best kind of dog food

Discussion dedicated to promoting the well-being of your dog through diet, exercise and general health tips.

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Dixies momma
Posts: 52
Joined: Fri Mar 12, 2010 5:32 pm

best kind of dog food

Post by Dixies momma »

hello. i have been hearing that i need to be careful with what type of dog food to get for my pets..should i say brand..i know u get what u pay for. same with our food sometimes.lol. what i want to know is, is there a better brand and what exactly is it i need to look for when selecting food. i have the purina beneful puppy food. for my puppy dixie and have switched from dog chow to purina beneful for jake. i dont want to get the most expensive thing but i want it healthy food for them. also too dog treats. i have been given these meaty flavored meaty bone treats and dog biscuts and marrow bone. are they good for them and how much to give when training. the bones shaped treats i break done in bite size pieces. i had pets b4 when i was with me ex hubby but never really paid attention til now esp since i started watching the show. i appreciate any advice and tips,etc thanks
Jake n Dixies momma
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luvmydogs
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by luvmydogs »

There is a website that you can check out called dogfoodanalysis.com...I thought I had been feeding a good brand but after checking out the site I went with a different brand..hth
dodge-white boxer
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by dodge-white boxer »

I have been told in our Petshop that James Wellbeloved is best for Boxers,which he s having now.The lady s face dropped a little when I said what I was feeding him before( Pedigree :oops: ) and her recommending the other food because she s got a Boxer ,too, and said its much better for skin and coat,hope that ll help,xxx :D
Sarah83
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by Sarah83 »

Depends what country you're in also. JWB and Burns are ones I see recommended a lot in the UK, Taste of the Wild and Wellness in the US. I'm sure there are others though. The ingredients for Purina Beneful are pretty rubbish if I remember rightly. It also depends on your dog though, if i feed Burns to Rupert I end up with a walking skeleton within a few weeks no matter how much of it he eats. My border collie mix did best on a really, really cheap food we got from the supermarket that was like concrete in a tin.

The better quality foods are more expensive but apparently you usually need to feed less of them than you would a lesser quality food so it doesn't work out as much as you'd think.
Dixies momma
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Joined: Fri Mar 12, 2010 5:32 pm

Re: best kind of dog food

Post by Dixies momma »

i remembered an episode where victoria called the dog food in the show mcdonalds food.lol i guess it had to do with the dog getting too much of something and not enough of another something. and since i have a dog and a puppy, i really wanna be sure that they eat good for a reasonable price. i forgot, we live in the us. what exactly do i need to look for to know if it is bad, etc?
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Leigha
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by Leigha »

There's a really long thread somewhere about what to look for in commercial kibble. I can't find it, but I seem to remember the first ingredients need to be an actual meat (not a meal) and vegetables. J and I were looking at kibble last night because financially, Dixie is eating us out of house and home. Until we have weaned puppies that are no longer living with us, she's going to a high quality dog food. (I spent over $100 on her food last week--that's more than I spend on us). One of the ones we looked at had Brewer's rice as the first ingredient--not good. Another one we looked at was chicken, chicken meal, brown rice, then a bunch of junk. I'm going today to Tractor Supply to pick up Taste of the Wild.

J and I got into a little snit last night because he made the comment "It's just food, she'll be fine." Well, yes, she could eat the crap out there, just like any children I have could survive off of mcDonalds and Bojangles, twinkies and ho-hos, but they wouldn't be as healthy if they ate lean meat and vegetables. I finally told him to hush, that if I was the one paying for the food she'd eat what I wanted her to eat and he could just deal with it.
mselisabs
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Joined: Wed Feb 25, 2009 11:06 pm
Location: Charlotte, NC

Re: best kind of dog food

Post by mselisabs »

Definitely check the aforementioned site. Looking at dog food ingredients can be very overwhelming, so start by looking at the first five ingredients and learn more and more from there. :)

There should NEVER be: by-products ('chicken by-product'), unnamed meat (ex, 'meat meal' vs 'chicken meal'), bone meal, corn of ANY type ('corn gluten meal'). Corn is a cheap filler and it's known that dogs do not digest it well. Here are your first 5 ingredients of Beneful puppy:
Ground yellow corn, chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, whole wheat flour, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of vitamin e)

