Abady/Dog Food Project

ORIGINAL: cc431

It only seems expensive but in all honesty I find it affordable and economical

These ingredients are from Oct. 2006 so they could have changed, and the prices are from today (I'm sure there are cheaper formulas, but I was using ones I could find ingredients and prices for):

State of the Art Maintenance & Stress $130.99/35 lbs
Poultry By-Products Meal, Menhaden Fish Meal, Cornmeal, Beef Fat, Lamb and Mutton Fat, Kibbled Yellow Corn Chunks, Cold Pressed Safflower Oil, Flaxseed Oil, Salt, Undefatted Beef Liver, Egg Albumen, Dehydrated Carrots, Whole Dried Eggs, Whey Protein Concentrate, Wheat Germ Oil, Menhaden Fish Fat, plus essential vitamins and minerals

Basic Large Breed Puppy Growth Formula $77.99/35 lbs
Poultry By-Product Meal, Menhaden Fish Meal, Cornmeal, Beef Fat, Kibbled Corn Chunks, Cold Pressed Safflower Oil, Lamb and Mutton Fat, Lamb and Mutton Meal, Flaxseed Oil, Salt, Undefatted Beef Liver, Egg Albumen, Dehydrated Carrot, Whole Dried Egg, Menhaden Fish Fat, plus essential vitamins and minerals

Maintenance & Stress Granulated $84.99/35 lbs
Chicken Meal, White Rice, Menhaden Fish Meal, Lard, Sunflower Oil, Beef Meat and Bone Meal, Chicken By-Products, Beef Fat, Dicalcium Phospate, Potassium Chloride, Human Grade Undefatted Beef Liver, Organic Flax Seed Oil, Salt, Natural Flavor, Menhaden Fish Fat, D-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate, Ferrous Sulfate, Amino Acid Supplement, Magnesium Oxide, Ascorbic Acid, Zinc Oxide, Vitamin A Acetate, Inositol, D-Calcium Panthothenate, Niacinamide, Manganese Sulfate, Cholecalciferol, Citrus Bioflavonoid Complex, Stomach Substance, Cupric Oxide, Riboflavin, Potassium Iodide, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite, Cobalt Chloride, Sodium Selenite, Folic Acid, Biotin, Cyanocobalamin Concentrate

Poultry by-product, fish meal, corn, fat, egg, meat and bone meal... you can find those ingredients in various combinations in any number of low or mid grade foods. What makes Abady's products deserving of their prices?

On the topic of the original post, if Mr. Abady is so proud of his products, why does he keep the ingredients hidden? Like ottoluv said in the other thread, it's like he thinks consumers are too dumb to understand, so he's going to tell you what to believe. OTOH, he makes so many outrageous claims - that can't possibly be substantiated - how can a consumer trust anything from him [sm=asking03.gif]

A Vet friend of mine is convinced that the high number of cases of Cancer in dogs today ( about 50% of the dog population winds up with Cancer) , is a direct result of a diet of poor quaility foods that are sold in supermarkets and manufactured by the big food companies.

 
About 40% of people will get cancer, but 80% of people that do get cancer are 55yrs and older. Cancer is a part of aging, environment plays a roll, smoking, drinking, but so many cancers are due to the body aging. I would think the same is true for dogs and cats. Does anyone know the ercentages of young dogs getting cancer vs older dogs?  Dogs live such short life's compared to us, odds are, most of us will have a dog with cancer at some point.
 
I try to keep a healthy life style, eat right, excercise, and do the same for my dogs, but cancer can happen regardless to living healthy. Genetics also play a big role for many cancers. 

ORIGINAL: sooner

These ingredients are from Oct. 2006 so they could have changed, and the prices are from today (I'm sure there are cheaper formulas, but I was using ones I could find ingredients and prices for):

State of the Art Maintenance & Stress $130.99/35 lbs
Poultry By-Products Meal, Menhaden Fish Meal, Cornmeal, Beef Fat, Lamb and Mutton Fat, Kibbled Yellow Corn Chunks, Cold Pressed Safflower Oil, Flaxseed Oil, Salt, Undefatted Beef Liver, Egg Albumen, Dehydrated Carrots, Whole Dried Eggs, Whey Protein Concentrate, Wheat Germ Oil, Menhaden Fish Fat, plus essential vitamins and minerals

There is NO REASON on earth that the food listed above should cost $130.99 for 35 pounds. [&:]

I had kept my Cocker on the same diet too for about 10 years.  Purina Dog Chow.  By year #8 his hips were completely shot
by age 10 it was all over.

