FirstMate's Pacific Ocean Fish weight control is our lowest fat and protein diet, and ideal for dogs with special needs. This limited ingredient diet is great for dogs with allergies and diet restrictions. Fewer ingredients makes this formula easy on digestion.
The chicken fat used in FirstMate Pet Foods is processed free of protein, eliminating the risk of allergies derived from chicken.
Family Owned & Operated Since 1989
Complete production control
Grain & Pea Free
Wild Caught Herring, Anchovy & Sardines
Veterinarian Formulated
Barbara Arnold –
Excellent food. My 10 year old labrador lost some weight which is great for his joints!
Sylvia –
This is an excellent food for my senior dog. Due to a higher fat level in her lipid panel, we need to find a food with half the fat and this was an excellent choice. She is an 11 year old Plott Hound and she loves this food and it is a great choice for her health. Thank you for making such a wonderful brand of food for our dog that isn’t only grain free, but low in fat and makes Gracie feel full after eating.
Becky Hampton –
This is the best dog food I have found for my three Long Hair Dachshunds. They are all over 11 years old and have been on this senior feed for years. Dachshunds are known for having back issues, skin allergies and difficulty maintaining a healthy weight. My 14 year old that I have had since he was 8 weeks, has never been to the vet for anything more than necessary vaccinations, nails and teeth cleaning. None of my dogs have ever had any skin issues or ANY other kind of health issue. I attribute alot of this to a great, nutritious dog food! Also to be mentioned, they are not given people food, except for snacks (carrots and blueberries).
Sarah –
As we know, bulldogs are prone to so many issues. Not only is he allergic to just about everything, but he was born with pancreatitis. After trying many different foods we landed on this one and he has flourished ever since. No pancreatitis attacks, no hair loss, and he will actually eat it! I also love that it is made locally and family owned. I wish this was also available potatoe free, but otherwise it’s perfect.
k. leppard (verified owner) –
This food is FANTASTIC. I have a pescatarian, gluten intolerant rescue dog who has struggled with all foods I have tried. He turns 8 this week and has been gaining weight and licking constantly due to allergies, etc. On this food for 4 weeks his coat is beautiful, his licking has stopped, less poo bags needed now, and he has lost a bit of weight and perked up!! He has much more energy now. Thank you for producing such a wonderful product. I am now going to switch my other dog (age 6) over to the non-senior version of this food. I live in Dartmouth Nova Scotia and I am having a hard time getting local pet stores to carry your brand. Global Pet foods in Halifax carries your brands, sometimes, but they tell me it takes 3 months to get in stock. Anything you can do to help would be appreciated.
Blake Vonder Haar –
There are many other foods with a better analysis, including those without peas that have SIGNIFICANTLY better ratios without even being weight control. Earthborn Venture for example is pea free, has 325 kcal per cup (vs 474 for First Mate), 26 protein vs 18 FM, and 13 fat vs 8 FM. So 5% less fat but 125 more calories. And the first ingredients are not white potatoes, which are arguably not a good choice for dogs, especially those with weight issues due to their high glycemic index.
Kris –
LOVE this food for our finicky dog. With special dietary restrictions. We just wish you made it in a SMALL BITE because otherwise we have to chop each and every piece with a pill cutter 🙁 What we do for our beloved fur babies !!!
michelle burden –
I’d been doing A LOT of searching for an ethically sourced dog food that met the nutritional needs of my husky/shepherd mix Luna. She needs a low-fat/low-protein diet due to gall bladder sludging and high liver numbers, and a grain-free food because of epilepsy. Our vet had not heard of FirstMate but when I found your website and showed her the ingredient list and nutritional info, she was very impressed and said this looked like great food. It’s more affordable than the food I had been feeding Luna and although I was nervous to try it because she can be SUPER picky, she really likes it! Thank you for this high quality, conscientiously made formula.
Yosetime –
I’ve been looking for a kibble for my nearly 7 year old Great Pyrenees/Akbash that is grain free AND free of peas, legumes, and other pulses like chickpeas, for nearly 4 years now. She was miserable with all symptoms that mimic a food sensitivity, a low thyroid, and other mysteries. We’re talking non-stop scratching, extreme hair loss that started with the feathering on her back legs, then her undercoat on her rump (completely bare until these last 3 months), and cycling all the way to her neck, where her usual soft, platinum blonde 80’s style mane turned course as a horse’s tail, thinned out, and then left in giant patches! She’s had bouts of yeast on her skin and been naked underneath from butt to elbows! This last spring she became mysteriously sore on her front legs/shoulders and from shoulders to ear her hair literally starting turning the wrong way! I finally figured out this was due to tight fascia muscles that were literally pulling her hair forward (fasciitis) because… get this.. she was using her front legs/shoulders to balance herself and help push her face backwards, twisting her neck around, to reach her belly and hind end to scratch it with her teeth! It was weird!!
To get around all of this I had to feed her in small amounts and then tried a full spectrum HUMAN digestive enzyme blend (with Betaine HCL to increase her stomach acid). As I soon learned, the digestive enzymes she needed were those that were able to break down Phytic Acid, or phytates. AND THEREIN LAY THE ANSWER TO THE 4 YEAR MYSTERY!
Grains, pulses, peas, etc are all high in phytates, which neither human nor dog can digest and are also called “anti-nutrients” because when in the small intestine the little buggers attach to minerals like calcium, zinc, manganese, etc, so they cannot be absorbed and are just crapped out the other end. This is why her skin and coat were in such bad shape, needing primarily zinc to grow properly, why she had symptoms of some endocrine deficiency, food intolerances, and bloating. We think those plant materials were fermenting in her digestive tract too, which was very, very slow moving, but since she’s not a cow, chewing cud was not normal! She may now also low stomach acid (working on that). The digestive enzymes with phytase and other enzymes that break down phytates and other plant derived nasties, which are way too high in dog foods, were what started turning her around. But what she really needed was food with less or no phytates, and probably less protein too. But I COULD NOT, find one until I found FirstMate! White potatoes are naturally very low in phytates, but when processed in the way FirstMate does (see the website for a walk through of their facility) the spuds end up with about ZERO phytates, a low glycemic index, and are easy to digest and filling (makes sense since potato starch is used as a thickener and have kept humans alive for centuries). Now my 125lb mini-polar bear absorbs every bit of nutrients from her food, has no upset or bloated stomach, no itching or anal gland issues, her fasciitis and shoulder pain is disappearing, she’s still losing weight and gaining muscle and she feels great! She’s like a puppy!! I’m switching between the Senior/Weight Management Fish and the Large Breed Fish formulas but will switch to just the weight one because of the significant reduction in fat and fewer proteins to digest. She might even be able to stop taking digestive enzymes, probiotics, prebiotics and melatonin (which, by the way, doesn’t just help an irritated itchy dog rest, it also helps hair grow back too (see Merck Vet Manual, I think). So, Thank you FirstMate for ending 4 years of pain and misery for my dog. The potatoes saved the day! And the fish meal has all the right things to return her coat to it’s natural shiny, soft platinum blonde. She’s almost there!!