Advancements In Health For The Sporting Dog
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I recently got the opportunity to spend a few days attending seminars and touring the facilities at the Iams/Eukanuba headquarters in Dayton, Ohio. It was an extremely entertaining, educational and eye-opening experience. After touring one of Eukanubas state-of-the-art dog food plants, I’ll never look at dog food as “just” dog food again.

I came away from the trip with enough raw data, product info and research findings for a book of blog posts, but here are three things that I think stand out.

Nutrition and Care of the Sporting Dog: This is a handbook that can either be downloaded at the Eukanuba sporting dog site or you can call Eukanuba at 1-888-EUKANUBA and get a free hard copy. Written specifically for the sporting crowd, this seventy-page, nutrient-dense tome is a must-read for any gundog owner.

It’s packed with valuable nutrition and canine performance information that’s been distilled from years of research. When I say it’s an invaluable resource, I really mean it’s an invaluable resource. And it’s free. Get it. There’s no reason there shouldn’t be a copy on your bookshelf or computer.

Iams Sporting 29/18 dog food: Gundog owners are in a sticky wicket when it comes to dog food. Simply put, our dogs need higher-quality, more nutrient-dense food than your average Frisbee-chaser or yip-yapper. But higher quality, more nutrient-dense food brings a higher price. Enter Iams new Sporting 29/18.

This new premium dog food is designed to meet the specific nutritional requirements of hard-working gundogs, while coming in at a price-point that doesn’t require you to make a choice between feeding your dogs or feeding your children (Iams, my hungry children thank you). Dog food prices continue to rise, and I think this new Iams blend, which (unlike many super premiums) will be available at most mass-market outlets, is going to be a big hit.

Iams Prostora Max: Probiotics are a hot topic right now, and a few weeks ago I blogged about Purina’s Fortiflora probiotic supplement. As it turns out, Iams has their own probiotic supplement, called Prostora Max. The main difference between the Purina and Iams products, apart from the Purina being a powder and the Iams being a soft pill, is that the Iams folks tell me the Prostora utilizes a canine-specific bacteria while the Purina uses a human-based bacteria.

I haven’t tried the Prostora yet, but I’ll be on the road hunting the Kansas pheasant and quail opener in a few days and I plan to try it out then. The Purina Fortiflora worked as advertised and I expect the Prostora to do the same. I’ll keep you posted.