Dog Food

[giraffez]

While reserching which brand of kibbles I should be feeding, I found a very interesting website that I want to share with you and some alarming results. THis is an american site (i think) but just as applicable for us.

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/

I found on this forum many people feeding advance or Royal Cainin or Euk and many more.... this website analyses all the dog foods and places it in the 1-6 star category and unfortunately the above brands ranked right at the bottom in the 1-2 star category which got me pretty concerned.

The last time i walked into my vet, I saw it was flooded with IAMS, Euk and Royal cainin and science diet. Why are they selling this and recommending this if it is filled with fillers and by products?

I will be getting a puppy soon and the breeder is currently feeding it supercoat.... this again is filled with rubbish so i want to switch it to a better brand. Anyone have any recommendations?

And also how should i do this? Should i switch this over straight away on the first day or should I let it settle before changing its food?

[APBT]

i was feeding advance, she wouldn't eat it, now feeding inova evo, she loves it, and is doing great on it,

i recommend it

[Tru Borders]

BARF!!!

Forget the kibble, feed what nature intended

[persephone]

AS has been said- feed the food with the most appropriate ingredients for a dog's digestive system- and the one you can afford

"premium' grain free processed food is fine for some- RAW is fine for others, but millions of dogs live long and healthy lives on the lower priced foods.

If your dog thrives and is healthy- he/she is getting a good food

[Tru Borders]

persephone, i agree.

Growing up, we had many many dogs and they were all fed a diet of whatever we could afford. Living on a dairy farm is tough so dry food was their main diet, along with many other unmentionables.

feed whatever your dog does well on. Mine did well on Euk, then I found out IAMS test on animals so I will never buy Euk again. I started on a barf diet and the dogs havent looked back since

[Fyscha]

is it expensive feeding your dogs BARF??

I've been thinking about it but think I will have a hard time convincing hubby about it, esp if it costs more.

[huski]

is it expensive feeding your dogs BARF??

I've been thinking about it but think I will have a hard time convincing hubby about it, esp if it costs more.

I don't find it expensive and I don't even buy things in bulk - you can buy a lot of the raw meaty bones in bulk and freeze them, which goes a long way to making it cheaper.

[giraffez]

I don't want to turn this into a BARF or dry debate but I want to stay on dry for now

[laffi]

In terms of ingredients, Artemis and Evo are the best foods available in Australia.

[huski]

I don't want to turn this into a BARF or dry debate but I want to stay on dry for now

I don't think anyone is debating, we all find our dogs do well on various diets. However, you came across as quite concerned about the quality of ingredients in various dried foods so I think it's natural for people to recommend looking into feeding a raw diet.

I feed raw to two of my dogs and Cherry and the cat are fed on Artemis, which I'm very happy with. BARF is not the only type of raw diet to feed, either.

[Nekhbet]

I really dont see why that website has put RC down to one star.

not every breed needs high protein diets and frankly this fashion of 'more meat more meat' for large/giant breed puppies is creating problems in some - growth defects being the main one.

Having had 6 different dogs all on RC and seeing how its the only food that has benefitted all of them I dont see an issue with it. They look great, I still give them carcasses but they dont hold the weight on a BARF diet and it costs me a small fortune to feed them on raw. RC is a bit of a budget stretch for me even with a discount, but considering every other diet sends my 2 boys into bad skin territory I'm not budging.

the best diet is the one your dog does well on - dont force a diet on a dog if its doing well on what its already on. I know a dobermann on supercoat and her fur is so shiny!

[laffi]

I really dont see why that website has put RC down to one star.

not every breed needs high protein diets and frankly this fashion of 'more meat more meat' for large/giant breed puppies is creating problems in some - growth defects being the main one.

Having had 6 different dogs all on RC and seeing how its the only food that has benefitted all of them I dont see an issue with it. They look great, I still give them carcasses but they dont hold the weight on a BARF diet and it costs me a small fortune to feed them on raw. RC is a bit of a budget stretch for me even with a discount, but considering every other diet sends my 2 boys into bad skin territory I'm not budging.

the best diet is the one your dog does well on - dont force a diet on a dog if its doing well on what its already on. I know a dobermann on supercoat and her fur is so shiny!

It's not 'more meat' that creates problems in large/giant breed puppies, is the wrong ratio of calcium and phosphorous as well as too high calorie intake.

