[Mom2Cavs]

Wow…you sure are fortunate! I like Wellness foods, but only use their cans for both my cat and dogs. Their kibble size is too big for my dogs (can one can’t have chicken so small breed is out). My dogs eat Annamaet and Fromm but I’ve been looking into Victor. A store near me may start carrying it! It is a good food, imho. I love Weruva cans for both my cat and dogs, but for some reason just end up using Wellness mostly. Weruva is very pricy, but great quality. TOTW is a really good food that works for mine, however, with Diamond being the manufacturer I just went away from them….and I wouldn’t have otherwise! I used to feed Merrick religiously, but had some issues with their kibble last year and canned food this year and will never feed them again so won’t recommend them anymore, sorry. Last year (I think it was around then, maybe a little longer) I was using their Pork kibble and found some weird looking pieces (long and dark) sort of like BB’s lifesource bits in color. My dogs had some before I realized it because my daughter fed them for me from a new bag and they all got weird looking loose stool, and a lot of it! I stopped feeding their dry at that time. Contacted Merrick and they were no help at all. I had those pieces in multiple bags I opened after that. At the end of last year I was still using their canned food every now and then. However, one can I opened had some weird looking “darkened matter” in the middle of the can, not in the top! Looked like mold, maybe, I really couldn’t identify it? Anyway, I didn’t feed it to the dogs…thank goodness it was caught in time. I will never use them again, though lots of people do use them with success and love them (I used to). I did try Canidae Pure with my cat and dogs but none of them liked the food. The fish based Canidae Pure also had kibble that was too big, if I remember correctly. Great ingredients, but they might also still be made by Diamond. So, with all that rambling, lol, if it were me I’d go with Wellness, Victor or Weruva.

[crazy4cats]

Hi-
Wow! Nice coupon. I have been using the Victor grain free with great results with my dogs. I highly recommend it. I feed my cats Wellness Core with great results as well. I think Weruva just sells canned food, bit I think they are very good also. I’ve never used the Merrick G/F, but Merrick seems to be a good company. Have fun with your choices.

[RescueDaneMom]

Jazz lover,

The general concensus is that it is safe to switch over to a food with higher calcium level at 10 months old. Orijen is a really good food. You could try the Orijen Adult when your pup is 10 months old. I also like Acana Regionals (Grain-free), Annamaet Grain-free, and Petcurean Go! Fit & Free Adult.

I give tumeric and omega 3s (fish or krill oil) daily. I buy my tumeric from Swanson’s Vitamins. You can get organic bulk tumeric by Starwest Naturals on their website. See my previous post to Lablubber for the article on Tumeric and dosage. You can give toppers with every meal. I would limit the fish to twice a week. You can also give eggs (cooked or raw) as a topper. You want to exchange the toppers with his food based on calories. Figure out how many calories the topper has and give him that much less food. Say the topper is 100 cal. Figure out how much food you need to remove based on the kcal/cup provided on the bag or website for your kibble. Ex- you would give 1/4 cup less food if your kibble is 400 kcal/cup. I hope I explained that well enough.

As far as what to look for in a food for your dog at 10 months and after is really up to you. I prefer to feed a high protein (30% or higher), grain-free (though not opposed to grain-inclusive if not fed all the time and high quality grains or pseudo-grains like oats, quinoa, or millet), and china-free ingredients (need to contact the manufacturer). I have fed my Great Dane Orijen, Acana, Annamaet, Earthborn Holistic, and Go! Fit & Free with no problems. Others that I would try if I still fed kibble (I feed raw and dehydrated now) are: Dr. Tim’s Kinesis grain-free, Victor GF Ultra Pro, and Timberwolf.

I hope that helps. 🙂

[RescueDaneMom]

My rottie just passed last month from lymphoma. When he was eating kibble he did really well on Acana Regionals. There are 4 grain-free varieties. Orijen is another great food made by the same company that makes Acana. Other grain-free foods we tried and liked were: Annamaet grain-free, Horizon Legacy, Go! Fit & Free Adult, and Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural. Others I like but haven’t tried personally are Dr. Tim’s Kinesis grain-free and Victor grain-free.

Sometimes dogs eating kibble (and especially older dogs) can benefit from probiotics and digestive enzymes. I buy mine from swansonvitamins.com. They’re made for humans and pretty cheap. I get the regular Swanson brand digestive enzymes and Dr. Langer’s 15 strain probiotic (they’re buy 1 get 1 free right now). I crush the enzyme tablet and open the probioic capsule and mix it up in the food. You can add a little canned food, yogurt, canned pumpkin or something else so it is not just powder mixed with dry food. My almost 8 year old Great Dane is super regular and not very gassy at all. He doesn’t eat kibble but he gets probiotics and enzymes. A lot of people also like the Mercola pet enzymes and probiotics. They are more expensive but they are already in a convenient powder form.

Hope this is helpful to you.

