Dog Food

[Osiris]

Not sure how many people here are interested and/or already know but I have been researching canine nutrition for some time and thought I would share a great site for those that feed kibble to their dogs.

dogfoodanalysis.com is a great site that reviews a ton of different kibbles, some are just rated and a list of ingredients are provided and some have reviews that explain the rating.

What you will learn is that the majority, if not all, of the "mainstream" dog foods you have heard of or are advertised are junk food for dogs! When I first started to research dog food none of the quality kibbles were brands I had ever heard of. I have just started to notice commercials for quality kibble and very few of them.

I hope some of you find this useful!

[BabushkaLady]

Thank you for posting! The site is pretty comprehensive; I've bookmarked it. I'd like to make my own dog food.

The number one thing most people do wrong for their dog's health is to over-feed them. An overweight animal has many more health issues and actually feels bad. Just like humans!! In the wild you don't see overweight animals!

I spoil my dogs with attention, not food.

[ximmy]

and good for grandma too!!!

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s222/chrisneros/thanks-obama-healthy-food.jpg

[ArgenteumTelum]

My beastie (shown in avatar) has been raised on a mix of Innova, Solid Gold and raw veggies. He is very active and has had never been ill. Also, the only water he has been given is Pi water. I've been pleased with the dry foods mentioned above.

AT

Edit: Will have to reload avatar.

[gunny highway]

damn! i've been feeding my dog shit for years and didn't know it. i thought Purina Dog Chow would score better than one star...

[Joe King]

damn! i've been feeding my dog shit for years and didn't know it. i thought Purina Dog Chow would score better than one star...

Try feeding your dog Blue Buffalo dog food. It scores pretty high and my dog loves it. I started getting it for her after a friend told me that his dog seemed like a different dog after eating it. I'd bet that your dog would love it too.

I used to give her the Chicken Soup brand, which is also pretty good, but I think she seemed to be getting tired of it.
I also give her apples oranges and other fruit sometimes that she likes. Some coconut oil too. She just loves that stuff when its been in the fridge.
Her Vet has told me several times over the years that she's one of the healthier dogs she sees.
Now she's one of the oldest.
...and I can't help but to think that her relatively good diet has been the reason why.

[gunny highway]

Try feeding your dog Blue Buffalo dog food. It scores pretty high and my dog loves it. I started getting it for her after a friend told me that his dog seemed like a different dog after eating it. I'd bet that your dog would love it too.

I used to give her the Chicken Soup brand, which is also pretty good, but I think she seemed to be getting tired of it.
I also give her apples oranges and other fruit sometimes that she likes. Some coconut oil too. She just loves that stuff when its been in the fridge.
Her Vet has told me several times over the years that she's one of the healthier dogs she sees.
Now she's one of the oldest.

...and I can't help but to think that her relatively good diet has been the reason why.

thanks, good suggestions. my brother feeds his dog Blue Buffalo and has been trying to get me to switch. this website definitely opened my eyes.

[po boy]

I almost don't want to admit but I cook my dogs food brown rice veggies and meat.

I haven't feed them bagged food after the melamine scare.

[BrewTech]

I haven't read the site yet, but we've feeding our new cats (and now dogs) something called Evolve... not corn, wheat or soy... kittens have been growing like weeds on it (they are 6 mos now, and huge, except for "littawon", she's still tiny)

[Osiris]

My beastie (shown in avatar) has been raised on a mix of Innova, Solid Gold and raw veggies. He is very active and has had never been ill. Also, the only water he has been given is Pi water. I've been pleased with the dry foods mentioned above.

AT

Edit: Will have to reload avatar.

All great quality kibble! What is Pi water?


damn! i've been feeding my dog shit for years and didn't know it. i thought Purina Dog Chow would score better than one star...


Don't feel bad! I worked at an animal hospital for years that pushed, and still does, science diet. Crap food!!!


I almost don't want to admit but I cook my dogs food brown rice veggies and meat.

I haven't feed them bagged food after the melamine scare.

I think that's great! Anything home made is better than "animal digest" in some foods. Research that, disgusting!!!


I haven't read the site yet, but we've feeding our new cats (and now dogs) something called Evolve... not corn, wheat or soy... kittens have been growing like weeds on it (they are 6 mos now, and huge, except for "littawon", she's still tiny)

Evolve gets a 4 star. Not bad. Funny part is Costco brand, Kirkland, gets a three star compared to Pedigree that they sell as well which is a one star and within a couple dollars.

