Another on the dog topic...

[puffkin]

I feed my Beagle Natural Balance Lamb and Rice. It is more of a middle of the road food. He used to eat junk food (Purina Beneful, Iams) and had nothing but problems with chewing on his paws and tons of ear infections. I tried the Natural Balance and his problems virtually disappeared. I have tried other even better quality foods, but some of the problems have come back so I just stick with Natural Balance for him. I can get the 28lb bag for $40 or so on sale and that lasts him about 3 months.

My cats on the other hand are on a grain free/gluten free diet. I feed them primarily Wellness wet and Halo dry.

Also, one of my best friends is a vet. She said they get little to no education in pet food nutrition at school. Most of the education comes from the food reps that come into their practices (think drug reps, and we all know how that goes ) or by their own research. So I would be careful taking a vets advice on food unless they really now their stuff.

 

[Earstou]

wow! What type of dog did you have...

She was a pound puppy, a mixed rat terrier. She was taller than most rat terriers, even when she was 15, people would ask if she was an older black lab puppy! So, about medium size.

 

[Greenepona]

we switched our dog (Cockapoo) and Cat(DSH) to Blue Buffalo. Its a little more expensive, but they eat less, and the dog no longer has skin issues.

 

[I Believe n Fairies]

Our labbies eat Iams. They do well with it. I had tried to change to a less expensive dog food and they developed skin issues, scratching, dull coat, flaky skin. When we went to Iams, all problems disappeared.

My dogs have an age difference (14 and 2) so I buy the large breed kind that is smaller bite size pieces (so my old girl can eat it w/o any trouble).

 

[lovesmurfs]

I've fed my labs Purina puppy chow as puppies and now Purina One. Grew up with dogs and Purina was what my parents fed our dogs.

Our cocker was 16 when he passed away -- our 7 year old cocker eats the same and is incredibly healthy. We've had no health issues.

 

[Pakey]

We make our own dog food. Chicken, brown rice, vegetables and vitamins. It's a pain but we've had no luck with dog food (one has skin issues, the other has stomach issues) and I don't want to have to feed them different diets.

 

[DSNY4ever]

Our dogs eat Orijen...one of the most expensive dog foods on the market. It isn't that I am super paranoid about their health, but you really need to investigate how you dog food is made, where the meat comes from and what they do to process it etc. There are a lot of companies doing horrible things to animals and the environment in order to make their food.

But I understand that people have to do what they can afford. I feel lucky that for now we can afford to support a good company.

But yes, when growing up, my parents fed one of our dogs probably the grossest foods on the market and he lived to be 17! My grandma also eats horribly and smoked all her life and is 90 years old...you just never know!

 

[Stephaniesue]

Diamond Naturals is a great choice- about 28 bucks for a 40 lb bag. Also, Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's soul is good. Taste of the wild, and chicken soup are both made by diamond.

We feed Taste of the Wild to 2 of our dogs, and one is allergic to everything so she is on a vegan food.

I think a better quailty food makes more sense than ol roy. They eat less, poop less, and are less likely to have allergy issues (my allergy dog ate most of her hair off and was covered in scabs! after 2 months of a good food she grew her hair completely back).

 

[Happiest mommy]

I had to switch my 6 month old chihuahua from taste of the wild to wellness she was having skin issues the vet says he doesnt believe in 1 dog food for all stages so he wanted me to try wellness small bits puppy so far so good, my first dog got fed science diet gave her horrible skin issues.

 

[floridascgirl]

Another Taste of the Wild family here. Our dog is on a consistently healthier diet than we are.

 

[MommaSnowwhite]

We feed out 2 dogs Costco Kirkland Lamb & Rice. UNder $25 for 40 lbs and 4 stars. They both eat it well - a cocker and a lab.

 

[mom2daisy]

We recently switched our two weimaraners from Kirkland to Taste of the Wild because of allergies. The dogs' coats literally "sparkle". And, like the others said, the denser food helps with less poo

 

[kokotg]

Totally anecdotal of course, but when we switched our old (he was maybe 13 at the time) dog to Taste of the Wild, we saw a HUGE difference in him. Before he had a lot of joint pain and would wake up squealing in pain a lot of mornings. It stopped soon after we switched food and never came back (he just died very recently, at 16 1/2. We switched foods a lot over the course of his life--sometimes more expensive, sometimes cheaper. When he was younger, it never seemed to make much difference, but I think the higher quality food really made his last few years a lot more pleasant and pain-free for him.

 

[KBoopaloo]

We make our own dog food. Chicken, brown rice, vegetables and vitamins. It's a pain but we've had no luck with dog food (one has skin issues, the other has stomach issues) and I don't want to have to feed them different diets.

Would you mind sharing your recipe? I feed my dog Blue Buffalo but she has a very sensitive stomach and I am not 100% sure but I think the dog food may be starting to irritate it. When she has a bought of diarrhea, we switch to boiled hamburger and brown rice and she clears right up so I have been thinking of trying to make her food myself as a general rule.

 

[Mrsdennison]

We have a boxer pup and at the last vet check, the vet said that when he was just out of school there were only two big name dog foods on the market, now he said it is just amazing the number of foods. He said we should be fine some where around the 1 dollar per pound of food cost. He said he would stay away from store brands because they were usually full of fillers.

We went with Natures Choice. We have had good luck so far. No problems and he is gaining weight and growing.

The vet did recommend a spoonful of plain yogurt a day to help coat his belly and help because he likes to eat bugs and grass, since he is playful.

Mrsdennison

 

[lonegirl]

like that yogurt idea for their belly