Why is Beneful Bad?

tons

 
An exaggeration. I only mentioned Sandra as a resource of success with a Purina formula other than Beneful. You brough up the deal about her only have tried one food long ago. And no one is trying to say that Purina is best or that she tried a lot of foods. You seem to think that someone should keep on trying until they find something that isn't Purina. Glenda is right, Sandra's feeding methods are not the subject here, even though you want them to be. Did I say Sandra was perfect? No. Did any of us say that brands such as Innova or Eagle Pack are available in Puerto Rico at a price that someone making $5.25 / hour can afford? No. But for someone such as Lizzie with extremely limited options, one Purina formula might be better than another, and still within budget. Hence, the example of Sandra's dogs doing well on Purina, and yes, some homecooked.

It's okay Mudpuppy, biochemist. I agree that dogs should have meat in their food. I didn't say that getting enough proper protein out of vegetation was easy. Now, was I wrong about the source of protein in meat? Are ya gonna bust my butt on a technical insufficiency when in the end, I agree that meat should be in the diet and is easier to get protein from? Sorry, I stepped on your space. At the amino acid chain level, can you tell if it came from meat or plant?

Sorry for dragging you into this, Sandra. It is my fault. I was merely suggesting you as an example of someone who feeds a Purina formula other than Beneful and having good results, in case Lizzie's mom wants to stick with Purina but could be convinced to try another formula. I did not intend for it to be a discussion of your feeding methods, etc. Someone else decided that.
 

To sort of veer off the usual Beneful bash, the amino acid thing is interesting to me.  When Jax was sick and we were placed on a special recovery diet, I had to get him this Amino Acid protein powder that I ordered from the pharmacy.  It was Pro Mod I think.
And it worked wonders on this dog.  I sprinkled it on his food.  I remember the nutritionist saying it is added to other special diets also when they wanted to pump up the protein levels very fast.  And he also had six eggs a day....cooked.  We did that for about two months.  I just thought I would pipe in my two cents! 
 
 

My cat, Misty, ate Purina DeliCat for 16 years. At about 16, she was diagnosed with diminished kidney function. The vet suggested I put her on Purina NF. She lasted another year. I'm going to repeat it until I'm 6 feet under. My cat, an obligate carnivore, a North American Short-hair Tabby, lived approx. 17 years on Purina foods. 17 years. 17 years. 17 years. 17 years. Let me see if I can make this clear. 17 years on Purina products. She was PTS 2-17-05. So, no, Purina was not better then than it is now. As better understanding in feline nutrition comes along, I would expect the food to be no worse. Certainly better these days. 17 years. 17 years. 17 years.
 
Did I mention that she lived 17 years on Purina?

Despite all that is being said, you guys are being nice! Good for you and keep it up, I just joined another dog forum and when I explained my situation with One I was told that people who feed Purina dont care about their dogs and care more about their money. How that for a warm welcome?!?

ORIGINAL: LizzieCollie

Despite all that is being said, you guys are being nice! Good for you and keep it up, I just joined another dog forum and when I explained my situation with One I was told that people who feed Purina dont care about their dogs and care more about their money. How that for a warm welcome?!?

Sounds typical ... and very rude.  Ignore them.  At least you're TRYING to be better.  []

Despite all that is being said, you guys are being nice! Good for you and keep it up, I just joined another dog forum and when I explained my situation with One I was told that people who feed Purina dont care about their dogs and care more about their money. How that for a warm welcome?!?

Goodness, I was told the same here by one who NO LONGER POSTS here.  She showed up on another forum and called everyone rookies who didn't know much about nutritional feeding and she made two posts, was told she was extremely rude  and I have not seen another one.

And Ron, no problem about "dragging" me into this.  I know most don't approve of Purina and many do not approve of your Nutro.  But it works for our dogs and that is wat matters to you and to me.  I did not feel like I was "dragged" into anything.  I  feed what I feed and that is that.  I am sure Purina and Nutro would not work for many dogs here, but it does for ours.

Ron, I think it was you who made a statement  something like "it isn't so much what goes into the body, but what the body gets out of what goes into" concering ingredient lists. I think that hits the nail on the head,  If a food causes you dog to throw it up soon after eating, or gives it the Niagra Falls poop, it doesnt matter if it is super premium or super cheap grocery store brand, it ain't doing what it is suppose to.

