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Pet Food Ingredients

A Wayback Look at Pet Food

Have you ever wanted to look back at a pet foods ingredients years ago? Have you wondered if a Big Business buy out of a pet food brand changed the ingredients of the pet food? Thanks to the Wayback Machine, here is a look at many popular brands of pet food and how they have changed over the years.

Have you ever wanted to look back at a pet foods ingredients years ago? Have you wondered if a Big Business buy out of a pet food brand changed the ingredients of the pet food? Thanks to the Wayback Machine website, here is a look at many popular brands of pet food and how they have changed over the years.

 

Innova Pet Food – a brand manufactured by Natura Pet – was a family owned business back in 2004. Natura Pet was purchased by the Procter & Gamble company in 2010, and then in 2014 Mars purchased all of the pet food companies owned by P&G.

In 2004 Innova Dog food consisted of only 3 dry dog foods. A statement from the 2004 Innova website: “Innova Dog Food brings the world of pet nutrition closer than ever to that of healthy human nutrition by incorporating lean meats and cottage cheese, vegetables and fruit along with whole grains to create a dog food unequaled in nutrition and health benefits.”

In 2015 – Innova Dog food grew to 14 dry dog foods and 7 can dog foods. Below are the first 15 ingredients listed for the same dog food when the company was privately owned (2004), owned by P&G (2010), and today owned by Mars (2015).

[one_third]Innova Adult Dog Food
2004 – family owned
Innovadogfood2004Turkey
Chicken
Chicken Meal
Ground Barley
Ground Brown Rice
Potatoes
Natural Flavors
Ground White Rice
Chicken Fat
Herring
Apples
Carrots
Cottage Cheese
Sunflower Oil
Alfalfa Sprouts
[/one_third][one_third]Innova Adult Dog Food
2010 – owned by P&G
Innovadogfood2010

Turkey
Chicken
Chicken Meal
Barley
Brown Rice
Potatoes
Rice
Chicken Fat
Flaxseed
Herring
Beef Cartilage
Natural Flavors
Apples
Carrots
Pumpkin
[/one_third][one_third_last]Innova Adult Dog Food (small Bites)
2015 – owned by Mars
Innovadogfood2015

Turkey
Chicken
Chicken Meal
Whole Grain Barley
Whole Grain Brown Rice
Chicken Fat
Flaxseed
Natural Flavors
Peas
Sunflower Oil
Eggs
Potassium Chloride
Apples
Tomatoes
Carrots
[/one_third_last]

Pet food ingredients are listed in order of weight – heaviest to lightest. Notice with this food how the fat ingredient (chicken fat) moved up higher in the ingredient list in later years.

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In 2004 – Innova Cat Food consisted of 2 dry foods. In 2015 – Innova Cat Food consisted of 15 dry foods and 40 wet foods.

[one_third]Innova Cat Food Dry
2004
Turkey
Chicken Meal
Chicken
Potatoes
Egg
Ground Barley
Chicken Fat
Rice
Herring
Sunflower Oil
Apples
Carrots
Whole Pasteurized Milk
Fish Oil
Taurine
[/one_third][one_third]Innova Cat Food Dry
2010
Turkey
Chicken Meal
Chicken
Potatoes
Eggs
Barley
Chicken Fat
Rice
Flaxseed
Natural Flavors
Herring
Apples
Carrots
Herring Oil
Cranberries
[/one_third][one_third_last]Innova Cat Food Dry
2015
Turkey
Chicken
Chicken Meal
Whole Grain Barley
Whole Grain Brown Rice
Chicken Fat
Peas
Natural Flavors
Apples
Herring
Flaxseed
Eggs
Blueberries
Pumpkin
Tomatoes[/one_third_last]

No flavor ingredient was added in the 2004 cat food.

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

Blue Buffalo Dog Food

[one_third]2003

3 Dry Dog Foods[/one_third][one_third]2007

12 Dry Dog Foods including
1 organic dry food
6 Can Dog Foods[/one_third][one_third_last]2015

77 Dry Dog Foods
87 Can Dog Foods[/one_third_last]

Below are the first ten ingredients of the same dog food – 2003 and 2015.