[pugmomsandy]

For mid-priced quality kibble, I use Nutrisource grain free ($49) and alot of folks say Victor is mid-priced as well. Are you talking about B2B high-protein or B2B grain free because the latter is medium-protein and lower in calories than the original B2B. Some dogs don’t handle a high organ meat food well but can adjust. Maybe you can mix it with the food they do well on. I have 2 out 6 that haven’t taken to Merrick well. They had no issues with Nature’s Logic and Core Wild Game. There is also Nature’s Select (home delivery) which has a Grain Free formula, 30 lbs for around $65. And Whole Earth Farms (by Merrick) has new grain free formulas as well out in stores now. It’s their budget brand. I rescue and use ALOT of foods! I have 4 open bags of kibble right now. I’m not opposed to using a “questionable” brand occasionally and I rotate foods so (1) the dogs don’t get used to one brand, (2) they build up a stronger gut, and (3) the dogs get a variety. And I always have something open that they do well on that I can mix in some other kibble. I hear you about price. Now that I have connections, I realize what the mark-up is!

[DogFoodie]

I would never feed my dog tobacco. Home prepared is great, if it’s properly balanced. You might want to pick up Steve Brown’s book if you go that route: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1929242670/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER. Also dogaware.com has great resources for those who prepare their own meals.

As far as a commercial kibble that’s quality and affordable, my favorites would be Dr. Tim’s, Victor, Earthborn Holistics and NutriSource.

One important consideration when you’re comparing the cost of one food to another is that you need to know the number of kcals per cup so you can determine how long a bag will last you. Often, better quality foods often have greater caloric density so you can’t simply compare the cost of 30 pounds of brand A to 30 pounds of brand B.

[RescueDaneMom]

crazy mom-

The general consensus is that puppies can start regulating calcium uptake at 10 months. Your Danes are both over 10 months so you don’t have to feed one of the foods on HDM’s list. The most important thing is that it is “All Life Stages”. Most of the “large breed,” “giant breed,” “senior” labels are just marketing and there is no real benefit to feeding those foods over a regular ALS food.

Victor is a good food. Most of their varieties are 4 and 5 stars. /dog-food-reviews/victor-dog-food/
The Victor Select Professional formula looks good, it’s rated 4 stars. The Hi Pro Plus is 5 stars. You would be ok feeding any of their varieties but I’d stay away from the Multi-Pro Maintenance and the Beef Meal and Brown Rice, both are 3.5 stars.

If you can, it is better to rotate different brands of foods rather than different formulas within the same brand. Any deficiencies or abundances in certain vitamins or minerals will likely be present in all formulas within a brand. If you can rotate different brands, you are more likely to cover all your bases because different brands have different vitamin/mineral profiles. Do you know what other brands your feed store carries? I could help you sort out some of the better ones to choose from if you like.

Edit- regarding transitioning, you may have to do it slowly at first. The more you change the food the easier transition will become. I changed foods after every bag and my Dane could switch cold turkey from bag to bag after awhile. That’s something you’ll need to watch your dogs for. If their stools start becoming loose then you might be transitioning too fast and need to slow it back down.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 11 months ago by RescueDaneMom.

[crazy mom]

Is the victor “all life stage ” food? Thank you so much for your help. I would like to stay around 45 ish I can go more if I am not do it every week like we were on TOTW. I know that our feed store has victor. If I go between the victor chicken and lamb can I just change the food out or do i have to graduate it over time? thank you for all your help.
When we changed from the totw to our food now is when my 1 yr old Dane started loosing weight. 🙁
What about the giant breed dog foods, would those not be made for Great Danes?
🙂 thanks for all the help

[RescueDaneMom]

Hi crazy mom- There are some affordable, high quality foods out there. I have an almost 8 year old Great Dane and I understand how pricey it can be to feed them.

Annamaet Ultra from HDM’s list is $70 for a 40 pound bag which comes out to $1.75/pound. It has 480 calories/cup so you’ll feed less of it than you would other foods which will also make it stretch further- a good bang for your buck. http://www.chewy.com/dog/annamaet-ultra-32-dry-dog-food/dp/41926

Annamaet Extra is also a possibility. It is lower protein at 26% instead of 32% (I prefer higher protein for my dog). It is $53 for a 40 pound bag ($1.33/pound). It is not as calorically dense as the Ultra at 425 cal/cup so you would need to feed a little more of it. http://www.chewy.com/dog/annamaet-extra-26-dry-dog-food/dp/41927

Dr. Tim’s Kinesis is good too. It’s $61 for a 44 pound bag ($1.39/pound). It has 415 cal/cup and 26% protein. http://www.chewy.com/dog/dr-tims-kinesis-all-life-stages-dry/dp/37810

Victor Select Chicken Meal and Brown Rice or Lamb Meal and Brown Rice are also affordable. The chicken is 391 cal/cup, 24% protein, and $55 for 40 pounds ($1.38/pound). http://www.amazon.com/Victor-Dog-Food-Chicken-40-Pound/dp/B00COVMFW4/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1389619583&sr=8-6&keywords=victor+select+dog+food
The lamb is 381 cal/cup, 24% protein, and $59 for 40 pounds ($1.48/pound). This would be good so you can alternate proteins and not feed just chicken all the time. http://www.amazon.com/Victor-Dog-Food-Chicken-40-Pound/dp/B00COVSBL8/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1389619583&sr=8-9&keywords=victor+select+dog+food

Those are all grain-inclusive foods. Grain-free cost a bit more and I don’t know exactly what your budget is. I think Earthborn Holistic is the most affordable and high quality grain free food out there. Meadow Feast and Coast Catch are on HDM’s list. They are both $47.99 for a 26 pound bag ($1.85/pound). The MF is lamb-based, 26% protein, and 400 cal/cup. http://www.chewy.com/dog/earthborn-holistic-meadow-feast/dp/36414
The CC is fish-based, 32% protein, and 435 cal/cup. http://www.chewy.com/dog/earthborn-holistic-coastal-catch/dp/36406

As far as your Danes putting weight on, as long as their not ribby it’s ok for them to be on the lean side. It’s better to be lean than overweight. You don’t want added stress on the joints.

