So you've opted to abandon the grocery store to check out your local PetCo/Petsmart/etc's supply....only to be overwhelmed be an array of different brands and specialties that you don't have a clue what the difference is. Okay...so Science Diet's bag reads "Vet Recommended." And Iams claims that "Life's Better With IAMS." And of course there's many natural brands...but what does that really mean? Is natural the way to go? Or do you go with the brands you've heard of that you find in the grocery store? If you've ever wondered this yourself and found yourself at a loss, here's your answer.
Now please understand that this is not simply my personal opinion(although my personal opinion is added in, for what it's worth). This is the simple truth, and the explanation of how these goods are made. In the end, the decision is entirely yours. Therefore, do not jump me for saying that your brand is not good. Do not get on my case for disagreeing with you. So your vet recommended it. Great. Fantastic. Good for you. That means it's probably best for your dog. This list is a general explanation. So if all you're wanting to do when you get done reading this post is argue, don't waste your time. It will be deleted in a timely manner. Thank you for being polite and courteous.
The GOOD
NATURAL. Why? Unnatural means processed. Quite simply, processed dog foods are comparable to the food in our fast food restaurants. Processed is typically not good for the system. This means your dog's food has chemicals in it. If you ate overprocessed food from McDonald's every day of your life, and only McDonalds, you would not be anywhere near as healthy. Studies have been done showing exactly this. A body can only take so much of a chemically processed food. This does not mean that processed foods will kill your dog. They simply are not as healthy or good for them.
The higher-end brand foods are higher in part because of this: they use higher quality meats. Cheaper brands use animal-byproducts, and animal byproducts ONLY. In slaughter houses, everything that cannot be used for human consumption is tossed into the "hopper"--dog food and other products. This includes eyes, tongues, hooves, etc. I don't know about you...but lamb eye and cow tongue ground together with some good tasty swine blood doesn't sound all that appetizing. If I wouldn't eat it my dog shouldn't either.
(In no specific order, here they are. Also, the prices listed are for DRY FOODS.)
-Petsmart Brands
Authority--Authority, as stated above, is ALL NATURAL. Completely. Entirely. No chemical processing. No fillers. No byproducts. All natural ingredients. Perhaps the best variety of Authority is the Harvest Baked. It is a wonderful product and I personally am a huge fan of it. Authority is not the most expensive good food on the market, but it is still high quality and reasonably priced. Overall, my favorite.
Price: $9.99-35.99
Blue Buffalo--Again...ALL NATURAL. Blue has many different varieties. They have an organic chain that is made entirely from organic products(this means that each and every detail of the ingredients is organic---the calf that made the beef in the food chowed down on organic grass and organic feeds, the vegetables were grown organically, etc). They have the Wilderness product that is made for high activity level dogs, based on the diet of wolves. It is low-carb and high protein, and is of course, all natural.
Price: $15.99-25.99
Nutro--And again...NATURAL. I don't know much about this brand, but I do know the Petsmart in my area has a Nutro representative who comes out every Saturday to discuss their products with any interested customer. A good food nonetheless.
Price: $11.99-47.99
Nature's Recipe:--Natural. Additive free, no artificial preservatives, no fillers or by-products, no sugars, no dairy products. Offers many different kinds to cater to dogs with allergies(foods without wheat, beef, corn, etc...anything your dog may be allergic too.) Offers a vegetarian recipe as well. I like that it has a relatively wide variety.
Price: $8.29-39.99
AvoDerm--Natural, real meat. Oven-baked. Not much variety, but still a quality food for easy keepers. Price: $9.99-49.99
by Nature--Natural and organic. No corn(GREAT!), no wheat(good for allergic dogs!), no soy! Very little variety, and can be hard to find big bags in your desired type of food. Decent in the natural line of foods, but doesn't exactly cater to the customer.
Price: $10.99-44.99
Eukanuba Naturally Wild--This one is very new to the Eukanuba shelves. For this reason I know little about it, other than that it is natural. Anyone who has any information on it is welcome to share. =)
-PetCo
Natural Balance--You guessed it--natural. 100% organic. No artifical preservatives, colors, or flavors. No soy, wheat, eggs, or dairy. No by-products, uses QUALITY MEAT. Also has an organic line.
Price: $8.99-41.99
Halo --Natural again...no by-products, rendered meats, or meals. Whole meats and grains. Naturally flavored without salts or sugars.
Price: $11.99-70.99(pack of 2 36 lb bags)
Organix--No by-products, pesticides, herbicides, growth hormones, antibiotics, or bioengineered ingredients. #1 ingredient: free-range chicken. Only goes up to 15 pound bags...
Price: $8.99-31.99
Think I missed some here....if so, feel free to tack them on in your reply. ^^
Since Petsmart and PetCo are the most popular pet supply stores, these are the only two I am going to list. Plus, I don't know of any wide-spread franchises of their kind.
