Pet
Food
Choice

 

Because you have a choice! An Insider's Guide to Choosing the Right Food for Your Pet

Pet Food Choice Recommended Foods

This is a difficult task, because there are so many pet foods out there. The chosen dog and cat foods have not all been physically tested - the following criteria for selection, which we believe are appropriate for the vast majority of pet owners, have been used (if you don't agree then feel free to ignore our choices!)

  1. Does the food offer good value for money (this weighs heavily on the rating)?

  2. Are the ingredients clearly stated (or hidden in vague terms)?

  3. Has the company opted for cheapest option with ingredients?

  4. Where does the food fall in the various market sectors (Value, Premium, Natural etc)?

The recommendations are subdivided into categories into which they seem to naturally fall.

VALUE BRAND DOG FOOD - complete dry food

Gilpa Kennel 15kg

Guide price only £12.39 (Pet Planet)

 

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Ingredients

Wheat, poultry, maize, wheatfeed, poultry digest, poultry fat, whey powder, soya oil, yeast, mixed herbs, extract of New Zealand green-lipped mussel, yucca extract, minerals, trace elements and vitamins, including zinc chelate. With EEC permitted antioxidants.

 

Protein 20%

Fat 10%

Comments

Difficult to fault this as a well thought out product for the money. For less than £15 for a 15kg bag you get named cereal and protein sources, moderate levels of protein and oil (which are recommended for good health and long life) and the possible health benefits of green-lipped mussel for joints.

On the downside, being a 'value' food it is wheat based which can be a problem for a small % of dogs, and it uses EEC permitted antioxidants rather than the more expensive natural alternatives.

But for value for money this one gets

 

HYPO-ALLERGENIC DOG FOOD (for sensitive skin or digestion)

Burgess Sensitive 15kg

Guide Price £23.99 (Pet Supermarket)

 

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Ingredients

Lamb meal (min 26%), rice (min 26%), sugar beet pulp, animal fat, dicalcium phosphate, calcium carbonate. Contains natural anti-oxidants. NO ADDED COLOURS. WHEAT GLUTEN FREE

Protein 20%

Oil 10%

Yes, I know there are lots of hypo-allergenic products on the market, and maybe this wouldn't be the first choice for many, but it does offer excellent value for money, saving anything up to £15 or more on big brand names. (One reason for this might be that Burgess manufacture the food themselves)

With rice as named cereal, which is common in hypo-allergenic products, and lamb as meat source, together with no colours or artificial preservatives, this offers excellent value for money and deserves

 

NATURAL / HOLISTIC DOG FOOD

Burns Fish & Rice 15kg

Guide price £38.49 (Pet Supermarket)

 

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Ingredients

Brown Rice (min 63%), Fish (min18%), Oats, Peas, Fish Oil, Sunflower Oil, Seaweed, Minerals and Vitamins

Protein 18.5%

Fat 7.5%

There are other contenders, with lots of fancy additives to entice but Burns has been around for a while now and has built up a good reputation with dog owners. The recipes have been developed by a veterinary surgeon with knowledge of holistic medicine.

The only downside is that it is £14 a bag more expensive than the Burgess product highlighted above!

Natural ingredients, no colours or preservatives and using brown rice and fish. Most users would give it

Pets at Home Complete 15kg

Guide price £29 from Pets at Home

 

 

Ingredients

Fresh Chicken (min 24%), Poultry Meat Meal, Maize, Rice, Barley, Maize Gluten Meal, Animal Fat, Sugar Beet Pulp, Poultry Digest, Brewers Yeast, Egg Powder, Flaxseed, Potato Protein, Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Methionine, Marigold Extract, Yucca Extract, Rosemary Extract, Antioxidants (Vitamin E and A)

Protein 26%, Oil 14.5%

I've recommended the new Pets at Home range as an alternative to the more expensive branded products for two reasons - firstly they offer savings of up to £10 on a 15kg bag which is considerable, and secondly because they are good foods, we've just road tested this one. The ingredient declaration is longer but that's partly because they're being more open about what's in the food (rather then just listing some ingredients as 'vitamins and minerals'). Poultry Digest doesn't sound very good, but it's basically mashed up liver and is (I presume) quite tasty for a dog. It's used in almost all foods, just not always declared... ask your current manufacturer if in doubt.

