what is the diffrence between good and bad food ?

[melbfish20]

Is the main diffrence just simply that the ingredients used are of better quality ? I was comparing my NLS last night which I always feed to a cheaper brand that I use to feed and the ingredients were similar.

Is it fair to say that these are the best 3 brands

NLS
hikari
tetra

in that order

[Nautilus291]

tetra is not a very good brand. There are huge debates on this website on which food is better nlf or hikira but both of them are quality foods. Im not an expert on fish foods so I dont have an answer for you on what makes them better then the others but Im sure most is the ingredients.

[jbeining75]

Hikari/NLS - Best brands
Omega - Up there third.....

The labels are very misleading. The aquarium business is self regulated. So those numbers and ingredients on the package are not verified by any government body of any sort. I am sure that all major fish food companies test others products... The biggest thing is digestive enhancing enzymes in the food... NLS and Hikari both have these.. These are enzymes that when ingested assist the fish natural digestion of proteins and vitamins and use more of them instead of wasting them. The package can say 100% protein but the fish will never get that. The body will only absorb so much of the protein before it uses the rest as waste... The reason Hikari and NLS are so much better is the digestive enzymes that allow more protein intake... Not to mention they are loaded with vitamins and minerals that increase coloration....

[karbomb]

is tetra that bad? i have been primarily using frozen blood worms and brine shirmp or freeze dried versions of these two as the primary food for my fish. as well as fruit flies for my betta.i bought a thing of tetra brand crisps before realizing that it was no good. i am afraid that the tetra food will do more bad then good.

[jbeining75]

When it really comes down to it it is the users determination.... For example

Lady Hobbs and I use Hikari. We both have used it for years with great results..

Fishguy2727, Sailor, and many others use NLS. Rue uses Omega....

Tetra isn't top tier but I'm sure if it wasn't beneficial to the fish it wouldn't be on the market..... The Hikari/NLS/Omega brands are just top tier quality foods that alot of people use...

[karbomb]

When it really comes down to it it is the users determination.... For example

Lady Hobbs and I use Hikari. We both have used it for years with great results..

Fishguy2727, Sailor, and many others use NLS. Rue uses Omega....

Tetra isn't top tier but I'm sure if it wasn't beneficial to the fish it wouldn't be on the market..... The Hikari/NLS/Omega brands are just top tier quality foods that alot of people use...
am i staving my fish of vitamins feeding them frozen bloodworms/brine shrimp/live fruit flies as their main diet? i figure that is closer to what they eat in nature.
and as far as the tetra being ok just cos it's on the market. i mean consumerism is what the people will pay for, most cat food is completely terrible for them, like purina and iams...etc. but it probably is the most commonly sold food. there is just a lot of misinformation and very minor regulation when it comes to pet food. i feed my cat for example, human grade food.

[jbeining75]

Every fish is different.... Most fish 60-70% of their staple diet should be a great quality fish pellet...

Here is what I feed my Oscars/GT.. and also my African tank....

Staple Food - Hikari Cichlid BioGold
Suppliments - Cucumbers , Zuchini, Peas, Hikari Bio Pure Bloodworms, Hikari Bio Pure shrimp..... I will feed them raw peeled shrimp in chunks also sometimes.......

Everyone is different though... Some people feed only NLS and nothing else..... It is all user preference.....

[karbomb]

Every fish is different.... Most fish 60-70% of their staple diet should be a great quality fish pellet...

Here is what I feed my Oscars/GT.. and also my African tank....

Staple Food - Hikari Cichlid BioGold
Suppliments - Cucumbers , Zuchini, Peas, Hikari Bio Pure Bloodworms, Hikari Bio Pure shrimp..... I will feed them raw peeled shrimp in chunks also sometimes.......

Everyone is different though... Some people feed only NLS and nothing else..... It is all user preference.....
i guess what i was asking more particularly in my last post was if feeding fish mainly frozen bloodworms/brine shrimp + live fruit flies as a main staple for their food is unhealthy for them?

[melbfish20]

is there any reason why you feed hikari over NLS or is it just because hikari has worked for your fish ?

also what is your theory on feeding them nothing else but NLS ? that is what they say to do on there site

thanks for the advice

[jbeining75]

It is probably not giving them all the vitamins and nutrients they need but there is no way for me to verify that.... I have no clue as to the nutritional value of fruit flies.... The bloodworms and brine should be high in protein though. Try NLS or Hikari pellets and see if the colors in your fish really pop out over a month or so....

