I was going to run out tonight and get some cans as well as a different recipe of food. It’s hard finding kibble I feel comfortable feeding him, and I unfortunately don’t think I’ve got the budget to go raw. Bah.
I’ve been using petflow.com for about a year and so far no problems. Free shipping on orders over $49.
I am definitely planning to alternate a few of their favorite foods once I know which ones they prefer.. And I will check into ordering online, I have never done that with pet food before so it intrigues me! Thanks!
I was using Earthborn with Mila for awhile and she enjoyed it until she got sick of it, but I think if you rotate different protein sources you should be fine.
You can get Dr. Tim’s online from http://www.chewy.com. That’s where I’ve been getting Sully’s Fromm from..Excellent service, and over a certain price is free shipping. Early savings if you set up auto delivery..
I really like Dr Tim’s too, but they do not sell it anywhere near my area.. Not even close to my state..
Well thats the assumption I was going on as well but their website has several varieties of grain-free dry foods listed…?? I love the idea of this if their grain-free line is up to par with the rest of their products.. I do not want to blindly try a new food though.
Only the WEF canned foods are grain free. I haven’t used any on your list but I have used Nutrisource grain free Lamb and Heartland Select formulas with good results on my fosters and it’s mid-priced. $50 for a large bag.
I don’t have advice yet, as I’m at the same point, however I contacted Earthborn today (via email) and they were very responsive! Fast, pleasant, helpful and thorough. I’m definitely going to consider them. Both them and Dr. Tim’s Kinesis GF…
I’ve been researching a few new grain-free foods to try for my pups and would like to hear any opinions, personal experiences with these foods, or other recommendations you may have. I’ve narrowed my choices down to Earthborn grain-free, 4health grain-free, and Whole Earth Farms grain-free.. Has any one heard of WEF grain-free?? There isn’t a review on the site, is it a newer food? I love the classic kibble but need grain-free for my girls now so any advice is welcome!! Thanks!
Holistic Select and Wellness make their own foods. Wellness does not use Diamond anymore. I am going to admit, however, that I’m feeding TSC’s 4Health grain free now (made by Ainsworth). I’ve tried Merrick and still use some of their canned food, but I had some major issues with the kibble. Also, a lot of foods contain tomato pomace or carrots that I’ve narrowed down as an intolerance for one of my Cavaliers. They are doing wonderfully on the 4Health Whitefish. And I’m highly aware that Diamond makes their regular 4Health, but I dd buy a small bag of the small bites. It’s chicken based and some grain inclusive, no potato, tomato pomace or carrots. I actually consider it somewhat limited in ingredients. I may mix this in, too. Also, the manager of my local TSC seems well versed in dog food/nutrition and is very nice and helpful. Even though I don’t really have a budget for their food, my husband is thrilled with the savings I’m getting with the 4Health lol.
Hi, I am new to this site but am loving all the information I have found so far! However, I believe I’m overloading myself with info and its all running together, confusing the heck out of me! So I would love to just give a little information and get a little in return if possible.. We recently adopted a young feral pup and have been working to socialize/rehabilitate her. She is a “lethal white” (I despise that term) Catahoula mix- who is deaf and partially blind as well… We were this sweet girl’s last chance at adoption and I am so grateful we found her because she is blossoming in our household! Anyway, at about ten months of age, when we adopted her, she tore her ACL and was recovering from that when we noticed her limping getting worse despite strict confinement. We took her for X-rays and the vet diagnosed her with severe hip dysplasia in one of her hips. Sigh.. I could not make this up if I tried.. Luckily the other hip joint looks amazingly healthy! We have no idea about her past and as she seems to be somewhat of a genetic anomaly, we just want to do whatever we can to help her have a healthy, happy, hopefully long life! This girl deserves it. She is a healthy 70lbs, but we are trying to slim her down slightly. She is curently on Blue Buffalo now, but my question is if there is a better quality food that would be better suited to her joint needs or if supplimentation would suffice. I just read the calcium levels are most important earlier on and now that she is about 15 months old am I correct to assume that it is not the main concern anymore? Should we go grain-free to help with inflamation? Suppliments? What is my ideal path here? Please advise anyway you can.. I should mention we have several other animals and actual children, with another on the way, and will hopefully send them to college one day so we are certainly on a limited budget 🙂 THANK YOU!!!