The Bad and the Ugly
Yes, these are categorized together. They vary...so I'm cramming them all into both "bad" and "ugly." This does not necessarily mean that they are AWFUL, DEADLY, PET-KILLING foods. Just that in comparison to the foods listed above...they are much further down on the list. Again, please no rude comments or arguments.
So first of all, why are these in this category?
1)These foods are PROCESSED. Beware--some may CLAIM to be natural--this may mean they use natural meats. So what. Natural meats could be natural cow tongue...which was eventually chemically preserved on its way to the factory, blah blah. 99% of them still have fillers, preservatives, rendered meat, and/or artifical flavors.
2)These foods have CORN. Dogs cannot digest corn. This means you end up having to feed them MORE OF these foods to fill them up. So, you're spending about the same as if you were feeding a truly natural food.
Purina--Yes they've been around forever...refer to 1 and 2 above. Yeah, so Pro Plan claims to have real meat. So what. They also have preservatives, CORN, and...so on.
Beneful--(By Purina)one of the better of the grocery brands. Why? More natural. But still, not entirely natural, and if I remember right it does contain corn.
Science Diet--Again, 1 and 2 above. What is the first word of this product? SCIENCE. These products are based upon bioengineering, preservatives, and other SCIENTIFIC studies used to create fillers, etc. Perhaps the better of the lower-end brands, but still doesn't compare to Authority and the like.
IAMS--Iams has even begun referring to themselves as the "top of the grocery brands." The consider themselves a grocery brand which means---(refer to 1 and 2.)
Pedigree--1 and 2...
The Goodlife Recipe--again, perhaps one of the better...mostly natural, but still not as good as the higher-end brands.
On the Fence...
Royal Canin
Eukanuba
Don't know much about these guys, other than that they are both processed and contain corn...right? Hmm....need to check into that...
Again, if I missed any brands, feel free to add them in. Along with all these brands and the many others, many people opt for an entirely homemade natural diet. This is good...however...natural brands like Authority and Nutro and the like have access to natural, essential vitamins, natural flavors, and the like that your average everyday grocery store just isn't going to carry. Plus, these people are professionals and know the nutrition a dog requires. Buying these all-natural foods, or combining them with your homemade diet is SO MUCH cheaper than going 100% homemade. Homemade diets are good, but they get very expensive very fast. Plus, making them is extremely time consuming.
In conclusion, what should you look for?
-All natural---no artificial preservatives, colors, flavors,etc.
-No animal by-products(not chicken MEAL, but real CHICKEN.)
-No CORN.
-No wheat, soy, or dairy is good for dogs who may have allergies
-NO PROCESSING!
I hope you all find this informative and helpful, and are a little less lost the next time you go dog food shopping. :dogsmile:
Now please understand that this is not simply my personal opinion(although my personal opinion is added in, for what it's worth). This is the simple truth, and the explanation of how these goods are made. In the end, the decision is entirely yours. Therefore, do not jump me for saying that your brand is not good. Do not get on my case for disagreeing with you. So your vet recommended it. Great. Fantastic. Good for you. That means it's probably best for your dog. This list is a general explanation. So if all you're wanting to do when you get done reading this post is argue, don't waste your time. It will be deleted in a timely manner. Thank you for being polite and courteous.
The GOOD
NATURAL. Why? Unnatural means processed. Quite simply, processed dog foods are comparable to the food in our fast food restaurants. Processed is typically not good for the system. This means your dog's food has chemicals in it. If you ate overprocessed food from McDonald's every day of your life, and only McDonalds, you would not be anywhere near as healthy. Studies have been done showing exactly this. A body can only take so much of a chemically processed food. This does not mean that processed foods will kill your dog. They simply are not as healthy or good for them.
The higher-end brand foods are higher in part because of this: they use higher quality meats. Cheaper brands use animal-byproducts, and animal byproducts ONLY. In slaughter houses, everything that cannot be used for human consumption is tossed into the "hopper"--dog food and other products. This includes eyes, tongues, hooves, etc. I don't know about you...but lamb eye and cow tongue ground together with some good tasty swine blood doesn't sound all that appetizing. If I wouldn't eat it my dog shouldn't either.
(In no specific order, here they are. Also, the prices listed are for DRY FOODS.)
-Petsmart Brands
Authority--Authority, as stated above, is ALL NATURAL. Completely. Entirely. No chemical processing. No fillers. No byproducts. All natural ingredients. Perhaps the best variety of Authority is the Harvest Baked. It is a wonderful product and I personally am a huge fan of it. Authority is not the most expensive good food on the market, but it is still high quality and reasonably priced. Overall, my favorite.
Price: $9.99-35.99
Blue Buffalo--Again...ALL NATURAL. Blue has many different varieties. They have an organic chain that is made entirely from organic products(this means that each and every detail of the ingredients is organic---the calf that made the beef in the food chowed down on organic grass and organic feeds, the vegetables were grown organically, etc). They have the Wilderness product that is made for high activity level dogs, based on the diet of wolves. It is low-carb and high protein, and is of course, all natural.