Blue Buffalo is a good quality kibble but I have heard from a lot of people that their dogs don't like it for some reason.

No grain will get the best review. Dogs should not have grain. Especially corn which is in most of the "mainstream" dog foods.

Watching dog food commercials drive me crazy! I can't believe how they can blatantly lie about how nutritious their food is.

This is what I feed my dog.

http://www.naturesvariety.com/InstinctRaw/dog/orgchicken
This is for breakfast

http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/products/force/
This is for dinner

I tried prey model raw for a while but couldn't get his stool normal. He didn't chew the bone enough I guess and it caused digestive problems.

I also give flax seed oil in every meal. I tried fish oil but he seemed to have an allergy to fish.

I am so happy this helped some people! I had no idea how bad some of the food was that is out there. I wish I knew with the dogs I had growing up.

[k-os]

You know, a lot of 'them' say that humans aren't supposed to eat grain either.

[Katmandu]

I almost don't want to admit but I cook my dogs food brown rice veggies and meat.

I haven't feed them bagged food after the melamine scare.

Thanks for this post and wesite Osiris.

Po boy, you are probably on the right track.

Dogs did quite well I suppose for thousands of years on table scraps and whatever small animals they could catch. What has changed for dog owners is the same thing that has changed for people in general: the desire for convenience.

How long has packaged dog food been around, maybe 100 years? About the same length of time that pre-packaged human "food" has been around? Both dogs and people get to eat the same package food crap that is being served up by the food corporations. The fake food crap that the food corps serve up is a slow-kill mechanism for society.

[Osiris]

I wanted to mention, for those of you that don't know, if you are switching your dogs food you should do it slowly. Mix 25% new with 75% old for a week, then 50--50, and so on. You can do it quicker for less sensitive dogs.

[big country]

I liked feeding my dog The Honest Kitchen and he really enjoyed it. He made a MESS with it though, all over the floor...everywhere and we were getting ants because of it. I might go back to it here in a month or two.

I usually rotate what we feed him so it isn't always to same se he doesn't get bored. I usually feed Orijen six-fish, but also mix in Taste of the Wild and Arcana (whichever variety suits my fancy). We have a pure-bred boxer. We've had him to the vet twice since we got him in 2008. He's small in stature (for a male boxer) but strong as can be and full of energy. One bag generally lasts us a month or so.

One thing with the more expensive grain-free food is that you have to feed them a LOT less. I looked on the back of a really cheap food at Krogers (the food that has lassie/disney on the front of it? Dunno the brand right off hand) and the feeding instructions for a 70lb dog was 8 cups/day!!!! The Orijen instructions were like 3.5 cups a day for comparison!!

I also feed my dog raw scraps from the kitchen, he loves avacado (even the rind) and he loves any sort of left over meat scraps (raw). Won't touch apples though. Likes carrots and squash. Also eats pineapple and bananas.

I like this website for dog related questions and learning.
http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/
It is of course geared towards boxers but much of the info could apply to any breed. I believe they are responsible for dogfoodanalysis.com as well.

[Joe King]

One thing with the more expensive grain-free food is that you have to feed them a LOT less. I looked on the back of a really cheap food at Krogers (the food that has lassie/disney on the front of it? Dunno the brand right off hand) and the feeding instructions for a 70lb dog was 8 cups/day!!!! The Orijen instructions were like 3.5 cups a day for comparison!!What's the cost comparison per serving between the two?

[big country]

signifigant I'm sure. I don't know right off the top of my head. Orijin food costs $75/29.5lb bag, TOTW is about $45/29.5lb bag and arcana is in between at around $60/29.5lb bag. One bag lasts us a month or so, usually a little over like a month and a few days to a week. My point was you can't compare the cost/lb of the two foods to get an accurate measure.

I haven't fed "cheap" food so I cannot calculate a comparison for you.

I just mention it because if you are used to a 50lb bag costing $25, it might be a little sticker shock to see a 29.5lb bag cost you $70

[Joe King]

Assuming one were to go for the mid-priced arcana, it appears that ones dog would get better food for relatively the same cost as the cheap stuff.