[Bobby dog]

Tindaisy:
They sound like lucky stray kitties to get food like Nutrisource and TOTW (even if they didn’t like it). On behalf of this cat lover (well all pets, stray or not) thanks for taking care of them! 🙂

C4c:
I feed Purina Pro Plan Finesse Chicken & Liver Entrée Classic because it does not have fish or added colors in its recipe. The carbs are about 4%. All of my cats eat this recipe. I tried the Savor Beef & Carrots before because my pet store didn’t have my usual flavor and my cats picked through it, but ate it. They really don’t like chunks of vegetables in their food.

Here is a list of the flavors I would feed (including the recipe I currently feed of the Finesse line) and some of the undesirable ingredients they contain to help you choose:
~Finesse – K3, artificial flavors, meat by-products:
Chic & Liver Entree Classic
~Savor – K3, artificial flavors, meat by-products, fish:
Beef & Carrots Entrée Classic
Chic & Spinach Entrée Classic
Turkey & Veg Entrée Classic
Salmon & Wild Rice Entrée Classic
~Focus – K3, artificial flavor, meat by-products, fish, added color:
Chic & Beef Entrée Classic
Kitten Chic & Liver Entrée Classic

As Tindaisy mentioned, Nutrisource has canned food and my pet store just started carrying it. I am going to try some out. Also, if you need to add something else into the rotation the Purina Beyond GF chicken canned food was a hit with all my cats. Not particularly budget friendly, $1/3 oz can at Wal-Mart, but they liked it and the recipe is not bad.

[Holly C]

I guess I phrased that odd. By “fish flavoured” I meant one that tastes more like fish, like Salmon, Krill, Cod oil, etc. I also take the fish oil I give my dog, and I have to say, it doesn’t taste very pleasant, and he doesn’t like it much either. I used to give Salmon Oil but with some budgeting I just buy 1000mg capsules of fish oil. I’ll have to try sardines sometime- my dog would love that!

I also give 600 iu of vitamin e, and a joint supplement. My dog has joint and hip issues, and he has a completely torn ACL. He’s due for surgery soon >:

[Heather D]

Hello members. Thank heavens I have found this site though have done nothing this morning with regard housework as just been reading.
We have a Spanish Mastiff crossed with a German Shepherd, rescued from a filthy pen some 4 weeks ago when he was just 6 weeks old. Riddled with parasites internal and external. Has been to the vet’s three times now but doing very well.
previously we had a couple of English Pointers so I was aware of the growth/calcium issue and they were reared to be 14 years. Dusty the bitch, spayed, died with skin cancer. We live in Spain and she was mostly white and was a momkey for lying in the sun with her legs splayed and stomach bared to the sun, she contracted skin cancer and sadly had to be put to sleep aged 14.
Bracken her pal, though not from the same litter, died just 6 weeks after Dusty with a heart attack.
They were reared for their first 18 months on Hills prescription for large breeds and did really well with it.
Now to our new little, well quite big puppy.
He couldn’t tolerate Hills so the vet advised Eukanuba food for large breed puppies and I give him two small additional feeds of cooked turkey each day to add to his protein as the dry food is 26% and wanted to increase it. He is tolerating it well, but I want him to have the best I can afford, and buy. We are pensioners and though not destitute we have to budget.
Spain is not known for it’s care of dogs, and sadly, living in the heart of Andalucia away from the Costas most dogs are raised on dry bread, yes dry bread and anything else they can find. These are the conditions our puppy Max was born into. Locked in a large fenced and gated pen, the owner coming only once per week to bring a sack of dry bread rolls and fill their water bowls. So we have adopted the family and go each night to feed and water through the fence.
The parents and the 2 other pups are doing well, and the owner as a thankyou gave us Max.
There are just 2 pet stores within a couple of hours drive that do sell some varied brands.
We want the very best for Max and from your lists I just don’t know if I am going to find any of the foods you mention.
My question is, sorry after this ramble, if I cannot find any you mention will Max be ok continuing on his Eukanuba for large breed puppies along with his cooked turkey, and are there any other things I can give him to supplement if he has to stay on this diet?

[Akari_32]

Hey guys. Just updating. No baths in a few weeks, but his hair is growing back really well (new growth is about an inch long), and his skin is no longer red all over. Still red at his paws and up his hind legs some, and around his nose, but his body is back to pinkish-white, and he is chewing and scratching much less (and doesn’t smell nasty all the time). I’ve been giving him 3/4 of a can of By Nature 95% one day, and the next day he gets the rest of the can, and 1/4 cup of THK, mixed with however much water it needs to thin it back out to the consistency of just canned food.

He does need a bath right now (some one *cough* mom *cough* cleaned up pee in the hallway around his cage and then thought it was a good idea to put the pee towel in the cage because she didn’t want to walk it to the laundry room…), and I’ll use his medicated shampoo, and then wash him with his new shampoo and conditioner (supposed to be really good for their skin and coat, and has keratin in it– I’ll get the name of it in a bit).

I’m looking at some other foods to add in to his diet. I’ve emailed several companies and asked for the as fed carb values of their foods. My answers so far:

Purina Pro Plan:
“We appreciate your interest in our products. Please know that this information is not something we have readily available and takes time on the part of our nutritionist to determine. We cannot provide it for each and every one of our products.

