When people feed the worst food there is and then wonder why their dog has allergies

[BabieChloe]

I know these people with a VERYY sick dog who constantly has his skin/hair fall off and is always at the vet..... well, the owners feed him IAMS all his life and think it's the best food ever.. Meanwhile, they tell me why I home cook because dogs are "suppose to eat dry food"

Just felt like I needed to say this to people who understand that IAMS is basically a bag of McDonalds for dogs. They tell me it's the best food because it isn't "cheap"..... all I know is I pick better chicken for Chloe than I pick for myself.

[MarkFromSea]

Search Results iams

Yep, looks pretty poor. Recalls, mostly plant based proteins.... at just a quick glance.

[107barney]

I actually disagree.
Most allergies in dogs are environmental - over 90% - not due to food.
I'd feed Iams over almost all the "holistic" brands.
Who cares if they don't approve of your home cooking?

[navillusc]

Originally Posted by BabieChloe

I know these people with a VERYY sick dog who constantly has his skin/hair fall off and is always at the vet..... well, the owners feed him IAMS all his life and think it's the best food ever.. Meanwhile, they tell me why I home cook because dogs are "suppose to eat dry food"

Just felt like I needed to say this to people who understand that IAMS is basically a bag of McDonalds for dogs. They tell me it's the best food because it isn't "cheap"..... all I know is I pick better chicken for Chloe than I pick for myself.

Do you mean 'allergies' or 'chemical sensitivities' to components in the food...just curious. I have definitely seen worse labels than some of Iam's products. Which product are they feeding? What ingredient is the fur baby allergic to? Again, just curious. Very sad the baby is so sick...my best to them the baby gets better.

[chachi]

I feed Iams and have for 10 years with no allergies. I have also feed Iams to my cats and them live very long lives so I beg to differ with you

[navillusc]

Originally Posted by 107barney

I actually disagree.
Most allergies in dogs are environmental - over 90% - not due to food.
I'd feed Iams over almost all the "holistic" brands.
Who cares if they don't approve of your home cooking?

Plus, allergies can be confused with chemical sensitivities, too. Which Iams product is meant?

I would also like to know just what is wrong with home cooking? The pet food industry is not all that old, after all, but people have fed domesticated canines for a much longer time.

I have seen brands marked as 'holistic' I will not buy due to ingredients. Is there an 'authoritative" entity who 'certifies' that a product complies with whatever 'holistic spec' there is...does a spec even exists?

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by BabieChloe

I know these people with a VERYY sick dog who constantly has his skin/hair fall off and is always at the vet..... well, the owners feed him IAMS all his life and think it's the best food ever.. Meanwhile, they tell me why I home cook because dogs are "suppose to eat dry food"

Just felt like I needed to say this to people who understand that IAMS is basically a bag of McDonalds for dogs. They tell me it's the best food because it isn't "cheap"..... all I know is I pick better chicken for Chloe than I pick for myself.

This poor dog . It's not likely that the food actually has anything to do with it, unforch, bc food allergies in dogs only account for about 10-15% of all allergies...most are enviro. If this dog's hair is falling out and he has recurrent skin issues, for gawd's sake the dog needs to be tested for thyroid issues and for Cushings.

[calismama]

I disagree. I feed Iams and Cali is doing wonderful.

[gracielove]

While I agree that most kibble on the market is made of junk food much of the problem is in the processing. In order to create kibble the ingredients have to go through high heat processing at least three times in order to create the kibble consistency and kill harmful bacteria. By then most of what was in there that may have been of nutritional value is destroyed.

The ingredients have little likelihood of creating the actual food allergy since they no longer exist in their original form, however, certain components can effect the pet like the high glucose levels from corn.

Major problems come from the dog or cat having to continually digest these substances that are foreign to the body. Some pets just can't deal with the constant stress of it and they cannot absorb the synthetic vitamins used to substitute for real nutrition found in real food.

The body subjected to this kind of stress over time just loses it's ability to fight off disease and dysfunction. Any nutritionist will tell you that you cannot substitute synthetic vitamins for the real nutrition found in fresh foods and that is exactly what pet food companies are subjecting our pets to. Look at the long list of synthetic vitamins found at the end of each ingredient list on the pet food package. Those are what brings your pet food up to the nutritional requirement after the high heat processing.

Sadly, most Americans are so accustomed to eating highly processed foods that they think nothing of giving this packaged clump of feed to their pets. In actual fact pet food in this country is classified as "feed" not "food" and falls under the same category as livestock feeds.

Strangely, you will not see any of the big pet food companies sharing any of their processing information.

[WannaBe]

Originally Posted by gracielove

While I agree that most kibble on the market is made of junk food much of the problem is in the processing. In order to create kibble the ingredients have to go through high heat processing at least three times in order to create the kibble consistency and kill harmful bacteria. By then most of what was in there that may have been of nutritional value is destroyed.

The ingredients have little likelihood of creating the actual food allergy since they no longer exist in their original form, however, certain components can effect the pet like the high glucose levels from corn.

Major problems come from the dog or cat having to continually digest these substances that are foreign to the body. Some pets just can't deal with the constant stress of it and they cannot absorb the synthetic vitamins used to substitute for real nutrition found in real food.

The body subjected to this kind of stress over time just loses it's ability to fight off disease and dysfunction. Any nutritionist will tell you that you cannot substitute synthetic vitamins for the real nutrition found in fresh foods and that is exactly what pet food companies are subjecting our pets to. Look at the long list of synthetic vitamins found at the end of each ingredient list on the pet food package. Those are what brings your pet food up to the nutritional requirement after the high heat processing.

