I was sure I’d posted yesterday …but not seeing…so I’ll give it another go. I have adopted a stray – Yorkshire terrier. She’s 15 lbs ..approx. 16-18 mths. When 1st trying to bring weight up [10 lbs] tried mixing small Blue Buffalo brand with Purina One but it BB was too rich and gave her loose stool so used Nutrisca with the Purina. Find that Purina One is not recommended [2star] and there’s been a recall on the Nutrisca. Anyone got advice on what I should transition her to? EARTHBORN HOLISTIC is highly rated. Anyone using this?
Our store is discontinuing Merrick cans due to Purina buyout so I’m looking for a replacement thats similar in texture (chunky/soupy with vegetables) and similar price range , between $2-3 a can. Obviously a company with no recalls or made by big food like Purina, Nestle, Proctor Gamble etc, Also, no wellness, holistic select or blue buffalo.
Thanks!
Usually with big dogs especially when they are going to get real big it maybe best to get a large breed formula because they tend to have better supplements in them for the bigger breeds. But you might want to check with your vet. Mine I have on Buffalo Blue Large breed formula (chicken and brown rice formula). As far as giving him something else I wish I could, he has a lot of allergies and this is the only food that doesn’t make him sick.
Got it…. and I was completely wrong. It was Soresto collars. As soon as the dogs started using them they stopped eating. What I missed was that they stopped using them and the problem persisted. It turns out the dogs were having a reaction to Blue Buffalo food. The owner switched foods and the dogs were right as rain.
Sorry for wasting everyone’s bandwidth.
It’s been a quite some time since I’ve posted here, but wanted to give everyone some information.
A lot of you are doing good with the water, supplements, etc..
For dry food check out Zignature. I just recently heard of it. I’ve been feeding Fromm for so long.
Zignature is limited ingredient, grain free, potato free (which I was told was very important), lower in calories, etc..
All good things for helping keep ph in check and is good for dogs with kidney/bladder issues.
I contacted them about the target ph and they said theirs is 5.5. That’s lower then most high quality foods. Fromm is 6-6.5 and Wellness was 7.
A few others wrote me back with numbers all within 6-7, but Blue Buffalo told me they don’t know the ph because they aren’t prescription food. A response like that will keep me away from that food forever.
I can say that since switching to Ziganture, adding water, a tablespoon of wet food and using an occasional dose of Berry Balance my dogs ph has been holding steady and no crystals.
I did try the Wysong Biotic ph supplement, but I was not a fan of what was in it.
What works for my dog may not work for another, but I thought I’d mention the Zignature food. Might be worth a try. A lot of their formulas have cranberries and blueberries in it, but there are a couple like the new Kangaroo that do not. zignature.com
I doubt there’ll ever be a day when Blue Buffalo appears on the Editor’s Choice list. Those four and five star ratings on the review side are based solely on ingredients. Editor’s Choice takes much more into consideration and Blue Buffalo is lacking in both quality control and transparency, which are two important factors in determining brands that meet the EC criteria.
Edit: We were typing at the same time, Deirdre. I second your post in its entirety! 🙂
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This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by
DogFoodie.
Last time I looked an array of blue buffalo was rated on the site. Why do people keep asking how such and such a brand is rated instead of looking it up first? Blue buffalo has ratings that are all over the place, which is likely why, as a brand, it is not on the editors choice list. I think it lacks consistency, and isn’t on top of its manufacturing process – blaming its suppliers for by-products in its food, for example, and its jobbed-out processing plants for too much vitamin d.
You might want to go online and read the problems with Blue Buffalo. That’s why no ratings.
I order Castor & Pollux from Chewy online. If you buy enough, it’s free shipping. I also feed and order from them my kibble, Champion Foods Orijen, 5 stars, .
I always have read that Blue Buffalo was considered top of the line dog food. Would like
to know how you rate it. I was feeding my dogs Caster and Pollux but it stopped being
sold here. I don’t know why as it was an excellent dog food. I now give them Blue Buffalo
and they seem happy. How do you rate this brand?