One proviso - if your dog is not very active, choose the light version with lower oil and protein

PREMIUM / SUPERPREMIUM DOG FOOD

James Wellbeloved Lamb & Vegetables 10kg

Guide Price £24.99 (Pet Supermarket)

 

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INGREDIENTS:
Lamb meat meal, pea starch, potato flakes, tomato pomace, lamb fat, whole linseed, lamb gravy, peas, sugar beet pulp, pea protein, alfalfa, carrot, natural seaweed, chicory pulp, sodium chloride, calcium carbonate, D,L-methionine, lysine hydrochloride, threonine, zinc methionate.

ANALYSIS:

Protein 21 %, Oil 10.5%

Now here's an interesting product which contains no cereals at all - the carbs come from vegetable sources instead.

This product would fit into several categories including hypo-allergenic and holistic/natural, but does come out expensive compared to our other choices at full price (bearing in mind it's only 10kg), hence it's parked here at the Rolls Royce end of the product ranges!

VALUE BRAND DOG CANNED/POUCH FOOD

Butchers 400g pk 12

Guide price £7.19/12 (Pet Planet)
- just under 60p for 400g

 

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The Butchers range is quite large to quote ingredients for one product. However they do point out that the foods are made with all natural ingredients and free from Soya, artificial preservatives, colourings and flavourings.

Typical ingredients:
meat and animal derivatives, Tripe min 26%; derivatives of vegetable origin; and minerals.

Protein 10%

oil 8%

At the 'Value' end of the market you're not going to be too fussy about what goes into your dog's food, and canned food does seem to be lagging behind dried food when it comes to choice of ingredients.

They all tend to include derivatives of one sort or another, although Butchers do include Tripe.

Trouble is, there's no denying that dog's like this food, and it's very popular. So if you are not too fussy about the phrases 'meat and animal derivatives' and 'derivatives of vegetable origin' then this might be the value food for you!

Alternatively suss out the supermarket own brand which will probably have similar ingredients!

NATURAL / HOLISTIC / PREMIUM DOG FOODS - CANNED OR POUCH

Naturediet Chicken with Rice and Carrots 390g

Guide price £12.42/18 packs
(Pet Supermarket)

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INGREDIENTS:
Chicken Min 60%, Brown Rice Min 15%,Carrots Min 8%, Natural Ground Bone, Kelp, Vitamins & Minerals

Protein 10%

Oil 8%

Naturediet has been a firm favourite for a natural choice for some years. This one is a blend of chicken, brown rice and vegetables. A complete white meat menu suitable for young and older animals and those with a sensitive digestion. An exclusive recipe containing only chicken meat and chicken bone, this menu is suitable as an elimination diet where allergies to specific proteins are suspected.

POSH NOSH!

Applaws Natural Dog Food 156g

Guide price 99p (Pet Planet)

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Chicken Fillet:

75% Chicken Meat, 1% Rice, 24% Water

Protein 22%
Fat 1%

Chicken, Beef & Vegetables:

28% Chicken meat, 18% Beef liver, 8% Pumpkin, 8% Carrot, 8% Green pea, 5% Rice, 28% Water

Protein 13%
Fat 0.6%

To quote the company 'Available in a variety of of tantalising flavours, Applaws truly is a dog food with a difference. All fish used in production of this dog food are caught in sea water using dolphin-friendly methods, and all chickens are fed only organic feed and are entirely hormone free.'

This type of food is rich in meat and high quality ingredients, but at a cost, unless you have a very small dog!

