I take part in a program called BzzAgent. I was so excited to get to do a review through them! I received the opportunity the other week for Hill's Science Diet Ideal Balance dog food. This was quite the learning experience. For my review, or campaign as they like to say, I was sent a free bag of the Ideal Balance Adult Chicken and Brown Rice Dinner and you'd think my dogs had personally agreed to do the review. They seemed to know that particular package was for them. First time Jeff didn't try to eat the UPS man! Upon opening the package, I looked over the bag and decided I better learn more about the product. My dogs are spoiled and both prone to allergies, so choosing the right food is very important to their health. So as any responsible pet owner would do, I did a little research.
Finding the right dog food isn't an easy task. Especially if you, like me, have a pet with special diet needs. I have spent hours staring at the packages and reading ingredients. The problem comes with knowing what those ingredients are and what they do for your dog. How often I've read them but really have no clue what I'm looking for. Don't feel bad though, less than ten percent of dog owners know the correct proportion of nutrients their dog needs. Hill's has made the process of understanding what your dog needs very easy. They have partnered up with PetMD to bring you an easy to understand guide for what needs to be in your dog's diet called My Bowl. If you are unsure about dog foods and ingredients this site is most definitely helpful.
First thing I look at is the ingredients and the order of them, as ingredients are listed from greatest to lowest. Hill's Science Diet Ideal Balance lists chicken first. Wow, that's nice. Not poultry by-product...What is poultry by-product anyway? Do we even know? Truth is, if we did know most of us would not be feeding it to our dogs. Animal by-products are ground, rendered, and cleaned slaughtered meat carcass parts such as necks, feet, undeveloped eggs, bones, heads, and intestines (and a small amount of feathers in the case of chicken) yes, by-products are as gross and disgusting as they sound. By-products are not required to include any actual meat. Really?? Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't our dogs and cats primarily carnivores? What is the point of feeding them a food mostly made out of something that doesn't even contain meat?! Next ingredient is brown rice. Okay, I know what that is. It's nice to be able to understand what's in the food I'm planning on feeding my dogs. As I go down the list of ingredients I am amazed as to how simple they are. Whole wheat grain, cracked pearl barley, pork fat, whole grain oats, apples, cranberries, peas, carrots, dried beet pulp, and broccoli to name a few. Followed by a long list of vitamins and minerals. Now I'm more comfortable feeding this product to my dogs.
From what I understand about finding the right dog food, it has multiple factors. They can't make it easy for us, of course. You may find that the most expensive brand isn't for your dog. You need the correct balance of nutrients but you also need it to taste good to your pet. My palate isn't hip to pet food nor do I even want to know what tastes good to an animal that thinks rolling in dead things is great cologne, so I rely on how well my pet eats it. If they are begging for food when there is some still in their bowl or super excited to get their bowl filled only to take a sniff and walk away, chances are they don't like it. The best way to see if they are receiving the nutrients they need is to look at them. Is their coat shiny? Does their coat look healthy? Are they chewing themselves? If so and you recently changed their food it's more than likely an allergic reaction to an ingredient or preservative. Are their eyes bright and attentive? Are they energetic? These are all good ways to tell if your pet is getting what they need from their food.
I will use Jeff primarily for my review, I've raised him from a puppy. He is very opinionated and a picky eater. Sassy, on the other hand, was raised by a kennel for breeding purposes and has recently joined our family for her retirement years. She's much easier going, loves anything you give her, and likes to hide in her kennel when she eats. I started off blending their old food with the new to avoid the digestion problems you get when you just swap out foods. Jeff seems to love the new food! He has always been a finicky eater, picking through his food and placing the pieces he's not fond of in the floor. Seeing a hundred plus pound weimaraner gingerly place less appetizing pieces in the floor is amusing to say the least. What's even better is when he tips the bowl over the pieces to "hide" them and acts guilty when I pick the bowl up revealing the hidden pieces. Who says dogs don't have personality or opinions? He doesn't pull out any of the new food and while he still eats the old food I notice he is searching for the new food in his bowl to eat them first. That's a good sign for Hill's Science Diet! Jeff will turn his nose up at certain foods opting to argue with me over the contents in the garbage can rather than eat what's in his bowl. They have passed the taste test with flying colors! As we continue the food I notice both dog's coats are staying healthy and have a beautiful shine to his ghostly gray coat and her blue coat. Eyes are bright, gas is minimal. They both appear to be sleeping well and not having any stomach issues or indigestion. Jeff is not chewing his paws which is his telltale sign of an allergy. No matter what I may be doing they are tossing toys in my lap to be thrown and are constantly wanted played with. So they definitely have energy. I would say this dog food is a complete success for my dogs!
