Pet stores are first and foremost about profit. They train their employees with that in mind. While some employees may be well educated pet parents and try to inform customers, most probably only know what they are told. The stores often sell pure junk food full of artificial colors and flavors and often not even covering the right nutritional needs of the animal it is labeled for and is of very iffy quality.
Vets are awesome in oh so many ways. They are supposed to care deeply about the health and wellbeing of our pets as if they were their own, and many do just that! But it is important to remember that vets are not perfect. For one they often treat quite alot of different types of animals and when you get past dogs and cats it is even more difficult to know everything about the animal. It is also really important to know that vets are not animal nutritionists. And the very fact that they often push expensive junk food like science diet on cats and dogs gives me concern. Science diet is no better then cheap grocery store Purina brand. I just do not recommend anyone take their vet's food advice to heart unless it is medically related.
Then there is the very basic fact that humans can not even agree on what is great or bad for us to eat. One moment they are saying eat this to prevent cancer & live forever and the next another study shows it causes cancer. We have to juggle between different opinions and their studies and on top of that all the power & influence the companies have plus all of the naysayers & conspiracy nuts. Who can tell what is really true anymore? Just look at all the craziness over high fructose corn syrup...
So what can you do as a pet owner who just wants the best for their pet?
Seek the advice of other owners. Those who have spent a great deal of time and effort in giving their pet the best and seeing the outcome with healthy, long living and thriving pets.
These people are not in it to make any profit. Their top concern is the quality of life for the animal.
Yet...as i said above everyone has their own opinions. See the top debate between owners of dogs/cats & raw food vs kibble debate.
So the next step is to do your own research! You have spoken to countless pet owners and see what they feed and why. You have asked those who are well known/respected in the pet community what their opinion was and why. You now have a good list of top brands/ideas to feed.
Now you have to ask yourself:
- What is the right choice for my pets specific needs? Do they have allergies? Picky? Healthy issues? Age, size, breed? Are they active or lazy? What flavors do they prefer and what types of food hold their interest? All of those questions may change what your pets diet needs.
- What is my lifestyle like and what does it mean for the food I need to feed? Do you have the time/effort/mentality to feed raw or wet? What is your budget? What can you reliably get?
- Out of the list of top chosen foods by others what do you agree with? Disagree with? Why do people like x-brand, do you think that is a good reason?
Diet is very important choice. Please do not leave it up to fancy marketing of companies or some random advice from a single person. Take the time to research and find what works best for you!
So what do I feed my pets?
* My dog is a chihuahua/poodle mix, 10lbs! I started off with Blue Buffalo with her but decided it wasn't the best choice and she was not the biggest fan of the flavor, she just wasn't excited to eat. Then I switched to Wellness Small Breed. She loved the flavor but it is a bit expensive and when we needed to cut back I switched to 4Health Small Bites. She loves it and it is a great 4 star food, inexpensive, and easy for me to buy as the tractor supply store is very close to my home. She gets fed 1/2 cup twice a day. She gets treats here or there & chews (she loves bully sticks and pig ears- I never give rawhide) **I always made slow switches between food over a period of time.
* My cats, I have 5 of them so feeding gets expensive fast. I have done the most research on cat nutrition. I have finally decided to go with a mix of kibble (4Health Brand) and wet food. Kibble is not actually suggested as it can cause kidney problems from how dry it is and though many believe it is good for their teeth that is actually been found to not be true. Wet food is much more highly recommend. But cats are fickle beasts stuck to their ways. My cats refused to be on an all wet food diet and the price was a killer. So now I free feed dry and give wet as their staple.
* My guinea pig gets a pellet as his base food. Lots of timothy hay! And fresh veggies daily. He super loves carrots.
* For my rats I feed oxbow regal rat. They always have a full bowl of this 24/7. They get some snacks of gerber baby puffs or cheerios. Each morning and night they get a salad of whatever fresh veggies I have on hand. For pregnant mommies & babies, I supplement with extra protein like bits of meat or eggs.
For dog food I highly recommend the website http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/ pick a good 4 or 5 star food!
** I will always suggest you follow a vets advice if there is a medical/health reason. Sometimes a pet may need special food to help with a health issue. Though a second opinion never hurts :)
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