Just talked to Purina

Since joining I-dog I have really gotten a good handle on what are 'good' ingredients and what are 'bad', but im wondering 'If a dog is getting the recommended calories, the recommended carbs, protein and every vitamin mineral it needs to be healthy, what does it matter if the food is 'premium' or not?

Maybe Canidae is better than Purina, but if both dogs are getting the same nutritional requirements, enjoy their food and are healthy, why would it matter?

Hubby said it was from the steel mills, the pink stuff that coated our white car.  And for smoking, we were painting the inside of the house using same brand and color as before, antique white, which of course is just an off white.  But you bring the brush down and the old paint next to it was YELLOW.   I decided no way was my dogs going to breath that stuff any more.  I could have gone the route some have done and not smoke inside, but i decided to stop it al tother and no smoking is allowed inside. One ex-friend coudln't hang with that and stopped coming.  Couldn't sit down and have a cup of coffee without a smoke.

Maybe Canidae is better than Purina, but if both dogs are getting the same nutritional requirements, enjoy their food and are healthy, why would it matter?

 
Because purina, etc have corn and dogs don't need corn (according to some experts, others disagree) and because of certain additives (which are dangerous to some experts, and not dangerous to others). Some experts say feed raw, that is the way to go.  Others say no, don't feed raw, it isn't balanced enough for them.   It is just a cricle that never ends and those that agree with expert A says Expert B doesn't know what he is talking about, and those that agree with Expert B says Expert A doenst know what she is talking about, so it is just up to each person to decide what they think their dog does best on.  In my case, they dogs look and act great, vet says they are doing great, they love their food (inducling home cooked which I do add to kibble at night).  But i think they would be just fine on the kibble alone.  BUT they do so love homecooked, how can i say no. 
 
I also think many do not believe the other food when they say they are complete and balanced, only believe the premium food companines when they say it.
 
And darn, I forgot to call purina to tell them that when my son and i went to K-mart over in the next town this morning, we passed a dead coon and a dead what we think was bobcat, golden fur, large large spots, but was pretty smushed so we couldn't tell for sure.  I know they would have sent someone out to get them so they could be added to the next batch of purina.

ORIGINAL: sandra_slayton

And darn, I forgot to call purina to tell them that when my son and i went to K-mart over in the next town this morning, we passed a dead coon and a dead what we think was bobcat, golden fur, large large spots, but was pretty smushed so we couldn't tell for sure.  I know they would have sent someone out to get them so they could be added to the next batch of purina.

 
Dang you should have called me or scraped it up and sent it up here...its a delicacy up here with the Rednecks and such. WOO HOO! RoFl!!!
I think I need to stoplaughing my sides hurt!

ORIGINAL: Firestorm
Vinia,  you can manipulate statistics and trials to favor your points.  Yeah food may be a small factor, what about the environment you are in?  Genectics too?  Too many factors to be considered..its not just one thing that is the cure all preventitive..if so it would put drug companies and Dr's out of business.
I have known people who smoked all their lives practically and had great lungs and no cancer...smoking probably makes you more susceptable..but doesn't mean you WILL get cancer because you do.  Their are people who never smoked who got lung cancer.  We can only try to take care of ourselves so we lessen the chances but in the end thats all we can do.  If food was the issue and the only issue it could easily be fixed but it is not.

 
I agree with you wholeheartedly- the point that I was trying to make was the correlational studies aren't completely useless (otherwise no-one would fund them). Their weakness is that they don't show causal relationships, only how related they are- i.e. smoking will not necessarily lead to cancer (as you said). Proper researchers shouldn't manipulate their stats to prove something.
 
So, based on your post, since food only plays a small part in an animal's/person's health and wellbeing, then it shouldn't matter if a dog's fed a "premium" food or Kibble n Bits?
 