[one_half]Blue Buffalo Adult Dog Food Dry
2003

BlueBuffalodogfood2003
Chicken
Chicken Meal
Whole Ground Brown Rice
Whole Ground Barley
Rye
Oatmeal
Chicken Fat
Whole Carrots
Whole Sweet Potatoes
Ground Flax Seed
[/one_half][one_half_last]Blue Buffalo Life Protection Chicken and Brown Rice Recipe Adult Dog Food
2015

BlueBuffalodogfood2015
Deboned Chicken
Chicken Meal
Brown Rice
Barley
Oatmeal
Chicken Fat
Tomato Pomace
Peas
Flaxseed
Natural Flavor
[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

Blue Buffalo Cat Food

[one_third]2003

2 Dry Cat Foods[/one_third][one_third]2007

9 Dry Cat Foods including
1 organic dry food
5 Can Cat Foods[/one_third][one_third_last]2015

33 Dry Cat Foods
48 Can Cat Foods[/one_third_last]

Below are the first ten ingredients of the same cat food – 2003 and 2015.

[one_half]Blue Buffalo Spa Select Adult Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe Cat Food Dry
2003

BlueBuffalocatfood2003
Deboned Chicken
Chicken Meal
Whole Ground Brown Rice
Whole Ground Barley
Oatmeal
Rye
Chicken Fat
Menhaden Fish Meal
Whole Cranberries
Whole Sweet Potatoes
[/one_half][one_half_last]Blue Buffalo Healthy Living Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe Adult Cat Food Dry
2015

BlueBuffalocatfood2015
Deboned Chicken
Chicken Meal
Turkey Meal
Brown Rice
Barley
Chicken Fat
Peas
Menhaden Fish Meal
Oatmeal
Potatoes
[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

Iamsdogfood 1997This is a picture from the Iams website back in 1997. Iams provided the following statement on the website in 1998: “One of Iams most important discoveries was that cats’ and dogs’ nutritional needs have changed very little from their ancestors. Like the mink, dogs and cats are carnivorous or meat-eating animals.” 

Iams/Eukanuba brands sold to P&G in 1999; same brands were sold to Mars in 2014.

[one_half]1998

7 – Dry Dog Foods
8 – Can Dog Foods[/one_half][one_half_last]2015

28 – Dry Dog Foods
19 – Can Dog Foods[/one_half_last]

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Sometimes a pet food can change ingredients in a short time frame. Below are the first ten ingredients of Acana Pacifica Cat Food in 2012 and today (2015).

[one_half]Acana Pacifica Cat Food Dry
2012
Boneless salmon
salmon meal
herring meal
russet potato
peas
whitefish meal
sweet potatoes
chicken fat
sun-cured alfalfa
boneless herring
[/one_half][one_half_last]Acana Pacifica Cat Food Dry
2015
Boneless herring
herring meal
pollock meal
boneless flounder
boneless Pacific hake
chickpeas
red lentils
canola oil
green peas
green lentils
[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

In 2002, the Beneful Dog Food website appeared to only have one dry food. The 2002 website made the following statement: (bold added) “Beneful® contains wholesome, real ingredients like crunchy whole grains, real beef and even vitamin-rich vegetables for a completely balanced meal. Plus, it has six distinct food–shaped pieces — including moist, meaty chunks made with real beef — so it even looks like real food!” 

Below are the ingredients of Beneful Original Dog Food in 2002 and again in 2015.

[one_half]Beneful Original Dog Food Dry
2002

BenefulOriginal2002
Ground yellow corn
chicken-by-product meal
corn gluten meal
whole wheat flour
beef tallow
rice flour
beef
soy flour
sugar
sorbitol
[/one_half][one_half_last]Beneful Original Dog Food Dry
2015

Beneful2015
Ground yellow corn
chicken by-product meal
corn gluten meal
whole wheat flour
animal fat
rice flour
beef
soy flour
meat and bone meal
propylene glycol
[/one_half_last]

Notice in the 2002 Beneful ingredient list (first ten ingredients), there was no propylene glycol ingredient in the dog food (one of the ingredients questioned in a recent class action lawsuit against this company). In looking through various years on the Way Back Machine website, the propylene glycol ingredient was added somewhere between 2008 and 2012 (years in between the Way Back Machine website did not provide ingredient listing).

