Feeding Bo doesn’t need to break the Obamas' bank

Since they first moved into the White House, we’ve waited in anticipation for the arrival of the First Dog. Now that Bo is settling in, the Obamas should keep in mind that food fit for a presidential dog doesn’t have to break the bank, but they shouldn’t cut corners either. A December 2008 survey found that just one in seven pet owners said they had cut spending on their pet during the past year, even as they cut other expenses.

We recently asked eight experts for pet food nutrition advice and came up with some helpful tips for the First Dog, and for your pet too:

Pricey doesn’t mean better. Avoid buying pet food because of the high price, pretty packaging, or fancy name. Pets can thrive on inexpensive food or become ill from pricey food. If your dog is active and healthy, you’ve chosen the right food.

Homemade food can cut costs, but be sure it meets your pet’s nutritional needs. Dogs and cats each require about 40 different nutrients in very specific proportions. If you’re making your own pet food, take a  look at balanceit.com or petdiets.com for more on homemade food and your pet’s health. And if you have a little extra money to spend, consider finding an animal nutritionist through the American College of Veterinary Nutrition.

Wet or dry? Our experts say there’s no nutritional difference, but the costs vary. Wet foods contain about 75 percent water, so you’ll need to buy more to get the same calories as in dry food. The experts we spoke to said the decision usually comes down to price, convenience, the pet’s preference, and any health issues.

Don’t buy into claims. For pet food, there’s no official definition of organic, human-grade, premium, no fillers, or gourmet. So, no need to spend more for these claims, unless there’s a real health concern. Gluten-free foods are generally necessary only for the tiny percentage of pets that are intolerant of that protein. And there’s some evidence that antioxidants—such as vitamin E—and some omega-3 fatty acids might enhance pets’ immunity or help protect against certain diseases, but the experts were split on whether you need to look for them.

—Ginger Skinner

Read more from our interview with vets, find out what the labels mean on pet food, and watch our video (above) for more ways to save on pet food.

Image: whitehouse.gov

Comments

[remilson]

It's too bad CU isn't being more comprehensive. In the interim here's my simple list of High Quality Dog Food Ingredients

Good
1. Named meat or named meat "meal" (eg "beef", "lamb meal")
2. Optional: a better carbohydrate like brown rice

Bad (avoid, if your budget can handle it)
1. Meat "by-product", unnamed meats (eg. "meat and bone meal"), "animal digest"
2. Corn, soy, "brewers rice", gluten, wheat

[Yvonne]

I have always admired CR's in depth, unbiased, scientific analysis, however, the April 16, 2009 article on Dog Food is definitely NOT up to my CR expectations. Reading the blog results from this artile shows that I am not the only one who was extremely disappointed in this CR "review". Please redeem CR's respect and reputation by doing the project of "Dog Food Review/Analysis" the treatment it deserves. Many people do not think of thier pets as "just dogs/cats", to some of us they are like our "children" our special creatures that deserve and earn our care.

Let me know when you plan to have this important article available.

sincerely,

A very long CR subscriber.

[Charlotte Thompson]

Many CR articles on a particular product include a homemade recipe for that product, (spaghetti sauces). This article refers the reader to 2 sites for information on homemade pet food. Both balanceit.com and petdiets.com go to the same site. There is not information or suggested diets, only a $25 fee for each diet. Even the worst of the commercial dog foods do not suggest that individual dog must have a specially formulated diet for each pet, although the companies may try that next! Homemade pet food may be an option for many consumers. I’d like to see CR publish a better article comparing pet foods that includes a recipe with ingredients that the pet food companies are using. If CR can unravel the mystery of spaghetti sauce, it should be able to do the same for pet food.

[muirwoods]

Most who read Consumer Reports do so to get well researched, unbiased and intelligent information. This article is an EMBARRASSMENT to CU and certainly does not meet any of those standards. Even rudimentary research into pet food nutrition is missing here. If you read the label of popular dog foods and then look up the meaning of the stated ingredient you will quickly become educated as to the disgusting content of most brands. I searched for weeks to find a brand that was guaranteed to be free of corn, wheat, soy, hormones, steroids, animal by-products/digest, BHA/BHT, ethoxiquin etc. I found some but needless to say they are much more expensive. You should at least visit dogfoodanalysis.com to see the rationales for including or excluding certain ingredients.

