best dog food/meal?

Question

I always here ppl say pedigree/iams/purina are the best dog foods. Then others say no food like that (were u can buy at a grocerystore) is good for dogs. Can someone tell me what is the best food, and have proof that it is. I feed my dogs pedigree right now i need to know if its good for them or not. Thanx

heres the first ingridients in the food:

" ground whole corn,meat and bone meal, corn gluten, animal fat(preserved with BHA/BHT) wheat mill run, ground wheat, natural poltry flavor."

Iam feeding this to german shepherds so if any GSD breeders have any advice i would apriciate it...also can u menton what it is in the ingridients i SHOULD'T be looking for...thanx

Answer 1

Pedigree is absolutely about as low quality as you can get when it comes to pet foods. It is amazing that a company can take something so horribly bad for our pets and market it as good. Lil Doggy G states that if the foods were that bad then the companies would be sued...well that may be so but millions of people like yourself continue to feed them thinking that they are great products, instead of demanding a higher quality product from the company. I would LOVE to see a revolt against the major pet food companies because they are getting away with killing our pets.

Here, take a look at the Pedigree and three other "popular" brands and then compare it with Innova which is smaller company that produces the Healthiest pet foods on the market.

Pedigree:
-GROUND WHOLE CORN (should NOT be in pet foods, low grade filler, not digestible by dogs)
-MEAT AND BONE MEAL(should NOT be in pet foods, this is the renderings from dead, diseased, decaying animals including euthanized cats, dogs, cows, pigs, horses, rabbits, porcupine, poultry, etc. These are NOT fit for consumption)
-CORNT GLUTEN MEAL (low grade filler, pastey residue left after corn is processed)
-CHICKEN BY-PRODUCT MEAL (chicken feet, feathers, beaks, organs, NO meat, not digestible by dogs)
-ANIMAL FAT (unidentified source, company is hiding something)
-preserved with BHA/BHT (cancer causing preservative)
-CHICKEN (good but too low on ingredient list to offer any nutrition to dog)
-RICE (good but too low on ingredient list to offer any nutrition to dog)
-WHEAT FLOUR (no nutirition, just a filler)
-DRIED PEAS (good but too low on list)
-DRIED BEET PULP (cheap filler)
-WHEAT MILL RUN ("shell" of wheat, no nutritional value, filler)
-SALT (Should NOT be in pet foods)

So there is NO beneficial nutrition in Pedigree. It is a cheap food that is made of ingredients that have been deemed unfit for human consumption so instead of getting rid of them, companies salvage them and them into pet foods.

Here are the ingredients of Iams, Science Diet and Purina
Iams (three other popular but low grade foods):
-CHICKEN
-CHICKEN BY PRODUCTS (the feet, feathers, beeks, undeveloped eggs, ograns of dead, disease, or dying animals)
-CORN GRITS (low grade filler with not nutritional value, causes skin irritations)
-CORN MEAL(more low grade filler with no nutrition)
-FISH MEAL (undetermined type of fish)
-DRIED BEET PULP (undigestible filler)
-DRIED EGG PRODUCT (egg shells or those unfit for humans)

Sience Diet (this is the vet prescribe diet)
-BREWERS RICE (rice fraction)
-CHICKEN BY PRODUCTS
-CORN GLUTEN MEAL
-PORK FAT (dogs do not digest pork)
-CHICKEN LIVER (contains high levels of toxins)
-preserved with BHA/BHT (this is a CHEMICAL preservative proven to cause cancer)

Purina:
-CHICKEN
-BREWERS RICE
-CORN GLUTEN MEAL
-POULTRY BY PRODUCTS (they don't specify what type of meat)
-WHEAT FLOUR (no nutrition, common allergen)
-BEEF TALLOW (low grade fat for flavouring, no nutrition)
-CORN
-WHEAT GLUTEN (the startch from the wheat)
-FISH MEAL (unspecificed source)

Now, the previous four foods are seriously the same as eating McDonalds everyday for humans. They have NO nutritional benefits and ALL have ingredients that are linked to poor health outcomes like obesity, cancer, diabetes, skin irritations, etc. Feeding these low grade foods may seem like an economical way to go but when you have to start paying the vet bills for a sick dog you'll wish that you would have spent a little more money on good food to prevent these things from happening.

Now, here is Innova which is the HEALTHIEST pet food on the market. Notice that they company uses only whole, fresh human grade ingredients. there is nothing in this food that we wouldn't eat ourselves.

Innova Adult:
-Turkey (good)
-Chicken (good)
-Chicken Meal (great)
-Ground Barley (good)
-Ground Brown Rice (great)
-Potatoes (good)
-Natural Flavors (good)
-Ground White Rice (good)
-Chicken Fat (okay)
-Herring (good)
-Apples (great)
-Carrots (great)
-Cottage Cheese (good)
-Sunflower Oil (good)
-Alfalfa Sprouts (great)
-Egg (excellent)

Animals are so much like humans in the fact that a healthy diet and exercise will prevent the deadly illnesses that they face. Use your common sense. When you see things like "by-products" "corn" "animal" you know that the company is using questionable ingredients.

