# bad food?



## denise&chico (Oct 14, 2004)

Hello my wonderful maltese parents I now have 3 full bags of food that i wont feed because I things i have been reading ... Bella is 13 weeks now She is 2.8 pounds of spunk Breeder had her on health extention My local pet store owner is super knowlegeable and spent a hour schooling me on all that goes into our babies food He stated that health extention and blue are the sa,e company and the can food is made in china and has a chemical on the inside that can make them sick said blue isnt good they compare themseleves to "walmart brand " fods like iams beniful etc look at the ingridents Seemed soo wonderfully truth and cared very much SOOO my question to my wonderful people here who love their malts like me ... what do you feed ? I am feeding them earthborn hosltic protien 38 percent . what do you think? oh its also grain free . Here is a link to food 

Dumping Perceptions


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

Selecting the right food is so hard. If you want to go grain free you risk feeding what is considered too high in protein for a Malt. Most of us, our breeders, and our vets think that 38% is way too high.

On the other hand, grain free foods that are lower in protein often have potatoes, which I consider worthless and too high in sugar.

It is a constant learning experience, with new, often unexpected information being brought to light.


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## Zoe's Mom88 (Apr 25, 2011)

It is very hard to find a food that you feel is the best and that your furbaby will enjoy. I agree with Sylvia that 38% protein is much too high. It's a never ending battle trying to find the right food. I myself homecook and when I don't have time to do that I use Fromm wet food.


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## denise&chico (Oct 14, 2004)

I know ! I can rip my hair out what is a good grain free dry for a malt?


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

Ok I just looked up Vet's Choice Health Extention and it's actually rated decently on several dog food sites, I also looked at the ingredient list of a package or two and it doesn't seem like bad ingredients.

However...

I did not research what does and doesnt' come from China. I'm going to be honest, I really don't believe there is a dog food company who can be 100% China free. If I'm wrong, that is wonderful. Most of the worlds vitamin source comes from China, often times, Pet food companies will do their best to be China free (because that is what we want) and they will source from places other than China for those mixes... HOWEVER, the non China sources, often get their ingredients from China.

So it's really difficult, but don't get me wrong, I am in full support of being as China free as possible. 

Overall this doesn't look like a bad food (I did not check the protien content). If I wanted to feed it I might e mail the company for more info such as China sourcing, and where their plants are, who processes their food. (I want to avoid diamond). 

I was not impressed with earthborn, honestly. I do see a lot of dog foodie people recommend it, but the ingredient list was just barely above average for me. I feed Fromm four star and rotate between the grain inclusive and grain free formulas. Fromm Family Foods Gourmet Dog & Cat Food, Naturally Holistic Fromm also has a lesser expensive line (Gold) that has excellent ingredients as well, and if I was not able to afford the four star I would not feel guilty about feeding the gold.

I also like acana-though with recent changes to their formulas I feel like we are paying the same for less quality and I love Freshpet. There are lots of other good brands out there, these are just my favorites.

When feeding kibble, it is important to pay attention to protien. There is much discussion over protien levels for malts, my vets have been happy with 30% and other-but you will find others dog people who prefer to stay around 25% or so with malts.

The fromm grain inclusive four star that I get are all in the 25ish catagory, the grian free tends to be a bit more. Nutri Source is another brand I see recommended quite a bit and I did try them for a while but my dogs were not crazy about it, they are also good with protien levels.

The thing with protien in kibble, you want to make sure it's a quality source, things like byprodcuts (beaks, feathers, the gross stuff) are harder to digest so brands that get their protien by this method are making your dogs body work harder to digest. Also with higher protien, dogs need to drink more to properly process it, and often times dogs do not drink quite as much as they need. This can take a toll on the body after years and years and years of eating like this.