There is NO REASON on earth that the food listed above should cost $130.99 for 35 pounds.

No kidding!  Why not just use the $130 to feed raw/homecooked?  You'd certainly have enough to feed your dogs AND yourself the healthiest foods possible!

ORIGINAL: pugs2

A Vet friend of mine is convinced that the high number of cases of Cancer in dogs today ( about 50% of the dog population winds up with Cancer) , is a direct result of a diet of poor quaility foods that are sold in supermarkets and manufactured by the big food companies.

About 40% of people will get cancer, but 80% of people that do get cancer are 55yrs and older. Cancer is a part of aging, environment plays a roll, smoking, drinking, but so many cancers are due to the body aging. I would think the same is true for dogs and cats. Does anyone know the ercentages of young dogs getting cancer vs older dogs?  Dogs live such short life's compared to us, odds are, most of us will have a dog with cancer at some point.

I try to keep a healthy life style, eat right, excercise, and do the same for my dogs, but cancer can happen regardless to living healthy. Genetics also play a big role for many cancers. 

Many of these cancers are occurring at around the 5 year old mark.  This is way too young for a dog to get cancer, and would be equivalent to a person at the age of around 36-38 years old. 

ORIGINAL: sooner

ORIGINAL: cc431

It only seems expensive but in all honesty I find it affordable and economical

These ingredients are from Oct. 2006 so they could have changed, and the prices are from today (I'm sure there are cheaper formulas, but I was using ones I could find ingredients and prices for):

State of the Art Maintenance & Stress $130.99/35 lbs
Poultry By-Products Meal, Menhaden Fish Meal, Cornmeal, Beef Fat, Lamb and Mutton Fat, Kibbled Yellow Corn Chunks, Cold Pressed Safflower Oil, Flaxseed Oil, Salt, Undefatted Beef Liver, Egg Albumen, Dehydrated Carrots, Whole Dried Eggs, Whey Protein Concentrate, Wheat Germ Oil, Menhaden Fish Fat, plus essential vitamins and minerals

Basic Large Breed Puppy Growth Formula $77.99/35 lbs
Poultry By-Product Meal, Menhaden Fish Meal, Cornmeal, Beef Fat, Kibbled Corn Chunks, Cold Pressed Safflower Oil, Lamb and Mutton Fat, Lamb and Mutton Meal, Flaxseed Oil, Salt, Undefatted Beef Liver, Egg Albumen, Dehydrated Carrot, Whole Dried Egg, Menhaden Fish Fat, plus essential vitamins and minerals

Maintenance & Stress Granulated $84.99/35 lbs
Chicken Meal, White Rice, Menhaden Fish Meal, Lard, Sunflower Oil, Beef Meat and Bone Meal, Chicken By-Products, Beef Fat, Dicalcium Phospate, Potassium Chloride, Human Grade Undefatted Beef Liver, Organic Flax Seed Oil, Salt, Natural Flavor, Menhaden Fish Fat, D-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate, Ferrous Sulfate, Amino Acid Supplement, Magnesium Oxide, Ascorbic Acid, Zinc Oxide, Vitamin A Acetate, Inositol, D-Calcium Panthothenate, Niacinamide, Manganese Sulfate, Cholecalciferol, Citrus Bioflavonoid Complex, Stomach Substance, Cupric Oxide, Riboflavin, Potassium Iodide, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite, Cobalt Chloride, Sodium Selenite, Folic Acid, Biotin, Cyanocobalamin Concentrate

Poultry by-product, fish meal, corn, fat, egg, meat and bone meal... you can find those ingredients in various combinations in any number of low or mid grade foods. What makes Abady's products deserving of their prices?

