Have you scored your dog food lately?

One of our goals here at BDHPI is to be an education resource to our volunteers, adopting families and supporters. One of the top priorities is the topic of nutrition. Our general rule of thumb is if you can buy it at the grocery store, it is not a nutritious brand for your 4 legged friend.

Please take the time to read through the below "test". If you have any questions, please contact bree@bigdogshugepaws.com who loves to educate dog owners on the importance of feeding a premium dog food! She has personal experience watching her rescue dane's skin, fur and temperment change once he was switched to one of the premium brands!

How to grade your dog's food:

Start with a grade of 100:
For every listing of "by-product", subtract 10 points
For every non-specific animal source ("meat" or "poultry", meat, meal or fat) reference, subtract 10 points
If the food contains BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin, subtract 10 points
For every grain "mill run" or non-specific grain source, subtract 5 points
If the same grain ingredient is used 2 or more times in the first five ingredients (i.e. "ground brown rice", "brewer's rice", "riceflour" are all the same grain), subtract 5 points
If the protein sources are not meat meal and there are less than 2 meats in the top 3 ingredients, subtract 3 points
If it contains any artificial colorants, subtract 3 points
If it contains ground corn or wholegrain corn, subtract 3 points
If corn is listed in the top 5 ingredients, subtract 2 more points
If the food contains any animal fat other than fish oil, subtract 2 points
If lamb is the only animal protein source (unless your dog is allergic to other protein sources), subtract 2 points
If it contains soy or soybeans, subtract2 points
If it contains wheat (unless you know that your dog isn't allergic to wheat), subtract 2 points
If it contains beef (unless you know that your dog isn't allergic to beef), subtract 1 point
If it contains salt, subtract 1 point
ExtraCredit:

If any of the meat sources are organic, add 5 points
If the food is endorsed by any major breed group or nutritionist, add points
If the food is baked not extruded, add 5 points
If the food contains probiotics, add 3 points
If the food contains fruit, add 3 points
If t he food contains vegetables (NOT corn or other grains), add 3 points
If the animal sources are hormone-free and antibiotic-free, add 2 points
If the food contains barley, add 2 points
If the food contains flax seed oil (not just the seeds), add 2 points
If the food contains oats or oatmeal, add 1 point
If the food contains sunflower oil, add 1 point
For every different specific animal protein source (other than the first one; count "chicken" and "chicken meal" as only one protein source, but "chicken" and "" as 2 different sources), add 1 point
If it contains glucosamine and chondroitin, add 1 point
If the vegetables have been tested for pesticides and are pesticide-free, add 1point
Here are some foods that have already been scored.

Dog Food Scores:
94-100+ = A
86-93 = B
78-85 = C
70-77 = D
69 = F

· Alpo Prime Cuts / Score 81 C
· Artemis Large/Medium Breed Puppy / Score 114 A+
· Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+
· Authority Harvest Baked Less Active / Score 93 B
· Beowulf Back to Basics / Score 101 A+
· Bil-Jac Select / Score 68 F
· Blackwood 3000 Lamb and Rice / Score 83 C
· Blue Buffalo Chicken and Rice / Score 106 A+
· Burns Chicken and Brown Rice / Score 107 A+
· Canidae / Score 112 A+
· Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+
· Diamond Maintenance / Score 64 F
· Diamond Lamb Meal & Rice / Score 92 B
· Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A
· Diamond Performance / Score 85 C
· Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+
· Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Venison and Brown Rice / Score 106 A+
· Dick Van Patten's Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+
· EaglePack Holistic / Score 102 A+ Eagle Pack Holistic Chicken / Score 114 A+
· Eagle Pack Natural / Score 94 A
· Eagle Pack Large and Giant Breed Puppy Food/ Score 94 A
· Eukanuba Adult / Score 81 C
· Eukanuba Puppy / Score 79 C
· Flint River Senior / Score 101 A+
· Foundations / Score 106 A+
· Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 93 B
· Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula Premium / Score 73 D
· Innova Dog / Score 114 A+
· Innova Evo / Score 114 A+
· Innova Large Breed Puppy / Score 122 A+
· Kirkland Signature Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+
· Member’s Mark Chicken and Rice / Score 84 C
· Merrick Wilderness Blend / Score 127 A+
· Nature’s Recipe / Score 100 A
· Nature’s Recipe Healthy Skin Venison and Rice / Score 116 A+
· Nature’s Variety Raw Instinct / Score 122 A+
· Nutra Nuggets Super Premium Lamb Meal and Rice / Score 81 C
· Nutrience Junior Medium Breed Puppy / Score 101 A+
· Nutrisource Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B
· Nutro Max Adult / Score 93 B
· Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice / Score 98 A
· Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy / Score 87 B
· Nutro Natural Choice Puppy Wheat Free / Score 86 B