Hills Science Dog Food Ingredients List: Understanding What Your Dog is Eating!

Okay, so I've been meaning to switch up my dog's food for a while now. He's been getting a little, shall we say, chunky lately. Plus, his coat hasn't been looking its best. My vet recommended Hill's Science Diet, so I figured I'd dive in and really look at what's in it before making the change.

Digging into the Ingredient List

First thing I did was grab a bag of the Hill's Science Diet Adult Perfect Weight food (since, yeah, weight is a concern!). I flipped it over and started reading that tiny, tiny print on the back. Man, they really pack a lot of info in there!

The very first ingredient listed was Chicken. Okay, good start. I know my dog loves chicken, and it's a good source of protein.

Then came a whole bunch of stuff I had to look up:

• Brewers Rice: Apparently, this is the small fragments of rice kernels. Sounds okay, it's probably a carb source.
• Chicken Meal: This one I had to think about. I’ve learned that "meal" means it’s a rendered product, which means the good stuff is all concentrated. It has much more protein.
• Powdered Cellulose: Okay, this one sounded weird at first. Turns out it's a source of fiber, which is important for digestion, and to help my dog feel full.
• Pea Fiber: More fiber, good.
• And some other like Chicken Liver Flavor, Flaxseed...

Then there was a HUGE list of vitamins and minerals. Stuff like Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (a source of Vitamin C!), and a whole bunch of things I couldn't even pronounce. I figure that's all the added good stuff to make sure my pup gets a balanced diet.

My Overall Impression

Honestly, after looking at all of that, I felt pretty good about it. It's definitely not just filler and junk. There's real meat, a good amount of fiber, and tons of added vitamins. It did take some Googling to understand some of the ingredients, but in the end I started the food transition, I mixed a little of the Hill's with his old food, gradually increasing the amount of Hill's over a week. He gobbled it right up, no problems!

It's a little too soon to see major weight loss results, but I'm optimistic. And his poop is looking, uh, healthier, so that's a good sign!