# Dog food analysis



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I had a few minutes to kill at the pet store the other day, so I started looking at the ingredients in Nutro's large breed formula chicken and brown rice food. Now, I don't feed the best food out there by a long shot. I used to feed Nutro. I was pretty shocked at the difference between my food and this stuff. And then I looked at Pro Plan:

Nutro large breed chicken and brown rice:
See the back of this package in stores for the approximate kibble size.
Ingredients
*Chicken, Chicken Meal (source of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate), Whole Brown Rice, Brewers Rice, Rice Bran, Whole Grain Oatmeal, Chicken Fat* (preserved with mixed Tocopherols), Natural Flavor, Sunflower Oil (preserved with mixed Tocopherols), Soybean Oil (preserved with mixed Tocopherols), Pea Protein, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Choline Chloride, DL-Methionine, Zinc Sulfate, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Selenium Yeast, Biotin, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Potassium Iodide, Folic Acid, Rosemary Extract, Decaffeinated Green Tea Extract, Spearmint Extract.

Visit our Ingredient Glossary for more information.

Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (Min.) 21.00% Crude Fat (Min.) 13.00%



Calorie Content
Metabolizable energy 3,588 kcal/kg, 288 kcal/cup (calculated). 

30# bag, $49. 

So I looked at the Pro Plan:

Purina® Pro Plan® Large Breed Adult Dog Food

*Ingredients:*
*Chicken, Brewers Rice, Whole Grain Wheat, Corn Gluten Meal, Whole Grain Corn, Poultry By-Product Meal, Animal Fat* Preserved with Mixed-Tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), Pearled Barley, Corn Bran, Fish Meal, Animal Digest, Fish Oil, Di-Calcium Phosphate, Salt, Dried Egg Product, Potassium Chloride, Potassium Citrate, L-Lysine Mono-Hydrochloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Choline Chloride, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Source of Vitamin C), Manganese Sulfate, Niacin, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Carbonate, Copper Sulfate, Calcium Pantothenate, Garlic Oil, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin Supplement, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Source of Vitamin K Activity), Folic Acid, Biotin, Sodium Selenite *Guaranteed Analysis:* 
Crude Protein (Min) 26.0% 
Crude Fat (Min) 12.0% 

I think this one at least said 388kcal/cup. 

$44.99 for a 40 pound bag (bag said so much percentage free so usually, not 40 pounds for that price.)

So I left PetsMart and went to PetSuppliesPlus, Diamond Naturals was on sale for $29.99 for a 40# bag. Normally I pay $31.99 at TSC:


Diamond Naturals Chicken & Rice Formula for Adult Dogs
*Ingredients*

*Chicken, chicken meal, whole grain brown rice, peas, cracked pearled barley, pea flour, chicken fat,* dried beet pulp, egg product, natural flavor, fish meal, flaxseed, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, dried chicory root, kale, chia seed, pumpkin, blueberries, oranges, quinoa, dried kelp, coconut, spinach, carrots, papaya, yucca schidigera extract, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Bifidobacterium animalis fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus reuteri fermentation product, vitamin E supplement, beta carotene, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid.
*Guaranteed Analysis*

Crude Protein 26.0% Minimum Crude Fat 16.0% Minimum 

*Calorie Content*: 3,708 kcal/kg (368 kcal/cup) Calculated Metabolizable Energy


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

selzer said:


> I had a few minutes to kill at the pet store the other day, so I started looking at the ingredients in Nutro's large breed formula chicken and brown rice food. Now, I don't feed the best food out there by a long shot. I used to feed Nutro. I was pretty shocked at the difference between my food and this stuff. And then I looked at Pro Plan:
> 
> Nutro large breed chicken and brown rice:
> See the back of this package in stores for the approximate kibble size.
> ...


Notice a few differences here. The main ingredients are before the fat. Pro-plan doesn't give you what type of animal, generic fat. Definitely paying for the purina name here.