[Patti G]

I came to you for good advise. I now feel I can't trust you either. That's sad. I had two cats die from being put on Science Diet and a kitten I gave away almost died from the Iams formula.

The only thing that made some sense was what to look for on the packages. You look. They don't say these things. Even the best of the foods. Is to the standards of AARCO the same as tested by?

I will not buy an animal food sold in a grocery store. Their product guidelines are poorer.

Some good, some bad, some terrible information so we all need to be careful in what we buy for our pets. I go by the ingredients and the order listed without the additives that are harmful and create illness and allergies.

But the general total of what you said leaves a lot to be questioned.

[nope]

Did you know that for 40lbs of "Ol' Roy" your dog will have 32lbs of stool? Also, Royal Canin is Mars, not Proctor & Gamble. Iams and Eukanuba are P&G. And recalls only usually happen when it becomes too expensive to pay off the families of the dead animals.

[bikerkitty]

This is a horrible article. You'll recall the melamine problems? Well my pet was poisoned and got sick. Since then I've stuck strictly to orgainic food that smells good enough to me to eat. No more problems with poisoned food.

[2newfies]

Yes, dogs do survive on Ol Roy - just like my friend's dog. And kids - some I know personally - can be raised on marshmallows, Cheetos and Co-Cola. That, however, doesn't mean those diets are good, or to be recommended. And for the Bil-Jac shill: ever notice the amount of sugars in Bil-Jac? My dogs love the stuff, but then they also liked their one sip of RedBull! I do my best to keep up on dog nutrition, using the guidelines for WholeDog Journal. Has no one at Consumer Reports ever heard of WDJ?

[A cat lover]

I'm very disappointed in this article. Are you aware that many vet schools are subsidized by food companies such as Iams and Science Diet and future vets learn very limited information in classes on nutrition other than what is provided by these companies? Plus when vets have their own practices they have money motives in selling the products from these companies. While I can't imagine the majority of vets are purposely selling these foods to harm pets, many are not aware of the harm they are doing by "recommending" and selling these foods in their places of business. And that "vet recommended" food is what is rotting their teeth causing huge teeth cleaning bills which the vets are raking in hand over fist.

[SLEZE]

"Don’t buy into claims."

That section is absolutely true. However, the rest of the article is basically suspect. There is a HUGE health difference between ALPO and Eukenuba or Gravy Train and Science Diet. As a test, just try feeding a Bull Dog, Great Dane, or any other dog with skin problems the cheapo diets. The problems will multiply 10 fold.

[Brian Bettenhausen]

I have tried all other dog foods, and quite honestly, of all the brands sold in major pet stores like PetSmart, and PetCo, Bil-Jac is the *ONLY* National dry brand that has not been recalled. They are made with 50% fresh meat, cooked at a lower temperature to retain all the nutrition, flavor, and vitamins. No added grease or fat.

Take 2 cups of water, put your current food in the water, and Bil-Jac food in another cup. When a dog eats food, he's drinking water afterwords. It's not like you're giving the dog beer. Bil-Jac is the only brand to completely break down in water, not leave crumbs between the teeth, requiring less teeth cleanings, no more doggie breathe. It's also the only food that you can crumble the food between two fingers.

Pet Food is regulated by AAFCO however it's not mandatory. Also Ingredients do NOT need to be listed in the order they are used unless the pet food is an AAFCO participant.

Don't take my word for it, Call Biljac yourself. They'll send you a 20oz sample of it to your door. The absolute *LARGEST* sample in the dog food industry.

In my opinion, if you don't have the time to cook for your dog, Bil-Jac is the best premade dry food. Anything else, and you're at the mercy of killing your dog because of a company that puts profits before petfood, and a company who makes more than just dog food. Nutro is M&M/Mars, as is Whole Meal Bones , Royal Canin is Proctor & Gamble.

[bruce feazelli]

um to the ones who seem to be shilling for all the expensive foods. seems that i recall that iams and science diet were some of the pet foods that were killing dogs and cats. i use a cheaper brand myself and all my cats are healthy and doing fine. matter of fact the brand i use wasnt killing any pets.

