# IAMS Premium Protection:



## deege39 (Dec 29, 2008)

http://www.iams.com/iams/en_US/jsp/IAMS_Page.jsp?pageID=PL&productID=409

The above link should pull up a page that breaks down the ingredients of _IAMS Premium Protection_. This is the food Donatello has been on for about two weeks... It's the food I got to replace the _Purina Lamb and Rice_ which was to be believed he was allergic to... Since he's been on this food his so called "allergies" have went into remission. 

I bought this food before everyone here advised me of _Wellness_ and the other brands that are of better quality. But before I buy a bag of that, I'm going to finish off this bag I have now, I hate to waste food of any kind, and unlike the _Purina_ it doesn't seem to be affecting his allergies so I'm going let him finish this bag.

I'm still a novice at a dog's nutrition, so could everyone just give me their general opinion about this brand in general, not just the fact it's _IAMS_, but what does the _Premium Protection_ bring to the table?

Thanks! : D


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

Chicken By-Product Meal is basically everything on a chicken carcass *except* the meat, edible organs, and feathers. The fact that it's the first ingredient would be a deal breaker for me; it's very low quality nutrition.

You should check out The Dog Food Project, it explains how to read dog food ingredient labels. =)


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## hbueain (Jan 5, 2009)

" Chicken Flavor"

Do they mean artifical flavor that taste like chicken?


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

Let me put this right up front: I work for Iams. 

Chicken by-product meal is flesh and skin, internal organs including intestines, and bone that have been cleaned, dried, cooked, and ground. It provides essential amino acids for muscle building, tissue repair, and other metabolic processes. Also, my company holds a patent on a process that refines our chicken by-product meal to remove impurities and increase its nutritional value. No other pet food company has this process--it's one of our trade secrets.

Premium Protection has twice the antioxidants of Iams Chunks to promote a strong and healthy immune system. It also contains a natural source of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate for healthy joints. It contains fructooligosaccharides, which is a fiber source that has been shown to help increase the health of the dog's gut. It also has L-carnitine which helps to burn fat.

I don't mean to sound like a marketing machine,  but this is a really good food!

BTW--Donatello is a cutie-pie! Did you name him after the artist? Or maybe your a Mutent Ninja Turtles fan?

I hope you stick with Premium Protection, but whatever you choose to feed I wish you both a long and happy life together!


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

This stuff is garbage. Here's a list of the ingredients:

Ingredients 
Chicken By-Product Meal (Natural source of Chondroitin Sulfate and Glucosamine), Corn Meal, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum, Ground Whole Grain Barley, Fish Meal, Chicken, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Dried Beet Pulp, Chicken Flavor, Dried Egg Product, Brewers Dried Yeast, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement,Beta-Carotene, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Acetate, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (source of vitamin B1), Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement (source of vitamin B2), Inositol, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (source of vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid), Sodium Hexametaphosphate, Fructooligosaccharides, Fish Oil (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Flax Meal, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Carbonate), Dried Chicken Cartilage (Natural source of Chondroitin Sulfate and Glucosamine), DL-Methionine, Marigold, L-Carnitine, Rosemary Extract. 


No matter what reps tell you, chicken byproduct is not good. If you'd like to learn more about dog food, go here: http://www.dogfoodproject.com/

It's a ton of reading but, when you're finished, you'll know how to decide what food is good, what isn't, what ingredients are good, what are not, etc.

Here's a list of dog foods rated by stars, any five or six star food is really good:

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/showcat.php/cat/8

Honestly, Iams is among the worst foods out there, along with Purina, Science Diet, Wal Mart food, etc.

Example: This is chicken byproduct meal:



> Chicken Byproduct Meal
> AAFCO: Consists of the dry, ground, rendered, clean parts of the carcass of slaughtered chicken, such as necks, feet, undeveloped eggs, and intestines -- exclusive of feathers except in such amounts as might occur unavoidably in good processing practices.
> 
> Chicken byproducts are much less expensive and less digestible than the chicken muscle meat.The ingredients of each batch can vary drastically in ingredients (heads, feet, bones etc.) as well as quality, thus the nutritional value is also not consistent. *Don't forget that byproducts consist of any parts of the animal OTHER than meat.* If there is any use for any part of the animal that brings more profit than selling it as "byproduct", rest assured it will appear in such a product rather than in the "byproduct" dumpster.