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One of the furthest back ingredient lists found on the Way Back Machine website was Diamond Pet Food. Below are ingredients from the Diamond Maintenance Dog Food in 1998 and the same food in 2015.

[one_half]Diamond Maintenance Adult Dog Food Dry
1998

Diamond1998
Ground corn
poultry by-product meal
chicken fat
beet pulp
corn gluten meal
wheat flour
meat meal
flaxseed
egg product
poultry digest[/one_half][one_half_last]Diamond Maintenance Formula Dog Food Dry
2015

diamond_maintenance2015
Chicken by-product meal
wheat flour
whole grain ground corn
rice bran
dried beet pulp
chicken fat
millet
ground white rice
fish meal
egg product[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

Canidae1998

 

The Canidae website of 1998 stated “CHICKEN, TURKEY MEAL – (Grade A)- Hormone Free and antibiotic free, Human quality meat, Flesh tissue and skin only.”

Felidae (cat food) was not introduced until 1999. Below are the first ten ingredients of Felidae All Life Stages Dry Cat Food in 1999 and again in 2015.

 

 

 

[one_half]Felidae All Life Stages Dry Cat Food
1999

Chicken Meal
Turkey Meal
Brown Rice
Lamb Meal
Chicken Fat
Menhaden Fish Meal
Eggs
Flax Seed Meal
Sun Cured Alfalfa Meal
Sunflower Oil[/one_half][one_half_last]Felidae All Life Stages Dry Cat Food
2015

Chicken meal
brown rice
cracked pearled barley
peas
millet
chicken fat
turkey meal
potato protein
lamb meal
egg product [/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

In 2001, Halo’s Spot Stew looked like this…

SpotsStew2002

The company had one canned dog food and one canned cat food in 2001. The 2001 website stated “No chemicals, no artificial preservatives, no by-products or fillers.   Just USDA APPROVED CHICKEN, CARROTS, ZUCCHINI, SQUASH, GREEN BEANS, CELERY, and all the other important nutrients”

[one_half]2001

1 – can dog food
1 – can cat food

Cans were available in 15 ounce for cat food and 29 ounce for dog food.

2001 Price
7.5 ounce can Cat Food 1.85 per can
= $0.24 per ounce.
7.5 ounce can Dog Food $1.64 per can
= $0.21 per ounce.[/one_half][one_half_last]2015

16 – dry dog foods
16 – can dog foods
10 – dry cat foods
19 can cat foods

Chewy.com 2015 Price
Spot’s Stew Chicken Recipe Cat Food Can $1.62 per 3 ounce can = $0.54 per ounce.
Spot’s Stew Chicken Recipe Dog Food Can $1.62 per 5.5 oz can = $0.29 per ounce.
[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

Natural Balance Pet Food was sold to DelMonte Foods (now known as Big Heart Brands Pet Food) in 2013

[one_half]2001

1 – Ultra Premium Dry Dog Food
1 – Ultra Premium Dry Cat Food
5 – Ultra Premium Canned Dog Food
1 – Oven Baked Dog Food
3 – Dog Food Rolls[/one_half][one_half_last]2015

29 – dry Dog Foods
15 – dry Cat Foods
20 – canned Dog Foods
20 – canned Cat Foods
4 – stew Dog Foods
6 – stew Cat Foods
4 – rolls Dog Foods
14 – pouch Cat Foods
[/one_half_last]

Below are the first ten ingredients of the Natural Balance Ultra Formula Cat Food in 2001 and in 2015…

[one_half]

Natural Balance Ultra Premium Cat Food Dry
2001

Chicken
Chicken Meal
Brown Rice
Duck
Lamb Meal
Potatoes
Chicken Fat
Canola Oil
Oatmeal
Fish Meal[/one_half][one_half_last]Natural Balance Original Ultra Chicken Kitten Formula Dry Cat Food
2015