[Another dog lover ...]

The authors of this article are obviously very UNeducated about pet foods! Don't believe a word of this! I strongly advise you to go to www.dogfoodanalysis.com, check out the different brands, read the reviews and the comments. It's a real eye-opener! It is true that a high price is not a guarantee that it's a good food, but a LOW price is almost a guarantee that it's junk food for dogs! You will not find a grocery store brand of dog food that doesn't have corn in it in some form, even canned foods. Some of the most expensive and highly advertised dry foods are mostly just CORN! It's pressed into cute shapes, then artificially colored and flavored. And even expensive canned foods are thickened with corn starches. Dogs can NOT digest corn! It's a filler! And corn is one of the most common allergens for dogs and can cause all kinds of digestive and skin problems. Look at the ingredients ... if a high quality protein source is not the FIRST ingredient, don't buy it, it's JUNK! They will actually eat much more of the JUNK food because it takes a higher volume of food to meet their nutritional needs, and because they don't digest the corn, their poops will be massive!

I drive 120 miles round trip to buy my dogs a very high quality premium dog food from an independent pet supply store and it's well worth it. The first ingredient listed in their food is MEAT ... not meat "meal" or "by-products" but real MEAT! It has wholesome non-allergenic grains like brown rice and oatmeal, and several kinds of fruits and vegetables. It comes in different varieties with different proteins as the main ingredient. You may have to experiment to find the brand and variety that works best for your dogs, but you will not regret it. The more educated you become about pet foods, the more discriminating you will become in what you feed them. Check out www.dogfoodanalysis and you may be very surprised to find that some of the most highly advertised brands of foods have the WORST nutritional ratings!

[James Martin]

You can tell the shills from the Pet Companies in here and the people who think that their pet food is safe because they make it themselves. Both groups are liars and/or brainwashed. Use common sense. If you think Consumer Reports is being so wrong why do you come here, why do you read it, why do you pay for it, why do you even waste time writing an essay in comments?

[A pet lover]

What a bogus article. So much for being FOR the consumer, Consumer Reports is just another corporate shill covering the pet food industry's butts. Doesn't anybody remember what happened to all those poor animals who died during the pet food scare of 2007? And how none of those owners were compensated for their loss?

Yes, there is very much a difference between pet foods. In a nutshell, avoid ALL pet food from the grocery stores and feed your animals organic, home cooked food. The organic food may cost more but it will end up saving you $$ in vets' bills down the road. The food you buy at the grocery store is what's killing our pets today, they are full of pesticides, hormones, corn, rice, grade c by product meat, fillers, grains, soy, euthanized pets, roadkill, and all kinds of other poisonous JUNK not fit for human consuption that's put into pet food because the pet food industry is UNREGULATED.

Read this: 10 secrets the pet food industry doesn't want you to know.
http://lib.store.yahoo.net/lib/petextras/PFStext

[Mike]

This article nor any of the links provide any real help on setting guide lines. How about listing a few examples of cheaper dog food that are acceptable. What percentage of crude protein, fat, fiber, and moisture should we look for? How about some specific guidelines for choosing food?

[CL]

I am a bit shocked at the comments to this summarized article. People, read everything before we jump to conclusions. The information reported in this article were sourced from interviews with actual veterinarians. To make allegations that the writer of this article was receiving kickbacks from corporations is uncalled for.

Judy, if you had bothered to "Read more from our interview with vets, find out what the labels mean on pet food, and watch our video (above) for more ways to save on pet food." you would have seen that even when pet owners make their own pet food it is not always nutritionally sound.

Is this article flawed, no since it clearly states, "We recently asked eight experts for pet food nutrition advice and came up with some helpful tips for the First Dog, and for your pet too:..." The writer of the article didn't state her own opinions or findings but interviewed experts and presented those findings.

[Kermit Woodall]

I seem to recall that cats are carnivores while dogs are omnivores like humans. This was based on observed eating habits, health needs, and digestive systems.

That being said, I believe the point of this article is that plenty of expensive pet foods are little different than cheaper (but well produced) alternatives. I did not read the article as buy crap for your pet because they'll eat anything.