On the topic of the original post, if Mr. Abady is so proud of his products, why does he keep the ingredients hidden? Like ottoluv said in the other thread, it's like he thinks consumers are too dumb to understand, so he's going to tell you what to believe. OTOH, he makes so many outrageous claims - that can't possibly be substantiated - how can a consumer trust anything from him [sm=asking03.gif]

Those are pretty poor ingredients...I wouldn't feed my dog that food, if it was for free....

Many of these cancers are occurring at around the 5 year old mark. This is way too young for a dog to get cancer, and would be equivalent to a person at the age of around 36-38 years old.

 
That is what I have wondering about. I know statistics for cancer in humans, but not for dogs.

I lost my 12 1/2 year old irish Setter to bone cancer 10 years ago this month.I do not know how often Irish are hit with cancer.  But I do know that 60% of all goldens will die of cancer.  I am on 5 different golcen retriever forums and cancer runs high on them.  On May 14, two lost their dogs to cancer.  Both were under 8 years old.  I lost my 12 year old golden to heart attack the next day.  We have goldens as young as 2 that have died of cancer.  On Emergency Vets a couple of years ago I saw a golden who had just turned a year old put down with cancer in her shoulder.  Goldens and a few other breeds are prone to cancer.  It will run in families of dogs just as it does in human families.  I don't think what we feed them will prevent it, but i do think a very poor deit along with all the vax, flea, heartwormstuff, pollution, chemicals in water, etc causes it to come on faster.

ORIGINAL: Liesje

There is NO REASON on earth that the food listed above should cost $130.99 for 35 pounds.

No kidding!  Why not just use the $130 to feed raw/homecooked?  You'd certainly have enough to feed your dogs AND yourself the healthiest foods possible!

 
You are critiquing a feed which is very powerful stuff.  This is a market not for Joe average.  This is carry a few box on the sled dog trail (along with the raw) sort of meal.  These high-end granulars are considered "competition" feeds.  This is going for the Ribbon at the big dance, whether it be field, bench, ring.  This does not sound like anybodies ball park here.  OK, let me put in proper perspective for you.  You have a 30-pound house dog with minimal activity, luck to get a nice walk once in a while outside of the quick pee.  This box of feed we are talking about, State of the Art Maintenance for 130 should last you 4-6 months.  130 /5 = $26 per month.  If I feed at 50 pounds for about $22 a month and my granular is at the low end of the totem pole...do the math.  Again, this feeding program is probably cheaper than what most of you are doing now, considering supplements or adding in the Raw.  Consider this...a cup of  raw is about what say, 400 Cals?  Classic Granular is 800 cals per cup.  Buying kibble and making better with additives like raw is probably more expensive than feeding Abady granular as a stand alone.  Is that really a lot of money to spend per month, and factor in you'll be going to Vet far less fighting those hotspots?

field, bench, ring. This does not sound like anybodies ball park here.

Um. . . .*raising hand tentatively*

Not really wanting to get too much into this, but that's actually very much my ball park.

There's no way on earth the economics figure out in my favor here, no matter how this is incorporated, even including the free or very low cost raw meat I supplement with.

I use fifty pounds a week of a working dog ration which probably runs 3700 kcal/kg and costs $11/50 pounds. This is a pelletized formula, not a kibble, so similar to the granular in digestibility, etc. Even if I use half as much Abady, I'm still way, way short of my mark - even if you count the supplements, which cost all of $10 a month probably since I'm just using bulk human grade vitamins.

I leave Ben's special diet out of this equation since nothing Abady offers would work for him. Ben costs me about $50 a month between food and supplements and extras like the toppers I hide his meds in. []

I am on 5 different golcen retriever forums and cancer runs high on them. On May 14, two lost their dogs to cancer. Both were under 8 years old.

 
It's definately high among Goldens. I belong to a pet cancer forum and one member lost two goldens, one at five years old and the other at only 14 months. [] I think an overall good immune system will ward off some cancers, some of the time. Part of building a good immune system would be diet, part exercise and a very big part just an overall feeling of happiness without undue stress. Vaccinations, heartworm medications, flea meds, etc. are immune stressors that are best used judiciously.
 
