Good dog food during tough times?

shortstack · 06-01-2009, 07:31 PM

OKay hate to interupt the arguing..lol.. But if you are feeding nutro ultra have you thought about switching to nutro max? I used to feed Ultra- then my store ran out and we were like you trying to save some money.. my vet suggested just plain nutro, but really that "ultra holistic: was a bit better IHO... Eitehr way I could get a 42 lb bag of regular nutro for less than the 35 lbs bag of Ultra..its cheaper and relatively the same ingredients.. The kirkland brand is also very similar for a fraction of the price, i unfortunatley had a problem buying my dog food from anywhere other than a pet/pr farm store... but others don't... Either way it would appear that you got several options.. Hope you find one that works for your pup and your budget

Love's_Sophie · 06-01-2009, 10:07 PM

[quote=jencam;554455]
Now I will get on to someone for feeling ole roy because I don't think they should have a pet if they are going to be that cheap - that's like feeding a kid cheetoes all the time.....and I will point out that buying grocery store food like plain Purina or Alpo is not really saving anything....
QUOTE]

Before there were premium diets, all there was were 'cheap' diets, like Ol' Roy, Pedigree, etc...Many dogs thrived many many years on these foods.

My grandma still feeds those kinds of foods and her last poodle was put down last year at 19 years old...that dog had no health problems till she developed Heart Failure about 6 months before grams put her down. This is not the first dog she has put down that lived into it's late teens either. My family's own dogs lived on foods like Mainstay and Purina Dog chow for years, and they lived well into their teen years (we're talking big dogs here, like collies, shepards, bulldogs, etc). So, yes, cheap, may not be for many dog lovers or dogs, but dogs still thrive on it, and until companies decide to take those foods off the shelves millions of owners will use them.

Personally, I prefer to stay away from alot of the grocery store brand foods, but for those who do feed them, I am not going to condemn them, especially if their dogs appear healthy and active.

LoveMyBirdDog · 06-02-2009, 02:09 PM

Okay guys. I just bought a 35lb bag of Chicken Soup for the Puppy Lover's Soul for $32.99. That is less than $1 a pound. I really hope this food works out for us. It is less expensive than Purina One and seems to be a better quality. (from what I've read).

BirdDog

philovance · 06-02-2009, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LoveMyBirdDog

Okay guys. I just bought a 35lb bag of Chicken Soup for the Puppy Lover's Soul for $32.99. That is less than $1 a pound. I really hope this food works out for us. It is less expensive than Purina One and seems to be a better quality. (from what I've read).

BirdDog

I hope it works out and you will let us know. Chicken Soup and Taste of the Wild are both very well priced multi protein source foods that enjoy a well deserved following. And yet, Diamond who manufactures and probably markets both brands is considered "something less than" first rate.

Kibble confuses me. That's why I'm glad this little dog only needs 1/4 cup a day if'n he gets something else good.

robotcrankit · 06-03-2009, 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shortstack

OKay hate to interupt the arguing..lol.. But if you are feeding nutro ultra have you thought about switching to nutro max? I used to feed Ultra- then my store ran out and we were like you trying to save some money.. my vet suggested just plain nutro, but really that "ultra holistic: was a bit better IHO... Eitehr way I could get a 42 lb bag of regular nutro for less than the 35 lbs bag of Ultra..its cheaper and relatively the same ingredients.. The kirkland brand is also very similar for a fraction of the price, i unfortunatley had a problem buying my dog food from anywhere other than a pet/pr farm store... but others don't... Either way it would appear that you got several options.. Hope you find one that works for your pup and your budget

I would have to disagree with this. The Nutro Max is much lesser in quality than Ultra (I don't like either, personally...but I would feed Nutro Ultra if I didn't work at a feed store and have access to cheap super premiums stuff).

Nutro Ultra is much more meat based and doesn't contain corn or wheat for protein.

Nutro Max Puppy:
Chicken Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Wheat Flour, Rice Bran, Ground Rice, Poultry Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E)

Nutro Ultra Puppy:
Chicken meal, brown rice, rice bran, lamb meal, poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols, natural source of linoleic acid)

And I think Chicken Soup is a good choice. We don't sell this at the feed store I work at, but Petsmart does...if people are looking for cheap food but don't want to throw quality to the curb, I usually wait until my manager isn't listening and then refer them over to Petsmart for the Chicken Soup food....let us know how your puppy does on it.

