Anybody else feed Beef 'n' More?

[Guyver]

I have my dogs on a diet consisting of Beef 'n' More, which I am able to pick up at the local Wal-Mart for $8.97 for a 20 lb. bag. I will list the ingredients below. From the Whole Dog Journal it appears that Artemis, Azmira and Back to Basics are pretty well at the top of foods to feed. However, is this food, in sure to be varied opinions, comparable to Nutro, Candidae and the like? ~Gene

Beef 'n' More can be found online at beefnmore.com There are no artificial flavors or colors in it. It has 27% crude protein minimum, 11% crude fat minimum, 3.5% crude fiber maximum, 10% moisture maximum, 1.5% linoleic acid minimum, 1.2% calcium minimum, .8% phosphorous minimum, 15,000 IU/KG Vitamin A minimum, 60 IU/KG Vitamin E minimum, .3% alpha linolenic acid, .4% sodium minimum, 119.0 MG/KG zinc minimum, 1400.0 MG/KG choline minimum.

What they say: Omega-3 fatty acids help your dog maintain healthy skin and a glossy hair coat. In addition, research continues to link Omega-3 to healthy cell structure and brain development, prevention of blood clots and slowing growth of tumor cells. Since your dog can't manufacture these fatty acids, he must obtain them from the nutrients in the food he eats. The linoleic acid in ground flaxseed provides the Omega-3 in Beef'n'More Super Premium Professional Beef Formula (Say that three times fast) Experts say an optimally wholesome diet should provide an Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio of approximately 5:1. Beef'n'More provides an Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio of 6:1.

Fresh beef is our number one ingredient. Beef is a preferred source of quality protein for your dog's muscles, organs and hair coat. Beef is a source of highly available phosphorous, which is an essential element of your dog's bones and teeth. Beef is a natural source of zinc to give your dog healthy skin and proper body metabolism. Beef is an abundant source of B Vitamins, which are essential to your dog's proper metabolism of many other nutrients. Better nutrition means higher digestibility and less waste. The AAFCO procedures substantiate that Beef'n'More provides complete and balanced nutrition for all stages of life. Beef'n'More is freshly made to order and only enough is manufactured to fill current orders so customers can be assured of the freshness of every bag.

Beef 'n' More Ingredients:

Fresh Beef (Protein, Vitamin and Linoleic Acid Source)
Ground Yellow Corn (Linoleic Acid Source)
Soybean Meal (Protein Source)
Corn Gluten Meal (Protein Source)
Wheat Middlings
Ground Wheat
Beef Tallow (Linoleic Acid Source)
Flax Seed (Alpha Linoleic Acid Source)
Calcium Carbonate
Dicalcium Phosphate
Yeast Culture
Salt
Corn Distillers Dried Grains
Corn Distillers Dried Solubles
Fish Meal
Choline Cloride
Zinc Proteinate
Dried Whey (Protein Source)
Dl-Alpha Tocopherol (Vitamin E)
Manganese Proteinate
Iron Proteinate
Copper Proteinate
Vitamin B-12 Supplement
Vitamin A Supplement
Niacin
Lecithin
D-Activated Animal Sterol (Source of Vitamin D3)
Riboflavin
Biotin
Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide
Cobalt Proteinate
Pyridoxine Hydrochloride
Folic Acid
Thiamine Mononitrate
Cobalt Carbonate
Sodium Selenite

[mydogroxy]

personally i wouldn't feed this kibble. it's not the worst thing you could feed but it has A LOT of corn in it (a common allergen) and only one source of protein in the top 5 ingredients. i also don't like "fish meal" as opposed to a specific type of fish. what exactly is this "fish" that's included?

[concreterose]

The corn listed as the second ingredient is definitely not a good thing. However, I would just watch the dogs and see how they respond to it. Not every dog is allergic to corn. If you like their stool quality, coats, teeth and health and are satisfied with the food, stick with it.

I would also consider giving them fresh fish, salmon, or flax oil. I My dogs kibble also contain these ingriedients, but no matter how top end the kibble is, I have my reservations about how much of the nutritional value in the supplements is destroyed during the baking process. I keep all oil supplements in the refrigerator once they get home.JMO

[HugABull1]

one other thing - the first ingredient is "fresh beef", not beef meal. This means they're weighing the beef when it's completely unprocessed, it can contain bone, fur, hoof, whatever, as long as it's from a cow. It also has a ton of fat and water in it. Once they process it (before adding to the food), you'd be lucky if it weighed 1/5 of what it did "fresh". So, really, in that food, beef is probably 3 or more spots down the list. That food has a LOT of grain in it. Doesn't mean it's bad for your dog, or your dog won't be healthy on it. Does mean your dog needs to eat more to get the same nutrition it would from a higher quality kibble, and your dog will poop more. Also, on a high-grain food like that, your dog will shed more, have worse breath, smellier poop, and be more likely to have skin and coat problems, etc., than on a higher-quality food.

However, you don't always have to spend a fortune to get a good food. Before switching to raw, I used to feed a food I got a Real Canadian Superstore - it was called Nutrition 1st, and was their own brand. That food was not the best ever, but it fell in between Nutro and Canidae as far as quality. I got 20lbs for $15. I don't know if that food is still great, but if you look around you can find a good food. The biggest thing is make sure the first ingredient is beef/lamb/chicken/ MEAL, preferably followed by another meat source (doesn't have to be MEAL). It'd be nice to see rice next on the list, preferably brown rice. Corn is okay, it's a decent energy source, but it is a common allergen. Soybean meal being up so high is not great, wheat middlings is basically useless, just a filler. Wheat is another common allergen. The fact that they add beef tallow tells you the food's not great, and they're adding that to make it more appealing to the dogs.

If your dogs are healthy and happy, and you like the food, don't sweat it:) A lot of dogs can eat a lower quality food all their lives and do just fine. However, if you want the best nutrition for your dog, this is not the food for you.

[barbponys]

It's pretty much been said in the above posts. Any kind of middlings are basically the sweepings off the mill floor and of no nutrative value. They are however a great fibre source.

Chilli is right, fresh means bone and water, not a good thing. People bad mouth meal but it's pure meat and very high in nutrients. Not as good as feeding fresh raw meat but...........Another reason to look askance at human grade on any bag of food that has meal in it. There's no such thing as human grade.......or better yet.....organic, meal. It may start out that way but it certainly isn't after being processed.

If you can get Canidae spend the extra on that, it's a far better food.

[Chocolate Thunda]

Personally I feed my dog Diamond Professional which is available at any feed store for less than 20 dollars. If you click on dogster and look at the pic of him laying between the two couches you'll see a serious shine on his coat and it's the food. Everytime he gets a hold of human food (that sounds stupid) he gets real sick. The professional stats up like this
crude protein 30% min
crude fat 20%min
crude fiber 3% max
Moisture 10% max
ash 6.5% max
calcium 1.2% max
Omega-6 Fatty Acids 3.4%min
Omaga-3 Fatty Acids 0.6%min
The ingredients are Chicken-by-product, whole grain golden corn, wheat flour, chicken fat, beef pulp, fish meal, egg product, flaxseed, etc. It also adds 300mg/kg of glucosamine hydrochloride and 100mg/kg chondroitin sulfate to help promote the health of joints in active dogs......Ok enough w/ the infomericial you get the drift.

[chalkline]

Canidae is the way to go.

[concreterose]

My dogs just switched to canidae and I am very pleased...I was also pleased with solid gold, but I change their food every six months or so.