I buy the food for my mom's dog and I am buying her a bag of Hi-Tek this weekend. I had been feeding her 4Health but won't do any Diamond products anymore. I emailed the company (Hi-Tek) about either samples or coupons and they responded right away. I had samples within a week and Foxy seems to like it. It looks like s decent food at a decent price from a small family owned company.

 

I just switched over to the GF Lamb and sweet potato from Kirkland lamb and rice. Its only been about two weeks. The dogs seem to like it and the stools are firm. I'm gonna give it a try for a bag or two see how it goes.

 

Does anyone know more about this company? I saw it in one of the stores I used to demo in, and tried Abbie on a bag of the chicken and rice, she did great if I remember correctly, and the prices were great, even for their grain free's

 

Hi-Tek Naturals, About Us

 

does it matter that the main ingredients are meal?

 

I always thought you wanted meal (as long as it specifies the specific meat i.e beef meal, lamb meal, chicken meal...not poultry meal) as that is the meat with the water removed?

 

It depends. The meal could be very bone heavy or even just be a mix of feathers, beaks, or other refuse. I think mixing meats and meals in one ingredient list with all of them high up on the list is the best.

 

Chicken meal is better than chicken
Chicken is 80% water
Chicken meal is not 80% water AND it holds so much more protein than just chicken

Same goes for any other meal vs meat(beef vs beef meal, pork vs pork meal, etc)


When it comes to this brand of dog food....I am NOT happy with grain being the 1st ingredient. There is so much grain in this food. It has more grain than meat! Even PetsMart's own Simply Nourish is better than Hi-Tek.

 

That's only one formula...there are two other grain inclusives that do not have that. I believe the one of have issue with ismeir 'less active' formula

 

Just checked. It can have bone in it, but no feathers, feet, heads, or entrails. The bone content could change drastically though depending on what part of the bird. Ash levels are very important to look at too. I would still want a combination of both and I definitely agree with the veggies and fruit.

 

What is "ash" and what is an appropriate level to have in a food?

 

Why Is There Ash in Your Dog's Food?

More ash normally equates to more bone in the meals.

 

My only problem with only having meals though is how processed and cooked out they are. They're cooked at least once already before even being mixed with the kibble. I don't see how much nutrients can be left after that. I would want to see both and a high protein analysis. Even if it's a meat and not a meal but you have a very high proteins reading (with the protein not coming from fats or plants) you can know there's a lot of fresh meat in the food, like Orijen. Orijen regional red only has salmon and lamb meal, but it has one of the highest protein levels in dog food.

 

My only problem with only having meals though is how processed and cooked out they are. They're cooked at least once already before even being mixed with the kibble. I don't see how much nutrients can be left after that.

Makes no sense what so ever since the only thing that matters is the properties of the finished meals. The very best foods out there used by the best canine athletes in the world are all using meals only as source of animal proteins. The meals pet food manufacturers buy are packed with nutrients and not "cooked out" whatever that is supposed to mean. Some meals are obviously better than others.

I would want to see both and a high protein analysis. Even if it's a meat and not a meal but you have a very high proteins reading (with the protein not coming from fats or plants) you can know there's a lot of fresh meat in the food like Orijen.

Proteins from fats?


Regarding one of your earlier replies; If you think it's common to have a large percentage of bone, feathers, beaks and feet in meals I have to ask where you think the nitrogen is coming from? Sure feathers is proteins but I can assure you no dog will survive on feathers.

 

How can I find out how much ash is in my dog's food? I went to their website but it isn't listed anywhere that I found nor is it on the bag.

Do I have to contact them to get it, or is there some way to calculate it?

He's currently on NV Instinct Salmon....but I will likely be changing him to something different this weekend - probably Acana, Orijen or Fromm.

 

NV is known for being high or too high in ash, that's the main thing that made me not feed it.

 

What I mean is sure they get protein out of it, but what quality? I can't imagine that a substance that has been cooked at least twice at a decently high or high temperature would have that many nutrients left in it.

And sorry, I was thinking about two things at once, calories and protein. I meant plants only.

 

It can be the worst rendering plant in existence or it can be a bleeding edge plant but in the end the customer is presented with a meal with certain properties. These properties aren't just taken out of thin air. Quality is measured by two things and is really not rocket science regardless if some elitists and extremists wants it to be. 1) Complete amino acid profile according to what species we are talking about and 2) The individual ratios of these amino acids so they can be used efficiently. Since a meal is a manufactured product the manufacturer have complete control over it's properties. It can be balanced into absolute quality or it can be mixed into a lesser quality product where ratios is not optimal. This is one of many factors (a big one though) that determines the quality of a kibble/formula and why label reading is of limited value at the end of the day.

 

As far as veggies I don't really believe dogs need them. If my dog eats a carrot, it comes out as a carrot. If his body can't break it down without me helping, I for think it's appropriate for him. Plus, carbs and sugars are cancer "helpers" (trying to think of a good way to say it) and with Boxers being so high up on the cancer list I wouldn't want to increase that risk. I believe dogs are carnivores, that's it. They are just a bred down wolf. You can't change what's on the inside.

And as far as the meal thing, we already got that out on this thread.

 

And as far as the meal thing, we already got that out on this thread.

What did you get out?

 

That a meal can include bone, but not feathers, heads, feet, or entrails. But a by-product meal can.

 

I don't know if I would say that this all goes against my beliefs. If there was an all meat kibble I'd feed it. I'd feed Orijen, Canidae Pure. Duke's still on kibble right now. The veggies and fruits in kibble are broken down, that's fine. If things have to be added back in I'd rather they be naturally found in the veggies and fruits than just added vitamins and minerals. I haven't said anything about raw because I'm in the kibble section and I respect that.

PunkyPug says she believes veggies an fruits aren't needed, but she's feeding kibble. (of course nothing against her)

He got a cut up baby carrot as a topper to his food and as a snack.

And thank you for the info about glucose. Anything cancer related is very important to me. I just want to do what is best for Duke and to help him live a full life, with Boxerd that can be hard.

 

Ok then I'm thinking the meat that goes into adding the protein.

 

I feed one of my dogs Cherry Tomatoes all the time.. And she still has firm poo and I don't notice any of the tomatoes being passed with her poo. 0o; And I've fed raw corn to some dogs some can digest it and some can't. Same with Carrots and other veggies. I think it really boils down to the dog. But you have to be careful because some have toxins that will harm the dogs.

 

it is not that dogs can't process some fruits, but that they don't need them when given a species appropriate diet.

I'm sure they can process cooked vegetables but they don't need them either.

I am now feeding snorkels a plum per day because of her constipation problems - when I was negligent and let her get to the plum tree and ate 30 plums I noticed they made her poop like a normal dog when nothing else has ever done so.

And yes, I am concerned about what would happen should she get cancer. I think the sugar in the plum is not good for her, but struggling for minutes and minutes to poop is not good for her either. And since she doesn't have cancer currently I figure I will treat the current problem.

 

Seems like you would be a little more tolerant then. Or perhaps you are jealous of people who are better educated and so you like to pick at tiny flaws.

Either way, this isn't a place where grammar matters much. No one has ever corrected your poor grammar that I can remember.

 

Seems like you would be a little more tolerant then. Or perhaps you are jealous of people who are better educated and so you like to pick at tiny flaws.

If this was in response to me, you've lost quite a bit of respect from me.

 

Really? Picking on people because English is not their first language? I've said this once today on here and I will say it again. PLEASE, PEOPLE... STOP assuming you know everything about everyone's situation. Stop bullying. Stop picking everyone apart. Stop being petty.

I'm closing this thread, too... as it's going nowhere productive.