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Monday, May 18, 2009

Need a Better Dog Food


For years people that been asking me what I feed my own Labrador Retrievers. They have always had shiny coats, healthy skin, hardly any allergies, clean ears, good joint support and the list goes on. However, a few months ago that changed.

We noticed a slow progression of deterioration for all of the above over a period of several weeks. At first we shrugged it off to seasonal allergies but as Dakota’s eye discharge got worse and Cheyenne began to gnaw off her paws, we knew something was just not right.

It was a trip to our local pet food store this weekend that a light went on over my head and the “ah-ha” moment started.

Per the store clerk, another company recently purchased Eagle Pack and Wellness dog foods. Now, I cannot find any information on their websites or the ‘net to confirm or deny this statement but he stated the exact time when I started to noticed a difference in the health of the Lab Brats.

So, we began looking over the shelves of holistic dog food. We know how to read the labels and we know what is most important but most of the dog foods were loaded with fillers, synthesized vitamins and nutrients and loads of ingredients we couldn’t pronounce. Needless to say, it was making our heads spin to find the right one.

That was when a woman from Nature’s Logic Dog Food came over. She noticed our frustration and after asking a few questions about the Lab Brats, showed us her product to see if it was what we were looking for.

Yes! This was exactly what we were looking for! Just a comparison on the ingredients highlighted the huge difference between the foods:

Other “Natural” Dog Food Example
INGREDIENTS: Chicken, Turkey, Chicken Broth, Chicken Liver, Flaxseed, Tricalcium Phosphate, Eggs, Peas, Carrots, Lecithin, Choline Chloride, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Biotin, Riboflavin Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid, Dried Kelp, Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Taurine, Potassium Chloride, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide, Artichokes, Cranberries, Pumpkin, Tomato, Blueberries, Broccoli, Cabbage, Kale, Parsley (Note: This particular natural diet has 43 total ingredients; about 19 recognizable food ingredients and about 24 chemically synthesized vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.)

Nature’s Logic Dog Food Example
INGREDIENTS: Chicken, Chicken Broth, Chicken Liver, Chicken Heart, Egg Product, Animal Plasma, Flaxseeds, Montmorillonite, Cottage Cheese, Brewers Yeast, Cod Liver Oil, Egg Shell, Apple, Suncured Alfalfa Meal, Tomato Powder, Parsley, Blueberry, Cranberry, Apricots, Spinach, Artichoke, Broccoli, Carrots, Pumpkin, Kelp, Chicory Root, Rosemary.

You have to remember that when a dog hunts in the wild, they eat everything they catch – the entire prey. However commercial dog foods fall extremely short in their ability to match the quality of food found in the wild.

We are currently on a slow dog food transition to Nature’s Logic Dry Kibble – Beef. It will take a while to fully transition and see the full effects but I can honestly say that I have never, ever, seen my Labrador Retrievers react to food like that – they can’t get enough. Sure, Dakota normally drools like Niagara Falls when food is around but with this food, it turns into a monsoon! I can’t wait to see the end results!

(Do you feed Nature’s Logic? If so, we would love for you to comment on your experience with this dog food as well.)

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5 Comments:

Blogger Nika + PARKER said...

Hi! I used to feed Holistic Eagle Pack, he did Very well on it but gained weight. I have changed his food to the following:

http://www.frommfamily.com/products-fs-d.php

He's had the grain-free, the whitefish and the pork thus far, he Loves it and is doing excellent on it and is at his ideal weight. Good luck !

May 18, 2009 9:47 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I've fed Nature's Logic to our German Shepherd since he was 8 weeks old - he's now a little over a year. He is doing wonderfully on Nature's Logic - I wouldn't feed anything else. After reading the Nature's Logic web site, I won't fee anything to my dog that has man made vitamins or minerals in it. They can be dangerous.

May 18, 2009 3:50 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Thanks for the information. We have a couple of dogs and will look into this. Thanks again.

May 19, 2009 11:01 AM  
Blogger Luck O' The Labrador said...

We also recently switched away from Wellness. Our labrador developed less-than-solid stools that would not improve no matter what I did. We switched to a different Wellness formula - a low allergen one - thinking we were dealing with an allergy to chicken or something like that. Things improved for awhile and then went back to mushy stool again. We heard from a friend that she had good luck feeding Fromm's to her dogs. We switched and things improved drastically with our lab. I'd encourage anyone to check out Fromm's line of dog foods and their ingredient list is also great. And the food is produced right here in Wisconsin!

May 19, 2009 2:04 PM  
Anonymous Patrice said...

Thanks for the information. Nice blog.

May 22, 2009 3:16 AM  

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