Pet Food Wars: What does 'kcals per cup' mean and why that expensive bag of food is cheaper than you think!

Since our pets can't buy their own food, we have to.  And while a lot of us want to do right by our pets, we are often influenced by brands we see on TV.

Remember my rant on Beneful?  If not, go read it.

I'll wait....

The moral of that story was to not be swayed by TV and to do a little research yourself.  This post is going to address the problem of "Well, I buy _____ because the other brands cost too much."

Yes, Mr. Customer.  Brand B does cost more than Brand A.  But have you looked at cost per feeding?

This is a chart I use when I'm talking about cost-per-feeding to my customers (your pet stores).  If you compare these two brands, Beneful and Premium Edge, you will notice Premium Edge costs $10 more per bag.

Yes, you get almost 4lb more than that bag of Beneful, but at a cost-per-weight basis, Beneful will cost you under $1/lb, and Premium Edge will cost you $1.14/lb.

So the expensive bag will cost me more to feed, right?

WRONG.

A dog needs a certain amount of calories to maintain their body weight.  It varies by energy level, but the guidelines use an 'average' of 32.5 calories per pound of body weight.  To get to that desired level for a 60lb dog, you need 4-5.5 cups of Beneful (depending on energy level) compared to 2.25-3 cups of Premium Edge.

You feed less and get the same result.  This means LESS POOP IN YOUR YARD, but more importantly the bag lasts longer.  26 days for a $30 bag of Beneful, or 50+ days for a bag of Premium Edge.  The 'expensive' bag wins by the tune of $100+ in savings each year.

But can kcal content be misleading?  ABSOLUTELY!

Take Canidae Pet Foods for example, as well as a few comparable brands.  (I pick on Canidae, because they're a well-known 'Independent' brand.  They recently went into Petco, even though I have heard personally from the owners' mouths that would never ever happen.  So now I poke at them.)

I used to sell Canidae long ago, and would show my friends that a bag of Canidae was technically cheaper to feed than the cheapest bags of pet food you can find at Walmart.  I honed my 'cost per feeding' pitch with them, and now use it against them.

You see, a 44lb bag of Canidae now sells for $54-62 in my area.  I sell similar brands that cost way less to feed, and haven't changed their bag, formula or promises in recent times.  Canidae still costs less to feed than Beneful, but let's compare it with other high-end brands, shall we?

Canidae claims to have a whopping 468 kcals per cup in their All Life Stages diet.  I called their office to confirm what 'cup' they use, and they said they get their numbers from an 8oz dry measuring cup, which holds exactly 4.5oz of Canidae kibble.

I tested, they are correct.

But if you do the math (which I did for you on the graphic) it only adds up to 460 kcals per cup.  When you compare to a big brand like Beneful, you will feed less.  But what about other high-end brands?

Taste of the Wild dog food claims to only have 370 kcals per cup, but if you use the same measuring guidelines as Canidae, I get 451 kcals per cup.  That's very similar in feeding rate, and makes me wonder why my math is so different.  I called the company and have not received a response.

Another brand, with ingredients closer to Canidae's, is Hi-Tek Naturals.  Their Chicken Fitness formula has similar ingredients, also comes in a 44lb bag ($50, compared to Canidae's $60) and also has a frequent buyer program (Buy 10 get 1 free, Canidae's is Buy 12 get 1 free).  Their bag shows more kcals per kilogram than Canidae, but less kcals per cup.  When I measured cup to cup, I only saw a 0.13oz difference in weight.  Using my math, Hi-Tek really measures at 465 kcal/cup.  Making it a cheaper bag to buy than Canidae, and a cheaper feeding rate.

For that same 60lb dog used earlier, it would cost you $338 per year to feed Canidae vs $272 with HiTek.  $312 vs $248 if you use a frequent buyer card.  And while both brands are a better value than Beneful ($385/yr) and a much better quality, when you start to compare premium vs premium you want to make sure you get the most bang for your buck.

