Dog Nutrition

Science Diet Dog Food: Not What The Doctor Ordered

The topic of quality nutrition for dogs is something you will find hotly contested between veterinarians, naturopathic vets, and dog owners. I am in the process of blogging a great deal about proper dog food and dog nutrition, but in the mean time I would love to address what I think  is the biggest scam in veterinary medicine: Hill’s Science Diet dog food.

My Vet Prescribed Hills Science Diet or Prescription Diet

If you’re still reading this article, it is likely that your vet has recommended or has already sold you an incredibly expensive bag of this "perscription only" food that has scientific research to "validate" its benefits. Don’t get me wrong, your vet is well intended, but the fact remains that veterinary education and practice sorely lacks in the area of quality nutrition. They would rather trust an incredibly small sample size study (usually 500 animals or so), with dogs hand selected by Hills, than 1000′s of years of evolution.

The bottom line is that dogs were not meant to eat undigested corn, brewers rice, any kind of gluten, by-products, nor any other cheaply made food filler common in today’s commercial dog foods. Notice I did not say that dogs shouldn’t eat carbohydrates or grains. Any good vet will tell you that the first thing a wild dog will eat is the stomach and other organ content from their pray, and that these contents are filled with grain and carbohydrates as well as their intrinsic proteins.

But the fact is, those items have been chewed, and at least partially digested before the wild dog eats it. Further, natural prey is not eating gluten, or any kind of corn. The cheaply made proteins and food fillers are very difficult to digest. Gluten is a horrible source of protein, and has been linked to obesity, food allergies, and other health problems in humans.

Hills Science Diet Dog Food is a Waste Of Your Money

Before I go any further, I am not a veterinarian. I am however a certified nutritionist, and have done significant research on nutrition for dogs. As the owner of two English Bulldogs, I do constant research via trial and error trying to keep my dogs skin problems in check (successfully I might add). I am writing this article because I know Hills’ products are not high quality nutrition, and are massively over priced for what you get.

Of course, I’m certain that you want proof, so, I’m going to show you right now that Hills Science Diet is almost identical to Purina One, which is available at any grocery store for a significantly more reasonable price (don’t get me wrong, I would never feed my dog grocery store dog food). Let’s take  a look:

Hills Science Diet I/D Canine Dog Food (chicken)

Purina One Chicken and Rice Formula

Ground Whole Grain Corn, Brewers Rice, Dried Egg Product, Chicken By-Product Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Pork Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Powdered Cellulose, Dicalcium Phosphate, Chicken Liver Flavor, Iodized Salt, Potassium Citrate, Choline Chloride, Calcium Carbonate, Potassium Chloride, Dried Beet Pulp, Soybean Oil, vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid), Taurine, minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), preserved with Mixed Tocopherols & Citric Acid, Rosemary Extract. Average Nutrient Contents Nutrient   Dry Matter1 % Protein 26.2 Fat 14.1 Carbohydrate (NFE) 50.3 Crude Fiber 2.7 Total Dietary Fiber 8.7 Soluble Fiber 1.2 Insoluble Fiber 7.5     Calcium 1.04 Phosphorus 0.79 Sodium 0.45 Potassium 0.92 Magnesium 0.095 All info copied directly from http://www.hillspet.com/hillspet/products/productDetails.hjsp?PRODUCT<>prd_id=845524441760640

Chicken (natural source of glucosamine), brewers rice, corn gluten meal, whole grain corn, poultry by-product meal (natural source of glucosamine), whole grain wheat, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), animal digest, calcium phosphate, salt, potassium chloride, caramel color, calcium carbonate, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, choline chloride, zinc sulfate, Vitamin E supplement, ferrous sulfate, manganese sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate, copper sulfate, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin B-12 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, garlic oil, folic acid, Vitamin D-3 supplement, calcium iodate, biotin, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), sodium selenite.   Crude Protein (MIN) 26.0% Phosphorus (P) (MIN) 0.8% Crude Fat (MIN) 16.0% Selenium (Se) (MIN) 0.30 mg/kg Crude Fiber (MAX) 3.0% Vitamin A (MIN) 13,000 IU/kg Moisture (MAX) 12.0% Vitamin E (MIN) 100 IU/kg Linoleic Acid (MIN) 1.4% Glucosamine (MIN)* 400 ppm Calcium (Ca) (MIN) 1.0%       All info copied directly from http://www.purinaone.com/Products/ProductDetails.aspx?ProductId=3EB3A790-120E-4311-A61E-09A232AF7926

 As you can see, the ingredients lists are not identical, but they are very close. In fact, the primary (first listed and thus most abundant) ingredient in Purina One is Chicken (not chicken by product or even chicken meal which is perfectly acceptable), making it a better protein source than Hills. The nutrient ratios are almost identical, as well as the balance of calcium and phosphorous. Sadly, hills makes up its protein content with inferior ingredients as well explore below.

On their website, Hills claims that the I/D formula has the following key health benefits:

Science Diet I/D Key Benefits Table

Prescription Diet® i/d® is formulated with the following benefits:
• Highly digestible protein and fat to help repair tissues and assimilate nutrients faster
• Mixed fiber source to help maintain gastrointestinal health
• Optimal balance of nutrients to help replenish the body and help encourage recovery
• Added antioxidants to control cell oxidation and promote a healthy immune system

The protein in the food comes from dried egg, chicken by-product, and corn gluten. The only high quality protein source in this food is dried egg, which is the 3rd ingredient on the list. The primary ingredients in this food are corn, and Brewers rice, which is the small milled fragments of rice kernels that have been separated from the larger kernels of milled rice. This process removes many of the nutrients contained in whole ground rice and brown rice. Quite simply, the primary ingredients in this food are FILLER!

Regulations for dog food don’t require the source of vitamins to be listed. However, the mineral sources are listed on food bags, so I assume there is some regulation there. The mineral sources in Hills are also of very low quality (except the iron from ferrous sulfate). Zinc for instance should come in the form of zinc picolinate or zinc gluconate. Zinc oxide, the form in the Hills formula is an inorganic compound used to make things such as batteries, Desitin, and sun block.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Did you enjoy this post? Please subscribe to my RSS feed.

Thanks for visiting!