Grade For Dog Kibble

[Guest 4baddogs]

It may have a crappy rating, but Beneful Prepared Meals is the only thing that Zoe will eat since she was on the brink of death last month. And if that's what it takes to keep her healthy and happy at her age, then she can have it. She's an absolute eating machine since she was sick - and this is the dog who wouldn't eat for days before!

 

Kirby eats Life's Abundance from healthypetnet.com althought he'd eat anything at all.

[Guest pedalmasher]

It may have a crappy rating, but Beneful Prepared Meals is the only thing that Zoe will eat since she was on the brink of death last month. And if that's what it takes to keep her healthy and happy at her age, then she can have it. She's an absolute eating machine since she was sick - and this is the dog who wouldn't eat for days before!

 

Kirby eats Life's Abundance from healthypetnet.com althought he'd eat anything at all.

 

After reviewing the incredients in Beneful, I was not surprised that it received a grade of "F." Unfortunately, my dog turned up its nose at Canidae, and a couple of the other kibbles, but would happily gobble down Beneful. Probaly analagous to the enthusiasm with which I gobble down a NutRageous candy bar. I finally hit on a compromise. The dog loves Purina One, and gobbles the food down so fast that she chokes. Fortunately, it has substantially better nutritional properties than Beneful which to me seems a recipe for non logevity of the dog (speaking of using it with younger dogs). Of course in your situation, you had to do what you had to do.

 

Having said all that, my fiance was feeding her 11 year old lab Beneful, and she has been doing quite well with it. I did get her to switch to Purina One however.

[brandimom]

Purina Beneful / Score 17 F

Purina Come-n-Get It / Score 16 F

 

Dang! It seems like you have to WORK to make dog "food" this bad!

 

Interesting list. I think I'll print it out and include it in all our adoption packets so no one ever asks me again if "X" is a good food...

 

[brandimom]

I was totally surprised with the Kirland rating. I love Costco but never thought about buying the dog food there. I also buy the Life Abundance through Healthly Pet for my non-greyhound dogs. I give my grey The Honest Kitchen, Kean (dehydrated). I usually have a $5.00 coupon for The Honest Kitchen product plus I get a 10% discount at a high quality pet food store because of my involvement in greyhound rescue. I like the idea that someone mentioned making a copy of this rating for the adoption families. I am a placement rep for our local greyhound rescue and am always being asked what should I feed my grey. Thank you for the tips and product information.

[Guest eaglflyt]

We just got our girl, Ady Bea, last Friday. We love her dearly already. She has fit right in our household with our other dog and our cat family members.

 

We're transitioning all our canines to Blue brand dog food. Already, her black coat is beginning to shine and her dry skin is looking better. None of the canines are having any GI issues with the transition and Ady gobbles it up readily.

 

Thank you so much for posting this list. I've found it very educational and will refer to the math formula in the future if we ever find we need to change food brands again.

[brandimom]

The Costco Kirkland certainly was a surprise.

[Guest isntitgreyt]

Well my food failed but they like it and their coats look great. I might have to try the Kirkland.

[Guest kineticpoet]

I personally look for a dog food that is made in a company-owned plant, rather than by a large co-packer

that makes lots of different foods. That's the situation that caused so much cross-contamination of foods

last year at the Menu Foods plant.

 

I would give points for a food being made at a company-owned plant, and subtract points if made by a large

co-packer.

 

Make sense?

 

Is there a good place to look on the bag for this to tell the difference? I've always been feeding Nutro but recently stopped after my other two dogs had a lot of crystals in their urine that the vet is thinking could have been the food. We're also thinking it was behind a rash of violent sickness for 2months last year ("stresscolitis" and we're thinking it was food, not stress since everything was the same at home) so we're not feeding it to anyone anymore. I've gone to Authority right now, but am thinking of switching to Canidae no-grain formula.

 

 

[Guest maggiemay]

Well that 94 A grading makes me feel a bit better about buying Proplan sensitive at AUD$115 for 37 lbs (USD$80), about double what it costs in the US.

 

Do they fly it over here first class???

 

 

 

[Guest DashDad]

Does anyone have any idea where this "grading" system originated? It doesn't look to me like anything a veterinarian/scientist would devise - there's nothing in the grading system that even addresses whether the food contains the basic daily nutrients a dog requires!

 

I looked around on the web, and found this grading system posted on literally hundreds of sites - almost all of them forums like this one - but nothing that identified an original source, nor any scientific/medical explanation of the grading.

 

This looks like something some enterprising dog food manufacturer devised to make their food look good.

