Is limited ingredient dog food better than food with many ingredients?

Limited ingredients diets are recommended for dogs that have or may have food allergies or sensitivities. Some pet parents choose to feed limited ingredient diets to their dogs to avoid preservatives and fillers.

There are only three pet food brands which are approved by veterinarians. These are science diet, royal canin and purina pro plan. Only these three Have undergone research to ensure they provide an adequate and nutritious diet for pets. This research is approved by veterinarians. Any other food brands may not be regulated or researched as thoroughly. For this reason I would only advise feeding one of those three. Here is a link to my best recommendation for an adult dog; Www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=27148 Most foods can be measured in measuring cups rather then weighed, for your convenience.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Chloe, what a great name for a Cavalier. As you know there are so many diets out there it's hard for anyone to keep up with all of them. What matters is that the diet is nutritionally balanced for the particular life stage of the pet, their body condition score, and their activity level. Diets vary in content, number of ingredients, energy density, fillers/additives, supplements, vitamins/minerals, etc. Some diets are what are called Limited Ingredient diets and these are for pets that may have food problems with certain foods such as a sensitivity or even an allergy to certain proteins. The grain feed fad appears to be just that. Since many humans now are cutting out grains, the pet food manufacturers have jumped on that as a marketing ploy but no evidence exists that grains in general are a problem for most pets. There are cases where pets do better without grains according to the owners. These diets tend to be higher in price and again, like I said, a marketing ploy. So bottom line, look for a diet that Chloe enjoys eating, is appropriate for an adult small-medium breed dog which fits her activity level, and fits your financial budget. Some nutritionists now believe that switching dog foods and brands occasionally (with a very slow transition to the new diet over a 2 week period) is good for pets since no one diet is appropriate for an individual pet. I hope this helps and gives you some guidance. The diets with fewer ingredients are usually meant for pets that are having medical problems or problems associated with their diet. Good Luck with Chloe.

It's just designed to appear to humans. Brands of food that I recommend include Royal Canin, Hill's Science Diet, Purina Pro Plan, and Iams (Eukanuba). I recommend these brands because they run their own food trials, meet AAFCO feeding standards, and have veterinary nutritionists on staff. They are the only four brands that have these things. I feed my dog Iams and she loves it.

Foods made by Purina are good, but ones like ProPlan have higher quality ingredients than say Alpo or Beneful. In my opinion, Purina is the best of the supermarket brands, so getting a food made by Purina whether it be Purina One or Beneful is fine. I hope this helps!

Unfortunately an ingredient list can be misleading, and I recommend sticking to foods that follow WSAVA nutrition guidelines. This includes foods from Purina, Iams, Hill’s Science Diet or Royal Canin. https://www.wsava.org/WSAVA/media/Arpita-and-Emma-editorial/Selecting-the-Best-Food-for-your-Pet.pdf

Foods in the US need to be regulated under AAFCO standards to be complete and nutritionally balanced, so most foods will do a good job of making sure your pet stays healthy and happy. Specialist foods generally are designed to treat an issue, such as a food allergy or a health problem, and are beneficial for pets that need it. As for the prescription diets your vet sells, these are specially formulated to help treat a specific medical condition like a prescription medication would. They are prescription-only because of this, and sometimes cost a bit more because a lot more research and formulation (and sometimes unique ingredients) goes into them to make them able to treat a health condition. In many cases, your vet can send a prescription for this food to an online pet store or pharmacy so you can purchase the product cheaper.