Inception Dog Food Review 2024

Having only been launched in 2019, Inception dog food will be unfamiliar to many parents searching the pet shop aisles. It’s quite understandable if they might not want to take a risk on an unknown quantity.

That’s where Wag! offers a helping hand. In this Inception dog food review, we find this dog food brand to be well worthy of your money. There’s a big focus on animal-based protein in the eight recipes, with the first-listed ingredient always either meat or fish, and the next a named fish or meat meal or broth.

We’re also full of praise for the quality of the other ingredients, including the healthy grains and the absence of any artificial nasties. Drawbacks? The recipes might be a little too high in fat for some dogs and we prefer to see real meat instead of meals, but we’re nitpicking really. A more than solid choice.

There are only eight Inception dog food recipes. Half of these are dry and the other half wet. Both have real meat or fish as the first-listed ingredient, followed by healthy grains, such as millet, milo and oats.

Beyond that, there’s some ground flaxseed for a plant-based source of Omega-3 fatty acids, plus all the vital vitamins and minerals a dog needs to function healthily. Search all you want but you won’t find any artificial flavors, colors or preservatives on the list, either.

In addition to this, the brand also produces four varieties of dog treats, as well as six cat food recipes that are similarly premium when it comes to ingredients and formulation.

Inception dry dog food flavors

• Chicken Recipe
• Chicken and Pork Recipe
• Fish Recipe
• Pork Recipe

Inception wet dog food flavors

• Chicken Recipe
• Chicken and Pork Recipe
• Fish Recipe
• Pork Recipe

The recipes contain an impressive amount of protein

Take the Inception fish dog food as an example. The dry recipe has ocean whitefish and catfish meal as the first and second ingredients, while the canned recipe has ocean whitefish and fish broth. This approach of having animal-derived protein as the first-listed ingredients is replicated across the whole range.

Why does it matter? Well, Inception dog food has higher protein levels than many other competitors, which boosts your pet’s energy levels and helps with muscle maintenance. Real meat or fish are great sources of Omega fatty acids and taurine, which are good for skin, coat and digestive health.

The dog food is supplemented with taurine and L-Carnitine

All Inception dog food recipes meet AAFCO standards (more on which later), but they also go above and beyond these nutritional benchmarks by supplementing all recipes with taurine and L-Carnitine.

Taurine plays a key role in the healthy function of the digestive, immune and nervous system, while the presence of L-Carnitine spells good news for hearts and bones.

The variety of flavors is decent enough to feed picky pups

While the range of Inception dog food isn’t the largest in the world, there are at least four dry and wet recipes each. This means parents should at least have a few alternatives should their dog turn their nose up at one.

There are also two chicken-free wet and dry recipes, which is especially helpful for parents of dogs with poultry intolerance (one of the most common allergens).

The price is reasonable (although not cheap)

We won’t go as far as saying Inception dog food is budget-friendly, but the price is at least fair given the nutritional quality. At the time of writing, it was possible to buy the dry Inception pork dog food for just over $2/lb, while cans were around $3 each.

It’s possible to find cheaper dog food, but Inception dog food sits at a reasonable price-point considering the protein-heavy formulation.

The choice of dry food is more limited when it comes to puppies

Three of the dry Inception dog food products are formulated to meet the AAFCO nutrient profile for Maintenance, which means they’re not suitable for puppies or pregnant mothers. The Inception fish dog food is the only one that’s formulated for All Life Stages.

With the wet dog food, all four are formulated for All Life Stages, but the Inception fish dog food isn’t suitable for the growth of large dogs (those weighing 70 lb or more as an adult).

The recipes are all grain-inclusive

There’s a lot of discourse surrounding grain in dog food and our view is that it isn’t a bad thing in and of itself. However, some dogs find it difficult to tolerate and prefer grain-free food instead. If you’re the parent of such a dog, it’s unhelpful that there are no grain-free options in Inception’s collection.

The fat levels might be too high for some dogs

As is often the case with dog food containing a lot of meat, the fat levels are a little elevated. If we take the Inception chicken and pork dog food (dry) as an example, the crude fat level is 15%.

For most dogs — especially the more athletic ones — this won’t really be a problem. However, these products might not be suitable for dogs that need to watch their fat consumption — for example, breeds at risk of developing pancreatitis.

“I don't feed a lot of kibble but needed something soft for my dog after dental surgery. She usually eats raw but we wanted to avoid that til after her gums healed. I got this and soaked it to soften it, Maybel loved it! [The] ingredients list is good and it isn't full of a lot of potatoes, [lentils] etc. It's expensive, but what isn't these days, and good quality.”

“I have to say, this dog food is amazing. The guaranteed analysis is great and I love the amount of omegas! My dog loved the taste and I’m definitely getting food from this brand again. It’s affordable too!”

“My Golden Retriever is allergic to all meat and it’s been hard to find a kibble that uses only fish and not chicken meal. I do a ton of research on food for my dogs and after some thorough digging I gave [Inception] a try… I also noticed that I don't have to pump salmon oil into their food anymore and their coats are still smooth and shiny. They are always excited to eat and it’s a great price… you get what you’re paying for most definitely.”

Read more reviews at Chewy.

Inception pet food was launched in November 2019 by parent company, Pets Global Inc. This made it the fourth brand in its roster, after Zignature, Essence and Fussie Cat.

Pets Global Inc. is an independent, California-based company that specializes in manufacturing healthy pet food. The company operates by the following ethos:

“We’ll never compromise our principles for profit because we believe the right choice of food not only helps pets to live longer, healthier lives but enriches the lives of their owners as well.”

In practice, this means making a range of different pet foods, all with real meat as the first-listed ingredient and many with potentially aggravating foodstuffs omitted, such as corn, soy, or grain.

At the time of writing, there has never been an Inception dog food recall.