Long post, sorry!
I have no problem with folks feeding their little darlings whatever they wish. Truthfully, we could afford the expensive feed but I see no reason for spending all that money for fancy stuff that for the most part is also in the Chow.
For the most part is also in Chow? Let's compare the "chow" to what some consider high quality dog food.
Here is the ingredient list of a popular supermarket dog food, meaning it can be purchased in the same place you buy your food.
A: Whole grain corn, meat and bone meal, corn gluten meal, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols, soybean meal, poultry by-product meal, egg and chicken flavor, whole grain wheat, animal digest, salt, calcium carbonate, potassium chloride, dicalcium phosphate, choline chloride, zinc sulfate, Yellow 6, Vitamin E supplement, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, ferrous sulfate, Yellow 5, Red 40, manganese sulfate, niacin, Blue 2, Vitamin A supplement, copper sulfate, calcium pantothenate, garlic oil, pyridoxine hydrochloride, Vitamin B-12 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, Vitamin D-3 supplement, riboflavin supplement, calcium iodate, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), folic acid, biotin, sodium selenite. B-4101
The first ingredient is corn. Dog food ingredients are listed by weight, so that means corn is the main ingredient of that food. Good luck finding any scientific study that states dogs can thrive (not survive) on a diet of mostly corn their whole lives. The next ingredient is meat and bone meal. The animal that the meat and bone is from isn't even specified. That means one of two things, they do not want you to know what animal it is or it is unfit for even human consumption. Personally, I am not comfortable feeding my dog anything that is unfit for me to eat. Here is a quote from dogfoodadvisor on unspecified meats:
"Low-grade meals come from anonymous materials like slaughterhouse waste and spoiled supermarket meats — even diseased or dying cattle — or dead zoo animals" http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/choosing-dog-food/about-meat-meal/
After that you have more corn and more unspecified animal products. There is poultry by-product. Again, what kind of poultry? By-products are a whole other game. It's usually the beaks, feet and feathers. Not much substance there. No fruits or veggies. There is wheat and more unspecified animal ingredients. Lastly, there are artificial flavors, coloring, and preservatives. Artificial chemicals are always good, right?
Here is one of the higher rated brands that are more expensive and sold at specialty pet stores:
B: Chicken meal, steel-cut oats, deboned chicken, whole potato, peas, chicken fat, whole egg, deboned flounder, sun-cured alfalfa, chicken liver, herring oil, pea fiber, whole apples, whole pears, sweet potato, pumpkin, butternut squash, parsnips, carrots, spinach, cranberries, blueberries, kelp, chicory root, juniper berries, angelica root, marigold flowers, sweet fennel, peppermint leaf, lavender, Vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, niacin, riboflavin, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement, zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, selenium yeast, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product.
Chicken meal is the first ingredient. Good start! Because "meal" means the water is removed, so this is all chicken meat. All meats on the ingredient list specify exactly what animal it is from. Nothing says just "meat or poultry." It even species the exact fish, flounder and herring oil. There are fruits & veggies. It might be too much oats, potatoes and peas for some people's preference, but looks like a nice amount of meat. No corn or grains. And NO artificial chemicals, colors and flavors.
The only thing I see similar between the "chow" and expensive brand are the added vitamin supplements.
Assuming most dogs eat the same meal their whole life, what do you think eating all these artificial chemicals, corn and the lowest quality who knows what meat could be doing to their bodies? Why do dogs even need artificial colors? It's only added to please us humans. Your dog does not care. Imagine if you ate Hot Pockets your entire life? PS: Hot Pockets, who own a supermarket brand of dog food were recently recalled for having unfit for human consumption meat in their Hot Pockets. If that's how they produce human food, imagine what goes into the dog food!
ARGGGHH!
Ok, as this one has touched a deep nerve with me, I'm going to ignore the very sound advice on my signature and jump in. I almost wish I could get permission to repost this post on my website.
Whenever I see a new client I always ask, of course, what they are feeding. And if, say, a seven year old dog is doing well- good weight, good coat, no allergies, good stools, good appetite, and is on a decent food like Purina, Beneful, Pedigree, I would NEVER suggest that they 'upgrade' to something better with 'better ingredients.' And I wish the busybodies would stop doing that as well. Now, if you are starting out with a puppy - sure, we can discuss the relative merits of foods. If there is any sort of problem, of course, 'upgrading' food is the ultimate in natural, holistic health improvement.
But this idea that people whose dogs are doing just fine have to keep searching for the Utopian absolutely best possible food is alarmist and harmful. This poster's experiences are a perfect example of the problems that such 'advice' can provoke.
If I bring my dog to my veterinarian and tell him what food I feed and he knows there are better opinions out there, but doesn't inform me because on the outside my dog looks healthy, I would be pissed. I am paying you to take care of my dog and inform me of the healthiest ways to raise her. I would want to know if there are better options and not have it be withheld because at that moment my dog looks good.
So you suggest waiting until a dog has health issues to upgrade? That could end up being too late. I would assume veterinarians would want to prevent problems before they occur. Isn't that why we use things like tick/flea protection? So feed kibble loaded with corn, little to no meat and chemicals as long as they appear healthy and then if after all those years of artificial chemicals finally catches up to them, then suggest upgrading?
To me that's like if a smoker went to his doctor and his check up and bloodwork were normal and the doctor says "well you're healthy now, so continue smoking and if you start to show signs of breathing issues, then we'll discuss helping you quit."
I'd just like to point out, I don't go shouting from rooftops or telling random people or even my close friends what to feed their dogs. I'm not one of those people that needs to convert everyone. I know not everyone can afford the expensive stuff. Heck, if I had more than one dog, I wouldn't be able to afford to feed the food I am feeding right now. I'm just happy to know as much as I do and made an informed decision for
my dog. I have a friend who feeds one of the lowest quality dog foods to all her dogs and her two oldest have lived long and mostly healthy lives. If they were on better food, could they have lived even longer? Who knows! To each their own. We just all do the best we can for our dogs.