James Wellbeloved Pouches Adult 150g

Guide price 59p (Pet Planet)

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INGREDIENTS:
Lamb meat, rice, peas, carrots, sunflower oil,
sugar beet pulp, linseed oil, calcium carbonate,
seaweed, alfalfa, potassium chloride, tomatoes.


Protein 5.5%,
Oil 4.5%

 

 

James Wellbeloved pouches are a complete wet food with the bonus of being hypo-allergenic. They are deal as a tasty topper dry kibble, as long as you remember to reduce the amount of kibble fed by 35g for every pouch used. With selected protein sources and rice as a source of carbohydrates, Wellbeloved pouches are dietetic food that is excellent for the reduction of ingedient and nutrient intolerances. Adult variety, choose from Lamb & Rice or Turkey & Rice.

Expensive compared with Natures Menu, gram for gram - not sure why, but dogs seem to like it.

CAT FOOD - DRY COMPLETE - VALUE BRAND

Friskies Go Cat 2Kg

Guide price £4.65 (Pet Planet)

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Ingredients

Cereals, Meat And Animal Derivatives, (min 30%, including min 4% Chicken in Chicken pellets, -, - min 4% Beef in Beef pellets, min 4% Liver in Liver pellets), Derivatives Of Vegetable Origin, Vegetable Protein Extracts, Oils And Fats, (min 1% vegetable oil), Minerals, Yeasts, Various Sugars, Contains E E C Permitted Colourants, Antioxidants And Preservatives

 

As always, if you're choosing a food at the value end of the market then you're talking about derviatives of one sort or another, and Go-Cat is typical of a lot of similar products.

This is a popular food, however, it's complete and offers all the nutrition that's required and even our fussy cat will happily eat it when we can't afford anything posher!

NATURAL / HYPO-ALLERGENIC DRIED CAT FOOD

James Wellbeloved Adult Cat Food 2Kg

Guide price £11.29 (Pet Planet)

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Typical Ingredients: White rice (min 26%), duck meat meal (min 26%), duck fat, prairie meal, potato protein (min 9%), duck gravy, tomato, omega-3 oil supplement (min 0.5%), chicory extract, carrot, cranberry extract (min 0.05%), DL methionine, lysine hydrochloride, taurine, threonine, zinc methionate, yucca extract, rosemary oil.


Protein 31%,

Oil 18%

 

Cats can suffer from food allergies, giving rise to poor skin and coat condition, and stomach problems. The most common allergies are milk, beef and wheat. So, the JW cat foods contains none of these problem ingredients. And because duck is an uncommon protein source, it is perfect for a hypo- allergenic diet.

 

PREMIUM CAT FOOD - DRIED COMPLETE

Pro Plan Cat Adult 3kg

Guide price £14.99 (Pet Supermarket)

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Ingredients
Chicken (21%), rice (16%), maize gluten meal, dehydrated poultry protein, maize, wheat, animal fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols) fish protein conetrate, liver digest, dried whole egg, yeasts, fish oil, sodium caseinate, poassium chloride, calcium carbonate, choline chloride, minerals, sodium chloride, DL-methionine. Zinc (Zinc sulphate) 200 mg/kg, Selenium (sodium selenite) 0.12mg/kg. Contains EC permitted Additives: Beta-carotene, Tocopherol rich extracts of natural origin, Ortho Phosphoric acid.

Typical Analysis
Protein 36.0%
Fat 16.0%


Purina offer a choice of varieties, this one with chicken, which is very palatable, and contains quality ingredients.

Like all the big multi-nationals and the millions they pour into research, if Purina can't formulate a food that cats love then there's something seriously wrong.

Our fussy cat thinks this is great!

VALUE CAT FOOD - CANNED / POUCH

Felix Pouch 12x100g Mixed Pack

Guide price £3 for 12 pouches (Pet Planet) or 25p each

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Typical ingredients:

Meat and animal derivatives (of which chicken 4%), fish and fish derivatives, minerals, various sugars.

Protein 8.5% Oil 4.5%

OK, you know the score already, at this end of the market we're talking derivatives - but always remember that any pet food which calls itself 'complete' must be just that, in that it offers the cat all the nutrients required.