Chicken
Chicken Meal
Pea Protein
Dried Peas
Chicken Fat
Brown Rice
Duck Meal
Chicken Liver
Salmon Meal
Dried Egg[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

Merrick2000In 2000 Merrick Pet Food was known as ‘Garth Merrick’s Beef ‘n More’. The 2003 website stated “Beef’n More provides premium nutrition and high digestibility for less than half the cost of Hill’s® Science Diet®, Nutro® and Nature’s Recipe®. Compare Beef’n More to the higher profile dog food brands and you’ll see that premium nutrition doesn’t always come with a premium price tag.”

Merrick Pet Food was sold by the Merrick family to an investment firm in 2011.

Below are the first ten ingredients of Merrick’s Grammy’s Pot Pie Dog Food in 2004 and again in 2015.

[one_half]Merrick Grammy’s Pot Pie Dog Food Can
2004

Chicken
Chicken Broth
Chicken Liver
Fresh Red Jacket New Potatoes
Fresh Carrots
Fresh Snow Peas
Fresh Red Delicious Apple
Potato Starch-modified
Olive Oil
Calcium Carbonate[/one_half][one_half_last]Merrick Classic Grain Free Grammy’s Pot Pie Dog Food Can
2015

Deboned Chicken
Chicken Broth
Potato
Carrots
Peas
Apples
Dried Egg Product
Natural Chicken Flavor
Carrageenan
Calcium Carbonate[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

Royal Canin Pet Food sold to Mars in 2001. Below are the first ten ingredients from a dog food and cat food before and after the Mars purchase.

[one_half]Royal Canin Adult Medium Size Dog Food Dry
2001

Chicken
poultry meal
ground yellow corn
rice flour
brewers rice
chicken fat
chicken meal
beet pulp
natural flavor
brewers dried yeast[/one_half][one_half_last]Royal Canin Medium Adult Dog Food Dry
2015

Brewers rice
chicken by-product meal
wheat
corn gluten meal
oat groats
chicken fat
natural flavors
dried beet pulp
fish oil
calcium carbonate[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Royal Canin Cat Food Dry Special Formula for Sensitive Cats
2000

Chicken
rice flour
chicken meal
chicken fat
poultry meal
corn flour
corn gluten meal
beet pulp
dried egg product
brewers dried yeast[/one_half][one_half_last]Royal Canin Special 33 Cat Food Dry
2015

Chicken meal
brewers rice
corn gluten meal
chicken fat
corn
natural flavors
wheat gluten
dried beet pulp
grain distillers dried yeast
fish oil[/one_half_last]

[divider style=”dashed” top=”20″ bottom=”20″]

 

All of the older ingredient listings are thanks to the Wayback Machine website.

One tiny ingredient change can mean a lot of savings to a pet food company. Consider that in some cases hundreds of thousands of pounds of pet food are manufactured each week by one company, one ingredient change saving only a penny a pound could result in millions of dollars in savings a year for the pet food manufacturer. The question up for debate – are the ingredient changes for the better or worse for our pets?

 

Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Pet Food

What’s in Your Pet’s Food?
Is your dog or cat eating risk ingredients?  Chinese imports?  Petsumer Report tells the ‘rest of the story’ on over 3000 cat foods, dog foods,  and pet treats.  30 Day Satisfaction Guarantee. www.PetsumerReport.com


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The 2015 List

Susan’s List of trusted pet foods.  Click Here

 

Have you read Buyer Beware?  Click Here

Cooking for pets made easy, Dinner PAWsible

Find Healthy Pet Foods in Your Area Click Here

 

