Dog Food

[Mocha]

Hi everyone! 

I might be adopting a dog(or two) from my local shelter in mid- July. I am so excited!

I’m getting everything, food, vet etc. in order right now. 

 I’ve had a dog in the past but that was when I was 3 or 4 and my parents sadly had to give her away because she had really bad anxiety and she just didn’t fit into our lifestyle at the time

So what food does everyone feed there dogs? I’ll probably be getting something along the lines of a pitbull, rotti, or large mixed breed if that matters.

I want something that’ll fit into my budget. I want it to be really good quality and in the range of $40- $70  for a 30 pound bag. 

Is the Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula for adult dogs good? It would be a good price for me and they sell it at a lot of stores like petsmart so I don’t have to order it online.

Thanks for the help everyone (even though this isn’t bunny related)!

[NewBunnyOwner123]

One of my dogs is on a grain free/soy free food. It’s called grain free Merrick and I highly highly recommend it!

My other dog I feed an all raw meat/bones/organ diet because she is just uhhh special lol but the Merrick grain free is rated 5 stars on dog food advisor. Per commend looking in to it.

Along my path of finding my dog food I’ve tried wellness core, blue buffalo, Organix, and then finally found Merrick. Which I think I’m going to stick with that one for the dog that eats kibble. I wanna say it’s like $57 for like 25lbs. But I think it’s worth it when you read the label and the dog food advisor website.

If you are interested in feeding an all raw diet you can PM me with any questions. The dog that’s on an all raw diet is because she has severe allergies. Lost ALLL her fur. She’s been on raw for about 7 or 8 months and all her fur is back again and very fluffy. Not to mention her teeth look amazingly white for a 5 year old. Her teeth look like my other dog who isn’t even a year old!

[JackRabbit]

We used to feed our lab Eukenuba (sp?), but it turned out that she has some digestive issues. (Maybe from trying to eat too many non-food things like chair legs and rocks?!). She’s on Iams veterinary formula low residue food at $47 for a 15 lb bag. Lots of $$$ to feed our 70 lb dog. If you want to stay in your price range on food, etc., make sure to check with the rescue about allergies, digestive sensitivites, etc. when choosing your new pets.

I wouldn’t trade our 12 year-old puppy for anything, but her food does pinch the wallet.

[MoveDiagonally]

I was feeding Merrick, on NBO’s suggestion actually, and my dogs loved it and did really well. I would recommend it though it is a bit on the expensive side (approx $50 for 25lbs).

About 5 months ago I started feeding Diamond Naturals. You have to be careful which recipe of it you buy as some are better than others. The low end versions get about 3.5 stars on Dog Food Adviser while the better recipes in the line get 5 stars. It is cheaper (about $43 for 40lbs). My dog (one of them passed away recently) loves it and does well on it… But she’s kind of a vacuum. Not picky at all!

[Sonn]

My dogs are fed a mix of Wellness Core and Blue Wilderness.

All 5 of my dogs prefer the Blue over Wellness. It’s a bit expensive but one of my dogs has such a sensitive stomach I have to watch what ingredients are in her food.

[Hazel]

I just stumbled across this brand recently:

http:// http://www.tractorsupply.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/SearchDisplay?beginIndex=0&orderBy=&sType=SimpleSearch&manufacturer=&metaData=&catalogId=10051&storeId=10151&searchTerm=4health+dog+food&showResultsPage=true&searchTermScope=&searchPageType=&minPrice=&viewType=&pageView=image&bCrumbCatIds=&maxPrice=&searchType=1002&resultCatEntryType=&langId=-1&filterTerm=&pageSize=60

They have several grain free varieties ($37 for a 30lbs bag), the varieties containing grain start as low as $32 for 35lbs. A lot of them have meat as the first ingredient, it seems to be decent food as far as I can tell and extremely cheap compared to other foods of similar quality. It’s only available at Tractor Supply though.

[Stickerbunny]

Golden eagle has been recommended by a lot of people to my mom for large dogs (she has a great dane).