Hello all, I by no means am an expert in vet care or dog allergies/sensitivities, but I do have a similar problem going on with a lab of my own. He is a year and a half old and has had what seems to be food sensitivities. I started out by feeding him Blue Buffalo and since then his stool has been loose. I did research on the brand and found it to be not quite as good as they advertise it to be. That being said however if you are a fan then all the power to you and your dog, but I personally was not satisfied. I then spent hundreds of dollars at the vet trying to get his loose stool figured out and they pushed for Science Diet I/D sensitive stomach. While my dog was on that he seemed to be very itchy and get sores on his belly (they weren’t mites because they did a skin sample and found nothing). After getting fed up with the vet trying to push these really expensive foods at me I went to a local food store and really went into depth researching the different types that were recommended. I went with the Merrick Real Lamb and Sweet Potato and since the switch my pups stool has been significantly better. I know you said you have tried Merrick food before but just wanted to give you my insight on what helped because I was in a similar situation as yourself. Cheers
Where does “Blue Buffalo” stand in the ratings
My good chihuahua mix friend has issues with tear stains and i am wondering what exactly is causing this. Im currently feeding him Blue Buffalo Wilderness Senior mixed with wellness core (canned). If anyone know of any good products to tackle this issue i would greatly appreciate it.
Hey guys,
First, thanks in advance for any help.
My wife and I have been struggling to find a good food for our 3 year old lab. He has always been very sensitive to different foods, but in the past two years his allergies (itchy paws, runny eyes, ear infections, anal glands) really seemed to have gotten worse so we’ve tried several different food trials to attempt to find a food that worked for him.
We’ve already tried the following foods with no luck:
Blue Buffalo Basics Turkey & Potato
Merrick Whitefish
Wellness Core Whitefish
Zignature Duck
Wellness Complete Health Whitefish & Sweet Potato
Granted, with a few of these he got significantly worse and we did not finish a full 3-6 month trial, generally quitting after the first bag so I am not opposed to revisiting any food above as we did not know how to properly run a food trial at the time. He is an 85lbs lab, but has maintained a very healthy weight through all of this (he’s very tall).
He has been on the Wellness Complete Health Whitefish & Sweet Potato for about 3-4 months now, supplemented with probiotics and pure pumpkin as his stool was VERY loose.
I just had him in for a checkup at our vet, and they recommended trying out Hill’s Prescription Diet d/d Duck & Potato, or Royal Canin’s Veterinary Vegetarian diet. I am a little hesitant to go with either of these diets, cost set aside. Are there any other food’s you would recommend trying first? Or do you guys think one of the prescription diet is needed?
Again, any help is greatly appreciated!
Where could one find charts or suggestions as to how much protein, carbs, fat, etc. we should be feeding our 65 lb Doodle who is 17 months old. Would like to get her on a better grade of food. Have been using Ideal Balance adult dry, with abt. 1/3 can of Blue Buffalo grillers. Thanks in advance for any help.
Food sensitivities can be to almost anything. That said, the first thing I would try is eliminating any chicken or chicken eggs. I wouldn’t choose Blue Buffalo products for my dog, but I’d also try a different food for your dog as all Blue Buffalo products contain chicken.
Lindsay,
I have 2 brother maltese/pekingese mix that will be 14 in Dec. They are both on Royal Canin LP Modified Renal dry. This was from a vet’s recommendation and it has only been about 3 months. It cuts back their protein intake, although I mix a tablespoon of cooked chicken breast in with their meal as well as about 2 tablespoons of water. Also, I am still mixing Blue Buffalo Grain Free Wilderness Chicken recipe with it. I am going to switch to Orajen to mix with the RC instead of BB. (didn’t realize BB isn’t as good as I thought it was) Also, I have a 12 year old Italian Greyhound. She has an enlarged heart and the vet recommended RC Early Cardiac dry. She has been on that for almost a year. Doesn’t like the taste too well, but does finally eat it. Same program as the brothers with the chicken and water, but no BB. Both RC foods are vet prescription required. All dogs get a multi vitamin once a day and a cosequin joint supplement once a day. The Greyhound takes a cardiac pill called Cardial. She gets 1/4 of the tablet twice a day. They are all very active and no weight problem.