I personally wouldn't choose Abady foods to build that immune system. Even if I'm wrong and a great diet has no effect on the immune system, my dogs do enjoy slurping down their home cooked meals, and the amount of pleasure they get counts too.

You are critiquing a feed which is very powerful stuff. This is a market not for Joe average. This is carry a few box on the sled dog trail (along with the raw) sort of meal. These high-end granulars are considered "competition" feeds. This is going for the Ribbon at the big dance, whether it be field, bench, ring. This does not sound like anybodies ball park here. OK, let me put in proper perspective for you. You have a 30-pound house dog with minimal activity, luck to get a nice walk once in a while outside of the quick pee. This box of feed we are talking about, State of the Art Maintenance for 130 should last you 4-6 months. 130 /5 = $26 per month. If I feed at 50 pounds for about $22 a month and my granular is at the low end of the totem pole...do the math. Again, this feeding program is probably cheaper than what most of you are doing now, considering supplements or adding in the Raw. Consider this...a cup of raw is about what say, 400 Cals? Classic Granular is 800 cals per cup. Buying kibble and making better with additives like raw is probably more expensive than feeding Abady granular as a stand alone. Is that really a lot of money to spend per month, and factor in you'll be going to Vet far less fighting those hotspots?

 
IMO one doesn't make or break a high performance dog based on food.  My uncle's working dog is what she is based on her breeding, training, and maintaining the appropriate level fitness and physical condition.  What does she eat?  Same things we do.  After dinner, we take a little of everything and toss it in her bowl.  I think as long as a dog is being fed the right amount of a premium or super premium food, the differences in quality between foods is marginal and it really boils down to which food your dog can stomach.  I don't care how this food is marketed.  That does not explain why a food with these ingredients is so much better than other foods with the same or better ingredients?

I personally wouldn't choose Abady foods to build that immune system. Even if I'm wrong and a great diet has no effect on the immune system, my dogs do enjoy slurping down their home cooked meals, and the amount of pleasure they get counts too.

 
My girls love their chicken stew that i make.  They get about 1/3 home cooked and 2/3 kibble.  i give them a 3/4 cup of kibble in the mornings with a divided jar of baby food--squash, sweet potatoes or green beans, and a spoon of yogurtl  They eat the dry just fine, but i like to add that tad of veggies.  Then at night they get 1 1/3 cups of kibble and l to 1 1/4 cups of the chicken stew. mixed in.  I change my recip up a bit in that I started with the 5 pounds of chicken thighs and then for a new thing, i also added about 3 pounds of chicken necks.  And of course the last pound to pound & half of other meat, usually chopped calf liver or chicken gizzards, sometimes ground turkey.  This week i forgot to get the pound of frozen green beans, so added crinkle cut carrots I had in freezer along with 1 apple, 3 sweet potatoes and 3 green squash.  I do enjoy cooking for my girls and they enjoy eating it.
 
I would have no use for the Abady's food with my girls, but i suspect it might have been good for our setters and pointers during hunting season when they wre hunted almost every day.

I think the stews you make are excellent. I started making stews because Tasha just didn't like canned foods. I can easily admit that she's a little spoiled. My feeling about that is that if it doesn't hurt, it's OK. There's foods I don't like either and she's always prefered cooked to canned. I want my dogs to just plain like their meals.
 
I don't think the higher end Purina is necessarily a problem. Corn isn't necessarily evil.. I use barley and a lot of people don't like that.
 
I went to entirely home cooked because Floyd had multiple mast cell cancers. I knew he couldn't go through another surgery without a long break so I went to a holistic vet. Our regular vet prescribed Prednisone and I'm not knocking it. But....Floyd was only five years old, and I didn't want him on Pred for the rest of his life. He's an active dog with some aggressive tendencies. We ended up deciding on Prednisone for a four month period and diet and supplements for the future. He's had 19 months free of cancer. Even if the cancer comes back, he's had a long break from surgery and a long break from medication so we're at least starting back from a good point.