ncarter Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 hi guys im wondering about dog foods and the ingredients. what are some ingredients that I should look out for like things that are just fillers and things that are just crap. Corn is just a filler right? the corn is of no nutrition value right? it cant be digested? Do most DOL'ers feed tinned wet food? Im feeding the hills stuff in a can at the moment i dont think its much good can anyone recommend me some other wet food? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poodle wrangler Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 OMG. People will give you all sorts of conflicting opinions here. Some DOLers are also involved with selling some of the "super premium" foods. Nothing wrong with that, but just so you know. My understanding is that dogs are carnivores- they have large teeth and short digestive tracts suited to this sort of diet. Most dry and canned foods are more carbohydrate than meat, however, as meat is an expensive ingredient. Yes, the grains like corn are poorly digested by dogs and are fillers as dogs really need very little grain in their diet. Many dog foods are made in the USA where corn is a well-subsidised crop, so an excess is available. What are you happy to feed your dog? Raw meats and bones OK? Prefer kibble only? How big is your freezer if you don't mind the raw food option? I give my 2 a mix of raw bones and meat e.g. chicken necks/ frames/ carcasses, brisket bones, occasional marrow bones with meat left on. Some pet mince from the supply store and also kibble, so it's about 50:50 raw-kibble (dry) food. No matter how "super premium", it doesn't make sense to me that the best food is exclusively kibble which stays "fresh" in a bag for many months. You'll probably have suggestions like BARF diet (easiest to do a search: Biologically Appropriate Raw Food diet), Nutro, Eagle Pack, Ziwipeak (all sold by DOLers) and Royal Canin. These foods are upwards of $80/ 15 kg bag, so budget is also a consideration? Good luck . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncarter Posted June 27, 2007 Author Share Posted June 27, 2007 cheers. so you dont feed anything out of a can? im happy to feed my dog most things. Like i feed him a combo of bones, chicken frames kibble, this cooked dog food i make and canned food. I dont think I will ever buy the super premium foods just not worth the xtra bucks IMO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poodle wrangler Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 No, I don't feed from cans. No good reason, other than I hate the smell and texture of canned dog food . It's also relatively expensive considering the contents and moisture content. Some have quite high sugar content, also, but it's something you can check per brand. My pup tried the "I'm too posh for kibble" performance, but took only 2 days before he figured out he'd be hungry on 50% rations, and " the face" (I'm pathetic and going to look this way whenever you open the fridge) wasn't going to work . No further problems. Kibble and raw for me. Check the ingredients list and try to find what seems the best food in your price range. All will have fillers in varying amounts/ types. If you have a small dog or puppy, most foods are suitable. Larger breeds have more specific needs. Once you've found something that suits your dog well, stick to it. Dogs don't need the same variety we do. A smorgasboard is a good way to create a fussy eater. If you're not too fussy, Purina One have a deal where you get reimbursed for the first bag of food (up to 4kg for the adult one) for signing up for a "30day challenge" online. I put in for it and tried it on my dogs- they seemed to like it, but the puppy food no good for a large breed pup. DVD that goes with it actually had some decent info about how to assess your dog's healthy weight. Corn third ingredient, however, I think, though my dogs had no bowel problems on it. I'm in no way qualified to say whether or not it's a good food, it's a supermarket food, just my limited experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShesaLikeableBiBear Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 Have a good read of the ingredients list and the guaranteed analysis on the labels of both dry and tinned products. The first ingredient listed is important: e.g. Hill's Large Breed Puppy has Ground Whole Grain Corn as its first ingredient, whereas Nutro's is Chicken Meal. Ingredients to avoid are corn and wheat, animal by-products, added colourants and chemical preservatives. Ziwipeak make a canned range and their ingredients contain none of the above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badboyz Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 Raw and kibble for me too. Hate canned food. Mine get about 80% raw and 20% kibble. Have tried many of the supa premiums, but since switching to mostly raw and less expensive kibble, my dogs look so much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gomez the Norfolk Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 (edited) cheers. so you dont feed anything out of a can? im happy to feed my dog most things. Like i feed him a combo of bones, chicken frames kibble, this cooked dog food i make and canned food. I dont think I will ever buy the super premium foods just not worth the xtra bucks IMO Unfortunately, the cheaper kibbles ususally have corn and "all the fillers and things that are just crap" as you said that you're trying to avoid.. If you want a kibble without fillers, you will have to go to the Nutro, Eagle Pack, etc... I don't want Gomez eating any of that stuff, so for me, the "extra bucks" are totally worth it, certainly saves on vet bills! Edited June 28, 2007 by Gomez the Norfolk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncarter Posted June 28, 2007 Author Share Posted June 28, 2007 cheers guys thanks 4 that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShellyBeggs Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 My dogs eat the cheap crap dry food from the supermarket!!! Apparently I could burn in hell for that....... (don't worry someone is bringing marshmellows) Its all they will eat...