Annamaet Dog Food Review 2024

Annamaet — pronounced ‘an-i-mate’ — is named after the founder's mother, Anna Mae. The first bag was sold on her birthday in 1986.

This brand has an extensive range of dry dog food, including both grain-inclusive and grain-free options. It caters for dogs at all life stages, from puppies through to seniors as well as those with specific nutritional needs. 

Read on to find out what we love about Annamaet dog food as well as what you should be aware of before making the switch from your dog’s current food. 

Annamaet has a wide selection of dry dog food alongside treats and supplements. They also have a small range of cat food. 

Annamaet dog food 

Annamaet may only have a dry food range but there’s plenty of variety within it. The Annamaet sensitive skin and stomach comes with pumpkin and nutraceuticals which support digestive health. There’s also the Annamaet ultra which is energy-dense for performance dogs. While the Annamaet adult dog food is ideal for older dogs, of course, but also dogs with slower metabolisms and is popular with kennels. 

The Annamaet dry dog food is split into two categories: grain free and grain inclusive.

Some of the food — including all of the grain-inclusive range — has meat or fish meal as the first ingredient. It’s argued that this is higher in protein but we would prefer if this were real meat or fish. Meat and fish meals can contain tissues and organs not fit for human consumption. 

However, meat and fish is listed as the first ingredient in four of the grain-free options. Not only that but the fish is wild and line-caught with no by-catch while the meat is free-range.

Both grain-free and grain-inclusive ranges feature chelated minerals to support the immune system. They also have omega 3 fatty acids for healthy skin and coat plus prebiotics for gut health. The grain-inclusive range is corn, soy and wheat free. 

Grain-Inclusive:

• Annamaet Original Small Breed - Salmon Meal and Brown Rice 
• Annamaet Original Sensitive Skin and Stomach - Lamb Meal and Millet 
• Annamaet Original Senior - Lamb Meal, Whitefish Meal and Millet 
• Annamaet Original Small Breed - Chicken Meal and Brown Rice 
• Annamaet Original Puppy - Chicken Meal and Brown Rice 
• Annamaet Original Ultra - Super Active Dogs - Chicken Meal and Brown Rice 
• Annamaet Original Option - Salmon Meal and Brown Rice 
• Annamaet Original Extra - Working Dogs - Chicken Meal and Brown Rice 
• Annamaet Original Medium and Large Breed - Chicken Meal and Brown Rice 
• Annamaet Original Adult - Chicken Meal and Brown Rice 

Grain-Free:

• Annamaet Ohana - Puppy Formula - Alaskan Cod 
• Annamaet Sustain - Sustainable Fish Formula - Alaskan Cod 
• Manitok Formula - Red Meat Formula - Deboned Lamb and Lentils 
• Salcha Formula - Poulet Formula - Chicken Meal, Lentils and Duck Meal 
• Aqualuk Formula - Cold Water Formula - Salmon Meal, Field Peas and Herring Meal 
• Lean Formula - Low Fat Formula - Chicken Meal and Lentils 
• Annamaet Re-Juvenate - Senior Formula - Silver Carp 

Annamaet Dog Treats and Supplements 

Annamaet also has a range of treats and supplements to complement their dry food range.

• Annamaet Aqualuk Treats - same formula as the Aqualuk food
• Annamaet Salcha Treats - same formula as the Salcha food 
• Annamaet Lean Treats - grain-free and low in fat 
• Annamaet Recovery Chews - for post-exercise, to rebuild muscle glycogen 
• Annamaet Glycocharge - to rebuild muscle glycogen post-exercise 
• Annamaet Enhance - vitamins and minerals for raw and home-cooked food 
• Annamaet Endure - for joint health 
• Annamaet Impact - for dogs with extra needs such as recovery post-surgery

There is plenty to like about this brand. Here are a few of the top things that stand out to us. 

High-quality ingredients  

This dog food is made with natural ingredients and doesn’t include any fillers such as corn, wheat or soy. 

Some of the food includes real meat and fish while the meat and fish meals used are high-quality and free-range or wild-caught. The food is high in protein alongside fruits and vegetables which provide essential vitamins and minerals. 

As well as offering the nutrition dogs need, the majority of the product is actually fit for human consumption. 

