dog and cat nutrition. To believe vets or not

[bock]

Quote:
That is a good idea.

I will ask them about that and try to show them this as well. Thanks guys, you really made me feel better, I felt like such an idiot in there.

 

[Carolyn&Ron]

We have been feeding the more natural pet foods for several years. We use a natural vet who does acupuncture, chiropratic, muscle testing, herbs, etc. She does not sell things like Purina or Science Diet. She sells several different ones of the more natural brands. One is I believe from Nature's Variety. They make a raw as well as canned and dry varieties. I agree that it is best to look for a food that does not list grain or grain by -products as the first ingredients. We use Canidae for our dogs, both canned and dry, and they do very well and don't get sick. There is also Felidae for cats made by the same company as Canidae. I believe their food is good quality. Also this natural vet does not think feeding a diet of all dry food is good for animals. She recommends a diet of canned and dry, fed at different times of the day. She believes that a diet of all dry food causes too dry of a condition in the body and can contribute to urinary problems, especially in cats.

Just recently I switched to Wellness brand for our cats. They like the Turkey Salmon canned food and the Wellness brand of dry food for reg. maintenance of adult cats. Our cats, we live on a farm and have several, have not had to go to the vet for quite a while.

I know most natural doctors believe that all corn contains fungus/mycotoxins and is bad for humans as well as animals. As far as regular MD's or regular vets, I don't think very many of them know about what a good healthy diet consists of.

Some of the natural foods make a grain free choice but use potatoes instead of grain to make the proper carbohydrate level. I don't believe potatoes are good for pets.

There is also the issue of genetically altered foods, grain being one of the most common. That is another reason to avoid pet food that has grain or grain by-products as one of the first ingredients.

I hope this is helpful. I would certainly recommend the Wellness brand even though it is more expensive. We have a feed store in the Oklahoma City area that specializes in many of the more natural brands and have lower prices than the Petco or Petsmart stores.

 

[greathorse]

I have heard great things about the raw food diet. I have good freinds that use this and their dogs have tremendous coats. If I get my act together I wouild like to try it myself some time soon. I think I would buy a book written by a well schooled person on dog nutrition and use that as a guide. I think vets have a lot of knowledge about a lot of things but I don't think they are necessarily nutrition specialists.

 

[rhaj]

I didn't read through all the replies, but wanted to say that i have 3 diabetic cats and corn is NOT good for cats (dogs as well). It is high in carbs and NOT part of a cat's natural diet. I used to feed my cats dry food before they were diagnosed with diabetes. Now I feed them low carb canned food, and no you don't need to buy expensive food- I buy Walmart's generic Special Kitty canned food... your best bet for low carb is the regular old ground up style (Friskies calls it pate style). The tender bits/meaty chunks etc in gravy are high carb (they use flour to make the gravy).

Think of what a cat would eat out in the wild... birds, mice etc... there are no carbs in those. They are not meant to eat corn or flour.

Also, a dry food diet is very bad, especially for male cats... can lead to urinary blockage... 'been there done that' on this one too.

Interesting site written by a vet: http://www.catinfo.org/

 

[inezbouley]

As a vet tech, I have to say that I've seen a lot of different diets work in a lot of different ways. We have had dogs and cats come in with different problems from different brands. The number 1 problem I see is obesity, followed by a close 2nd in skin disease (althought a lot of the skin problems are parasite and/or local allergen issues rather than food). I also have seen some cases in digestion problems, i.e. sensitive stomach, but not too often.

I do know that after doing research on a lot of different brands and listening to many types of companies trying to sell their product, I will have to say that out of all of them, I've seen Science Diet work the best...but every pet is different!!

You know your pet better than your vet. We only see your pet, if you are able, once or twice a year, so trying to deduce problems with your pet can be challenging, especially if, by human nature, we tend to "fudge" on the facts a bit.

Table food is the worst thing you can give your pet; it can lead to obesity, finicky eating, and pancreatitis , which can be deadly. Homecooking for your pet can be difficult because you have to balance the nutritional needs "just so", and can be costly and time consuming. Advertising has ways of tricking us into believing that we are feeding the best food possible! Take Beneful for example: This food is full of sugar! Your dog "really likes it" because of that! He's also 50 lbs overweight...but who's counting!

Also, if you see any food that says "Lite" or other veriations of weight loss diets, they are most likely NOT diet foods. I also know that some "natural/holistic" foods that say they don't have corn, have zea. Zea=corn. LINK. Just another trick of marketing. I've seen a dog that had severe bladder AND kidney stones because his diet of Taste of the Wild was way too high in protein needed for even an athletic dog. I've seen many cases of puppies not being able to digest Blue Buffalo very well and had severe diarrhea (after ruling out parasites, parvovirus, etc), from the food. Once these pets were switched to a different diet, their issues ceased.

Cats, are even harder to find food for because of their finicky nature (most anyway). Cats are more carnivores than dogs, so they need more meat in their diet and less vegetables. (This is why dogs LOVE cat food and

poo... High in meaty goodness!) Because of their "sensitive" food handling, many cats have GI issues, urinary problems, and skin disease.

To be honest, the only thing you can rely on is the AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials ) labels. The label is small, usually with the list of ingredients, but it HAS to be on every bag and can of pet food. If it isn't, IT ISN'T REGULATED, and you could be feeding your pet who knows what!!! If the brand of the bag claims to be feeding Indoor formula or Adult pet food, or something like that, and the AAFCO label says: Approved for all life stages, you are feeding your pet PUPPY/KITTEN food. Any pet food that has not done feeding tests or is only meeting the "requirements" for the AAFCO label has to be nutritionally approved for the young pet. After that, they aren't so strict. SO! Check your food AAFCO label today! If you have questions about it or need it "translated" let me know and I can find the answer for you.

