Survey of Dry Dog Foods

[lvoss]

For grain free kibble I rotate Orijen, Instinct, and Evo.

[renaultf1]

@lvoss:

For grain free kibble I rotate Orijen, Instinct, and Evo.

Is Instinct the one that has a rabbit version - have you tried it?

[CrazyBasenjiMom]

I always get confused when it comes to B's food, The new boys were so under feed, I started them on Wellness puppy, since Belle did well on it. They inhale their food. I've never heard of either of the brands mentioned above. I educated myself on grain free, and my vet and boarder reccommended Wellness, but Shango does have looser stools than his brother…..a balance can be expensive and I never heard of mixing two brands!

[snorky998]

@AndrewnShango:

Seeing as it's my line of work, I consider myself sort of the resident "Expert" on the topic of dry dog food.

My Shango is on Innvo's EVO line, the white meat, small bites. EVO is one of the better foods on the market and the kibble I recommend to new customers interested in switching their pups to better, more health-conscious food.

What brands are you looking into?

Andrew, any suggestions for an older boy (soon to be 12) in good health, and a 'younger' female (soon to be that is prone to put on weight? Neither have food allergies, although Tyler pukes if given egg yolk.

Katie really needs a low fat diet, or she chubbies up in no time at all. Currently they are on Nutro, Natures Choice Lite. I just looked at the feeding recommendations. I feed 1/2 of what they recommend for weight loss, and still they are doing great. Other than the dry kibble, they get their Omega 3 in their food on a daily basis.

I was not looking to change, but this thread piqued my interest in many ways. I have pets, not show dogs. Yes, I want them in top condition so if there is something better out there, within my price range, I'm willing to change.

Thanks for any suggestions. Dawn

[nobarkus]

I use Castor & Pollux Organix dry mixed with Primal frozen raw and canned organic pumpkin. I rotate each week the type of frozen raw (duck, chicken, lamb and beef). Oh jezzz I spend more on Buddy's food than my own.

[tanza]

@snorky998:

Andrew, any suggestions for an older boy (soon to be 12) in good health, and a 'younger' female (soon to be that is prone to put on weight? Neither have food allergies, although Tyler pukes if given egg yolk.

Katie really needs a low fat diet, or she chubbies up in no time at all. Currently they are on Nutro, Natures Choice Lite. I just looked at the feeding recommendations. I feed 1/2 of what they recommend for weight loss, and still they are doing great. Other than the dry kibble, they get their Omega 3 in their food on a daily basis.

I was not looking to change, but this thread piqued my interest in many ways. I have pets, not show dogs. Yes, I want them in top condition so if there is something better out there, within my price range, I'm willing to change.

Thanks for any suggestions. Dawn

Feeding quality food to your pets should have nothing to do with if they are pets or show.. (and for 90% of us, they are show dogs/performance dogs, but pets first). Food is a pretty personal choice… and only by reading and learning about nutrition can you make an educated decision on what is best for your dog/dogs. They are not all the same and what works for one, may not work for another. I prefer less grains.. and more meat/veggies... but not all dogs do well on that... And again IMO... you need talk to a nutritionist. Not that there is anything wrong with looking at what others are feeding, but only a nutritionist is an "expert"... There are many lists out there with nutritionists and as I understand it... most times the diet is built to each dog separate, not as a group.

That said, sounds to me like what you are doing is working....

[Kananga]

@renaultf1:

Is Instinct the one that has a rabbit version - have you tried it?

Kananga has been having Instinct- Rabbit Formula for awhile now. No issues to date and the price is somewhat reasonable.

[lvoss]

Dawn, I have a nearly 12 year old boy and a nearly 9 year old girl. My girl tends to put on weight easier than my boy. I have been feeding a rotation of grain free foods now for several years now. I currently use Orijen, Evo, and Instinct. In addition to the kibble I used to use canned food in the evening but have recently switched to homemade using recipes for the Halo pet food website or using Honest Kitchen or Happy Dog when I want something quick. Nicky gets about a cup to a cup and half of food a day. Half a cup of kibble in the morning and then half a cup to a cup of "wet" meal in the evening. Rally gets about 3/4 of cup, I adjust based on her weight. She gets about a quarter cup in the morning and then half a cup "wet" at night. I add water to the "wet" meal to add volume without calories when she needs to lose a little weight.

[lvoss]

@renaultf1:

Is Instinct the one that has a rabbit version - have you tried it?

Instinct does have a rabbit version. I have used it and the dogs have done fine on it. I do supplement with homecooked food also. Mine love fruits and veggies.

[Basenjimamma]

My dogs are not on kibble, but when I have BRAT fosters I keep them on kibble, to make for easier transitions when their forever homes are finally found. The one I really like is Blue Buffalo's Wilderness, it is their grainfree variety, easily found at the big namebrand pets stores.
Our foster a few months ago, Bana, came to us with a very dry, coarse, almost prickly fur and within 10 days her fur got softer and richer in the color, you could see her coat loosing the dry coarse, lighter colored fur/hairs and at two weeks on it she looked like a different dog. I was amazed at her quick transition. It did take her a while to get used to the idea of eating at set times, as she had been free feed at her previous foster and Kibbles&Bits at that.
I have also used Honest Kitchen dehydrated foods with great success in the past, with two highly allergic dogs. Currently my dogs are on RAW food, with SOJOs grainfree veggie mix or Honest Kitchens Preference mix as a supplement. They are thriving..

