ron2
Posted : 7/30/2006 10:24:09 AM
If I understand correctly, your wanting reasons to convert your mother's dog away from Beneful.
Here's my two cents. Dogs are omnivores, not herbivores. They need meat as part of their diet. Ingredient lists are, in the U.S., and Puerto Rico is part of the U.S., to be listed in descending order by volume. The most prevalent ingredient first, next most prevalent ingredient next, and so on. Many dogs, if they do not have a kidney problem or meat allergy, seem to do exceedingly well on a food where meat or meat meal is the first ingredient. According to the principle set forth by Mordanna, which is in those links you have been reading, the primary bulk of the food is made up of the ingredients from the first one, be it meat or grain, down to and including the first or only fat listed. Anything after that is in supplemental and trace amounts. Technically, protein is a chain molecule of amino acids and if those chains are arranged in a digestible, usable manner, then it wouldn't matter whether it came from beef or soy. Though dogs can absorb nutrients from plant matter, the easiest source for them to absorb protein is from animal tissue. More accurately, the protein and minerals in the blood of the meat, for meat tissue is cellulose, i.e., fiber and passes on through. That being said, there are some dogs that do well on Beneful. But if your mom's dog is not, then it is time to change her food. Seeing that you have limited choices due to the tarrifs and shipping costs, using a food with meat source being higher up the tier in the ingredient list would be good. Also, the ingredient list is not a mathematical equation. What is important is the as-fed nutrient profile and the guaranteed analysis. A maintenance diet is generally 18 to 20 percent protein and 12 to 14 percent fat. What I feed my dog is 24/13 protein/fat. It does have grain in it and it agrees with him nicely. But the meat meal is the first ingredient.
Another option you may have is to homecook some and supplement with the dog food. For that, you will have a lot of research to do and may need some mentored advice. FWIW, Glenda homecooks for 6 GSDs on a budget. She has, at times, offered to share her recipe, designed by a canine nutritionist, for any donation you can make to her MS Walk. Our host, dog.com, also has recipes. Some people have found, when they can buy whole foods in bulk, they sometimes spend less than they would on kibble, but that may require a freezer that is beyond your budget.
Though many people may have opinions as to the ingredient list of Beneful, that's not really what your problem is. Your problem is trying to convince your mother to try another food than Beneful. In that case, you would be better off relaying to her the experience of Sandra.