But the question is:  Which math is correct?  If we use Canidae math, other brands look better than they realize.  But is this the accurate way of measuring calorie content, or does everyone do things a little differently??

In the end, sometimes the expensive bag costs less than you think.  But sometimes, if you look hard enough, you can find even better value out there.  Do some research, don't be afraid to use a calculator, and don't believe everything a business says.  Do YOUR math and don't trust theirs.

Pet Food Recommendations from Lostinidaho.me

I talk about Pet Food from time to time, because I have a passion for pet nutrition.  Hell, it's my day job, and I love what I do.

But most of my posts have been in a negative tone:

I've railed against Science Diet and brainwashed veterinarians.

I've made fun of Beneful and their junk-food in a bag.  (Tortilla chips and vitamins?  NOT food!)

Every time I do a post like that, people ask me:  "Ok, don't feed this.  Don't feed that.  Well, Mr. Nutrition Expert, what SHOULD I feed?"

To be honest, if you go into your local independent pet shop (Not Petco, Not Petsmart.  Joe's Pet Palace, and places like that) you really can't go wrong.  There are a lot of super-premium foods out there and most pet stores are knowledgeable enough to tell you the right fit for your pet.

If you want to feed the best of the best, look into raw pet foods.  They're extremely expensive, but the most natural and bio-available diet for your animal.  However, my recommendation here is going to be for the majority of us that want super-good, but not super-expensive.

If I have to recommend one brand of food above all others, I am going to choose Dr. Tim's Pet Foods.  This is still unknown in some areas and can be hard to find, but a lot of online retailers sell this food.

(Give it another 12-18 months, and it will be everywhere.  It's that good, and I have a feeling it's about to get the industry recognition it deserves.)

Dr. Tim Hunt is a veterinarian and a dog-sledder.  He is a raw food advocate, but it's tough to feed raw meat at 10 below zero.  He designed his own petfood at home, using a cement mixer and a lot of knowledge.  The company is still run by the doc, and he still practices veterinary medicine in Michigan.

Best of all, he interacts with his customers.  Twice a week, you can ask Dr. Tim questions on the company Facebook page.  Instead of dealing with a Marketing or PR person like most food companies, you get the man himself!

There are currently 4 formulations of dog food:  Momentum (the super-high-energy sled dog formula), Pursuit (high-energy, but not as much as Momentum), and Kinesis (all life stages, for most dogs) in both a grain and grain-free formula.  There is also one formulation for cat food, called Chase.  In Dr. Tim's words, he basically ground up a mouse and tried to mimic that in a cat food.  (I love that story)

The ingredients are top-notch.  The vitamin premix he uses was specially designed for his foods.  On average, 87% of the protein in the foods are derived from high-quality, low-ash animal protein (which is AWESOME!  Pets thrive on meat-protein more than plant-based protein, ESPECIALLY CATS).  ALL ingredients are sourced in either North America or Europe.  His standards are insanely high.  Even independent rating websites like dogfoodadvisor and dogfoodchat give this food stellar marks, often times higher than bags of food that can cost $20-30+ more.

Speaking of price, it's not too expensive.  If you feed Kinesis to a medium-sized dog, it'll cost you about $1 a day.  The 'mainstream premium' foods you would find in Petco, Petsmart or Grocery can be 25 to 50 cents more per day, at a MUCH lower quality.  (And unlike other 'top-tier' pet foods at independent pet stores, this bag will not cost you $70/80/90 or higher!)

With a good food at a good price, you also get good service from the top down.  If you email the company or ask a question on Facebook, you get an answer.  Often times from Dr. Tim.  He also does informative videos (example:  Why do dogs eat cat poop?) about nutrition and overall pet health.

