Purina Puppy Chow vs Iams Puppy Food

Puppy and adult dogs are not the same when it comes to the nutrition they need because of the different growing stages. It is better to give them puppy dog foods such as Purina Puppy Chow Vs IAMS Puppy Food because they are formulated for the lifestage. These puppy foods are not only delicious for our puppies but also nutritionally rich and if you are also considering the two, do check what they can offer below before deciding to choose one.

In this article, we are going to give you information about:

How to Choose Good Dog Foods
What are Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food
What are the Variants in Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food
What are the Ingredients of Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food
How are the Quality of Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food
How are the Nutrient Content of Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food
Purina Puppy Chow Vs IAMS Puppy Food

Good Dog Foods

Feeding our pet is one of the most important decisions in their life because we are the one who are responsible for their wellbeing. Not all pets are going to accept the same food without any problem, especially if they already have an underlying health issue. Different breeds and dog sizes may also need different types of feeds or nutrition based on what their body needs. It is complicated but commercial dog foods help you a lot to find the best formulation for them.

Good nutrition meant feeding the dog food with the building blocks and energy components to help them grow properly and developing the potential as well as stay active along all of their life stages. What’s confusing is there will be hundreds of diets to choose from and different ways to provide food for your dogs. Most of us are using either dry dog food or wet canned foods for cost and convenient but there are also owners who prefer to make their foods at home from scratch.

To help dog owners when choosing or considering the food for their dogs, there are some important nutrients to look in the food. The first is protein which should be what most of the food contains. It is a complex molecule that is made up of amino acids which is the building blocks of cell growth, maintenance and repair. For animals like dog, it is very important for maintenance of fur and hair because these parts are taking up to 30% of the dog’s daily protein intake.

Fats is the second and also important because in dog foods, this is the most concentrated source of energy for your canine friend. They are also supplying the fatty acids with an importance as building blocks and maintaining normal, healthy cells. Similar to humans, the next important component is carbohydrates that can be easily broken down by their digestive system and converted to glucose which also being the source of energy. Carbs often come from whole grains that can supply iron, minerals, as well as fiber and other beneficial nutrients.

Not only ingredients from animals and plants, your dog foods are also designed to supply the proper vitamins and minerals. Depending on the manufacturers, they can choose to use the organic substances or synthetic derivatives with the same function to support normal bodily function. Some vitamins are necessary for conversion of calories to energy and boosting the immunity to other body processes. Minerals on the other hand are essential for growth, strong bones, and healthy teeth.

About Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food

Choosing the ideal food for our dogs can be very confusing and time consuming but is necessary so we can be sure that it is good for them, especially when they have special needs or are still in the growing stage. For those who are taking care of puppies, we need to mind about the protein content as they need more to support the speedy growing stage. If the owner wishes for convenience, we can choose commercial puppy foods that are abundantly available in the market.

Most dog food brands have their own puppy foods and usually they are also available in both dry and wet options depending on how you plan to switch them or combine them for richer nutrition. Among those, Purina and IAMS are two popular names in the market and most owners must be familiar with them as well because they have been around for quite some time. They are often the choices of dog owners because of price and good ingredients.

Puppy Chow is a brand from Purina just like Pro Plan and One which is focusing on making balanced food for your young dogs or puppies from zero to two years old. Since these young canines are different from their adult siblings or parents, Puppy Chow is formulating the food to include all the essential nutrients that help lay the foundation for their long and active life. They also have lots of different recipes to choose from and match with your puppy’s need or preference.

IAMS is another good brand for dog foods and while they are not as popular or often recommended, the ingredient list says that they are similar to typical commercial dog foods out there. Different from Puppy Chow which is a dedicated line form Purina for one to two years old dogs, the puppy food from IAMS are included in their regular dog food collection but differentiated by formulation and kibble sizes. There seem to be variants here as well for your puppies to choose from.

Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food Variants

Similar to most dog foods out there, you can choose from more than one variant or recipe and type to match with your dogs. Most of them are separating the food based on the breed such as toy breed, regular, or large breed and some may also offer the food in several recipes. As for Puppy Chow, the line has dry and wet food as well as treats. The dry food is separated based on breed while the wet food is based on recipes like beef, chicken, and lamb.

On the other hand, IAMS Puppy Food is also the same but this line only has three dry foods which are separated based on the breed size and one wet puppy food in a can with chicken as the main ingredient or recipe. All of these foods are made from similar ingredients based on the recipe but nutritionally different because each has to match the breed size such as the protein and fat content.

Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food Ingredients

Moving further, now let’s see what Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food are made of. Let’s start with Puppy Chow from Purina and since there are several formulations here, today we are going to talk about the popular option dry food with real chicken and rice recipe. This food is using whole grain corn as the first ingredient and then followed by corn gluten meal, chicken by-product meal, beef fat, and soybean meal. On the other hand we will choose IAMS dry dog food in chicken and whole grain recipe.

This food is ideal for regular size dog foods from age zero to two years old and is made from chicken as the first ingredient. The second ingredient is ground whole grain corn followed by chicken by-product meal, ground whole grain sorghum, and dried beet pulp.

Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food Ingredient Quality

Chicken is often the first ingredient in many typical commercial dog foods such as Fromm dog food Vs Science Diet because it is easily available and also rich in protein and other nutrients including fat. But, since chicken contains lots of water, the result in the final product may not be as much as when it is raw. Corn is often said to be filler but the ingredient contains lots of nutrients including protein, carbohydrates, linoleic acid, and antioxidants. While it is not dangerous for dogs, the fact that it is first in the ingredient list is a bit concerning.

Corn gluten meal is a product of corn as well and is very rich in protein but also used as a binder product to hold the ingredient together; it is cheap and easily available. Chicken by-product meal is similar to chicken meal but is made from the less-desired part of the chicken such as intestines, neck, liver, etc. which are dried. Sorghum has similar nutrients to maize and is high in starch, beet pulp is a fiber source, while soybean meal is a source of protein.

Purina Puppy Chow and IAMS Puppy Food Nutrient

The last part we want to talk about is their nutrient because it is also necessary to know since we can’t directly see what all of the additional ingredients are contributing to the food. Starting with Puppy Chow from Purina, this food contains 27.5% of crude protein which mostly comes from the grain, 12% crude fat, and 5% crude fiber. On the other hand IAMS puppy food contains 29% of crude protein mixed from animal and grain sources, 17.5% crude fat, and 4% fiber.