All ingredient are listed by weight - so the heaviest/most ingredient is listed first. When it comes to meat, make sure it is the first ingredient (if not the first few), and it should be in meal form (ex, 'turkey meal'.) 'Meal' means that the water has been removed from the meat, therefor making it all meat. A standard chicken meat is 80% water - so if 'Chicken' is listed first, it's only the heaviest ingredients because it's 80%. If the water was removed it would likely be much further down the list. Make sense?
Also, your dog food should not be artificially colored. Unless there are actual pieces of dried veggies then it should be yellow-brownish. Never multi-colored. :P

It's a lot to take in, but again, start with examining the first 5 ingredients and as time goes on learn more from there. If you're feeding Beneful I'm presuming you're in the US. Don't bother going to the local grocery store to buy dog food, it's all junk. Most big chain stores (like Petsmart and Petco) can have better selections but the acceptable food is overpriced. Petco seems to do a better job with having better food, though, if you're having a hard time finding a pet-food store.

Don't feel like you need to go completely raw or grain-free yet until you're ready. I started feeding Chicken Soul for the Dog Lover Soul because it was a good mid-range food and reasonably priced (~$1/lb.) http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food ... t/5/page/8

Good luck!
Dixies momma
Posts: 52
Joined: Fri Mar 12, 2010 5:32 pm

Re: best kind of dog food

Post by Dixies momma »

oh wow. sheesh...i didnt realize all that. yes i am in the us. its all confusing. and here i was thinking that beneful was a lil better. will keep researching. thanks
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Jeanne105
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by Jeanne105 »

I feed my labrador Innova. Nora really likes it and I've noticed that she has lost a couple of needed pounds. :D
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chifan_32
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by chifan_32 »

I was recommended the Iams food for my chi , i was feeding her the beneful , but when i found out it had dye in it ! I really stopped feeding it to her , only the best will do , If you get Iams you get a coupon in each one , instead of paying regular price its like 3.32 , that is good for any size !
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Jeanne105
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by Jeanne105 »

I've learned that Proctor & Gamble is taking over Innova. P&G manufactured Iams and Eukanuba. I'm taking Nora off that food and getting her on Merrick.
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josie1918
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by josie1918 »

A lot of the dog foods I would stay away from use cooked corn as their protien source. While "cooked" corn can be digested, I can't wrap my head around using it as a protien source. Bone meal, is an excellent source of calcium. To further confuse you, you need to be sure YOUR dog does well on it. Everyone has an opinion about food, but EVERY dog is different. I tried my shepherd on Blue Buffalo and NEVER AGAIN, his coat got dry, dull and his skin started itching. Other dogs do wonders on it. I had a rescued dachshund for 21 years, little s--t would NOT eat anything but pedigree, well, for 21 years, he lived a very healthy, happy, life with the sleekest coat you EVER saw. So, be sure whatever your selection is, that it suits your individual dog. There are some folks that swear by a raw meat diet, some feed only home cooked. Some of the better foods that are REASONABLY priced, I believe are chicken soup for the dog lovers soul, and a private label brand called 4 health, sold at Tractor supply stores. What worked best for my dogs was taste of the wild. The point I want to make is that each dog is an individual just as humans are, try a few small bags of the products you like the look of and go from there.
Helen2009
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Re: best kind of dog food

Post by Helen2009 »

The website dog food analysis is a great site. When I found out what was in the dog food I was feeding I was quite horrified! I've switched my dogs to Orijen now as I do like raw feeding, and for a dry kibble, this is as close as it gets apparently!
sarahjayne
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Location: Paris, France

Re: best kind of dog food

Post by sarahjayne »

One of the most satisfying days in my life was the day I changed my golden retriever to a raw food diet after reading "Give your dog a bone" by Ian Billinghurst.(Amazon)
It felt so good to give him REAL food !!! :P We have never looked back since ! :D
His dull coat became soooo soft and shiney I couldn't believe the difference. He's on tip top form and really enjoys his food now where as before he could take it or leave it.
There are so many advantages to raw feeding but the most important I would say is that I know exactly what he's getting. :D
Good luck !
maximoo
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Location: South Florida

Re: best kind of dog food

Post by maximoo »

My boy does well on KIRKLANDS & Blue Buffalo. I tried him on Wellness & even tho he loved it I didn't like the softer deposits he left behind. :P :x I also supplement with a little human food from time to time & raw chicken legs/beef marrow bones. Variety is good if your dog isn't picky.
You can often get samples or coupons from the website of a food you are considering. And dog food can be returned with a receipt if it doesn't agree with your pooch.
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