Rebecca
I just wanted to add that I’m feeding 4Health grain free and imho the kibble size is what I consider kinda large. In fact, Laverne (my smallest Cavalier at 18lbs.) has some trouble eating it dry, but not with canned added. Pugmomsandy…..my local TSC doesn’t sell Amicus (wish they did). I also love Merrick Thanksgiving Day Dinner canned food for my crew. I do wish they wouldn’t have added Carageenan in all their formulas now, but I don’t feed the food solely so I’m not too worried.
Sharyorkie,
Amicus is for toy breeds so it is very tiny kibble. My local feed stores carry it so maybe TSC will to. You can look it up at horizonpetfood(dot)com. Merrick Thanksgiving Day Dinner seems to be one of my favorite canned foods. It doesn’t have big solid chunks and is not a pate so it’s somewhere in between a stew and pate (it’s almost like a mushy chunky mashed potato) and it mixes well with kibble so the dogs just don’t eat the chunks.
Thank you very much for the info! I will check out both of the foods
The kibbles for the 4 Health are about 1/4 of an inch. I think they are pretty tiny 🙂
They have a small bites 4 Health but the kibbles aren’t very big on the regular. I felt of them in the bag before it bought it and I could tell what size, so you may want to check it out 🙂 They may not be small enough for your babies though, but I have a special needs puppy mill rescue that must have smaller bites and he does fine with it. But, he can eat the Simply Nourish ones too (he’s a shih). They have a good canned food too. I have been using Nature’s Variety Instinct canned food for one with Cushings and she has done well on it too. You know what is a 5 star food and my dogs LOVE it? It’s PetFresh Select in the refrigerated section in the pet aisle at Walmart. Petco also carries two kinds of it. You can look it up on here: PetFresh at Walmart and Deli-Fresh and Vital Fresh (I think is the names of theirs) at Petco and I think the puppy formula would be great for your mama 🙂
Can you tell me the kibble size of theTSC 4 health? I recently purchased a bag ( with no coupon) of Simply Nutrish limited ingredients.Kibble is way to large for my Yorkies they play with it but will not eat it even if I add warm water and some canned.
Also does anyone know of a good canned food I can feed to my yorkie mom she has 1 baby? I cook for her but sometimes she gets bored! Yorkies are so PICKY!!
Thanks for the offer Georgia Rescue Mom, but I’ve tried Simply Nourish for mine and Laverne doesn’t do well with tomato pomace (which S. Nourish has). I do think it’s a fine food and sometimes I do use their canned food. The NB stands for Natural Balance, and the merger made me very sad indeed. But, because of it I did try 4Health and Earthborn and so far I am very happy with those brands.
That is awesome, Mom2cavs! I have been feeding mine the chicken and brown rice and they love it! Who is the NB merger with Del Monte? The only 4 star or above food that I have found that is cheaper, is the Costco brand, Kirkland. It is $29.99. But my dogs weren’t crazy about it and a friend had the same problem. I LOVE the Petsmart’s brand, Simply Nourish and my dogs are crazy about it. They’ve just come out with a Grain Free (not rated on here yet) but I noticed that the puppy food had a 5 star rating. I have coupons for $5 off a bag if you want to email me your addy to try it. Its non sale price is $47 a bag but some is $41.99 plus I have the coupon that makes it $38 🙂 [email protected]. Thanks for all of your help!
I’ve started using TSC’s 4Health grain free dog food for my 3 dogs (after the NB merger with Del Monte). I can’t believe the quality for the price! The canned food is only .99 a can, too….when I was paying between 2.50-4.00 a can! I’ve saved enough in just the little time I’ve started using it to go buy me some new sandals LOL! Also, I now think I’m going to rotate the 4Health grain free with Earthborn so I’ll have 2 brands to choose from.