Price: $15.99-25.99
Nutro--And again...NATURAL. I don't know much about this brand, but I do know the Petsmart in my area has a Nutro representative who comes out every Saturday to discuss their products with any interested customer. A good food nonetheless.
Price: $11.99-47.99
Nature's Recipe:--Natural. Additive free, no artificial preservatives, no fillers or by-products, no sugars, no dairy products. Offers many different kinds to cater to dogs with allergies(foods without wheat, beef, corn, etc...anything your dog may be allergic too.) Offers a vegetarian recipe as well. I like that it has a relatively wide variety.
Price: $8.29-39.99
AvoDerm--Natural, real meat. Oven-baked. Not much variety, but still a quality food for easy keepers. Price: $9.99-49.99
by Nature--Natural and organic. No corn(GREAT!), no wheat(good for allergic dogs!), no soy! Very little variety, and can be hard to find big bags in your desired type of food. Decent in the natural line of foods, but doesn't exactly cater to the customer.
Price: $10.99-44.99
Eukanuba Naturally Wild--This one is very new to the Eukanuba shelves. For this reason I know little about it, other than that it is natural. Anyone who has any information on it is welcome to share. =)
-PetCo
Natural Balance--You guessed it--natural. 100% organic. No artifical preservatives, colors, or flavors. No soy, wheat, eggs, or dairy. No by-products, uses QUALITY MEAT. Also has an organic line.
Price: $8.99-41.99
Halo --Natural again...no by-products, rendered meats, or meals. Whole meats and grains. Naturally flavored without salts or sugars.
Price: $11.99-70.99(pack of 2 36 lb bags)
Organix--No by-products, pesticides, herbicides, growth hormones, antibiotics, or bioengineered ingredients. #1 ingredient: free-range chicken. Only goes up to 15 pound bags...
Price: $8.99-31.99
Think I missed some here....if so, feel free to tack them on in your reply. ^^
Since Petsmart and PetCo are the most popular pet supply stores, these are the only two I am going to list. Plus, I don't know of any wide-spread franchises of their kind.
The Bad and the Ugly
Yes, these are categorized together. They vary...so I'm cramming them all into both "bad" and "ugly." This does not necessarily mean that they are AWFUL, DEADLY, PET-KILLING foods. Just that in comparison to the foods listed above...they are much further down on the list. Again, please no rude comments or arguments.
So first of all, why are these in this category?
1)These foods are PROCESSED. Beware--some may CLAIM to be natural--this may mean they use natural meats. So what. Natural meats could be natural cow tongue...which was eventually chemically preserved on its way to the factory, blah blah. 99% of them still have fillers, preservatives, rendered meat, and/or artifical flavors.
2)These foods have CORN. Dogs cannot digest corn. This means you end up having to feed them MORE OF these foods to fill them up. So, you're spending about the same as if you were feeding a truly natural food.
Purina--Yes they've been around forever...refer to 1 and 2 above. Yeah, so Pro Plan claims to have real meat. So what. They also have preservatives, CORN, and...so on.
Beneful--(By Purina)one of the better of the grocery brands. Why? More natural. But still, not entirely natural, and if I remember right it does contain corn.
Science Diet--Again, 1 and 2 above. What is the first word of this product? SCIENCE. These products are based upon bioengineering, preservatives, and other SCIENTIFIC studies used to create fillers, etc. Perhaps the better of the lower-end brands, but still doesn't compare to Authority and the like.
IAMS--Iams has even begun referring to themselves as the "top of the grocery brands." The consider themselves a grocery brand which means---(refer to 1 and 2.)
Pedigree--1 and 2...
The Goodlife Recipe--again, perhaps one of the better...mostly natural, but still not as good as the higher-end brands.
On the Fence...
Royal Canin
Eukanuba
Don't know much about these guys, other than that they are both processed and contain corn...right? Hmm....need to check into that...
Again, if I missed any brands, feel free to add them in. Along with all these brands and the many others, many people opt for an entirely homemade natural diet. This is good...however...natural brands like Authority and Nutro and the like have access to natural, essential vitamins, natural flavors, and the like that your average everyday grocery store just isn't going to carry. Plus, these people are professionals and know the nutrition a dog requires. Buying these all-natural foods, or combining them with your homemade diet is SO MUCH cheaper than going 100% homemade. Homemade diets are good, but they get very expensive very fast. Plus, making them is extremely time consuming.
In conclusion, what should you look for?
-All natural---no artificial preservatives, colors, flavors,etc.
-No animal by-products(not chicken MEAL, but real CHICKEN.)
-No CORN.
-No wheat, soy, or dairy is good for dogs who may have allergies
-NO PROCESSING!
I hope you all find this informative and helpful, and are a little less lost the next time you go dog food shopping. :dogsmile: