .
Natural Balance Ultra Premium formulas include: Sweet Potato & Venison, Vegetarian, Ultra Premium, a top choice by ,
Pesticide free and (
GMO Free ).
The company addressed meat-based protein allergies in dogs by launching formulas to help with skin problems. Non-allergenic formulas include: Potato & Duck and Sweet Potato & Fish.
Ingredients used in Natural Balance dog foods include
Free Range Chicken ,
Brown Rice ,
Chicken Meal ,
Oats ,
Millet ,
Barley ,
Sorghum ,
Potato ,
Peas ,
Sweet Potato ,
Kelp ,
Yucca Schidigera ,
Canola Oil ,
Flaxseed ,
Carrots ,
Spinach ,
Cranberry ,
Tomato ,
Salmon , and
Parsley .
Cat formulas include Ultra-Premium Dry Cat Food and Limited Ingredient Diets Green Pea & Duck Formula for Cats. NB also has nine canned formulas with the ingredients such as chicken,
Turkey ,
Egg s, kelp, flaxseed, carrots,
Whitefish , and
Shrimp .
NB has developed a
RAW formula for dogs using fresh
Beef or fresh chicken, raw bones, whole eggs,
Spinach ,
Broccoli ,
Alfalfa sprouts,
Apples , and
Carrots .
Natural Balance is a member of the
Association Of Zoos & Aquariums and has developed formulas specifically for
Carnivore s in
Zoo s and wild animal parks. They have been researched by leading zoo
Animal Nutritionist s.
Dr.
Martin R. Dinnes , D.V.M. Dinnes is Director of Zoological Product Research & Development. Dr. Dinnes is a graduate of the
UC Davis School Of Veterinary Medicine and founding member of the
American College Of Zoological Medicine .
Natural Balance's Zoological formulas
NB Zoological formulas are used by:
- Big Cat Rescue of Tampa Big Cat Rescue testamonial
- Brockett's Film Fauna , Thousand Oaks, California
- Brookfield Zoo , Brookfield, Illinois
- Fund For Animals , San Diego, California
- Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium of Tacoma, Washington
- Lincoln Park Zoo of Chicago
- San Diego Zoo and San Diego Wild Animal Park of San Diego
- Santa Ana Zoo of Santa Ana, California
- SeaWorld in Orlando for (meat-eating Birds) and SeaWorld in San Diego, California for Polar Bear s.
- Seneca Park Zoo , Rochester, New York
- Serengeti Ranch Company , Ventura, California
- Siegfried And Roy , Las Vegas, Nevada
- Staten Island Zoo , Staten Island, New York
- Tippi Hedren's Shambala Preserve , Acton, California
- Toledo Zoo , Toledo, Ohio
- University Of California, Davis Kestral facility
- Natural Balance operates its own fully equipped Laboratory utilizing Liquid Chromatography , Mass Spectrometry , Gas Chromatography using a Nitrogen Phosphorus Detector , and Spectrophotometric testing.
- Natural Balance has also employed Midwest Laboratories of Omaha, Nebraska . Midwest tests agricultural analysis of Soil , Plant tissue, Feed s, Pesticide analysis, Water analysis and Microbiological analysis for food, Pet Food , Fertilizer , Nematode s, Biosolid s, Petroleum , and Hazardous Waste Midwest Labs .
Both laboratories use ELISA testing for Aflatoxin , DON Vomitoxin , Melamine and Cyanuric Acid .
After the
2007 Pet Food Recalls , Natural Balance hired extra personnel to oversee pet food safety.
Dr. Haghighi's standard testing protocol uses consistent research and development with
Quality Control in testing. The accuracy and reproducibility of the tests have earned official approvals and third party validations, including:
Natural Balance is the first known pet food company to offer
Email notification regarding any pet industry news that could affect their pets. They are also the first known pet food manufacturer to offer
Data Base test results on Aflatoxin, DON Vomitoxin, Melamine and Cyanuric acid to consumers through their website using the best buy code on each food container.