I hope I helped with the food recommendations. If you can afford it, I would try alternating the grain-inclusive foods with grain-free foods. You could do Annamaet Ultra, Earthborn Meadow Feast, Dr. Tim’s, Earthborn Coastal Catch. That way you rotate protein sources (chicken, lamb, and fish) as well as protein percentages (32% and 26%).

[theBCnut]

Victor is an excellent idea! There are a couple others that I wish I could bring to mind. But that leaves plenty of room for others to comment.

[RescueDaneMom]

Nutrisource is a good food. I think Victor would be good too. It is rated 4 or 5 starts and is reasonably priced. It can be found at some feed stores or online at sites like Petflow.com or Chewy.com. I would feed the Victor Select Hi Pro Plus (30% Protein). You can get it on Amazon- $55 for 40 pounds: http://www.amazon.com/Victor-Dog-Food-Formula-40-Pound/dp/B00CJLP4EA
I also like all of their grain-free formulas and would recommend any of them.

[theBCnut]

Abady isn’t rated here but they do have high calorie foods. Victor Ultra Pro and Nature’s Variety Instinct are lower but still high. You can get some fish oil and add a dose and coconut oil too.

[Josee]

I had try Orijen and satin ball 🙁
Orijen make very loose stool…
Satin ball make no difference except time 🙂

I don’t know if I can find Victor or Abady here as I had never saw those brands 🙁

At this moment they are on Acana Puppy & Junior but I found that they make big stole .

Melissa, why you told to be careful with schnauzer and fat ? I have Standard schnauzer not miniature.

[Melissaandcrew]

Victor Ultra Pro is only about 440 calories per cup : ) Use caution with the schnauzer and foods that may be too high in fat content. If you are not worried about that, google “satin Ball Recipe” and it will put weight on a dog fairly quickly.

[theBCnut]

You can add fish oil and coconut oil to the foods to increase calories. Abady has a food that is 800 calories per cup and Victor Ultra Pro has 600 calories per cup, but I don’t know if you will be able to find them where you are. Can you get Nature’s Variety Instinct or Orijen, they are higher calorie too, though not as high as Abady or Victor.

[Duke The Boxer]

Hey dfa family, i wanted to create a list of potential dry dog foods that you have used or have heard good things about. I tried to look and see if there was a post like this already but i couldnt find one. Seeing as Duke is turning 9 months in a couple days i should start preparing a list of all different types of proteins and brands with high protein and low fat since ive seen many overweight boxers. I do walk him almost everyday and i run around with him around my large land every day so he gets a lot of energy.

So i guess some standards have to be set for the foods on the list. Im thinking of at least 32% protein , less than 25% fat and under 20% carbs. Also im new tothis so if you have foods that doesnt necessarily meet the numbers still is a very good food list it.

So far i have found

Victor Premium GF Ultra Pro 42% protein , 22% fat, 17% carbs
http://www.midamericapetfood.com/victordogfood/ultra.html

Earthborn Primitive Natural 38% protein, 20% fat, 17.5% carbs
http://www.earthbornholisticpetfood.com/us/dog_formulas/primitive_natural/guaranteed_analysis.php

Pet Pantry Holistic Choice Salmon & Sweet Potato GF 32% protein, 14% fat, and im still trying to find the carb %
http://www.feedyourpets.com/product/TPP008.html

[Duke The Boxer]

patty have you tried this brand or have heard about it? Obviously it is not one of the foods on HDM’s list but some of their formulas looks pretty good. i like how this formula has a good amount of glucosamine in it. please let me know your consideration.
http://www.midamericapetfood.com/victordogfood/joint_health.html

PS
I should also add that Duke is doing good on Coastal Catch but he is still having random regurgitation of his food a couple hours after eating it. It was happening towards the end of the wellness core bag and im still transitioning with the wellness core and the CC. Please if any one if you ladies not just patty can please maybe give their 2 cents to come to some leads for figuring out why he is doing this. he is going to the vet tomorrow to get reweighed for his demodex medicine and i will mention it to the doctor.

[A.Sandy]

Hello,
I have a great dane and I get that question all the time if my dog eats the whole house? LOL etc. So anyway just because a dog is big it does not mean they should eat so much IF they are getting fed correctly and a high quality food it does not have to be grain free exactly but just a very good quality. I feed 5 cups a day divided into 2 meals and add toppers every now and then like beef lung, canned Merrick, or Spring Naturals. I feed VICTOR high performance with glucosamine and chondroitin. But everything depends on your pups energy level of course my dog is highly active and is very fit lean but very muscular kind of like a racing dog but that’s me. And I go through one bag a month. since yours are a bit older than mine you should try to feed according to energy level of each. A proper weight is when a dog has a defined tuck (underbelly) and palpable ribs still slightly visible with a layer of fat that covers ribs and visually from the top of the dog it should be like an hour glass but more like a thin sausage with a defined waist. And for the puppies that is completely different, they get larger portions because they are still growing. So get a food that is for all life stages that isn’t too expensive and it should last longer if fed properly for each dog. Try adding canned pumpkin to help them get full as well has a lot of good benefits (fiber, beta- carotene, vitamin A and a lot more).