Hi i am new to the site and recently became the owner of a 7 week old lab pup, I am looking for some advice on switching his food and never found out from the breeder what he brand he ate before I got him. I also bought some blue buffalo chicken and rice puppy food but am thinking of switching to natural balance after reading consumer complaints on the blue buffalo, any advice would be greatly appreciated
Alan K-
Here is one of many articles about the latest lawsuit against Blue Buffalo: http://www.petfoodindustry.com/articles/5166-blue-buffalo-admits-to-byproduct-meal-purina-responds
This one is also supposedly due to a bad supplier.
I agree with DogFoodie and Marie. As Marie suggested, google Blue Buffalo for a list of complaints of which there are many.
Are you asking if you wasted money on the Blue Buffalo or on your Editor’s Choice membership? If it’s the former, yes; the latter, no. IMO.
I’m new to this website. Did I just waste my money? I feed my dog Blue Buffalo dog food.
Thank you all for the information. Lucy is also on 225mg of Denamarin once a day. I am at work so I don’t have her exact enzyme levels right now, but they might be on the paperwork at home so I will check tonight.
We have tried to cut back on the amount of food, but she just seems ravenous. I supplement her food with frozen green beans to try and fill her up, but lately she has also started eating my daughters plastic toys – Legos and My Little Ponies have been mutilated. This behavior is just not normal for Lucy at all. Even when she was a puppy, she never was much of a chewer.
When I was feeding the Hill Scrip food, she was getting just over a cup a day – half in the morning and half in the evening. On the Blue Buffalo, she has been getting more than that just because it doesn’t seem to fill her up as much. She just seems to be continually starving and when she does eat, she starts choking because she is eating so fast – again, this is NOT her normal behavior.
She did have an ultrasound to look for signs of Cushings, but everything was normal – other than a slightly enlarged liver. It was nothing to be too worried about, according to the vet.
My cocker spaniel, Lucy, is 11 years old. She has always been in good health. Over the past year she has gained weight and, according to the blood tests, has elevated liver enzymes. The first thought was Cushings, but that is not the case. The vet put her on Hill Metabolic and Motility. We did a 3 pound sample and it did help Lucy. She was not panting as much adn just looked more comfortable. However, I know the ingrediaents in this food suck. Corn and chicken meal are ingredients that I would like to avoid. I bought some Blue Buffalo senior formula hoping that would help, but Lucy is right back to the panting like crazy and just looks like she is uncomfortable.
Is there another food I could try or am I stuck feeding the Hill food? I will do it if I have to as it did seem to help, but it just kills me to feed her corn and chicken meal.
I have a Golden Jada. Very much over weight and needs to drop some pounds. She is presently on Thyroid Meds and it has been recommended that I give her one meal a day of all protein. Any suggestions for a high protein dog. She has one meal of Blue Buffalo Senior . I have just introduced this. She is 5yrs old and I have just adopted her. Can you give me any suggestions.
I think starting out by blending the foods is a good idea. His/Her stomach will let you know how well he/she is tolerating the way you are blending and how much time you are giving the transition. Some dogs need 7 days, some need more, some like Aquariangt mentioned can go to the next food cold turkey. Thats how my dog is, but he wasnt always like that. Took a little time to fix his stomach from feeding him Blue Buffalo for a few months.
I have a 4 month old male bloodhound named Boone. He’s been fed on wellness large breed puppy formula. He hasnt done well on wellness. His poop isn’t as firm as I would like. He’s been checked by a vet with no problems. Also keeping weight on him is really hard. He’s is pretty active throughout the day and plays alot. He’s of course gaining weight from growing but you can still see his ribs and he’s still pretty skinny. He’s fed 4 1/2 cups a day. I’m not sure what food to try next. There’s not many large breed puppy foods. I’ve been recommended blue buffalo but unsure about the high protien if it’s too much. I could really use help!