[Guest fruitypebbles]

Does anyone have any idea where this "grading" system originated? It doesn't look to me like anything a veterinarian/scientist would devise - there's nothing in the grading system that even addresses whether the food contains the basic daily nutrients a dog requires!

 

I looked around on the web, and found this grading system posted on literally hundreds of sites - almost all of them forums like this one - but nothing that identified an original source, nor any scientific/medical explanation of the grading.

 

This looks like something some enterprising dog food manufacturer devised to make their food look good.

 

Here ya go:

Grading Dog Food

 

This method of grading dog food was developed by Sarah Irick. It is not to be considered exact science but a starting point for people who need help with how to read labels and choose a good food.

 

About the Author of this Food Grading Method:

 

My name is Sarah Irick and I am a Great Dane owner and rescue volunteer. I am a Civil/Industrial Engineer, not a veterinarian or animal nutritionist by education or employment. I do not work for a pet food manufacturer nor am I affiliated with one. I am just an individual who is concerned about what I feed my dogs and wants to help others decide what to feed their own. I cannot remember the exact date I designed this system, though I know it's been more than a year (probably 2-3 years ago). I was concerned with the way people sometimes throw out names of "good" dog foods that maybe aren't so good, and others take their words for it. Foods that maybe used to be good before their ingredients were changed for the worse or before better options became available are still being touted by some as being super-premium and I disagree. Since many pet owners do not have the time or inclination to do as many hours of research into pet (specifically dog) nutrition as I and many of you have, I wanted an *easier* way for them to compare labels. Unfortunately it is still a bit cumbersome (sometimes 2 people calculate the same food and get different scores even) but it's better than nothing in my opinion.

 

Is it exact science? No. I don't claim for it to be. In fact I’ve had to make a couple of changes over time (which the above don't reflect) for new circumstances I’ve run across, such as the food that contained NO MEAT (not a special diet just one that was so cheap it didn't contain any meat at all) and needs a steep penalty in my opinion, but still scored a decent grade on the original. Another example is the newer kibbles that contain no grain but, in my opinion, if it still has sufficient fiber and carbs then it deserves extra credit that wasn't previously reflected. Also I’ve gotten comments and opinions that I take seriously and incorporate if it seems appropriate.

 

I don't have a permanent site host for this although seeing how hugely popular it is and how widely spread without accreditation it has become perhaps I should do so. It isn't that I care so much about credit but many people will ask the questions that your posters have about my affiliations and biases, etc.

 

I don't officially support any one food; anywhere that I personally posted grades on specific foods it was to give an idea of where these foods fell so people didn't always have to do the math. If you want to e-mail me with questions or comments, you can at fredirick@hotmail.com . This is my "spam" address, so put "Dog Food Grading" in the subject line or I'll probably delete it mistakenly. ~ Sarah Irick

 

How to grade your dog's food

 

Start with a grade of 100 points

1) For every listing of "by-product", subtract 10 points

2) For every non-specific animal source ("meat" or "poultry", meat, meal or fat) reference, subtract 10 points

3) If the food contains BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin, subtract 10 points

4) For every grain "mill run" or non-specific grain source subtract 5 points

5) If the same grain ingredient is used 2 or more times in the first five ingredients (i.e. "ground brown rice", "brewer's rice", "rice flour" are all the same grain), subtract 5 points

6) If the protein sources are not meat meal and there are less than 2 meats in the top 3 ingredients, subtract 3 points

7) If it contains any artificial colorants, subtract 3 points

8 ) If it contains ground corn or whole grain corn, subtract 3 points

9) If corn is listed in the top 5 ingredients, subtract 2 more points

10) If the food contains any animal fat other than fish oil, subtract 2 points

11) If lamb is the only animal protein source (unless your dog is allergic to other protein sources), subtract 2 points

12) If it contains soy or soybeans, subtract 2 points

13) If it contains wheat (unless you know that your dog isn't allergic to wheat), subtract 2 points

14) If it contains beef (unless you know that your dog isn't allergic to beef), subtract 1 point

15) If it contains salt, subtract 1 point

Extra Credit:

1) If any of the meat sources are organic, add 5 points

2) If the food is endorsed by any major breed group or nutritionist, add 5 points