Felix is offered as a product typical of its type, but also from a manufacturer that knows a lot about pet nutrition and what makes a food atractive to a pet. It's also a lot cheaper than some of the upmarket foods out there!

NATURAL CAT FOOD - MOIST / CANNED

Hilife Petite Pate Selection 85g x 36

Guide price £14.09 / 36 tins (Pet Supermarket) or 39p each

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Ingredients
Salmon (min. 26%), Pork, Liver, Chicken, Ocean Whitefish, Vitamin & Mineral Supplements. Contains EEC permitted colourants.

Protein (%) - 12.4, Oils & Fats (%) - 7

This one scrapes in with a little reluctance because although it contains almost all naatural ingredients, they then insist on putting colours in, which seems a little perverse.

However, compared to the cost of the top end products, which can be 99p a tin, this does offer an acceptable and economical alternative containing ingredients which are mainly understandable as 'food'

POSH NOSH FOR CATS!

Applaws Natural Cat Food 156g

Guide price 99p (Pet Planet)

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Chicken Breast & Cheese
70% Chicken 5% Cheese 24% Cooking Water 1% Rice

Tuna Fillet
Tuna 75% Cooking Water 19% Rice 6%

Tuna Fillet & Prawn
Tuna 52% Prawn 23% Cooking Water 24% Rice 1%

Typical analysis

Protein 19%
Oil 1%

 

The Applaws rage is typical of products introduced from Italy a couple of years ago, being simply meat with cooking water and a little rice.

They are excellent quality, but rather pricey - not sure how they are viewed as complete, as they do not have added vitamins and minerals, and the protein content is very high. That's why I've put it in this category.

RABBITS

Burgess Supa Rabbit Excel

Guide price £14.99 / 10kg (Pet Supermarket)

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Ingredients Cereal grains, dried forages, products and by-products of legume seeds, products and by-products of sugar production, minerals, oils, fats and fructo-oligosaccharides.

 

This complimentary rabbit food in pellet form is recommended by vets as it prevents selective feeding. It is fully extruded for nutritional balance and contains profeed for healthier digestion. Designed to be fed with good quality roughage such as hay.

It is fully supplemented with minerals and vitamins with the correct calcium to phosphorous ratio.

 

GUINEA PIGS

Gerty Guinea Pig 2.5kg

Guide price £5.49 (Pet Supermarket)

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Based on high temperature dried alfalfa, which is naturally rich in both protein and fiber. Other ingredients include oats, peas, linseed, soy and the all-important Vitamin C. It has the right amounts of protein (for growth), carbohydrates (for energy), fiber (for digestion), oils (for a glossy coat) and vitamins and minerals (for healthy bones, teeth and skin).

 

Gerty Guinea Pig is a complete diet specially formulated for guinea pigs.

Both Burgess and Supreme make excelent products for small animals, so it's hard to choose between them!


 

 

 

 

pet kitchenThe In House Reviews!

Pet Food Kitchen

Welcome to the kitchen!

Our resident volunteers, Moggie and Maggie (not their real names, for professional reasons!) are gradually working their way through the local pet shop shelves in their search for the perfect pet food! [Jump to our 'in house' testing]

You can help, by sending in your own pet food experiences, both good and bad, so that these can be shared by our visitors. Say something about your pet and any benefits you might have noticed after using the food in question.

See also: Pet Food brands compared : Brands (who owns them?) : Pet food costs: Why so expensive? : Money-Saving tips : Home Cooking : Premium or Superpremium?

 

[ Cat ] [Dog ]

maggie

Let me introduce Moggie, who will be testing cat foods. Moggie is a fussy eater, and has been raised on dry complete dites, so I'm afraid that this is all she will be testing (please send in your own experiences of dry and wet foods)

Historically she was raised on Go-cat and our local Co-op's own brand, and these suited her well until recently when she basically went off cheap food and became a bit of a foodie snob!