-Ana
Pet nutrition expert/advisor
pupcatnutrition.com
@pupcatfacts

[crazy4cats]

In regards to your question about Northwest Naturals, it is a raw frozen food that comes in different forms. I use the beef nuggets as well as their fruit and veggie nuggets as toppers right now. They sell them at our local feed store along with Primal and Nature’s Variety frozen raw foods. Northwest is the cheapest of the three. I feel that these add fiber as well as antioxidants to their kibble. As I said before I’m not sure which part of my new equation is helping the most as I have switched several times. Again, I’m using Victor G/F kibble along with a little digestive enzymes, Gastriplex, and probiotic chews. I hope to gradually decrease the supplements, but right now I’m so ecstatic about their poops, (I know, weird, huh?) that I’m not going to change too much for a while.
Have you checked out dogaware dot com yet? They have so much information on that site about digestive disorders. I also think that they may have some homemade diet recipes for you as well.
Good luck!

[crazy4cats]

Right now I am feeding my dogs that have IBS Victor grain free which contains montmorillonite clay. I use a small amount of frozen raw beef nugget topper. To that I add the supplement Gastriplex by Thorne that includes slippery elm and L-Glutamine in its ingredients. So far, it’s the best they have done as far as their poops go. I have also used The Honest Kitchen’s Perfect Form and Vetri Science’s Vetri-Probiotic BD supplements with success. I never thought my world would revolve around my pup’s poop, but sadly it does. lol!

[RescueDaneMom]

I’m not sure if you are feeding grains or not. I’ve fed my big guy Annamaet and Earthborn Holistic with great success. My grain-free picks from the list would be: Annamaet Aqualuk (fish), Earthborn Meadow Feast (lamb) or Earthborn Coastal Catch (fish). Canine Caviar Wilderness (venison) or Open Sky (Duck) look good too- never personally fed this brand but I like the looks of it. My grain-inclusive picks would be: Annamaet Option (salmon and venison) and Victor Select Lamb Meal & Brown Rice. I’ve never heard of Pet Pantry dog food so I googled it. It looks like a pretty good food. I think the Buffalo and Duck would be worth a try. I’m currently feeding The Honest Kitchen and raw to my Dane and he is loving it. The Honest Kitchen Love is beef (though it’s pricey). Let us know what you end up with and how it goes. 🙂

[crazy4cats]

I just made my first online order for dog food. I ordered Victor Grain Free through Amazon. I was quite pleased with the transaction. The food arrived promptly and in a nice, appropriate sized box. Absolutely no damage to either the box or the bag. I also received free shipping. You guys have been right all along. It is a great way to buy dog food!

[Naturella]

Akari,

I see, those foods sound good! I really want to try Canidae GF, Wellness Core, Back to Basics, Victor, Earthborn Holistic, Wysong 60 or 90, sometime soon, lol! But small dogs take a bunch of time to eat through big batches. I have introduced him to Nutrisca today and he seems to enjoy it quite well. I will bring in Vet’s Choice Holistic Health Extension GF tomorrow, and Dr. Tim’s on Wednesday. Then mix them all in a small batch and feed him that for 1-2 weeks to make sure he is good on it, and then mix the rest of the bags together.

I actually took Bruno to the vet today and they said he is in tip-top shape. He is at a good weight, which may just be his ideal weight, with maybe a pound, 2 max in growth potential, so when I used the Dog Food Advisor Dog Food Calculator for his ideal weight for 11/12/13 lbs, for an Active dog, the discrepancy was between 1.03 of a cup to 1.10 of a cup, for a 404 kcal/cup for his upcoming food mix. He is a fairly active little guy and goes to the dog park at least 3 times a week or more, and runs around the house and goes on walks/jogs on the days he doesn’t go to the dog park. He usually doesn’t always finish his full cup anyway, but sometimes he does, so I think about a cup for him should be ok… I will keep watching his weight and development, though, and adjust as necessary.

[cmeeks]

Yeah I think grain free is important. My dog used to itch alot, then I heard about grain in dog food. I switched and she’s been much better ever since. The main issue for me is the price of the good grain free dog foods. I actually found a giant 40 pound bag of Victor’s for 50 bucks on amazon free shipping. I think it’s still available so you might want to give it a try.

Victor Dog Food Select Hi-Pro Plus Formula for Active Dogs and Puppies, 40-Pound

Good luck!

• This reply was modified 12 years ago by cmeeks.

