Compare Your Brand of Dog Food
to Life's Abundance Premium Health Food
Favorable
Life's Abundance
Nutro
Natural Choice
Science
Diet Adult Maintenance
Flint River Oven Baked
Puppy/Adult
Purina One Adult
Chicken & Rice Formula
Purina Beneful
Iams Adult Lamb Meal
& Rice
Eukanuba Adult
Maintenance
Alpo
Unfavorable
Look at the
First 3 Ingredients - They Often Make Up the Principal Components of
a Food
First Three Ingredients
Corn, wheat, gluten & soy are
generally inferior sources of protein. They
are often difficult to
digest & to use by the body. Also can cause G.I. problems. Meat &
bone meal can contain an unknown quantity of bone, which is an
inferior protein.
Chicken Meal
(hormone & steriod free)
Lamb Meal
Chicken
Chicken Meal
Chicken
Ground Yellow Corn
Lamb Meal
Chicken
Ground Yellow Corn
Ground Brown Rice
Ground Rice
Corn Meal
Whole Wheat Flour
Brewers Rice
Chicken
By-product meal
Brewers Rice
Chicken Byproduct Meal
Beef & Bone Meal
Potato Product
Rice Bran
Ground Grain
Sorghum
Ground Rice
Whole Grain Corn
Corn Gluten Meal
Corn Meal
Corn Meal
Soybean meal
Watch Out for Harmful
Chemicals & Unsavory Byproducts
Preservatives
Can be very harmful
Mixed Tocopherols
Mixed Tocopherols
BHA, BHT
Mixed Tocopherols
Mixed Tocopherols
Mixed Tocopherols
Mixed Tocopherols
Mixed Tocopherols
BHA
By-products
Generally inferior sources of
protein
none
none
yes
none
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
Artificial Dyes Many vets
believe they are linked to health problems
none
none
none
none
none
Yellow 5, Red 40,
Yellow 6, Blue 2
none
none
Red 40
Look for Powerful
Health Promoting Ingredients
Probiotics
Good for Digestive & Immune
System
yes
none
none
none
none
none
none
none
none
Antioxidants
Vital to Good Health (Grapeseed
Extract powerful source)
yes
Grapeseed
Extract
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
Chelated Minerals
Better absorbed
yes
none
none
yes
none
none
none
none
none
Vegetables
Excellent Source of
Antioxidants & Phytonutrients
yes
none
none
none
none
yes
none
none
none
Food Rating*
10
7
4
7
5
3
5
4
1
Cost to Feed and Cost
Delivered to Your Door
Cost Per
Cup
Based on the number of
Cups in Each Bag
$0.29
$0.16
$0.19
$0.29**
$0.17
$0.13
$0.17
$0.21
$0.09
Daily
Feeding Amount
Based on 50 lb dog
2 cups
3.5 cups
3.25 cups
2.5 cups**
2.5 cups
3.33 cups
2.5 cups
2 cups
3.5 cups
Daily
Cost to Feed
Based on feeding amounts & # of cups/ bag
$0.59
$0.58
$0.60
$0.72**
$0.42
$0.43
$0.42
$0.43
$0.31
Total Cost
to Feed + Shipping
$0.70
$0.86
$0.86
$0.72
$0.67
$0.67
$0.62
$0.61
$0.59
Food Rating*
10
7
4
7
5
3
5
4
1
*Rating: Each food
starts with 10 points. 1 point is deducted for each unfavorable
ingredient or lack of a health-promoting ingredient.
Life's Abundance
Nutro
Natural Choice
Science
Diet Adult Maintenance
Flint River Oven Baked
Puppy/Adult
Purina One Adult
Chicken & Rice Formula
Purina Beneful
Iams Adult Lamb Meal
& Rice
Eukanuba Adult Maintenance
Alpo
* Rating: Each food
starts with 10 points. 1 point is deducted for each unfavorable
ingredient or lack of a health-promoting ingredient.
** Includes shipping and cups to feed 45-55 lb. dog.
In most cases, food costs are an average of prices found in local
stores and popular Internet sites. Shipping costs are an average of
three popular Internet sites.
Chart created 2/24/03.