However, if you can narrow your choice to a particular flavor or two, we’ll be happy to fulfill your request. Please understand it may take some time to process this information. We appreciate your patience.”

What the crap is that?? You don’t keep this info on hand?? Yeah, ok. Anyways, I went through the review side, and picked out all the four star formulas. More than they asked for, but whatever. My thought on the Pro Plan is that maybe an “average” food rather than a “fancy” food would do him some good. Some dogs don’t do well on high quality foods– we all know this. One of those if its ain’t broke sort of deals. Just an idea for a back up food. It’ll take some time to get an answer from them, I’ll assume.

Hill’s:
“Thank you for visiting HillsPet.com and sending us your message.

Due to your special pet’s medical condition we would suggest that you speak to your veterinarian for a food recommendation. Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. offers a full line of therapeutic products which are formulated for the management of certain health issues that can develop in pets. The product that will work best for your pet depends upon his or her individual circumstances and is something that your veterinarian will have to help you to determine.

We appreciate your interest in Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. If we can help in any other way, contact our Consumer Affairs Department toll-free at 1-800-445-5777 8AM-5PM CST, Monday-Friday or revisit HillsPet.com.

Sincerely,

Consumer Affairs
Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc.”

I was hoping to get some values on Ideal Balance. Another “average” food sort of idea. But looking at the values on the can today at the store (they have dry matter basis on the Hill’s website), I’m ditching this food. Way too low protein and just 4.5 and 5%. And toooooooons of carbs. Each can has a protein source, and then three or four carbs sources. No thanks!

Nutro:
” Dear Danielle,
>
> Thank you for taking the time to contact us. Our canned food for dogs average about 5% carbs. Canned food is low in carbs because they are primarily water or broth (around 78%). We do not make anything that will have lower values than 5%.

……

Hi Danielle-
None of our dry foods will have a carbohydrate level as low as 15%. They average 30-45%. Canned food, by nature, will have the lowest carbs, as they are primarily made of water/broth. The Ultra™ and the Natural Choice® Chunks & Gravy formulas have the lowest amounts (approx. 4%). Hope this information helps!”

All of the Nutro Natural Choice and Ultra cans are right in our price range, at $21 to $28 a 12 can case. The Large Breed recipes seem to be the best looking as far as how much to feed, and protein values. And if the carb values they gave are correct, they are right where I want to stay. Very nice looking line. I don’t tend to follow the whole dog’s size and age marketing thing, but he’s only 8 pounds. Would a large breed (puppy and adult food) be fine for him? He’s two years old, and should be about 8 pounds (he’s probably 7-ish).

And theres always EVO. Good price point, but high fat. Not a food I’d have him on all the time. Maybe I’ll use it to keep his weight up. I’m having trouble keeping his weight up with out him eating us out of house and home. I’m trying to do the best by him and by moms budget. $20 a case where he’s eating the whole can every meal is not helping the budget issue. The By Nature is great, but its not high calorie enough, and I don’t think high fat enough, either. He’s an active little guy, and needs something that can keep him beefed up.

Anyway, if anyone has any thoughts or input or anything, throw it out there!

[crazy4cats]

Hi Jake’s mom-
Thanks for the input. I will be stopping at Fred Meyer after work tomorrow. I’ll see if they carry it. I’ve not fed her something different from the others, but I think she needs something a little easier to eat. As she isn’t eating kibble any longer and I feed mostly budget canned. It’s too expensive to feed it to all of them. Wish me luck. I’ll give it a shot. Like you said, could be topper for the dogs if she won’t eat it. Wow! Sounds like you have a geriatric ward. Lol!

[DogFoodie]

I think your plan sounds like a good one. There would be no reason at all not to be able to use the ground turkey from Costco or the grocery store. I think when we keep things simple and the budget isn’t a stretch, we’re more likely to be successful in keeping up with it going forward.

Have you ever looked at the MPC site? You might find recreational and raw meaty treats you like for both pups and kitties. ; ) But, yes, I also agree that it would be much more costly.

[Bobby dog]

Okay, no problem. When you have time look at a few printers on-line and forward a link so I have an idea of what your looking for. We could have two different ideas of a “budget friendly printer” and I will check some out as well. lol

Yea, they track you on SD’s site and it doesn’t appear they reset them either. 🙁

[Patty C]

Thank you, Cyndi & crazy4cats. I’m glad to learn about the 20% rule; I can calculate the 20% of what each dog gets and add that. I measure what I feed them every day for two main reasons: first, concerning the budget so that I know how many days before I must buy more, and second, to help keep their weight under control.
For a while I will probably start a few more threads so that I can get advice in making the correct changes; I’ve been doing the same low-budget thing for years, feeding all my beasts what has turned out to be not-so-good food, and it is difficult for me to make these changes when all choices are not equal.
Thanks again for your answers here; I hope to hear from you in my other questions.

