What is the deal with dog food?

[GulfCoast]

My breeder was feeding my puppy a brand called "Exclusive." My vet, whom I have know for years, had a DUCK when he found out, and said that I should switch over right now to either Science Diet (vet sells) or Eukanuba (sp?). The rational given by my vet was any other food could mess up the puppy's growth.

Is there any real difference in dog food, or is it an "acrylic calls vs wood calls" type deal?

[Greenhead22]

Your vet can't make money off of exclusive.......because he doesn't sell it. He's recommending a higher priced food that he can sell to you direct. I would go with Purina Pro Plan and be done with it and stay away from science diet, euk, and iams. There are several brands that have the exact same ingredients for $10-15 less than the big names. Go over the the 'fuge and do a search..........will probably find 2 or 3 of mine over there.

[Cotten]

[quote="GulfCoast"]Is there any real difference in dog food, or is it an "acrylic calls vs wood calls" type deal?[/quote]

Very much so. If it has not changed, the vast majority of field trial dogs are fed either Eukanuba Premium Performance or Purina Pro Plan (for adult dogs).

I can't remember which magazine (Retriever Journal I think) but there was an article in which a series of tests were done on sled dogs and the results were incredible. They fed one group of sled dog’s food with a certain amount of protein/fat and 80% of the dogs had tissue damage after period of time sled racing. The protein/fat content was increased a certain amount and the next set of test sled dogs had only 20% with tissue damage. The protein/fat content was increased to an even higher level and the next set of test sled dogs had none with tissue damage.

Funny thing is the cheap Purina is not worth feeding to a good dog. You can compare the labels on the cheap Purina to that of Purina Pro Plan and easily tell which food is better.

[Greenhead22]

http://www.refugeforums.com/refuge/sear ... chid=41144

[sportsman450]

I had Jig at the vet for a check-up yesterday, and we think she's probably pregnant. they said we should go to Purina Pro Puppy food. It was the first time I had heard of Pro Choice, and they said it or the Iams puppy would be fine, so I'm assuming the Purina Pro is about the same.

[tunica du4u]

Also I think it has to do with corn, rice etc. Different breeds have different nutriental needs. For instance:

LABRADOR RETRIEVER
Weight Standards: m - 60 to 75 lbs., f - 55 to 70 lbs.
Height Standards: m - 22.5 to 24.5 inches, f - 21.5 to 23.5 inches
Coat: short, straight, hard, and dense; in black, yellow, or chocolate
Common Ailments: hip dysplasia, hot spots


The Labrador Retriever originated in Newfoundland and further developed in England. Besides being a famous gun dog, the Lab has become a renowned police and war dog and a trusted guide dog for the blind. The Labrador Retriever is also only one of the few breeds known to produce an oil through the pores of the skin. It will develop a very dry and brittle coat in a very short period of time when the entire Linoleic acid group is not present in its daily diet. The Linoleic acid group consist of three fatty acids: Oleic, Linolenic and Linoleic. The best commercial sources of these fatty acids for the Labrador Retriever are fish oil, linseed oil, or cold pressed wheat germ oil.


In Newfoundland the primary food sources were caribou, fish, and whale fats. In England the food sources were poultry, fish, wheat, and dairy products. The combined effect of foods from these two areas resulted in the development of a breed requiring a diet low in carbohydrates yet high in fats. The source of the fat is also important; the Labrador Retriever has a difficult time assimilating beef fat but thrives on poultry fat, fish oil, or vegetable fats.


For the Labrador Retriever it is recommended foods that contain fish, poultry, lamb, and green vegetables. However, for this breed it is recommended you avoid foods that are a blend of beef, beets, corn, and soy.

[h2o_dog]

The main ticket on dog food is ingredients and digestability. Few dog foods post digestability percentage on the label, so you usually have to call the 800 number to find out. I've fed the WalMart brand MaxNutrition (green bag, 30% protein, 17% fat, 86% digestable) to my 10 year old lab his entire adult life. The main ingredient is chicken (not chicken by-products). It is close to Eukanuba for about half the cost, but it still ain't cheap. I'm sure Eukanuba is somehow better, but not twice as good. No way would I waste money on the other Iams products. My wife took him to a new Vet last week and he thought he was the 18 month old puppy. Vet could not believe he was 10 years old.

I don't think anyone can deny that Ralston-Purina has spent more on researching dog nutrition than all other dog food companies combined, and plain ole' puppy chow is what I feed puppies until they are 6 months old.

Ask 1000 people this question and you'll get 1000 different opinions I assure you.

[eastwoods]

I don't know why anybody would feed cheap unless they don't mind all the poop.

[Greenhead22]

I've seen a $40 sack of food make a lab crap more than a $20 sack so go figure.

[EASY-E]

add some gun powder to his food it will make not eat as much

[mudsucker]

But he might blow up when he farts!

[Greenhead22]

Nah, just don't ever light a cigarette around him.

[sondance]

H20 Dog is right on in my book. I am not a science diet fan. Ingredients have to be listed in order of content by weight i.e chicken, rice, cornmeal etc... If some form of meat, poultry or fish (Not by product) is listed first it means more of that is in there than anything. A lot of feed has corn as the first ingredient. Dog's are carnivoires not ominvoires. If it has meat listed first and the protein and fat % meat your needs you are in good shape. If you are working a dog you want a higher % protein so the dog does not use up muscle to get what he needs. In the summer I scale back on the protein because too much is not a good thing and can cause kidney problems. Some I have liked are Pro Plan, Mximum Nutrition, IAM's, Eukanuba, Diamond. Also, more meat and less corn = less crap in the yard.

[Greenhead22]

When it comes to 'BS' ingredients such as corn and wheat as 'fillers', some labs are highly allergic to them. I can feed my choc some feed loaded with corn and wheat and he'll break out in rashes and his hair will start falling out wherever he scratches. Anything I feed him has to be some form of Sensitive Skin formula, mainly Pro Plan. Funny thing though....the first ingredient listed on Science Diet's Sensitive Skin is CORN.

[EASY-E]

When it comes to 'BS' ingredients such as corn and wheat as 'fillers', some labs are highly allergic to them. I can feed my choc some feed loaded with corn and wheat and he'll break out in rashes and his hair will start falling out wherever he scratches. Anything I feed him has to be some form of Sensitive Skin formula, mainly Pro Plan. Funny thing though....the first ingredient listed on Science Diet's Sensitive Skin is CORN.

if your dog gets a rash wipe his down with burnt motor oil