Click here to visit the most complete Maltese site on the WWW

Archived Message

ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
by KarenM

HELP!! I am looking for good dog food for my Jazz but am getting conflicted advice. I know from the poll on another one of these pages, lots of you are using IAMs, etc...top of the line food. I am using Nutrience, also top of the line. Here is my problem. ALL of these dog foods are preserved with BHT and/or BHA. These are cancer causing agents which are currently banned in England. Powerful lobbies are stopping them from being banned in North America. Any opinions on feeding this to a little maltese? Jazz is in obedience training and the trainers are trying to convince us to buy their top of the line food (comparatively priced) which is called "Solid Gold Health Products For Pets, Inc.". They sell holistic products. The dog food is called "Hunden Flocken Puppy Food" or "Hund-N-Flocken Adult Food". I live in Ontario, Canada and this food is shipped in from California. Maybe some of you are already using this food? They do not use preservatives and instead use vitamin E. The first ingredient is Lamb meat (USDA), millet, ground brown rice...etc. The trainers gave us a sample but Jazz is being fussy and not eating it very well. I have had to go out and buy her the Nutrience again. Now I am worried about BHT/BHA and cancer. Sheesh....you'd think this was my first born :-) What do you experts who have owned dogs much longer than I have think? Should I bother switching? Should I just wait and switch when she is off the puppy food and I have to change her to adult food anyway? I am so mixed up!!! Thanks

DISCUSSION:

I went throught the same thing! All I can say is that I tried the Solid Gold and it is horrible tasting! Yes, I actually had to see for myself why the puppy wouldn't eat! I thought I was doing him the biggest favor with the "best" food, but when I tasted it myself I couldn't believe how vile it was! Like crunchy pieces of sawdust. I was having to add all kinds of things to it, olive oil, cheese, chicken, scrambled eggs, you name it! Anything to get him to eat it. After several weeks, I began to notice that his nose was losing it's beautiful black color - it was becoming dusky almost. I finally decided that Solid Gold was not providing enough fat! I immediately switched back to Nature's Recipe puppy/lactating food and was Oliver happy!! Big improvement all the way around. Kate
-Kate

I've had exp. w/Solid Gold products, starting back when I managed an "upscale" pet food store that manufactured its own brand of "natural---top of the line" pet foods. We were taught the inside story of pet food manufacturing...for example, the same plant may manufacture/can/pack different "brands" of pet food. In any event, I agree w/Kate...our Maltese and other diminutive breeds need that fat...even when they're approaching senior years (my 12 yr. old fem. was looking shabby and I switched back to regular from "senior" diet for her...vast improvement). Solid Gold really didn't have any edge over other foods we studied. In fact, the lack of preservative was a problem, because it wasn't popular/appetizing, and it didn't have a long shelf-life. The choice sometimes is rancid food, over food w/preservatives. Rancid is worst. Beyond that, there are hidden preservatives..."fats" aren't the kind we think of normally...they're a separate additive of fat preserved with (bha? etc.). It's a real conundrum, I think. I have to purchase food at supermarket now (3 dogs, 7 cats, fixed income), and nearly all the manufacturers now produce "top of the line" foods, with lamb, etc., pres. w/Vitamin E. I'm feeding canned "Mighty Dog Senior/Turkey-rice" to the adult male, and "MD Gourmet" for the 2 smaller females. I leave dry kibble avail. all day....that, however, is a protein restricted/limited food from Sci Diet... It's ID Dry. The dogs love it, it's easy on the digest. tract, and provides the fiber they need.I'm the one who asked about the Fish/Potato diet (above). Good luck! Christine
-Christine Pellicano

Have you tried Nutros dog food? It doesn't have meat by-products or preservatives such as ethoxyquin. It's naturally preserved with vitamin E. My maltese enjoys it. It can be found in most pet stores.
-Heleine

Thanks for your responses and yes Heleine, I have found Nutros just this past weekend. I am trying to get her used to it. The ingredients look good!
-KarenM

I find this subject very interesting. I have gotten all sorts of reactions to what I am feeding my puppy, Lucca -- Iams' Eukanuba for puppies and Mighty Dog Beef & Chicken -- most of which is not good. Lucca is not a voracious eater, but seems to be very healthy on this diet. It has been pointed out to me that the Iams product contains all sorts of chemical additives. The solution suggested is that I prepare fresh food for Lucca. To be quite frank, I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, a cook, so I doubt that I will be cooking feasts for my dog that I would not otherwise prepare for my husband and myself. So, what is the alternative? I have heard that Innova is a good product. Has anyone had any experience with this product? I do not have plans to change Lucca's diet right away from the one recommended to me by the breeder, but I do want to do the best for my puppy (short of slaving over a hot stove). Any comments or suggestions will be appreciated.
-JoanG