*shrug* I say....be logical, go with the best you can afford! Don't blow your budget totally, work out what you can afford. But I also don't feed can food.......prefer to feed them meaty bones, chicken necks/carcuss and I cook up mince with vegies and a bit of rice or pasta to stick it together and give it different textures. I don't feed them perfectly but I feed them what I can afford.......and they are happy and healthy and that is all that matters to me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KitKat Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 Go with what suits your dog...raw/cooked, dry/fresh, cheap/not so cheap! I feed my dogs a mix of kibble and raw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shmoo Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 To help select the best commercial foods look for these: • No generic fats or proteins - look for named sources such as beef fat, chicken fat or lamb meal • Human grade ingredients - look for companies that use human grade meats (not meats that were rejected by the human food industry) • Avoid foods that use corn gluten meal - a cheap source of poor-quality protein used only by the lower-quality foods • No meat by-products - both whole meats and meals are considered acceptable as long as they are identified and not generic • No artificial preservatives, no artificial colors, no sugars and sweeteners, no propylene glycol • Added taurine • As few grains as possible - watch for splitting, such as listing ground yellow corn and corn gluten meal as separate ingredients which together might add up to more than the first ingredient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missy Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 I feed my babies human grade meats, fruit and veges. I avoid wheat because one of my dogs has allergies which have subsided heaps since I dont supplement their diet with the hills or pal kibble. You'll find almost all of the supermarket and premium food has wheat or some sort of filler as their main ingredient. My two love Nutro and Innova (which I can't find anywhere apart from a certain pet store) these have no corn or wheat. I buy bulk bag of Nutro which is good 10+ months supply for my toy poodles and prepack them into smaller packets with my foodsaver. I keep these as my convienient food or when they have sleepover at grandmas. Chicken necks and wings are their all time favourite :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imouttahere Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 Have a good read of the ingredients list and the guaranteed analysis on the labels of both dry and tinned products.The first ingredient listed is important: e.g. Hill's Large Breed Puppy has Ground Whole Grain Corn as its first ingredient, whereas Nutro's is Chicken Meal. Ingredients to avoid are corn and wheat, animal by-products, added colourants and chemical preservatives. Ziwipeak make a canned range and their ingredients contain none of the above. :D I feed Sasha Hills Large Breed Puppy biscuits! I've never heard of Nutro, what is that??? Is that Nutrience? Should I change to something else? What's just as good for large breeds? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpikesPuppy Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 We feed a base of super premium kibble (currently Eagle Pack & OmniPro) with different 'additives' each night. This consists of veggies, rice or pasta, sardines, raw egg, any suitable leftovers, etc. Every 2nd night the 4 of them share a 700g tin of Nature's Gift. This is the only tinned food I will feed my dogs, and they only get a small amount of it (when it's slipt up). I would howevre consider feeding Eagle Pack or Ziwi Peak tins if they were more readily avaliable Occasionally instead of the tinned food they will get 4 Legs or a dog roll. Sunday night is also BONE night for our lot, and that's all they get on a Sunday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missy Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 ryally no Nutro and Nutrienece are not the same product.Nutro Natural Choice: Here is a link to their website http://www.nutro.co.nz/ You can also read more about it here http://www.naturalpetfoodsaustralia.com/ Also try this website for prices on Nutro, Ziwipeak, Eaglepack and other natural foods. You can order online and see what the postage costs as well. If you live in Sydney free delivery. Gives you an idea of pricing compared to your supermarket or premium foods like the Hills and Eukanuba. http://www.naturalpetstore.com.au/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falling_dawn Posted June 29, 2007 Share Posted June 29, 2007 I feed as raw concoction takes time and money though as I buy chicken breast, lamb mince, as the meat in it I feed Eagle Pack Holistic chicken meal for kibble As well as a can fish meal and a bone meal (lamb, chicken wings, chicken frames) I tried The Eagle Pack puppy food in a can but at $ 4.95 is very expensive The cat gets cheap stuff Dine or fancy feast cans And Optimum kibble She will not eat quality except her caned fish meal and chicken wing meal she gets Ha-ha As long as I can afford it I will feed them the best I can but if things change I guess we will have to down grade Shock horror I’m sure they will live Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncarter Posted June 29, 2007 Author Share Posted June 29, 2007 (edited) thanks people Edited June 29, 2007 by ncarter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InspectorRex Posted June 30, 2007 Share Posted June 30, 2007 I feed Eagle Pack Holistic Duck to my avatar girl with chicken thigh fillets and necks. Her 8mo daughter is fed Eagle Pack Original with human grade beef and chicken necks. They also have beef brisket bones to keep their teeth nice. Go to a Petstock store as they have samples of Eagle Pack and other Premium foods and get a few and get your dog to try them. Yes Eagle Pack is dearer however because it is a Super Premium food you do not have to feed as much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoochie Mama Posted June 30, 2007 Share Posted June 30, 2007 To help select the best commercial foods look for these:• No generic fats or proteins - look for named sources such as beef fat, chicken fat or lamb meal • Human grade ingredients - look for companies that use human grade meats (not meats that were rejected by the human food industry) • Avoid foods that use corn gluten meal - a cheap source of poor-quality protein used only by the lower-quality foods • No meat by-products - both whole meats and meals are considered acceptable as long as they are identified and not generic • No artificial preservatives, no artificial colors, no sugars and sweeteners, no propylene glycol • Added taurine • As few grains as possible - watch for splitting, such as listing ground yellow corn and corn gluten meal as separate ingredients which together might add up to more than the first ingredient. What brands have all these good things? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pandii Posted June 30, 2007 Share Posted June 30, 2007 I currently are feeding BOnnie adult and Bonnie puppy to my dogs Great cheaper food not bad ingredients 20kilos $30 adult and 8kg puppy is about $15 Made by purina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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