> http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=ingrd


 - All about byproducts



> Many pet foods are labeled as "*premium*," and some now are "super premium" and even "ultra premium." Other products are touted as "gourmet" items. *Products labeled as premium or gourmet are not required to contain any different or higher quality ingredients, nor are they held up to any higher nutritional standards than are any other complete and balanced products.*


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## cshellenberger (Dec 2, 2006)

PetCareBev said:


> Let me put this right up front: I work for Iams.
> 
> Chicken by-product meal is flesh and skin, internal organs including intestines, and bone that have been cleaned, dried, cooked, and ground. It provides essential amino acids for muscle building, tissue repair, and other metabolic processes. Also, my company holds a patent on a process that refines our chicken by-product meal to remove impurities and increase its nutritional value. No other pet food company has this process--it's one of our trade secrets.
> 
> ...


You're welcomed here Bev, however I wouldn't advise trying to change Iams image. We are a pretty well educated group when it comes to dog food. Most here have done TONS of research and are very aware of what's what when it comes to the manufacturing process. My father was a commercial fisherman, he unloaded his boat at a cat/dog food manufactuing plant in Pascagoula MS that is owned by Quacker Oats. I've seen first hand what goes into brands of dog food comparable to Iams and Science Diet.


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## GroovyGroomer777 (Aug 21, 2008)

Eeew, that definition of chicken by-products makes me want to hurl.


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

cshellenberger said:


> You're welcomed here Bev, however I wouldn't advise trying to change Iams image. We are a pretty well educated group when it comes to dog food. Most here have done TONS of research and are very aware of what's what when it comes to the manufacturing process. My father was a commercial fisherman, he unloaded his boat at a cat/dog food manufactuing plant in Pascagoula MS that is owned by Quacker Oats. I've seen first hand what goes into brands of dog food comparable to Iams and Science Diet.


Thanks for your welcome.


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## deege39 (Dec 29, 2008)

PetCareBev said:


> Let me put this right up front: I work for Iams.
> 
> Chicken by-product meal is flesh and skin, internal organs including intestines, and bone that have been cleaned, dried, cooked, and ground. It provides essential amino acids for muscle building, tissue repair, and other metabolic processes. Also, my company holds a patent on a process that refines our chicken by-product meal to remove impurities and increase its nutritional value. No other pet food company has this process--it's one of our trade secrets.
> 
> ...


Hmmm... I have a group of people telling me that this stuff is _horrible_ and to stop feeding it and another group telling me it's perfectly okay... 

Like I've mentioned before, I'll look into another brand of dog food after this bag is finished.

And thank you, PetCareBev! Donatello is cute, isn't he? When I named him I wanted something different, and cute, and I knew I wanted to name him after one of the TMNT because I love the cartoon, and I love histories painters. So I researched the Turtles and picked the turtle that I thought had the best qualities. So to answer your question, it was a little bit of both. : P


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

deege39 said:


> Hmmm... I have a group of people telling me that this stuff is _horrible_ and to stop feeding it and another group telling me it's perfectly okay...


One of the great things about the web is that discussion happens. Though we may disagree on feeding, I think everyone involved in this thread has a great love of dogs. All I wanted to do in making my post was offer another view.


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## deege39 (Dec 29, 2008)

Oh, I understand, PetCareBev, I wasn't trying to sound condescending, don't worry.

That is one thing we _all_ have in common and can _all_ agree on: _Our love of dogs_! As I've come to notice in the past couple weeks, it's hard for many of us to agree on any certain thing, like what to feed our dogs, how our dogs should be disciplined so on and so forth. There was one thing though that someone said, "_If it works for you and your dogs, go for it..._" Or something along those lines, and I completely agree with that. : )


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## odp1979 (Jan 5, 2009)

Do a search on google for Iams and animal testing. You're gonna see horrific results. DON'T BUY IAMS. Period.

Check this website out

http://www.iamscruelty.com/


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## Binkalette (Dec 16, 2008)

We just switched our puppy from iams to Nutri Source. It was always a struggle getting her to eat the Iams but she LOVES the nutri source.. AND it's manufactured only a half an hour from my home 

Odp1979 omg did you watch the peta video on there???