Thank you so much! I haven’t heard of Pioneer before you guys, so I have another one to look into! I appreciate it 🙂
For big bags, Pioneer is in the low 40’s, and GF Diamond is in the late 30’s. Ya can’t really beat them.
That’s one solid mutt! Yet, a sweetie I am sure. That food is recommended for up to 40lbs so it would not be in your “budget-saving” request. Still a wonderful food for all others. Thanks!
I think the new 4Health Grain Free is budget friendly too and not made by Daimond. Also the new Racheal Ray Zero Grain made by Ainsworth. Also Hi-Tek Naturals Grain Free and Victor.
Thanks HDM! Boy, you’re a font of wisdom. Anyone tell you lately that you help the world by posting answers to people’s queries? You’re a good person. Be proud.
I used to be a HUGE fan of those dried liver treats. Sometime ago, i stopped`, probably the cost or the time it takes to get to the store that carries them… I’ll see if i can order online for a reasonable amount. I can also make her my mom’s chicken liver recipe! This whole thing: Surgery, staying home, supplements- costing a fortune! She’s worth it, but i’m definitely needing to watch my budget, big time! 😉 Thanks again, HDM
The Addiction rehydrates and just looks like ground canned food.
Thanks, pugmomsandy and HDM. HDM, I’ve never tried Addiction, but I’ll check it out. Sandy, I tried Sojos and the dogs, namely Lucy, didn’t like it at all…wouldn’t eat it. As a group they tend to not like the dehydrated foods. I was using freeze dried foods for quite awhile, but it ended up being too much fat, protein for Lucy. I will check out the Addiction, like I said, but so far I’m leaning to 4Health grain free Whitefish and 4Health, Wellness Stews, Blew Stews, TOTW cans.
Jan,
I have Sojo’s and Addiction dehydrated right now and the dogs are doing fine on it. No extra stools either. I mix other stuff with it for more protein. The Sojo’s has visible greens and meat in it but the Addiction is all mixed up and brown, no chunks. I have the Black Forest Delicasies.
Hey Jan have you ever tried Addiction? They make limited ingredient kibbles that are a little low in protein, like Natural Balance. If I recall correctly the kibble is on the small side. They have a good selection of limited ingredient dehydrated foods as well that I do like, I used to mix them with canned to boost the protein.
Like HDM said, Tractor Supply’s 4Health is a fantastic bargain! The regular size cans are .99, and even the biggest cans are only 1.59! I’ve started to use it to top my dogs’ food and they like it and are having no repercussions. I buy Simply Nourish sometimes, but imho it’s not all that budget friendly. On sale it’s 2.00 a can, but it’s a smaller can (only 10 oz., compared to 13.2 oz.)….it is similar to Weruva and definitely cheaper than that lol. TOTW is a little cheaper than alot of the other canned foods, too. I can usually find it for 1.99 a can. Fromm, at least where I live, is not all that cheap…the Gold cans run around 2.99 a can and the 4Star are almost 4.00 a can! I’ve decided to try and stick with 4Health, for the most part. Fyi…it does come in pate and stew styles. I believe the stews are better because they don’t contain carageenan. Also, look at the ingredients and calorie content (and the style of food your dog prefers) when making your choice. I have also recently been looking for a replacement for Natural Balance LID Fish (merger with Del Monte) and looked at Wellness Simple (transition did not go well…Laverne can’t/won’t eat the kibble due to the shape/size). It also has tomato pomace and carrots which I believe makes her allergies flare up. Bought a small bag of Simply Nourish Salmon LID, but again…tomato pomace and/or carrots….stool still not very good. I do know how to transition and can tell pretty quickly if a food is gonna be bad for the long haul. Anyway, I’m supposed to be getting some coupons from Hol. Select, but I’m not confident it will work for Laverne. So…they’re still eating the NB I have, but I did buy a small bag of 4Health grain free Whitefish yesterday. It is not a small kibble, but Laverne seems to be able to eat it better than the Wellness shape. I’m starting to use it as treats and I’ll be mixing it into their NB soon. It is kinda limited in its ingredients and doesn’t contain tom. pomace or carrots (or Rosemary). It does have beet pulp, so we’ll see. Darn merger!