LoveMyBirdDog · 06-04-2009, 02:20 PM

Hey everyone. I'm on day 2 1/2 on my transition to Chicken Soup. Already noticing less eye boogers.

My pup had been having the WORST eye boogers ever.. When he woke up this morning he had none! Compared to his usual BIG boogers.

I'm transitioning the food slowly. He is having some loose stools, but I was expecting that. No diarrhea though.

Love's_Sophie · 06-05-2009, 12:07 AM

Cool! I hope the CS works well for you. My dogs love it, and do fabulously well on it

wolfsnaps · 06-05-2009, 12:35 AM

[quote=Love's_Sophie;555949]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jencam

Now I will get on to someone for feeling ole roy because I don't think they should have a pet if they are going to be that cheap - that's like feeding a kid cheetoes all the time.....and I will point out that buying grocery store food like plain Purina or Alpo is not really saving anything....
QUOTE]

Before there were premium diets, all there was were 'cheap' diets, like Ol' Roy, Pedigree, etc...Many dogs thrived many many years on these foods.

My grandma still feeds those kinds of foods and her last poodle was put down last year at 19 years old...that dog had no health problems till she developed Heart Failure about 6 months before grams put her down. This is not the first dog she has put down that lived into it's late teens either. My family's own dogs lived on foods like Mainstay and Purina Dog chow for years, and they lived well into their teen years (we're talking big dogs here, like collies, shepards, bulldogs, etc). So, yes, cheap, may not be for many dog lovers or dogs, but dogs still thrive on it, and until companies decide to take those foods off the shelves millions of owners will use them.

Personally, I prefer to stay away from alot of the grocery store brand foods, but for those who do feed them, I am not going to condemn them, especially if their dogs appear healthy and active.

I would reword that. They survive on it, they don't thrive on it.

txcollies · 06-05-2009, 10:02 AM

[quote=wolfsnaps;558371]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Love's_Sophie

I would reword that. They survive on it, they don't thrive on it.

Oh I don't know, when I first got into dogs I fed mine Ol'Roy high performance and mine did fantastic on it. My first litter was whelped on it and to this day it still goes down as the best, most healthiest, easiest, and overall best litter I've whelped so far. The only reason I eventually switched foods is that I wasn't getting quite the coat I wanted on my tricolor.

And our Mutt was fed Ol'Roy high pro her entire life, and yes, she did thrive (I'm not stupid I know the difference), yes, she lived well up in her teens and until almost the day she died everyone though she was about 7 or 8, she never went to the vet, never had any of those 'old age' troubles that most dogs have.

I know of a kennel who feeds Pedigree to their non showing/breeding dogs and those dogs have some of the best teeth ever.

As for me, Pro Plan is as high as I go. I love the performance formula and when times get tough I take mine back down to either Exceed or Diamond Naturals.

Reacher · 06-06-2009, 03:49 AM

Ok, editing this post since I didn't read this whole post. Here are a couple of options if the CS doesn't work out, but I bet you will do just fine on it.

Natures Recipe seems to be one of the best quality food you can get at a Petsmart/Petco but it is far from the most expensive. It was $35.99 for the 40lb bag if I remember right. (about .89 per lb)

I actually found Taste of the Wild at a local feed store for $38.50 for the 30lb bag. (about 1.28 per lb) It's not as cheap as Natures Recipe, but it's grain free and it's just not that much more that I mind.

Again, just giving a little info. Keep us posted on how he does with CS. I noticed some small eye boogers on my dog. I just started him on ToTW today so I will see how he does.

LoveMyBirdDog · 06-06-2009, 07:33 AM

So far Scout really likes the food. He gobbles it down just as fast as he would gobble down his Nutro. His stools in the morning are solid. They get looser as the day goes on. I expect them to firm up eventually. So far so good. I'm sure it will take a while to notice any major changes if they are to occur.

Reacher · 06-06-2009, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LoveMyBirdDog

So far Scout really likes the food. He gobbles it down just as fast as he would gobble down his Nutro. His stools in the morning are solid. They get looser as the day goes on. I expect them to firm up eventually. So far so good. I'm sure it will take a while to notice any major changes if they are to occur.

My dog seems to have the same thing going in that he has a solid stool in the morning and it loosens during the day. I wonder if the stool in the morning has the longest time to process during low activity times at night while the rest of the stools move through faster due to activity or stimulation.