Sadly, most Americans are so accustomed to eating highly processed foods that they think nothing of giving this packaged clump of feed to their pets. In actual fact pet food in this country is classified as "feed" not "food" and falls under the same category as livestock feeds.

Strangely, you will not see any of the big pet food companies sharing any of their processing information.

Yep...

[chickensmith]

I have to say that I have fed all my dogs Iams their whole lives and our cats....except Winnie. Our two older dogs were on it since they were puppies. Cassie, our tiny chihuahua mix, lived to be 13 years old. She had bone cancer and we lost her to it. Misha, our husky, is 11. And her vet says she is about as healthy as they come. She has blood work yearly for the last few years because she is a senior....and most people don't believe she is as old as she is. That being said....Winnie's tummy couldn't handle most of the foods we offered her. She has been on BB ( from the breeder), Iams, wellness, science diet ideal balance, simply nourish, orijen and acana. We finally found one that agrees with her tummy and she actually eats which is natures variety prairie (which by the way is surprisingly affordable!). I know food is a major hot button topic....but having worked at a vets office as a tech for years....food is not usually the first culprit sought when it comes to allergies. It sounds more like they may be avoiding the vet than anything else. On the food subject....if someone isn't asking an "opinion" on what food should be fed to their pets....it's not my place to judge for what they do feed. Not everyone can afford the high prices these so called best of the best dog food companies sell. That's just my take on it.

[Lovetodream88]

Bad dog food dosent mean that's why they would have food allergies. It dosent work like that.

[chachi]

Originally Posted by chickensmith

I have to say that I have fed all my dogs Iams their whole lives and our cats....except Winnie. Our two older dogs were on it since they were puppies. Cassie, our tiny chihuahua mix, lived to be 13 years old. She had bone cancer and we lost her to it. Misha, our husky, is 11. And her vet says she is about as healthy as they come. She has blood work yearly for the last few years because she is a senior....and most people don't believe she is as old as she is. That being said....Winnie's tummy couldn't handle most of the foods we offered her. She has been on BB ( from the breeder), Iams, wellness, science diet ideal balance, simply nourish, orijen and acana. We finally found one that agrees with her tummy and she actually eats which is natures variety prairie (which by the way is surprisingly affordable!). I know food is a major hot button topic....but having worked at a vets office as a tech for years....food is not usually the first culprit sought when it comes to allergies. It sounds more like they may be avoiding the vet than anything else. On the food subject....if someone isn't asking an "opinion" on what food should be fed to their pets....it's not my place to judge for what they do feed. Not everyone can afford the high prices these so called best of the best dog food companies sell. That's just my take on it.

Exactly mine eat Iams and a little little caesar in the morning and they have been going strong for close to 11 yrs with no allergies or health problems.

[princesschloe1]

Originally Posted by chickensmith

I have to say that I have fed all my dogs Iams their whole lives and our cats....except Winnie. Our two older dogs were on it since they were puppies. Cassie, our tiny chihuahua mix, lived to be 13 years old. She had bone cancer and we lost her to it. Misha, our husky, is 11. And her vet says she is about as healthy as they come. She has blood work yearly for the last few years because she is a senior....and most people don't believe she is as old as she is. That being said....Winnie's tummy couldn't handle most of the foods we offered her. She has been on BB ( from the breeder), Iams, wellness, science diet ideal balance, simply nourish, orijen and acana. We finally found one that agrees with her tummy and she actually eats which is natures variety prairie (which by the way is surprisingly affordable!). I know food is a major hot button topic....but having worked at a vets office as a tech for years....food is not usually the first culprit sought when it comes to allergies. It sounds more like they may be avoiding the vet than anything else. On the food subject....if someone isn't asking an "opinion" on what food should be fed to their pets....it's not my place to judge for what they do feed. Not everyone can afford the high prices these so called best of the best dog food companies sell. That's just my take on it.

The thing is they spend over $100 a month to feed him Iams. He is a very big, 70 pound dog. To them, they don't know about food brands and only feed him Iams and assume because it's $100 for them that it's great food. Iams contains a lot of fillers and corn products and has been recalled many, many times. I see the dog constantly struggling and being fed this food which actually does trigger his allergies because he can't have food with many ingredients. The vet gave them Science Diet before this which was a little better than Iams but they went back to Iams.. and the allergies came right back with it.

I guess everyone has their own opinion about what they want to food, I mean, after all - it is their dog so that's their choice. The same goes for the few people in this thread who feed Iams without a problem. I just don't think it is a good food, especially to be paying over $100 monthly for it when the dogs hair/skin falls off specifically on this food. He was actually just fine for a month on Science Diet.. this is what bothers me. These people are close in the family so I can state my opinion to them without them being offended.. but they just don't understand that if the dog doesn't do well on Iams then it's time to change it. There is a difference between a dog thriving on it and NOT doing well on it. It's their dog though and nothing I can do. He gets locked up in 1 room 24/7 without any toys ever and he just has to sit there day in and day out then to top it off they feed him a food that isn't working for him... this is what triggered me to write this post - I feel bad for him.

[princesschloe1]

By the way, I didn't mean to offend anyone who is feeding Iams with good results, I just wanted to clarify that part!

.. andd, this is BabieChloe but this is my new account.