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VeRUS vs Essence

VeRUS vs. Essence

In this comparison article for VeRUS vs Essence, we'll highlight the key differences between these two pet food brands. To properly compare VeRUS and Essence, 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 Essence vs VeRUS comparison, we've utilized average data to make general comparisons. If you'd like to see individual product reviews, visit our VeRUS Review Page or Essence Review Page.

Guaranteed Analysis: Essence vs. VeRUS

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.

VeRUS Dog Food vs. Essence Dog Food

Dry Dog FoodVeRUSEssence
Crude Protein25.6%40.9%
Crude Fat14.4%19.3%
Crude Fiber4.4%5.7%
Wet/Canned Dog FoodVeRUSEssence
Crude Protein39.2%46.2%
Crude Fat27.4%32.6%
Crude Fiber10.0%6.0%

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.

Essence dry dog foods clearly provides more protein than VeRUS. In fact, the difference between the protein content is roughly 15.29%, which is a significant amount. For wet dog foods, Essence provides more protein (about 7.02% more).


Crude Fat Comparison For Dog Food

Dietary fats serves a multitude of roles in the proper development and function of our canine companions. Here are some of the benefits (not exhaustive):

  • Help produce prostaglandins, which reduce inflammation among other critical functions.
  • Aid in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins
  • Improve skin and coat health
  • Improve the palatially of your dog's food

VeRUS dry recipes contain 4.87% less fat than Essence dry recipes. This difference in fat content is a notable difference between Essence and VeRUS. In addition, Essence wet dog foods also provide more fat than VeRUS wet foods.


Both brands provide roughly the same amount of crude fiber. For wet dog foods, VeRUS provides more fiber (about 4.06% more).

VeRUS Cat Food vs. Essence Cat Food

Dry Cat FoodVeRUSEssence
Crude Protein35.6%44.1%
Crude Fat22.2%18.5%
Crude Fiber3.3%4.8%
Wet/Canned Cat FoodVeRUSEssence
Crude Protein44.4%46.2%
Crude Fat31.8%31.8%
Crude Fiber5.2%4.8%

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.

On average, Essence dry cat food recipes contain 8.52% more protein than VeRUS recipes. Clearly, there is a significant difference between the protein content of VeRUS and Essence. For wet cat foods, Essence and VeRUS provide roughly the same amount of protein.


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):

  • Aid in the digestion and absorption of fat-soluble vitamins
  • Improve the health of skin/coat
  • Slow the growth of yeast infections
  • Slow the development and spread of certain type of cancers.
  • Maintain healthy blood pressure

According to our average data, Essence typically provides less fat than VeRUS. However, this difference is relatively small and doesn't represent a significant difference between the two brands. For wet cat foods, Essence and VeRUS provide roughly the same amount of fat.


As you can see, VeRUS and Essence guarantee a similar amount of crude fiber. With regards to wet cat food, VeRUS and Essence also provide roughly the same amount of crude fiber.

VeRUS Pet Food Ingredients vs. Essence Pet Food Ingredients

Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by VeRUS.

Pea Protein
Tomato Pomace

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 VeRUS.

Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex

Product Safety: Recall History of VeRUS & Essence?

According to our records, neither brand has issued any product recalls. Therefore, consumers have no reason to question the safety of VeRUS or Essence pet food products.

Price Comparison: Which Brand Is More Expensive?

Dry Dog FoodVeRUSEssence
Per Pound$3.16$4.11
Per Calorie$0.0020$0.0024
Wet Dog FoodVeRUSEssence
Per Pound$4.57$4.99
Per Calorie$0.0093$0.0090
Wet Cat FoodVeRUSEssence
Per Pound$7.26$5.98
Per Calorie$0.0146$0.0103

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 VeRUS or Essence, 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 VeRUS or Essence will depend on your shopping habits.

Pet owners who use our price comparison feature typically save more than 25% off retail prices for VeRUS and Essence. 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 VeRUS Pet Foods

You can purchase VeRUS pet foods from the following stores:


19 Recipes In-Stock Today

Where To Buy Essence Pet Foods

You can purchase Essence pet food products from these retailers:


12 Recipes In-Stock Today

13 Recipes In-Stock Today

Type Of Pet Foods Available

ProductVeRUSEssence
Dry Dog Food8 Recipes6 Recipes
Wet Dog Food14 Recipes6 Recipes
Dog TreatsNoneNone
Dry Cat Food1 Recipes3 Recipes
Wet Cat Food13 Recipes3 Recipes
Cat TreatsNoneNone

Top Rated VeRUS Recipes

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Canine Dry Food Life Virtue Grain Free Chicken, Lentils & Yams Formula
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Dog Food
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Canine Canned Fish & Potato Pate Formula
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Cat Food
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Feline Dry Food Life Advantage Chicken Meal, Brown Rice & Oats Formula
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Feline Canned Turkey, Chicken & Fish Pate Formula
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Top Rated Essence Recipes

Dog Food
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Original Ranch & Meadow Recipe For Dogs
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Dog Food
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Original Air & Gamefowl Recipe For Dogs (Canned)
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Cat Food
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Original Air & Gamefowl Recipe For Cats
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Cat Food
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Original Ranch & Meadow Recipe For Cats (Canned)
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