If you truly care about your pets health and want them around for a long time, you need to move out of the mainstream and provide your dog with a nutritious diet.

Good luck.

Answer 2

You should look at the ingredients on the bag of the dog food. If there is a "by-product" in the food, then it is not the "best" product out there. An animal by-product (such as chicken by-product) is actually parts of the chicken ground up with the rest of the meat....such as beaks, talons, etc. Although, Iams and Purina are good brands, you may want to opt for Nutro or other products that do not have by-products in them. I work in animal welfare and I have always told people to buy the highest quality food you can, but you don't worry about breaking the bank. If you can afford it, stay away from grocery store brands and stick to brands you can buy at PetSmart or PETCO or better yet, go for the high quality brands that are made by Old Mother Hubbard. Just do some research on the net about by-products or check out Whole Dog Journal (WDJ) for more information about what is put into dog food.
Also, if you switch to a different brand of dog food, just be sure to do it slowly so your dog can adjust. If you switch to a higher quality brand, just keep in mind that your dog's body will need to adjust to the higher quality and richer food over the period of a couple weeks. Otherwise, your dog may start to throw up because his body does not slowly adjust to it.
Just my two cents.

Answer 3

I would never feed my animals any food from the grocery store. This is garbage food and this is also the reason why people spend hrs and hrs on end picking up dog poop.They really don't get any nutritional value from anything like that. Do you get nutrition when you eat McDonald's? Same thing you're giving to your dogs. The best and only way to feed your dog the healthy way is to buy natural food. Either from a vet and a lot of pet stores have it. Can even order on-line. Just like a Child...You feed it junk food all it's life and they get fat, unhealthy, and their teeth rot out. You feed them healthy and less complications when they are older. Same with animals. I bred Standard and toy poodles for 12 yrs and out of that time they went to the vet 3 times for something other than shots, and yearly check ups. Trust me, like anything,,,,,YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR....

Answer 4

I have been a breeder of purebred dogs for the past 38 years. I have always fed quality dog food, and have tried most brands. Two years ago, I switched to Canidae.. I have seen so much more general health in all of my dogs, of all ages. I took my 10 year old in for her shots and a check up, and the vet came out excited about her blood work! he showed me the chart, and said..normal range is her...at her age she should be here...(low side of normal) But, i have never seen a dog her age with all levels HERE!...She has the kidney/liver, blood count of a 4 year old...and her tetthe are spotless white!!!
he was amazed...
So, this week I took my little mutt dog in for her checkup. She is 7 years old...the vet again was amazed at her blood work..and he couldn't believe how clean her teeth are.

I would never switch from Canidae. You will find it at most local pet supply shops.

Answer 5

It cost less to feed a premium dog food than an economy dog food. Premium food contains much more energy & protien in every kibble - which means you would have to feed your dog 5x's more of the economy food to get the same nutritional benefits. The bottom line - it's actully costing you more to feed your dog a cheaper food. One more thing, you will pick up less poop!

Answer 6

The first ingredient should be meat, not corn. Corn is a cheap filler and can cause allergies in some dogs.
BHA/BHT are preservatives and have been linked to cancer in people, so I wouldn't give it to my dog.

Answer 7

I feed my dogs Nutro. It contains no chemicals or animal by-products. It is really natural and doesn't contain "fillers" so the dog's body uses more of the food = less waste, seriously. They have a nice frequent buyers program, check out their website: www.nutroproducts.com

Answer 8

NUTRO!!! no by-products (chicken feet) only the good stuff. science diet is also really good. i work with animals and am going to school in animal health science. And when i got my dog i asked about five different vets. no pedigree it's the mcdonald's of dog food. Cat food is bad for dogs there is too much protein in it. dry food is better for their jaws and teeth.

Answer 9

Most commercial dog foods have been specially formulated to meet the nutritional needs of the average dog. They're fine, unless there is something extra your dog needs or if your dog has allergies.

Answer 10

well, they would be sued if they didn't make good dog food, right? well, they're not all the same and i've had two dogs and i had nutro-short for natural choice-and i watched a dvd on how to train dogs, they have short breaks for commenrcials and facts and they advertise what they think is best so they advertised nutro. the other dog foods don't give ur dog special food, they put leftovers and whatever they have of lamb and chicken so they don't really care, nutro has the right pieces of lamb and chicken for the dog and crap-i don't mean their doody when i said crap, i meant whatever

Answer 11

I fed my dogs chicken and rice, plus the occasional veggie for most meals. They also ate dry dog food and Milkbones. They both lived to be 14 yrs. old, so I guess I fed them right.