Quote:
Originally Posted by dwerten  I have seen your other postings but why do you dislike hills so much - i know other is science diet regular prescription - not too thrilled myself so had mine on ivd (royal canine) prescription but dexter got pancreatitis on ivd fish and potato - he itched like crazy on hills prescription ultra z/d the ultra allergy free dog food - yeah right - it had soy, corn and chicken in it  |
Although I think Science Diet (Hills) is better than some things (ie. Old Roy, Dog Chow, Cat Chow, etc.), I think there are so many more better foods. I consider it a grocery store brand and in no way a premium brand of pet food. It's loaded with corn, wheat, fillers, biproducts and other crap.
Their adult original dry dog food:
Chicken,
Ground Whole Grain Corn, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum,
Ground Whole Grain Wheat,
Chicken By-Product Meal, Soybean Meal, Animal Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid),
Corn Gluten Meal, Brewers Rice, Chicken Liver Flavor, Soybean Oil, Dried Egg Product, Flaxseed, Potassium Chloride, Iodized Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, vitamins (L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), DL-Methionine, preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid, Beta-Carotene, Rosemary Extract.
I'm starting vet school in the fall, and I know Hills donates a ton of money to vet schools and The Veterinary Association. They also teach most of the nutrition classes and tell the students that their food is best. And there is not much about nutrition even taught eat vet school. Also, Hills along with other big companies like Purina, Iams, Eukanuba, etc give vets that sell their products huge kick-backs and a lot of free products. Being a vet student, I can get 80% off any Hills or Purina pet foods if I wanted to. No thanks - I would rather keep spending my money on premium foods for my pets. These companies do this to get vet students hooked on their foods so they recommend it to their clients later on. Pretty good marketing ploy huh? Here is an article I found that basically says what I already did.
An article from the Wallstreet journal:
http://www.simplyschnauzer.net/hills.html
A couple quotes from the article that I think are important:
"Borrowing a page from the pharmaceuticals companies, which routinely woo doctors to prescribe their drugs, Hill's has spent a generation cultivating its professional following.
It spends hundreds of thousands of dollars a year funding university research and nutrition courses at every one of the 27 U.S. veterinary colleges. Once in practice, vets who sell Science Diet and other premium foods directly from their offices pocket profits of as much as 40%. "
"But the reliance on vet endorsements has its critics. "Consumers think they're getting a better product because veterinarians are recommending it," says Ann Martin, author of a new book, "Foods Pets Die For, " She notes that many
pet doctors are "brainwashed into thinking they have to recommend these commercial foods," having been so heavily exposed to them in vet schools. "