[Jonathan W]

Hey all, I’ve been reading the reviews from this site for a few years, first time post. I have a lab mix who I’ve had on chicken soup for the soul adult for the last couple of years. She does well with it, no complaints. Only thing I’ve noticed is she seems to have less shine on her coat and maybe a tiny bit more dander. I stumbled upon TOTW high prairie a few months ago, and I’m considering making the switch. It sounds like one of the best bang for your buck and maybe one of the best dry foods period. She’s of normal exercise (walks ~4 days a week and fetch), seems to have no allergies, and is a healthy weight.

Anything I should take into consideration on making the switch? Is high prairie a better food?

[aquariangt]

They’re both made by diamond, so both are a no go for me. Technically, yes totw is better than chicken soup, but I wouldn’t touch either of them

[DogFoodie]

Hi Jonathan,

I agree with Aquariangt. I wouldn’t use either for the reason that they’re Diamond products.

If you want bang for your buck, take a look at Victor, Horizon Legacy, Earthborn Holistics or Dr. Tim’s.

[Jonathan W]

First of all, thanks for the feedback, it’s greatly appreciated.

What’s the deal with Diamond brands? I know they had a recall last year, but do they have a long history of recalls or other bad practices?

Either way, I found the Victor hi-pro on amazon, and if you calculate it compared to a 30 lb bag, it actually comes out to a tad bit cheaper than TOTW. I see that it’s also a 5 star food, but there isn’t a detailed review on the site for that particular variety. I notice it’s for active dogs, mine isn’t overly active, but is fairly active. Will this potentially cause her to gain weight? I’m all for switching her to something better, just don’t want it to cause other issues!

Thanks again,
Jon

[Jonathan W]

Did some research just looking at fat/protein % as well as overall calories. Here’s the info on the current food, chicken soup:

Crude Protein 26.0% minimum
Crude Fat 14.0% minimum
Crude Fiber 4.0% maximum
335 cal/cup

Victor high-pro:
Crude Protein 30.0% minimum
Crude Fat 20.0% minimum
Crude Fiber 3.8% maximum
429 cal/cup

Victor Select Chicken Meal Brown Rice with Lamb Meal:
Crude Protein 24.0% minimum
Crude Fat 12.0% minimum
Crude Fiber 3.8% maximum
391 cal/cup

The high-pro is clearly the best food, I’m just concerned with it being too many calories- that would be a significant bump from what she currently eats, and she’s an ideal weight right now. I’m still considering the high-pro and maybe even the chicken recipe as that is closer in line with what she currently east (even though it is likely only ~3.5 stars), but really could use more info. Biggest concern is the extra calories and if those are a cause for concern – looks like for a ~48lb dog all recommend around 2.5 cups so there isn’t any evening out due to serving sizes.

[aquariangt]

You should be feeding based on calories as opposed to a cup amount. I don’t follow the cup recommendation and instead try to hit a caloric amount for the dogs. You could feed less Victor Hi Pro than either of the other two. According to the calculator on the home page of this site, you would do 2.5 cups of victor, and would need almost 3 for of victor chicken meal, and over 3 for chicken soup. Based on a 48 pound dog who is typically active

High protein isn’t an issue either, and the hi pro is the only of those three I would consider as 30% is my minimum, though I haven’t fed any Victor (though a lot of people here love it) and I don’t feed any Diamond so TotW and Chicken Soup haven’t ever been with me either

Diamond has a long history of recalls and poor quality control, yes.

[DogFoodie]

Hi Jonathan,

Again, I second Aquariangt’s statements! : )

Also take a look at this website for Victor: http://victordogfood.com/

Click on the “Find a Dealer” tab in the black bar near the top of the page. You just might have some luck in finding Victor near you.

[Jonathan W]

Betsy/Aquarian,

Really appreciate all the helpful info. So right now I feed my dog ~1.5 cups of the chicken soup 2x a day. If I go with the hi-pro (fairly sure I will after what you’ve said), I’d feed her approximately 1.25 cups to get the same calories.

Thanks again from me and my dog, I’m going to order the hi-pro now 🙂

[Author]

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