Has anyone heard of this dog food?

I was on a free sample website when I came across this http://wysong.net/products/promo_samples.php . Has anyone heard of this brand or tried it? I ordered a free sample of the Venison and Chicken but I am still wondering if I should feed it to Miss Piggy once I get it. The "starch free" has me curious...

I'll highlight some things i'm not crazy about in the ingredients...

"Ingredients: Organic Chicken, Chicken Meal, Chicken Giblets, Vegetable Protein (consisting of one or more of the following: Potato Protein, Rice Protein, Corn Protein, Wheat Protein), Poultry Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols as a source of Vitamin E), Eggs, Yogurt, Flax Seed, Apple, Beet Pulp, Plums, Inulin, Dried Wheat Grass Powder, Dried Barley Grass Powder, Krill Oil, Dried Kelp, Taurine, Oregano Extract, Sage Extract, Rosemary Extract, Probiotic Microorganisms (Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactococcus lactis, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus lactis), Ascorbic Acid, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Copper Proteinate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement."

1) Vegetable Protein (consisting of one or more of the following: Potato Protein, Rice Protein, Corn Protein, Wheat Protein)... Which is it? Potato, rice, corn, or wheat? No one knows. Plus using any vegetable for protein bothers me especially corn and wheat. This being so high up especially it means it's boosting that protein level in the food, the protein for dogs and cats should be from meat not veggies.

2) Poultry Fat... What kind of poultry? Turkey? Chicken? Duck? Pheasant? This could be troubling for allergy dogs.

3)Beet Pulp... It's a filler. A by-product from the sugar beet industry.


The Venison and fish sound okay, but really i don't want to see vegetable protein in my dog's food making up what's going to be quite a bit of the protein content, not to mention there isn't a lot of meat in the food compared to vegetable ingredients. The fish meal in the fish variety is troubling too, what kind of fish? Things labeled as "fish meal" are generally not human grade ingredients. Plus beet pulp is just adding fibre and will equal lots o poop.

Wysong has been a good product in the past, however they had a large recall of product last year. There was mold found in their extruded dog food. Here's info from their site.

Very interesting - and true - statement about diet rotation there as well.

Most importantly, Dr. Wysong has advised for the past 30 years against feeding any singular food meal after meal. Diets should be rotated and fresh foods incorporated into meal planning in order to decrease the risk of chronic exposure to toxins that may be present in any one food. This information is on all Wysong packaged pet foods.

I checked out the ingredients on the Epigen formulas--I've posted them below--I have some of the same concerns as Mandypug. The reality is that my dogs are all still allergic to grains--no matter how the company spins them. And there's still a fair bit of starch in this diet. Plus eggs (I have two that can't eat eggs) plus a fiar bit of dairy (I've two that can't eat dairy and dairy is not great for yeast dogs).

GUARANTEED ANALYSIS

Crude Protein (Min) .........................................................60.0%
Crude Fat (Min) ................................................................11.0%
Crude Fiber (Max) ..............................................................3.5%
Moisture (Max) ................................................................12.0%
Taurine (Min) .....................................................................0.4%

Ingredients: Organic Chicken, Chicken Meal, Chicken Giblets, Vegetable Protein (consisting of one or more of the following: Potato Protein, Rice Protein, Corn Protein, Wheat Protein), Poultry Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols as a source of Vitamin E), Eggs, Yogurt, Flax Seed, Apple, Beet Pulp, Plums, Inulin, Dried Wheat Grass Powder, Dried Barley Grass Powder, Krill Oil, Dried Kelp, Taurine, Oregano Extract, Sage Extract, Rosemary Extract, Probiotic Microorganisms (Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactococcus lactis, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus lactis), Ascorbic Acid, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Copper Proteinate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement.* (For an explanation of Epigen's™ ingredients see below.)


~ COMING SOON! NEW EPIGEN™ FORMULATIONS ~
To enable rotation of the diet with varying protein sources the following formulations are forthcoming:

Epigen™ Fish Formula Ingredients: Fish Meal, Pea Protein, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols as a source of Vitamin E), Apple (source of soluble fiber), Beet Pulp (source of prebiotics), Plums (antioxidant source), Inulin (prebiotic), Blueberries (antioxidant source), Tomato (source of lutein), Taurine (amino acid), Oregano Extract (antioxidant source), Sage Extract (antioxidant source), Rosemary Extract (antioxidant source), Probiotic Microorganisms (Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactococcus lactis, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus lactis), Ascorbic Acid, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Copper Proteinate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement.