24 Comments

24 Comments

  1. Linda Lingenfelter

    April 30, 2015 at 10:05 am

    I fed Royal Canin for 5 years to my cats and thought I was feeding an excellent high quality food because 3 vets told me it was a good food and it is so expensive. BUT, now that I have become informed through your websites and other cat lovers, I realize it is NOT a good healthy cat food. It is full of grains and fillers. The company claims the grains are good for cat’s health, but I no longer believe it. I have slowly and almost completely switched my 4 cats now to higher quality grain free food, and am starting to buy some freeze dried (I bought some raw and none of my cats, so far will touch it). Only my Ragdoll loves the freeze dried and my other 3 will not eat it. But I am slowely improving their diet. One thing is…..my 5 year old Ragdoll was starting to act like an old man and drooped around and slept so much. Now that he is off Roysl Canin Specisl 33, he is so much more lively and even starting to run around and play again, plus, now doesn’t want to sleep so much. What a difference!!! Thank you for informing us.

  2. Mike Natale

    April 30, 2015 at 10:35 am

    Why include Halo? All it said was that the price per ounce increased. Everything at my grocery store has increased too. Are you implying that the quality of their food has deteriorated! I don’t think it has unless you can substantiate that. Anxiously awaiting your response.

    • Susan Thixton

      April 30, 2015 at 11:04 am

      This post was just to show changes in pet food. How as the years have gone by ingredients (if they were provided in the Way Back Machine) have changed, how many more foods are produced today as compared to ten years ago, and so on. It’s just about how the foods or companies or even the packaging have changed – that’s all.

      • Mike Natale

        April 30, 2015 at 11:43 am

        If that was the case you could have given a cost breakdown on anyone’s fog food. They have all risen over the past 15 years. It still seems that Halo does not belong on this listing unless they were singled out on purpose.

        • Susan Thixton

          April 30, 2015 at 11:53 am

          Actually this was the only food I could find a price for – it was stated on their website (no other website mentioned price of their food or I would have included it – I found it interesting information to share, also found it interesting the size of the cans back then too). It’s just information. Why wouldn’t Halo belong on this list? I’m not understanding why you think this was wrong to provide to consumers, it’s public information. Confused as to why you think this company was singled out.

          • Mike Natale

            April 30, 2015 at 2:56 pm

            Because of your introductory paragraph:
            Have you ever wanted to look back at a pet foods ingredients years ago? Have you wondered if a Big Business buy out of a pet food brand changed the ingredients of the pet food? Thanks to the Wayback Machine website, here is a look at many popular brands of pet food and how they have changed over the years.

            This leads me to believe that the list is of those brands bought out by big business who then changed their formulation. It mentions nothing on price being a factor for your list. Halo has not been absorbed by a big pet company or radically changed their formulation. As for price, everyone in the pet food industry has increased pricing over the past decade and half. To the average person thar gets your emails it doesn’t matter. Cost is not a primary factor in our pet’s well being. I just didn’t and still don’t believe that Halo belongs on the list.

          • Susan Thixton

            April 30, 2015 at 6:39 pm

            I still don’t understand your outlook on this or your protection of Halo. But you are entitled to your opinion.

          • Peter

            May 2, 2015 at 9:05 am

            Unfortunately, cost IS a primary factor for many consumers, even those dedicated to their pets well being who spend a lot. The problem is that these foods are changing all the time, and no matter how the company spins it (generally as “improvement”) it is to the consumer’s detriment. Global sourcing means that the source of the product changes constantly, as manufacturers search within “lowest cost mix” protocols. We often aren’t getting the same product from month to month, and they don’t even have to inform us. And most brands have increased cost while increasing reliance on cutting costs for sourcing. They are finding new ways to “fluff up” foods which means there is less in the can, and anyway, those cans are shrinking too, for many brands.

            Halo has changed in some respects over the years, and those who buy have seen that. Some of their choices are about making the food look appealing to people: why are whole green peas in my cat’s food? No matter what you coat it with, my cat simply won’t eat a whole green pea. It’s ridiculous. He leaves them behind, carefully avoided. But I paid for them.

  3. Meka

    April 30, 2015 at 11:02 am

    Thanks Susan for this very eye opening look back at the older formulas, We all seem to have forgotten about.
    It seems that, Only the ACANA formula has improved over time. The exception to the rule.
    Every time big business buys out a small family company the formula just gose down along with out pets health.
    If the ingreedient is not good enough for you to eat then dont buy it, That has been my guilding principel when choosing food for my pets (children).
    Thanks Susan , Keep up the good work.