[Akari_32]

Alright guys, I need some opinions. Like an idiot, I went out and spent $40 on 200lb of Tidy Cats litter. That’s my entire monthly budget for pet food. And I did this WITHOUT looking to see how much cat food I had left. So now I’m down to 10 days of food, with an extra couple weeks worth of just Sheba stashed away, as well. So, 10 days of his normal rotation left. Wellness is not on sale, and my printer is down, so I can’t print out a bunch of $1 coupons and price match at Pet Supermarket. Friskies is on sale for 49 cents a can, which isn’t bad, but I don’t like all the additives in there. Then there’s Grreat Choice. On sale for 37 cents a can, no colors, no questionable urinary tract mumbo-jumbo.

The only thing I don’t particularly like is that it’s just under 3% carbs and has a little fish (on the description of the beef on at least. Some others may not). I’d like to see a bit lower, and no fish. But all I need to do is get enough to stretch out his current rotation long enough to get more Wellness, or find something else good to add in. I can get like 55 cans of Grreat Choice for $17. That’s almost two months of food right there! By-products aside, it’s a decent food.

Authority is on sale too, but I don’t know how I feel about the corn stuff they use. Same with Nutro Max Cat. I’ll me looking around at more sales. I may get some Friskies too, but I’m not sure yet. I’ll keep a looking around. Just wondering what you guys thought about my plan?

http://m.petsmart.com/h5/hub?id=cat%2Fcanned-food%2Fgrreat-choice-pate-adult-cat-food-zid36-12869%2Fcat-36-catid-200027%3Fvar_id%3D36-12869

[Liz W]

Hi Cindi… yes, you are correct… in VERY good hands!

Hi USA Dog Treats! Thanks again for the great advice.

Update:
Tried ordering the probiotic you recommended but shipping adds $10 to the cost so I’m going to print off the label and take it to my local health food shops and see if I can’t find similar for around $20, if I have no luck, I will then order from their on line site. Thanks for the recommendation.

As for the K9 Choice foods I will be receiving a print out of the nutritional values but from what I recall, they were all decent. I’m leaning to the ones that are a bit lower in fat. I found another raw source made here in Manitoba which may be a bit more in line with what I’m looking for and also a little less $… haven’t finished my trials on that yet.

I am worried that the Honest Kitchen combined with the Kibble was the tipping factor in him bloating. Can’t be sure but I don’t want to risk that again. I may have to wait until I get to the USA to find the Pre Mix (Steve Brown’s) that you referred to. I can’t find anything like that here in our Pet Stores in Manitoba. I will keep digging to see if I can find something similar. Traveling and trying to feed exclusively raw is going to be a major challenge both in terms of cost and finding it when I need it. Actually I’m finding feeding a 110lb dog raw exclusively is going to be a real challenge to the dog food budget… oh well. We may have to put off getting him a little buddy for a while anyway while we “recover” from all the expenses of this experience.

I haven’t been to the grocery store yet but sardines are on the top of the list to start adding for the boy. Haven’t returned to the capsules yet… adding back to “normal” very slowly.

I must say he is “crazy” about the green tripe!!! First thing he dives for in his bowl and since I’ve been feeding exclusively raw he is excited at every meal. Maybe he is just feeling a lot better but it is sure nice to see him snapping his jaws in excited anticipation of his meals! 🙂

Again,
Thanks for answering my plea for help… I was feeling very alone as a mommy of a GDV recovering dog and trying to feed raw. There is not a lot of info or advice out there under this subject.
Wishing you the very best from myself and Big Lou! 🙂

[crazy4cats]

Patty C-
I agree with Cyndi. You are doing great. I, also tend to lean more towards budget friendly kibble so that I can afford to add some healthy toppers. Such as eggs, sardines, meat and canned foods. Good luck with your pups!

[Melissaandcrew]

There is a church in the inner city here with a food bank. As I was sitting at a red light I couldn’t help but notice all the leather brand name new sneakers and smart phones being used while waiting for the doors to open while smoking $10 packs of cigs. I think perhaps a class in budgeting and priorities would be of more benefit to those people.

[Naturella]

I recently went on a trip to Bulgaria (where I’m from) and took 15lbs of decent food (TOTW – 2 5-lb bags; Nutrisource Grain-Free – 1 5-lb bag), as well as a bunch of Meow Mix small cat foods and a bunch of toys and chews. I always give coupons to friends and try to educate them on smart shopping for good dog food, and I agree with Akari, I would love to teach others how to coupon some and hunt for deals and feed their pets top notch foods for a fraction of their retail prices, and on a budget that a lower-income person like myself has. I am happy to hear about dog food pantries though and I would love to donate to those or directly to people in need some day.

[Cindy T]

I’m not sure if this is considered “budget friendly”—in my area it runs about $60 for a 32# bag, but what are your thoughts on Natural Balance? I was feeding sweet potato and fish formula.

[aquariangt]

The more that doesn’t digest (all those poor quality foods you mentioned) will have worse poop. More comes out, more is there. I would try out a higher quality food that has a lot of good digestibility.

Remember that budget conscious means different things to different people, so take this for what it’s worth

Some options that are budget friendly: Victor (if you can find it locally, I can’t) Earthborn Holistic, Pure Balance, Simply Nourish, Dr Tims

None of these will be as cheap as beneful, but unfortunately you can’t make a decent food that cheap. The closest will probably be Pure Balance-which is from walmart- but I can’t say the exact amount, I’ve never used it myself

[William C]

We tried science diet dog food and his poop smelled awful. He has been on Beneful for a long time with not much smell, but I have been reading some bad reviews on Beneful. I just want to get him on a good budget conscious dog food that doesn’t have a terrible odor when he poops. I don’t expect it to smell like a rose ! lol

[Lilmonster]

Hound Dog Mom –

Hi, after I read your above response I posted a question to you in a separate topic that I started with questions regarding switching my pup to raw, but realizing I probably should have just asked here since I’m not sure if you’ll see the other one. Copy & pasted below. Thanks!