I was always under the impression you ate (and fed your animls) so you/they got the vitamins, minerals, protein, carbs, etc, etc that was needed to keep us/them healthny.  I have noted that a "cheap" food can have the same amount of these things as a "super premium", yet the grocery store stuff is garbage or crap.  If you need x amount of protein, Y amount of iron, Z amount of carbs, why would it make any difference it you got them from wheat, chicken meat or carrots if you got what you needed?  And was not allergic to any of them. 

Also, the awful by-product word.  As I understand it, by-products is something humans would not eat,  Which humans?  People here in the USA eat pig guts (chitlings), pig feet,  pork skins, cow stomach (tripe), cow tongue, cow kidneys, cow and pork liver, beef hearts, calf brains, chicken liver, gizzards and hearts   etc, etc.  I understand in some countries goat eyes are a delicacy, chicken feet and chicken throats  are a delicacy in china. People buy pig noses, cow hooves, deer antlers, cow ears, etc for "treats" for their dogs.  Someone posted that there were some here who use to feed chicken feet because they are rich in clucosamine (I didn't know that).   And now I learn dogs are eating Bully Sticks (I just found out what they are) and I think that is about as unhuman food as you can get.

Okay, there is chicken heads and feathers, but I seriously doubt the grocery store food is full of them, and as far as I know, they could have some nutritional value to them.
 
EDITED  Our cat Pippi was a Purina cat also and she died at age 17.  We think one of the neighbor kids ran into her with skate board, etc or hit her with a ball.  She was fine one day, trotting along behind us, rubbing on her legs, etc,.  We were out late that night and she didn't come to greet us when we pulled in like she always had done.  But she was getting a little hard of hearing.  However early  the next morning we found her in the yard and she coudln't use her back legs.  She died before our vet opened--and he was going to be open sooner than we could have driven the 30 miles to the nearest emergency hospital.  It could have been a stroke at her age, but we truly feel someone did something to her because she loved kids and would always hang around kids.  There is a good chance we could have still had her even now.

As long as some of you are enjoying your results with Purina Cat products, I meet dozens of people every month with cats that are 17, 18, 19, 20 and yes 21 years of age!   Its shocking and wonderful all rolled into one.  They are usually Cat Chow cats too.  It goes along with my how can they be on a corn diet and survive so long when the "experts" tell us that high protein is what sustances cats.  Pro Plan cat food is 40% protein, and is the highest protein dry food in Petsmart.  And when I meet someone with a very old cat, I tell them do NOT switch your diet.  It works....leave it alone.  Being in here I often feel bad because I know most don't approve or wouldn't use Purina, but at work, I meet so many wonderful people, who love Purina and do trust them for their pets and that makes it all worthwhile.  I love America!!!  We have so many choices and we can be accepted in most cases for the choices we make.  As long as they are made in good faith. 

In my earlier post, I was still keying off of someone else's post, and that's why I was reiterating how long my cat lived on Purina. When we got our dog, the best advice at the time for me was to feed him Nutro. Otherwise, I probably would have fed him Purina. Since then, I have learned quite a bit about dog nutrition. But he's doing fine on what he's eating and I'm inclined not to change unless it becomes necessary. As for by-product, in the wild, canids eat rancid by-product all the time, sometimes with bits of hide and hair and bone along with it. They, however, have a mechanism in their huge stomachs that holds a bone until it is wrapped in fur. Anyway, the proof is in the results. As for by-product, I have eaten it. I eat lunch meat and hot dogs. I have eaten tripe. Here in Texas, we have the mexican version, Menudo.
 
We all have our opinions and it is up to us to be kinder, gentler.

"it isn't so much what goes into the body, but what the body gets out of what goes into" concering ingredient lists

 
I don't recall stating it that way but it is certainly erudite and it would be somewhat the gist of how things work. What I have stated is, and this is based on info from Drs. Remillard and Munns, both DVMs with a specialty in small animal nutrition, is that the ingredient list is secondary to what the actual nutrient profile is. That is, it doesn't matter, superficially, whether you have three meat sources or one. If the food is formulated to provide 24 percent protein, that is what it is going to provide. And having three meats as the first ingredients does not mean the food is 50 percent meat. Now, if you have a dog with a meat allergy, having more than one source of meat can be confusing. It could also be a matter of what food the dog is exposed to as a pup. If the system gets used to dealing a certain way with certain food, then changing that could cause an upset.
 