I own a natural food store and we use to carry BB but kicked them out because the continue to change ingredients and they don’t have to change packaging for 6 months it started to make some of my customers dogs sick. If you google BB they just admitted a couple of weeks ago that there is by-product meal in their food. Here is a link that explains: http://www.poisonedpets.com/blue-buffalo-admits-to-bullshitting-consumers/
Hey aquariangt,
Did I spell that right? Can’t even spell my name today. I was flummoxed by the person who replied to my post about Blue Buffalo because their website NEVER mentions that the food is sourced or made in the USA. The person who answered my post said she/he had spoken to some one who worked for Blue Buffalo. Sure, I”d say the brand I worked for was made in the USA. ANd…..if it is why arent’ they proudly announcing it on their packaging?
Aaaaagh. One of those days when the rescue puppies peed on the couch while I was rinsing out the mop from their other ‘accidents’. I was only gone four hours and they have puppy pads. I love all the rescues (4), but I want to get back to my four old guys who are now terrified of their mother who tends to scream a lot. Like when couch cushion is pulled off the couch so it can be peed on???? Why not just pee on the damn thing while it’s still on the couch?
Oh my. IF I had a bigger house and more money (don’t we all) I”d keep them. The little rescue girl is still so afraid that if I touch her she pees. I try to pick her up and stroke her and talk quietly to her and she’ll let me get kinda close to give her treats. She has something wrong with her leg and limps a lot. I hope she finds a good home. Our ‘RICH’ persons animal rescue organization’s executive director told me to have them put down. I’ve had them three months. Guess I didn’t offer to make a donation. And, if I won the lottery I wouldn’t give them a penny. I know people who are able to turn in dogs ‘with’ a donation.
Grrrr.
Hope your day is better than mine. Your dog is cute, border collie? I have a part border collie. She is so FAT and I mean FAT. Part of it is lack of exercise since my disability I haven’t been able to walk her and she eats as is she will never be fed again. She’s lilke a vacuum. But Border Collies are so so so smart. She learned to open the back door whenshe wanted to come in and has nipped at my calves (calfs?) to make me move faster.
I am taking your advice and not buying Blue whatever anymore.
I have 2 labs and 1 lab / boxer mix. Recently switched from science diet to blue buffalo. I know, there are still better choices but that is for a later day. I mixed the remaining science diet with BB about 20/80% and fed my dogs. Two of them are doing fine but one has vomited. Should I buy some more science diet and make it more like 50:50 or switch the one with a weak stomach to rice with a little of the 20:80 mix or???
As of last fall Blue Buffalo was using Simmons for a cannery. They opened their own kibble manufacturing facility last year; they still use co-packers:
http://www.foodmanufacturing.com/news/2014/08/blue-buffalo-factory-opens-90m-plant-joplin
http://www.petfoodindustry.com/articles/4467-blue-buffalo-opens-heartland-pet-food-manufacturing-facility
Contact them if you want to know who else manufactures their dry foods and where they source their ingredients:
http://bluebuffalo.com/contact/
Check out their website FAQ’s for their statement of where their food is manufactured:
http://bluebuffalo.com/frequently-asked-questions/
Hello,
After writing a very thorough statement about whether Blue Buffalo is made in the US and if it is why doesn’t it mention it on it’s packages. I somehow erased my entire email. Or my 15 year old computer did it for me. All I can find on the Devine Delights is how nutritional and that no chicken or poultry by-products are used.
Isn’t there a law that makes these companies who are making food, maybe not for people, state where the ingredients come from and where the food is manufactured. Oh wait, I forgot where I live. Hm In Texas they probably use euthanized cats and dogs for pet food. San Antonio alone could feed every animal in Texas with all the animals they euthanize each year.