Epigen™ Venison Formula Ingredients: Venison Meal, Potato Protein, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols as a source of Vitamin E), Apple (source of soluble fiber), Beet Pulp (prebiotic source), Plums (source of antioxidants), Blueberries (source of antioxidants), Inulin (prebiotic), Krill Oil (source of omega-3 fatty acids), Taurine (amino acid), Oregano Extract (antioxidant), Sage Extract (antioxidant), Rosemary Extract (antioxidant), Probiotic Microorganisms (Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactococcus lactis, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus lactis), Ascorbic Acid, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Manganese Proteinate, Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Copper Proteinate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement.

EPIGEN™ INGREDIENTS EXPLAINED*

All Epigen™ ingredients are chosen for their health benefits. A brief explanation of each can be found below. For more detail, simply do an Internet search and a wealth of data will become available to demonstrate the enormous health benefits of each of the ingredients.

The nutrient-rich protein sources in the formula also permit the binding and shaping of the kibbles. This is in contrast to using starches — as in all other dried extruded foods — which can be very detrimental to health and contain no associated nutraceutical value. The plant materials in the formula are minor components but add considerable nutritional and nutraceutical value. Their consumption by carnivores mimics the incidental consumption of such materials through occasional grazing and by eating the ingesta of their herbivorous prey.

- Organic Chicken*: fresh
- Chicken Meal*: precooked and dried to enable higher levels of meat
- Chicken Giblets*: hearts, livers, gizzards
*The above three ingredients encompass the entire chicken minus feathers, heads and feet. This replicates as closely as possible what carnivores would eat in the wild.

- Vegetable Protein (consisting of one or more of the following: Potato Protein, Rice Protein, Corn Protein, Wheat Protein): By special processing, the starches are removed. The remaining proteins and other important nutrient elements are then incorporated into Epigen™. The long protein chains help shape and bind the kibbles so that starches do not have to be used.

- Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols as a source of Vitamin E): This rich source of essential fatty acids is enrobed on the product after it has been extruded so the fats are not subject to the product's cook processing. To keep the fats stable, natural antioxidants are used and we also use a proprietary process to saturate the fat with nitrogen to force the oxidation producing oxygen out. These fats are regularly tested to be sure they are stable and do not contribute to free radical pathology.

- Eggs: A perfect protein that helps in the binding. Eggs also contain a number of other important nutrients.

- Yogurt: An excellent protein to help in the binding. It also contains a number of other important nutrients and is a host to important probiotics.

- Flax Seed: A source of a number of nutrients, fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids.

- Apple: A source of many nutrients and fiber.

- Beet Pulp: Excellent fiber and oligosaccharides that exert a prebiotic effect.

- Plums: Many nutrients, fiber, and high levels of antioxidants and anti-pathogenic factors.

- Inulin: A prebiotic that encourages probiotic growth.

- Dried Wheat Grass Powder*
- Dried Barley Grass Powder*
*These two grasses contain a wealth of nutrients at a stage when they are maximized and most bioavailable.

- Krill Oil: A dense and clean source of marine omega-3 fatty acids.

- Dried Kelp: A particularly rich source of trace minerals.

- Taurine: An essential amino acid that can be destroyed in heat processing.

- Oregano Extract*
- Sage Extract*
- Rosemary Extract*
*These three herbs exert potent antioxidant and preservative effects.

- Probiotic Microorganisms (Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactococcus lactis, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus lactis): Probiotic organisms that exert a number of health benefits as well as anti-pathogen effects.

- Ascorbic Acid: Antioxidant activity both in the food and in the body.

- Zinc Proteinate*
- Iron Proteinate*
- Vitamin E Supplement*
- Niacin Supplement*
- Manganese Proteinate*
- Calcium Pantothenate*
- Thiamine Mononitrate*
- Copper Proteinate*
- Pyridoxine Hydrochloride*
- Riboflavin Supplement*
- Vitamin A Acetate*
- Folic Acid*
- Biotin*
- Vitamin B12 Supplement*
- Vitamin D3 Supplement *
*These vitamins and minerals are in their most bioavailable forms. The proteinates are chelates that enhance mineral absorption. Although all these micronutrients are in the ingredients themselves, processing diminishes their levels and thus fortification is wise. Additionally, by fortifying, higher levels can be achieved to exert health benefits and overcome the stresses of modern living, toxin exposure, and long-standing deficiencies. The safety and benefits of such fortification is supported by hundreds of thousands of scientific studies.