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Originally Posted by YorkyKids There is NOTHING wrong with Purina ONE or ProPlan. I have been using this food for several years now. It is a great well rounded food with no preservatives. All of my Yorkies love it. I use the Lamb and Rice because the Chicken and Rice has a higher content of "wheat". |
I dont think there is anything wrong with feeding Purina One or pro plan- my breeder had Rocky on it when he was a pup, but then I learned about foods with better ingredients- BUT please do not be mistaken- ALL dry foods contain preservatives! They have to- even natural foods. One of the main reasons I dont feed commercial brands is because of the preservatives (BHA mainly, known to cause cancer), corn, and by-products (which some will say dogs in the "wild" who survived on their owns would eat every part and that the foods with a whole protein source actually have more water than protein) but just wanted to clarify that Purina one actually DOES have perservatives. The only difference is that Purina uses artificial perservatives (such as ethoxyquin, butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA)) to lessen the cost and continue being mass produced where as natural foods have natural preservatives (Tocopherols (vitamin E) and ascorbic acid (vitamin C) are the most common natural preservatives). Some believe that health problems can occur in dogs that are fed artificial preservatives because the FDA has received many consumer reports in the last 9 years (even those it has been used in food for over 30). Obviously determing which food is best for your dog it is your choice, but I choose not to wait for the continued research on the artificial preservatives.
Although vitamins C and E can both be used as preservatives, they arent as effective as the artificial preservatives so it is important for those who are feeding natural foods to use within 6 months (which I dont think is a problem for many as long as you arent buying huge bags, we always buy the smallest bags available).
This article is awesome! I encourage everyone interested in food to take a look:
http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/pets/95
Particularly:
Standard commercial diets—the "name" brands. They are adequate in most cases for most normal, healthy, young to middle-aged animals, but they are not optimum. They are merely adequate. These products are reasonably well researched, but quality comes second to price and palatability. They are made to be competitive and are usually loaded with chemicals. An average age thirty-pound dog eating this food regularly will consume nine pounds of chemicals a year!
Top shelf lines. These products, including Science Diet and Iams, feature higher-quality ingredients but still have artificial preservatives and other chemical additives. I place some "natural" products in this category because they are made with inferior ingredients such as "wheat flour" (a euphemism for white flour). If the product is made with whole grain, it will say "ground whole wheat" or "whole-wheat flour." There are, unfortunately a number of low-quality products that come with high-sounding names.