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This reply was modified 12 years, 6 months ago by
Mom2Cavs.
4Health canned (4.5 stars) is $0.99 per can at Tractor Supply. Pure Balance canned (hasn’t been rated yet but I’d guess 4 or 4.5 stars) is $1 per can at Walmart. ‘Ol Roy Healthy Mix Tubs (3.5 stars) are I believe $1.30 at Walmart. Variety canned foods and Natural Life canned foods (both 4 stars) are generally around $1.50 per can.
Some dry foods that are reasonably priced: 4Health, Pure Balance, Native Performance, Healthwise, Pro Pac, Eagle Pack, Victor (all 4-5 stars and under $50 for the largest bag).
Price varies a lot from location to location.
Thanks everyone! You all know your stuff! Great suggestions. So far, I have looked on this website at reviews of NutriSource, Fromm, Victor and Merrick. Then, I checked prices online. They all seem good and reasonably priced. They are not that much more than mainstream brands, but they seem much more nutritious. Even Iams does not look so great anymore, too. Its second ingredient is corn. Anyway, I appreciate all your advice, just what I was hoping to learn.
As I think about it, I wonder if the reviews on this site could include those dollar-sign symbols next to the dog food names. You know those, like on Yelp I think? One dollar-sign could indicate that a brand is typically less expensive than its competitors. More dollar-signs could mean typically more expensive than competitors. That might really help more people find the best foods we can afford for our pets. It might also strengthen educated consumer demand for good value (i.e., high quality at a low price) from suppliers in the free-market.
For cans, Merrick’s Whole Earth Farms, Costco’s Kirkland Cuts N Gravy and I believe Simply Nourish by Petsmart are budget friendly.
Fromm, dr Tim’s, victor are some to look at. Good for you to want to upgrade your dogs food.
NutriSource is a good brand that is usually easy to find and at a pretty good price point, and they have canned too.
Hi Folks,
Can anyone recommend which dog food brands tend to be both healthy for dogs and less expensive than other healthy brands? In other words, which of the good brands are more affordable than others? My dog is a large breed mix (German Shepherd, Lab, etc.). She is 3 1/2 yrs old, healthy, happy, obedient, and very active. I would like to upgrade her diet from Dog Chow and Iams mixed with Alpo. Any advice about which of the better brands are less expensive than other better brands?
If this topic has been discussed elsewhere already, please refer me to that forum. Thanks.
NutriSource grain free is budget friendly and seems to be a food that is easy to transition to.
Hi NetG –
I would strongly advise against heating kibble. Many vitamins, minerals and amino acids are heat sensitive and you would be damaging the omega 3 fatty acids. If your dog is healthy, you shouldn’t be concerned about salmonella. I have fed my three dogs raw for nearly two years – during that time span I’m sure they’ve inevitably consumed contaminated meat, they’ve never gotten sick. Dogs, by nature, are scavengers and have the appropriate digestive system to accommodate the bacteria found in “ripe” food. I’m not suggesting anyone knowingly feed their dog contaminated food, but unless the dog is immune compromised it would be very unlikely for a dog to show clinical symptoms of salmonella. Rather than finding ways to eliminate salmonella in the dog’s food, you should be concerned with washing your hands after handling the food and washing all bowls the surfaces the food touches – because you and your family are susceptible. You may also want to look into purchasing food from a more trustworthy company than Diamond if salmonella is such a concern for you – there are many other budget-friendly dog food not made by Diamond.
Hi brianb22 –
It’s great that you’re considering switching to a rotational diet – providing a wide variety of quality species-appropriate foods is the best thing we can do for our pets.
I currently feed a homemade raw diet with different proteins, different supplements and different fruits/vegetables at each meal. When I was feeding kibble, however, I switched to a new brand with a new protein source at the end of every bag (about every 3 weeks for my 110 lb. male bloodhound) – all the while adding a different canned food toppers daily. When you first begin a rotation diet you may find that it will be necessary to slowly transition between brands (because your dogs are used to eating the same thing daily), but once you do it for awhile and your dogs’ guts strengthen you should be able to switch brands with no transition.