[KytKattin]

Raw feeder here. Though I don’t recommend it for dogs under 1-2 years unless you are following a recipe from a very reputable source. Depending on where you live, it could be the cheapest or the most expensive option. I mostly get my food from between $0.70 to $3 per pound, which averages out to about $2 per day since I feed a little over a pound per day. Being able to buy in bulk (if you can store it) can easily get the price down to about $1 per day, which is definitely cheaper than most of the higher quality foods.

I personally feed raw because it leaves my dogs with much cleaner teeth than any kibble or canned food could, it provides moisture in a way dogs/cats are naturally supposed to get some or all of their water (more for the cat), and it makes their poops much smaller and so much less smelly. I have small dogs, and their poop biodegrades so quickly I don’t have to pick it up in the yard anymore, which is nice because it is very hard to find now.

It sounds like you can spend a bit more, but we have my boyfriend’s dog (who lives elsewhere) on the Nature’s Domain from Costco. It is far from the best food, but he does well on it. It is the first food I recommend for people who want to feed a better food but really can’t afford it.

In the past I have used Nature’s Variety, which has a nice assortment of cold pasteurized raw, kibble, and canned that you can mix together. I think it is their Instinct line, which also has some limited ingredient versions.

[NewBunnyOwner123]

Raw feeding is pricey where I am unfortunately. Abbie is a bit over weight right now and we are trying to get her to lose some. She only gets around 3oz a day. So it’s ‘cheap’ to feed her. But more expensive than if she were sharing the food her fur brother is on. Brevin isn’t on raw food because I feel he doesn’t need it. Although I do toss him a turkey neck or pork neck once a week for a good tooth cleaning I only just started that because he has hit 10 months old now and I’m not so worried of him swallowing the bones out of excitement and him actually chewing them!

If you can afford raw feeding a larger breed dog I say definitely go for it. But I stress you do your research before diving in. It also sounds intimidating but it’s really not that hard to do lol but you need to make sure you have your food sources in place before starting. I stress variety. Don’t stick to just one protein source. Change it up. Like beef, chicken, turkey, duck, lamb. Have fun with it. Abbie mainly gets beef and chicken and turkey. I give pork too on occasion but I just feel like pigs are gross haha

And yard cleanup is awesome on raw fed dogs. Honestly, I never see Abbie poops in the yard. It’s only Brevin poops (kibble fed dog) I think Abbie’s just disintegrate after a day or two which is nice.

But yeah I can go on for awhile so it’s easier if you just research it if it sounds like something you may be interested in :p

My husband and I joke because we don’t eat meat. Well on occasion we do. Like once every week or two. So the freezer is stuffed with all this meet for our tiny little dog! Lol people come over they probably think we are meet crazies because we have weird stuff in there lol like pig feet, chicken feet, necks, kidneys, liver, heart lol you know, stuff that people wouldn’t normally see in a freezer :p we have regular meat too of course :p

[Mocha]

Thanks everyone!
Meat where I live is either really good but super expensive, or really cheap but really sickening. I don’t really have the time and effort (lol) to feed an all raw diet.
I found a pet (dog and cat) website called chewy.com and they have a lot of good quality (I think) dog foods for less money. The treats and toys are also really inexpensive.
I plan on feeding something like kibble in the morning and meat mixed with wet food in the evening, or kibble in the morning and kibble meat mix in the evening.
I’m probably going to go with either Merrick (thanks to your suggestions!), Blue Buffalo, or Canidae ALS or another formula.
I don’t want to stress the dog out when he’s coming home with me from the shelter, so I plan on getting the smallest bag of whatever crap food he’s on, then later in the week getting a small bag of Blue Buffalo, Canidae, or Merrick. I’m reading reviews on each of the foods to see which one most dogs like so I can try that one out first.

I don’t usually answer posts with more than 5 other posts but the more here the better, I really want as many different opinions as I can get!

[Andie101]

Taste of the wild is priced very well, and is grain free. It’s cheaper then blue buffalo which has grains in their regular line.

[katanity]

I am a BIG BIG fan of Champion foods, who make Orijen and Acana. Cannot recommend them enough!

