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  1. #1
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    Is ProPlan quality or not? Answer really seems to vary.

    We're bringing home our puppy in a few days, and the breeder swears by ProPlan, as it seems many on this site do. At the same time, having done other research online, and from the look on the face of some of our friends and the folks at Unleashed by Petco, there are lots of people who are very underwhelmed with this brand. I found lots of articles about the whole "animal digest" component, which does sound a bit scary and gross.

    Has anyone spent time really researching foods? Puppy is only 8wks so we won't make any changes for at least a month or two, but wanting to do the best for her and I'm not sure I know what that is!

  2. #2
    Senior Dog Abulafia's Avatar
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    Our breeder, who has been breeding Labs for over 25 years (and who has a considerable reputation in the field), has all of her dogs on ProPlan. She asked us to keep our dog on that for at least a year, and to trust her and all of the years and dollars behind ProPlan rather than something trendy.

    While I think research is a very good thing (and indeed researched breeders for six months before choosing one, and researched foods, as well), "research online" is next to useless, and the looks on the face of some friends should not be prioritized over the recommendation of your breeder (assuming she or he is a good one).
    Hidden Content Hokule'a ("Hoku") / b. 06.08.15

  3. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Abulafia For This Useful Post:

    Charlotte K. (01-16-2016), NoVA Lab Mama (01-15-2016)

  4. #3
    Chief Pooper Scooper JenC's Avatar
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    I've bred for 15 years and we swear by Pro Plan as well. We've tried most of the "fancy" brands but I get the best results on Pro Plan. It's a middle of the road food that's easily purchased everywhere and doesn't break the bank. I feed a "better" food to my oldest dog and my seizure dog. Having been on this board since 2003, I've seen people fall into the marketing ploys of the "best" foods out there and end up with a poor puppy with constant diarrhea. Listen to your breeder.

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    Abulafia (01-15-2016)

  6. #4
    Senior Dog kelsyg's Avatar
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    My girls' breeder also recommended Pro Plan Performance (Sport)
    They are now 5 and have thrived on it. They love to eat it, have excellent poops and are very healthy.
    You chose your Breeder for a reason, listen to him/her. A good breeder will remain a resource for you.
    Hidden Content

    Cornerstone's Lady Cassandra , CGC (Cassie)
    Cornerstone's Lady Rebecca, CGC (Reba)
    Born to love and be loved on July 31, 2010

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    Abulafia (01-15-2016)

  8. #5
    Senior Dog MightyThor's Avatar
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    Ours kept us on Pro Plan focus puppy and he did great. When it was time to transition to adult food we went to one of the Sport lines and although his skin and coat looked fantastic, he had runny poops. We switched to the sensitive skin and stomach line (salmon based) and it's worked really well for him for the past year. We've never tried anything non-Pro Plan.
    Mighty Thor, "So Much Dog", born 1/6/2014
    And baby Barley, born 3/9/2018

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    Abulafia (01-15-2016)

  10. #6
    Senior Dog
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    My two puppies are being raised on Pro-Plan and doing very well with it. All of mine have been raised on it as puppies, although the older ones eventually switched to other things for various reasons - nothing to do with the quality of Pro-Plan, just that they had specific needs that were easier to meet with other foods. When it came time to decide what to wean these puppies on to, I had no qualms using Pro-Plan for them.

    It’s one thing for a food to look good on paper, but what really counts is how it looks inside the dog! What should theoretically be a “better” food doesn’t always produce the best results when actually fed.
    Annette

    Cookie (HIT HC Jamrah's Legally Blonde, UDX, OM2, BN) 6/4/2015
    Sassy (HIT Jamrah's Blonde Ambition, UDX, OM2, BN) 6/4/2015

    Chloe (HIT HC OTCH Windsong's Femme Fatale, UDX4, OM6, RE) 6/7/2009

    And remembering:

    Scully (HC Coventry's Truth Is Out There, UD, TD, RN) 4/14/1996 - 6/30/2011
    Mulder (Coventry's I Want To Believe, UD, RN, WC) 5/26/1999 - 4/22/2015

    And our foster Jolie (Windsong's Genuine Risk, CDX) 5/26/1999 - 3/16/2014

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    Abulafia (01-15-2016)

  12. #7
    House Broken
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    Thank you all!

  13. #8
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    I just transitioned my dogs to Pro Plan (3yo Lab on Sensitive Stomach, and 9mo Husky-mix on Chicken & Rice Puppy). I had a tough time making this choice, and ultimately did it because we were having some issues, which I'll be writing a separate post about momentarily, but after everything I've read and learned about dog food, the ingredients make me want to run screaming in the other direction. BUT, I've been following these forums for a long time and I've seen soo many people on here swear by the brand. Plus, supposedly the last 9 Westminster Best in Show dogs have all been fed Pro Plan, and supposedly many of the other winners of other classes as well. (Could be a marketing ploy, I guess, though...) Since so many breeders and competitors use it, I figured it can't possibly be THAT bad, right?


    And with that, I made the switch. We've only been on it a short time, so I don't have much to comment yet about it... but so far so good. :-)
    ~Kristy
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    Reggie on the left in the picture, Dakota on the right.

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    NoVA Lab Mama (01-15-2016)

  15. #9
    Senior Dog Shelley's Avatar
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    Mine eat Pro Plan too, usually one of the Sport formulas, and have for years. Animal digest is the 9th listed ingredient, so there is actually very little of it in the food itself, and I believe is just added for flavor enhancement, so it does't bother me. Especially since my girls have eaten far worse things LOL

    Jen, 15 years already? You must have had a litter before your 2008 Joey litter that I don't know about. :-)

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    Abulafia (01-15-2016)

  17. #10
    Chief Pooper Scooper JenC's Avatar
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    Breeding is not all about spitting out litter after litter. It's about learning and preparing too. Doing clearances, gathering titles. But if you need to split hairs, yes, my first litter was in 2008.

 



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