[Fishguy2727]

The most popular foods will be low-quality, cheapo crap that sells a lot because it is cheap. Most people are not willing to spend the extra money on the best when they need to pay for their own health care, rent at the end of the month, groceries, etc. So it persists that the worst stuff out there is going to sell the most because it is the cheapest. Just look at Ol' Roy, Wal-Mart's brand of dog food. Top-selling dog food in the country, one of if not the worst.

A food is only as good as its ingredients. A complete and balanced diet is what is the goal. Part of this is having ingredients that are easy to digest.

Where have you read that Hikari and NLS have enzymes in them? I have not heard that about either one.

I mainly used Tetra and Hikari before I used NLS. Some of the Tetra is good. I used the Pro Crisps a lot. Hikari is very good too. The results are good and they have different diets that are supposed to be suited for different types of feeders. This is one problem, Hikari is so good many do nto think they need to even try NLS because they have decided Hikari is so good. Now that I use NLS exclusively, I get much better results than I ever got with these other foods. I used Hikari very extensively and NLS is better. There are very few exceptions, Hobbs' being the best and most reliable, but these are just that, exceptions. They are not at all the normal results achieved when NLS is fed exclusively.

NLS's site says it needs to be used exclusively for the fish to achieve the best results. This was proven when I did just that and got the results the testimonials on their site are talking about. NLS by itself is complete and balanced. Adding other foods simply throws off this balance and dilutes the nutrition in NLS.

There is an article in my blog that explains why 'natural' foods are not ideal.

NLS's website has a big article on nutrition and what to look for in a fish food.

[Bassfan]

Also i was wondering fishguy, Is it true that if a dog eats their food very quickly, it usually means that theres a lot of sugar in the food? I switched from beneful to pedigree and my dog doesnt eat it quick at all. Pedigree is good dog food right? But anyways, ive been feeding NLS and ill give my oscar a jumbo freeze dried shrimp here and there. But i feed the NLS maybe 97 percent of the time.

[jbeining75]

Fishguy go to the hikari website and read about hikari germ.... they are microorganisms that increase protein and vitamin intake. You've scoured the entire NLS sight numerous times I am sure. The NLS natural ingredients contain protein intake enhancers......

www.hikariusa.com (http://www.hikariusa.com)

Cichlid Bio-Gold - Hikari Germ....

[karbomb]

Also i was wondering fishguy, Is it true that if a dog eats their food very quickly, it usually means that theres a lot of sugar in the food? I switched from beneful to pedigree and my dog doesnt eat it quick at all. Pedigree is good dog food right? But anyways, ive been feeding NLS and ill give my oscar a jumbo freeze dried shrimp here and there. But i feed the NLS maybe 97 percent of the time.
you should check abady food.
pedigree is crap, it's no better then iams, beneful or eukanuba.
they actually have been starting to carry better food at petco.
you don't want anything with by products or downed animals. a lot of that food has animals that have been put down or diseased in it.
:( the best food for dogs is the raw stuff. but it's a pain.

[MeganL3985]

I used to feed my dogs pedigree till I found out it was crap (never knew that)....now I feed them Nutro Natural Choice (Lamb & Rice)......twice as expensive as Pedigree, but worth it in my opinion. I've also noticed a big difference in their coats too....they're a lot more smooth and shiny.

[jbeining75]

I always fed mine Eukunuba..... Never had any problems..... Big German Rot, Great Dane, and a lil rat dog... lol

[Fishguy2727]

NLS does not any enzymes. Their food is based on easily digested ingredients so the fish do not need help. What ingredients in NLS contain these protein intake enhancers?

Microorganisms are not the same as enzymes. Do have a link to the page the information you are talking about is found? As far as I can tell a couple koi foods have wheat germ.

Pedigree is not good. The best ones are Nutro Ultra, Royal Canin, Blue/Blue Buffalo, and others. Look at the ingredients. You want whole meals. No wheat or corn. No by-products. No beef.

I just added an entry to my blog. It is a list of the ingredients of many of the most popular brands from their websites. I made the list last year when trying to figure out what is the best brand. It also has a link to a very good site to help you determine how good a food is.