[KytKattin]

One thing I do want to mention that I am seeing with my friends and family that feed kibble: there seems to be a variety of quality even within supposedly really good brands. My mom had to take her dogs off of Blue (they are very much seniors) due to it causing them to puke. Another person I know had problems with a certain type of Solid Gold for both her dogs, causing them to lose their fur/break out in hives. MoveDiagonally mentioned it above, and I really think it is true for a lot of brands, especially as they get more popular and try to meet demand. They might start cutting corners or sourcing cheaper ingredients.

NewBunnyOwner123: Only 3oz per day?! How much does she weigh? My smallest at about 4 lbs eats 4oz, though my senior girl at 6 lbs only eats 2.7oz because her metabolism is so much slower (she also has fur, while the 4 pounder is practically bald). My 13 lb dog eats 7-8oz. I really couldn’t imagine affording it for a larger dog than him, and everyone says he is “so tiny.” I really love how muscly they get on raw though. My largest hast two siblings that he gets to visit with frequently, and he looks like he is build almost completely differently because he has so much more muscle and a leaner build.

[MoxieMeadows]

Interesting this topic should pop up!

 

 Our family has 3 dogs, (yikes!) My dogs are “picky.”

They don’t really like expensive dog food brands…. I don’t know why. what they go crazy about is Gravy Train. They always lick all the gravy off first and then eat the “crunchies.” (dog food).

I guess if that’s what they like, then whatever.

 

Well, we did get a free sample for a dog food that was REALLY expensive for a tiny bag. But for 3 dogs, and all our other animals, they can stick to their gravy train! lol.

I love them, but I’m not going to force them to eat food they don’t like. Gravy train is cheap around here, about $13 a decent sized bag, so not what you’re looking for I guess.

I always fell bad when people give a list of this expensive stuff they give their dogs and they go “what do you feed your dogs?”    “Gravy train” Mumbles…..

[Mocha]

My parents had  5 or 6 dogs in the past (before I was alive). One of the cutest ones (an American Eskimo) died from cancer and I believe her food had something to do with it. I think she was eating Eukanuba. So that’s why I am on the voyage to find a good dog food for my new pup.
I have crossed Blue Buffalo off my list. I read a lot of people had diareah(lol I don’t think I spelled that right) and puking problems on it.
I think I’m going with Canidae All life stages, Taste of the Wild, Merrick, or Chicken Soup For the Dog Lover’s Soul. The site I mentioned before (chewy.com) has a lot of different foods and some of the higher quality ones are there.
Thanks for the good answers everyone and more are welcome!

MoxieMeadows, lol.

[LBJ10]

I have to go to a specialty food store to get Acana for my dog. I mix it with Nature’s Variety Prairie (contains grain). The reason is because my 15 year old dog was becoming sensitive to grains. She was vomiting a lot because of it. We tried to go grain-free, but that just made it come out the other end (if you know what I mean)! So we ended up mixing grain-free and not-grain-free, which ended up working. Since it works, I really don’t want to mess with it. LOL

Acana is around $40 for a 15lb bag. You can get Nature’s Variety Prairie for around $50 for a 27lb bag. They also make a grain-free formula called Instinct. That is more like $75 for a 27lb bag.

[Mocha]

Thanks everyone!
The time is getting closer until I adopt my new friend!

[LongEaredLions]

Don’t forget that when you get your dog, we will need pictures!
It’s so hard to wait!

[Bam]

Of the non-EU foods I’d recommend Acana and Orijen and Taste of the Wild. They are kind of pricey though, but that may be because I’m in the EU. I give my dog a combo of raw food and Purizon which is very similar to Orijen but about half the price (again this may have to do with the EU-market.). I’m assuming you are in the USA. Try to read the ingredient lists of different foods, if cereal or corn are among the first listed ingredients and stands for a big percentage of the contents, it’s probably not a very good food. Good food is pricier than bad food, but not all pricey foods are good foods! Some of them are just very cleverly marketed.

How exiting to be planning for a dog!

