A few months ago, Marianne Krumdick, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine extraordinaire, gave us a guest post on How To Save Money On Pets. Today she’s back with a follow-up. Several of us (including me!) wanted to know what kind of pet food we should be feeding our pets. That’s exactly what we’re learning about today. Marianne is going to give us some expert advice on what to feed your pets to keep them healthy and happy.
Making a small investment in good pet food can go a long way towards keeping your pet healthy, which is both good for your wallet and the moral thing to do. Marianne is going to show us how to pick out pet food that will meet our pet’s needs without breaking the bank. There’s no reason pets have to cost a fortune!
(Note: this post is focused on dog and cat food. If you have a question about a different type of animal, please leave a comment for Marianne)
I personally have just used the food recommended by the shelter where I found my dog – he’s never been able to stomach anything else no matter how slowly I tried to transition him. I asked Marianne about it and it looks like that’s still a great choice for him. It’s good to find out from an expert that his food meets the vet’s recommendations!
Take it away, Marianne!
You love your dog and your cat. They are a part of your family and you want to feed them a healthy, nutritious food. You do your due diligence by scouring the internet, asking your neighbor, sister in law and mail man what they feed their pet. Everyone seems to have a DIFFERENT opinion or recommendation. Dry food, wet food, raw food, grain free, home cooked, oh my! What are you supposed to do?
Don’t worry. I’m here to help.
Please value your veterinarian’s opinion more than the 17 year old PetSmart employee
Will vets’ recommendations differ? Yes…but usually there is research or an actual medically plausible reason for their recommendations. Some veterinarians know more than others about nutrition but they can all provide a good starting point.
Look for the AAFCO statement on your bag of food
EVERY bag of dog or cat food will have this, no matter the cost. This is a starting point for what you are looking for. You should obtain two main pieces of information from the AAFCO statement: How the food is tested (formulation or feeding trials) and what stage of life the food is manufactured for (all life stages vs growing puppies, adults, seniors).
A food that states it is ‘formulated’ means that the formula has met minimum nutritional requirements via laboratory analysis versus actually being fed to animals (feeding trials). Being fed for ‘all life stages’ usually means that it is formulated to meet the requirement of puppies or kittens (typically higher in calories, calcium and phosphorus). I would recommend a food that uses animal feeding trials and is designed for a specific life stage.
Example: “This dog food has undergone animal feeding tests to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for Maintenance of adult dogs.”
Start your pet off right
Dogs know how to work us. If you offer a diet and your pooch doesn’t immediately eat it…Are you offering hamburger or steak immediately? DO NOT DO THIS! You are training your pet to refuse its diet, in anticipation of getting something better.
“He really doesn’t eat that much. I only feed him 1 cup and there’s still a lot left in the bowl.”
I hear this all the time! Your dog is makin’ darn sure that he is not passing up any Cheetos, lunch meat, McDonald’s cheeseburger, etc. If any of the above is not offered to his satisfaction…he will then eat a small portion of his regular dog food. And THAT, my friends, is why you perceive that ‘he isn’t eating that much.’
Remember that price does not always equal quality
IMHO some products use a substantial portion of their budget for marketing. Beautiful, colorful pictures of YOUR very dogs’ ancestors (wolves, of course), supplemented with the Garden of Eden supplement bits or some other shenanigans. Pet food is made up of the same basic building blocks as any food: protein, carbohydrates and fats. Supplements and vitamins can be helpful but make sure they are backed by actual science and not fairy dust.
What about grain free?
Some grain-free diets can provide good nutrition. However, in most cases, these grain-free diets do not offer any additional health benefits over diets that contain grains. All diets should be evaluated on the overall nutrient profile (not individual ingredients). Personally, I think that ‘grain free’ has become part of a huge marketing fad. Some dogs and/or cats ‘may’ have food allergies. However, typically the protein source is a more common offender than ‘evil’ grains. Please speak to your veterinarian if your dog is currently on a grain free diet as the FDA is investigating a possible connection between grain free diets and canine heart disease.
Food allergies and food trials
I mentioned food allergies in the last paragraph. If your dog or cat has suffered from chronic skin, ear or intestinal issues, you may have been recommended a hydrolyzed protein or novel protein diet.