So, I screwed up and purchased a food I can’t afford (I live on disability and have a limited budget–but my dogs come first. The Blue Divine was for a small dog I rescued, plus I rescued a mother dog and two puppies and I have my own four old dogs over ten and a 16 year old cat.–Sometimes I get to eat;-)
Thanks for this forum. It’s really opened my eyes to how dog/cat food is made. I had an idea of what many of the items used were, in fact I knew about most of them, except for ‘Meat Meal’. I’ll be darned. I’ll have to join the Premium club as soon as I have some money so I know what to look for to keep my dogs living comfortably for a lot more years.
Thanks to all of the animal lovers out there who aren’t afraid to have their say and also rescue and maintain healthy animals. And thank you to the ‘dentist’ too. Couldn’t resist, I got a kick out of that little piece of info. Good for him
Good night,
Maureen Martinek
Hi Jeaneene-
Everyone here has offered good advice and given good suggestions. I wanted to touch on a couple points that people brought up and elaborate on them. Firstly the Beneful…unfortuntely Beneful is well known as a very poor quality food filled with artifical dyes, corn, by-products as the only source of animal protein and propylene glycol which is the second cousin to the main ingredient in anti-freeze. Your transition to Blue Buffalo was met with diaherra because like others said, when dogs each the same food for several years they no longer produce the healthy flora (bacteria) in their gut to be able to handle a dietary change. This is why many dogs switching foods need to be transitioned for much longer than the normal 7 day period. Now, I don’t consider Blue to be that great of an all natural food, but it is a much better food than Beneful and that will also contribute to diaherra. A lot of times dogs bodies will detox poor quality foods when fed a better one.
My dog used to have a “sensitive stomach” as most people call it and once I started to give him a digestive supplement during food transitions and kefir/yogurt as a probiotic his whole life changed. I change his food constantly now with no digestive upset what so ever. Lately hes even had one food for breakfast and something different for dinner.
Second point I’d like to make is that the theory about dry food cleaning a dogs teeth is a myth and was debunked a long time ago. Dogs teeth are carnivorus and are meant to tear and rip flesh, they dont have the grinding motion humans do and therefore often don’t chew their food enough for the dry to benefit the teeth. I feed both wet and dry and brush my dogs teeth regularly and his teeth are in good condition.
Lastly, concerning the UTI. I have only experienced it with a cat and yes he was put on the feline Urinary SO dry, which I now find a strange recommendation as the top reason for crystals is eating all dry food. Adding wet to the diet even if it is the RC canned food would keep his system flushed as someone suggested as well. If you are planning to continue feeding the dry I would highly suggest adding a canned food as well and also when the vet tells you he needs to be on an rX diet for life, that is wrong info and a way to get your money. You can certainly in time transition him back onto a normal HEALTHY diet. I would suggest something other than Beneful and transitioning very very slow.
I wish you a lot of luck dealing the the UTI though, I know how awful it can be to see your baby in pain like that.
Aquariangt- My kittens name is Dani thats cute! lol As for Bentley my pit he does well with high protein. He is insanely muscular but has not had any skeletal development issues. Thank god because he was eating Blue Buffalo during his critical growth period.
I could never bring myself to feed him something like Purina or Pedigree Im just wondering if something like Pure Balance with 30% protein would be ok because its pretty cheap. I can buy that whenever Im hard on money and still get him good wet food.
Wellness all the way! (I feed Wellness Core but the entire brand is great) I’d stay away from blue buffalo period, their manufacturer Diamond Foods is awful and gets recalled more often than not.
Also Orijen / Acana are amazing but have to be ordered online because I think they are made in Canada. Merrick is good, EVO is good but overall Orijen/Acana and wellness are my top pick for nutritional value, ingredient sourcing and manufacturing.