I love what I do, and love to help keep pets happy and healthy.  I get that vibe from him.  It's a good company, good food, and a good price.  Currently, I don't sell Dr. Tim's (and he's not paying me to say this), so please treat this as an unbiased opinion, but if it's good enough for the current Iditarod Champion, it's good enough for me.

And now you know.  With luck, this will be at your local pet shop soon enough (if it isn't already).  In the meantime, there are plenty of online retailers to choose from that will deliver directly to your door.  I hope this helps, and as always, please let me know if you have any other questions or feedback.

Why Pet Food Commercials Piss Me Off (I'm looking at YOU, @Beneful)

Flipping through the channels, I see this.

I love this commercial.  Everything about it, until the 55 second mark when a grocery-store bag of crap enters the screen.

The reason I hate these types of commercials is because they pander to audiences, in making you believe that this is good food.

Let's review, shall we?  The top 6 ingredients for Beneful Original are Ground Yellow Corn, chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, whole wheat flour, animal fat (for flavoring), and rice flour.

Does that sound appetizing?  Any of it?

Have you ever seen a dog running through a cornfield, excited and looking hungrily at the stalks?

How many people do you know with gluten intolerances, or who like eating chicken by-products?

The first 3 ingredients by themselves sound like you're feeding chicken-infused tortilla chips...

But, it gets better.  Assume you have a 60lb dog.  A 31.1lb bag will set you back $28.99, and recommended feeding is about 5-5.5 cups per day.  It's costing you $1.04 per day to feed your dog, and over $370 per year.

$370 a year, to feed your dog garbage.

Well, a better food costs more, doesn't it???

Nope, my unbiased ass picked a premium food at random.  Meet Premium Edge Chicken & Rice formula.  (I'm not endorsing one single brand of food, any 'good' food will do)

Top 6 ingredients:  Chicken, chicken meal, ocean fish meal, whole grain brown rice, cracked pearled barley, white rice.

The top 3 ingredients are all meat, with #1 being REAL meat.  (Meat meal isn't bad, but it's nice to see real meat as well.)  No byproducts.  No corn.  Ingredients that sound like stuff *I* would eat!

Now, for price.  A 35lb bag of Premium Edge will cost you $39.99.

Whoa whoa whoa, it DOES cost more!  Right?

Wrong.  It's healthier, so you're feeding less.  Serving size for a 60lb dog is 2.5-3 cups a day, which means daily cost of feeding is $0.76.  That's over a quarter a day in savings.  Yearly cost for this food is just under $275.

Almost $100 in yearly savings, to feed a better food for your dog.  (and that's just one medium-sized dog.  Imagine households with 2...3... 4 dogs or more...)

Why don't the commercials say that??

Oh, that's right, they put all their money into marketing, and not nutrition.

Long story short, don't buy your pet food at a grocery store or at Target/Walmart.  Don't pay for TV commercials, and don't trust a brand you see on TV (at least, not without some due diligence).  Read labels, ask about 'costs per feeding' and make sure you do right by your dog.

Not only will you save money on food, but feeding a healthier diet means less vet bills.  Less poop to clean up.  Less to feed means a bag lasts longer.  It's really win/win/win.



Anyway, there's my rant, but it's a rant who's been selling/marketing/analyzing dozens of pet foods over the last 10 years.  In my personal life, I work for a company that sells a 'grocery' brand.  Sales or not, commissions or not, I would never recommend crap like Beneful to friends or family.

Which is why I can't, in good conscience, push brands like that to my clients.  It may hurt my wallet, but I do what's right.

What do you feed your pet?  And why?


p.s. - It seems that I got Purina's attention.  The @Beneful twitter account messaged me and two of my followers, asking us to contact them to discuss...

Click to enlarge...

Sorry, there's nothing really to discuss.  Your commercials are fantastic, your pet food is not.  If you'd like to hire me on as a nutritional consultant, feel free to email me at lostinidaho@ymail.com.  For now, I'll enjoy selling against you in my day job, and advocating against grocery-brands here.   Cheers!