Be that as it may, I, a fallible human, am more comfortable feeding my dog a food that has meat as the first ingredient, in a fairly simple formula. A formula that is quite similar to food eaten by his ancestors, though better balanced for other supps. If the evil Nutro no longer worked for him, I would find out what does in a hell of a hurry and then stick with that.

For what it's worth, I am not a rep for Nutro or Purina. I do have a life-long habit of stating what I see, whether it's popular or not. When I tried Shadow on Innova, I can't say if it was pressure or not. I have limitations. I don't know everything and I'm not afraid to admit that. So, I was willing to try him on it to see if he could do any better. Well, he did worse, which is nothing against Innova and I still think it's a good food. There are people here, such as Glenda, who is having stellar results with 6 GSDs of different breeding, as she fosters rescues. Of course, she also homecooks and does a bit of raw a few times a week. So, the total Innova intake may be 50 percent or less. That is, her dogs may be getting more homecooked and raw than kibble.
 
I know many people are satisfied with the results from Purina. If Lizzie's mom is one of them and Beneful is not working for her dog, then maybe another Purina formula might work better. Hence, providing Sandra as an example. My intent was never about putting Purina above other brands or even feeding styles. It may be the best option in Puerto Rico. No one has answered my challenge to take whatever you are feeding and add 50 to 100 dollars to that cost, because that's what they are up against in Puerto Rico. Regardless of what brand, if a food is working for your dog, then use it.

No one has answered my challenge to take whatever you are feeding and add 50 to 100 dollars to that cost,

OK i'll answer it. Yes i would! If i lived in a country that only had poor quality foods,and if i didnt want to homecook or do raw,then yes,i would import it in,no matter what the cost.But you must bear in mind that i am zeolously passionate about canine nutrition,which most people are not.Personally i couldnt bring myself to feed beneful and others like it,however, that exclusive brand looks passable,much better than purina if i remember correctly??

Then it is fortunate that you don't have to live on a budget.
 
Sometimes one has to look at the reality of the situation.  Lizzie is a single Mom making MINIMUM wage.  Shes doing the best she can for her dog within her budget. This isn't a matter of doing without some luxury for herself in order to afford another food.....this is about basic survival, about feeding her child over spending a ton of money importing a food.  And given the country in which she lives, I'd say Lizzie is one heck of a lot better off than MOST of the dogs in PR.

ORIGINAL: Edie

No one has answered my challenge to take whatever you are feeding and add 50 to 100 dollars to that cost,

OK i'll answer it. Yes i would! If i lived in a country that only had poor quality foods,and if i didnt want to homecook or do raw,then yes,i would import it in,no matter what the cost.But you must bear in mind that i am zeolously passionate about canine nutrition,which most people are not.Personally i couldnt bring myself to feed beneful and others like it,however, that exclusive brand looks passable,much better than purina if i remember correctly??

 
Now please correct me if im misunderstanding the whole “Add 50 to 100 dollars to the cost of what you are feeding” thing, but I honestly doubt anyone and I mean ANYONE would be able to add 50 to 100 dollars to the dog food everytime, getting paid 5.15 and hour. Its just not possible! I mean I could move back into my mothers house and get my dogs food shipped in, and spend 275 dollars a month on a super premium dry and canned food but I chose to have my freedom and my dogs well being. Now its quite easy to say ‘Yes id do it!#%92 when you#%92re not actually in the situation.
 
Now Im not trying to sound all sorry for myself, because im not, money is not a problem with me. I can be flat broke without a penny in my pocket and I don#%92t care, that#%92s just how I am. But my mother on the other hand, does not work, my step father is the only one bringing money into the house, for a house hold of 4 and one dog.
 
And Glenda, thank you for your comment, I also believe that Lizzie is very well off compared to many of the dogs here. She is loved and pampered, is inside, vaccinated and is not dropping puppies at every moment. I think that is what counts, and even though we don#%92t feed a super premium food our dogs are well loved.
 
If I move back to New York (which I will in a heartbeat if I can get the durn court to rule in my favor) you can bet I will buy Lizzie the best food available and everything will be much different. But im here now and im doing the best I can and I will NEVER be ashamed of what im doing.
 
 
**On a side note**  Laika is starting her food switch as of today. We'll mix it for about a week or so, since shes never had Lamb and I hope we get some positive results!