Our pet dogs need proper meal to stay healthy and to strive as well as being active. Different life stages may need different nutritional intake as well, especially during the growing stage and senior years when we have to pay more attention to their nutrition. But, worry not because Purina Puppy Chow Vs Pro Plan are here to provide various types of foods for your puppies so they can grow healthily. If you also plan to choose one of them, do check which may be the better choice here.
In this article, we are going to give you information about:
- How to Shop for Puppy Food
- What are Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan
- What are the Variants from Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan
- What Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan are made of
- How are the Ingredient Quality of Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan
- How are the Nutritional Value of Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan
- Purina Puppy Chow Vs Pro Plan
Puppy Food
Being a pet owner means you have to be responsible for the animal as they are just like us, and need more than just food and a comfortable place to rest. Dogs and cats are two most popular house pets that require similar treatment and have been extensively studied to help humans know better about their animal friends. If you are here then it means you are also currently raising a new puppy which may or may not need special treatment for their wellbeing.
Puppies are still fragile and similar to human children, the type of nutrition they need can be different as well from the adult or senior dogs. Choosing for a puppy food can be very confusing, or even more time consuming than for your adult dogs. Not only because of the different needs in nutrition, there are also tons of different brands and variants to choose from. But, the tip for puppy food shopping is still the same which is based on the food labels.
The reason why we are using puppy foods is because of the difference in nutrient requirement for your small pup. It is known that an 8-week old puppy will need around twice the calorie regular or adult dog needs on the daily. This means if our dog needs to eat a rich protein meal, our puppy will need more protein, fat, calcium, and phosphorus in their food. All of them also have to be in proper balance since too much or too little will cause some health problems.
What we have to pay attention to is their body’s need because not all breeds will have the same nutritional requirement. The example is some foods are labeled as “toy breed” or “large breed puppies” so it can help owners to choose the proper formulation for their dog. Large breeds can grow bigger too fast and lead to obesity which can hurt the bones and joints. Not only for the nutrients, the small mouth and teeth of puppies makes it better with puppy food as the kibble is smaller hence they can be easier to chew.
Another factor to consider when looking for puppy food is their cost and food types because we all know that not all foods are made with the same ingredients despite most of them being similar. Super-premium foods are costly and probably not best for owners with more puppies to feed but they are also nutrient dense, leading to lesser feed to give. There are also premium brands we can find at pet stores with good quality ingredients and not as expensive for average, healthy puppies.
About Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan
Since it can be confusing to choose and select one, we do recommend asking the vet if the puppy has a certain health condition or is pure breed that needs a specific diet. We can also ask around other people with puppies or those with the same breed as what we have to make sure we will find the best food. Chances are, any named brands with puppy variants in its collection will be a good option for healthy puppies.
If you need to save time, we can go for popular names or old brands that are reputable for their qualities and talking about quality dog food, Purina is one of the most reputable names in the market or often considered one of the best both for budget and feed qualities. This brand is owned by Nestle and has been operating for decades offering dog and cat foods so they do have a trusted record but, if you are going to feed only the best ingredients, this brand may not be the best choice.
Owned by Nestle since 2001, this brand has lots of different dog and cat foods to choose from. They are also not very expensive and considered to be a decent choice for healthy dogs or those with certain health concerns. Of course not all dogs or puppies will reap the most benefit from this brand’s food but it is something we have to try to make sure because not all dogs are the same and react the same way to their feeds.
For puppy owners who are currently looking for a new feed, Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan are two good options to consider. The two are from the same brand but from different lines because Puppy Chow is a product from the Dog Chow line while Pro Plan is another line focusing on different nutrient formulation. However, they are equally designed for growing puppies so depending on what your dog needs, our option might be different. Read also: Fromm Dog Food vs Science Diet.
Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan Variants
As it has been mentioned above, Puppy Chow is a variant from the Dog Chow line which promises to be made from high-quality ingredients and available in lots of different variants to choose. The sample we have chosen today is the popular Complete dry food but in addition there are wet food and meals for large breed puppies. If your puppy is selective about the food they like, Puppy Chow also has Tender and Crunchy kibbles to let them have diverse food options.
Similarly, Pro Plan is also available in both dry and wet entrée to match with what your puppy likes better or to give a diverse meal. The sample we chose today is dry food with chicken and rice formula but if your puppy doesn’t like the regular chicken recipes, there are other options made with lamb and shredded blend chicken. Large breed and small breed are also available along with recipes for puppies with stomach and sensitive skin problems.
Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan Ingredients
Now let’s check the most important part of any pet food or the ingredient list. Because there are so many options, we will be taking one food from the line thus, different variants may have different lists of ingredients and nutritional value. For Puppy Chow Complete formula, this food is made with whole grain corn, corn gluten meal, chicken by product meal, beef fat, and soybean meal. Overall, we don’t think these are not the best dog food ingredients to use.
On the other hand, the Chicken & Rice formula from Pro Plan puppy food is slightly better because this food is made with chicken as the first main ingredient while the next list goes with rice, poultry by-product meal, corn gluten meal, and whole grain wheat.
Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan Ingredients Quality
Chicken as the first ingredient of Pro Plan is one of the best ingredients in dog food but it is rich in water so when made into feed, the total amount is far less than the rest of the ingredients. In Puppy Chow, the main ingredient is corn which is surprising as usually we desired it to be a type of animal product and this is also seen as not healthy for most dogs. Chicken and poultry by product meal are similar which mean the meal is made from the less desirable part of the animal.
Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan are similarly rich in typical filler like rice, corn and wheat and while they are a good source of energy including fiber and carbs, corn and wheat specifically also contains gluten which makes them not ideal for dogs with stomach issues. For example, corn gluten meal is the rubbery residue after the starchy carbohydrate is washed out. Gluten is actually a source of protein but lower in amino acid and is cheaper.
Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan Nutritional Value
The last part we want to mention is their nutritional value because different foods will have different values and this can be used to base your shopping decision as well. Starting with Puppy Chow, this food contains crude protein of 27.5% with crude fat of 12%, fiber at 5%. On the other hand Pro Plan contains a crude protein of 28%, crude fat of 18%, and fiber at 3%. The crude protein and fat are at minimum percentage while the fiber is written as maximum.
Purina Puppy Chow Vs Pro Plan
Choosing a dog food can be confusing because there are so many of them out there. Purina Puppy Chow and Pro Plan are good choices but they are not the best and compared based on their ingredients, Pro Plan is slightly better because it uses more animal based products, especially chicken meat as the first ingredient. The two are rich in grains and gluten which are a cheap source of carbs, fiber, and protein.
| Purina Puppy Chow | Purina Pro Plan |
|---|---|
| - Grain main ingredients | - Chicken and animal-by-product meal |
| - Lower in protein and fat | - Higher in protein and fat |
| - Higher in fiber | - Lower in fiber |
| - Cheaper | - Twice as expensive |
Conclusion
All in all it is based on which seems better for your puppy. They are quite affordable but personally we will recommend Purina Pro Plan because it has more animal based ingredients despite not being high quality as well as has a higher protein content for your puppy to grow and strive.