 

If your dog thrives and does well on whatever food then I think it is only a small factor.
I have tried the best and Harley cannot process it and it makes him sick...I have said that near a million times,lol. 
I have always said on here feed what works well with your dog.
I am not here to judge who feeds what and why.  I just get tired of everyone shooting down Purina and some of the other foods out there.  They don't have dogs that cannot process high end and have not a clue what its like.  I am doing what is best for MY dog and everyone else here is trying to do the best for THEIr Dog.

I have tried the best and Harley cannot process it and it makes him sick...I have said that near a million times

Harley was probably detoxing when on the better food.  This is very common when switching from a food of fillers etc while the body is on the better quality food it is getting rid of all the waste built up from the lower brand food.  I learned this from my Holistic Vet when I first switched my Rottweiler from Eukanuba to a better quality food (at that time Natura).  I was totally freaked out when she started having runny stools, got a hot spot etc.  He explained to me what detoxing is, I was thrilled with the difference in her health when I stuck with the better quality food.  Now, when I switch from one quality food to another there are no problems.

Just thought I'd share that[]

I am all for healthy living and healthy eating.  I am currently trying to get my brother to eat healthy foods instead of McDonalds...he looks tired etc.  He will also go through a detox stage going to better foods...but, it will be worth it.

I believe in using food as your medicine and let your medicine be your food.  There are many foods that I include in my diet that help my body...especially since I have such a physical job.  My Sister has been eating for her health and as a preventative and has been a very busy dog groomer for over 20 years, working 6 days a week sometimes 10 hour to 12 hour days.  Many groomers start suffering from poor health and joint problems after only working for 10 years at this pace.  This is another reason why I am so thrilled with healthy eating.[]   We only have one life and so do our dogs...so, for myself why would I want to prove to others that perhaps my dog can survive on oor quality foods.  I want to spend as much time & quality time at that with my dogs that I feed to nourish their bodies. 

I do the same for myself as I was a junk food eater when I was in my late teens early 20's.  I feel better now in my late 30's than I did then...just by making healthy choices when it comes to food.

It really doesn't matter what others feed, heck some mushers feed their dogs pig pellets.  All I care about is that I am providing the best for my dogs and they are thriving on it, even with the genetic health problems 2 of my dogs have.  I feed them to ward off secondary problems...my 11 year old Newf went through cruciate surgery at 5, and comes from a very short lived line with Newf's only living to about 8 years.  She is proof that we are doing something right.  Just to add that an 11 year old Newf is older than an 11 year old Golden or Rottie.  
 
It's also cheaper to feed a quality food as well.  One lady I know was feeding her Newf 6 cups of Purina a day (plus the vet bills for chronic ear infections etc.).  She switched to EVO and is now feeding 2 cups of food a day...no fillers the dog gets more food in a smaller serving[]  The ear infections have stopped as well.   

If others are happy with what they are feeding thats great.    

I think that people should feed whatever they can afford, and what their dog does best on- if it's Purina, then so be it.
Firestorm- I don't think anybody doubts that you are trying to do the best you can for Harley.

If that belief helps you enjoy your Big Mac that much more, fine, please don't take offense if I find the American Cancer Society a bit more credible than you. An once of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

 
1. I didn't say that ACS was wrong, I just said the study that was addressed was correlative. And why do you believe the ACS? Do you know anything about it? It's funding? Or did someone just tell you to? Who was that someone? Once again, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with the ACS, but I am saying there's something wrong with not researching your sources and knowing how info was gathered.
 
2. As far as the Big Mac goes, I, personally choose vegan life. I didn't tell you what to believe, just asked that you think and attempt an analytical look at life.

ORIGINAL: chinook

Based entirely on threads in this forum, the following information has been offered and accepted:

1)      No two dogs are alike
2)      Some dogs do well on "grocery store" brands
3)      Some dogs do well on "premium” brands
4)      Some dogs get sick on grocery store brands
5)      Some dogs get sick on premium brands

Now, imagine you are at a party with 3 other dog owners and a brand new puppy owner.  The 4 dog owners each feed Ol' Roy, Canidae, Science Diet and Purina One, respectively.  The puppy owner asks this group of trusted friends which food she should feed her puppy.