[NewBunnyOwner123]

It’s funny you say that Bam. The first food that comes to mind that is so big here is the Science Diet brand. It’s priced like it’s a good food but it’s not. At all. Look at the first three ingredients and it has chicken by products and Corn. Yuck! I’m not talking about prescription science diet but the kind you buy at pet stores. It’s marked up like a good food but the ingredients show other wise ugh. Good marketing ploy targeting those ill informed

[MoxieMeadows]

When are you getting your dog(s)?

[KytKattin]

Posted By NewBunnyOwner123 on 6/08/2014 9:03 AM

It’s funny you say that Bam. The first food that comes to mind that is so big here is the Science Diet brand. It’s priced like it’s a good food but it’s not. At all. Look at the first three ingredients and it has chicken by products and Corn. Yuck! I’m not talking about prescription science diet but the kind you buy at pet stores. It’s marked up like a good food but the ingredients show other wise ugh. Good marketing ploy targeting those ill informed

Look at the ingredients on the prescription stuff too, it is mostly corn. Well, it was at least, but last I heard they were possibly going to be changing that due to the cost of corn going up. I don’t follow what goes on in the kibble world too much anymore. But I specifically am cautious of vets that try to prescribe those diets. I understand that they might help, but I also know that the vet stands to make money off of selling them instead of recommending something else, partially because you have to keep going to them in order to get the prescription renewed, and partially because they have inventory they need to move. It is completely different when the vet specifically orders that food for just a few clients that legitimately are doing better on it, but when I walk in to a clinic and there is a large wall full of that stuff and only that stuff (not a mixture of brands) I almost always get a lecture about why my dogs should be on one of those diets instead of raw. Typically it is the Oral Care formula since my rational for feeding raw is to prevent plaque buildup/yearly dental cleanings. My dogs are also otherwise healthy, more lean bodied and muscular than dogs of similar size and body shape, and I’m happy with what I feed, so why should I change? Kibble is a new invention within the last couple hundred years, and I would bet survival rates are up more because of vaccines than anything else. Not that there is anything wrong with kibble if people want to feed it, I just don’t like the idea that it is the only way to have a healthy dog, which is definitely a marketing ploy as well!

[Mocha]

On July 14 or 15!
I will probably be looking for one best friend, but my mom is coming with me and who knows what she’ll want lol.

[LBJ10]

Posted By NewBunnyOwner123 on 6/08/2014 9:03 AM

It’s funny you say that Bam. The first food that comes to mind that is so big here is the Science Diet brand. It’s priced like it’s a good food but it’s not. At all. Look at the first three ingredients and it has chicken by products and Corn. Yuck! I’m not talking about prescription science diet but the kind you buy at pet stores. It’s marked up like a good food but the ingredients show other wise ugh. Good marketing ploy targeting those ill informed

Science Diet is a terrible food. It’s still fairly popular where you are? I didn’t think people buy it so much anymore. It was HUGE when I was a kid. Everyone was promoting it and I remember the petstore convincing my mom that it was this really good food. My mom always fed the cats Kit and Kaboodle or Meow Mix. LOL Turns out that Science Diet is not better. Also, both of my childhood cats (completely unrelated) died from cancerous tumors in their mouths. Coincidence? It makes me wonder.

[NewBunnyOwner123]

Yeah I used to work at the pet store and it was crazy how often I seen people buy those bags. Anytime I was asked for advice I very quickly gave them the run down on what to look for in dog food and why such and such ingredient is bad.

I haven’t had a vet appointment yet where the vet knew she was on a raw diet. (They still think she’s on Merrick Grain Free. But Brevin still eats kibble) Mainly because I know I will get lectured. They are so concerned raw feeders aren’t providing the right nutrion for our canine companions (common reason raw feeders get lectured) that’s my biggest annoyance is they will try and make me feel stupid and not capapable of providing the best for my dog lol but it also shows in her appearance that I am providing everything she needs. Her coat is beutiful and shiny, her teeth look pearly white. Last year the vet made note that she was getting tarter buildup. At 5 her teeth look amazing. They remind me of pearly whites young dogs have. Yet I still feel like they will react and act concerned for my dog that she isn’t getting everything she needs *sigh*

When you get your puppy be sure to show us pictures!

[MoxieMeadows]

That’s soo far away! How can you wait so patiently?!

[Author]

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