I know all pet food companies are trying to sell you their food, and shout their praises about why you should buy from them, so it can be confusing to know fact from sales pitch. When I made my decision, it was through trial and error, research, and many many seminars given by different people. All sounded great!...but after weeding out the BS, you can find something that works for your pet.

Each situation varies because EVERY pet is different! I chose Science Diet and this is why:

1) I liked the fact that 99% of their food is made in the USA; the 2 other places that the ingredients are taken from are (Norway or Iceland? Can't remember) for certain fish, and New Zealand (can't remember what they said they got from them). Especially after the whole China wheat scare, they have taken measures to make sure that every place they get their supplies from is domestic.

2) I like the fact that they devote their earnings to research, NOT advertising! This is why you don't see any TV or magazine, or ANY ads and it's only advertised in Veterinary offices (and now most petstores).

3) Science Diet is owned by....Science Diet. A lot of the "common-place" foods, (Purina, Iams, Pedigree, Beneful), are merging with big companies like Mars, Nestle, etc., and a lot of their money goes into their other products, and not so much into the pet diet industry. So unfortunately, the research department in these companies get cut back a lot.

4) After seeing their food factories and seeing the cleanliness of the place, (which is so sanitary you could eat off the floor!), and finding out that the employees that work there have been there for YEARS and LOVE their jobs, love telling you about their jobs with enthusiasm, and don't give them up easily, it's easy to see why this food is better!

5) The by-products that are in Science Diet are; liver, organs, etc. NOT fur, feathers, bones, etc. If you placed 2 cups of food next to each other, fill with water to let soak, 1 being Science Diet, and the other, say...Ol' Roy; you will not BELIEVE the amount of fur and other "unidentifiable" things were floating around! I wouldn't feed my worst enemy that junk! I wouldn't eat it if I was starving. Why would we feed it to our pets??

6) The amount of food you need to feed is BETTER per price than store-bought foods. Picture those huge 50 lb bags of dog food that go by so quickly that you buy at the store! Why? Because a lot of the food is filler and NOT nutrition. Science Diet food is FILLED with nutrition and not filler! This means, you can feed less, your pet feels fuller, and there is less to buy in the long run! I always hear the "price" issue, but I say it is worth a few dollars more if it will save me on vet bills and having to buy more frequently.

There are many other reasons why I like Science Diet better than most brands I've tried, but I think these few examples will help.

The Veterinarian is not there to pressure you into buying a certain product, (I can't speak for all vets, but all the ones I've worked for and with have been true to this), they are there to give you the best advice they know at this certain time. Medicine and nutrition changes so quickly and frequently, that something that was standard yesterday, is taboo today! As we move forward, we find things that work better, faster, etc. Most veterinarians recommend Science Diet, and I will tell you, they are NOT getting a "cut". They know that Science Diet is working! When your pet is sick with certain diseases, most vets will put your pet on a prescription diet, who makes this? Science Diet. (There are others, but they are not as popular because they do not seem to do the job as well, HOWEVER, I have seen some pets put on other brand prescription diet because of palatability!) As an agent for your pet, it is our duty to inform you of the best medical advice out there, whether it is to keep your pet on a preventative medication, medical treatment, or food. We are not swindlers who are only out to "make a buck". We are in this industry because we care about pets! TRUST ME, we are seriously underpaid.

Again, each and every pet is different, just as we are, and each have their own needs, aversions, and tastes! It is your job to ask questions and do research, and it is our job to inform you of the best advice we have at hand for your pet.

Thank you for listening to me and I hope I have answered some questions and not offended anyone. This was not meant to bash anyone's feelings about any certain food.

 

[bock]

I have also considered a raw diet, but I don't think me or my parents are quite ready for that. Wet food costs more, but if all goes well with keeping the good dog and cat food, then we might start feeding half and half. I also considered adding water to their dry food, do you think that would work?

 

[lorieMN]

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I am confused..adding water to dry food is just that,,dry food with added water..doesnt change what it is at all...I do raw..

 

[lorieMN]

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I feed rabbit,,not every day tho,,they are to lean to be fed every day forever..dogs need more fat then rabbit has..I dont worry about disease from them..they are domestic rabbits.

 

[chickerdoodle]

Science Diet and Purina, and well most foods in the supermarket are poorer quality than non grain diets, or diets that at least do not have ANY by products in the ingredient list. A diet with any grain in the first few ingredients is one to avoid if possible.

Animals can get by with various things and if you cannot afford to get the non grain diets then just try to pick ones that you can at least supplement with a little fresh protein and veggies as treats. Personally I feed EVO but recently found out they got bought by a super large corporation.

I am sad because one of the reasons I love the product so much is not only is it a non grain but they even have their own proccesing plant in the US so never had any recalls.

 

[fwschrom]

Change Vets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hills has Vets in their back pocket. Corn is not a good filler in dog food, neither is rice. Good fillers are Sweet potatoes, brown rice, and barley.

Here is a good link to dog food reviews:

http://dogfoodanalysis.com/

Make your own choice. I started my pup on Solid Gold which he loved. Down side was lamb makes him fart awful. I switched him to Taste of Wild fish formula, his personal problem stopped but he really didn't like the fish formula he would leave his food for two days sometimes and eat it only when he was really hungry. I switched him to TOW Venision and Buffalo, he likes it and we are both happy.

An Item to remember is a good diet for your dog KEEPS THEM OUT OF THE VETS OFFICE.