Hi Corey,
I can relate to your calorie content puzzlement, since I too had the same puzzlement when I started reading this website last summer. I was hoping the calorie content would be included when the Editor’s Choice ratings came online, but alas, it’s not. (Sorry if I seem disappointed, I am.)
The subject of this thread is about Quantity so I am not addressing the stomach issues, especially since I’ve been most curious about this for some time and get other opinions/thoughts on the subject.
How do you reconcile which food to buy? Find a food(s) Dr. Mike gives 3-5 stars, that you are comfortable buying, feed your dog and watch his weight. Adjust servings accordingly. It does require you use a measuring cup, not a plain scoop or empty soup can as I have done at times.
Food for thought: (pun intended)
Dog food is sold by the pound and fed by the cup. It’s hard to compare those 2 factors. And to complicate it further, the dog food mfg’rs don’t seem to agree on how much to feed, calorie wise.
DFA Calorie Calculator says my dog needs 1230 calories per day. On their websites, Fromm Adult Gold claims 408 calories/cup. Orijen Adult claims 478, so that extrapolates to Fromm recommending 1428 cals./day and Orijen recommending 1003 for my 55 lb. dog. That’s a huge difference between the two, with Fromm over ~20% and Orijen under ~20% of the DFA calculator.
To show the recommended feeding amounts another way,
Food—-Mfgr Cups—DFA Calc Cups
Fromm—3.5———-3.0
Orijen—-2.1———-2.5
You just have to go with the quantity that keeps appropriate weight on your dog. I like this chart for reference. http://media.marketwire.com/attachments/200802/MOD-402887_weight-chart1.jpg
If you want to compare prices of dog food, I think it’s better to compare cups fed per dollar rather than dollar per pound of the bag. Those looking to maximize economy might be more interested in a high calorie/low cost 3-star kibble over a lower calorie 5-star kibble, but it really isn’t that simple as you can see. (And I haven’t even mentioned protein, carbs, vitamins, etc.!) FWIW, I actually measured Fromm Adult Gold to be 4 cups per pound and Orijen Adult to be 3.2 cups per pound. Both claim 10% max moisture so Orijen would seem to be a much more dense food based on recommended serving size, but you may not be getting enough calories.
Sorry if this post rambled and got scattered, a million possibilities exist to feed you dog and I haven’t figured it out yet either, although “Blue” seems to be enjoying and doing well with the mix of 3-5 star rated foods I buy, per Dr. Mike’s rating system. 🙂