Just a thought.

tefobuch · 06-06-2009, 08:54 PM

This is definitely a touchy subject.

My dog's on Solid Gold right now which he loves, and it's a good food also. I have to feed him grain free and chickenless cos of his allergies... but it sure isn't cheap!!!

I love my baby so much I'd rather go with less myself rather than compromise on my doggies health but it does get tough in these times and I'm also looking for something a bit cheaper.

This is a pretty good site with lots of good info. http://www.dogfoodscoop.com
I printed out their dog food comparison chart and took it to my pet store so at least i could only look at the better quality foods and price all of them. It was really helpful. And also used it to look for online specials.

I also make the bag last longer by supplementing with homemade food. Yea, I've got a very spoilt doggie

I'd be careful of Nutro right now, there's stuff about them being under investigation and then they recalled some cat food. So who knows? I wouldn't risk it myself.

Good luck with the CS, at least you're still feeding your pup a good quality food.

LoveMyBirdDog · 07-02-2009, 02:28 PM

So Scout has been on Chicken Soup Puppy formula for a month. He is doing really good. Stools are solid. Coat looks nice and soft. Still have problems with gas. I try to give him yogurt every day but I forget sometimes.. It isn't unbearable but I do think the gas has increased since being on Nutro Ultra. His stools are much firmer and darker than when he was on Ultra though. So I'm really happy about that.

Ludo the Monster · 07-11-2009, 05:51 AM

I just switched Ludo over to Diamond Naturals Large Dog Adult Lamb and Rice formula. I really wanted him on Before Grain but being unemployed every dollar counts and I just cannot afford it (and no, I am not keeping luxuries for myself I pay rent, the internet and my electric bill and basic groceries so don't give me that line). I am hoping this works out. Our local breeder suggested that switching might even help with his yeast infections in his ears (started when he switched to Iams).

Fingers crossed.

belgianluver · 07-11-2009, 09:02 AM

We are in the same boat. We have started feeding Diamond Naturals. Those formulas have no corn, no wheat, no soy or by-products, and real meat is the first ingrediant.(surprising, to me being diamond). It runs about $25 for a 40 lb bag. We were feeding Solid Gold, and the ingrediant list is surprisingly similar! Make sure though its the Naturals formula, because the other formulas have all the corn, and junk.

Ludo the Monster · 07-11-2009, 01:05 PM

I had always been wary of Diamond before because it was so inexpensive. But when they store owner told me about Naturals and that it had no corn wheat or soy and was only $26 for 40lbs (oddly it was $20 for 20lbs...) I was sold. I would like more meat in the top ingrediants, but I tend to supplement his meat intake anyway (I buy bulk chicken breasts and cook them up for him) and will continue after he loses some lbs.

jcrattigan6557 · 07-11-2009, 05:55 PM

Diamond is a good brand and its cheaper too. I would suggest that you try that instead.

jacobs454 · 07-16-2009, 01:34 AM

I agree with TXCOLLIES. I don't disagree that the premium dog foods talked about in this thread are great stuff, but in keeping with the theme of this post (good food for tough times), cost does matter. I've had three GSD's that I fed the cheap stuff (one of you guys referred to it as "crap-carcass") from Tractor Supply and they all lived happily ever after. I'm currently feeding mine Dog Chow from Tractor Supply (44lb bag) and she woof's it right down. She's only 6 months old, but since the Dog Chow costs less than Puppy Chow, that's what I feed her, and that's what she eats, and she loves it.

Sometimes I'll buy her a bag of Diamond when its on sale, but thats it. I'm not a cheapskate, but if it comes down to ME and my FAMILY eating cheap or my DOG eating cheap, it's gonna be the dog. That's not selfish, its just the way it works. IF I was going to buy a premium dog food, it would be the bison-based food. The guy I bought my last dog from said that's what he feeds his (makes the offspring worth more $$). So yes, you're dog will prolly live longer on the premium stuff (like a car runs better on premium gas), but when the financial times get tough, you can make it on "regular-grade."

On a lighter note, (JOKE ALERT!) What does a buffalo tell his son when he leaves for college? "BI-SON"

luvntzus · 07-16-2009, 03:07 AM

My suggestion was going to be Chicken Soup and then as I read through this thread I saw that's what you chose. It's my first choice for a holistic, reasonably priced food. It's what my best friend's dog has been eating for the past couple of years and he's in great condition. She was feeding Nutro Natural Choice and his coat and overall health improved after she switched.