    • Kim

      April 30, 2015 at 12:38 pm

      I too like Acana. I have found however, since the inclusion of peas and lentils, pets stool volume has increased significantly. Yes, they’re low glycemic so thats a good thing. Unfortunately, peas and lentil are so GMO’ed in this day and age that it concerns me on that point alone. Just some food for thought.

      • John Stone

        April 30, 2015 at 4:12 pm

        Lentils and peas are not GMO yet, but soybeans likely are

        • Terri Janson

          May 1, 2015 at 10:50 am

          John, I hope lentils are not GMO. Gosh I did not think about that. I use them in my homemade dog food. I hate GMO’s! I do not eat Corn anymore myself or canola oil or soy products. They are hard to avoid.

          • Janine

            May 3, 2015 at 12:37 pm

            Lentils are definitely not GM.

  4. Connie Schwarz

    April 30, 2015 at 11:22 am

    When we recently had a problem with Costco’s Kirkland dog food, I started researching and found that there was now 17 different brands of dog food made by Diamond. Diamond private labels not only for Costco and Tractor Supply, but for several other dog food companies like Dick Van Patten and Solid Gold..to name a few. As a breeder, I started using it years ago, and was shocked at how big they had become. It also became clear to me that just as the car industry does “risk management” when people start dying….so does the Dog Food Industry. Recalls are very costly, and it’s cheaper to pay off a few dog owners when pets start dying… especially when you have to pull 17 different brands all across the country. When I investigated the Diamond Salmonella recall in 2012, I discovered that the problem existed for 7 months prior to the recall. It wasn’t until people started dying and the FDA got involved, that they had to issue a recall. The recent Diamond issue was NOT salmonella, which is easy to detect. Because no people died, there was no recall issued….as of yet. But clearly, dogs all over the United States were getting sick, and dying. My thanks to Susan who has brought it to everyone’s attention that a complaint MUST be made to the FDA.

  5. Steve J

    April 30, 2015 at 1:26 pm

    Thanks (again) Susan.
    Oh I wish I could read the ingredients in the feed my parents gave to our dogs in the early 1980’s. Money was tight, and “Generic” was a new fad. The kibble was in a plain yellow bag with bold black lettering “DOG FOOD” as the only verbiage. No wonder the dogs vomited regularly. At the time I thought that was just how dogs were!
    Keep on spreading the word…way too many educated people are still completely clueless about their pets nutrition.

  6. Pat P.

    April 30, 2015 at 9:52 pm

    Besides changes in ingredients, sizes, varieties, costs, etc., what I would really be interested in and find the answer elusive, is the quality of the contents. Most were, probably, poor in years past and are similarly lousy now–just maybe in different ways. I believe, for the most part, that the few foods that are not terrible are from smaller companies, that I hope aren’t bought out. If they are trying to provide decent, fairly healthy food, it is tough to compete with these large corporations that will use cheap and harmful ingredients, with no concern for the welfare of pets–only for their profit margin.

    Although Halo may not have changed in the same way others have, and ingredients seemed to be the emphasis of Susan’s article, Mike Natale, for some unknown reason, does seem overly defensive of the brand.

  7. Marcia H.

    May 1, 2015 at 12:51 am

    Interesting post! I wish we had data to go back to the1960’s. I dont recall so much cancer in dogs back then.

    BTW: i would look into “carrageenen.” It is in the canned foods only, and i dont think it is a “good” ingredient according to PetFoodAnalysis.com. It has been two years since i was talking cat and dog food to folks, but you may want to check that out!

