Dog Food Nutrition

Did you know that the maximum life span of a dog or cat is estimated to be about 25 - 30 years? Yet, most pets rarely live beyond 14 years. Poor nutrition can play a significant role in this much shorter life span, according to Dr. Jane Bicks, formulator of HealthyPetNet's nutritional pet systems.

The following practices are used by some pet food manufacturers
POOR PROTEIN SOURCES	Soybean Meal, Wheat, Corn Glutens, Corn Meal, Whole Corn, Crushed Corn Ground Corn are commonly used for their protein content in many pet foods. These ingredients are generally poor sources of protein vs. meat.
CHEMICAL PRESERVATIVES	BHA, BHT and ethoxyquin are found in many pet foods. Scientific studies have proven that these chemicals can be harmful. In fact, they have been shown to promote liver disease and other medical problems.
FOOD COLORING	Food colorings are still commonly used in pet foods today despite the fact that they are not necessary and some have been linked to medical problems.
BY-PRODUCTS	By-products can vary ... they can consist of the internal parts of animals such as necks, heads, undeveloped eggs, feet, intestines, lungs, spleen and liver. Although by-products are used by many manufacturers, are these ingredients you would knowingly feed your pet?
WHAT LABELS DON'T REVEAL Consider this example: You decide to eat a balanced meal. You order a fast food hamburger, which contains protein from meat, carbohydrates from bread and vegetables from tomatoes. The three food groups. The next night your mom prepares the same balanced meal but her hamburger is made with premium grade sirloin meat, whole wheat bread and fresh garden tomatoes. While the ingredient list for both dinners would read the same, obviously mom's meal provides a higher level of nutrition.	Condemned parts and animals rejected for human consumption can be rerouted into commercial pet foods. These condemned parts are referred to as the 4D's: dead, dying, diseased or decayed. We believe this is one of the most despicable practices in the pet food manufacturing industry. Some manufacturers have a lower standard regarding the quality of ingredients they use to make pet food. A recent example of this practice is the discovery of Pentobarbital in major pet foods, including supermarket brands. Pentobarbital is a chemical used to euthanize animals. Many holistic veterinarians feel that daily ingestion of pentobarbital can be harmful. Many manufacturers cut costs by using the cheapest ingredients available at the time a food is made. Since costs rise and fall, some manufacturers will vary ingredients from batch to batch .. resulting in changed nutrient values for each batch and possible digestive illness. Some manufacturers have lower standards regarding the freshness of ingredients they use to make pet food. You can not determine the freshness of ingredients by reading a label; you must trust the pet food manufacturer.

Life's Abundance Premium Health Food Adheres to High Standards
HIGH QUALITY PROTEIN SOURCES	Life's Abundance has ONLY hormone and steroid free chicken meal. There's more protein in every mouthful of chicken meal than whole chicken because whole chicken contains water and fat. Life's Abundance food also contains high quality egg and fish meal.
NATURAL PRESERVATIVES	Life's Abundance has NO artificial colors, flavors or chemical preservatives. It is preserved with natural mixed tocopherols (vitamin E).
NO BY-PRODUCTS	Life's Abundance uses only premium quality proteins.
POWERFUL ANTIOXIDANTS	Life's Abundance has powerful antioxidants from grape seed extract and other natural sources. Scientific studies prove antioxidants help deter over 60 degenerative diseases including kidney disease, heart disease and even cancer.
PROBIOTICS	Life's Abundance has five probiotics or friendly bacteria to help increase the digestion of nutrients to ensure proper intestinal movement and to fortify the immune system.
FATTY ACIDS	Life's Abundance has fatty acids from fish meal and fish oils because scientific studies reveal their vital importance in the body's control of illness. Also important for a healthy and shiny coat.
CHELATED MINERALS	Life's Abundance has chelated minerals for increased absorption in the body.
WHAT LABELS DON'T REVEAL OUR PREMIUM MANUFACTURING PROCESS	How and where a food is manufactured determines the quality and wholesomeness of the food. Our pet food manufacturer has very high standards of operation and quality control. It is a third-generation, father and son business. Their expertise using a low temperature, fast cooking method ensures nutrient retention. The manufacturing facility is a USDA certified APHIS (Animal Plant Health Inspection Service) plant. APHIS certification allows the sale of a finished product to the International market, including the European market, which has extremely high standards on ingredient sources. Under APHIS certification, the plant and ingredient facilities are routinely inspected. PREMIUM INGREDIENTS: The ingredients listed on our label do not vary due to price. Our manufacturer does not use animal parts containing pentobarbital. All ingredients come from the same processing plants used for people. Our chicken is free of steroids and hormones. FRESHNESS IS A PRIORITY: Our ingredients are ordered in smaller quantities to ensure that Life's Abundance Premium Health Foods are wholesome and nutrient rich. In addition, you will generally receive Life's Abundance foods within four weeks from the day it was made! We are dedicated to upholding extremely high manufacturing standards because we care about your pet.

Compare Your Brand of Dog Food to Life’s Abundance Premium Health Food
Favorable Unfavorable	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
Look at the First 3 Ingredients - They Often Make Up the Principal Components of a Food
First Three Ingredients Corn, wheat, gluten, soy, and bone meal are generally inferior sources of protein. They are often difficult to digest & to use by the body.	Chicken Meal (hormone & steroid 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 By-products
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 and 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
Vegetables Excellent Source of Antioxidants and Phytonutrients	yes	none	none	none	none	yes	none	none	none
Cost to Feed and Cost Delivered to Your Door
Cost Per Cup Based on the # 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 and # 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 Plus 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
	Life’s Abundance	Nutro Natural Choice	Science Diet Adult Maintenance	Flint River Oven Baked Puppy/Adult**	PurinaOne 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.

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