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Only Natural Pet vs Vital Essentials

Only Natural Pet vs. Vital Essentials

In this comparison article for Only Natural Pet vs Vital Essentials, we'll highlight the key differences between these two pet food brands. To properly compare Only Natural Pet and Vital Essentials, we'll use up-to-date nutritional and price information.

There are many factors to consider when choosing the best pet food brand for your pet. Factors such as ingredient quality, guaranteed analysis, product safety, brand history, and cost are among the most important factors to consider.

Throughout this Vital Essentials vs Only Natural Pet comparison, we've utilized average data to make general comparisons. If you'd like to see individual product reviews, visit our Only Natural Pet Review Page or Vital Essentials Review Page.

Guaranteed Analysis: Vital Essentials vs. Only Natural Pet

According to AAFCO, all pet food labels must provide a guaranteed analysis of nutrient content. The analysis must provide guaranteed minimum percentages of crude protein and crude fat, and maximum percentages of crude fiber and moisture.

All percentages used in this comparison are averages reported on a dry matter basis.

Only Natural Pet Dog Food vs. Vital Essentials Dog Food

Dry Dog FoodOnly Natural PetVital Essentials
Crude Protein39.2%52.2%
Crude Fat16.5%28.7%
Crude Fiber6.0%4.1%
Wet/Canned Dog FoodOnly Natural PetVital Essentials
Crude Protein47.2%53.7%
Crude Fat24.5%31.0%
Crude Fiber5.0%5.6%

Crude Protein Comparison For Dog Food

Protein is an extremely important part of your dog's diet. Without sufficient protein, dogs can develop a wide-range of serious health problems.

When you look at the average percentages of crude protein for dry dog food, it's clear that Vital Essentials provides significantly more protein. On average, Vital Essentials guarantees about 12.98% more protein than Only Natural Pet. For wet dog foods, Vital Essentials provides more protein (about 6.53% more).


Crude Fat Comparison For Dog Food

Fats are an absolutely vital component of a balanced canine diet. Not only do fats provide energy, but they also serve important roles in the normal development and function of your dog's body. For example, fats help dogs produce prostaglandins, which reduce inflammation among many other significant functions.

The comparison table above shows that Vital Essentials dry dog foods provide significantly more fat than Only Natural Pet. More specifically, Vital Essentials guarantees at least 12.17% more fat. For wet dog foods, Vital Essentials provides more fat (about 6.48% more).


Vital Essentials and Only Natural Pet both provide roughly the same amount of crude fiber. With regards to wet dog food, Vital Essentials and Only Natural Pet also provide roughly the same amount of crude fiber.

Only Natural Pet Cat Food vs. Vital Essentials Cat Food

Dry Cat FoodOnly Natural PetVital Essentials
Crude Protein51.4%54.0%
Crude Fat17.6%27.5%
Crude Fiber6.0%5.1%
Wet/Canned Cat FoodOnly Natural PetVital Essentials
Crude Protein43.1%50.6%
Crude Fat24.3%18.8%
Crude Fiber4.6%2.5%

Crude Protein Comparison For Cat Food

Protein is an extremely important part of your cat's diet. Without sufficient protein, cats can develop a wide-range of serious health problems.

According to our data, Vital Essentials guarantees 2.58% more protein than Only Natural Pet. Although this difference is relatively small, it's still a notable difference. In addition, Vital Essentials wet cat foods also provide more protein than Only Natural Pet wet foods.


Crude Fat Comparison For Cat Food

There are many ways in which dietary fat contributes to the overall health of our feline friends. Here is a short list of benefits provided by fats (not exhaustive):

  • Fats help with the digestion and absorption of fat-soluble vitamins
  • Reduce inflammation associated with arthritis
  • Slow the growth of yeast infections
  • Prevent or reduce the likelihood of certain heart problems.
  • Aid in the development of the retina and visual cortex.

Vital Essentials dry cat foods clearly provides more fat than Only Natural Pet. In fact, the difference between the fat content is roughly 9.98%, which is a significant amount. For wet cat foods, Only Natural Pet provides more fat (about 5.45% more).


There is a relatively insignificant difference between the crude fiber content of the two brands. For wet cat foods, Only Natural Pet typically provides a little more fiber (about 2.12% more).

Only Natural Pet Pet Food Ingredients vs. Vital Essentials Pet Food Ingredients

Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by Only Natural Pet.

Garlic
Pea Protein
Garlic Powder
Tomato Pomace
Organic Canola Oil
Organic Canola Oil (Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols)

We believe that certain pet food ingredients are linked to adverse health affects; these ingredients are classified as harmful.

Here are some of the harmful ingredients used only by Only Natural Pet.

Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex

Product Safety: Recall History of Only Natural Pet & Vital Essentials?

According to our records, Only Natural Pet has never been recalled.

Vital Essentials has been recalled 4 times.

  • July 8, 2015: Listeria monocytogenes
  • Jan. 15, 2016: Salmonella
  • Feb. 24, 2018: Salmonella
  • April 16, 2018: Salmonella

Price Comparison: Which Brand Is More Expensive?

Dry Dog FoodOnly Natural PetVital Essentials
Per Pound$13.25$37.19
Per Calorie$0.0085$0.0186

The average cost-per-lb is heavily influenced by the varying amounts of moisture present in each brand's food products (wet vs. dry food, dry vs. freeze-dried food, etc). However, the average cost-per-kcal eliminates the influence of moisture. Therefore, the average cost-per-kcal is the better metric to consider.

If you'd like to calculate the average cost-per-day or cost-pet-year of feeding Only Natural Pet or Vital Essentials, input your pet's weight into our cost analyzer widget.

Averages price data can identify whether or not there exists a significant price difference between two brands. However, the actual price that you'll pay for Only Natural Pet or Vital Essentials will depend on your shopping habits.

Pet owners who use our price comparison feature typically save more than 25% off retail prices for Only Natural Pet and Vital Essentials. In addition, we currently have some great coupons for our readers.


Disclosure: PawDiet has an affiliate relationship with stores featured (or linked-to) in this article. We are compensated for referring customers. Thank you for shopping with our retail partners!

Where To Buy Only Natural Pet Pet Foods

You can purchase Only Natural Pet pet foods from the following stores:


11 Recipes In-Stock Today

8 Recipes In-Stock Today

Where To Buy Vital Essentials Pet Foods

You can purchase Vital Essentials pet food products from these retailers:


47 Recipes In-Stock Today

43 Recipes In-Stock Today

21 Recipes In-Stock Today

23 Recipes In-Stock Today

Type Of Pet Foods Available

ProductOnly Natural PetVital Essentials
Dry Dog Food16 RecipesNone
Wet Dog Food8 RecipesNone
Dog Treats46 Treats30 Treats
Dry Cat Food7 RecipesNone
Wet Cat Food7 RecipesNone
Cat Treats7 Treats8 Treats

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Top Rated Vital Essentials Recipes

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