WHAT is with the Purina people?

I notice several people here use the word survivie as tho it is almost a bad thing--like a person in a  coma that is being  kept alive by IV, fed thru a tub, etc.  That person is surviving, but not really living.  So when I keep seeing that word I think of dogs that are barely alive, weak, sickly, no energy, etc, but they are alive, they are surviving. 
 
My dogs are doing much more than surviving, they are living a healthy happy  and active life

ORIGINAL: sandra_slayton

I notice several people here use the word survivie as tho it is almost a bad thing--like a person in a  coma that is being  kept alive by IV, fed thru a tub, etc.  That person is surviving, but not really living.  So when I keep seeing that word I think of dogs that are barely alive, weak, sickly, no energy, etc, but they are alive, they are surviving. 

My dogs are doing much more than surviving, they are living a healthy happy  and active life

That was in response to what you said about the comparison of Purina to fast food being invalid because of the "complete and balanced" seal on the Purina bag. My point was that AAFCO standards, as far as I know, are only that the food will keep dogs alive.

So according to that line or reasoning, why bother caring at all what you, or your children, or your pets eat? We are all going to die anyway, right?

 
No.  Heck, i had 3 years of nutirtion in school and I always fed my family by what I learned.  What i am saying is it doesn't matter if you eat the perfect diet and your dog eats the "best" dog food( tho that varies from person to person as which of the premiums is the best) you are going to get old, you are going to have organs wear out and your joints will also wear down.  Eating perfect is not going to stop this.  Eating perfect will not allow you to live forever or even double the normal life span. You will die because you either do catch some disease  or your parts wear out.   You don't suddenly die because you reach a certain age.
 
Not many people could have eaten better than i did as a child--mostly home grown veggies, home killed chickens, beef & hogs, fresh caught fish, fresh killed game, fresh milk right from our cow, fresh eggs right from our chickens.  Yet I came down with rheumatic fever at age 10.  Diet didn't stop it.  I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis over 20 years ago.  Eating perfect or near perfect  helps some, but it doesn't prevent diseases from happening.
 
 

What do you mean by "kept alive"  I have an old plant that i am keeping alive and it is a pitiful looking thing. My Dad was "kept alive" after his stroke, but we lost him after 2 weeks in ICU.  Again, this gives the impression that dogs on lower grades of food are all just shallow beings of dogs, poor brittle coat, teeth rotting out, barely able to walk, sickly, etc----but they are kept alive by that food.  This is a far cry from what my dogs--and our ones in the past--look like.

While I haven't read every single post in this thread, I've gotten the general idea of what is going on here.
For heavens sake, give these people a break already [:@][:@][:@]
 
It's appalling and disgraceful the way some of you are belittling people who choose to feed what is apparently working very well for THEIR dogs. There is absolutely no reason or excuse for this type of heckling.
 
It's not your choice and it doesn't make you a better pet owner because YOU choose to feed a different food.

I have a co-worker who feeds Ol Roy and he trusts that food. He really doesn't care about whether all of the makers can be trusted. So, I guess we can't call him stupid, because he only uses one brand.
 
Of course, you can still donate, if you care.
 

I think they are crazy feeding their kids sugar and grease before they go to school since those are the main ingredients that are in what their kids are ingesting, but if I said anything to them, an arguement would most probably result.Would they stop feeding their kids this junk, after the argument? I doubt it.. I look at the defence of these very poor pet food products as the same type of thing.

 
I politely disagree. Most dog foods, most especially the name brands, are scientifically formulated and controlled to provide your pet with the proper nutrition. This is, in fact, different than handing a kid a donut and a coke.

The AAFCO feeding trial protocol is that the dogs' blood profile shall reflect a healthy state. At least 6 of the 8 dogs must complete the test. Otherwise the food cannot use the statement. One or two dogs may drop out due to an unforeseen illness or problem not initially caught in the pre-test exam. Or, if the food is not providing what it should and a dog has to drop out, nor more than two can drop out, or the food is a bust. I think the 6 out of 8 is a statistcal hedge against the fact that not one food will work for all dogs. That is, 2 of the 8 dogs may not agree with apples or potatos in the food, or, more likely wheat or barley.
 
It's not just a pack of dogs barely hanging on and dreaming of The Mansion on Turtle Creek (Dallas).
 

I don't think I am unhealthy, but I am no health nut by any stretch of the imagination here!    Am I the only one who wants to enjoy themselves and likes to indulge with fun food that isn't good for you on occasion?  Moderation etc.  I smoke too.  I know it bad for me.  God do I know it bad for me.  I guess I would rather live a few years less and enjoy my life fully!  I am sure some think that is nuts.  Crazy even.  I don't drink, never have.  I find that hard to understand of others.   Meaning we all have vices that haunt us perhaps.   No one is a saint.  I want a good life for my pet but I am not a zealot.  I find some here a bit odd with their hell bent attitude on this perfection thing for their dogs.   But I respect your right to do that if it floats your boat.  It sure isn't my thing at all.  I will not put you down for your choices and I don't expect to get put down for mine either.   I am a middle ground type.  I am comfortable with the middle ground.  Ever notice even the health food guru's die?  All those sprouts and nuts and wheat germ didn't prevent it.  Some even die of cancer!!  Ask them now if they wish they had smoked a nice cigar, or enjoyed some burgers now and then.   I am older now, I will enjoy myself with the time I have left and leave the health food and nutritionists to argue it out.  Me and my dog have some pizza to finish up.  Jax loves the crust. 

This is ridiculous.  I'm not going to attack anyone who wants to feed Purina or Hills or what ever, if it's working for their dog.  It did bother me when people told me that neither my dog NOR I should been eating white bread ... it's the same thing.  Do what you want and what you think is right.  Educate yourself, weigh the pros and cons, make a decision, and move on with your life.  It doesn't matter what people who feed premium say about your decisions, as long as you've made educated ones.  If you've read up, done your research, and still decide to feed Purina, power to u! 
 
P.S.
It is irritating to have to tiptoe so lightly around these subjects.  People who come on here to ask a question shouldn't be attacked.  They're obviously here because they care.

We are all going to die anyway, right?

 
That is an inescapable fact. Eat what you can, be happy, then die. That is our destiny.
 

ORIGINAL: ron2

We are all going to die anyway, right?

That is an inescapable fact. Eat what you can, be happy, then die. That is our destiny.
 

 
You are so right!!!! []

ORIGINAL: kennel_keeper

For heavens sake, give these people a break already [:@][:@][:@]

It's appalling and disgraceful the way some of you are belittling people who choose to feed what is apparently working very well for THEIR dogs. There is absolutely no reason or excuse for this type of heckling.

 
No one is being forced to participate in this thread.  Those who I think you are referring to as being "heckled" and those defending them have a lot more posts on here than those doing "heckling".  We all have the ability to choose which threads we post on and which we decide aren't worth our time or interest.  I don't see any victims here.

Ah but then you will say Euk and Iams and probably Nutro are all crud.

 
Actually, I've been told more than once that Nutro is "grainy, mid-grade, over-priced."
 
With Rice in the name, I expect some grain. Mid-grade only because they don't use "by-products", or, horror of horrors, "corn". And because they use vit E for a preservative. I still don't get the over-priced bit. I pay between 77 and 88 cents per pound.
 
But, they're just expressing their "opinion". That and a buck-fifty gets me a Diet Coke, the secret to my eternal youth.
 

Holy spit....this is STILL dragging on?  I think that Jaime just needs to pass out the boxing gloves and be done with it......