3) If the food is baked not extruded, add 5 points

4) If the food contains probiotics, add 3 points

5) If the food contains fruit, add 3 points

6) If the food contains vegetables (NOT corn or other grains), add 3 points

7) If the animal sources are hormone-free and antibiotic-free, add 2 points

8) If the food contains barley, add 2 points

9) If the food contains flax seed oil (not just the seeds), add 2 points

10) If the food contains oats or oatmeal, add 1 point

11) If the food contains sunflower oil, add 1 point

12) For every different specific animal protein source (other than the first one; count "chicken" and "chicken meal" as only one protein source, but "chicken" and "fish" as 2 different sources), add 1 point

13) If it contains glucosamine and chondroitin, add 1 point

14) If the vegetables have been tested for pesticides and are pesticide-free, add 1 point

 

94-100+ = A

86-93 = B

78-85 = C

70-77 = D

69 = F

 

Following are some foods that have already been scored (alphabetical order then ordered by score):

 

ALPHABETICAL ORDER:

Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+

Bil-Jac Select / Score 68 F

Canidae / Score 112 A+

Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+

Diamond Maintenance / Score 64 F

Diamond Lamb Meal & Rice / Score 92 B

Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A

Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+

Dick Van Patten's Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+

Eagle Pack Holistic / Score 119 A+

Eagle Pack Holistic Chicken / Score 114 A+

Eagle Pack Large and Giant Breed Puppy / Score 94 A

Eagle Pack Natural / Score 94 A

Eukanuba Large Breed Adult / Score 83 C

Eukanuba Natural Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B

Flint River Ranch / Score 92 B (non-specific fat source)

Foundations / Score 106 A+

Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 93 A

Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula Premium / Score 73 D

Iams Large Breed / Score 83 C

Innova Dog / Score 114 A+

Innova Evo / Score 114 A+

Kirkland Signature Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+

Kirkland Signature Puppy Chicken, Rice and Vegetable / Score 108 A+

Natural Balance Duck and Potato / Score 114 A+

Nature's Select Chicken & Rice Puppy Growth Premium / Score 96 A

Nutrisource Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B

Nutro Chicken, Rice, & Oatmeal / Score 85 C (non-specific fat source)

Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy / Score 87 B

Nutro Natural choice Lamb and Rice / Score 85 C

Ol Roy / Score 9 F

Pedigree Complete Nutrition / Score 42 F

Pedigree Adult Complete / Score 14 F

Pet Gold Adult with Lamb & Rice / Score 23 F

Pro Plan All Breed / Score 68 F

Pro Plan Natural Turkey & Barley / Score 103 A+

Purina Benful / Score 17 F

Purina Dog / Score 62 F

Purina Come-n-Get It / Score 16 F

Royal Canin Bulldog / Score 100 A+

Royal Canin Dachshund 28 Formula / Score 97 A

Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult / Score 106 A+

Sensible Choice Chicken and Rice / Score 97 A

Science Diet Advanced Protein Senior 7+ / Score 63 F

Science Diet chicken adult maintenance / Score 45 F

Science Diet for Large Breed Puppies / Score 69 F

Solid Gold Bison / Score 123 A+

Timberwolf Organics Lamb and Venison / Score 136 A+

Wellness Just for Puppy / Score 117 A+

Wellness Super5 Mix Chicken / Score 110 A+

Wolfking Adult Dog (bison) by Solid Gold / Score 97 A

 

 

NUMERICAL ORDER (BY SCORE):

 

Grade A

Timberwolf Organics Lamb and Venison / Score 136 A+

Solid Gold Bison / Score 123 A+

Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+

Eagle Pack Holistic / Score 119 A+

Wellness Just for Puppy / Score 117 A+

Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+

Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+

Eagle Pack Holistic Chicken / Score 114 A+

Innova Dog / Score 114 A+

Innova Evo / Score 114 A+

Natural Balance Duck and Potato / Score 114 A+

Canidae / Score 112 A+

Kirkland Signature Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+

Wellness Super5 Mix Chicken / Score 110 A+

Kirkland Signature Puppy Chicken, Rice and Vegetable / Score 108 A+

Dick Van Patten's Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+

Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult / Score 106 A+

Foundations / Score 106 A+

ProPlan Natural Turkey & Barley / Score 103 A+

Royal Canin Bulldog / Score 100 A+

Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A

Royal Canin Dachshund 28 Formula / Score 97 A

Sensible Choice Chicken and Rice / Score 97 A

Wolfking Adult Dog (bison) by Solid Gold / Score 97 A

Nature's Select Chicken & Rice Puppy Growth Premium / Score 96 A

Eagle Pack Large and Giant Breed Puppy / Score 94 A

Eagle Pack Natural / Score 94 A

Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 93 A

Grade B

Diamond Lamb Meal & Rice / Score 92 B

Flint River Ranch / Score 92 B (non-specific fat source)