Moggie has been very busy of late, and is totally committed to the whole Foodie programme!

1) Co-op complete dried cat food - this is a basic complete food and may well suit a large % of the UK cat population. Moggie was on it for several years, and thrived on the food until she got bored with the flavour. (Moggie gives it 6/10)

2) Burns Ocean Fish - Moggie tried this for a couple of weeks on the basis that it was a whole lot 'healthier' than the food she was on, but unfortunately didn't find it very appetizing, which may be because it lacks the sort of flavour enhancers that cats like, or maybe wasn't as fresh as it could be. ( Moggie gives it 3/10)

3) Pets at Home Complete Light - Moggie like the 'fresh chicken' on the label, and the money-back guarantee, which her owner was hoping to profit by. Unfortunately that wasn't possible as Moggie though the food was rather nice, and can I have some more please! ( Moggie gives it 7/10)

4) Royal Canin Sensible 33 - A strange product name, but as Moggie is a sensible cat she thought she'd give it a try, and it got a big thumbs up. Not quite sure what these guys put in the food to make it so attractive, but whatever it is, it works!
( Moggie gives it 7/10)

5) Whiskas with Tuna - Here's a bit of a lucky strike, Whiskas is fairly cheap to buy compared with some of the others listed above, and Moggie loves it. So a big thumbs up from Moggie and owner! ( Moggie gives it 8/10)

6) Iams Adult 1+ - Current food, simply because our local Coop had it on a BOGOF offer. Here's another one with plenty of chicken in, and another hit with Moggie, though maybe not eaten quite as quickly as the Pets at Home recipe. Also, there's the whole Iams and animal testing thing to contend with, should that bother you. Tasty though (she assures me) and excellent value at buy one get one free!
( Moggie gives it 7/10)

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dog cooking

And then there's Maggie, who again has been raised from a pup on dry complete foods, for her owner's convenience. As a retriever breed, Maggie will basically eat anything that resembles or smells like it ought to be eaten!

As a pup, Maggie came with a free bag of Arden Grange from the breeder, but was raised on Burns pupy food.

As far as Maggie is concerned, we're not going to go down the chopping and changing every week, but rather looking at buying a 15kg bag and working our way through it.

1) Burns Mini Bites - Maggie loved this food and seemed to thrive on it as she was growing up. Lower protein than many puppy foods so you get a nice steady growth.
( Maggie gives it 8/10)

1) Burns Fish & Brown Rice - Maggie was eating this for a couple of years and loving it, but latterly there were a couple of issues, particularly with anal glands and problems keeping weight on her.
( Maggie gives it 6/10)

2) Wainwrights chicken & rice - from Pets at Home, a fairly natural, light and hypo-allergenic diet like the Burns. Feeding rates higher and more poo noticable (!) but larger kibble and very palatable. Have noticed a slight weight gain which is actually a good thing, as Maggie was startingto look a bit skinny.
( Maggie gives it 7/10)

3) Pets at Home Chicken & Rice (new recipe) - Flashy bag, natural recipe and good value at the moment at around £28.99 for 15kg. The protein (26%) and fat content are higher than Maggie has been usd to, so I'll be feeding at the bottom end of the feeding scale - but she's active so should cope. Put side by side with their Wainwrights food, this one scored a big win. Again a larger kibble size than Burns which I like -and so does she. So we'll see how Maggie goes on this one.

OK, we've made our way through 18kg of the new Pets at Home Complete, and a couple of things stand out. Coat condition is excellent, much silkier then it was on the Burns, and Maggie has put on a little bit of weight which is also not undesirable as she was looking a little too lean for my liking. No adverse reactions, and therefore overall I would say that this is excellent value for money compared with other 'natural' foods out there.

One proviso though - if your dog is not very active (Maggie runs about 5 miles a day) then you might think about choosing the light version of this food, with lower protein and fat content.

(Maggie gives it 9/10)

 

4) Our quest continues and Maggie's next trial is James Wellbeloved Fish & Rice

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