I fed RC and my dogs didn't do well on it at all. It's full of grains and one was farting alot and had an upset tummy very often. If dogs can't digest grains easily why feed them? I just don't understand.

I know that some dogs to well on RC though. I know that some dogs do well on Pedigree as well.

[Nekhbet]

i said high protein diet laffi - its not only the Ca/P ratio that does it as a high protein diet stimulates growth as well - giant breeds need to grow slowly not bulk up quickly. I have seen pups grown too fast and they have trouble getting around.

As I said different dogs do well on different diets - RC is the only dry food I am able to feed my dogs and no one has farts, burps, or health problems. an all Raw diet created horrible farts :rolleyes: I dont mind rice and corn, wheat and its relatives cause problems in my dogs, plus they are fuller for longer on a dry food/carcass diet then an all raw (which is why it got expensive they just burned through the food) I could easily be feeding them 5+kg of raw food a day compared to a few cups of dry each and a carcass for their teeth.

once again horses for courses. I dont see the issue if a dog can eat the food, be healthy then let that dictate more then a website. That and not everyone can get a raw diet right especially for growing dogs. Remember many breeds are not 'wolf' shaped anymore and hence cannot be parallel to requiring the exact same diet, ratios and ingredients.

[becks]

With a mini schnauzer, you also want to take notice of the fat contents, some dried foods are have to much fat for this breed and you need to be careful as some can get pancreatitis.

[leo01]

While reserching which brand of kibbles I should be feeding, I found a very interesting website that I want to share with you and some alarming results. THis is an american site (i think) but just as applicable for us.

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/

I found on this forum many people feeding advance or Royal Cainin or Euk and many more.... this website analyses all the dog foods and places it in the 1-6 star category and unfortunately the above brands ranked right at the bottom in the 1-2 star category which got me pretty concerned.

The last time i walked into my vet, I saw it was flooded with IAMS, Euk and Royal cainin and science diet. Why are they selling this and recommending this if it is filled with fillers and by products?

I will be getting a puppy soon and the breeder is currently feeding it supercoat.... this again is filled with rubbish so i want to switch it to a better brand. Anyone have any recommendations?

And also how should i do this? Should i switch this over straight away on the first day or should I let it settle before changing its food?

Regarding switching, change it over slowly, over a 5-7 day period, adding more of the new food each day untill by the 7th-8th day you have just the new food

I say feed what suits your dog and the best you can budget. My dog has IAMs smart puppy for larger breeds as well as raw meat & Bones, i have tried him on RC after being talked into it by my vet but it was terrible for my dog, did the slow change over but he just had really dark runs and BAD wind on it and he's coat went really wirey. I stuck with the RC for 3 weeks (Including the change over period) but it didnt get any better for him so changed back to the IAMS. Iv also tried the hills science diet, not as bad as RC but still not great for my dog, still soft stools and pretty bad wind (Only tired this for 5 days, giving it with Iams and mixing in more of the hills each day and by the 5th day had decided nup, not going here again for 3 weeks with runny poo pick ups and a really stinky lounge room from the dog farting constantly! and started working back to just Iams)

Each to there own really, every dog if different just like people. Some people scoff that i feed Iams as some think its is of poor quality and also animal testing factor (I dont know if this is true or not so), my mum scoffs at me for feeding Iams and says your dog will do just as well on chum! Why do i buy that expensive crap! LOL So yes, each to their own

I would say though when you get your pup, feed what the breeder has been feeding initially till pup gets settled, then if you want to change do a slow change over so as not to upset/shock little ones tummy. Goodluck with your new fur baby!

[giraffez]

While reserching which brand of kibbles I should be feeding, I found a very interesting website that I want to share with you and some alarming results. THis is an american site (i think) but just as applicable for us.

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/

I found on this forum many people feeding advance or Royal Cainin or Euk and many more.... this website analyses all the dog foods and places it in the 1-6 star category and unfortunately the above brands ranked right at the bottom in the 1-2 star category which got me pretty concerned.

The last time i walked into my vet, I saw it was flooded with IAMS, Euk and Royal cainin and science diet. Why are they selling this and recommending this if it is filled with fillers and by products?

I will be getting a puppy soon and the breeder is currently feeding it supercoat.... this again is filled with rubbish so i want to switch it to a better brand. Anyone have any recommendations?

