kibble vs canned

[moosie's mom]

Can someone please explain to me how (and why) the protein and fat percent
differs so much between dry kibble and canned wet for the same brand and formula?

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by moosie's mom

Can someone please explain to me how (and why) the protein and fat percent
differs so much between dry kibble and canned wet for the same brand and formula?

The canned food contains water, so that alters the protein and fat content as it is listed on the can, but if it's the same brand and formula, there probably isn't a real difference on a dry weight basis.

For instance, if the canned food says 5% protein and 4% fat, but it's 75% water, then the dry food basis is 20% protein and 16% fat, and that would be closer to what it should say on the bag of the dry kibble version of the food. But it's still the same amount of nutrients for your dog.

If you want to tell us the brand and formula you are looking at, I can look it up for you and let you know for sure if that is the case.

[moosie's mom]

Originally Posted by pstinard

The canned food contains water, so that alters the protein and fat content as it is listed on the can, but if it's the same brand and formula, there probably isn't a real difference on a dry weight basis.

For instance, if the canned food says 5% protein and 4% fat, but it's 75% water, then the dry food basis is 20% protein and 16% fat, and that would be closer to what it should say on the bag of the dry kibble version of the food. But it's still the same amount of nutrients for your dog.

If you want to tell us the brand and formula you are looking at, I can look it up for you and let you know for sure if that is the case.

Thank you for your answer. So, I was hoping that the 5% protein was the true protein percent (and fat) that is listed on the canned food, but I guess not, right? I am looking for a low protein and low fat for my 11.5 year old kidney boy. Moose won't eat the Royal Canin or Hills KD

I have been feeding Natural Balance Canned Chicken and Sweet potato. It says it 5.5% protein and 3.5% fat. The dry kibble says 21.0% protein and 10% fat.

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by moosie's mom

Thank you for your answer. So, I was hoping that the 5% protein was the true protein percent (and fat) that is listed on the canned food, but I guess not, right? I am looking for a low protein and low fat for my 11.5 year old kidney boy. Moose won't eat the Royal Canin or Hills KD

I have been feeding Natural Balance Canned Chicken and Sweet potato. It says it 5.5% protein and 3.5% fat. The dry kibble says 21.0% protein and 10% fat.

No, the true protein content is what's listed on the dry bag of kibble, and is roughly the same as what's in the canned food.

You should definitely speak with your vet about alternative foods for your kidney patient dog. There might be other prescription foods, possibly even canned wet foods, that might be more appetizing to him.

Also, www.balanceit.com formulates special home cooked meal recipes for dogs with kidney problems, so that might be another alternative to look into. That also needs a prescription from your vet, though. Ask your vet.

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by pstinard

No, the true protein content is what's listed on the dry bag of kibble, and is roughly the same as what's in the canned food.

You should definitely speak with your vet about alternative foods for your kidney patient dog. There might be other prescription foods, possibly even canned wet foods, that might be more appetizing to him.

Also, www.balanceit.com formulates special home cooked meal recipes for dogs with kidney problems, so that might be another alternative to look into. That also needs a prescription from your vet, though. Ask your vet.

Here is a more direct link to balanceit that your vet can use: https://secure.balanceit.com/tools/ez2/index.php?

Note that there are several different types of kidney disease, and each one has to have special formulations for the food recipes, so be absolutely sure to run this past your vet before changing your dog's food.

[Wylie's Mom]

This may help as well:

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/die...onversion.html

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by moosie's mom

Thank you for your answer. So, I was hoping that the 5% protein was the true protein percent (and fat) that is listed on the canned food, but I guess not, right? I am looking for a low protein and low fat for my 11.5 year old kidney boy. Moose won't eat the Royal Canin or Hills KD

I have been feeding Natural Balance Canned Chicken and Sweet potato. It says it 5.5% protein and 3.5% fat. The dry kibble says 21.0% protein and 10% fat.

Have you tried the Purina NF? I have had more success with that....pups seem to like it more.

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

Have you tried the Purina NF? I have had more success with that....pups seem to like it more.

That also comes in a wet or a dry formulation. You can also add flavor enhancers to the food like no sodium broth, but you have to make sure it has NO salt added, and you should run anything you put in your dog's food past your vet for their approval.

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by pstinard

Here is a more direct link to balanceit that your vet can use: https://secure.balanceit.com/tools/ez2/index.php?

Note that there are several different types of kidney disease, and each one has to have special formulations for the food recipes, so be absolutely sure to run this past your vet before changing your dog's food.

Instead of having my vet go to the website, I did it for Teddy Bear. He has IBD and had pancreatitis twice since Dec. 2017. I was going to do a consult with a vet nutritionist but honestly this works better since you can change the diet easily. Teddy has become very picky. Once you enter the conditions for your pup the website asks for vet informaiion and they send a fax to the vet for an approval. My vet signed it and now I can login and change his diet with the EX Balancer myself. Super easy and great if they don't care for one food or another. The system is set up to only allow you to select what is good for your pup.

[moosie's mom]

Originally Posted by pstinard

No, the true protein content is what's listed on the dry bag of kibble, and is roughly the same as what's in the canned food.

You should definitely speak with your vet about alternative foods for your kidney patient dog. There might be other prescription foods, possibly even canned wet foods, that might be more appetizing to him.

Also, www.balanceit.com formulates special home cooked meal recipes for dogs with kidney problems, so that might be another alternative to look into. That also needs a prescription from your vet, though. Ask your vet.

Originally Posted by pstinard

Here is a more direct link to balanceit that your vet can use: https://secure.balanceit.com/tools/ez2/index.php?

Note that there are several different types of kidney disease, and each one has to have special formulations for the food recipes, so be absolutely sure to run this past your vet before changing your dog's food.

You are so informative! Thank you very much. I will check into this balanceit.

[moosie's mom]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

This may help as well:

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/die...onversion.html

Wowza! That helped tremendous! Thank you.

[moosie's mom]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

Have you tried the Purina NF? I have had more success with that....pups seem to like it more.

Have not tried this one. Scares me reading "animal by products" and "animal digest", in the ingredients

But we got to do what we have to do for our babies.

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by moosie's mom

Have not tried this one. Scares me reading "animal by products" and "animal digest", in the ingredients

But we got to do what we have to do for our babies.

Don't believe the hoopla about ingredients! There is SO much more to evaluating dog foods than reading labels. I have used this food for years with success. I have had a few renal failure pups....they all lived longer, I believe, largely because of this food.

[canana]

Originally Posted by moosie's mom

Have not tried this one. Scares me reading "animal by products" and "animal digest", in the ingredients

But we got to do what we have to do for our babies.

I don't know much about animal digest, but doing a quick Google search, it seems like that's a commonly used ingredient in dog food.

But the animal byproduct thing, I know that's okay. It just sounds bad because as human beings, we don't eat 'byproducts'. But dogs need certain byproducts - internal organs etc - as part of a balance nutritional diet. That's why, dogs cannot be healthy living off just chicken breast and peas. Dogs need a balance diet containing certain internal organs to get the necessary minerals and vitamins. At least, that's what I've read..

[pstinard]

I agree with both Canana and LadyJane. It doesn't really matter so much what humans find appealing--it's the health of the dog that matters most. BTW, animal digest is meat and and soft tissue products that have had their proteins hydrolyzed (broken down). It's used as a flavoring to make the food more tasty to the dog.