What Happened to Mighty Dog Dog Food? Discontinuation & Brand Facts

Nestlé Purina owned Mighty Dog dog food. The food was around for 48 years. The company stopped producing this food in December 2020, and it has been discontinued.

Any Mighty Dog cans that may have remained from third-party sellers instantly shot up in price as owners of finicky dogs tried ways to get the food that their dogs had grown to love. Today, they are impossible to find. Online listings are out of stock.

The discontinuation of Mighty Dog was said to be based on a lack of consumer demand for the product. If you’ve never heard of Mighty Dog before, let’s look more closely at this food and see what it was all about.

Was Mighty Dog a Good Dog Food?

Mighty Dog dog food was in production for nearly 50 years. That means there were dogs that liked the food, keeping their owners buying it. But how did it fare in terms of nutritional value?

The ingredients of the food are not clearly defined. Water was the first ingredient, which adds nothing but moisture to the food. This is important in canned food, but quality dog food should list real meat from an animal source as the first ingredient.

The protein sources in the food were listed as beef, liver, meat by-products, and chicken. All these ingredients can provide nutrition to dogs, but “meat by-products” are not specific. They could include a combination of different animal sources. If your dog has allergies to certain proteins, it would be impossible to know if they could safely eat this food.

The ingredients went on to include artificial coloring and non-chelated minerals. This means the minerals are more difficult to absorb, and artificial coloring can trigger allergies and adds no nutritional value.

Why Was Mighty Dog Discontinued?

Pet owners have become more conscious of what they are feeding their pets. Ingredient labels are read carefully, and we now have more knowledge about the potential health issues that can arise if dogs eat low-quality food. With people making a change to give their dogs healthier nutrition, the demand for Mighty Dog decreased.

Dog owners started caring more about their dog’s food before Mighty Dog production stopped, though. The end of this food was gradual. In 2017, 3 years before Mighty Dog was discontinued, Diamond Pet Foods conducted a survey that showed that 61% of pet owners evaluated the protein source of their dog’s food when deciding if it’s healthy for them. Since Mighty Dog’s protein sources were not completely identifiable, this could’ve played a role in why the food could not compete with healthier brands.

The survey also showed that 78% of pet owners were concerned about the specific nutritional qualities of each food that they chose for their pets. Since pet owners started taking more of an interest in what their dogs were eating, they saw that Mighty Dog was not the healthiest option.

Final Thoughts

Mighty Dog dog food was discontinued after 48 years, but it has not been missed by pet owners who want healthier nutrition for their dogs. With dog owners focused on more nutrition for their pets, foods with higher-quality ingredients are now being selected instead. These may cost more, but many dog owners feel that this choice can help save on expensive vet bills down the line because their dogs won’t develop health issues related to poor nutrition.

Featured Image Credit: PisutKP, Shutterstock