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

Sorry if this is off topic for this thread. 

odp1979 since you posted your comment here, I will respond to your private message here.

www.IamsTruth.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dExk5nJY6AI

http://www.zootoo.com/petnews/home4theholidaysadoptionstop1m-1121

http://www.petakillsanimals.com/index.cfm

As with what to feed, inform yourself and make your own decisions.


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

Here's a few links, too:




http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=ingrd

http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=costfactors

http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=betterproducts


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## odp1979 (Jan 5, 2009)

PETA has video proof of what Iams has been up to...


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. All I'm saying is that you research for yourself, and look at more than one side of a topic. Use your best judgement, and form your own opinions. 

Thank you for looking at the links I posted, and for reading what I had to say.


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## deege39 (Dec 29, 2008)

I, certainly, was just asking what was _in_ the dog food, I didn't intended for this thread to evolve into a heated debate of PETA against IAMS, and IAMS protecting their image.

I've followed everyone's links, as of my own, and I think _everyone's_ opinions and suggestions strike up a difficult position for me to take sides on... I do thank everyone for their input and I'll weigh everything heavily the next few days until it's time to buy more dog food.

Thanks again. : )


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## cshellenberger (Dec 2, 2006)

Binkalette said:


> We just switched our puppy from iams to Nutri Source. It was always a struggle getting her to eat the Iams but she LOVES the nutri source.. AND it's manufactured only a half an hour from my home
> 
> Odp1979 omg did you watch the peta video on there???


I don't care for IAMS, but I care even LESS for PETA. Their propaganda machine has hurt many innocent people and their actions are that of a terrorist organization. 

PETA runs a shelter in Norfolk VA that is one of the HIGHEST kill shelters in the USA. Nearly 90% of animals that aren't claimed by their owners are PTS, so anything they say about another organization and animal abuse is bunk IMHO. I've been there and seen the conditions the dogs are kept in, it's atrocious.


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## GeorgeGlass (Jun 5, 2008)

If you're going to go with a grocery-store dog food (which, personally, I don't think is as bad as many do), I would go with Purina. Purina One being the first choice and Dog Chow/Puppy Chow being the second.

I feed Diamond Naturals. My dog thrives on it so far, so I won't change unless he stops doing so well on it. It's $30 per 40 pound bag. The top ingredients aren't perfect, but not bad in my opinion: Chicken, chicken meal, whole grain brown rice, white rice, cracked pearled barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols)

The IAMS ingredients do not look so good, especially considering it costs $1.30 a pound.


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## Moonshadow (Nov 9, 2008)

The best food for your dog is the one that your dog does best on. If your dog does great on Iams then keep him on it. 

Some people are against by-products, some aren't. I'm ok with named by-products. Meaning...if it's chicken by-product meal or beef by-products I'm ok with it, I wouldn't want something that said "meat"....who knows what it is.

I used to only look at holistic foods. I've fed organic kibbles, grain free kibbles, all of the various natural/holistic foods, Wellness, Nature's Variety, Solid Gold, Orijen, Timberwolf, Eagle Pack, Nature's Logic, The entire Natura line, Canidae, etc. you name it and I've tried it. 

I've also fed Eukanuba, Science Diet, ProPlan, Bil Jac and Royal Canin. And we've fed Abady (which is a whole different kind of food, granular and frozen meat/rice). We have also cooked for our dogs and fed raw. (I do still supplement their food with either raw chicken or beef and cooked fish....no matter what kibble I'm feeding)

I thankfully don't have to base what I feed on price, I'm fortunate there but I also don't base what I feed on what's popular anymore. We were on the holistic bandwagon for a long time and then jumped off of it. While a food like Wellness for example looks great on paper....my dogs do horribly on it. 

We have found that the majority of our dogs (not all but most) do best on the middle of the road foods. Not something like Dad's (although I've not tried it to be honest with you) or something like Orijen but with Eukanuba, ProPlan (especially the Selects and the Sensitive Skin formula) and also Science Diet High Energy or Active. My old guys do best on a basic food, they are on California Natural Chicken right now but that doesn't do it for my younger dogs. I also have one that can only eat grain free foods or Abady granular. All dogs are different, what works for one dog may not work for your dog. Then you also have to look at the company that makes the food and see if you feel comfortable with it....in the Timberwolf line I can feed all but one dog (he's a special case...he had throat surgery) something from the Timberwolf line and do fine with it but Timberwolf has had so many problems I just don't trust them at this point. So even if the food works, I'm not using it.

