Looking For A Superior, High Quality Dry Food

[Guest lavendergirl]

My friends are coming tomorrow (which is a relief because my house is a disgusting mess)...

I just found out that Natura Pet foods, who own Innova and Evo, have a class action lawsuit against them, for advertising their dog food as human grade. Here's the link:

www.petproductssettlement.com

By the way, Natura Pet Foods was bought by Proctor and Gamble, not Nestle.

Also, I should have included "human grade" in my list at the start of this thread. When Eagle Pack Holistic Select first appeared in Australia, it was advertised as organic, human grade, owned by a family business who bred Huskies, and sourced their produce from Amish farmers. It was those bloody Amish farmers who reeled me in!

Great I have just started feeding Innova. I can't quite work out what the law suit is about - this is what I found:

"unless the food is manufactured in a facility certified for human food manufacturing, it is illegal to make the human-grade/quality claim on a pet food package or collateral processed of a pet food manufactured in a pet food/animal feed plant.

Unless the manufacturer is making the food in a human food facility, the claim human-grade is misleading, false and fraudulent.

It’s not just a matter of the type of manufacturing facility, but that the laws governing human food manufacturing are vastly different from the laws pertaining to pet food and animal feed."

I interpret that as meaning that the food may be OK but the facility where it was manufactured is the problem

[littlesquashyguys]

My friends are coming tomorrow (which is a relief because my house is a disgusting mess)...

I just found out that Natura Pet foods, who own Innova and Evo, have a class action lawsuit against them, for advertising their dog food as human grade. Here's the link:

www.petproductssettlement.com

By the way, Natura Pet Foods was bought by Proctor and Gamble, not Nestle.

Also, I should have included "human grade" in my list at the start of this thread. When Eagle Pack Holistic Select first appeared in Australia, it was advertised as organic, human grade, owned by a family business who bred Huskies, and sourced their produce from Amish farmers. It was those bloody Amish farmers who reeled me in!

Great I have just started feeding Innova. I can't quite work out what the law suit is about - this is what I found:

"unless the food is manufactured in a facility certified for human food manufacturing, it is illegal to make the human-grade/quality claim on a pet food package or collateral processed of a pet food manufactured in a pet food/animal feed plant.

Unless the manufacturer is making the food in a human food facility, the claim human-grade is misleading, false and fraudulent.

It’s not just a matter of the type of manufacturing facility, but that the laws governing human food manufacturing are vastly different from the laws pertaining to pet food and animal feed."

I interpret that as meaning that the food may be OK but the facility where it was manufactured is the problem

I know, how disappointing!

I think, in these cases, the pet food companies are ordered by the court to:

a) manufacture the pet food in a human grade plant or

b) stop advertising the pet food as human grade.

It sounds like Natura Pet (the company who own Innova and Evo) have done the latter.

Perhaps, you could contact the Dog Food Analysis people about Innova? They have reviews of Innova and Evo on their website, but they were done before this lawsuit.

How important is it to you, to buy a pet food that is human grade (and from an ethical company)?

The idea of non human grade dog food sounds disgusting, like it's full of horses' lips and arseholes...but most dogs eat the stuff and they don't drop dead from it.

I would be more concerned if the lawsuit was for poisoning. Apparently, Canidae had a lawsuit against them for poisoning 2 years ago. I'm going to ask my Canidae rep about it, very diplomatically!

Edited August 27, 2011 by littlesquashyguys

[Guest lavendergirl]

My friends are coming tomorrow (which is a relief because my house is a disgusting mess)...

I just found out that Natura Pet foods, who own Innova and Evo, have a class action lawsuit against them, for advertising their dog food as human grade. Here's the link:

www.petproductssettlement.com

By the way, Natura Pet Foods was bought by Proctor and Gamble, not Nestle.

Also, I should have included "human grade" in my list at the start of this thread. When Eagle Pack Holistic Select first appeared in Australia, it was advertised as organic, human grade, owned by a family business who bred Huskies, and sourced their produce from Amish farmers. It was those bloody Amish farmers who reeled me in!

Great I have just started feeding Innova. I can't quite work out what the law suit is about - this is what I found:

"unless the food is manufactured in a facility certified for human food manufacturing, it is illegal to make the human-grade/quality claim on a pet food package or collateral processed of a pet food manufactured in a pet food/animal feed plant.

Unless the manufacturer is making the food in a human food facility, the claim human-grade is misleading, false and fraudulent.

It’s not just a matter of the type of manufacturing facility, but that the laws governing human food manufacturing are vastly different from the laws pertaining to pet food and animal feed."

