AAFCO Feeding Standards

[Kate, Mel, Tenley & Harper]

My 8 month old pup, Tenley, has been on Orijen Puppy since he was 4 weeks old at the breeder (in some form... at that age I think it was ground up and mixed with some other stuff to make sort of a "puppy gruel", they called it.)

He did really well on Orijen for months up until he hit 7 months when he started to have looser stools. I talked to the owner of my pet food store, who suggested putting him on the adult version as there is slightly less protein in that and Tenley was almost done growing (he's a smaller doodle). So, we did that and his poop firmed up some but not great. 

Today we were at the vet to get vaccinations and an ear infection check, and our vet mentioned AAFCO testing standards. It was the first I have heard of it. This is what she wrote on our take-home notes:

"In choosing food for Tenley, our preference is for foods that have been tested by an independent company, AAFCO. Look on the side/back fo the bag or can for the AAFCO feeding statement that includes the words, "animal feeding tests substantiate" the food is complete and balanced, NOT the statement "formulated to meet the nutritional level according to AAFCO". MANY EXPENSIVE, HOLISTIC, ORGANIC FOODS HAVE *NOT* EVER BEEN TESTED and in our educated opinion should not be fed to your pet."

She further mentioned when we were meeting that they don't recommend feeding the "traditional" dog foods at all-- no Iams, Purina, Pedigree, etc. But she said that some dogs do benefit from more of a "mid-grade" food that may or may not be grain free but also has a bit more fiber, too, than Orijen does. She said a protein content between 25-30 is typically good to look for, too. She didn't recommend any specific brands but I didn't ask. They don't sell any food at this vet so I don't think at all that they are trying to 'spin' me into buying something that they carry.

This is the first I'm hearing about Orijen not being the best food in the world, other than that it is too rich for some dogs. 

Thoughts? We have about a quarter of a bag left of the adult food so now would be the time to transition to a new food if we are going to.

[Deborah Brown]

Look at the ingredients in the Zuke's treats that you have.  Maybe you can determine if there is something he is sensitive to and that you can avoid in the future.

My Charlie could eat Zuke's minis but I switched to the Cloudstar minis thinking they were the same.  It turns out the Cloudstar version is potato based and they were causing stomach upset for Charlie.  So often we don't think that the small treats are the culprit!

[Kate, Mel, Tenley & Harper]

That's the advantage to feeding one type of food and one type of treat at a time - easy to isolate the variables!! Luckily we have some buddy biscuits which he likes so we will swap it out. I threw out the Zuke's.

And no problem re: him/her.... I've always had boy dogs and assume most dogs are boys!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here is more information about AAFCO labelling and the kind of statement your vet is referring to:

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/frequently-asked-questions/aafco-nutr...

Your vet may also not be aware that Orijen is a Canadian product and falls under PFAC guidelines, not AAFCO, although PFAC does copy AAFCO in most of their labelling practices.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm glad this question came up, as it gives me a chance to refresh my memory on Champion's manufacturing practices.

From Orijen's website: 

Animal Testing?

This is a question we’re asked a lot, and our position on animal testing is simple – we conduct only those tests in which we would allow our own companion dogs and cats to participate.
If it’s not OK for our dogs and cats, THEN IT’S NOT OK FOR ANY OTHER CATS AND DOGS.

We perform only non-invasive tests, which include palatability (taste), urine pH, digestibility (the latter through stool analysis only) and AAFCO feeding trials.

http://www.orijen.ca/faq/

So there you have it in black & white; you might want to show it to your vet, lol. 

[Kate, Mel, Tenley & Harper]

Aha! I may email it to her.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

This is great.

[Abigail *George & Juno*]

I just love champion. :)

[Jill, Woody & Maxi]

Wow..That is great information.  I never even thought about the testing of food.

And its funny you say that about Hills providing the vets with new information…When we first took Maxi to the vet, they gave us a "puppy pack" full of info from Hills, including food samples, and literature on the products.  Our vet said he even visited one of their facilities, and how they are trying to re-do their products

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Oh yes, a lot of vets & their staffs have been visiting the Hill's facility recently, all expenses paid. Now that so many people are better educated and are taking a hard look at what's in the Hill's foods versus the kinds of foods we recommend, the strategy is to play up their testing; what else can they do? They can't say they have a better product, or even as good a product, lol, so instead, now it's all about the testing.

[Jill, Woody & Maxi]

Right..of course. In grade school I learned a term called glittering generalities… basically, a sales ploy to tell people what they want to hear..make it look all pretty and up to date, when really, its junk. :)

I love Champion and couldn't be happier that Maxi is doing well on it…I am even rotating through the flavors now.  I never even thought of the animal testing on their food..so its good to know that Champion is extremely mindful of it..so thank you for sharing that info.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Thank you for doing this extra research, Karen. 

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

I cannot find anything better than Orijen and I pay 30% more for it that you do which is a pain in the butt. It's reading posts like this one that keeps me opening my wallet and continuing with this company.