I know many people who use Iams and they have great luck with it. I'm more of a Eukanuba fan but honestly they are not much different. I only like Eukanuba because I've had much more experience with it and know what in that line works for my dogs and what doesn't.

It's come to dog food being a very personal opinion...almost as sensitive as religion with some people. While I wouldn't recommend that you go out and buy generic food at the dollar store I also don't recommend that you listen to everyone who simply hates a food because of chicken by-products on the ingredient list. The way I look at that is if I was feeding raw how much of the chicken would I not allow my dogs to eat besides the feathers? There are certain nutrients that come from the parts of animals that aren't appealing to us. 

If you personally feel good about feeding Iams or any other food and your dog does well on the food why not feed it? There's nothing dangerous in the food (no chemical perservatives, etc.) so I say if it's working sick with it.


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

Moonshadow said:


> If you personally feel good about feeding Iams or any other food and your dog does well on the food why not feed it? There's nothing dangerous in the food (no chemical perservatives, etc.) so I say if it's working sick with it.


There are a LOT of preservatives in IAMS foods. That is one of the many reasons I do not like it. To each his/her own


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## Moonshadow (Nov 9, 2008)

myminpins said:


> There are a LOT of preservatives in IAMS foods. That is one of the many reasons I do not like it. To each his/her own



Really? Chemical Preservatives? Can you point them out because I'm missing them if they are in there.

Thanks!

Ingredients 
Chicken, Chicken By-Product Meal, Brewers Rice, Corn Meal, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum, Ground Whole Grain Barley, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Dried Beet Pulp (sugar removed), Natural Chicken Flavor, Dried Egg Product, Brewers Dried Yeast, Dicalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Beta-Carotene, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Acetate, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (source of Vitamin B1), Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement (source of Vitamin B2), Inositol, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (source of Vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid), Fish Oil (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Flax Meal, Apple Pomace, Dried Carrots, Dried Peas, Choline Chloride, Dried Spinach, Dried Tomato, Minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Carbonate), L-Carnitine, Rosemary Extract


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## deege39 (Dec 29, 2008)

I tried Purina Lamb and Rice and it's believed he was allergic to one of the ingredients in it... We're still trying to narrow out his allergies and figure what's best to feed him and we're not even sure if he's allergic to IAMS now or not...

It's still going to be a couple weeks before I can get him to the vet. : (

Hmmm. Thank you, Moonshadow, for sharing your experience. I appreciate it greatly. I wouldn't even be asking about dog food if it weren't for the fact I think he's allergic to everything I feed him.

I have always thought with a simple mind... "_Don't feed dollar store dog food, but you shouldn't have to fork out hundreds of dollars a month for just one bag_..." I always thought, that back when dogs were first domesticated, what were dogs fed? What did they survive on then before scientists came along and claimed it was terrible? Since then I've come to realize that times change and we evolve, so on and so forth; over time we've probably weakened the immunity they once had to tolerate certain foods...


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

deege39 said:


> II always thought, that back when dogs were first domesticated, what were dogs fed? What did they survive on then before scientists came along and claimed it was terrible?


Well, commercial dog food has only been around for ....I dunno, 80 years? (Purina Dog Chow came out in 1957, but there were other brands before that). My parents' families' dogs ate table scraps (1950s-1960s). So I guess way back when dogs were first domesticated, they ate scraps. And free-roaming dogs commonly hunt for their meat, so that's a possibility, too.


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## BoxMeIn21 (Apr 10, 2007)

Moonshadow said:


> Really? Chemical Preservatives? Can you point them out because I'm missing them if they are in there.
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> ...


Regardless of chemicals, I don't understand why you would want to feed your dog a food full of stuff its body doesn't need...


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

> I always thought, that back when dogs were first domesticated, what were dogs fed? What did they survive on then before scientists came along and claimed it was terrible?





> Well, commercial dog food has only been around for ....I dunno, 80 years?