Eukanuba Natural Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B

Nutrisource Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B

Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy / Score 87 B

Grades C and D

Nutro Chicken, Rice, & Oatmeal / Score 85 C (non-specific fat source)

Nutro Natural choice Lamb and Rice / Score 85 C

Eukanuba Large Breed Adult / Score 83 C

Iams Large Breed / Score 83 C

Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula Premium / Score 73 D

Grade F

Science Diet for Large Breed Puppies / Score 69 F

Bil-Jac Select / Score 68 F

Pro Plan All Breed / Score 68 F

Diamond Maintenance / Score 64 F

Science Diet Advanced Protein Senior 7+ / Score 63 F

Purina Dog / Score 62 F

Science Diet chicken adult maintenance / Score 45 F

Pedigree Complete Nutrition / Score 42 F

Pet Gold Adult with Lamb & Rice / Score 23 F

Purina Benful / Score 17 F

Purina Come-n-Get It / Score 16 F

Pedigree Adult Complete / Score 14 F

Ol Roy / Score 9 F

Edited April 21, 2009 by fruitypebbles

[Guest rhodygrey]

After doing a lot of research into what goes into kibble, I decided to switch my grey to a raw diet and have seen tremendous results. If anyone else is interested in info or tips let me know. It's the first time of seen her actually eat all of her food! :-)

[Guest greytexplorer]

As a newbie, thanks so much for this list!

 

I saw the Costco brand, and wasn't sure about it, but I think we'll try it. Pike has been on Hill's Prescription Bland Diet for his loose stools -- I just started adding 1/8 parts California Lamb & Rice (which is twice as much as Costco), and it is giving him terrible gas!!! And the loose stools are back. Poor guy just pooped four times on his walk!

 

 

After trying several kinds of kibble, I am back to Purina Pro Plan Lamb (and whatever).

Pedalmasher: It scored 101, if I did it right.

 

Ester can eat just about anything without issue.

Mandy on the other hand has very mushy stools, you know, the kind that LOOK like a good firm stool, but when you go to pick it up, leaves a LOT of evidence

I bought the 35 lb bag of Pro Plan cuz it was a greyt price===$29!!!!

When I walked the gyrls the other day, both had to stop for a poop, and it was EASY cleanup.

 

I have come to the decision that corn in the kibble works for Mandy. I think it helps her system form a firmer stool.

So instead of buying the pricier stuff (Chicken Soup, Diamond's all meat Buffalo stuff, etc) I'm stickin with Pro Plan.

 

~Pat

 

and Mandy, former dribble-y pooper

Edited May 8, 2009 by greytexplorer

[Guest greyhound1]

Thanks. Great information!

[Guest Energy11]

 

Yes, Trudy, thanks for that info! I wish I had a Costco closeby, but alas, living up here, I have to order all my food from PetFood Direct.

 

I use Canidae Senior Platinum on two boys, Chicken Soup on Curfew, Merrick on Cari, and Goldie is on a prescription renal diet. Everybody seems greyt!

 

 

[seeh2o]

If I did the math right, Kirkland's Lamb & Veggies gets a score of 99. Not too shabby!

[Guest fastdawglvr]

 

I just started using Precise Pet food in February. I was using Eagle Pack, but I noticed both my grey's started dropping weight, and the shedding and dry skin was really bad. Anyway, I got on www.greatdanelady.com and was reading about how Eagle Pack's company was sold and that the food had changed. I started feeding the Precise food, based on the great dane lady's recommendation, and WOW it is awesome.

 

1. They gained back all of the weight they lost

2. Their coats look wonderful, no flaking, hardly any shedding

3. Stools were great from day one

4. My one Grey always had allergic eyes, and that has disappeared.

5. No more joint clicking in my seniors.

6. Cats are doing great on it to.

7. They love the taste

8. Less expensive then Eagle

9. Feed almost a cup less per day.

 

Buy 10 bags get one free! www.precisepet.com

 

Good luck smile.gif

[EllenEveBaz]

Why are meat by-products such a major downgrade in this system? My understanding is that they are organs, blood, etc., not hair or hooves. Many by-products such as green tripe and chicken feet are highly sought after by raw feeders. As long as the by-products have a specific source listed -- chicken, beef, whatever -- why wouldn't they be okay? Are there some bad possibilities in the by-product mix?