PitLove,
Sorry that’s kind of funny though as I’m transitioning my dogs to Merrick dry from Blue Buffalo. Researching dog food can be a nightmare in itself but i realized something in the process. Not every dog is the same, what works well for my dog might not do so well with yours. You kind of have to tone some of the discussion out and know your dogs well and see what they do best on. All the higher end dog foods still have their own issues and you still have to keep an eye out for things that aren’t acceptable to you as a pet owner. I completely agree that you not only have to know the food but the company and their practices as well.
I have used Blue Buffalo Wilderness for probably6 – 7 years and am switching now. My dogs (ESS) have always done well on them with some small issues as of late though. The issues have been sporadic issues of loose stools. My 2 current dogs have cast iron stomachs but lately they will get loose stools with no explanation, sometimes the new bags are a hit other times not as much. I have had issues with pet stores supplying expired or near expired bags both box and online, which is why I always check dates now before opening / buying. Once opened I will inspect the food to make sure it is consistent with what I’ve seen in the past, but my senses are not as good as the dogs so I might miss something occasionally.
I understand that in mass produced items such as kibble, quality control becomes more difficult the more they produce and the more facilities that are involved in the production. There could be other issues involved here but given some of the consistent stories online and after doing much research, I will be switching to another brand. I feel that if I’m paying the extra money, the quality contour should be better. Sometimes when companies grow they forget to keep doing the things that have gotten them there.
I am switching from Blue Buffalo Wilderness to Merrick and was wondering if anyone sees a difference from the Merrick Backountry to the Merrick Grain Free other than the freeze dried pieces of meat. To me they almost seem identical with a few minor exception. If they are similar then I’ll just do the Grain Free as it is cheaper and if I’m not mistaken more per bag. I did buy a small bag of the Backcountry to try and my dogs loved it, no loose stools.
I have 1 1/2 yr old German Shepard that we got last Sept.. since then she’s had episodes of diarrhea, about 6-8, 4 of which we took her to the vet because she was having bad abdominal pain(When you touched her stomach she’s yelp). The other times, it passed with her eating a lot of grass then rice and chicken for the day or two after. (She tires to lick all the hair off floor and eat anything when she goes into these fits, as she like licks the air).
Im thinking I need to switch her food, been reading a lot about German Shepard with their stomach issues! What should I be looking at for protein, fat, and carb percent’s? My understanding is a moderate fat of 17-23 is ideal .
She’s on Natures Variety Raw boost duck (and turkey I believe, whichever is the duck one). It seems to have higher carbs then some other options(Are these harder on her stomach??).
Ideally, I’d feed her and my Belgian Milionis the same food, but can do separate.
Not crazy after Blue Buffalo /Royal Cainin/ Science Diet.
Each time we’ve gone into the emergency room, they don’t seem to care what I’m feeding her, and they don’t have any recommendations… just give her a nausea shot and then send me home with diarrhea pills and tell me to come back the next day if she doesn’t start feeling better.
Have a pet store, so the options to get basically any food is there, just so confused.. each company reps tells me their food is best for her obviously.. but not totally sold that nurto max is the best lol.
I already give her a probiotic spray on her kibble, and going to start giving her Great Life enzymes pro(digestive enzymes).
Raw is unfortunately not an option ( great for my chi mix but can’t afford it for the big ones!)
thanks so much for ANY help!!!!
Hello everyone, new to this site and forum but in process of bringing home new male yellow lab puppy, currently being fed Blue Buffalo Wilderness chicken puppy food. While it’s not a “bad” puppy formula, I think I want to change him over to a more superior brand of food. This will be our second male yellow lab, the first of which lived until almost 16 yrs old, and who we also got as a 9 week puppy. I was looking at both the Orijen puppy large breed or the Wellness Core puppy. Need to know what is best way to incorporate a new food at this tender age, and appreciate any comments, opinions and recommendations about these brands as well. Thanks, and I look forward to being a member here. Carol
I haven’t really kept up with it much since I don’t feed BB kibble. They did post this letter on their website when these issues first came up. There might be other info on their site regarding these issues, but it’s the only response I have seen from them to their customers:
http://bluebuffalo.com/about-us/whats-new-at-blue/wilbur-ellis-texas-plant/
Hey guys,
I wanted to share some info I found out about the lawsuit with Blue Buffalo and the by-products in their food. Some of you may already know all this but I’ve noticed (at least at my job) not many people even knew they were being sued.