[Duke]

I usually mix 50/50 Canidae All Life Stages kibble with Merricks (Cowboy Cookout or Grammy's Pot Pie) kibble. They lose interest when served dry - so I mix with about a TBS of hot water to bring out gravy. Duke is 25 lbs and Daisy is 34 lbs - both get the same portions - a bit less than 2/3 cup morning same for evening. Occasionally if there is leftover meat from our evening meal - I sprinkle in lean pieces. What a treat!

They both LOVE Blue Buffalo Wilderness - but - it gives Daisy gas…I don't buy that anymore.

[renaultf1]

@tanza:

Feeding quality food to your pets should have nothing to do with if they are pets or show.. (and for 90% of us, they are show dogs/performance dogs, but pets first). Food is a pretty personal choice… and only by reading and learning about nutrition can you make an educated decision on what is best for your dog/dogs. They are not all the same and what works for one, may not work for another. I prefer less grains.. and more meat/veggies... but not all dogs do well on that...

+1
My basenjis are pets first and Liyah is a show dog second. Ruby and Brando have been on grain-free since I adopted them so it stands to reason that Liyah will be fed that when she is switched to adult food. I feed what I think is best for them and what I can afford. It is definitely a personal decision.

[snorky998]

So you're saying that a show dogs diet plays no part in the choices you make for a ring ready dog? I really find that hard to believe.

[lvoss]

I agree with tanza and renaultf1, my dogs don't eat any different for show than they would as companions. IMO, all dogs should be fed a high quality food that will help them maintain a correct weight, healthy skin and coat, and good muscle condition.

[renaultf1]

Snorky…Well that's your choice to not believe it. In my case my adults are on Orijen & Canidae grain free, and my 9mo. is on puppy food that isn't grain free - so in essence, IMHO, she's on lesser quality food. She turns 1 in December and then she will be switched to grain-free. It isn't about her being a show dog, it is about the quality of the food and what works best for the individual dog food wise. She is no different than my other 2 except she gets puppy food and goes away to a show on an occasional weekend.

[tanza]

@snorky998:

So you're saying that a show dogs diet plays no part in the choices you make for a ring ready dog? I really find that hard to believe.

Believe it or not, I have never fed my dogs when in the show ring anything different then when they are not… period...

I am not sure why someone would think that a show dog is fed different then a companion? Just because they might spend weekends traveling to a dog show, still doesn't make them any different?...

[agilebasenji]

@snorky998:

So you're saying that a show dogs diet plays no part in the choices you make for a ring ready dog? I really find that hard to believe.

I'm not sure I understand this statement. Sure my dogs' diet plays a part in making her ring-ready. But I want the best out of all of my dogs, but then again my dogs are performance/conformation dogs for a LONG time.

Digital (my almost 13 year old; and who is or is very close to being retired from agility) and Jet (my almost 12 year old, who has been retired from agility for a few years) both get Evo, muttloaf in the evening meal, and joint suppliments. Diggie gets probiotics too; Jet doesn't seem to need them.

Zest, my current conformation, coursing, agility rising star is almost 3 year old, gets fed a 50/50 mix of Evo/Canidae. Some muttloaf in the evenings. I do feed probiotics on weekends we show or when she isn't feeling well, but otherwise not.

Pearl, the rescue malinois, is 2 and gets 1 heaping cup of Canidae and 1/2 heaping cup of Evo twice a day. She gets joint sups and probiotics in the evening. Both this one and my previous malinois tend to have sensitive digestive systems and the Evo seems too rich for either of them by itself. Pearl is on joint sups because I thought she looked weak in her pasterns/joints and the probiotics b/c i think she needs the help in absorbing the food. But I'm not overly happy that this is the very best combination for her, but I'm not sure where to go from here. I do NOT want to tinker with the basenjis' diets.

So, actually, my "current" show dog is the cheapest to feed.

[Nemo]

From a dietary perspective, I spend a lot more effort on my older basenji, Nemo (the cuddlely non-show dog), as he has apparently some intolerance to chicken (can never gain weight on it) but has had good luck on fish and possibly a few other protein sources. So we've tried "Fromm Four Star Salmon a la veg" then "Fromm Four Star Surf & Turf" (grain-free), Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream for a short period of time and I made the jump over to the Evo Red Meat Small Bites and he is doing great on that (no poo issues). Zoni, the show-dog puppy, is on Innova Puppy Food, but I'm planning to switch her over probably to the poultry-based EVO first and then rotate from there. She'll probably be rotated on a wider range of foods, only because I believe she should be able to tolerate it, unlike Nemo…definitely not because she is a showdog.

[Rita Jean]

Are these foods good for our dogs???

Natural Balance Sweet Potato and Venison
Natural Balance Potato and Duck
Pinnale Trout and Sweet Potato

Rita Jean

[Basenjimamma]

I think Natural Balance product line is excellent, especially the Duck and potatoe one, That is what my vet many years ago recommended for dogs with allergies. My Westie was on this one when his allergies got so bad that no matter what he ate medicin wise he had to live with an E-collar on..
After many years on this I switrched to RAW and his allergies went away completely. I do not no anything about the last one you mentioned.