I interpret that as meaning that the food may be OK but the facility where it was manufactured is the problem

I know, how disappointing!

I think, in these cases, the pet food companies are ordered by the court to:

a) manufacture the pet food in a human grade plant or

b) stop advertising the pet food as human grade.

It sounds like Natura Pet (the company who own Innova and Evo) have done the latter.

Perhaps, you could contact the Dog Food Analysis people about Innova? They have reviews of Innova and Evo on their website, but they were done before this lawsuit.

How important is it to you, to buy a pet food that is human grade (and from an ethical company)?

The idea of non human grade dog food sounds disgusting, like it's full of horses' lips and arseholes...but most dogs eat the stuff and they don't drop dead from it.

I would be more concerned if the lawsuit was for poisoning. Apparently, Canidae had a lawsuit against them for poisoning 2 years ago. I'm going to ask my Canidae rep about it, very diplomatically!

As the review was done before the lawsuit and the lawsuit does not allege that the food has changed or challenge the description of the ingredients I guess the review would stand - if that makes sense? I guess I would expect that the ingredients be human grade for the more expensive kibble and given the fact that I would not buy "pet grade" meat at the supermarket

[littlesquashyguys]

My friends are coming tomorrow (which is a relief because my house is a disgusting mess)...

I just found out that Natura Pet foods, who own Innova and Evo, have a class action lawsuit against them, for advertising their dog food as human grade. Here's the link:

www.petproductssettlement.com

By the way, Natura Pet Foods was bought by Proctor and Gamble, not Nestle.

Also, I should have included "human grade" in my list at the start of this thread. When Eagle Pack Holistic Select first appeared in Australia, it was advertised as organic, human grade, owned by a family business who bred Huskies, and sourced their produce from Amish farmers. It was those bloody Amish farmers who reeled me in!

Great I have just started feeding Innova. I can't quite work out what the law suit is about - this is what I found:

"unless the food is manufactured in a facility certified for human food manufacturing, it is illegal to make the human-grade/quality claim on a pet food package or collateral processed of a pet food manufactured in a pet food/animal feed plant.

Unless the manufacturer is making the food in a human food facility, the claim human-grade is misleading, false and fraudulent.

It’s not just a matter of the type of manufacturing facility, but that the laws governing human food manufacturing are vastly different from the laws pertaining to pet food and animal feed."

I interpret that as meaning that the food may be OK but the facility where it was manufactured is the problem

I know, how disappointing!

I think, in these cases, the pet food companies are ordered by the court to:

a) manufacture the pet food in a human grade plant or

b) stop advertising the pet food as human grade.

It sounds like Natura Pet (the company who own Innova and Evo) have done the latter.

Perhaps, you could contact the Dog Food Analysis people about Innova? They have reviews of Innova and Evo on their website, but they were done before this lawsuit.

How important is it to you, to buy a pet food that is human grade (and from an ethical company)?

The idea of non human grade dog food sounds disgusting, like it's full of horses' lips and arseholes...but most dogs eat the stuff and they don't drop dead from it.

I would be more concerned if the lawsuit was for poisoning. Apparently, Canidae had a lawsuit against them for poisoning 2 years ago. I'm going to ask my Canidae rep about it, very diplomatically!

As the review was done before the lawsuit and the lawsuit does not allege that the food has changed or challenge the description of the ingredients I guess the review would stand - if that makes sense? I guess I would expect that the ingredients be human grade for the more expensive kibble and given the fact that I would not buy "pet grade" meat at the supermarket

I agree. What you are saying makes sense.

[RallyValley]

Ziwi Peak and K9 Natural are both by far the best natural foods available in Australia, both trusted NZ brands with quality ingredients and not irradiated on entry into Oz. K9 Natural is excellent - freeze-dried, shelf stable, and very easy to prepare. It's available in larger pack sizes for bigger dogs. Ziwi Peak is 'semi-moist' as it is dried at such low temperatures, preserving much of the nutritional value of the primary ingredients, which are all quality ingredients appropriate for a carnivore. Next best IMO, if you want a dry food (less recommended even if the primary ingredients are good as it is necessarily more processed ie high temperatures and pressures, destroying or altering much of the nutritional content) would be Artemis or Canidae grain-free .

What difficulties have you encountered feeding a raw diet? It really is quite simple if you do it right.

Thanks for offering to help : )

I've come to the conclusion that I'm not one of those people who subscribe (abscribe? What's the word?) to the theory behind a raw food diet, or believe that my dog SHOULD and MUST be fed raw...and I'm finding it quite freeing, actually!