– I know you can’t add the See Spot Live Longer dinner mix to bone-in meats, but am I also correct in assuming that if I begin adding RMBs in the PM and continue to feed boneless ground meat + See Spot Live Longer mix in the AM that it would be too much calcium? Ideally I’d like to continue using the SSLL simply because it’s the easiest way for me to not have to worry that her nutrition is unbalanced while I’m still learning to balance her meals myself. I did see the most recent topic mentioning CarnivoreRaw but that’s a bit out of my budget. **Hound Dog Mom, do you use the Twinlab Daily One with or without iron? Also, I noticed the Twinlab does have calcium in it, does that not matter because the amount is so low? If I choose to go the multivitamin route, can I then add other things like fruits and veggies and such without worrying about overloading on a specific vitamin/mineral or will I have to be careful with what I add?

[Lilmonster]

Hi everyone!

Another lurker here eager and (almost) ready to make the switch to raw. Like other newbies, I have so much respect for everyone here for not only committing so much time and effort to their fur babies, but also taking the time to answer endless, potentially stupid questions from nervous dog moms like me! I would never even have known about raw diets, let alone been able to work up the nerve to take the plunge if it weren’t for this forum, so thanks to all of you!

Some background info: My fiancé and I just adopted our little one, Lily, two months ago from a rescue. She’s 41 lbs and the vet estimates her age at around 1, much younger than the rescue thought – her teeth were pretty yellow when we first got her but presumably because she wasn’t given anything to chew on to clean plaque, so they thought she was 2 yrs 8 months (!), which leads me to think she sadly may have been malnourished as a puppy since they were feeding her as an adult. As soon as we gave her bones and chew toys her teeth became pearly white. Anyway, we switched her to Fromm’s Surf and Turf kibble when we got her, but we noticed she started itching more and more. Took her to the vet to ask about the itchiness as well as a suspected UTI, but the diagnosis for the itching was understandably vague. We’re not sure if it’s a food allergy or environmental – she doesn’t have fleas, and we’re pretty sure it’s not a yeast issue. She doesn’t smell yeasty at all and I think the vet would have picked up on that. So after a recent bout of diarrhea due to too many high fat treats after a training session, I figured it would be a good time to begin the transition to raw after her system cleared up. I fasted her for a meal then fed her a mixture of white rice and pumpkin for two meals, which brought her poos back to normal, then began feeding her a 50-50 mix of ground turkey and pumpkin with the See Spot Live Longer mix added in. The vet is holistic and also trained in Chinese medicine, and she suggested that I switch to beef instead of turkey since chicken and turkey is considered “hot” and could be contributing to the itchiness, so yesterday I made the switch to ground beef and her poo was still fine this morning. But then I remembered reading somewhere (I think on preymodelraw) that it’s not recommended to start with beef, but I think for the time being I’ll stick with it just to avoid changing her diet too many times (unless anyone here would strongly advise against starting with beef?). At the moment, her daily food (divided into two meals) is 1 lb 90% lean ground beef + 2 tbsp SSLL + 1/2 tsp hempseed oil + 1 tsp coconut oil (just started adding it) + 1 human probiotic. She is also currently on a one week course of antibiotics for the urinary problem.

I have Steve Brown’s Unlocking the Canine Ancestral Diet, ordered the Dr. Becker’s book, and have read through many of the threads on this forum but like other newbies I’m getting lost in all the information and feeling as overwhelmed as Cyndi was in the thread where she first started, lol. I’m thinking of sticking to the ground boneless meat with the See Spot Live Longer mix for a bit while I figure out all the supplements that are needed and place my meat orders. A few questions that I’d really appreciate if someone could help out with:

– I know you can’t add the See Spot Live Longer dinner mix to bone-in meats, but am I also correct in assuming that if I begin adding RMBs in the PM and continue to feed boneless ground meat + See Spot Live Longer mix in the AM that it would be too much calcium? Ideally I’d like to continue using the SSLL simply because it’s the easiest way for me to not have to worry that her nutrition is unbalanced while I’m still learning to balance her meals myself. I did see the most recent topic mentioning CarnivoreRaw but that’s a bit out of my budget. Hound Dog Mom, do you use the Twinlab Daily One with or without iron? Also, I noticed the Twinlab does have calcium in it, does that not matter because the amount is so low? If I choose to go the multivitamin route, can I then add other things like fruits and veggies and such without worrying about overloading on a specific vitamin/mineral or will I have to be careful with what I add?

– This may be a bit much to ask, but if one of the veterans has the time to respond I would be so grateful. Could someone make a list of the essential vitamins/minerals (or alternatively, foods that will provide those vitamins and minerals) that MUST be added to a diet that consists of boneless meat in the AM and RMBs in the PM, and the approximate amounts? This is the part I’m feeling especially in over my head with. Vitamin D, vitamin E, fish oil, manganese, so many different things I’m seeing that they need, it’s hard to not feel kind of scared to do it all from scratch, which is my eventual goal. I think I’m having a hard time figuring out what is absolutely necessary vs. optional but ideal.

