Iams Dog Food
October 31, 2008
Filed under Dog Food Reviews, Iams
Iams Dog Food
Iams is made and manufactured by Procter and Gamble.
The Iams Healthy Naturals product has different formulas each tailored to meet the needs and preferences of each life stage (puppy, adult, senior dogs), dog size (small, medium, large or giant dogs) and for special concerns such as weight control.
Iams dog food formulas are manufactured based on a formula that mainly consists of viable sources of nutrients including chicken, chicken by-product, brewer’s rice, corn meal, ground whole grain sorghum, ground whole grain barley, and chicken fat.
Although chicken is an excellent source of protein, raw chicken contains approximately 80% water which can be lost upon processing. The meat content is therefore reduced to only a small percentage of its original weight which means that there is an insufficient source for animal protein. The manufacturers of Iams try to remedy this situation by incorporating chicken by-product meal, another source of animal protein. However, being a by-product, the meal is made up of undesirable cuts and parts of chicken which has been discarded because it was deemed unsuitable for human consumption. The bright side of it though is that chicken by-products are meat products and contain more than 300% protein compared to fresh chicken.
Brewer’s Rice is a cereal by-product of when milling whole rice. This is not considered though to be a quality ingredient.
It is necessary that the source of corn should be specified in order to ensure that the corn meal is of good quality. Many pet food manufacturers often use corn which are used for livestock feed. Corn in any form has been linked to food allergies in dogs. It is for this reason that premium quality dog foods don’t incorporate corn or any corn by-products in their formulation.
Sorghum is a gluten-free cereal grain with a lower glycemic index compared to other grains just like barley, another starchy carbohydrate source.
Among the different ingredients of Iams dog food products, the ones which are often deemed controversial include dried beet pulp which is often used as inexpensive filler, and dried apple pomace.
There is no mention of probiotic coating of kibbles which is the latest trend to hit dog food manufacturing. Minerals which have been incorporated in the Iams dog food have not undergone chelation, thus they are more difficult to assimilate and be utilized in the body.
Considering the acceptable standards set for the amounts of nutrients, particularly meat, that should be present in dog food formulas, Iams have lower meat content. There are minimal amounts of plant-based boosters (if any) which should have added to the protein content of the dog food.
Customer Reviews
There have been a lot of negative reviews on the Iams dog food products. Most of these arise from the bad publicity that animal rights waged on the company regarding animal testing. Another factor that makes dog owners think twice about getting Iams dog food for their dogs is the inclusion of corn and corn by-products which has been associated with hypersensitive reactions. Some dog owners also noted that their dogs gained a lot of weight (which was unhealthy for them, of course) even after they finished their first bag of Iams dog food. There are others who also reported of kidney failure and digestive upsets.
There are dog owners, though, whose dogs eat only Iams all their life and only have good words to say about Iams.
Overall, we do not recommend Iams dog foods.
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Please visit the links listed below for Iams dog food reviews by formula.
Have a comment or question about our Iams dog food review? Want to share your experiences with others? We welcome your comments!
Iams Dog Food Reviews
Iams Dog Food Formulas:
- Iams Active Maturity Large Breed ProActive Health Dog Food
- Iams Active Maturity ProActive Health Dog Food
- Iams Adult Small & Toy Breed ProActive Health Dog Food
- Iams Dog Chunks Dog Food
- Iams Dog MiniChunks Dog Food
- Iams Dog Weight Control Formula Dog Food
- Iams Dog Weight Control Large Breed Formula Dog Food
- Iams Healthy Naturals Dry Dog Food
- Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula for Adult Dogs
- Iams Large Breed Adult Dog Food
- Iams Premium Protection Dry Dog Food
- Iams Smart Puppy Dog Food (Formerly Puppy Original Formula)
- Iams Smart Puppy “Proactive Health” Large Breed Dog Food
- Iams Smart Puppy Small Breed Formula Dry Dog Food
Iams Dog Food Consumer Ratings
| Title | Votes | Rating | Review |
| Iams Active Maturity Large Breed ProActive Health Dog Food | 31 | 2.3 | -1.0 |
| Iams Active Maturity ProActive Health Dog Food | 27 | 2.8 | -1.0 |
| Iams Adult Small & Toy Breed ProActive Health Dog Food | 19 | 2.4 | -1.0 |
| Iams Dog Chunks Dog Food | 32 | 3.7 | -1.0 |
| Iams Dog Food | 120 | 4.2 | -1.0 |
Harold, I’m with Kim–I like the Kirkland dog food if you have a Costco near you. It’s very affordable (I only paid $21+ for a 40 lb. bag of the Healthy Weight formula). I have 3 dogs and they all like it and are doing well on it. I am someone who feeds canned or other cooked foods (meats, veggies, etc.) along with dry food, so I am glad that I get it at such a great price.
I also use this food to stay away from ingredients like corn and wheat which trigger different allergic reactions in my dogs—itching, redness, anal gland problems, etc. Whatever you decide to use, it’s probably best you try to avoid the useless fillers too. The first dog I ever owned did fine on any food, but that’s definitely not the case w/the dogs I have now. Good luck.
I’ve been feeding my yellow lab Iams dry food (green bag) for the last few years.
In early November I purchased a new bag and I noticed he’s constantly scratching at himself and scratching out hunks of fur. Brought him to the groomer for a bath thiniking he’d gotten into something. Nope, still scratching. I took him off Iams and he stopped scratching. Gave him one scoop of Iams to test if that was the cause and he was scratching again soon after.
Don’t know what Iams changed in their formula, but we’re onto Blue Buffalo and no more constant scratching.
I had my dog on iams for 5 years, but he always had stomach problems. Now he is 7 years-old, and its been a week that he doesn’t want to eat his iams dry food. When I give him canfood or rice with chicken he eats. When i take him to the Veterinarian she says that he is find, but he is constently vomiting, and scratching himself. so no more iams.
I have fed my dogs and cat Iams for the past 17 years. I believed that Iams was a great product and my vet always recommended it. Part of that was because it was a great company based in the Dayton Ohio area. About 2 years ago our dog began chewing his feet constantly. Recently he chewed until they bled. After taking him to the vet again he has been diagnosed with allergies to his food. The same food he has been on for four years and the same food that I fed my other dogs for 14 years. I believe that when P&G bought the Iams company they kept the formula only until they felt they needed to make a bigger buck.
I will never purchase Iams products again after watching a good product changed for the almighty dollar.