(I'm not at all implying that you're one of them) Some raw food supporters are so preachy and fanatical. They're like reformed ex-smokers or Born Again Christians. It's a real turn-off.

I know just the kind you mean I was recently using a small quantity of cheese as a treat and someone told me (in a disgusted/shocked voice) 'You can't use cheese... a dog wouldn't find cheese in the forest' ... Luckily the person is a friend and I understand they are deeply committed to RAW or else I would have told them where to go! I am of the mentality unless I ask someone for advice or someone asks me for advice I keep my opinions to myself

[littlesquashyguys]

Ziwi Peak and K9 Natural are both by far the best natural foods available in Australia, both trusted NZ brands with quality ingredients and not irradiated on entry into Oz. K9 Natural is excellent - freeze-dried, shelf stable, and very easy to prepare. It's available in larger pack sizes for bigger dogs. Ziwi Peak is 'semi-moist' as it is dried at such low temperatures, preserving much of the nutritional value of the primary ingredients, which are all quality ingredients appropriate for a carnivore. Next best IMO, if you want a dry food (less recommended even if the primary ingredients are good as it is necessarily more processed ie high temperatures and pressures, destroying or altering much of the nutritional content) would be Artemis or Canidae grain-free .

What difficulties have you encountered feeding a raw diet? It really is quite simple if you do it right.

Thanks for offering to help : )

I've come to the conclusion that I'm not one of those people who subscribe (abscribe? What's the word?) to the theory behind a raw food diet, or believe that my dog SHOULD and MUST be fed raw...and I'm finding it quite freeing, actually!

(I'm not at all implying that you're one of them) Some raw food supporters are so preachy and fanatical. They're like reformed ex-smokers or Born Again Christians. It's a real turn-off.

I know just the kind you mean I was recently using a small quantity of cheese as a treat and someone told me (in a disgusted/shocked voice) 'You can't use cheese... a dog wouldn't find cheese in the forest' ... Luckily the person is a friend and I understand they are deeply committed to RAW or else I would have told them where to go! I am of the mentality unless I ask someone for advice or someone asks me for advice I keep my opinions to myself

LOL cheese in the forest! What a pisser!

I was at a dinner party recently and we were talking about our dogs. I told them how I had made scrambled eggs and salmon for Grover, for dinner, which I do occasionally as a special treat. One guy turned to me and said, real deadpan, "You can't feed a dog cooked eggs. That is incorrect".

Edited August 27, 2011 by littlesquashyguys

[poodlefan]

Zealots of any persuasion =

And the less they know, the more they tend to preach. ;)

[Nekhbet]

Have you tried the Vets All Natural range?

[littlesquashyguys]

Hi OP - just so you know, not all dogs do well on grain free and I personally don't consider things like rice and oats filler - many dogs do very, very well on them. Grain free can be too rich for dogs and give them the runs etc.

I've personally fed Earthborn to my dogs and it is a wonderful product, one I'd highly recommend. At the moment (I have two dogs and a step-child lol) one is eating Pro Pac (he's on a diet but is rapidly reaching goal weight), one is eating a mix of Canidae and RC (because he likes them both and he's a PITA) and one eats Artemis. They are all healthy little munchkins (one is too skinny cos he's a fussy turd and some days won't even eat steamed chicken breast, but he's getting much better), bright eyed, beautiful coats, full of energy. There ARE good quality foods in Australia already, don't take dog food analysis as gospel. There is a lot of great information on there but I think some of the scoring is a bit harsh and they only 6-star grain free food which is a bit poor IMO as not all dogs can handle it.

Just my opinion, of course!

E x

Hi Panzer Attack!,

I just found a website called Dog Food Scoop.com. Their reviews aren't guided by a preference for grain-free, like the Dog Food Analysis.com website, and they don't sound harsh.

Here's the link:

http://www.dogfoodscoop.com/best-dog-foods-ranked.html

Interestingly, they rate Eagle Pack Holistic Select as a Top Ten food, but not Canidae (I'm going to take another look to check out why).

Hope this helps : )

[littlesquashyguys]

For those of you who are interested, here's a link to Proctor & Gamble's statement on Animal Testing. Proctor & Gamble own Innova, Evo, Iams and Eukanuba (I'm not sure what else).

http://www.pg.com/en_US/sustainability/point_of_view/animal_welfare.shtml

Or just type in PG.com Animal Welfare & Alternatives.

It sounds like P&G are saying "only 1% of our research is done by testing on animals, and we are thinking about stopping it one day, so that makes it all okay".

[littlesquashyguys]

I have received an email response from David Jack, President of Diamond Pet Foods (who make Taste of the Wild).