One problem I see with dog and fish foods, is the "I have been feeding Brand X for Y years and never had any problems." What problems would be seen? The animal isn't going to drop dead after eating it. It is long term health and thrivability that prove a food. High quality foods help prevent health problems 3, 5, 15 years down the road, not this week. Many of the problems are impossible to determine in fish except that they die at age 3 or 5 instead of 8 or 12. If a dog has health problems it may not be 'proven' to be caused by the food, but many of these foods can contribute to health problems.

[karbomb]

Pedigree is not good. The best ones are Nutro Ultra, Royal Canin, Blue/Blue Buffalo, and others. Look at the ingredients. You want whole meals. No wheat or corn. No by-products. No beef.

I just added an entry to my blog. It is a list of the ingredients of many of the most popular brands from their websites. I made the list last year when trying to figure out what is the best brand. It also has a link to a very good site to help you determine how good a food is.

One problem I see with dog and fish foods, is the "I have been feeding Brand X for Y years and never had any problems." What problems would be seen? The animal isn't going to drop dead after eating it. It is long term health and thrivability that prove a food. High quality foods help prevent health problems 3, 5, 15 years down the road, not this week. Many of the problems are impossible to determine in fish except that they die at age 3 or 5 instead of 8 or 12. If a dog has health problems it may not be 'proven' to be caused by the food, but many of these foods can contribute to health problems.
fish guy check out abady pet foods. they have some of the best food world wide for cats and dogs.
and agreed on the X, Y senerio. most people are incredibly misinformed about their pet's health.

[Nautilus291]

LOL i told you about the big debate lol.

[karbomb]

I used to feed my dogs pedigree till I found out it was crap (never knew that)....now I feed them Nutro Natural Choice (Lamb & Rice)......twice as expensive as Pedigree, but worth it in my opinion. I've also noticed a big difference in their coats too....they're a lot more smooth and shiny.
even though good food is more expensive, your pet needs less of it to be healthy, so you end up feeding them smaller portions and in the long run, probably saving money. most food like pedigree has only a tiny bit of nutritional value and is mostly filler, your pet needs to consume more it get the same nutrition. and they end up fatter from the filler.
anything i really dislike when talking to people about good food is, well my vet recommend it, so it must be good. vets are sponsored by pet food companys, sad but true.
and another good tip especially for cat foods is that the meat should be the first ingredient listed.
cats are carnivores, not omnivores, yet most food sold for cats has a ton of fruits and vegetables.
wet food is also better for cats

[Fishguy2727]

I looked on Abady's site. There are a number of things that do not seem right to me.

For one, dogs are omnivores, plain and simple. This doesn't mean don't feed them meat, it means they naturally do eat some plant matter and that plant matter can be a very beneficial part of the diet.

Plaque formation is reduced by dry kibbles. It may not completely prevent it, but it does help keep it to a minimum. To say that many doctorate theses have found this to be true because they are part of the propaganda, but deny it and not provide any information to the contrary seems at best misleading.

They also seem to have a lot of fat for an animal that no longer lives its life in the wild, but rather along with us on the couch.

They seem to make many erroneous generalizations and do not really seem to support a lot of what they say except things like 'the real truth is...', 'except this is untrue', basically saying the entire industry is wrong and they are the only brand to stumble upon the 'truest truths' of dog nutrition.

[karbomb]

I looked on Abady's site. There are a number of things that do not seem right to me.

For one, dogs are omnivores, plain and simple. This doesn't mean don't feed them meat, it means they naturally do eat some plant matter and that plant matter can be a very beneficial part of the diet.

Plaque formation is reduced by dry kibbles. It may not completely prevent it, but it does help keep it to a minimum. To say that many doctorate theses have found this to be true because they are part of the propaganda, but deny it and not provide any information to the contrary seems at best misleading.

They seem to make many erroneous generalizations and do not really seem to support a lot of what they say except things like 'the real truth is...', 'except this is untrue', basically saying the entire industry is wrong and they are the only brand to stumble upon the 'truest truths' of dog nutrition.
yeah there is a lot of propaganda with abady, but i still do thing it is great food. the dog food is for omnivores, the cat food is mostly carnivore based
at least for cats, most of the food is meat based.

[Fishguy2727]

Other, non-company based guidelines (like in the link in my blog entry) do not agree with this company's claims. Things like no beef, no by-products ( I think whole animal meals are better than muscle-only protein sources though, for the reasons mentioned on the site), no added fat, etc..

It may not be bad, but it seems like they have to make stuff up to defend their food.

Why are canned cat foods better?