– So from what I’ve read so far it seems to be a good idea to start her on chicken backs and quarters, then begin alternating boneless meat every other meal. How many meals should I feed the backs and quarters before I begin incorporating boneless meals? Also, should I already be giving her supplements during this time, or should I wait until she adjusts then begin adding supplements. As for stuff like organ meats, heart, and green tripe, how long should I wait before beginning to incorporate those? I promise I have read the other threads, but I’ve seen a few different recommendations on timelines so I thought I’d pose the question again just so I can be clear about it.

Thanks in advance to anyone willing to take the time to answer my questions!

[Melissa R]

I would recommend Eathborn Holistic Pet Food. They carry a very budget friendly quality
made dog food. I have used their grain free dog foods and have been very pleased.
Visit the website and read the testimonials of pet owners who’s dog allergy issues were resolved once they switched to Earthborn. This brand has been reviewed favorably on Dog Food Advisor as Editor’s picks for budget friendly and best in grain free. Good Luck!

[aquariangt]

another point to keep in mind when comparing dog food prices for your budget is how much you feed. I took the food you linked (and I wholeheartedly agree with everyone else to get off that food) and for my dogs, it’s recommending up to 2 cups a day-that’s double what I feed them on pretty much anything that they are on at the time (I rotate brands-I also use toppers and do a fair amount of training so they don’t get quite as much as recommended) whereas the victor grain free has them on 1.5 cups-this adds up a lot over a year for food cost. Victor is certainly a good option it seems-I haven’t used it, can’t get it locally and online victor is a bit pricy for something that I can’t test-but a lot of people swear by it. Betsy linked some good options as well. Hard to say what would be best because your budget is your budget, but there are certainly options within every price range that would be sufficient

Good luck

[LabsRawesome]

Hi Jonathan , I agree with Betsy. I use Victor dog food, the grain free formulas. I get 30lbs for around 40 dollars. I need big bags because I have 3 dogs. Since you only have 1 dog, and are on a tight budget, you could go for the grain inclusive. Those are around $20 for 20lbs. If you follow the link Betsy left, you can email the company and ask for a free sample. Or call a store in your area, and ask if they have free samples. My 3 love Victor foods.

[Jonathan L]

Thanks Betsy and Zach for your responses. It does really disturb me and makes me wonder if we could have prevented having to have put our dear Velvet down with different food. Well, at this point we can’t obviously reverse what happened but I certainly don’t want to have something similar happen with Olive.
Yes, the food is inexpensive and yes we do have financial limitations. I was thinking that based on what I have read here that we would go with Kirkland Signature Adult Chicken. We can purchase that locally and I think it will fit our budget. Is that a good option? Or is there a better option that would be similarly priced?

[DogFoodie]

Hi Jonathan,

I hate to say this, but that’s a really horrible food. The protein is terriby low. Even the “super high protein” formula has only 26% protein and the fat is extremely low. The ingredients are exceptionally low quality and what little animal protein there is in the product is from unnamed sources, which could include 4D animals.

Please don’t feed this to your new pup.

If you need some suggestions, let us know. I imagine this food is dirt cheap, so let us know also if the food needs to be budget friendly.

[Bobby dog]

You are welcome; I know all too well about downsizing pet food budgets and I only have one medium sized dog!

Hopefully you will be able to look into the PDF download from Steve Brown, “See Spot Live Longer the ABC Way,” I mentioned above. This will help you improve any kibble diet regardless of the quality. Simply choose a menu according to the quality of kibble you feed and the exact weights and measurements of how much fresh food to feed your dog according to their weight is detailed. You can choose to feed one day of all fresh food or use the fresh food as toppers throughout the week. I think you and your dogs will be fine, you clearly care about them!

[DogFoodie]

I think Dr. Tim’s is a great choice.

If you’re looking for excellent quality, budget friendly foods, also take a look at Victor products.

[zcRiley]

If the quality of dog food is not “within your budget”, why would you adopt another puppy? Also, puppies are not food samplers, they need ONE quality puppy food, four times a day, in correct portions, and a lot of clean water to drink. And a puppy does not need any kind of MILK after 2 months of age. Splashing goat’s milk over bad dog food, I’m surprised he even took it from the spoon. If you can’t afford this extra dog on top of all your other dogs, you did him more harm than good.

[Bobby dog]

Hi again gmcbogger:

I just realized I sent you the wrong link for Pro Pac, here’s a good one: http://us.propacpetfood.com/

Also, as aquariangt wrote, there is also a coupon thread started by Akari, a regular poster on DFA forums that may help you with your budget: /forums/topic/coupons/.

[Bobby dog]

Hi gmcbogger38:
Is this Ol’ Blue dog food that you are looking into?

