Which is better, Diamond dog food or Nutro?

[Dahlia]

Just curious. I know a lot of breeders in our area use Diamond, and they sell it at the farm supply stores (feed stores) around here. We used to feed it to our boxer. Now I feed my puppy Nutro puppy food. I was going to do Wellness but the store here that carries Wellness only carries in the adult food, not puppy. Anyway, Nutro or Diamond?

[Dahlia]

What I mean is, which one is "considered" a higher quality food? Also, does Nutro contain stool hardeners? I am in the process of switching Sophie to Nutro from Purina puppy chow and right now we're on 3/4 Nutro to 1/4 puppy chow and today I noticed her stools are much harder. When she was on puppy chow they were almost runny. Not complaining, just wondering.

[db7]

Diamond and Nutro are pretty equal, at least for adult food. Haven't shopped for puppies in quite some time. I don't know about stool hardeners, but when you change to a high quality food you should notice firmer (easier to handle!) and fewer (less to pick up!) stool. Simply because there is less filler/non-digestible stuff going through the system.

[Dahlia]

Thanks, db7, that's nice to know. When I got Sophie she had coccidiosis, which was causing diarrhea, but that was 3 wks ago and her stool was still pretty loose, and she was pooping a lot. I didn't think about the fact that the food might be contributing to the problem. I was just trying to get her on a better quality food. I guess I got a 2 for 1 deal. Yeah!

Is there a website that breaks down the different brands into categories, such as super premium, economy, etc... without me having to scan all the ingredients and trying to figure it out for myself? So far I think she'll do fine on the Nutro, I would just like to know what's out there.

[goldenblaze]

Did your pup have Coccidia? if so nothing you feed will help the poops. You would need meds from Vet... Nutro I've always feed Blaze, puppy now adult. He has done very well on it, Jordie likes this food too, good stuff

[Dahlia]

Yes, she had coccidia. I'm still giving her the Albon, and the vet said it may take at least 3 wks to clear up, maybe longer. One of the girls that works at the vet's office said her cat had it and it took 2 months to get rid of. So, I know the food wasn't causing the diarrhea, but I think it was contributing to it. Since she's been getting more Nutro than Purina her stool has looked better. Or she could just be getting over the coccidia. Either way, at least she doesn't have the runs now.

[db7]

I would think that things are looking up. When you change foods that usually causes loose stool, plus there was an infection causing loose stools, now your on firmer ground.

There is a website/forum about food. I forget the web address but I did post it here before. Maybe if you serch the posts about food you will find it. I think it is something like mordana.com

[goldenblaze]

Blaze's brother had coccidia it took I believe 6 weeks to totaly be clear up with meds. Nutro is much better than Purina no corns is best.

[Dahlia]

Thanks. I'm going to call the vet tomorrow and see if I should increase the dosage of the meds, since she weighed 3 lbs when we started her on it and now I bet she weighs at least 5. They prescribed .75ml and I upped it to 1ml a few days ago, but I'll see if they want me to bring her in and weigh her and adjust it from there.

[birdmom]

My older dog gets Nutro Natural Choice Senior, having graduated from NNC Senior Lite as she's lost the extra weight. Raven, my 100 pound Malamute/Akita, gets Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed. She was raised on the NNC Large Breed Puppy for the first year. Ebony, the Cocker X, gets NNC puppy until she finishes this bag when she'll be about a year old and will switch to NNC Adult. They all like the food and they are all healthy with good coats.

This is a great website for learning how to read dog food labels: http://www.doberdogs.com/menu.html

[Prin]

All Diamond Puppy foods I found on the internet have either corn or chicken by-products or both... Nutro "Natural Choice" doesn't have these... (The Nutro Max has corn also...) If your buddy has a sensitive stomach, I wouldn't feed corn (not very digestible).

As for the stool--- I think there are varying results... Switching my dogs from Eukanuba lamb and rice to Solid gold Wolf King, the stools got enormous and smelly (at least 3x the size...) The stools are just starting to go back to normal and we are on the 3rd 33lb bag....

[Dahlia]

Thanks. We're on Nutro Natural Choice and I think we'll stick with it.

[goldenblaze]

Coccidia is what would be causing loose stool not the food. It will take time to work with the meds and might need to be repeated after but I agree with Nutro, good food

[poohbear123]

I just saw an ad for Purina One dog food is it any good? Just curious.

[nymph]

My puppy Diego had diarrhea when he was about 8 or 9 weeks old. We put him on Hill's Prescription Diet I/D canned food for about 4 days, then Nutro's Natural Choice for Large Breed puppy chow, along with prescription medication, that cleared his running stool in less than a week.

[Dahlia]

I had a dog that I used to feed Purina One and she did really well on it.

[Dahlia]

Goldenblaze, I know that the coccidia caused the loose stool, but also if the puppy chow wasn't agreeing with her, her stool would stay loose. If you had a stomach virus causing you to have diarrhea but you ate prunes every day how would you know when the stomach virus was gone? See my point?

[jjgeonerd]

Originally Posted by poohbear123

I just saw an ad for Purina One dog food is it any good? Just curious.

Below are the ingredients for Purina One Lamb and Rice:

Lamb, brewers rice, oat meal, corn gluten meal, poultry by-product meal (natural source of glucosamine), whole grain corn, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), chicken cartilage (natural source of glucosamine), calcium carbonate, dicalcium phosphate, animal digest, potassium chloride, malted barley flour, salt, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, choline chloride, brewers dried yeast, zinc sulfate, Vitamin E supplement, ferrous sulfate, manganese sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate, copper sulfate, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin B-12 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, garlic oil, folic acid, Vitamin D-3 supplement, calcium iodate, biotin, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), sodium selenite.
L-4162

Compared with Nutro Natural Choice lamb and rice:

Lamb Meal, Ground Rice, Rice Flour, Rice Bran, Sunflower Oil (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of natural Vitamin E), Poultry Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of natural Vitamin E), Natural Flavors, Rice Gluten, Dried Egg Product, Dried Beet Pulp, Potassium Chloride, L-Lysine, Dried Kelp (source of Iodine), Salt, Choline Chloride, Zinc Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, Taurine, Ferrous Sulfate, Ascorbic Acid (source of Vitamin C), Biotin, Copper Proteinate, Niacin, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement (source of Vitamin B2), Vitamin A Supplement, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chondroitin Sulfate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (source of Vitamin B6), Thiamine Mononitrate (source of Vitamin B1), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (source of Vitamin K activity), Calcium Iodate, Folic Acid.

I'd prefer the Nutro...lamb meal instead of lamb (better value), no corn, and no byproducts.

Also...what is "animal digest"? Anyone know??

[goldenblaze]

I would stay away from Purina or anything with by products.
I started feeding Nutro Natural Chioce because of the fact no by products...gross stuff they should never be allowed to put in dog food.

[Prin]

Also...what is "animal digest"? Anyone know??

I know!! I know!! Animal digest is pieces of animal partially digested by enzymes so that it is easier for the dog to digest. Kinda gross but what turned me off from Purina was the "animal" part. They don't specify what animal it is. it could be dogs or cats for all we know. That's why my babies are on solid gold Wolf King now. Just in case you are wondering here are the ingredients:
Bison | Salmon Meal | Brown Rice | Millet | Cracked Pearled Barley | Oatmeal | Rice Bran | Canola Oil | Flaxseed Oil | Garlic | Amaranth | Blueberries | Yucca Schidigera Extract | Taurine | Carotene | Choline Chloride | Vitamin E Supplement | Iron Proteinate | Zinc Proteinate | Copper Proteinate | Manganese Proteinate | Potassium Iodide | Thiamine Mononitrate | Ascorbic Acid | Vitamin A Supplement | Biotin | Calcium Panthothenate | Selenomethionine | Pyridoxine Hydrochloride | Vitamin B12 Supplement | Riboflavin | Vitamin D Supplement | Folic Acid |

[jjgeonerd]

Originally Posted by Prin

I know!! I know!! Animal digest is pieces of animal partially digested by enzymes so that it is easier for the dog to digest. Kinda gross but what turned me off from Purina was the "animal" part. They don't specify what animal it is. it could be dogs or cats for all we know.

Thanks...I was just curious...didn't sound too good!

Gabby is on Nutro Ultra Adult...ingredients appear to be somewhat similar to the Solid Gold. I was going to post those ingredients, but I wanted an apple to apple comparison.

I'll have to look for the Solid Gold food sometime.

Just looked...SG looks great...for sure have to try and find it!

[coppperbelle]

I also feed Solid Gold, Wolf King. In my opinion it is one of the better foods on the market. It is not cheap and costs about $72.00 plus tax for a 33 lb. bag. The ingredients are excellent. There is no wheat, brewers rice, gluten, corn or by-products.
My dogs have been eating this food for a few months and are doing great. Their fur is like silk, no dirty ears and like Prin mentioned their poops at first were large and smelly but are now firm little packages.

[Prin]

They call that "detoxifying"... I call it "make sure that the bag has no holes"... I believe Nutro doesn't have Bison or Salmon meal in it...

[marko]

Animal digest is pieces of animal partially digested by enzymes so that it is easier for the dog to digest. Kinda gross but what turned me off was the "animal" part. They don't specify what animal it is. it could be dogs or cats for all we know.

Thanks for that info Prin.

Someone gave Zak our cat some treats...and before we read what was in it we gave Zak a few of them. Then we read what it's made of. The first ingredient was animal digest.

Although I was grossed out, Zak almost bit my wife's finger off when she gave him those treats. He LOVES them.

and you're right...no specification as to WHAT type of animal, 'animal digest' comes from. For all we know he could have snacked on his mom.

[Prin]

Well, since this thread, I've found out that animal digest is limited to farm animals... But why then do they still find chemicals involved in dog and cat euthanization in these foods? It's a mystery.

[technodoll]

ya know... the business of rendering & food transformation remains a vast mystery to the lot of us "out here", because that's the way the pet food companies want it (they regulate themselves... 'nuff said).

have you read "the dark side of rendering" yet? what goes on inside a rendering plant? i've never been the same since then

HIGHLY INTERESTING article, IMO: http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/0106-02.htm

extract:

A RENDERING PLANT SOMEWHERE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA -- The rendering plant floor is piled high with "raw product". Thousands of dead dogs and cats; heads and hooves from cattle, sheep, pigs and horses; whole skunks; rats and raccoons -- all waiting to be processed. In the 90 degree heat, the piles of dead animals seem to have a life of their own as millions of maggots swarm over the carcasses.

Two bandanna-masked men begin operating Bobcat mini-dozers, loading the "raw" into a ten-foot deep stainless steel pit. They are undocumonted workers from Mexico doing a dirty job. A giant auger-grinder at the bottom of the pit begins to turn. Popping bones and squeezing flesh are sounds from a nightmare you will never forget.

Rendering is the process of cooking raw animal material to remove the moisture and fat. The rendering plant works like a giant kitchen. The cooker, or "chef", blends the raw product in order to maintain a certain ratio between the carcasses of pets, livestock, poultry waste and supermarket rejects.

Once the mass is cut into small pieces, it is transported to another auger for fine shredding. It is then cooked at 280 degrees for one hour. The continuous batch cooking process goes on non-stop, 24 hours a day, seven days a week as meat is melted away from bones in the hot "soup". During this cooking process, the "soup" produces a fat of yellow grease or tallow that rises to the top and is skimmed off. The cooked meat and bone are sent to a hammermill press, which squeezes out the remaining moisture and pulverizes the product into a gritty powder. Shaker screens sift out excess hair and large bone chips. Once the batch is finished, all that is left is yellow grease, meat and bone meal.

... keep on' truckin....

[SunGurl372]

I just finished lunch a bit ago, and now I think it's coming back to visit me.

[Prin]

Yeah, somebody posted a link a while back to the rendering company itself. You go to their own site and you can learn all about it- like they're bragging. (sorry I don't have the link anymore..)

[technodoll]

oops sungurl, should have posted a warning! GROSSS stuff! yet it is what we make our pets eat

the more i learn about what goes into commercial dog food... sigh. but i still give him *some* cuz he loves it. oh well we love Burger King and Dairy Queen and that is not much better!!