The History of Dog Food: http://www.dogforums.com/5-dog-food-forum/43868-history-dog-food.html


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## MonicaBH (Jul 5, 2008)

GeorgeGlass said:


> If you're going to go with a grocery-store dog food (which, personally, I don't think is as bad as many do), I would go with Purina. Purina One being the first choice and Dog Chow/Puppy Chow being the second.
> 
> I feed Diamond Naturals. My dog thrives on it so far, so I won't change unless he stops doing so well on it. It's $30 per 40 pound bag. The top ingredients aren't perfect, but not bad in my opinion: Chicken, chicken meal, whole grain brown rice, white rice, cracked pearled barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols)


I feed my dogs Diamond Naturals (chicken) as well. I switch it up with Authority Harvest Baked chicken. All of them seem to be doing very well on these foods. Good skin & coat, good poops, etc. And, the best part, is that it is affordable. I also really like Blue Buffalo, but cannot feed it on a regular basis.

I've tried the super premium foods, such as Canidae & Innova. The Innova adult caused my dogs to have horrible skin & coats, and it was also VERY expensive.  Canidae got to be relatively expensive for what is in it, too. I've fed Natural Balance in the past (duck & potato), and I really liked it, but it too is very expensive these days. The dogs have also eaten Solid Gold Wolf King, Merrick & Nature's Variety, all with _meh _results.

I am not sure how I feel about the dog food analysis website. I am not sure that I think Taste of the Wild has the best ingredient list, and it's pretty low in kcal/cup, but it ranks as a 6 star food. It's subjective, IMO.


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## Moonshadow (Nov 9, 2008)

BoxMeIn21 said:


> Regardless of chemicals, I don't understand why you would want to feed your dog a food full of stuff its body doesn't need...



Well, I don't feed this particular food but if someone's dog does well on it and it's in the person's price range I see no problem with feeding it. There's really no right or wrong way to feed. 

I feed both kibble and raw (and some cooked meat) so I can see both sides of feeding...raw vs. kibble. As long as a food is working for a dog, it's not a dangerous food and the owner can afford it...I say go with what works.

I've seen dogs that have had yearly vaccinations and ate Dad's dog food for their entire life live to be 17 and I've seen raw fed dogs with minimal vaccinations die of cancer at 7 so I'm really not sure I can ever say one is better than the other.


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## blueribbon (Jan 18, 2009)

I have asked several vets about Iams food and not one has ever said it was a bad food. If it is really bad, why aren't vets commenting? 

I've been using Iams and just recently, Merrick.


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

blueribbon said:


> I have asked several vets about Iams food and not one has ever said it was a bad food. If it is really bad, why aren't vets commenting?
> 
> I've been using Iams and just recently, Merrick.


If you read this post, you will understand why vets aren't saying anything:

http://www.dogforums.com/5-dog-food-forum/43868-history-dog-food.html


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## deege39 (Dec 29, 2008)

Moonshadow said:


> Well, I don't feed this particular food but if someone's dog does well on it and it's in the person's price range I see no problem with feeding it. There's really no right or wrong way to feed.
> 
> I feed both kibble and raw (and some cooked meat) so I can see both sides of feeding...raw vs. kibble. As long as a food is working for a dog, it's not a dangerous food and the owner can afford it...I say go with what works.
> 
> I've seen dogs that have had yearly vaccinations and ate Dad's dog food for their entire life live to be 17 and I've seen raw fed dogs with minimal vaccinations die of cancer at 7 so I'm really not sure I can ever say one is better than the other.


I completely agree. I see no sense in forking out big bucks for dog food, I really don't; Just because it has the "best" ingredients, well if another cheaper brand gives the same results, what does it matter? I've had several people condemn me for not spending the money to get the more expensive brands... Well, I just can't afford it, and I personally don't care if anyone gets on my case for that. Just because I can't afford the expensive dog food doesn't mean I'm not a good owner. Donatello is not needing for anything.


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## GeorgeGlass (Jun 5, 2008)

My mid-level food costs significantly less than Iams Premium Protection. So I don't see myself as forking over big bucks.


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

myminpins said:


> If you read this post, you will understand why vets aren't saying anything:
> 
> http://www.dogforums.com/5-dog-food-forum/43868-history-dog-food.html


I read your post. With respect, I think the article quoted is slanted and over-generalizes. It's written by a company that sells pet supplements. 

No veterinarian ever became a vet to make money. A disservice is done to veterinarians when generalizations are made and it is implied that they benefit in making recommendations regarding what to feed. If you think that your vet is the one bad apple doing this, then find a new vet. 

The American Veterinary Medical Association (http://www.avma.org/press/releases/070404_homemade_diets.asp), though it cautions consumers about feeding a home made diet, offers a resource for folks who just want to make it themselves: PetDiets.com (http://www.petdiets.com/) is a great resource for home made diets.