I've done a great deal of content comparison of pet foods (had a diabetic cat - who is now deceased but our other cat and our dog are fine and healthy) and the basic point here appears to be true. Lots of expensive pet foods are near identical to cheaper alternatives. Some expensive pet foods are pure garbage too. Lots and lots of cheap pet foods are garbage as well so do your research of course!

[Anon]

@ KJ The article did NOT state that fillers are "myths."
It emphasized that there is no official definition of "fillers," so any food can claim to be filler-free and it doesn't mean jack.
They were not advocating feeding your dog crap. Please read carefully and respond thoughtfully.

@Judy: Consumer Reports takes no money or products from companies. I would have hoped all subscribers took the time to look at how CR does it's tests and how it is funded before subscribing. It is kind of important when looking for accurate tests and product reports...

[None]

KJ,

What they are saying is that because there is no official regulated meaning of "organic, human-grade, premium, no fillers, or gourmet" in pet food, the manufactures can slap any old organic or natural sticker on the bag regardless of what is in the food. So for example, a certain brand of dog food might contain one ingredient that comes from an organic farm. And maybe it is only used 10% of the time when that farm has a surplus. Yet they still legally can say the food is organic or whatever they want. So, why waste your money if there is no proof you are really getting what you pay for. I don't think they are questioning that some food can be healthier for your pet. That is why making your own food is an option they say you could explore.

[Tasha]

This website helps me pick pet food. It rates the pet foods on a scale of 1- to 6-stars, and explains why they get those ratings. You can search by name. Often I go to my local pet shop's website, check what pet food coupons they have that week, and then search on those names at this website. I always get at least a 4, usually a 5, sometimes a 6.

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/

This article was not very helpful at all.

[Doug]

I agree that the price of food does not directly relate to the quality. That being said I am currently buying fairly expensive dog food. I do not buy it because it is expensive, natural, or human grade. I buy it because all my dogs are in excellent health. They are lean and healthy and always impress the vet.

I buy the food that is best for my dogs, regardless of cost or pretty packaging. I don't think it is a good idea to suggest that people can simply buy the cheapest food. Although the article does not directly suggest this, it still can give people the impression that this cheap food is fine for their pet. A dog can continue to look and act healthy after being switched to an inferior dog food. It will take years before they will develop all the different problems from these foods. By that time it is too late.

The best solution is to talk with other pet owners and get recommendations. Find something that a friend has used for years. We found ours after talking with a dog rescue organization owner. It was the food they had been feeding the dog we adopted. We kept him on it and never went back.

[andyg8180]

Wow... This is a horrible article... You guys should NOT be telling people that Crap food makes no difference for your pets... Yes, a dog will eat anything, but that doesnt mean you let him...

You should be ASHAMED of yourselves Consumer Reports. Research the pet foods and see what and where the stuff really comes from...

"For pet food, there’s no official definition of organic, human-grade, premium, no fillers, or gourmet." Youre VERY wrong on this... Some of the words can be used out of context, but you are VERY wrong on this... Very wrong... and you guys need to do a little more research and take this article down...

[KJ]

Agreed Judy

I couldn't believe the article states:

"For pet food, there’s no official definition of organic, human-grade, premium, no fillers, or gourmet. So, no need to spend more for these claims, unless there’s a real health concern."

This is wrong, wrong, wrong. Most commercial pet foods are garbage.

[Judy Coates]

I thought Consumer Reports had learned their lesson from the last disaster of a dog food review back in the last century. Or surely would've learned something from the many deaths caused by the inferior and tainted foods that were recalled just a short time ago. I'm sure your "experts" have connections (ie, receive "research" money) from many of the major (and inexpensive) pet food companies that work daily to make a lot of money while trying to convince people that corn and wheat are good for their pets - who are carnivores - that means they are MEAT eaters. While some some amount of vegetables can be good for them, large amounts of cheap grains do not make for a healthy dog or cat. The previous dog food review convinced me to allow my subscription to lapse - why should I trust anything you review when you are so blatantly headed in the wrong direction on this issue? When my subscription is over I will NEVER subscribe or rely on any CS opinions again. BTW, does the person who wrote this article even have a pet?