From a personal finance perspective…ouch! $50 for a 12 lb bag? I hear you! However, many times the recommendation is for an initial 8-12 week period. This IS the test for food allergies. If it works and your pet is now free from symptoms or those symptoms are greatly reduced…now you can ask about transitioning to something on the commercial market.
In addition, many times an expensive dog food is still WAY cheaper than going into the vet 6 times a year for ear infections. If you decide to do the food trial – please administer the diet the way it’s supposed to be fed. No treats or other foods that don’t jive with the diet for that 8-12 week period of time. If you can’t get everyone on board in the house regarding the food, don’t waste your money… but also don’t expect your pet to get better.
This brings us to homemade diets
If I had a nickel for every fat Chihuahua I’ve seen that just ‘eats what the owner eats’, I might be financially independent 😁
I get that you feel bad when your dog doesn’t like the food you are offering. Maybe you even have waited a day…the battle of wills between you and your pooch. If your dog is healthy, he will eventually eat.
Cats, on the other hand, are kind of assholes. They will literally commit ‘foodacide’ and rather die than eat something they don’t approve of. But I digress…
If you want to feed a homemade diet, please do! (Personally, I barely cook for myself so it is NOT happening for my pets.) However, keep in mind that chicken and rice every day is not a balanced homemade diet. It is ok to feed chicken or hamburger and rice SHORT TERM during a period of gastrointestinal upset.
If you insist on feeding homemade, my recommendation would be to visit balanceit.com. Establish an account and then follow the prompts to develop a recipe specifically for your dog’s or cat’s needs. At the end, a free recipe is generated to be used in combination with a powdered supplement from BalanceIT. Veterinary nutritionists develop these recipes and supplements so you are truly getting the very best for your pet.
Lastly (but certainly not least), the very controversial RAW FOOD!
The argument for feeding raw food is that dogs and cats have evolved successfully through hunting and scavenging – consuming foods high in protein and low in carbohydrates….ie, not at all like the premade kibble and canned diets fed today. The arguments against feeding raw food are many.
The major concerns include nutritional adequacy and bacterial/environmental contamination. At this point in the raw food development game…there are many diets that are considered balanced. The main issue (as I see it) involves shedding of bacteria into the environment (fecal, saliva). Your dog eats raw food then licks your child’s face and poops in the backyard. Salmonella everywhere!
Currently, the American Veterinary Medical Association does not recommend the feeding of raw foods. In all honesty, most veterinary professionals and nutritionists believe that more research needs to be done to evaluate/compare the true nutritional adequacy and safety of raw vs commercially prepared foods.
What do I personally feed my pets?
What I feed my pets is certainly not right for every dog or cat but here it is…
I have two middle aged mixed breed dogs that are both about 45 lbs and have no current health issues. They eat Science Diet Healthy Advantage Oral+. It’s a maintenance diet that is technically only sold through veterinarians. An over the counter similar diet would be Science Diet Adult Oral Care.
I have two 12-13 year old cats. One of them has significant arthritis from an old fracture. They are currently both getting a combination of canned and dry j/d (50/50), which is a prescription diet for joint disease. Unfortunately, this diet has been discontinued for cats (still an AWESOME choice for dogs with arthritis!) so I’m on the hunt for something new.
Please keep in mind that diets should be chosen after consultation with your veterinarian based on the species, age and health of your pet.
I had to read this when I saw it posted!
I’ve seen message board posts for years about “How to reduce my budget”, then see that the people are spending insane money on some organic pet food or even worse, a raw diet. I would try to address that and point out my wife’s a vet and we would never do that, then immediately be shouted down by people who swear vets are bought by big food companies while in vet school, ect (we got one bag of Royal Canin and one bag of Iams a month, what an incentive!) The “raw food” and “organic food” crowd for dogs are some of the craziest people I’ve encountered on the internet, and that say a lot!
I fondly remember my dad got a dog then was lecturing us about all the pet food research he had done and why he feeds the dog such and such brand. He’s such a sucker for internet conspiracy theories. Then he kept calling us up for the vet’s advice and complaining about skin allergies. After the four time, he finally capitulated and moved to a mass produced brand and what do you know, skin allergies immediately clear up.
What to feed my pet is always been a headache for me. A much read post, thanks for sharing.