[jas84047]

Thank you Sandy and Marie for the quick responses and opinions. I’m very happy to get them. I decided to order some Probiotic chews for my gassy dogs and stick with the Sr Whole Earth Farms. I like the info on Whole Earth Farms Puppy protein but worry about my less active Sr dogs getting any fatter. Especially my Golden/lab mix that has thyroid cancer and cannot regulate it well anyway. I don’t know. I now think I will rotate in another feed in as well but mostly stay on the Whole Earth Farms. I already order online- due to the amount of food we go through (3 dogs/3 cats– speaking of cats, how come there’s not cat food advisor?) and I can find the better deals on the good foods online. I will await the re-review of Premium Edge before deciding on that one as a possibly add-on. Fromm, Merrick Classics and GF are a little out of my price point, Victor I have a hard time finding anywhere -including online, I think right now I’m leaning toward Healthwise chicken/oatmeal, Canidae chicken/rice, or Chicken Soup….
Sound about right? Now which of these last 3 would you go with to add into rotation?

Thanks again for all your help!

[cmeeks]

I agree, very difficult. I went ahead and bought the 40 pound bag of Victor, i’m not sure if that type of deal will always be available, but i’m crossing my fingers.

[theBCnut]

A dollar per pound for good foods is about impossible, but you sure have found a real bargain in Victor.

[cmeeks]

Thanks for the Dr Tim’s recommendations! I checked them all out and found Victor to be my favorite option. You can get a 40 pound bag for around $50 bucks! That seems like a really good deal for a 4 star food, especially since it seems the designer brands don’t usually sell bags much bigger than around 30 pounds. I’m seriously thinking of ordering me a bag.

The goal I have in my head is to keep the price at around $1 per pound. I know that’s arbitrary, but it’s just a budgeting goal I have. The Victor is close though. Anyone have anymore good options for budget friendly dog foods?

[InkedMarie]

Some better priced good foods would be dr Tim’s grain inclusives (there are three), Earthborn, Victor, Merrick whole earth farms, hi Tek naturals, off the top of my head. I don’t know if they’re comparable to Iams, I don’t feed food like that so I don’t know.

[Naturella]

Akari,

You are my couponing guru!!! 🙂

Thanks so much for the info! I will certainly get on this, as I plan to obtain some Wellness Core, Victor GF (they have awesome cheap samples on their website http://www.victorpet.com/ ), and maybe some Back to Basics for Bruno’s after-next batch of mixed food (the upcoming batch will consist of Dr. Tim’s Kinesis GF, Nutrisca, and Vets Choice GF, total of 23 lbs of food, should last him a good 4-ish months).

But yes, thanks so much for the info again, and hope Petland does the trick for you to get bunches of cheap, good dog food! 🙂

[Naturella]

Akari,

I also have a similar food list myself, although a lot shorter (for now).
Of your foods, I would feed the grain-free versions of:
Dr. Tim’s, Acana, Wysong, Wellness, Earthborn Holistic and Canidae.

On my list I also have Back to Basics (not the GF versions), and the GF versions of Victor, Orijen, EVO, Innova Prime, amd Timberwolf. Some of those are quite pricy so I would use them as “mixers” to a bigger bag of more affordable food, for example mix a small bag (4-6 lbs) of Back to Basics in a big bag (12-18 lbs) of Wellness Core Wild Game, etc. I would also use Wysong Epigen as a mixer food, the prices I found were … mixer-food-like, lol.

My “maybe” list consists of GF versions of all Dogswell Live Free, Nutrisca, Taste of the Wild, and Blue Buffalo Wilderness (although Bruno is on it right now and seems to be doing great).

But your list looks great too, I may be snatching ideas from it myself! 🙂

[pugmomsandy]

I ended up mixing foods because I couldn’t decide what food I wanted to use since there’s a million kinds out there! So after 3 years of trying things out, my staples are Nutrisource (grain free and small/med breed puppy), Nature’s Select (local) only the grain free or Hi-Pro formulas, Brothers Complete, Merrick (local), occasionally Nutrisca (some issues with their chicken from China and possible farmed salmon) so I just get their Lamb food, Vital Essentials freeze dried nibblets and I’ve thought about Victor because they are local too (made in Texas). For cans, I use Merrick, Wellness Stews, Weruva, Nature’s Logic, Hound and Gatos and sometimes Nutrisca lamb. Dehydrated foods I use are The Honest Kitchen, Addiction (with Big Dog Natural), Sojo’s (with Big Dog Natural) and I make my own raw food with duck, goat, tripe and organs and supplements and they eat whole raw sardines and sometimes RMB (raw meaty bones) like necks, pork ribs and chicken legs. All foods have their pros and cons and not all dogs do well on certain foods. For me, these work. I am thinking of boycotting Dogswell though. Too many issues with their treats and they use chinese chicken. Actually, I think I’ll scratch them totally off my list now… and Sojo’s uses some dried veggies from China so that’s going to have to go too when my bag is gone. It is frustrating sometimes trying to find good foods with good ingredients. I’ve probably used about 20 different kibbles in the past 3 or 4 years (my dog is 6 now). He’s such an inspiration for me to make homemade!! I lub him so much!! He has his own freezer full of goodies!

• This reply was modified 12 years, 1 month ago by pugmomsandy.

[pugmomsandy]

Maybe your vet is just old-school. Healthy dogs don’t have a maximum protein amount nor do they require carbohydrates. Also you can feed various foods – kibble, canned, raw, dehydrated, not just one type of food. Feeding just kibble is like a person eating a cereal bar every meal for life. For better health, incorporate fresh, unprocessed foods, and decrease toxic load. Blue Buffalo has complaints of dogs getting sick on it, but that can happen with any dog food. Not all dogs have the same reaction to a food. Rotate foods to minimize the risk of getting sick on one. The Honest Kitchen is human grade and expensive if that’s something you’re looking for. That is one brand I have in my dog’s pantry. They eat canned, kibble, dehydrated, and raw.

