Dog Food Question... ANYONE???

[jackie]

OK, went to my vets office to buy my usual brand of dog kibble, which is Affinity Advance, but they only had 3 kilo bags available (which is a snack for my dogs). The only 15+ bag of food they had was Affinity Brekkies Excel.

The price difference was huge. I pay 54 euros (73 US dollars) for a 15 bag of Advance which lasts about three weeks. The Brekkies Excel was 25 euros (34 USD) for a 20 kilo bag.

I understand the quality can't be as good, is the other brand really worth the price difference? I have always fed Advance (once or twice when I couldn't get it, I have substituted for Hills) but is it really worth the money?

Here is the ingredient breakdown...

Brekkies (the cheap one)
Cereals (min. 5% rice), meats and animal byproducts (min 4% lamb and min. 5% chicken), vegetable origin byproducts, vegetable protein extracts, oils and fats, substance minerals.

Advance (the better quality)
Chicken (20%), rice (15%), dehydrated turkey protein, wheat, corn, corn flour gluten, animal fat (vitamin E stabilized), beet pulp, hydrolyzed animal protein, fish oil, dehydrated egg, yeast, potassium chloride, plasma-tic protein, salt, citric extracts rich in bioflavonoids.

OK, I had to translate the ingredients, so some of them might not be totally correct (IE potassium chloride and plasma-tic protein).

[jackie]

When I look at the ingredients side by side I can see the difference, but would my dogs health suffer if I were to combine the two for their meal?


They only eat kibble with the occasional left overs and table scraps.

[jackie]

bumping it up for a reply.

[Freedom]

I can't say about the specific brands; I don't think we have them here.

I can say looking at the ingredients, I have been staying away from anything with "animal byproducts." It contains a lot of stuff you would cringe at. And that stuff has a higher risk of contamination.

Just my thoughts.

Oh, I'm wondering why you are buying the food at the vet to begin with? Do you not have pet food stores like we have? Or is one a prescription food? It didn't sound like it, though.

[wolfsoul]

I wouldn't consider either of them high quality by any means but if I had to choose one I'd pick the Advance. Mixing them together won't hurt them, it might upset their tummies a bit for a while but it won't cause any long term harm.

[jackie]

I wouldn't consider either of them high quality by any means but if I had to choose one I'd pick the Advance. Mixing them together won't hurt them, it might upset their tummies a bit for a while but it won't cause any long term harm.

Can you recommend a good dry food then.

I have always feed advance because it is what my vet and the animal shelter recommended.

[vinjashira]

here is a website that reviews dogfood

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/

Unfortunately not all the dogfood listed there available in the UK so they may not be available in Spain either. And I believe they may not have reviews for dogfood that is only available in Spain.

[Danegirl2208]

I wouldn't consider either of them high quality by any means but if I had to choose one I'd pick the Advance. Mixing them together won't hurt them, it might upset their tummies a bit for a while but it won't cause any long term harm.

I would have to agree..I was shocked to see the price aswell! I would go broke feedng that! Seeing as a 40lb bag of kibble lasts maybe 2 weeks around here LOL

But I do agree there ARE better options out there, and for a more reasonable price. You may find this helpful in finding a good quality food:

-------------------


How to grade your dog’s food: (Some brands are done at the very bottom)

Start with a grade of 100:

1) For every listing of “by-product”, subtract 10 points.

2) For every non-specific animal source (”meat” or “poultry”, meat, meal or fat) reference, subtract 10 points.

3) If the food contains BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin, subtract 10 points.

4) For every grain “mill run” or non-specific grain source, subtract 5 points.

5) If the same grain ingredient is used 2 or more times in the first five ingredients (i.e. “ground brown rice”, “brewer’s rice”, “rice flour” are all the same grain), subtract 5 points.

6) If the protein sources are not meat meal and there are less than 2 meats in the top 3 ingredients, subtract 3 points.

7) If it contains any artificial colorants, subtract 3 points.

8 ) If it contains ground corn or whole grain corn, subtract 3 points.

9) If corn is listed in the top 5 ingredients, subtract 2 more points.

10) If the food contains any animal fat other than fish oil, subtract 2 points.

11) If lamb is the only animal protein source (unless your dog is allergic to other protein sources), subtract 2 points.

12) If it contains soy or soybeans, subtract 2 points.

13) If it contains wheat (unless you know that your dog isn’t allergic to wheat), subtract 2 points.

14) If it contains beef (unless you know that your dog isn’t allergic to beef), subtract 1 point.

15) If it contains salt (or sodium, as it is also called), subtract 1 point.

Extra Credit:

1) If any of the meat sources are organic, add 5 points.

2) If the food is endorsed by any major breed group or nutritionist, add 5 points.

3) If the food is baked not extruded, add 5 points.

4) If the food contains probiotics, add 3 points.

5) If the food contains fruit, add 3 points.

6) If the food contains vegetables (NOT corn or other grains), add 3 points.

7) If the animal sources are hormone-free and antibiotic-free, add 2 points.

8 ) If the food contains barley, add 2 points.

9) If the food contains flax seed oil (not just the seeds), add 2 points.

10) If the food contains oats or oatmeal, add 1 point.

11) If the food contains sunflower oil, add 1 point.

12) For every different specific animal protein source (other than the first one; count “chicken” and “chicken meal” as only one protein source but “chicken” and “salmon” as 2 different sources), add 1 point.

13) If it contains glucosamine and chondroitin, add 1 point.

14) If the vegetables have been tested for pesticides and are pesticide-free add 1 point.

94-100+ = A
86-93 = B
78-85 = C
70-77 = D
69 = F

Here are some foods that have already been scored.

