[jencam]

Boon, maybe there is some confusion because SD was never mentioned by the OP. He wasn't saying he's going to switch to a crap food.

I agree with you it's ridiculous to feed crap for a small savings. I have a hard time in the grocery store watching people buy the food in there.......but they are probably unaware. I was until my dog had allergy issues I had to research.....that led to an education on food in general.

[boon4376]

Originally Posted by jencam

Boon, maybe there is some confusion because SD was never mentioned by the OP. He wasn't saying he's going to switch to a crap food.

I know by now im dragging this out, but he mentioned switching to purina one and diamond. Diamond natural appears to be decent, but regular diamond doesnt even list what meat source they use. Its just "meat meal".
And purina one's main meat ingredient is poultry byproduct, and animal digest isnt too far down the list. Again, not much savings and a huge drop in quality.

And to make sure it wasnt skipped over being the last post on the page, I'll post this link again which imo is a great value for a quality food at $1.00/lb
http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/p...d_id=630&Page=
and this one
http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/p...=&brand_id=299

[Cracker]

Cracker was doing okay on Purina, which was easy to get and not too expensive. Then, she started having anxiety issues (SA that grew into generalized anxiety) and she started dropping weight. My vet recommended Wellness brand (wow a vet that doesn't try to sell you Science Diet! I LOVE MY VET!) thinking a better food would chemically be better for her anxiety and to get the weight back on that she had lost. She lost better part of 4 lbs in a month and she has no weight to lose. She is also a high energy dog who walks with me all day (I am a professional dogwalker, and not having a car, that means we REALLY walk).

Since switching to the Wellness she eats LESS by almost 2/3 rds and maintains her weight beautifully, her stools are less frequent and smaller and once I did the math it turns out that the amount of Purina I was feeding her was actually costing more than the "more expensive" food she is now on. I can buy a big bag (35 lbs) for 60 dollars and it will last almost six weeks. She's a 67 lb foxhound mix, so 40 bucks a month is pretty darn good.

Now this is Canadian pricing, and I'm not sure if Wellness if available where you are..but sometimes the more expensive seeming foods are actually LESS expensive. Of course, if your dog does well on the cheaper food then go for it. Whatever works, man. Whatever works.

[jencam]

Originally Posted by boon4376

I know by now im dragging this out, but he mentioned switching to purina one and diamond. Diamond natural appears to be decent, but regular diamond doesnt even list what meat source they use. Its just "meat meal".
And purina one's main meat ingredient is poultry byproduct, and animal digest isnt too far down the list. Again, not much savings and a huge drop in quality.

And to make sure it wasnt skipped over being the last post on the page, I'll post this link again which imo is a great value for a quality food at $1.00/lb
http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/p...d_id=630&Page=
and this one
http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/p...=&brand_id=299

Gotcha. Yeah, Purina One is almost $1/pound so to me it doesn't make much sense to drop so far in quality for a few cents.

It frustrates me when people try ONE premium food, have a problem with it, and say 'well my dog just does better on the cheaper stuff'.

It sometimes takes a bit of effort to find an affordable, quality food that does well for the particular dog.

Mine turned out to be really easy, but I had to try several for the cat to get her off Iams.

Originally Posted by LoveMyBirdDog

Hey everyone. I have an 8 month old GSP/Brittany mix. He is high energy and we exercise him a good bit. Right now he eats Nutro Ultra puppy. It is about $48-52 per big bag and he goes through a bag ever 1.5 months. Due to financial reasons we need to switch to a slightly cheaper dog food. I refuse to feed him corn based food, but it seems like Nutro is one of the more expensive brands.

Does anyone have any experience with some foods that are still high quality and have no preservatives?

Please help.

How many pounds is the big bag? I don't know what price you are paying now per pound.

[Inga]

[QUOTE=jencam;554540]
It frustrates me when people try ONE premium food, have a problem with it, and say 'well my dog just does better on the cheaper stuff'.

It sometimes takes a bit of effort to find an affordable, quality food that does well for the particular dog.

Mine turned out to be really easy, but I had to try several for the cat to get her off Iams.
QUOTE]

I agree. I think that some dogs do better on certain foods then other. Trying one "quality food" and not liking the results and then going back to a low quality food rather then trying something else doesn't seem a good option. IMO

So far I am very happy with Taste of the Wild. I am amazed at how little I can feed of that and my dogs maintain their weight really well. They are neither fat or thin, they are just right. I am saving money by feeding that food rather then some of my other choices.