From DFA, “Meat and bone meal can have a lower digestibility than most other meat meals.
Scientists believe this decreased absorption may be due to the ingredient’s higher ash and lower essential amino acid content.” Here’s some info on meat meal: /choosing-dog-food/about-meat-meal/

This doesn’t look like the healthiest choice, but I understand your dilemma. I am in the same predicament as you; college and a pet food budget don’t always seem to go together. You have to decide if this food meets your criteria for dog food. You pay for what you get; plant or lower quality meat based ingredients are cheaper than quality meat based ingredients. There are other brands you could look into that are sold in large bags that some pet, feed, garden supply, and hardware stores sell. These foods would likely cost on average $25-$35 for 40-50 lbs. If you would like info, please post. Good luck with your search!

[aquariangt]

Ugh, this food looks pretty poor. The price tag reflects that as well. Check out the budget friendly dog food list, maybe? Nothing of any decency will be 20 for a bag that size, but there are other budget friendly options. Follow the coupon thread by Akari as well, lots of tips there

[gmcbogger38]

I would just like to get some opinions about a dog food made locally (within 10 miles) around where I live. The food is a limited ingredient diet and they have different protein levels. Lowest is 21% protein and highest is 28%. I can’t copy and paste (dang phone), but I will list ingredients exactly as written on their website: Meat and bone meal (beef/pork/bone), whole corn, chicken fat, mineral and vitamin packet. It lists all of the minerals and vitamins, but I didn’t want to write those all. Now, I know “meat meal” listed as ingredient is not necessarily good because you don’t know what it is, but this does list beef and pork, so technically it’s not an unnamed meat meal. I don’t know much about bone meal, but why is that considered a bad ingredient? Raw fed dogs eat bones. I’m not too worried about the corn, as my dogs have done fine with corn in foods. The reason I would like to get opinions about this food is because I am on a tight budget until I am finally done with college (less than 10 mths). I have not contacted the company about the price, but from what I’ve heard (couple years old) the food is 50lbs for around $20, which they do no advertising, besides website, and have plain bags. I know it is not the best food and I am doing a rotational diet, but I just need to find some more affordable foods to rotate with, for now. Thanks for any input!

[Travis A]

Hey,

So i’m looking for a rotational dry food to sub in with the current food I have my 2 pit/(lab/boxer) mixed boys, 5 months old and on Zach’s Quality Dog Food for the last month or so. Seems to be good food they like it but it’s a bit of a hassle for me to get ahold of it at my location, so i was hoping to find a grain-free good food that won’t break the budget i can sub for to ease things. I pay $33 for a 50lb bag of that stuff though so anything else is going to be a worse deal i understand but still i need something that isn’t overpriced and comes in somewhat of a bigger bag, can’t be feeding 2, 35 lb growing pups little 12lb bags all the time. Any suggestions would be helpful, thanks for you time.

[Dfwgolden]

*facepalm*
Okay…
Let me clear something’s up.
First off I will NOT stand for anyone bashing my vet who has
Been nothing but PERFECT.
Secondly- Danes differ largely from a terrier.
Therefor saying it is VERY common for Great Danes to have a large Ammount of food allergies.

Third- I was trying to say that this is what she slid could be the culprits.
Meaning all the foods he has tried have contained these commonly allergic ingredients. Therefor we need to eliminate on by one to see.

Also if you don’t live in America it makes it very difficult for you to recommend any good dog foods.
All you listed are low grade except for victor which is NOT budget friendly in my opinion.

I’m not trying to sound rude, I am just VERY picky and protective of my dogs. And will not take anything regarding them lightly.

[Susan]

Hi, I only listed kibbles that people on this site use & say are budget friendly, I dont live in America, so I wouldn’t have any idea about these budget friendly kibbles..also how do you know that ur dog is intolarent to all those foods if u have never done an elimination diet ..Elimintion diet is the only way to know what ur dog has a reaction to & being a puppy its very rare to be allergic to all these foods at such a young age…you need a new vet…

[Susan]

Hi Dfwgolden, Ive just started the Wellness Simple Duck & Oatmeal.. as my boy has IBD & we think that the chicken was causing his tummy problems & the hive like lumps on his head & body, so I’ve started the Simple Duck & Oatmeal cause it has the lowest fat %.. Im not happy about the low Protein but Patch seems to do better when the protein is under 24%.. Im pretty sure that the Simple Duck & Oatmeal does not have chicken fat, as I made sure that there was no chicken in the Duck & Oatmeal, I just went on the Wellness Simple site to double check & there’s no chicken fat, it has natural duck flavours, I even looked at the Lamb & Oatmeal & there’s no chicken fat either, the best way to know if ur dog is intolarent to chicken is to start a elimination diet…when you start with say lamb or Rabbit for 1 month,then slowley add some chicken & see if he has his diarrhea again, he’s had alot of things done in the last 3-4weeks so its very hard to say what did cause his diarrhea, I know antibiotics can cause diarrhea, Ive written down what antibiotics causes Patch to have diarrhea & make sure next time Patch is not put on them..
I read that Victor is a budget friendly & has 5 stars also 4 health sold at Tractor Supply, Pure Balance grainfree Rachel Ray sold at Walmart, Earth Farms sold at Petco & Eagle Pack & Authority sold at Petsmart are suppost to be budget friendly aswell…also keep up with the probiotics, my boy has been on dog probiotics now for 10 months..especially when trying a new foods..

