Pedigree vs Royal Canin: A Guide to Choosing the Right Brand for Your Pet

Dogs and dog food. They kind of go together, don’t they? One of the most important things for our dogs is food. They don’t think about anything else this intensely anyway. How do I know this? Because I see my dog near the kitchen area all the time, twitching his nose continuously and waiting for some amazing tidbits to magically land in his mouth. Sounds familiar? Well, all dogs are the same frankly. Matter over mind and food over everything else!! 

It doesn’t matter what the type of food is. Whether it be home cooked food or packaged food, their enthusiasm remains the same. So what exactly is packaged dog food? To them, it is dehydrated kibbles that smell weird but taste crunchy and are apparently made with different ingredients like meat, rice, chicken or vegetables. The moment the first kibble drops on the bowl with a clink, their ears perk up and it is the second most exciting sound that makes their bum wiggle. The first one obviously has to be ‘W-A-L-K’!

Pedigree vs Royal Canin – Comparative Analysis

Let’s talk a little more about what kind of dog food do we use and what is it made up of. 

In India, what are the two most common dog food brands that come to your mind when you think of packaged dog food? 

Yup, you guessed it right! It is Pedigree and Royal Canin. Even though both are manufactured by the same company called Mars Petcare, their branding is completely different. 

The key ingredients that both the brands use to manufacture their kibbles are:

• Meat or animal derivatives – Provide various nutrients that are essential for your pet’s growth. 
• Vegetable derivatives – Also a good source of proteins. 
• Cereal – A good source of fibre that helps build a good digestive system.
• Minerals, natural flavors, sugar and salt – Essential for the metabolism of your pet.
• Additives – Preservatives that are approved by the EU and keep the dry food safe and durable. 

Packaging: 

• Pedigree: The packaging has a very easy breezy look that is friendly and inviting. The color of choice is a bright, peppy yellow with happy dogs on the front and detailed graphics of the key ingredients as well. Basically, it’s user friendly and those who don’t understand much about the requirements will also opt for it. 

• Royal Canin: The packaging is plain and subtle with an image of well-trained dogs as their target audience. The details related to the health benefits on the front, give an almost professional look to the brand.

Target Audience:

• Pedigree: They have two main product categories which target different audiences. – Normal and Professional. In both these categories, the products are divided into two segregations: Puppy and Adult. They also have some variants as per the size of the pet namely small, medium or large breeds. Moreover, they have different flavours as categories like Vegetarian, Chicken, Meat and Milk.

• Royal Canin: They focus on types of breeds, age and their sizes and believe that different dog breeds need different nutrition at different stages in life. They also cater to different diseases and causes like weight management and ailments and organ related food for digestive health, skin and food sensitivities, urinary health, kidney health, diabetes support and multiple sensitivities.

Price Points:

• Pedigree: The prices are reasonable and cost effective. 

Example: A 10 Kg pack of dry food would be anything between Rs. 1750 – 1950.

• Royal Canin: The prices are exorbitant but if you keep in mind the variety of issues they cater to, it is worth the price. 

Example: A 3 Kg pack of dry food would be anything between Rs. 1750 – 2100. 

Curveball Points:

• Pedigree: All the kibbles are more or less similarly shaped. They also have a vegetarian option that is ideal for people in India. If weight is an issue then you can go for this brand as the kibbles are light on the tummy. It is also good for adult and senior dogs who need weight management in the lower price range.

• Royal Canin: Their kibbles are differently shaped and the design is showcased on the packet front as well. They are specifically shaped as per the type of variant. These can be heavy for your dogs and result in a drastic weight gain as well so you can give this brand when your pets are in their growth period. Their coats become extremely shiny with this brand and there is less hair loss as well.

Availability:

Both brands are available at all pet clinics, pet stores and online stores like Amazon, dogspot.in and headsupfortails.com. Besides, Pedigree is also available at your nearest grocery store, pharmacy and supermarkets.

Verdict

Both brands gain somewhere and lose somewhere.

Pedigree caters to a lot of masses because of the reasonable prices and easy accessibility whereas Royal Canin works well for those who can afford it, who want to go for engineered nutrition as per the breed, medical conditions and for those who want to get their pets into professional dog training for shows and competitions. 

Our dogs personally preferred Royal Canin when they were puppies as their dry food is pretty filling. They eventually shifted to Pedigree once they became adults and their appetite reduced comparatively. We sometimes give them Royal Canin when they get bored of eating the same thing, although the best way is to mix both home cooked food and packaged food to keep their taste buds alive.

We came up with this post so that it would help you make a choice before you get a pet. Consulting the vet also matters as they suggest which product is best suited for your pet and accordingly let you know when to change the variant. 

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