# Just my opinion



## Prickerz (Sep 17, 2014)

I have always fed my dog and cat purina pro plan food. They, and many others, have done extremely well on it. I am planning on using it as at least one part of my hedgehog's food. 
I know most people think it is garbage or low quality, but it does deliver the nutrients needed and meat is the first ingredient. 
Simply put, yes- wellness and nutro max and many others are technically more natural and more holistic. But, other brands can do more harm than good.
Blue buffalo in particular has caused severe problems in dogs and cats including organ failure, seizures, and severe food allergies. (specifically the wilderness line). Google it- it is not a secret. I would just hate to hear that a little hedgehog suffered the same fate from this food. Blue buffalo is also being sued by purina because the company falsely advertised many products, especially the grain free ones. 
I don't mean to start any kind of fight or make anyone upset. I just thought people should know that the most expensive food doesn't always mean it is the best!


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## shinydistraction (Jul 6, 2014)

Meh. It's your choice what foods to feed. So long as you know what you need in your hedgies diet and the food delivers without ingredients that may harm them, you're fine. We all already know to keep protein between 30-35% and fat under 15%. And we all know that a named meat or named meat meal should be the first ingredient. Beyond that, something that doesn't over do it on grains or has anything that is known to be harmful to hedgehogs is fine. Also, large companies sue each other over nothing (often when both companies are in the wrong) all the time. I wouldn't read too much into it. Feed what you feel is nutritional and keeps your baby happy and healthy. That's all anyone would expect


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## DesireeM81 (Jun 14, 2014)

Oh man, nutrition is my passion. Now before I dig in on Purina and Blue Buffalo let me state that I have fed my dogs Purina mainly because it was the only thing my husky would eat and one of my hedgehogs is currently on this food until she runs out because she has a finicky stomach and I have added two foods to her diet as it is.

I picked a food that one of my girls is on right now. The protein is too high for my tastes but it'll work for why I don't like it.

*Pro Plan Focus Indoor Care Turkey & Rice Cat Food*
Turkey, brewers rice, corn gluten meal, chicken meal, dried egg product, soy protein isolate, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), fish meal, powdered cellulose, wheat flour, animal liver flavor, soybean hulls, inulin, gelatin, potassium chloride, phosphoric acid, salt, choline chloride, Vitamin E supplement, calcium carbonate, taurine, zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), manganese sulfate, niacin, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, Vitamin A supplement, copper sulfate, calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin B-12 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid, Vitamin D-3 supplement, calcium iodate, biotin, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), sodium selenite

This is the ingredient list. So far, the first ingredient is turkey, that's good! But the next two are fillers brewers rice and corn gluten meal which means that together they probably weigh more than the turkey itself making this food more filler than turkey. Not to mention I will not buy a food tat has corn gluten in it because it's a horrible filler. Also any unamed meat or fat is not a good thing because you don't know what they are using in it, animal fat is seven on the list. The next thing I don't like is the wheat flour. Too many animals, humans included, have a wheat gluten allergy.

I am perfectly willing to feed my dog this food but why not my hedgehog? The real answer to this question is that we are basically guessing at what they are eating and what works. We know high quality cat food works. Nancy herself feeds her hogs a brand of high quality cat foods and she has several that are or reaching 6 years of age. I would love for my hedgehogs to reach that age and if diet has some factor to that I am willing to spend more money and more time researching to try and make that happen.

As for the lawsuit against blue buffalo. Until solid proof comes out OR Purina starts making a better food will I believe any claim. Anyone can file a lawsuit based on anything, that's the freedom of America, that most certainly does not make it true. Also if you have read the lawsuit, very few of the foods had corn in them and the percentages were ridiculously low according to Purina. Blue Buffalo even if they are using corn (one of the ingredients they claim they lied about) they are using far less than Purina and still make a better quality food.

Now that being said, I don't really care for blue buffalo either. They rely to much on chicken which is a fine ingredient but chickens are easily over produced and a cheap ingredient with added growth hormones. Not to mention they give little in the way of different sources of protein.

Now, that does not mean that I think you shouldn't feed your hedgehog Purina. In my opinion there are just many many more companies out there doing a solid effort to make high quality foods for our animals and I feel that Purina could honestly step up to the challenge. They are getting better for sure with their pro plan line vs their other lines but they just aren't up to par with what I consider a decent food.

Sorry for the soapbox. I spend a lot of time researching foods for my hedgehogs and as you can tell I have a passion for it.


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## Stumpy (Jul 17, 2011)

do you know what brand Nancy uses? or know of any to recommend. I was using Sunseed but they switched the formula (the new bag was obviously a different color) and it gave my hedgie the runs. I tried Hills c/d and it's not much better. He used to have nice, healthy "Tootsie Roll" turds and now I'm lost! I'm looking for a good brand that'll give him a "nice consistency" because these new turds are runny and the smell amazingly bad. I did just order a bag of Hedgehog Complete but I suspect it's just meal worms mixed with Sunseed kibble.


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## lilsurfergrlsp (Dec 13, 2013)

This is primarily the reason I switched all my animals over to a raw diet. Everything is organic , including the veggies and eggs that I give as supplements. That way, I don't have to worry about processed foods, and if a label on a dog's food is correct or not.

Before I switched though, I fed my hedgie Blue Buffalo. But I fed my dogs Purina Beyond, a grain-free and limited ingredient formula. All of my animals did fine on the foods they were fed (I actually still feed my dogs the Purina Beyond food, since I don't want them to develop a complete adversion to kibble). 

Sure, some of the most expensive foods aren't the best, but the cheaper ones aren't good either. And some of the most expensive foods (like Orijen) are amazing, and some of the cheaper foods aren't as bad as the worst food on the market. And lawsuits happen by the thousands everyday in America (we're ridiculed for being a sue-happy country, and it's true - large corporations will accuse their competitors of anything just to get ahead). Iams is a popular brand but they've had a bunch of recalls as well; so many that I stopped buying it. But the same point can be said about Royal Canin - it's extremely expensive, but not all of the ingredients are healthy.

In the end, it's all about properly educating yourself about what your pet needs, how to cut out unnecessary and cheap ingredients, and providing your pet and long and healthy life, regardless of what you need to sacrifice. It's your responsibility to provide the best care for your pets, so you do what you feel is best.


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## Melanie G. (May 29, 2014)

I've fed my hedgehogs Purina as that was what I was advised to feed them. I've since switched as they discontinued the one I usually bought and because I didn't like how high in fat the food was.
Find a food you are comfortable with- it doesn't have to be the most expensive or the most well-known. As long as you find a food that has the right balance with good ingredients, it shouldn't really matter. In my humble opinion.


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## Prickerz (Sep 17, 2014)

Thanks everyone! After much consideration I am going to feed a blend of pro plan dog and cat food- as well as cooked chicken, egg whites, meal worms, and veggies. And just play it by ear! I honestly can not wait for my little girl to get here. And I want to give her the proper nutrition, just like all of us!


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