[DogFoodie]

You should find a new food with a simple recipe that’s different from what you’ve been feeding. Keep track of ingredients.

What are you currently feeding and what were you feeding the first time this happened to your pup?

Do you have a budget for food?

[Katie J]

A little over two weeks ago, I brought home a new pup for my boyfriend. He’s a Shiba Inu/Akita Inu mix and coming up to 4 months old. I have very little background on him as he was a pet store pup that I bought second hand. It’s a long story for another thread. I know the stigma with pet store pups as well though I have a 13 year old English Springer Spaniel that was purchased at a pet store that has never had anything but a routine vet visit and lives on Purina of all things. Anyhow back on topic. My little guy is little. He weighed at 7 lbs about a week ago at the vet’s office, but I am guessing he’s sitting closer to 8-9 now. Yes, I know he is shockingly small for his supposed breeding. But everyone that meets him guesses either one of this mix, but no one knows why he’s so small. We’re guessing that it could have a lot to do with his pet store past.

Now that that’s out of the way, time to talk food. I got him with a bag of Eukanuba puppy. He ate that fine until he caught wind of the Purina. Our adult dogs (the spaniel and my terrier mix) are free range because we lead a very busy and random life at the house. This is something I plan to change for my terrier and this pup when my boyfriend get our own place. I knew that I didn’t want the pup to eat adult food as he has special puppy needs. I nearly just bought the puppy formula for Purina until I food this website. Since then I have done more reading than I would care to admit on dog food. I decided to pick a food that wasn’t going to be a big jump in quality or price and bought 4Health Puppy. I know some people are leery of Diamond. But at the price and star rating, I grabbed a bag along with one of each of their rice free cans. My plan was to do kibble and a can topper. He licked the bowl clean for three meals. Meal four, he ate half and walked away. I switched the topper to a new flavor. Same result. We were trying two meals a day but broke it down to 3 thinking that I was trying to feed him too much at a time. No change. Though I was able to get him to finish if I spoon fed the last half of his food.

Three days ago I stopped by a local dog boutique and came home with several samples and goats milk as a probiotic. His stools had been soft too pretty loose due to the changing in foods trying to find something he liked. After the milk thawed I gave him a little in his nornal meal with the same result: ate half, spoon fed rest. Stools have firmed up since. The night before last we started samples. I have a lot of Earthborn as I had went to another store and got even more samples most of which was Earthborn. I think it was the prairie formula first that he nearly finished on his own without the milk. I only give the milk once a day. Apparently he nearly finished his next two meal with my boyfriend. I wasn’t there as I was working. But I know that he will not spoon feed. With fireworks last night, the pup didn’t get his dinner. It was too late, and he had a late lunch. I expected a hungry puppy today! Nope. Same result with goats milk. This was his second feeding on a new flavor of Earthborn. I forgot the flavor. But it was blue packaging. I still have the primitive flavor left to try from Earthborn. I also have Halo, two flavors of Fromm, Acana and Orijen puppy. I wanted to get through all of the cheaper stuff first in hopes of finding something he likes.

A few extra things to add, I am feeding him separately from the spaniel who is very food aggressive. But I feed him with my terrier as I want to start transititioning my terrier to a better diet as well for when we move out. Sometimes the pup seems distracted because the terrier gets something different (4Health adult and the same topper the pup gets). But he does want to eat the terrier’s. He gets awfully burpy when he eats. I am looking to add sardines and perhaps switching to plain Kefir for the probiotic. Switching to raw right now is not something I want to do. I am unsure about getting the right balance, and his puppy stage is far too important to screw up. I do plan on introducing him to all the raw elements I want to use in the future, and at around a year old, we may make the switch. And I cannot afford to do commercial or dehydrated food. I love the guy, but I can’t justify spending as much to feed him as to fees me not to mention it’s not in the budget.

Boy that was long just to get to what I wanted to ask. Is he training me to spoon feed him? It seems like all of my meals with him end with me begging him to finish so much so that I grab the spoon. His nutrition is so important to me. I can’t stand him missing a meal or wasting that food! Any ideas?

[DogFoodie]

Hey Zach,

Not to try to talk you out of the Merrick, but there are a lot of people reporting problems with Merrick brands of kibble, in particular, Whole Earth Farms. I’ve never been a fan of Merrick products. I believe they have quality issues from the top down.

I’m sorry, I originally must’ve misunderstood. I thought you were planning to replace Blue Buffalo with THK. If you’re in the market for a new kibble, some I think are great that are pretty budget friendly are Dr.Tim’s, Horizon Legacy and Wellness Core.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Zach-
Have you tried a stew type of canned? They are easy to mix really well into the dry food. Remember that you only have to worry about the 20% or less for toppers if it is not a balanced topper, such as sardines. Most canned is balanced as long as it doesn’t say for supplemental feeding only. I’ve been using the Kirkland Cuts which has been replaced by Natures Domain canned foods. Also Pure Balance, Merrick and Whole Earth Farms have budget friendly canned stew style foods that I like. Maybe mixing it really well into the kibble will help. Good luck. Wouldn’t it be nice if they could talk sometimes?

[Zach M]

You might want to try switching food. SD is not a high quality food. Try finding a cheaper grain free food. Earthborn Primitive Natural is one that HDM recommended. I understand you are on a budget, but i think it might be the food.