/choosing-dog-food/karen-becker-best-worst-dog-food/

http://www.victoriabenda.com/articles/kBecker/nutrition101.shtml

http://www.thewholedog.org/artcarnivores.html

http://www.thewholedog.org/artcookedfood.html

http://petsynergy.com/articles/nutrition-for-cats-and-dogs-overview/

[Naturella]

Akari_32 (and everyone),

I am in the same boat – I am operating on a SUPER limited college student with no student loans (due to being an international student, I can only legally work only on campus, and only 20 hours/week, and I have them filled with my Graduate Research Assistantship (GRA), which pays $730.00/month) budget, but I want to feed my Rat Terrier-Jack Russell-Chihuahua mix pup only 4-5 star dog food. So far so good – we scout deals on petflow.com, chewy.com, and amazon.com, as well as pet stores, and we have fed him Nutro Natural Choice Small Breed Puppy (1 small bag), Blue Buffalo Wilderness Puppy (1 small bag), Blue Buffalo Wilderness Puppy 11 lbs bag mixed with Vet’s Choice Holistic Health Extensions Original 4 lbs bag (got it for free at PetLand). When my boyfriend and I got him, he was about 4 months and 6 lbs, on Purina something (yuck), but we got him on Nutro Natural Choice Small Breed Puppy, which was recommended to us by the PetSmart associate in case of allergies in puppies, and then we put him on Blue Buffalo Wilderness Puppy. Toward the end of that first bag, we noticed that his coat had gotten shiny. We kept him on it, and then I discovered this amazing website, and learned about dog food rotation, so we have purchased his next food – Dr. Tim’s Kinesis Grain Free 11 lbs, and Nutrisca Chicken and Chickpea 4 lbs, which we will mix and feed to him. Now he is about 7.5, almost 8 months, and he is about 11 lbs. Other foods I have on my list are Acana Regionals Grain Free (so expensive!), Back to Basics (so expensive, to use mixed with more affordable food), Victor, Taste of the Wild, Orijen (so expensive!), Wellness Core, EVO (so expensive!), Innova Prime Grain Free, Earthborn Holistic Grain Free, Wysong Epigen 60 and Wysong Epigen 90 (so expensive, to use mixed with more affordable food), and Timberwolf (so expensive, to use mixed with more affordable food), as well as any of the Grain Free 4- and 5-star foods on this website. I also feed him all-natural chews and treats, such as bully sticks, ears, tracheas, gullet strips, fish skins, Himalayan Dog Chews, and homemade treats of berries, pumpkin, peanut butter, and yoghurt. These, I think, also contribute to his beautiful coat and good health. He also gets an average of 1 dental treat/week.

So, the bottom line is, I want to monitor this thread for more ideas on good places (online or offline) to buy affordable high-quality dog food 🙂 .

Also, since I got him, I have been putting in hours/week researching this website and others, and educating myself on dog food nutrition. I was wondering if anyone knows of any dog/pet nutrition classes in GA, USA. I would love to be certified in this area and maybe own my pet food store (that would sell good pet food) one day.

Also, another question – we have our pup on Trifexis, for 5-10 lbs dogs, and recently (this past week) he started itching and scratching a lot. His skin looks good, but I don’t know if he is developing an allergy to something, or it is because his Trifexis effect is wearing off faster now that he is about/over 11 lbs, and they only gave him the 5-10 lbs pill last time at the vet. I have also used the FURminator tool (borrowed from a friend, they are soo expensive) on him twice, once a week for about 10 min, and I bathe him (Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap – Almond, and oatmeal puppy conditioner) once every 2 weeks.

Thank you, all!

[Melissaandcrew]

I would suggest looking around for another pet store, even if a bit further away. WEvery one assumes the boutique store are higher priced,but many do carry good budget friendly foods. I have used propac in the past and still do on occasion as something different-it doe have corn, but decent rating, and its 28.99 for 33lbs or so. Inside is a $3 off coupon, and then they have a buy 10 get one free program. You can not beat it for the cost.Hitek has grain free and grain inclusive, and a frequent buyer program. Victor has a varied line and it runs from 30-46 or so for the varietie. You can find other options if you are willing to drive a bit.

[pugmomsandy]

Nutrisource grain free chicken and lamb formulas are 1.67/lb on petflow. You can find this at retailers as well. Tractor Supply’s 4Health grain free food (not made by Diamond) is 1.23/lb. Merrick Whole Earth Farms 1.23/lb (not grain free). I’ve also heard Victor is reasonably priced. http://www.victordogfood.com. Dr. Tim’s with grain 1.50/lb. Fromm 4 Star Nutritionals Chicken a la Veg 1.80/lb. And Hit-Tek Naturals grain free.

[Mo’s Mom]

I have to say, I’m a big fan of Victor dog food. It’s a 4 star rated food, and is available at a decent price (where I work, we sell 40 pound bags of the beef meal and brown rice for $35).