[Guest WhithersMom]

The Blue Seal Lamb and Rice that we have fed Whither for a year is not recommended on several other ratings pages, but it scores a decent 94 by this scale. They changed their formula about a year ago, and the food has good blueberries and sweet potatoes, as well, as a lot of other good ingredients to it. There are no preservatives used, and he has been healthy on it. Hopefully Gracie will too.

I am not of the belief that all organic ingredients make a better dog food. I think that organic is good, but if the chief push for your food is the fact that it is organic, then there might be something else to look at in the food.

 

I ran across it on a site that stated that it was originally developed by a friend of the site owner's who was trying to evaluate food for their great dane. I will see if I can find the original link

 

Absolutely, and having lost my favorite cat to the menu food debacle while she was eating Iams, I can totally agree.

 

 

 

Just my 2 cents. . .

 

Be aware that several foods have changed their formulations since this grading system first appeared.

 

For example, Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice (which USED to be Nutro Natural Choice Lamb MEAL and Rice)

made significant changes to its formulation when it was bought out by Mars Pet Foods last year. The new

formulation will not score nearly as high as the old formulation, for example.

 

I personally look for a dog food that is made in a company-owned plant, rather than by a large co-packer

that makes lots of different foods. That's the situation that caused so much cross-contamination of foods

last year at the Menu Foods plant.

 

I would give points for a food being made at a company-owned plant, and subtract points if made by a large

co-packer.

 

Make sense?

[Guest KingTermite]

Nice list and methodology.

 

Glad to see my Kirkland Signature food is even better than I thought it was.

[Guest RWM]

Does anyone have any experience with the top-rated kibbles, such as Timberwod Organics Lamb and Venison, Solid Gold Bison, Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance, Eagle Pack Holistic, Authority Harvest Blend, Innova, Natural Balance, Canidae, and Kirkland (I note some good comments on Kirkland)?

[Sharpshot]

It may have a crappy rating, but Beneful Prepared Meals is the only thing that Zoe will eat since she was on the brink of death last month. And if that's what it takes to keep her healthy and happy at her age, then she can have it. She's an absolute eating machine since she was sick - and this is the dog who wouldn't eat for days before!

 

When my boy Scirocco was in his last days, the ONLY food (human food included) I could get him to eat was

Gaines Burgers!

 

Remember those awful dried Play-doh looking "hamburger patty" things wrapped in celophane? I used to buy them by the case at Petco (then Petcare) and hope that nobody I knew saw me in the store with them in my shopping cart!

 

Do they still sell those things? I hope people are a little more educated and enlightened about dog food these days!

 

[Guest smudgebear]

When my boy Scirocco was in his last days, the ONLY food (human food included) I could get him to eat was

Gaines Burgers!

 

Remember those awful dried Play-doh looking "hamburger patty" things wrapped in celophane? I used to buy them by the case at Petco (then Petcare) and hope that nobody I knew saw me in the store with them in my shopping cart!

 

Do they still sell those things? I hope people are a little more educated and enlightened about dog food these days!

 

 

Haha! I remember those! My grandparents used to feed them to their beagle mix back in the 80s. I don't think they sell them anymore, though.

[Sorcha]

<!--quoteo(post=3742583:date=Dec 13 2008, 09:57 PM:name=4baddogs)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(4baddogs @ Dec 13 2008, 09:57 PM) 3742583[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->It may have a crappy rating, but Beneful Prepared Meals is the <u><b>only</b></u> thing that Zoe will eat since she was on the brink of death last month. And if that's what it takes to keep her healthy and happy at her age, then she can have it. She's an absolute eating machine since she was sick - and this is the dog who wouldn't eat for days before!<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

 

When my boy Scirocco was in his last days, the ONLY food (human food included) I could get him to eat was

Gaines Burgers!

 

Remember those awful dried Play-doh looking "hamburger patty" things wrapped in celophane? I used to buy them by the case at Petco (then Petcare) and hope that nobody I knew saw me in the store with them in my shopping cart! <img src="http://forum.greytalk.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/lol.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="lol.gif" />

 

Do they still sell those things? I hope people are a little more educated and enlightened about dog food these days!

 

Sort of, there is Moist & Meaty.

This is the only food my 14 year old greyhound will eat for breakfast, I prepare one pouch of it and top it with fresh-made scrambled eggs and whatever else I have around (turkey, bologna, etc.).

Edited January 8, 2010 by Sorcha

[Guest CometAndDasher]

Thank you very much for this information. We just returned from the Pet store with an expensive bag of Nutro Ultra Holistic Superfood - Adult. I rated it using your guide and came up with 70 which is just barely a 'D'.