# Opinions on this dog food....?



## A1Malinois (Oct 28, 2011)

My friend wants to switch his large dog over to this. He is currently feeding Kibbles and Bits. I suggested Pro Plan but he wants to stick with grain free. 

Authority® Adult Large Breed Chicken & Potato Formula Dog Food - Dry Food - Food - PetSmart



Ingredients: chicken, chicken meal (source of glucosamine and chondroitin), dried green peas, potato starch, flaxseed meal, dried potatoes, dried beet pulp, natural flavor, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), dicalcium phosphate, salt, calcium carbonate, potassium chloride, choline chloride, zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, vitamin E supplement, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of ascorbic acid), copper sulfate, vitamin A supplement, manganese sulfate, niacin, d-calcium pantothenate, vitamin D3 supplement, riboflavin, calcium iodate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, thiamine mononitrate, folic acid, sodium selenite, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement and dried chicken cartilage (source of glucosamine and chondroitin)
Guaranteed Analysis: Crude Protein (min) 25.0%, Crude Fat (min) 12.0%, Crude Fiber (max) 4.5%, Moisture (min) 10.0%, Calcium (min) 1.1%, Phosphorus (min) 0.9%, Zinc (min) 175mg/kg, Selenium (min) 0.15mg/kg, Vitamin A (min) 15,000 IU/kg, Vitamin E (min) 225 IU/kg, Omega-6 Fatty Acids* (min) 2.8%, Omega-3 Fatty Acids* (min) 0.2%, Glucosamine* (min) 400mg/kg, Chondroitin* (min) 300mg/kg, Ascorbic Acid* (Vitamin C) (min) 20mg/kg


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## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

It looks good to me.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Is he aware of how high in sugar a food is if the major starches are peas and potatoes? In order to get such a low protein and low fat GA, a "grain free" food like this needs to have a major starch contributor, so the five starches in a row after the chicken meal are doing that job. And since peas and potatoes come first, it seems like they're providing a substantial amount of the bulk of this food. Just something for him to consider.


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## A1Malinois (Oct 28, 2011)

tippykayak said:


> Is he aware of how high in sugar a food is if the major starches are peas and potatoes? In order to get such a low protein and low fat GA, a "grain free" food like this needs to have a major starch contributor, so the five starches in a row after the chicken meal are doing that job. And since peas and potatoes come first, it seems like they're providing a substantial amount of the bulk of this food. Just something for him to consider.



Okay I can let him know. So how would this food be comparable to something like Pro Plan sensitive skin and stomach if I would convince him to feed that? It has grains in it and arent grains high in sugar as well?


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

A1Malinois said:


> Okay I can let him know. So how would this food be comparable to something like Pro Plan sensitive skin and stomach if I would convince him to feed that? It has grains in it and arent grains high in sugar as well?


Does it have similar fat and protein numbers?

Things like ground corn and barley have a higher ratio of complex starches to sugars than peas and potatoes do. I'm not sure what the isolated potato starch they use in this food is, so maybe they pull out some of the simple sugars in order to avoid the issue. I don't know and you can't get that from the ingredient list.


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## WasChampionFan (Mar 31, 2012)

I think the best foods in Petsmart are Pro Plan Select Turkey and Bil Jac.


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## Tuco (Jan 3, 2013)

Your friend.. Shouldn't go with it because it seems its got a lower animal protein percentage. I'm also not liking the beat pulp and how high up potato is, still prefer it over corn though


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

They could feed a lot worse food and it is a giant step up from Kibbles and Bits! Kibbles and Bits is definealty not Grain Free!


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## WasChampionFan (Mar 31, 2012)

Tuco said:


> Your friend.. Shouldn't go with it because it seems its got a lower animal protein percentage. I'm also not liking the beat pulp and how high up potato is, still prefer it over corn though
> 
> 
> Beet pulp is a superior fiber and corn is in all respects better than potato.


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## Tuco (Jan 3, 2013)

Beat pulps fibre isn't really nessesary, it's a By-Product waste, that alone should be enough to stop people from wanting to feed it to their animals. By Product waste is never a good thing, it has no nutritional value. Most likely it is put into dog food for it's fiber benefits.
When they spray sugar beets with pesticides and herbicides it gets into the foliage. They used to then cut the tops off so your animals were not getting it in their feed. Then don't do that anymore so all animals being fed beet pulp are now getting those pesticides in their feed. It sure as hell is too high on the list for it to madder.
As for corn vs potato, it's not nearly as digestible, it's cheaper and more likely to be used as a filler to save money and when it's in food it's generally higher up. GMO corn is of big concern and of the pesticides and hidden contaminants are also very prevalent. And with the exeption of antioxidants and omega 6s which in excess have been shown to be more harmful than beneficial, potato is of a higher nutritional value than corn. 


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## Tuco (Jan 3, 2013)

Also disturbing is that the us doesn't test for aflatoxin in animal feed corn, and crops considered not for human consumption can be used for animal feed depending on levels, also the mycotoxins in corn are much higher than potatos


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## Tuco (Jan 3, 2013)

And the fatty acid ratio is particularly disturbing especially considering that none of the meat in dog food these days are grassfed


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Tuco said:


> Beat pulps fibre isn't really nessesary, it's a By-Product waste, that alone should be enough to stop people from wanting to feed it to their animals. By Product waste is never a good thing, it has no nutritional value. Most likely it is put into dog food for it's fiber benefits.


If it's put in a food for nutritional benefit, what do you mean when you say it has no nutritional value?



Tuco said:


> When they spray sugar beets with pesticides and herbicides it gets into the foliage. They used to then cut the tops off so your animals were not getting it in their feed. Then don't do that anymore so all animals being fed beet pulp are now getting those pesticides in their feed.


Where are you getting this? Pesticides are used regardless of which starch source you're using, unless you buy organic dog food (in which case it only needs to be 95% pesticide free to get the organic label). And beets are widely regarded as incredibly nutritious for people. The fact that the beet pulp is a byproduct is a technicality. The sugar is extracted because that's where the money is because people eat so much sugar. But the rest of the beet is incredibly nutritious, moreso once the excess sugar is removed.



Tuco said:


> As for corn vs potato, it's not nearly as digestible, it's cheaper and more likely to be used as a filler to save money and when it's in food it's generally higher up.


You say this many times with no evidence. What measurement of "digestibility" are you using to say potato has more of it than ground corn?



Tuco said:


> GMO corn is of big concern and of the pesticides and hidden contaminants are also very prevalent. And with the exeption of antioxidants and omega 6s which in excess have been shown to be more harmful than beneficial, potato is of a higher nutritional value than corn.


We broke this down in a previous thread, using the source you yourself cited. Corn beat potato on most major vitamin groups, and it's lower in simple sugars than potato. Just because potatoes are more expensive, that doesn't mean they're healthier. The two vegetables are different; it's much too complicated to say that one is "more nutritious" than others.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Tuco said:


> Also disturbing is that the us doesn't test for aflatoxin in animal feed corn, and crops considered not for human consumption can be used for animal feed depending on levels, also the mycotoxins in corn are much higher than potatos


And potatoes, if mishandled, develop dangerous levels of alkaloid solanine. They are members of the deadly nightshade family. You can make anything sound scary if you go through highly unlikely "what if" scenarios. If only it were so simple as running away from corn and we'd have better dog food. But it simply isn't, and when you overhype one set of issues, you can create more problems than you solve.


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