Dog Food recommendations

[Dftodd]

One of our dogs has food allergies so we've tried just about every brand. Science diet works best for him.

We did notice that switching all the dogs to a higher quality food, greatly improved there coats and all around health.

 

[TomSeller]

We did notice that switching all the dogs to a higher quality food, greatly improved there coats and all around health.

And lowers stool volume and improves regularity.

Grain free is almost always advised.

 

[IXLR8]

Our vet recommended Science Diet, it didn't work well at all for our dog, dog had lots of gas and some diarrhea. Taste of the Wild worked well for her and we rotated varieties.

 

[QRTRHRS]

One of our dogs has several alergies. Science Diet was not making any difference. Someone told me to try Blue Basics so we did and the dog did much better on it. We get the limited ingredient/grain free formula.

Our 17 year old min pin is on Science Diet but I would have to go look at the type.

Our other dogs get Earthborn, mostly Primitive Natural. One is on Earthborn Weight Control.

We buy mostly from the Petscense store. Buy ten, get one free but I also watch the Tractor Supply ads. Tractor Supply just opened a "super store" near me with enough room for a variety of dog foods while the other stores around me are limited in selections.

 

[amaxwell]

And lowers stool volume and improves regularity.

Grain free is almost always advised.

One of our dogs had very bad allergies . We tried several of the already mentioned brands, with no improvement. A friend recommended "Zignature" white fish and salmon ,and her allergies disappeared. We only feed about 1/2 as much of it as we did other brands.

 

[General Lee]

The wifey has been giving the dog raw meat and veggies for years now. Kinda a PITA since bagged food is easier to keep, store and use. Not sure we are spending anymore feeding the dog this way vs the usual dog food.

Right now the dog's food is being cooked because the dog has a tumor on the leg. The tumor got really big suddenly and surgery was not a good option. The vet told us to do some stuff that sounded like witch craft and not "modern" medicine which included cooking the food instead of serving raw. The tumor was wrapped and treated with some witch doctor stuff, more was added to the food for a total cost of about $350 vs $1200 or more for surgery. Danged tumor was dramatically reduced in a short period of time. :thumbsup:

The raw food/cooked food diet has made the dog healthier and her poops are much smaller. All of that big dog poop is just expensive fillers from the dog food.... The dog gets what ever meat is on sale, round pork, turkey, beef and sometimes fish if canned salmon is on sale. Dog eats better than I do...

Later,
Dan

I am a fan of feeding raw. I'm surprised the vet recommended cooking the food (probably because he doesn't support raw feeding). You loose more nutrients by cooking, so if your dog needs good nutrients because of the tumor, I would be sticking to raw.

 

[General Lee]

Can't recommend any particular brand, just this .... remember that dogs are omnivorous, like us, NOT carnivorous, like a cat - dogs need vegetables as well as meat. Do NOT feed them a steady diet of cat food or only feed them meat.

Meat is important for them to eat and can/should be listed first on the ingredient list - but, don't let anyone convince you that any/all dog foods that contain vegetables and cereals are bad.

I respectfully disagree. Dogs do not need vegetables. They are descendants of wolves. Wolves are carnivores. Wolves and dogs don't go around eating vegetables out of the ground or graze like cattle. Now, when a wolf gets vegetables its in the stomach of its kill. Vegetables won't hurt the dog but its not a matter of survival to eat them.

 

[TomSeller]

Per Wikipedia:
-----------------
Despite their descent from wolves and classification as Carnivora, dogs are variously described in scholarly and other writings as carnivores[95][96] or omnivores.[2][97][98][99] Unlike obligate carnivores, such as the cat family with its shorter small intestine, dogs can adapt to a wide-ranging diet, and are not dependent on meat-specific protein nor a very high level of protein in order to fulfill their basic dietary requirements. Dogs will healthily digest a variety of foods, including vegetables and grains, and can consume a large proportion of these in their diet.[2] Comparing dogs and wolves, dogs have adaptations in genes involved in starch digestion that contribute to an increased ability to thrive on a starch-rich diet.[8]
-----------------

 

[General Lee]

Tom - That writing is not gospel. I stated vegetables won't hurt the dog but they are not needed. The article basically says the same, that they can eat it. A lot of dogs do perfectly fine on cheap dog food full of starches, grains and fillers. Some cannot handle those ingredients. Every dog is different. I have personally experienced dogs that cannot handle corn, grains, fillers in their dog food.

