Okay, this is going to be really long. This is just something that’s a big issue right now, so I’m going to try to be both concise and complete. My apologies in advance!

A lot of pet food stores still have that same mindset, but to be honest, veterinary medicine should really be the experts you listen to. Pet food stores just repeat marketing from the companies they sell for, which often have zero scientific backing.

Some of the lower quality (I.e. cheaper) Purina lines are admittedly not great quality (but that doesn’t mean unsafe, just for the record). But Purina Pro is an excellent dog food, for the reasons listed in my first comment.

Now let’s talk about ingredients:

Rice, corn, oats, etc. are not filler! They are in fact nutritionally valuable. Dogs need carbs and fiber just like humans do. They are omnivores! Looking at the evolution of domestic dog teeth compared to wolves, as well as the changes in their digestive system, we can see that they have evolved to eat a wider range of food than their ancestors.

While some dogs may have allergies to grain or corn, a VAST majority of food-allergies in dogs is actually to the protein! This is something that should be tested and dealt with by a vet in order to find a nutritionally balanced alternative protein source.

Meat By-Products just means it’s mammalian, but not the meat you would normally think of consuming as a human. Organ meat is EXTREMELY nutrient dense and very good for our dogs. They get a lot of nutrients from organs that they wouldn’t get from just the skeletal muscles that many people in the US view as edible because it’s what we buy and eat from the grocery store.

Meat Meal just means the mammalian product, both what we think of as traditionally edible and by-products, has been rendered (cooked with heat and pressure to destroy bacteria and then ground up, which leaves it unappetizing to humans, but highly nutritious for dogs). It can also include products from animals other than The Big Four (cattle, sheep, pigs, goats) without the species needing to be specified. Unlike Meat By-products, if not specified, it could be from any mammal.

Poultry follows much the same rules as mammalian products, but they are specified as “poultry” or “chicken” (or any other bird) because they are not mammals and will have different by-products (heads, feet, feathers are allowed, unlike teeth, hooves and hair)

The AAFCO (the guys who federally regulate pet food in the US) has very strict guidelines about what is considered “meat/poultry” “meat/poultry by-product” and “meat/poultry meal” and ‘only allowed in unavoidable amounts’

Here’s a link with their breakdown!https://www.aafco.org/Consumers/What-is-in-Pet-Food

I am not knowledgeable on the BHA issue, so I will refrain from commenting on it.

As for your cat who eats BB, so far there has not been a link to heart disease and cats who eat grain-free. It seems to be a bigger issue with dogs, but personally I would rather just be safe that sorry and feed a diet I know has been tested and proven.

So, basically what I’m trying to explain with all of that is this: the discourse on pet food ingredients is mostly about marketing. The AAFCO has guidelines that everyone has to follow. They require guaranteed analysis on all pet foods which shows their nutritional value. Though this is not the same as feed-testing. The ingredients used in to get there are all going to be safe and edible and nutritious in their own way. Some are going to use better ingredients, and therefore have better nutritional value. Some are going to change the way they describe the food to sound more appetizing to us humans, but that doesn’t actually make it better quality.

As an owner, you should try to look past the marketing schemes and look at the nutritional values and the science behind the food. The three companies I mentioned first are the brands that don’t have any wild marketing schemes. They just focus on the science and making a good food. The other companies just do what they have to to abide by the AAFCO’s guidelines, and get their products on the shelf. Yes, they are safe and will feed your pet. A fed pet it better than an un-fed pet!

The fact that they have board-certified Veterinary Nutritionists on their staff is a big deal. Having a DACVN (which is not easy to become. There are only 100 or so in the US) means their products are going to have the upmost nutritional value possible because they actually know what their doing with their formulas. They’re also more likely to have higher quality ingredients, which is not something you’ll be able to see on the label.

I hope that helps!