[jencam]

[QUOTE=Inga;554567]

Originally Posted by jencam

It frustrates me when people try ONE premium food, have a problem with it, and say 'well my dog just does better on the cheaper stuff'.

It sometimes takes a bit of effort to find an affordable, quality food that does well for the particular dog.

Mine turned out to be really easy, but I had to try several for the cat to get her off Iams.
QUOTE]

I agree. I think that some dogs do better on certain foods then other. Trying one "quality food" and not liking the results and then going back to a low quality food rather then trying something else doesn't seem a good option. IMO

So far I am very happy with Taste of the Wild. I am amazed at how little I can feed of that and my dogs maintain their weight really well. They are neither fat or thin, they are just right. I am saving money by feeding that food rather then some of my other choices.

I got some samples of that and my dog LOVES it. Bison - that is so cool. She's got to be sick to death of chicken right now.

I wish I could buy these boxes of samples at a reasonable price to give her variety.

Right now she gets one of these a week sort of like a treat. I may try this brand if I decide to get off Canidae. It makes me upset they changed the formula and it is so rice-heavy.

Also, when we first got on it she was so shiny, now she is not

[LoveMyBirdDog]

The Nutro Ultra is a 35lb bag. Costs 48-52 a bag.

[tirluc]

It frustrates me when people try ONE premium food, have a problem with it, and say 'well my dog just does better on the cheaper stuff'.

It sometimes takes a bit of effort to find an affordable, quality food that does well for the particular dog.

ahhh, but you see, this is not just "one quality brand" that i have tried w/ my dogs over the yrs....i have tried about 5 and i keep coming back to the P.O. and up foods....it has been proven to me (not by my judgement but by others telling me how great my dogs look and act) that this is what they do best on.....so, i think i'll stay w/ it......

and, P.O.'s 1st ingredient is not

main meat ingredient is poultry byproduct

it's lamb or chicken or turkey....meat, not by products....

[jencam]

Originally Posted by LoveMyBirdDog

The Nutro Ultra is a 35lb bag. Costs 48-52 a bag.

$1.37 a pound,,,,,it's going to be tough to get a good food much less than that.

But you said even getting down to $35 a bag would be helpful - there are a few to choose from in the $1/pound range that are as good or better as the Ultra.

Actually, more than a few, but taking into account what is offered near you will noarrow it down.

Here's the review site again: http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/

Originally Posted by tirluc

ahhh, but you see, this is not just "one quality brand" that i have tried w/ my dogs over the yrs....i have tried about 5 and i keep coming back to the P.O. and up foods....it has been proven to me (not by my judgement but by others telling me how great my dogs look and act) that this is what they do best on.....so, i think i'll stay w/ it......

and, P.O.'s 1st ingredient is not it's lamb or chicken or turkey....meat, not by products....

I wasn't talking about you!

Ingredients:
Chicken, brewers rice, whole grain corn, corn gluten meal, poultry by-product meal, whole grain wheat, beef tallow preserved with mixedtocopherols...

Chicken, not chicken meal, so brewers rice (fragments, not even real rice) may be the actual main ingredient.

I would never recommend this food because for the price and amount required to feed, it doesn't make any sense with the premiums that are available to compare to.

However, it is not a crap food, imo, like everything else in the grocery aisle (besides Iams) and if it works for a dog better than any premiums tried, then that's great!

[boon4376]

Originally Posted by tirluc

and, P.O.'s 1st ingredient is not it's lamb or chicken or turkey....meat, not by products....

Its their #1 ingredient, its not the MAIN ingredient. Lamb is listed in its hydrated form.. And thus when hydrated it takes up about 80% (max) of the product volume. However it isnt hydrated in your dogs food, its dehydrated when packaged, and shrinks down to around 20% at most considering its ~70% moisture.

If lamb meal was listed as the second ingredient, that would be great, That would mean a significant portion of the food is dehydrated lamb. Lamb meal is the dehydrated processed form of lamb, and thus, its position on the ingredients list is true. Plain listed Lamb is a switch tactic, and when its actually processed and dehydrated, it's mass shrinks considerably, and it moves much further down the list.

Poultry byproduct meal is in spot 4. We can imagine Lamb when dehydrated would shift down to position around 4th or 5th, So your food has at least as much poultry by-product as it has of lamb, probably less lamb. Not trying to be mean, this is how sketchy dog food lables are.