 

[foreman Etexas]

Both dogs been on Blue Buffalo for a long time,vet put my older dog on it cause of liver problems. The cat also will run into house to get to eat the dogs food,she likes it better than even her canned food,must be some good tasting stuff. Man the stuff is high thou...

 

[GaryLock]

I recommend nothing. You need to consult a vet for nutritional assistance, not people on a website.

Well, that's just silly! Might as well close up TBN and start asking the dealer what they think about everything.

 

[wngsprd]

Well, our dog, Coconino, eats better than we do ...she had skin allergies, so after research, started ordering Orijen 6 fish grain free...80% fish (Salmon, flounder, herring, pike, etc), 20% fruit and vegetables. We've cut our vet bills by much more than we're spending, and Coco has more energy than when she was a pup. If I was a better fisherman, I'd catch and feed her some of my fish!

We order from Chewy.com. which ships via FedEx on your requested regular schedule, at no charge and no tax, and we've received it in 1 day when needing an unplanned order.

 

[12Bravo]

Can't recommend any particular brand, just this .... remember that dogs are omnivorous, like us, NOT carnivorous, like a cat - dogs need vegetables as well as meat. Do NOT feed them a steady diet of cat food or only feed them meat.

Meat is important for them to eat and can/should be listed first on the ingredient list - but, don't let anyone convince you that any/all dog foods that contain vegetables and cereals are bad.

I don't think I have ever seen a documentary about Wolves eating blueberries or lettuce from the local farmers fields. Heck any K-9 breed for that matter, might be wrong here, but pretty sure the K-9 family are actually carnivorous.

Now Bears, that's a different topic. Seen plenty eating my neighbor's corn.

 

[JRobyn]

Thanks all! Lots of "food for thought"! We will take all of this under advisement, but not as "thou shalt". Since it's a new dog to us, she has no health issues/allergies/skin problems/bowel problems that we know about yet. If she turns out to have any, I agree that vet recommendations would be appropriate, but in the absence of any of these, we are looking for a good quality, basic food that can be sourced from various places. Sounds like we can't go too far wrong with Blue Buffalo, Costco, or Purina Pro Plan. That should be enough for some trials to see which she likes and cause no ill effects. On the VET'S recommendation, we will start her on the identical food that they have been feeding her at the shelter.

Thanks, No Trespassing, I wonder why that earlier similar thread didn't come up in my search?
Edit - Probably because I didn't look all the way back to 2012!

 

[dmccarty]

I am a fan of feeding raw. I'm surprised the vet recommended cooking the food (probably because he doesn't support raw feeding). You loose more nutrients by cooking, so if your dog needs good nutrients because of the tumor, I would be sticking to raw.

The vet was ok with raw food but with the "medicine" the dog was going to take to reduce the tumor, cooking the food was recommended. The tumor was greatly reduced by doing what the vet recommended which surprised the heck out of me. At some point, the food will go back to being cooked.

Later,
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

Our experience with a few dogs over the decades is that a particular dog food can be good or bad for a given dog. The food might be just fine for awhile but then the dog does not do well on the food. Even a good quality food. Things change. For at least the last three dogs we have had, we have changed their food from time to time depending on how the dogs reacted to the food. This could mean a change of food within a given dog food brand, moving to a different brand and food type, or as we do now, make our own dog food.

Seems like we are not alone in this regards.

Later,
Dan

 

[jimmyj]

Well, that's just silly! Might as well close up TBN and start asking the dealer what they think about everything.

Agree. There is no need to talk to a vet for simple pet nutrition. Vet's frankly are only moderately knowledgeable, not in a bad way, just that some are experts and some only parrot what they're told by marketing reps. (I have nothing against vets by the way, just want people to understand that they are subject to incredible marketing pressures from pet food companies and it definitely influences them.) Be smart, asking more questions is better than asking fewer questions.

 

[rekees4300]

Another vote for Blue Buffalo.

Steve

Ditto ... we mix in human grade canned salmon and chicken to make it moist.

 

[murphy1244]

Here's some background I found about BB Blue Buffalo admits to bull****ting consumers, lawsuit with Purina heats up - Poisoned Pets | A look inside the pet food industry

 

[ovrszd]

Sounds like a simple misunderstanding Murph.......