[Mo’s Mom]

After being a lurker for awhile, I wanted the opinion from some of the very knowledgeable commenters here at DFA. My dog, Mocha, gets mostly dry food (Victor ALS) with some green beans and can food as a topper because she can sometimes be finicky (and, if she doesn’t eat, my parent’s bloodhound is all about some stealing 🙂 ). Right now, I’m using Newman’s Own Organics as her can food, but I’d like to switch between a couple of different can foods since I cannot switch between her dry due to expense (the place I work at sells Victor, so I get an employee discount on it, which is one of the reasons I use it).

I’ve been looking at the following on Wag.com:
*Fromm
*Wellness
*Wellness 95 percent
*Wellness Core
*Newman’s Own Organics
*Holistic Select

Any other suggestions? (Please note that I can’t go much over 30 dollars for the 12 can-case, and I need something that is NOT a stew/in gravy for the very personal reason of I can’t stand stewed/gravy can food for some reason).

Thanks in advance!

[pugmomsandy]

You don’t have to feed just one food for life. Try out several and rotate through a couple that you really like. And you don’t have to try just 5 star foods either. Try some 4 star foods too. Some dogs just can’t handle a 5 star food right off the bat. Nutrisource, Fromm, and Victor have both grain and grain free foods and so far, no recalls and they’re mid-priced. Maybe try a grain-inclusive food but with better quality ingredients like the brands I just mentioned since your dogs are currently eating grain food. Some 5 star grain foods are Merrick and Nature’s Logic. I’ve probably fed 20 different foods before keeping a few “staples” on hand and I still try out new foods as well but always rely on my staples. My fosters who get no transition time eat Nutrisource and Nutrisca.

[pugmomsandy]

There are ingredients put into dog food to enhance the flavor and taste and those things can be addicting and make it hard for owners to change their pet’s food. If you ever pick up an issue of Pet Food Industry magazine, you might be surprised to see all the products and chemicals and mixtures advertised to enhance taste in a dog food. I foster dogs so they never get a transition whatsoever and I can tell you, they do just fine after the usual transition period. Some might not eat for a day or two, nearly three and I might need to mix in some canned food, but then they get over it and eat like every one else. You might just take longer to change her food out, even if it takes over a month or two. Feed 90/10 for at least a week and until she has no problem with it, then 80/20, 70/30, etc. You might even start with a 3 or 4 star food and work your way up to 5 stars foods or even feed a rotation of 4 and 5 star foods. I took my dogs off Beneful (that has corn and sugar and propylene glycol and probably tastes great and made by Purina) and won’t look back even if they loved it and scarfed it down and would choose it in a bowl to bowl taste test just like I would not rely on a bowl of cereal even if it were 100% complete and balanced for every meal of my life. For the Pro Plan, in the long run, I would be worried about the effects of the corn products being that 95% of corn is now a GMO and so is some wheat. GMO’s fed to test animals cause health problems and believe me, there haven’t been any human trials or research to their long term affects on our health. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6OxbpLwEjQ Then, I just don’t prefer companies that use feeding trials.

“The protocol requires six of eight animals complete a 26-week feeding trial without showing clinical or pathological signs of nutritional deficiency or excess. The cats’ or dogs’ general health is evaluated by a veterinarian before and after the test. Four blood values (hemoglobin, packed cell volume, serum alkaline phosphatase and serum albumin) are measured after the trial, and the average values of the test subjects must meet minimum levels. No animal is allowed to lose more than 15% of its starting weight” from wikipedia.

25% of test subjects can be taken out of the test for any reason including illness and not be reported in the final outcome and the food can still pass!

Then I would worry about problems arising from being fed gluten every meal of her life http://dogtorj.com/what-is-food-intolerance/gluten-intolerance/ and getting menadione. Not to mention there’s 4 grain ingredients in front of the poultry by-product meal.

There are just so many other foods out there that do offer you more for the money. Nutrisource and Dr Tim’s and Victor are a few.

[pugmomsandy]

Agree with Patty. There’s not a perfect kibble since it’s a processed food and not fresh! Just pick a couple foods that they like so you are offering them some variety. Some budget friendly ones are Nutrisource and Victor and they have several flavors to chose from. Offer some poultry, beef and fish foods.

[InkedMarie]

Here are some to look at: Fromm, Victor, Earthborn, Dr Tim’s.

[DogFoodie]

HDM’s list is really meant for large breed puppies, for whom you need to control the Calcium.

The great thing is, you’ve have lots more options now that your pups are older. : )

A couple of brands I’d suggest you also check into would be NutriSource and Earthborn Holistics. They both go just outside of your price range though. I use and like them both, a lot. A brand I’ve never used, but continue to hear great things about and it’s know to be a very budget friendly food is Victor. Oh, and actually, there’s also Rachael Ray Zero Grain Nutrish that you can pick up at Wal-Mart that’s also a good budget friendly choice along with Wal-Mart’s new Ol’ Roy Pure Balance products.

[somebodysme]

tracie, could you put a little bit of something on top of the Victor food or maybe try a different one that’s not beef. Is there a chicken and rice one? I have heard that it’s not uncommon for dogs to not like a beef food. I don’t think I’d go back to that version of BB though since it doesn’t sound like that one was working for you.

I think I’d try a bit of something tasty on top first. Otherwise, when they eat the Victor food do they seem OK on it?