Dog Food scores:

Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+
Bil-Jac Select / Score 68 F
Canidae / Score 112 A+
Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+
Diamond Maintenance / Score 64 F
Diamond Lamb Meal & Rice / Score 92 B
Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A
Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+
Dick Van Patten’s Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+
Foundations / Score 106 A+
Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 93 B
Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula Premium / Score 73 D
Innova Dog / Score 114 A+
Innova Evo / Score 114 A+
Kirkland Signature Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+
Nutrisource Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B
Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy / Score 87 B
Pet Gold Adult with Lamb & Rice / Score 23 F
ProPlan Natural Turkey & Barley / Score 103 A+
Purina Beneful / Score 17 F
Purina Dog / Score 62 F
Purina Come-n-Get It / Score 16 F
Royal Canin Bulldog / Score 100 A+
Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult / Score 106 A+
Sensible Choice Chicken and Rice / Score 97 A
Science Diet Advanced Protein Senior 7+ / Score 63 F
Science Diet for Large Breed Puppies / Score 69 F
Wellness Super5 Mix Chicken / Score 110 A+
Wolfking Adult Dog (bison) by Solid Gold / Score 97 A

[jackie]

Thx Danegirl and Vinjashira!

The only brands I recognize that Vinjashira listed are Kirkland and Science Diet. I will look into them both.

P.S. I am never buying the cheap food again, there are some pretty large poops to pick up in the past two days.

[kittycats_delight]

I would suggest Royal Canin. I get this for Artica and it is good quality. One of the better dog foods on the market. There are a bunch of different type so you would need to see what suits your dogs best. You should be able to get it at a good pet food supplier. I buy it at out local pet supply store. You can get a 15kg of royal canin mini, royal canin medium or royal canin large breed for about €50 maybe a little more for the large breed.

here is the link in spanish.
http://www.royalcanin.es/default.cfm

[kittycats_delight]

Can you recommend a good dry food then.

I have always feed advance because it is what my vet and the animal shelter recommended.

I would stay away from science diet. It is never been to high on my list of good foods but that is JMO.

[Flatcoatluver]

I would stay away from science diet also. If you have kirkland dog food, then that is a very good option for dog food, not the highest quality, but it beats science diet and other dog food by far. T.j and Sage eat canidae, Zoey eats a mixture of canidae and solid gold.

[jackie]

OK, going to start them on this diet.

Hills Science Diet

Ingredients: Chicken, Brown Rice, Whole Grain Wheat, Cracked Pearled Barley, Soybean Meal, Chicken Meal, Pork Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Dried Egg Product, Natural Flavour, Whole Grain Oats, Apples, Cranberries, Soybean Oil, Peas, Carrots, Dried Beet Pulp, Iodized Salt, Flaxseed, Broccoli, Vitamins (L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), Vitamin E Supplement, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid, Calcium Carbonate, Beta-Carotene, Rosemary Extract.

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein......................................Min. 21.5%
Crude Fat............................................Min . 12.5%
Crude Fibre.........................................Max. 3.5%
Moisture.......................................... ....Max. 10.0%
Ash............................................... .......Max. 5.5%
Calcium........................................... ....Min. 0.5%
Phosphorus........................................ .Min. 0.4%
Vitamin E.............................................Min. 400 IU/kg
Ascorbic acid*(Vitamin C)....................Min. 120 mg/kg


Thoughts?

[Freedom]

Science Diet is a good food in general. Upper medium range in quality. Don't know about where you are, but here we can get it in the pet stores and not need to visit the vet for it.

There are a few things folks do not like about it:
- the vets push it, I think they have a financial interest in Hill's for schooling bills
- it has preservatives
- it has "chicken meal," which isn't clear WHAT is included in that, ugh!
- it has BHA and . . .. um another one I can't remember
- for cats, there are rumors among cat owners that it increases the overactive thyroid disease risk. Not confirmed by any studies or by Hill's, naturally.

I fed it to my cats for 12 years and was happy with it. Then I switched this past January to a higher quality food.

[Catlady711]

There are a few things folks do not like about it:
- the vets push it, I think they have a financial interest in Hill's for schooling bills
- for cats, there are rumors among cat owners that it increases the overactive thyroid disease risk. Not confirmed by any studies or by Hill's, naturally.

A good vet shouldn't 'push' any one type of food. At least where I work, we don't even sell any food that isn't a prescription diet, and at that we carry 3 name brands (Royal Canin, Purina, Science Diet). I tend to dislike vets that think they have to compete with the pet stores carrying and 'pushing' any of their products from foods to pet toys. They are supposed to be there to take care of your pets health not be a pet store also.

I believe most vets carry or prefer Science diet because Hills is more agressive with marketing and FREQUENTLY send unsolicited CASES of sample foods which we have to get rid of somehow or another. Also Science Diet, and a few other, are found at most any pet store so it makes more sense to recommend products that our clients can easily find without alot of hassle, otherwise they tend to go buy whatever cheap crap is on sale at the moment at the grocery store. We usually give a client a list of several brands of foods easily available in our area at most all the pet stores.

I never heard that particular myth about a food causing overactive thryroid problems. From my 6+ years experience working at the vet hospital it seems to be a very common problem in older cats regardless of what kind of diet they've been on from top of the line foods to cheap crap.

I think with any food it depends on the particular animal what works for them and what doesn't. I've seen clients come in with pets with horrible diarrhea and skin problems from Canidae and Dimond and I've seen pets thrive on a couple of non brand foods. I think it depends on the animal themselves. I have fed lots of different foods over the course of my cat owning life although I've prefered the last 3 I've used (Iams, Science Diet, and Royal Canin) the last one being the one I'm feeding now.