... Which means purina one is basically rice and corn with 20% lamb and 20% poultry byproduct. (probably less meat)

Originally Posted by Purina Website

Lamb (natural source of glucosamine), brewers rice, corn gluten meal, whole grain corn, poultry by-product meal (natural source of glucosamine), oat meal, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), lamb meal, animal digest,

Compared to solid gold, where the the lamb would shrink down and move to 4th or 5th on the list, but lamb meal is listed second in its dehydrated form, showing that there is a considerable amount of lamb for high quality protein. Millet rice brand and oatmeal are very nutritious grains. (I've emailed solid gold and in this particular list, ocean fish is actually menhaden herring, another excellent source of high quality protein and omega-3)

Lamb | Lamb Meal | Brown Rice | Cracked Pearled Barley | Millet | Rice Bran | Oatmeal | Ocean Fish Meal | Canola Oil | Tomato Pomace | Flaxseed | Natural Flavor | Salmon Oil (source of DHA)

Anyways, my point here isnt to bash on Purina one, if it works for your dog that's great don't feel bad, but dog food lables can be misleading and that was the point of the post.

[ownedbypups2010]

since i have had Thunder ( my GSD/lab mix) we too have gone thru many foods from the TOP OF THE LINE to the bottom of the rung, and finally we have found that Purina One sensitive systems is the best... why? you ask, because after he has been thru being sick, stomach problems and the like ( mainly with Pedigree and Science diet), when we put him on ( and have since had him on) i get nothing but complments of how is fur shines, his eyes are clear and his whole look is great!! between him and Cinni ( she is the lab/whippet mix) they go thru about 16 lbs per week: so the break down:

2 dogs free feed with Purnia One= 10.68 per bag x 2= $22.00 or so ( this varies per season, winter months they eat less and summer they eat more. so for a month for just kibble=about 80-100 depending on energy level and such..

they also get home made meals ( steaks, chicken fish fruits veggies) IDC what others say, my vet has given me the go ahead and i have not had one complaint, like other posters, what works for one dog is not always best for others.

they also get treats ( fast food) and little tastes of what we have for meals and such, they do great, no problems.

so, my vote would be for Purnia One from here on out

[RonE]

Is there anything in the world as futile as arguing about dog foods?

I'm far more concerned about the dogs who get little or nothing to eat or have had their last 100-or-so meals in a tiny chain link kennel in a shelter.

The mid-range commercial foods that are on the grocery shelves are so much better than anything we fed our dogs 50 years ago yet, somehow most of them lived long, active lives.

How many of us here read the labels on the things we, ourselves, are eating?

[Willowy]

Originally Posted by RonE

How many of us here read the labels on the things we, ourselves, are eating?

Haha, not many.

But humans eat so many different foods every day, and dogs eat the same thing day in and day out. I definitely recommend rotating foods, no matter what you feed.

For the OP---I think Chicken Soup is a really good food at a really good price, though I suppose that depends on where you get it. For me it's not much more expensive than Purina ONE (Chicken Soup is $32.99 for 35 pounds---94¢ per pound, Purina ONE is $37.99 for 44 pounds----86¢ a pound). Although I do think the higher-end Purina foods are decent. Diamond Naturals is another good brand, and very affordable (for me, 25.99 for 40 pounds---65¢ a pound, it's what I go to when $$ is tight). Kirkland is the same as DN if you have a CostCo membership.

[LoveMyBirdDog]

Thanks to everyone that gave helpful advice. After doing a lot of research, I think I've decided to try Chicken Soup. According to Dog Food Analysis it is considered a 5 star food. The Nutro Ultra I have been feeding my dog was only ranked 3 stars which really surprised me. Chicken Soup also seems to run about $10 cheaper per 35lb bag.

My local Feed and Seed supplies it. I'll probably go get a bag towards the end of the week and begin switching my pup over by the weekend. I'll keep everyone up to date on how the transition goes. My dog is so obsessed with food I think he'd eat a bowl of dirt if I put it in front of him. So I doubt taste will be an issue.

Thanks again.

[ownedbypups2010]

Originally Posted by RonE

Is there anything in the world as futile as arguing about dog foods?

I'm far more concerned about the dogs who get little or nothing to eat or have had their last 100-or-so meals in a tiny chain link kennel in a shelter.

The mid-range commercial foods that are on the grocery shelves are so much better than anything we fed our dogs 50 years ago yet, somehow most of them lived long, active lives.

