True Blue Dog Food Review

True Blue dog food may appeal to you if you want an Aussie brand made from Australian produce which won’t break the bank.

You will find the True Blue range more readily available in rural areas, with four varieties on offer – Essentials, Family Dog, Working Dog, and Grain Free. Essentials is the cheapest, but I find the Grain Free is the best of the bunch for any dog – working dogs and family dogs included. I’ll go into reasons why later.

It’s worth noting the Essentials range is not suitable for puppies, whereas the other three formulas are all life stages (puppy through to senior).

True Blue dog food has been around for many years, but this 2024 review is based on the brand being revamped and improved.

Let’s take a look…

What the marketing says

The marketing is refreshingly simple with no nonsense. There aren’t any misleading pictures of filet mignon or mouth-watering chicken breast on the bag like you get with other dog foods, which is almost always a misrepresentation. I prefer that, don’t you?

The name “True Blue” is clearly targeted at you as a true blue Aussie, and you’ll find “100% Aussie Owned” written on the bag. Even the recipe names are “Aussie Beef”, or “Aussie Lamb”.

If this appeals to you then that’s absolutely fine. As Australians, why would we not support Australian businesses and farmers?

What I’d like to draw your attention to on the packaging, before we get to the ingredients, is the amount of protein and fat in the four different recipes. I consider protein and fat more important in a dog food to carbohydrates, which is one of the reasons I would steer you towards the Grain Free or perhaps the Working Dog formulas – both 28% protein/14% fat compared to the Essentials which is a less impressive 20% protein/10% fat/more carbs.

What the ingredients really say

For the purpose of the review I’ll focus more on the Aussie Lamb Grain Free formula which is my preferred recipe, but I’ll use the Essentials Beef formula as a comparison. Essentials is the cheapest option, but it’s worth comparing so you understand how they differ.

Lamb Meal is the first ingredient, and being a meat meal assures us there’s a decent amount of animal protein in the food. Meal is a dry powdered (rendered) form of meat without moisture. Animal protein is better for your dog than plant proteins, so you can consider that a plus.

The second ingredient, and what I would consider the other main ingredient, is a combination of vegetables (beans, sweet potatoes, and peas). Our dogs can benefit from these ingredients, and without going too in-depth they provide vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre, antioxidants, and plant-based protein.

To skip to the Essentials formula briefly we find cereals (wheat and/or sorghum) instead of vegetables. The Family Dog and Working Dog formulas also include these grains.

I’m not a big fan of wheat in dog food, and despite having some merit in terms of essential vitamins and minerals are carbohydrate-based and not what I would consider ideal for a dog. That’s what I find the biggest difference between the Grain Free and three other formulas, but this is reflected in price.

There’s some other ingredients worth noting, such as chicken (hydrolysed, broth), and additional chicken meal in the Grain Free formula. Prebiotics are added for gut health, glucosamine and chondroitin for joint health, and additional Omega 3 (DHA) for overall health, skin and coat, but note these extras aren’t included in the Essentials formula.

Overall I find the True Blue Grain Free dog food a decent formula, so the review rating represents that. Essentials is, by definition, essentials, and the Family Dog and Working Dog sit between the two due to the cereal (wheat/sorghum) content.

The True Blue formulas don’t have all the bells and whistles of the top-rated brands on this website, but they don’t come with the same price tag either.

Where to buy

True Blue dog (and cat foods) are available at select retailers, mostly in rural areas. Online I believe it’s sold by AIRR, a retailer I’ve had little experience with (because I’m a city dweller).

Ingredients

Ingredients of True Blue Grain Free Aussie Lamb at the time of writing:

Lamb Meal, Vegetables (Beans, Sweet Potato, Peas), Beef Fat, Chicken Meal, Chicken (Hydrolysed, Broth), Prebiotics (Beet Pulp, Chicory Root), Vitamins, Minerals (including Taurine), Glucosamine, Chondroitin, Salt, Omega 3 (DHA), Algimun®, Natural Antioxidants (Mixed Tocopherols).

Typical Analysis

The typical analysis of True Blue Grain Free Aussie Lamb at the time of writing: