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Page Contents
Our Recommendation
Scout cannot recommend this popular puppy food. Although Purina markets this puppy food very well, it is full of concerning ingredients. The price is that of a quality dog food but the quality is just not there. Here are the most concerning ingredients so you have a complete understanding of why we cannot recommend this food for your puppy.
Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 2, Yellow 6
These are artificial colors that are not good for dogs and completely unnecessary to add. Sure it might make the kibble look good to a person but your dog doesn’t care about what color their food is.
Corn, Wheat, and Soy
This kibble contains three different grains. In the United States, these crops are largely produced using GMO Roundup Ready corn and soy. We care about your pooch and cannot recommend a food that contains a large portion of these grains that have a heavy glyphosphate load.
Chicken By-Product Meal, Turkey By-Product Meal, and Poultry and Pork Digest
By-products largely mean the waste products from producing the meat that people eat. There are very few regulations about this and the quality of the by products used is very low. Poultry and pork digest is the contents of stomachs and digestive tracts and it is terrible for your dog. Digest can be stomach contents or feces! Double yuck!
Ingredients
Chicken, Chicken By-Product Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Whole Grain Corn,
Barley, Whole Grain Wheat, Rice, Soybean Meal, Beef Tallow Preserved
with Mixed-Tocopherols, Turkey By-Product Meal, Glycerin, Egg and
Chicken Flavor, Fish Oil, Poultry and Pork Digest, Calcium Carbonate,
Mono and Dicalcium Phosphate, Salt, Oat Meal, Potassium Chloride, Dried
Peas, Dried Carrots, Minerals [Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese
Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite], Vitamins
[Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium
Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12
Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Vitamin D-3 Supplement,
Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B-2), Menadione Sodium Bisulfite (Source
of Vitamin K Activity), Folic Acid, Biotin], L-Lysine Monohydrochloride,
Choline Chloride, Dl-Methionine, Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 2, Yellow 6,
Garlic Oil.
Nutritional Analysis
Pet food ingredients, nutritional values, and the way they are labeled for consumers are monitored by several organizations in the United States including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the NGO, Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).
Each year the AAFCO publishes two sets of nutritional minimum standards for dog food intended to help specify if a food is suitable for:
1. Dogs in the growth & reproduction phases of life
2. Adult dogs maintaining a healthy weight and activity level
Caloric Content
3,626 kcal/kg, 353 kcal/cup
Guaranteed Analysis
| Nutritional Component | Value | Meets AAFCO Growth & Reproduction Standards | Meets AAFCO Adult Maintenance Standards |
|---|---|---|---|
| ____________________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ | ____________________ |
| CRUDE PROTEIN | 28.0% min | – | – |
| CRUDE FAT | 14.0% min | – | – |
| CRUDE FIBER | 4.0% max | – | – |
| MOISTURE | 14.0% max | – | – |
| LINOLEIC ACID | 1.4% min | – | – |
| DOCOSAHEXAENPOC ACID (DHA) | 0.05% min | – | – |
| CALCIUM | 1.1% min | ||
| PHOSPHORUS | 0.9% min | ||
| VITAMIN A | 22,045.23 IU/lb min | ||
| VITAMIN E | 220.46 IU/lb min |
* – indicates not yet analyzed
Feeding Amounts
Depending on your dog’s size and activity level, they may need more or less food in their daily feeding amounts.
| Weight | Daily Feeding (Cups) |
|---|---|
| _______________________ | _______________________ |
| 3 – 12 LBS | 2/3 – 1 1/2 |
| 13 – 20 LBS | 2/3 -2 |
| 21 – 50 LBS | 3/4 – 2 3/4 |
| 51 – 75 LBS | 3/4 – 4 |
| 76 – 100 LBS | 3 1/4 – 6 2/3 |
| Over 100 LBS | 3 1/2- 6 2/3 |
Feed 1/2 cup for every additonal 10 lbs of body weight over 100 lbs.
The Bottom Line
This is a popular puppy food that markets itself as a healthy and quality made puppy food but it is anything but. Please save your money and choose a puppy food from makers like Blue Buffalo, Wellness, or other quality brands. Diamond Brand puppy foods are priced at a lower cost than Purina Beneful Healthy Puppy and has much better ingredients.
Growing puppies are establishing the building blocks for their future health and it is very important to make sure that they are getting the best quality during this critical growth phase. Puppy foods that contain animal digest and artificial colors as well as a high level of GMO Roundup Ready grains do not achieve this on any level.
Scout is here to help you get the real facts on dog food so you can make the best choice for your family member. We will never recommend a dog food that we would not feed our own!