We have a rep from Blue that comes to our store (Petco) and I talk with her frequently as she and I share similar views on dog nutrition. I saw her today and had to ask what she knows about the lawsuit and the by-products getting into the food.
She told me that basically, it turned out to be an issue with a supplier. This supplier also supplies to other companies like Wellness and they too will be effected by by-products showing up in their food. Just hasn’t been made public yet.
Essentially, the supplier put the by-products in the food without the company knowing is what she said. They produced in court all of their paperwork for what they bought and there was no corn or by-products on the list. The supplier according to the company has been dropped and was almost instantly.
She told me Blue tested their food to decide if they should recall it and they found nothing to be of concern which is why they havent had a recall. Plus they would have to recall so much food it would put them out of business most likely.
The problem I’m seeing from what she said is the company isnt willing to be 100% transparent about this whole situation, which does not make them look good. Also, we have yet to see an apology from them about the “mishap” on the suppliers part. Unless its somewhere out there and I just dont know it. We still have no info on what foods were effected by the by-products, what states, what lot numbers. nothing.
I still wont be feeding Blue anymore mainly because I dont feel like everything is on the up and up. Just thought I’d share what our Blue rep told me!
Great to know! Thanks for the recommendations. I have sent Orijen an email last night asking for samples. I can sure try the rest, why not. Yeah, i’ve given him several cans of dogswell now and he has had zero issues. I never tried Blue Buffalo as I had a family member try it and they didn’t care for it and told me not to bother. Thanks again!
-Bobby Dog, Thanks as well for the recommendations! I was just basically looking for some ones that aren’t commercial store bought such as Pedigree etc. Also that have a decent meat content as my dog is very picky and actually doesn’t seem to like “fish or veggies” that much. He’s definitely a meat kind of dog.
Speaking of Canidae as well. What’s your opinion on them? My local pet store told me he was getting Canidae in and said I should give that a try back when I bought Merrick’s. Though for some reason he told me they were a plant based food and here I read it is a meat based mostly.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 9 months ago by
chris.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 9 months ago by chris.
I see. Like I said in another post, the ones I would wholeheartedly recommend are:
Earthborn Holistic GF
Victor GF
Dr. Tim’s GF & GI
Wysong (Nurture and Epigen are their “best” lines, but they have a lot of other good formulas)
Annamaet GF
Nulo
Farmina GF (even though I have not used it yet)
As well as the Canadian foods Orijen, Acana, NOW! Fresh and GO!
You can even email the above companies or send them a message on social media and ask for samples! I have gotten samples from Victor, Dr. Tim’s, Wysong, Annamaet, and Nulo sent me coupon books. 😉
As for Dogswell, 2 friends have fed it with no issues, and Bruno is currently on the Dogswell LiveFree Salmon one and is doing just fine, and I have fed Nutrisca Chicken & Chickpea (made by Dogswell) in the past and he did just fine on it too. I also fed Blue Buffalo Wilderness Puppy with no issues but I know other people have had issues with the brand (don’t know which line of food, or all of them). A friend, my roommate, and an aunt have all fed Blue (the aunt still feeds it) with no issues. Questionable companies – sure. But from my experience, and that of others around me, we have personally had no immediate issues with them.
Same problem here. We have 3 dogs which have been on Kirkland Healthy weight for YEARS. No problems. We thought we would try a more “healthy” food and bought the Blue Buffalo brand, and one of our 3 dogs has the pukes. We came home to 2 throw ups and she puked twice this morning. We transitioned foods for 1 full week. My wife was adamant about it and did a good job. They have been on this for a week now and the problems are starting with our German Short Haired pointer. Very disappointed. Our other 2 lab mixes appear to be fine. Perhaps this food isn’t for everyone.
