Dog Community

Posted : 12/16/2006 7:11:50 PM

I happened to get a 5lb bag of the NB organic food free, and Sammy likes it - but he likes anything, really. I never fully switched him over since it was only 5 lbs and NB is rather pricy for me. I feed him Canidae right now so I was only mixing it in, so I can't do a poop report or anything, but I didn't noticed anything out of the ordinary.

Rick B

Posted : 12/16/2006 7:46:53 PM

I need something that does a comparison of the protein in raw meat to the protein in kibble.
You know what I mean?

I know that the high protein in kibble is WAY higher than it would be in real raw meat due to the lack of water.

ORIGINAL: chewbecca

I think the protein level in higher protein kibble is comparable to a lot of canned dog foods on a dry matter basis.

jessies_mom

Posted : 12/16/2006 9:35:34 PM

I need something that does a comparison of the protein in raw meat to the protein in kibble.
You know what I mean?
I know that the high protein in kibble is WAY higher than it would be in real raw meat due to the lack of water/quote]

The closest way I know of to compare raw to kibble is on a dry matter basis; [linkhttp://www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/dm.html]http://www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/dm.html[/link] but I don't know if it would apply to raw as it does to canned. On a DMB most canned food is about 45% protein. I *think* raw would have a similar protein content. Jessie is a senior dog and I prefer her kibble to have 26% or more protein because senior dogs retain more muscle mass on a higher protein diet, but I don't like the super high protein foods either, mostly because of the high ash content, so I supplement Jessie's EP with canned food and Nature's Variety medallions.

bragg1120

Posted : 12/16/2006 11:32:54 PM

Gracie & Trixie are really liking the Potato & Duck NB kibble. I wrote to the company and they're sending some coupons and samples for the girls to try (we live almost 2 hours away from a pet supply store).

Luvntzus

Posted : 12/17/2006 1:16:46 AM

21-22% is lower protein than I want to feed also. Most kibbles I've looked into have 24-28% protein. I think 42% protein like in EVO is too high.

Right now I'm feeding Natural Balance sweet potato and fish in my rotation, but I wouldn't feel comfortable just feeding kibbles with that protein percentage.

Margaret Tyler

Posted : 12/17/2006 12:42:15 PM

Blue Buffalo is very similair to Natural Balance and I believe a little less expensive. Of course that depends on how close a Pet Smart is to you.

sallya

Posted : 12/18/2006 12:01:00 AM

I LOVE Natural Balance foods! I have given them all to Trudy. She does best on the Fish and Sweet Potato. SO good for the skin and coat! Amazing!! I love it. She has allergies, takes allergy shots etc... The fish food is wonderful and it shows in her skin and coat.

ColleenC

Posted : 12/18/2006 12:09:22 AM

I'm feeding the original Natural Balance right now. Both of the dogs like it, but neither is too picky. Poops are fine. The real test will be to see how Rose's coat grows back in. So far, Bil-Jac has done wonders for her coat, but Natural Balance has a more calories and is a bit cheaper at Petco. So, if her coat does as well on it as Bil-Jac, I'll stay with it. I do feed the canned sometimes mixed in and in their Kongs.

Bobsk8

Posted : 12/18/2006 11:07:57 AM

ORIGINAL: Luvntzus

21-22% is lower protein than I want to feed also. Most kibbles I've looked into have 24-28% protein. I think 42% protein like in EVO is too high.

Right now I'm feeding Natural Balance sweet potato and fish in my rotation, but I wouldn't feel comfortable just feeding kibbles with that protein percentage.

If you feed a dog 2 cups of kibble a day for instance, the difference from 22% to 26% protein for instance, would be about a tablespoon more for the lower food for the protein to equal out. Not a heck of a lot of difference in my opinion.

ron2

Posted : 12/18/2006 11:17:32 AM

Luvntzu's dog is a Shih Tzu. I'm going to make a "wild claim", totally my own opinion, without any scientific resource immediately at hand and suggest that, for some small breeds that are incapable of eating more than 1/2 to 1 cup at a time that the higher protein foods might suit them, in the interest of making sure they get enough protein.

But, I could be wrong and accept that risk.

willowchow

Posted : 12/18/2006 12:45:18 PM

I also feed Natural Balance once a day or once every couple of days. Willow is really a canned food girl. But, I/we've been very happy with the results all around. And, she has really good energy on it which I really like even over the shiney coat.

Ron, I think you are probably right, FWIW.

bunni

Posted : 12/18/2006 2:45:36 PM

I bought some Potato & Duck Natural Balance to try it. I then noticed that the first ingredient is potatoes. Seems like a lot of potato to me but the second and third ingredients are duck and duck meal. So, do the duck and the meal make up for the potato?

Anyone know? I'm really tired of trying to figure out labels.

Heathr6913

Posted : 12/18/2006 4:04:02 PM

ORIGINAL: bunni

I bought some Potato & Duck Natural Balance to try it. I then noticed that the first ingredient is potatoes. Seems like a lot of potato to me but the second and third ingredients are duck and duck meal. So, do the duck and the meal make up for the potato?

Anyone know? I'm really tired of trying to figure out labels.

I don't know for sure. I know there has been a debate on here whether potatoes lose weight when theyre cooked or not. I personally think they do lose weight. maybe not a whole lot but at least a little. so on the natural balance with duck being the 2nd and duck meal being the 3rd I'd say that either the duck outweighs the potato by a little bit or that they are about 50/50. That is just my opinion, or thought really.

sooner

Posted : 12/18/2006 4:12:52 PM

ORIGINAL: Heathr6913

I don't know for sure. I know there has been a debate on here whether potatoes lose weight when theyre cooked or not. I personally think they do lose weight. maybe not a whole lot but at least a little. so on the natural balance with duck being the 2nd and duck meal being the 3rd I'd say that either the duck outweighs the potato by a little bit or that they are about 50/50. That is just my opinion, or thought really.

A whole, uncooked potato is 79% moisture.
http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c20f4.html

The debate was that a cooked potato (the way humans bake it for themselves) loses very little moisture. That makes sense since it is baked in the skin, which holds moisture in.

However, in processing for kibble, where the potato is pulverized, it stands to reason that it will lose much more of its moisture content. Even when the kibble is extruded at low temperature, it still goes through a drying process to remove any remaining moisture.

mudpuppy

Posted : 12/18/2006 4:38:00 PM

i reject these foods out of hand because meat isn't listed first-- I would reject any food for that reason, no matter what the quality of the remaining ingredients and the rep of the company was. The venison and rice is mostly rice; the potatoes and duck is mostly potato. I can see feeding them to an allergy dog if you also supplement with duck or venison meats (canned, raw, whatever).

Dry matter basis: a raw diet is around 40% to 50%, similar to EVO and all of the other "high" protein grain-free kibbles. Most kibbles are ridiculously low in protein, especially when you consider that much of the protein in that "22%" is poor-quality incomplete protein from grains or vegetables. You can bet that a kibble that lists a non-meat item first on the label, and says "22% protein" is, in the dog, closer to "15% usable protein".

Natural Balance??