Each owner extols the virtue of his or her chosen food based on the respective dog's present condition (which we've seen is entirely possible).  Which food does the puppy owner choose?  From a purely logical perspective, the puppy owner has received nothing except opinion (stories, word of mouth, whatever you want to call it…).

Now I come in and put the 4 brands of dog food side by side, and compare ingredient quantities, caloric density, total protein, total fat, presence of preservatives and known carcinogens etc.  Would this arm the puppy owner with any more information?  OF COURSE IT WOULD!!!  Could she make an educated guess, with only this information, which is the higher quality food?  Again, of course she could.  Further, she could compare prices, and make an educated decision on which food gave her the most "bang” for her buck. 

What she can't do is determine unequivocally which food her dog will do best on based on any of this information.  But we all agree that nobody can do that without trying a brand anyway, so that's a moot point. 

Feed your dog whatever you want. But don't try to tell me that Kibbles & Bits is "just as good” as Canidae because your dog appears healthy.

Bravo! 
 

ORIGINAL: sillysally

ORIGINAL: Firestorm

Hmm so would that mean that Special Kitty or Dad's is better then Purina cat chow?

I don't know, my cats don't eat any of those.  However, that is what he told my stepdad.  He even wrote it out--Purina Cat Chow with a big "X" over it.....

Finally!  So are you going to talk her into Felidae?  Oh, but I bet she's going to make you buy it, cause she doesn't want to go anywhere but the grocery store. 

No, she is STILL stuck on the grocery store thing.  I was actually going to ask you what food would still be halfway decent that she could feed from there.....

But with premium and middle and low grade--will the dog be able to tolerate it? Ir  appears some dogs are here  that can not take the "higher quailty" food.  All the ingredient lists in the world don't mean a thing if your dog can't handle the food, regardless of where it fits on the  dog food list of crap to caviar of foods.  I can read lists all day long and it would not tell me which food my dog would best on....and neither will tlaking to others about what their dog does good on.  That is a case of "find out for yourself."

I eat hot dogs and lunch meat.
 
[linkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXUDUlueSk4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXUDUlueSk4[/link]
 
 

But with premium and middle and low grade--will the dog be able to tolerate it? Ir  appears some dogs are here  that can not take the "higher quailty" food. 

As I mentioned Sandra, most times it's not that the dog cannot tolerate the better food...it's a process called detox.  When switched to a better food, or from kibble to raw a dog will go through a period where the body is ridding itself of impurities of the poor quality foods.  The same thing happens with humans.  When I ate junk food my body adapted to that...not a healthy adaption mind you.  I didn't feel great, and was sluggish some days...when I switched to a better diet I broke out in pimples etc.  It was explained to me by my Holistic vet years later that it's a process of detox..your body expelling the bad stuff.  Now that I eat healthy I look & feel much better.  Since I went through a period of unhealthy eating and felt how good it was when I switched to healthy foods I try to do the same for my dogs.

This is a reason why people give up on healthy diets and raw diet because they get freaked out when their dogs start detoxing.

Is my dog experiencing detox?
When switching a dog over from commercial dog food to BARF, the dog's body may begin the process of ridding itself of toxins and impurities as it adjusts to the intake of proper nutrients.  This process is called detox.   Depending on the overall health of your dog, detox may last one week, one month or even several weeks...or not even at all.  The most common symptoms of detox include vomiting, diarrhea, bad breath and itchy skin.  It is normal for any of these detox symptoms to get worse before they get better...just don't give up and hang in there.  Keep your dog as comfortable as possible during this process.  Go slow on introducing new foods, to make sure there are no allergies.  Pure pumpkin in the can (not pumpkin pie filling) works magic to firm stools quickly.  Provide plenty of fresh water, but limit excessive water intake immediately after meals, as your dog may regurgitate.  Give plenty of Vitamin E and C (the C to bowel tolerance) to help boost his/her immune system.