How many of us here read the labels on the things we, ourselves, are eating?

you have great point.. my mom was raised on a farm waaaayyy back when, and all her animals got table scraps, basically whatever the humans ate, yep, you guessed it, they ate too. and all those animals live longer than today's dogs, that is why our family feeds table scraps and kibble, and they do great.
i also agree that more people are concerned for their dogs health and what THEY EAT ( which is FINE), and less of what they are putting in their own stomachs. which leads me to believe that when these dogs are growing old and gray, who will be around to care for them? when we are cramming so much crap in our systems oursleves.

as for me, we donate food ( even the kinds that are "NOT" 5 star) to the humane society every month. and those dogs are just fine !

i think what it comes down to is not who has "5" stars and following the crowd, but, more with what works for our dogs, FYI switching your dogs food too much will cause more problems in the long run than just sticking with one food all together

[Willowy]

Originally Posted by ownedbypups2010

FYI switching your dogs food too much will cause more problems in the long run than just sticking with one food all together

Actually, many people disagree with that. I change my dogs' food all the time and they do better with that than if I stayed with one food. Here's a clicky with more info: http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/how-o...nge-foods.html

[Donna5503]

Hi...I feed my guy Blue Buffalo...at PetSmart a 15lb Bag costs $26.00....my dog is 53 lbs and for his weight he should eat 2 Cups per day.

I feed him 1 Cup per day...with 2 pieces of Chicken Thigh (Skinless & deboned) and 1/4 Cup of Veggies (Peas, Carrots, String Beans) per day.

I stock up on Chicken when it goes on sale---I also give him Boiled Sweet Potatoes. (1/2 per meal)

He's doing great and with the Blue Buffalo he's getting enough vitamins and he's shedding less and his coat is very shiny.

Adding these human foods to the Blue Buffalo is actually very in-expensive if you do your shopping right.

[ownedbypups2010]

Originally Posted by Willowy

Actually, many people disagree with that. I change my dogs' food all the time and they do better with that than if I stayed with one food. Here's a clicky with more info: http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/how-o...nge-foods.html

and i respect that you do, and many people with disagree, but, many people also agree.. i did read your clicky and it said you could occasionally, which is fine for some people, but doing it all the time can, in the long run cause internal problems with digestion. i, for one, have one of those dogs that has a very sensitive system, so, for me, changing diets, even occasionally, is not a good thing, i would suggest talking with a vet that would be able to to help anyone with that.

remember all dogs are different .. and althou this may a puppy forum, In my most humble opinion, things such as food and health should always be referred to a vet, as we do not know the whole situation of the dog

[Willowy]

Originally Posted by ownedbypups2010

things such as food and health should always be referred to a vet, as we do not know the whole situation of the dog

Most vets don't know much about nutrition. Most vets push Science Diet. My vet says anything made by Purina or Diamond is A-OK (and both make some really decent foods, and both make some really BAD foods). I dunno....health issues, yes, but I don't take nutritional advice from vets.

The link recommends rotating every 3 months, or with every bag if your dog isn't too sensitive. My dog Toby used to have a very sensitive stomach, but now that I rotate, he has an iron gut.

[ownedbypups2010]

Originally Posted by Willowy

Most vets don't know much about nutrition. Most vets push Science Diet. My vet says anything made by Purina or Diamond is A-OK (and both make some really decent foods, and both make some really BAD foods). I dunno....health issues, yes, but I don't take nutritional advice from vets.

The link recommends rotating every 3 months, or with every bag if your dog isn't too sensitive. My dog Toby used to have a very sensitive stomach, but now that I rotate, he has an iron gut.

and while i respect your choice, i prefer to stand by my vet, they never recommend Science Diet, unless it was the only thing that a dog would eat or need. most vets here in the utah area are very good at recommending what is best for dogs/cats/birds etc, and i would trust what vet would say over any person i knew.. now, the reason i joined a pet forum was simply to get to see what others did with their dogs ( for toys,advise on things in life and some things to do with my dogs), but, all this is IMO.

i would never ever rotate food with my dog as i already know what that can do in the long run. i do, however, feed a HUGE variety of human foods, but, stick with the same kibble, because i know my dog.

the reason i said seek a vets advise, is because, with the internet, ALOT of info can be misleading to people who are new to the pet world, or, some kid says "mom/dad, i read online somewhere that it is OK to ______ ( fill in blank here) and they go to do it and the animal suffers from the mis information from that. ( i have seen this happen on a few other sites.

because NONE of us are registered vets, and experience is way different then vet knowledge, i just do not want people visiting the site for the first time to get the idea that what is said here is A-OK!