  8. Marcia

    May 1, 2015 at 12:59 am

    Here is an article about “carrageenen” being removed from certain human food as a result of (humsn) food advocates.

    http://foodbabe.com/2014/08/19/breaking-major-company-removing-controversial-ingredient-carrageenan-because-of-you/

  9. Kenneth

    May 1, 2015 at 4:12 am

    No matter what commercial pet food you find, it will slowly turn into garbage except a very select few, or silently bought out by one of the big brands with the same result.. what was once good when you researched it, has been turned into garbage not fit for sewer rats to eat. (No offence to any sewer rat owners hehe) so you have to constantly compare to last purchase to see when (Not if, but when… it will happen sooner or later) if it’s beginning to go down hill, not worth the time, effort and risk to my babies.

    This, ladies and gentlemen, is why I feed raw, I know what’s in there, and I only use the best and it will only change if _I_ change it.

    Nice work, must have taken some time to do, very interesting, thanks.

  10. foodguy

    May 1, 2015 at 1:24 pm

    The difference in Merrick’s can is night and day- really stood out to me.

  11. Sally Bahner

    May 1, 2015 at 10:23 pm

    I was editor of The Whole Cat Journal in the late ’90s and early 2000s when many of those foods first came out. They were definitely a cut above many of the foods available. Sad to see such a decline. Today, I wouldn’t recommend any of the dry and only a couple of the canned.

  12. Ann*

    May 2, 2015 at 11:23 am

    I remember from the 1950’s Ken-L Ration canned dog food. It was horsemeat and smelled wonderful when first opened. That is what I fed my first dog back then and he did well and lived a long life. The choices were very limited and most dogs were mainly fed table scraps. Regular Milk Bone was the most common dog treat. I occasionally nibbled on both the biscuits and the canned food if I was very hungry. I was only 8 years old and my mother didn’t know, but I suffered no ill effects.
    Here is a brief history of dog food from Wikipedia:
    It was not until the mid-1800s that the world saw its first food made specifically for dogs. An American electrician, James Spratt, concocted the first dog treat. Living in London at the time, he witnessed dogs around a shipyard eating scraps of discarded biscuits. Shortly thereafter he introduced his dog food, made up of wheat meals, vegetables and meat. By 1890 production had begun in the United States and became known as “Spratt’s Patent Limited”. In later years, dog biscuit was sometimes treated as synonymous with dog food.
    The first three prize winners at the late coursing meeting at Great Bend were trained on Spratt’s Patent Dog Biscuit. This same dog food won no less than three awards, including a gold medal, at the Exposition in Paris which has just closed. It would seem that the decision of the judges is more than backed up by the result in the kennel. Another good dog food is that manufactured by Austin & Graves, of Boston. They, too, seem to be meeting with great success in their line.[12]

    Canned horse meat was introduced in the United States under the Ken-L Ration brand after WWI as a means to dispose of deceased horses. The 1930s saw the introduction of canned cat food and dry meat-meal dog food by the Gaines Food Co. By the time WWII ended, pet food sales had reached $200 million. In the 1950s Spratt’s became part of General Mills. For companies such as Nabisco, Quaker Oats, and General Foods, pet food represented an opportunity to market by-products as a profitable source of income.[13]

  13. alphadog

    April 17, 2016 at 10:28 am

    In the 70s we fed our dogs whatever the farm supply store was selling, usually under the Coop. Brand, and it was probably pretty junky. They (the dogs ) lived to 16 and 21. The cats ate only kibble and lived long lives too. We did not feed Purina anything because my brother worked on a chicken ranch. When they cleaned the chicken houses everything (straw
    feathers, manure, whatever) was hauled down the road a piece to be sold to Purina for use in pet food. We didn’t figure any other company could be so stupid. We were probably wrong but even ar that the animals lived long healthy lives.

    • Marcia

      April 20, 2016 at 3:47 pm

      I remember in the 1960’s (and maybe 1970’s) my Dad bought Gainsburger dog food. It was in the shape of a hamburger patty and we broke it up (it was soft) and put it in the dogs’ bowls. I have no idea to this day what Gainsburger was made of, but our dogs didnt have lipomas like today’s dogs and the dogs lived longer with fewer health issues.

      I am not blaming just the food our modern society feeds their pets, however. We give our pets pills and shots for everything, and we never did the medicine/vaccine overload back then!

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