[tracie]

I have a Schnauzer who’s prone to pancreatitis. He was on Pedigree Adult Complete for years and he would have frequent bouts of pancreatitis, constipation, stomach pain, vomiting and his poops were hard as rocks…and looked like them, too. I switched to Blue Buffalo Wilderness Chicken and all 3 of my dogs suffered from frequent soft stools and bad gas, although they absolutely loved the food. The frequent soft stools had me worried for my Schnauzer, so I switched (again) to Victor’s Beef and Rice formula. I transitioned each time in about 7 days time. Now that they are completely on Victor’s…they won’t eat. Should I go back to the BB? I’m a little nervous because of all the complaints I’ve heard about BB. Also, it’s hard to find locally…I really hate to keep switching them, but I’m not really sure what else to do. Any advice is appreciated!

[Melissaandcrew]

I have a Doberman with horrible stomach issues. Her culprit seems to be higher fiber and rice. After dealing with it for years(meds, restricted diets etc) her diarrhea and weight loss resolved on Abady granular, Natures Variety raw and Victor Grain free Ultra Pro.

[Hound Dog Mom]

Have you tried Tripett? It’s canned green tripe. Most dogs go nuts for it – you can mash it up in a little warm water and use it to make a gravy and coat the kibble.

Some brands with small kibbles that I can think of off the top of my head would be Nature’s Logic, Horizon Amicus, Wysong Epigen, Fromm, Addiction, EVO Small Bites, Merrick and Victor.

Something else I’d suggest is Abady. It’s a granular food that’s super calorie dense (800+ per cup) and very palatable. It’s not GF, but it only contains a small amount of rice and >94% of the protein is from meat.

You could also try looking up recipes for satin balls.

[Woodcutter]

Hi folks. This being my first topic I’m not sure if this is where to start it so here goes. This afternoon I was at Big Lots and found this food. It’s .90 cents a can and the ingredients look good but, I can’t find anything on it here. We are on a fixed income, more or less, and this looks attractive right now. We all know that Big Lots will have products on a temporary basis and may or may not see it again. Anyway I got 6 cans for our two dogs to try- 3 chicken entre’e and 3 beef. They eat “Victor” brand dry in the purple bag and for a weekly surprise I will mix some wet food in. Usually TOTW or maybe “Chicken Soup”. It doesn’t matter to them, they tear it up. It’s distributed by Performance Pet Products out of Mitchel, SD. Has anyone seen this food? Thanks.

[Hound Dog Mom]

HI corrielainedd –

Wow, a Saint Berdoodle. I’d never heard of such a dog but I just googled it – pretty neat! Growing large and giant breed puppies need controlled levels of calcium as excess calcium has been linked to developmental orthopedic disease. When puppies are very young they are unable to regulate calcium absorption, they gain this ability around the age of 8 months. So I would say, given the fact that your pup is already 8 months old and through the most rapid phase of growth there’s really no reason to start watching calcium levels now. I would just suggest focusing on getting him on some high quality foods that fall within your budget. Look for a food approved for growth or all life stages – there’s no reason to go with a large breed puppy specific formula. Your adult dog can eat the same food – just be sure to adjust portions accordingly because growth and all life stages foods tend to be more calorie dense. Professional is a decent food for a good price, however it’s manufactured by Diamond who has frequent recalls. Some reasonably priced grain-free foods that you may want to check out: Victor, Earthborn, Hi-Tek Naturals Grain-Free, NutriSource, 4Health (sold at Tractor Supply), Pure Balance Grain-Free (sold at Walmart), Rachel Ray Zero Grain, Authority Grain-Free (sold at Petsmart). Some foods with grains that are budget friendly: Victor, Hi-Tek Naturals, Whole Earth Farms, Pure Balance, Fromm Classics, Healthwise, NutriSource and Natural Life. The only thing I would tell you to be aware of when looking for a cheaper grain-free food is that, unfortunately, many budget friendly grain-free foods are actually worse than grain-inclusive foods at a similar price point. Grain-free doesn’t necessarily mean better and many companies just replace the grains with white potatoes, tapioca or peas which doesn’t make a superior product. Try to maximize protein. I ‘d also recommend picking a few foods and rotating rather than sticking to only one.

[pugmomsandy]

Has her urine been sent for a culture and sensitivity? Her strain of infection could be resistent to certain drugs.

Can you get her a dental cleaning? If not giving her real bones to gnaw on will help with tarter. Bones that are considered recreational bones and are not consumable like a big femur bone or marrow bone.

As far as food goes, I’d feed her a regular food. Not a “senior” food or a “dental health” food. There are few “senior” foods I’d recommend like Merrick or Amicus (but Amicus is for small breeds). Some budget friendly foods would be Nutrisource, Dr Tim’s, Fromm, Victor, ProPac and a Tractor Supply brand called 4Health Grain Free or Coscto brand called Kirkland’s. A kibble will break up into bits before doing much scraping on the teeth.

You might also try a d-mannose supplement. It attracts a certain kind of bacteria away from the bladder wall.

Also a fellow pugvillage.com member called 6BeautifulPugs has used Cystex tablets (OTC) with success for her troubled UTI dog. You can contact her if you wish. She’s a foster mom that specializes in the old and infirmed.

http://www.pugvillage.com/forum/pug-life/124181-good-news-ching-once.html