My only complaint about the product is the price. I am, like a lot of us, on a strict budget with three kids and two very large dogs. The price is a little steep at about $55 for a 30 pound bag, for the amount of food my dogs eat. Jeff's food I have to loosely measure, as he will eat into obesity, especially if he enjoys the food. And he really did enjoy the food. He will also over-eat just to prevent another dog from getting any. Very much an only child trait. You will notice that if your dog is receiving the nutrients they need from their food they will require less of it (unless they are like Jeff). While this food doesn't work for me at the moment, I would suggest it as a great choice. And if I had a smaller breed dog I can honestly say I would switch permanently to this food. If you are looking for a high quality food that you can understand and feel comfortable feeding your dog this is a fantastic one to look into.
~Ms. Fe
From what I understand about finding the right dog food, it has multiple factors. They can't make it easy for us, of course. You may find that the most expensive brand isn't for your dog. You need the correct balance of nutrients but you also need it to taste good to your pet. My palate isn't hip to pet food nor do I even want to know what tastes good to an animal that thinks rolling in dead things is great cologne, so I rely on how well my pet eats it. If they are begging for food when there is some still in their bowl or super excited to get their bowl filled only to take a sniff and walk away, chances are they don't like it. The best way to see if they are receiving the nutrients they need is to look at them. Is their coat shiny? Does their coat look healthy? Are they chewing themselves? If so and you recently changed their food it's more than likely an allergic reaction to an ingredient or preservative. Are their eyes bright and attentive? Are they energetic? These are all good ways to tell if your pet is getting what they need from their food.
I will use Jeff primarily for my review, I've raised him from a puppy. He is very opinionated and a picky eater. Sassy, on the other hand, was raised by a kennel for breeding purposes and has recently joined our family for her retirement years. She's much easier going, loves anything you give her, and likes to hide in her kennel when she eats. I started off blending their old food with the new to avoid the digestion problems you get when you just swap out foods. Jeff seems to love the new food! He has always been a finicky eater, picking through his food and placing the pieces he's not fond of in the floor. Seeing a hundred plus pound weimaraner gingerly place less appetizing pieces in the floor is amusing to say the least. What's even better is when he tips the bowl over the pieces to "hide" them and acts guilty when I pick the bowl up revealing the hidden pieces. Who says dogs don't have personality or opinions? He doesn't pull out any of the new food and while he still eats the old food I notice he is searching for the new food in his bowl to eat them first. That's a good sign for Hill's Science Diet! Jeff will turn his nose up at certain foods opting to argue with me over the contents in the garbage can rather than eat what's in his bowl. They have passed the taste test with flying colors! As we continue the food I notice both dog's coats are staying healthy and have a beautiful shine to his ghostly gray coat and her blue coat. Eyes are bright, gas is minimal. They both appear to be sleeping well and not having any stomach issues or indigestion. Jeff is not chewing his paws which is his telltale sign of an allergy. No matter what I may be doing they are tossing toys in my lap to be thrown and are constantly wanted played with. So they definitely have energy. I would say this dog food is a complete success for my dogs!
My only complaint about the product is the price. I am, like a lot of us, on a strict budget with three kids and two very large dogs. The price is a little steep at about $55 for a 30 pound bag, for the amount of food my dogs eat. Jeff's food I have to loosely measure, as he will eat into obesity, especially if he enjoys the food. And he really did enjoy the food. He will also over-eat just to prevent another dog from getting any. Very much an only child trait. You will notice that if your dog is receiving the nutrients they need from their food they will require less of it (unless they are like Jeff). While this food doesn't work for me at the moment, I would suggest it as a great choice. And if I had a smaller breed dog I can honestly say I would switch permanently to this food. If you are looking for a high quality food that you can understand and feel comfortable feeding your dog this is a fantastic one to look into.
~Ms. Fe
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