Dog Food Brands........ Good, Bad ?

Tollster · Nov 2, 2012

thatguy said:
As mentioned several posts up, there are several dog food ratings sites.. Typically the better dog food is NOT available in 'normal' retail stores (ie walmart, food lion, kroger etc).. BUT TSC does carry blue buffalo and Wellness - both of which get above average reviews.

We buy Wellness Core (it is a grain free food) and so far have had excellent results with it - we were having allergy issues before the switch..

We dont worry about buying locally, but the private pet stores do carry a LOT (or most) of the top brands on the review sites) - we use petco.com - free FedEx shipping with a purchase over $49 (which is not an issue with the +/- 30# bags..

Brian

Bri, Be aware that some Wellness foods have products made by Diamond Pets Products,although I am not sure which ones. Diamond has been in the forefront for numerous violations and bacteria that have claimed many pets over the past couple years.

Bob77064 · Nov 2, 2012

zzvyb6 said:
I feed all my 4 lab chow hounds dry food from Costco [Kirkland ] (gray bag: Healthy Weight). Its chicken and vegetables. I occasionally give them some blue bag stuff (Mature dogs). Whenever there is a broken bag, they give it to me for 1/2 price. Otherwise its $22 for 40 lbs.

Been the route of Purina and Iams. Thy all developed dry skin and allergies from Iams. I have old horses here, too. They get Purina Equine Senior. Guess who has learned to open the garbage can for a feed fest ! But, its a great treat. My dogs also like cheese, asparagus, deer jerky, mini wheats, pizza, oatmeal(instant), rice, steak, Ballpark Franks, and leftover chicken. One of them likes horse poop. What can I say...

I feed them 3 times a day. Their weight is now perfect for their age and size. The 11 year old has had two knees fixed caused by OCD Frisbee chasing. A baby aspirin (coated) every day makes him as good as new.

See my recent dog's confessions (attached).

Those pictures are too funny, we have a Golden Retreiver/Black Lab and she is always hungry.

Bob77064 · Nov 2, 2012

We have been feeding our dogs Beneful® Original Dry Dog Food | Beneful®

JESSE1 · Nov 2, 2012

I feed our German Shepherds Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed dry and add either Merrick or Blue Buffalo canned to the dry. The puppy is getting Nutro Ultra Puppy dry and some of the canned to moisten it. These dog foods don't contain corn gluten, corn, wheat or soy. I buy them from Petco. They aren't cheap foods but the dogs look great, no bad breath and don't have the typical dog smell.

Tollster · Nov 2, 2012

We just started a raw diet offered through Darwins in an effort to Get Cooper siezures under control. Its been about a week now,he had a seizure today though. His coat has really gotten softer and shinier.

dave1949 · Nov 2, 2012

The two critters in my avatar are my wife's hobby. She has used Taste of the Wild from TSC with no real problems. They did have a recall a while back.

But, she swears by raw diet feeding. She found a small restaurant and store meat distributor that passes through our area twice a week. So, she buys all sorts of fresh meats in 40 lb boxes, breaks them down into servings, and freezes them. I don't know what store or restaurant would want 40 lbs of chicken gizzards, but apparently they do.

Organ meats like liver and kidney, beef ribs, hamburger, chicken backs, wings and legs, pork, etc.

Our dogs are large and chomping down some of those things raw is size dependent, but you can down-size the stuff for a small dog. The advantage is it is all food-grade, we know where it came from, there are no additives.

We are currently curing a case of sarcoptic mange with Ivermectin. Somewhere, our 10 month-old pup picked it up. Could have been a dog show or the hotel, or we kenneled them for 5 days while took a little trip. It took a couple weeks to identify what was causing their itch, but finally a crusty patch showed up on the edge of the ear. Also, if you rub the dog's ear flap and the rear leg on the same side of their body starts going like they would scratch something--it is a 75% accurate indicator of sarcoptic mange according to dog lore. My money is on the kennel as the source, but who knows?

dmccarty · Nov 3, 2012

We have a pet food store out in the middle of no where. The store is in a double wide trailer hidden in some heavy pine woods with a small sign up front. I am amazed she stays in business but she has foods that other places do not and people travel to her store. While she is out in the middle of no where, she is centrally located to some population centers and people do travel to get the food she carries.

Great Life is the brand the dog gets currently though we have used a few other brands depending on the dogs age and needs. I think the dog eats better than I do...

Later,
Dan

Clint S · Nov 3, 2012

We did alot of research and 4 health is a good food. First 2 ingredients are chicken and chicken meal for the large breed one. Our boxer always had a bald spot and as soon as we switched to 4 health it went away, went to a cheaper food it came back, switched back went away. Now the gas issues are not any better or worse , but both our dogs can clear a room.

El Wood · Nov 3, 2012

We have a German Shepherd who is a very finicky eater. He also has a very sensitive stomach. After doing lots of research, we chose Blue Buffalo Wilderness with chicken. There is a wolf on the bag. We have had great luck with it. His coat has become soft and shiny. He used to have stains under his eyes (from maybe allergies) that also went away. Give it a try. You'll be pleased.