Now, this is me talking in generalizations, you need to do what works best for you and your pup. If you are happy with earthborn, it is not terrible, it is just not one of my favorites. Not every brand works for every dogs, that's something I've learned is true for mine. Read all you can but remember also to take it all with a grain of salt, and trust what you see with your own eyes with your own pets.


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

denise&chico said:


> I know ! I can rip my hair out what is a good grain free dry for a malt?


I haven't found one. But I am not concerned with it being grain-free. I would rather that it has whole complex carbohydrates, such as brown rice, barley and/or whole oats.


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

I home cook, and will probably never feed store bought again.

Look for lower protein foods and I agree with Sylvia.... don't worry so much about Grain-Free - you want good complex carbs to balance out the protein.


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## Snuggle's Mom (Jan 3, 2008)

Blue Buffalo and Health Extension are not made in the same company. Health Extension is located in Melville, NY and Blue Buffalo is located in Wilton. Not sure where the owner of the Pet Shop that you visited got his/her information but I did a search and that is not the correct information. Blue Buffalo is an excellent food and all four of our Pets (2 Cats and two Dogs) are doing very well.


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## denise&chico (Oct 14, 2004)

Ok so you think fresh pet would be a good food to feed a puppy I dont mind buying it if its good for her as a all food?


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

denise&chico said:


> Ok so you think fresh pet would be a good food to feed a puppy I dont mind buying it if its good for her as a all food?


Fresh Pet is also too high in protein for most Maltese. It is 39% protein when you calculate the dry matter.

We've had a couple recent threads on this subject worth reading:

http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/60-...-think-you-can-avoid-pet-food-made-china.html

http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/60-maltese-food-snacks-treats/122611-somehting-very-fishy.html

http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/60-...grain-free-diets-veterinary-nutritionist.html


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## denise&chico (Oct 14, 2004)

Thank you guys going to do some more reading!


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

I think it would be fine to try freshpet, the protien is high quality and the product itself contains quite a bit of moisture. There are several here that feed it full time with great results. Last time I checked, the rolls sold at the supermarket were all life stages, and the types sold at petshops should be as well. 

Freshpet Fresh & Natural Pet Food For Dogs & Cats l Healthy Dog Treats


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## Max&Roxy (Sep 7, 2012)

I agree it can be so difficult and frustrating with all the different points of view. I really think you do the best you can and find a food you feel good about, and if your baby is doing well on it....is happy....stick with it. Every dog is different....our Golden Retriever lived until he was over 13 and when we first got him, we fed him Iams....for a number of years....before we were told it was crap food and he should be on other stuff. We fed all sorts of different high quality foods....until he needed to be on a weight loss formula. He lost all the weight he needed too....then we switched him to something else that the vet recommended for his teeth....blah blah blah. At the end of the day, he was a happy very healthy dog on all those foods! my friend said her husbands family fed their dog "kibbles and Bits" until he died at like 15! Not that I would feed my dog that food.....but, my point is, who knows what really is the best for your pup?
We feed Max (our Maltese puppy) Blue Buffalo, small breed puppy. He loves it and is doing well on it....growing and loads of energy. We did feed our little Yorkie the Blue Buffalo, toy breed formula (she is 11 yrs old) and she loved it, but the protein levels were too high for her and she did get sick. So, she is on Amicus for small breeds. She seems good now.
YOu just have to do some research, and feed them what you feel is best, and watch to see how they do.....swithcing around isnt good for them either. Good luck!


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## denise&chico (Oct 14, 2004)

After all that LOL She has ben oing well on blue small breed puppy Fresh pet here and there Thanks everyone my lil ankle biter is a happy camper


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## Charlie'sMom (May 12, 2012)

Oh my goodness, the food related topics are always confusing:blush:. With Charlie being picky eater, I'm always on the hunt. I really like Fromm Pork and Applesauce formula and Royal canin.

I have a question about the Diamond company. There was some recall talk few months ago. What is going on with that brand? I did not feed that one, but my friend used to.

Thanks for any help.

Katie


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