Push comes to shove, the dog needs calories. That is what is dependent on how much he must eat to maintain his body weight. So much for the more expensive the food, the less you have to feed of it. The Nutro is 288kcal/cup, so not only are you paying way more, for similar ingredient content, but you are going to have to feed more of it. 25% more of it. 

And look at the ingredients: Chicken, good, but that is 70% water, so followed by chicken meal. Fine. Then four types of rice/flour/peas, before the fat. So is it more chicken or more filler? Well, ok, not all of us can support our dogs on meat alone. But don't get snookered in by brand names or price. 

You really have to look at the whole picture not to get robbed.

And look at the Pro Plan. Chicken first, but definitely more wheat and corn gluten meal before the poultry by-product meal -- main source of animal protein. What is that poultry by-product meal anyway. YUCK!!! Once you suck out the water/they suck out the water from the chicken, it lands way down on the list. This food is really junk. And they are charging an arm and a leg for it.

You can't make this stuff up. Dog food is a racket.

I put this in the puppy section, because that is what we look at when we start feeding our puppy. Normally, by the time they are adults, we have the food figured out. Normally.


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## Galathiel (Nov 30, 2012)

It's interesting the disparity in calories (not to mention ingredients). If I were feeding Nutro, my dog would need to eat about 6 1/2 to 7 cups a day to maintain his weight. Can you imagine the output?? You'd be singing your poop song as a sad dirge. Right now he's eating 4 cups a day of NV Instinct.


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## eddie1976E (Nov 7, 2010)

Mine was losing weight on 5 cups of Fromm, I went to Dr. Tim's Momentum. He gets between 4 and 4.5 cups a day (588 cal/cup) and is maintaining nicely. I like the food. 94% animal protein. I would think most people could feed less, I think Remi is not normal with his calorie needs.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

but you want to have nutrient dense, calorie low . 
Energy via fat is very easy to add .
If you don't have the nutrient base then additional fat is just going to be empty calories. 
Fit , not fat.
Good fat , good fats . Not adulterated, rancid or recycled grease .


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Have you ever noticed the army of Nutro reps who lurk around corners to jump out and jabber at you at PetSmart and Petco? Those are expensive. That takes a big marketing budget. They don't work for free. The cost of them has to be built into the dog food. Some significant portion of the cost of each bag has to be going to that nonsense.

The same, by the way, is true of Blue and Purina. They don't have the army of reps in the stores, but they have big advertising campaigns that everybody sees. All that advertising they do is very, very expensive. That's built into the price.


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## eddie1976E (Nov 7, 2010)

Magwart said:


> Have you ever noticed the army of Nutro reps who lurk around corners to jump out and jabber at you at PetSmart and Petco? Those are expensive. That takes a big marketing budget. They don't work for free. The cost of them has to be built into the dog food. Some significant portion of the cost of each bag has to be going to that nonsense.
> 
> The same, by the way, is true of Blue and Purina. They don't have the army of reps in the stores, but they have big advertising campaigns that everybody sees. All that advertising they do is very, very expensive. That's built into the price.


Big business at its best (or worse) depending on how you look at it. And, to pay for those people and keep investors happy, where do you think the cuts will be made? I bet in the quality of the ingredients and manufacturing.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Magwart said:


> Have you ever noticed the army of Nutro reps who lurk around corners to jump out and jabber at you at PetSmart and Petco? Those are expensive. That takes a big marketing budget. They don't work for free. The cost of them has to be built into the dog food. Some significant portion of the cost of each bag has to be going to that nonsense.
> 
> The same, by the way, is true of Blue and Purina. They don't have the army of reps in the stores, but they have big advertising campaigns that everybody sees. All that advertising they do is very, very expensive. That's built into the price.


 Absolutely.


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## Galathiel (Nov 30, 2012)

I know I dreaded picking up dog food on Saturdays at Petsmart because the "Blue Buffalo guy" would always be there ... and smelling like smoke (I'm extremely sensitive). You could get trapped on the aisle forever if you're not careful.


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## dz0qp5 (Oct 12, 2004)

Interestingly enough, I have fed all 3 of these for a fairly long time and it was no contest, Pro-Plan gave by far the best most consistent results.


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