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

PetCareBev, you are entitled to your opinions but I've done years and years of researching into dog food, where it came from, why it's there, why vets recommend this or that and I found that article to be spot on.

The arcticle was written by Lew Olsen, a well known advocate of raw diets. I have spoken with Lew Olsen in person. He NEVER encourages supplements and was very helpful in helping me ensure the raw diet I was feeding was a good one. His sole purpose is to ensure dogs are fed a good, nutritious diet.

There is not ONE vet in this PROVINCE who encourages raw feeding. They have been very thoroughly brainwashed around here.

I know there are wonderful vets elsewhere who encourage a raw diet, know lots about nutrition, etc., but your AVERAGE vet fits into this article perfectly.

EDIT: This is taken from that AVMA article you quoted:



> "Table scraps should definitely not be a part of your pet's diet," said AVMA President Roger Mahr, DVM. "Gravies, meat fats and *poultry skin* can readily cause stomach and intestinal upsets, and even lead to a life-threatening condition called *pancreatitis* in dogs. *Bones will splinter when chewed and cannot be digested by the
> animal's system.*


 NOT TRUE.



> The AVMA does not recommend that people attempt to prepare home-cooked meals for their pets because pet nutrition is very complicated and unique to species and individual animals.


That quote was USED in the article I mentioned. Here it is again. Sorry, your arguments hold no water for me whatsoever. 

I don't see the article as slanted in the least except towards the DOGS so they will get a good diet.


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

myminpins, you did not include full quotes:



> The AVMA does not recommend that people attempt to prepare home-cooked meals for their pets because pet nutrition is very complicated and unique to species and individual animals. *If you are certain you wish to cook for your pet, the AVMA does recommend you first consult with your veterinarian and do some research on appropriate diets for your pet. A pet owner should only consider recipes for pet food that are developed for dogs or cats by veterinarians or trained professionals in animal nutrition.*


(bolding in the quotes on this post is mine.) 

They recommend if you want to feed a home made diet that you first do research and look over recipes. 

It goes on to say: 



> Dr. Tony Buffington, DVM, Ph.D., an Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine professor of clinical sciences and a member of the AVMA, agrees that *preparing food for your pet can be tricky*. In the event a pet owner is determined to make pet food at home, he recommends Home-Prepared Dog & Cat Diets: the Healthful Alternative by Dr. Donald Strombeck as a good cookbook for pets. Dr. Buffington also recommends http://www.petdiets.com/ as one the best Web sites on home-cooked pet diets.
> 
> 
> > They say it's "tricky." they DON'T say it's impossible.
> ...


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## blueribbon (Jan 18, 2009)

The vets I have spoken to were pretty direct about what brands they didn't care for. I didn't sense any hidden agenda. 

I am debating whether to switch off the Merrick to Orijen. 

Also, I didn't see the chemical preservatives. It looks like Iams is using what the other holistic brands use.


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

I did not say the ONLY way to feed a dog a good diet was raw. I said it is my preferred choice.

That article still tries to get you to work with a vet. I'd never ask a vet about nutrition. Most of them know next to nothing.

Recipe for feeding raw? No. You don't need a recipe. You just need common sense and you need to ensure you give them the correct calcium phosphorous ratio in their diet. Wolves survive nicely on a raw diet. They have no recipe. Dogs are still the same INSIDE as wolves. Nothing there has changed - just their personalities and looks have changed.

The AVMA does everything possible to DIScourage people from doing it themselves. That is what I take issue with. It's not that difficult if you want to take the time to learn. If you don't want to, then it's better you stick with premade foods. You can also purchase premade raw diets and premade cooked diets as well as dehydrated diets where you don't have to think but you do have to take some time.

I have also never said EVERYONE should feed raw. Again, I advocate it but I also know which kibbles are really good brands and which should be avoided. 

Yes, cooked bones are VERY dangerous. You should never ever feed a cooked bone to a dog. That is where 99.9% of bone problems come from. My own vet thinks raw bones are dangerous. She is wrong. 

If you had the experience I have had with vets in this area as well as the general consensus from five years of different dog forum boards, you'd probably realize that MOST vets fit the criteria. I never said they ALL did


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## PetCareBev (Jan 12, 2009)

myminpins, we don't see eye to eye, but I'm having a swell time arguing with you!


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