Pâté for adult dogs from 12 months
Adult pâté is wet food for adult dogs, meaning dogs from around 12 months and until they reach the senior stage. This pâté comes in 400 gram cans and is available in several varieties that correspond to the same recipes Essential uses in its dry food: Estate Living pate, highland pate, kingdom Living pate, Nautical Pate and superior Living pate. In addition, there are two recipes intended for dogs with a specific need: Contour - Pate for dogs that need to maintain or lose weight, and Balance pate.
This means you can choose a pâté based on the same considerations you would use when choosing dry food: your dog's protein source, its taste and any need for weight management. If you're looking for food for a puppy or an older dog instead, there are separate lines for them in puppy pate and pâté for seniors.
How to choose between the recipes
The recipes differ first and foremost in their protein source, and that is what you should base your choice on. If your dog reacts to a particular type of meat, or you simply want some variety, it makes sense to look at what each variety is built around before you decide.
Estate Living and Highland Living use land-based protein sources, while Nautical Living is fish-based and thus an obvious choice if your dog does best without the usual meat types, or you want to give it a different source of omega 3. Superior Living and Kingdom Living are two other recipes in the series, so you can switch between them without changing your dog's basic nutrition.
If you're unsure what suits your particular dog, the article on choosing which dog food should I choose can help you factor age, size and needs into the choice.
Contour and Balance for dogs with a special need
Two of the recipes are made for a specific situation rather than just varying the taste.
Contour - Kibble and the Contour pâté are intended for dogs that need to lose weight or maintain a stable weight. If your dog is carrying a few extra kilos, it can be an advantage to combine pâté and dry food from the same line. If you want to read more about how to assess your dog's weight before choosing, you can find help in does your dog have a healthy weight and in the guide on low-fat dog food.
Balance is the other recipe with a special aim. If you know your dog has a delicate stomach or tolerates ordinary food poorly, it's worth looking at what it takes to settle the stomach before you switch. The article delicate or sensitive stomach goes into depth on this.
400 gram can or box of six
Each recipe is available both as a single 400 gram can and as a box of six cans. The single can is the cheap way to try a new taste before committing to more. If the recipe works for your dog, the box of six saves you both money and shopping trips, and you avoid running out in the middle of a week.
If you give pâté as a regular part of your dog's diet and not just as a topping now and then, the box is the one that makes sense to keep in stock.
Taste box if you want to try several flavours
If you want to find out which recipe your dog prefers without buying a whole box of each, there are combined taste boxes. The Classic, The Countryside and The Feast each come with 18 cans of 400 grams, while The Complete gathers 30 cans.
This is the practical solution if you're new to Essential and want to let your dog taste its way through several varieties, or if you deliberately want to vary the diet from week to week. If you want to know more about why variety and wet food can be an advantage, you can read wet food for dogs.
How to use pâté together with dry food
Pâté doesn't have to be the whole meal. Many people use it as a topping over dry food to make the bowl more tempting, especially for fussy dogs that would rather turn their backs on dry food. Because the pâté follows the same recipes as the dry food, you can place a variety on top of the corresponding kibble without mixing different protein sources together.
If you're switching from another brand, or you want to start giving pâté, make the transition gradual over about a week so the stomach can keep up. The procedure is described in how to switch dog food. If you give pâté as part of a full meal, remember to adjust the amount of dry food accordingly, so your dog doesn't end up with too many calories. Help with portions can be found in how much should a dog eat.
Limited edition Christmas pâté
In addition to the regular recipes, there is a limited edition christmas pate. It comes both as a single 400 gram can and in a box of six and is intended as something extra for the dog in December, not as a replacement for the daily diet. Because it is a limited edition, it is only available for a period.