[DogFoodie]

I’d recommend it too. Victor makes some great, budget friendly foods.

[DogFoodie]

While generally not super budget friendly, The Honest Kitchen, is committed to the humane treatment of the animal proteins used in their products.

[DogFoodie]

I just started researching to see what I could find. I’m currently using Farmina for one of my dogs, and they claim to be cruelty free. I think it’s also a budget friendly food, although that term is subjective, and its excellent quality for the price.

[Carrie H]

Does anyone have a list of budget friendly cruelty free dog foods? No just vegetarian/vegan but ones that don’t test on animals. I found only one list but none of them are budget friendly! Thanks

[crazy4cats]

Ysabella-
Yes, bless you, bless you, bless you! As my name implies, I love cats! When, I had my first experience with kittens, they were that young, but fortunately had their mamma. She brought them right in my house and I never had one before, and I’ve never been without one ever since! So, I’m not sure about the milk on which would be the best substitute for their mamma’s milk for a few more weeks.
But, I’m with Sharon, you should feed them canned, dehydrated or raw if you can. I feed my kitties (4 of them) as little kibble as possible now. I rotate several budget friendly canned food. I do supplement with kibble as the canned is expensive. My favorite is Wellness Core. But I also like Earthborn and Taste of the Wild. I have two favorite cat sites. They are catinfo.org and littlebigcat.com. Oh, and I wouldn’t worry a lot about the loose stools yet. She’s been through a lot and was just dewormed. Sometimes that can cause loose stools as well. It sounds like you are off to a great start!

[theBCnut]

I would try switching her food. Depending on your budget, Wellness, Earthborn, or NutriSource are all good. The makers of TOTW have had to many quality control issues for me to feel safe using their foods, especially for a baby animal.

For raw, for my cats, I use Hare Today’s whole carcass grinds.

[Mom2Cavs]

Life’s Abundance is not a bad food but I would never pay that much for a bag of food, and I don’t have a budget where my pets are concerned. I agree with the suggestions of those above and will add some. Annamaet, Wellness, Nutrisource are just three more to consider.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Karen C-
In my opinion, for whatever it’s worth, is that no kibble is worth that much money! Yikes, that is expensive. No matter how good a kibble is, it’s still kibble. I prefer to buy more budget friendly kibble for a base and save some money to supplement it with healthier canned, fresh, dehydrated or raw foods. Like the BCnut mentioned, both Earthborn are solid brands. I frequently use grain free Victor. Good luck to you!

[aquariangt]

Jennifer- Fromm’s Classic is only rated 3.5 stars I believe, so it’s not eligible for that list.

Barbara-it’s a pretty common food for budget conscious people, It is made by diamond which is a bit concerning. We don’t have TS here, so I’ve never tried it myself, but a lot of people like it

[Hound Dog Mom]

Hi Sylvia –

That’s fairly reasonable. Once it gets reviewed I’ll look into it a bit more and maybe consider it for the budget friendly list. Thanks for letting me know about it!

[Bobby dog]

Aquariangt – ever think about raw for your kitty? I have some very picky eaters too. lol Just fed some NV medallions today and was thinking of your quandary. Only a few of my cats will eat Nature’s Variety raw and that is only a few times a month. One cat will even do dehydrated every now and then. I figure even if it is only a few days a month, it gives them a little more of a variety in their diet.

Since it’s clearly cat food review day, here are mine:
I came across some sales while I was stocking up on pet food for the month and tried out some foods I would not normally buy.
Wellness Divine Duos, same experience as everyone else, my cats ate the pate’, ate all the gravy, and either left the chunks or ate a little bit of them. Finally tried Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers Soul, all but one cat liked it. I am going to add this to my rotation. Also tried Nutro Max Cat Chic & Lamb Sr, only Archie liked it, and Chic & Liver, a couple of my cats liked it; adding Chic & Liver to my rotation.

~Natural Balance Platefulls BOGO – I tried the chicken and salmon recipes. It is packaged in a pouch and has very large chunks with gravy. Only Archie liked it and he didn’t even finish it all, he left some chunks behind.
~Science Diet GF on sale 10 cans/$8 – only had chicken left. The picture on the label looked like it was small chunk style, but it is pate’ style. It has vegetables listed on the ingredients, but they are cut very, very small and mixed in well. The only hint of vegetable is some specks of orange from the carrots. I liked that because my cats only eat around the veggies. Most of my cats liked it and ate it for a few days. Not sure what the retail price is; I would buy it again.
~Blue Buffalo Spa Select Turkey & Chic – this was on the clearance rack so I thought I would give it a try. All but one cat liked it. It is pate’ style and it was very similar to Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover’s Soul. I would buy this again.

C4c:
I hope your pup is okay.

I am glad you’re doing better today. You didn’t over react and you kept it very cordial. Anyone who comes to DFA for over a year will come across a discussion or two on vaccs and titers and is well aware of the controversy. A few things this site teaches is to make the best decision for your circumstance(s) and do the best you can within your budget for your pets. You do that and more for your fur babies. Anyone who tries to make your feel guilty for your choices, insinuates you would compromise your dogs’ health by boarding them, or would ignore the risks of vaccination is mistaken. 🙂