Any of the 4 or 5 star foods would be good options to use in your rotation – which foods you choose will really depend on your budget. I used dry foods that were grain-free and had at least 30% protein, some of my favorites were: Orijen, Nature’s Variety Instinct and Acana. I picked canned foods that were grain-free, some of my favorites were: Nature’s Logic, Tripett, ZiwiPeak and Addiction.
I’d also recommend adding some fresh foods to your dogs’ meals occasionally. Some healthy fresh foods: plain yogurt or kefir (high in quality animal-based protein and probiotics for a healthy gut), tinned sardines or mackerel (high in protein and omega 3’s), eggs (high in quality protein and omega 3’s), lean leftover meat (high in quality protein) and steamed low glycemic veggies (high in antioxidants).
Good luck!
georgesmom, I just wanted to add that some Wellness canned food does include carageenan, but like you said, not all. I know that Wellness Stews do not contain it. TOTW and Blue Stews and Family Favorites also do not have it, if I remember correctly. Simply Nourish does not contain it. I also know that Fromm Gold does not have it, nor does Fromm 4Star canned. A very budget friendly canned that does not contain it is 4Health…only the stew kind. Unfortunately, now all Merrick cans contain it. They used to have some formulas that didn’t.
Hi DawnieStrohl –
My advice would be to stop looking for the “best food” – there is no best food. All foods have their pros and cons. Dogs, like every living creature, need variety. Feed several difference foods with different protein sources, this will help mitigate the negative aspects of each food. The less processed the food is the better – so raw foods are healthiest, followed by fresh cooked foods, dehydrated and freeze-dried foods, canned foods, then dry foods. Feeding dry food is fine (it’s convenient and budget friendly) but try topping it with some canned food or fresh food at least a few times a week. Some healthy additions to dry food are eggs, lean meat, tinned sardines, cottage cheese, plain yogurt, kefir and cooked low-glycemic vegetables.
Thank you all so much. I haven’t done hardly any pet food shopping online, so that helps a bunch! I also found Tractor Supply’s 4health (4 stars) for $32 for a 35 lb bag and even the holistic vet says that’s a good food. The Simply Nourish is $44 with a coupon. I look forward to researching online. What you have already given me, I have seen a few offers for first time buyers too 🙂 Thanks!
Melissaandcrew is right that Petsmart doesn’t participate in frequent buyer programs and neither does Petco, however, Petco does offer a “Petco Card” that gets you a $5.00 coupon for every $100.00 you spend and you can accumulate these and use as many as you want before they expire. It does help if you shop there often.
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This reply was modified 12 years, 7 months ago by Mom2Cavs.
Hi there-
First, we all have budgets- some are bigger, some smaller, lol. Find a few foods that you like, google and see who sells them in your area. If you feed higher volumes, look for ones that offer frequent buyer programs and figure the freebie into your actual cost per bag. You would be surprised how that lowers the overall cost of a food that perhaps you thought was out of the budget range. Petsmart/Petco do not participate with these programs. See if Hi Tek is sold in your area-they have aa GF version and a buyer program, and the food is reasonable to begin with.
You need to realize that this is the internet, you don’t always get the answers you want & things do go off topic. Shopping at PetSmart doesn’t always give you the best options. Someone mentioned shopping online: thats a great place for people on a budget to shop. Sit home, order, a good deal of the time, you pay less than what you would in person, no gas to get to the store & a good deal of the time, free shipping.
Thank you but if you read the prior posts, that has nothing to do with my question, other than I was wondering where the aforementioned foods could be purchased. Also, I was asking for advice on food, not opinions 🙂
I think people need to shop for the food their dog needs, not shop at a certain store. JMO
Check out wag.com, naturalK9supplies.com, doggiefood.com, petflow.com, petbest.com and k9cuisine.com – all have a large selection of quality foods, competitive prices and offer free shipping (no weight restrictions) when you spend a certain amount of money (usually orders over $50).
