Every dog breed has different dietary needs. Finding the right diet for them is not a simple task. There are many dog food companies available that might interest you. We compare two popular pet food companies – Pedigree vs Purina.
In short, Pedigree focuses on affordable options, while Purina offers a wider range of specialized formulas. The choice between them depends on your dog’s specific needs and your budget.
Pedigree History
Pedigree is a well-known dog food brand name across the world today. Many pet owners have put their trust in this company.
The brand started its journey in the year 1988. The parent company Mars Petcare already had experience producing dog food. Still, in the year 1988, it established its dog food section under Pedigree’s name.
Since then, they have been offering a wide arrange of dog food options covering different breeds and age groups. Today, Pedigree is famous in different parts of the world. The parent company Mars Petcare also owns many other brands such as Whiskas for cats and they are used in as many as 60 countries across the world.
Purina History
Ralston Purina Company is a famous name in the history of American pet care. It merged with Nestle to become Nestle Purina Petcare Company in the year 2001.
The company’s history goes back to the year 1894. At this time, it carried the name Robinson-Danforth Commission Company. William Andrews, George Robinson, and William H. Danforth were the founders. In 1898, Danforth, the president of the company, launched a whole wheat cereal by Dr. Ralston. Soon, Danforth also changed the company’s name to Ralston Purina with a new logo in the year 1902.
Since then, various other food options for livestock and other animals were put on the market. It was since the year 1957 when Ralston Purina started selling their products in the overseas market too.
In the year 1997 General Mills took over Ralston Purina. The brand started to offer high-quality nutrition for animals and continues to do this to this day.
Guaranteed Analysis
The Association of American Feed Control states that every pet food option should offer a Guaranteed Analysis of the nutrients that are there in the product.
It offers a minimum amount of crude fat and crude protein that is available in pet food. Also, it offers information about the maximum amount of moisture and crude fiber in particular pet food.
When you compare these two companies, there are several noticeable differences.
● Crude Protein Comparison
Your canine friend needs about 22 different types of amino acids to stay healthy. About 12 amino acids are produced in the body itself. The remaining 10 amino acids have to be fulfilled by consuming the right food. So, protein is an eminent source from where they can get all these 10 amino acids.
When you compare Pedigree’s dry food ingredients with Purina, you will find that Pedigree has 25.6% crude protein. In comparison, Purina has 31.6% crude protein.
Similarly, when you check out the wet food ingredients, Pedigree has about 41.2% crude protein while Purina has 45.3% crude protein.
Comparing the dry food and the wet food options, the difference in crude protein percentage is less noticeable in the wet food options. While in the case of dry food, Pedigree has about 6% lesser crude protein than Purina, in the case of wet food, Pedigree has about 3% lesser crude protein than Purina.
● Crude Fat:
Apart from protein, fats are also crucial in the overall development of your dog. It is a source of energy keeping your furry friend active and offers it a much shinier coat and a healthy lifestyle. When a comparison is made, between Purina and Pedigree in terms of dry food, Pedigree has 11.7% of crude fat. In comparison, Purina has 17.2% of crude fat.
Similarly, when a comparison is made between both brands’ wet dog food ingredients, Pedigree has 22.3% crude fat. In comparison, Purina offers 25.8% crude fat.
Like the crude protein, for crude fat, Pedigree has a lesser percentage compared to Purina. Also, in terms of wet food ingredients, the percentage gap between the two is much lesser than the brands’ dry food items.
● Crude Fiber:
While protein and fat are important elements of your dog’s food, fiber is another important ingredient that you should not forget. But remember that you should provide a limited amount of fiber to your puppy as a higher percentage can disrupt their digestion.
Though Pedigree lacks in offering a good amount of protein and fat compared to Purina, the percentage of crude fiber is almost similar in both brands.
When you compare the dry food option, Pedigree has about 0.2% higher crude fiber than Purina. But when you are checking out the wet food items, Purina has about 1% higher crude fiber than Pedigree.
So, overall, while Purina takes the crown when talking about the percentage of proteins and fats, Pedigree defeats Purina in terms of crude fiber percentage.
Comparing Pet Food Ingredients
Both brands have some controversial ingredients in them. These brands may have some such ingredients as gluten, by-products of chicken and meat, cellulose, animal fat, vegetable, brewers rice, and so on. Thus, if your dog is allergic to any of these items, you should ensure that you go through the product’s ingredients before buying it for your puppy.
Among various controversial items that are quite often found in these products, one of the most common ones is corn. Corn is high in the glycemic index which can be quite dangerous.
The higher glycemic levels can spike up your dog’s blood sugar which can make your dog diabetic. Soon, it may start causing other troubles in different organs. If diabetes is the cause of the problems and is not detected on time, this can even lead to the death of the puppy.
Some ingredients that have much lower glycemic levels are beef and chicken. Thus, offering your pooch food items with a whole chicken or similar options is the best option to keep it healthy and free from such serious health conditions.
● Controversial Ingredients Found in Purina One:
The brand Purina has always shown its responsibility of offering safe and the best food items for pet friends. But despite such claims, their food products are noticed to have some controversial ingredients in them. Some ingredients that are found in some of their products are corn, pea proteins, soybean, poultry by-products, animal digest, and others.
Apart from the controversial ingredients, there are some harmful ingredients in some of the Purina products, such as added color and corn oil.
● Controversial Ingredients Found in Pedigree:
Pedigree is also known to have controversial ingredients in some of its products. Some of these ingredients that you should be aware of while selecting the right product from Pedigree for your dog are corn, iron oxide, meat by-products, poultry by-products, animal plasma, vegetables tomato and beet, and garlic.
Similar to Purina, some Pedigree food options also contain harmful ingredients. Some of these harmful ingredients found in Pedigree products are several added colors and animal fat.
Which Brand is Cheaper?
For many people, the price of dog food is a determining factor. When you check on the price of these brands’ products, Pedigree seems to be much cheaper compared to most dog food products on the market.
But this does not make the Purina products expensive. Even though it is more expensive, the prices of Purina products are quite affordable when you compare them with many other best-rated products in the category of pet food items.
Which one has More Flavors?
When you talk about the flavors, both dog food options have different flavors in their products. While Purina offers chicken, turkey, beef, and other flavors more often, Pedigree offers more chicken liver, lamb, and such flavors. Thus, both brands offer different flavors, and you can choose from a wide range of options depending on your dog’s taste.
Which of the two has had More Recalls?
While you are selecting the products, you should always check out the recalls that the brands have had. Purina was recalled once in the year 2013 for Salmonella’s presence in one of its food products.
On the other hand, there are two recall cases for the brand Pedigree. Once, it was recalled on 26th August 2014 for the presence of foreign material. Again, on 31st August 2014, the brand was recalled for metal fragments in some of its food packets.
A Sneak Peek at the Winner: Purina
The debate between Pedigree and Purina is not easy as they are two of the most reliable brands in the pet food category. When comparing the two, Purina seems to include a better amount of protein and fat, while eliminating controversial ingredients.
The lower amount of recalls for this company also gives it a higher score. That said, flavor and price-wise, both brands do quite well compared to each other. In the end, it is your choice that matters when choosing food for your dog.