He said that Taste of the Wild will be available in Australia in early 2012. Yay!

[Boxer05]

You beauty! I wonder what formulas they will send out and who will be the retailers?

[Roar Kingdom]

Ziwi Peak and K9 Natural are both by far the best natural foods available in Australia, both trusted NZ brands with quality ingredients and not irradiated on entry into Oz. K9 Natural is excellent - freeze-dried, shelf stable, and very easy to prepare. It's available in larger pack sizes for bigger dogs. Ziwi Peak is 'semi-moist' as it is dried at such low temperatures, preserving much of the nutritional value of the primary ingredients, which are all quality ingredients appropriate for a carnivore. Next best IMO, if you want a dry food (less recommended even if the primary ingredients are good as it is necessarily more processed ie high temperatures and pressures, destroying or altering much of the nutritional content) would be Artemis or Canidae grain-free .

What difficulties have you encountered feeding a raw diet? It really is quite simple if you do it right.

Thanks for offering to help : )

I've come to the conclusion that I'm not one of those people who subscribe (abscribe? What's the word?) to the theory behind a raw food diet, or believe that my dog SHOULD and MUST be fed raw...and I'm finding it quite freeing, actually!

(I'm not at all implying that you're one of them) Some raw food supporters are so preachy and fanatical. They're like reformed ex-smokers or Born Again Christians. It's a real turn-off.

Thanks for the comments. I hope my reply came across as informative rather than preachy. It is inspiring to read that so many forum members are interested in nutrition and questioning the ingredients written on commercial pet foods.

I have written various ezine articles on natural diets based on my training, research and experiences and intend to write more discussing the various facets of holistic pet health. My interest is in sharing methods that work for me via my Holistic Vet blog, in particular sharing simple and easy ways to walk a greener path. My choices/methods may not suit everyone, however I hope that my experiences and information comes across as interesting and informative, with lots of photographs to illustrate and inspire.

Dr Renee O'Duhring

Holistic Vet

Edited September 2, 2011 by Roar Kingdom

[Dju]

Hi Panzer Attack!,

I just found a website called Dog Food Scoop.com. Their reviews aren't guided by a preference for grain-free, like the Dog Food Analysis.com website, and they don't sound harsh.

Here's the link:

http://www.dogfoodscoop.com/best-dog-foods-ranked.html

Interestingly, they rate Eagle Pack Holistic Select as a Top Ten food, but not Canidae (I'm going to take another look to check out why).

Hope this helps : )

Both DFA and DFS are US-based, so they are half helpful and half not helpful. I've read that Nutro over there and Nutro in Aus have completely different ingredients in their dog food and that's why it's considered an "above average" food here but have a horrible review on the DFS site. They also don't seem to say why they give the food the rating that they do (other than a sweeping statement at the start before they bring out the list of foods). That's not so helpful at all.

There was a good thread on DOL a long time ago that had a dog food rating guide which was pretty cool (something like "if it contains meat, +1 to the score, garlic +1 to the score--that's just an example by the way, I don't remember what was actually written).

[Dju]

For those of you who are interested, here's a link to Proctor & Gamble's statement on Animal Testing. Proctor & Gamble own Innova, Evo, Iams and Eukanuba (I'm not sure what else).

http://www.pg.com/en_US/sustainability/point_of_view/animal_welfare.shtml

Or just type in PG.com Animal Welfare & Alternatives.

It sounds like P&G are saying "only 1% of our research is done by testing on animals, and we are thinking about stopping it one day, so that makes it all okay".

(Offtopic, but..) Oh shit, I just made a mental note not to buy any more of their products because they do animal testing but lo and behold my beloved Head and Shoulders shampoo is on that list and I can't bear to suffer dandruff by not using it

[littlesquashyguys]

For those of you who are interested, here's a link to Proctor & Gamble's statement on Animal Testing. Proctor & Gamble own Innova, Evo, Iams and Eukanuba (I'm not sure what else).

http://www.pg.com/en_US/sustainability/point_of_view/animal_welfare.shtml

Or just type in PG.com Animal Welfare & Alternatives.

It sounds like P&G are saying "only 1% of our research is done by testing on animals, and we are thinking about stopping it one day, so that makes it all okay".

(Offtopic, but..) Oh shit, I just made a mental note not to buy any more of their products because they do animal testing but lo and behold my beloved Head and Shoulders shampoo is on that list and I can't bear to suffer dandruff by not using it

There must be a heap of everyday items I use that are made by companies like P&G. It hurts my brain too much to think about it, so I just draw the line at buying their pet food.

Edited September 2, 2011 by littlesquashyguys