Thanks Pitlove!
Yeah, I have already looked into Orijen before and I just can’t afford that. Merrick was even hard to press but I know it would be better and worth a few more bucks then Blue Buffalo. I wish I could afford it because i’ve been recommended that so many times so I assume it has to be great food and a great company to deal with. However, I see it at least I’m not feeding him junk food or commercial grade food. So I figured Merrick’s was a good choice for him, but doesn’t change the fact also in the future I can always switch if need be.
At my local pet store I seen so many people buy Natures Variety or Natures Balance and they sell out of it pretty fast.
Thanks for the reply and recommendations! 🙂
Speaking of dog food I was feeding him blue buffalo grain free as well and literally the beginning of this month I switched him to Merrick’s Grain Free. I did a little research on here and it seems to be better and he definitely seems to like it more. Not sure on anyone else opinion on Merrick’s food. I hope I made a good choice as I was going to buy a small bag of there new back country and mix it in with the current bag I have to give him a little different flavors.
Right after you said about the tripe I immediately did research and seen so many people mentioning the Tripett brand on here. So i’ll definitely be trying that especially with it being very good for there stomachs.
Funny you mention about the skin and coat as since I switched my dog to the Merrick’s his coat seems so much smoother, soft, and bright. Good idea on the coconut oil as I actually take that myself and never thought about giving him a little. Geeze I really can’t think you all enough on here for the help! 🙂
Chris, you are welcome! Anything I can do to help!
Canned green tripe (or raw green tripe for that matter) is infamous for enticing even the pickiest of eaters, so maybe you can try that. Some brands that carry it are Tripett, Petkind, and Solid Gold Green Cow. It is also rich in natural probiotics/enzymes that may help the tummy.
Hooves are pretty cheap and cool, they last Bruno a while, and I would buy the empty ones and stuff them myself. We use cow hooves. They are usually dried, but are also available raw too, I believe.
Fish skins totally helped Bruno shine, literally – I switched him to Blue Buffalo Wilderness back when he was a puppy (before I knew better, but hey, he did great on it) and gave him a fish skin a couple times a week, and a bully stick a couple times a week, and within a month, his skin was much better, his once bare tummy was filling in with hair, and his coat became shiny (I never knew it wasn’t shiny before until it became shiny, lol). So I love the fish skins and he does too.
Try the tripe also for Kongs. It may work. Also, coconut oil mixed with yoghurt or kefir, and/or some plain canned pumpkin puree may be a nice tummy soother and a delicious treat, and coconut oil is super good for humans and pets alike.
Ill also note that aside from the yak chews and deer antlers the only treats in my house for my cat and dog are freeze dried raw treats. very easy to digest, made with only one ingredient and made in the USA. I use PureBites, however there are many out there. Nature’s Variety makes them for example as well and I know Blue Buffalo just came out with some but I would stay away from Blue products.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 9 months ago by
Pitlove.
Actually, none, they both feel his weight and everything was ideal, they think he is overall healthy and his breed makes him predisposed to the disease (which is possible) however my issue is that I now have a second dog that I was feeding blue buffalo (possible coincidence, even though I now know the food is crap), that has come up with the same diagnosis, that is what is weighing so heavy on me. My other companion dog at the time of either was perfectly healthy (as a side note) they both are a great weight, so skin issues, etc. I am literally making myself crazy over this. I do believe grain free is the best way to go as it is can be a histamine producer.
I have read so many different things, saying grain free is the best, raw is best. Clearly, I want what is best for my dog, and we would like to try and prevent any further recurrence of Mast Cells from developing, but does anyone have any experience with what is going to help, with out breaking the bank? I have had a lab in the past that we did multiple surgeries on and the medications after mast cells, this is a golden doodle, we also have a lab at home, we have switched away from all Blue Buffalo products in fear that there was a link there, with having two dogs get this terrible cancer.
Any advice is welcome.
1 month ago