Approved by veterinary nutritionists 

The owner Rob has a broad knowledge of pet nutrition himself but alongside his expertise he has a board certified Veterinary Nutritionist working with him as well. This ensures better checks and enables them to create the very best formulas. Between them they have more than 100 publications in peer reviewed Veterinary or Nutrition Journals.

They care about the environment 

In 2015 marine microalgae was added to the formulas as a more sustainable source of Omega 3s. The following year, Annamaet Sustain was released to support their aim for a more sustainable future. Among their sustainable ingredients are silver carp and line-caught Alaskan cod. 

It’s not just the food either. They now use sustainable packaging with Bio-Flex materials which will biodegrade. They are also part of the Pet Sustainability Coalition and partner with the Marine Stewardship Council — to guarantee their sustainable fish sources. 

Before you make the move to Annamaet there are a few things you should take into consideration.

They don’t have a wet food range 

Many pet parents like to give their pup wet food to up their moisture intake. While other dogs simply prefer the taste and texture of wet food. This could be given on its own or a topper for dry food. Unfortunately, this brand doesn’t have a wet food range. If you want to top it with wet food you would have to consider mixing it with another brand. 

It’s quite expensive 

Some pet parents consider this brand to be quite expensive compared to other brands. However, most say it is worth the price. To give you an idea of the price, an Annamaet Ultra 32 dry dog food bag (which has 32% protein) on Chewy is $47.99 for a 12lb bag, $89.99 for a 25lb bag and $134.99 for a 40lb bag. Of course the benefit is you do have a choice when it comes to the size and you can save money when you autoship.

Can cause stomach problems  

A few pet parents said that this food upset their dog's stomach and caused them to have issues such as diarrhea. It’s worth noting that this can happen when changing their food — especially if you do it too quickly. It’s best to do it gradually to give them time to adjust. Start by mixing it in with the current food and slowly increase the amount of new food over about seven days. 

“Our 2 yr old golden is a picky eater. We have him on rotational feeding due to the DCM issue and try to change his food every 4-6 months. We have tried a number of high-end grain inclusive kibbles. He seemed to get bored with them after a few weeks and would leave some food in his bowl. After about 3 weeks on the Annamaet Original, he still loves it. Wolfs down his meals and doesn’t leave any food in his bowl. His coat looks good and {he} has (a) great energy level, still acting like a puppy. Stool is better and more consistent than other foods we tried. Overwhelmingly, 2 thumbs up!”

“This food is heaven sent! Our Malinois has a very sensitive GI tract. She's been on prescription food since she was a puppy. We've tried every food on the market for her to see if we could wean her off the prescription diet - with no luck. She had diarrhea every single day, no matter what. After doing some research, I wanted to try a food with no fat, but high protein. She is a very active dog so losing weight was never the concern. I tried this food and I couldn't be happier. No diarrhea, no weight loss (the protein helps with that), she still has energy and we are finally free of the prescription life! She enjoys the taste as well because I don't even need toppers or anything.”

Read more Annamaet dog food reviews on Chewy.

Annamaet is a family-owned business. It was set up by Rob Downey and his wife Mary-Jo. It’s named after Rob’s mother, their daughter is Director of Marketing and their son is Manager of Business Development.

Rob, who has had a lifelong involvement with dogs, spent many years studying nutrition. He worked as a field researcher and graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania in the late 80s. Here he worked on studies around the endurance of beagles and sled dogs that showed they would perform better on high fat diets rather than the current high carbohydrate diet. This changed the way performance dogs were fed.

Annamaet Extra and Ultra were the first formulas to be sold back in 1986. A couple of years later they introduced the Adult formula for dogs with slower metabolisms. 

From 1988, Rob would spend the next 20 winters in Alaska racing their sled dogs. Over the years more products were slowly added including their grain-free range in 2010 with names inspired by their time spent in Alaska. Then in 2013 they started to make changes to be more sustainable.

In 2021 Rob received the Distinguished Alumni Award from The Ohio State University’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES). Then in 2022, their new Sensitive Skin & Stomach formula was named among the Top Pet Products for that year. 

At the time of writing there has not been an Annamaet dog food recall.