And also how should i do this? Should i switch this over straight away on the first day or should I let it settle before changing its food?

Regarding switching, change it over slowly, over a 5-7 day period, adding more of the new food each day untill by the 7th-8th day you have just the new food

I say feed what suits your dog and the best you can budget. My dog has IAMs smart puppy for larger breeds as well as raw meat & Bones, i have tried him on RC after being talked into it by my vet but it was terrible for my dog, did the slow change over but he just had really dark runs and BAD wind on it and he's coat went really wirey. I stuck with the RC for 3 weeks (Including the change over period) but it didnt get any better for him so changed back to the IAMS. Iv also tried the hills science diet, not as bad as RC but still not great for my dog, still soft stools and pretty bad wind (Only tired this for 5 days, giving it with Iams and mixing in more of the hills each day and by the 5th day had decided nup, not going here again for 3 weeks with runny poo pick ups and a really stinky lounge room from the dog farting constantly! and started working back to just Iams)

Each to there own really, every dog if different just like people. Some people scoff that i feed Iams as some think its is of poor quality and also animal testing factor (I dont know if this is true or not so), my mum scoffs at me for feeding Iams and says your dog will do just as well on chum! Why do i buy that expensive crap! LOL So yes, each to their own

I would say though when you get your pup, feed what the breeder has been feeding initially till pup gets settled, then if you want to change do a slow change over so as not to upset/shock little ones tummy. Goodluck with your new fur baby!

How do I proportion out the quantity. I am under the understanding that the better brands, you actually feed less while the supermarket brands are stocked with fillers so you have to feed more. If i was to mix the two together slowly, I am scared that I won't feed enough to fill the tummy. And is it really true that you can feed less on the better brands -> wouldn't that not fill the pup up?

Also, what is the difference between puppy food and adult dog food? I've seen people feeding pups the normal adult dog food, isn't this bad? Thanks

[alanglen]

Could I ask if anyone knows how that list was compiled?

Was it just me or were all of the 6 star rating foods ones that pets paradise stock/make??!?!!

[laffi]

Could I ask if anyone knows how that list was compiled?

Was it just me or were all of the 6 star rating foods ones that pets paradise stock/make??!?!!

This list doesn't endorse any specific products, for example Orijen listed there is a family owned business in Canada. The reviews are based purely on the ingredients analysis.

It is true that there are very few dry foods avaliable in Australia that score 6: just Evo (imported and sold by PP ) and Artemis Max Dog.

[Blues and Boots]

Hi guys,

After trying nearly every brand of biscuit there is and going through the journey of holistic vs grain free vs everything else I've actually gone back to Eukanuba and Advance plus added raw extras for a number of reasons.

Be careful about that food analysis website that says by-products are bad. It really depends on the brand of dog food. Offal is a by-product so if you feed Barf that I think has some offal in it you are feeding your dog by-products. Your also feeding them by-products by giving them a bone so it's not necessarily a bad word. All the chicken products in Eukanuba come from a whole chicken that has had head, feet and feathers removed. The remaining body is what is ground down into a paste or meal. So it's pretty much the 'whole' chicken but has to be labelled a by-product as it includes the bones and offal etc. It's the cheaper brands that feed dodgy by-products as you don't know what they mean by by-products and their ingredients change bag to bag depending on what is cheapest at the time. Some companies actually buy Euk/iams left overs to put in their dog food as by-products so you have to really trust the brand in order to use their food.

Euk/iams is such a huge company that has been around for so long that other companies find it hard to rival the quality of their ingredients and processing. The food is analysed at many intervals to check ingredient amounts etc and each bag has been tested 120 times to make sure of its ingredients before it sent to stores.

I've had some training about Euk/iams and I was really impressed. I've also spoken to people who have been to their research facility and it looks awesome, here are some facts about it iamstruth.com The bad rap it has for animal testing is because it use to hire universities to do its studies and it was one uni in particular that had their animals in disgusting conditions. After that was exposed the company built their own research facility and will never use any other kind of research facility again. Their own program is non-invasive and all animals are either rehomed or live at the centre when their feeding trial has ended but you can read all about that in the website if you were really interested.

I've fed nearly all the main brands of biscuit and I actually like most of them except eagle pack and orijen. Loved them at first due as I was following all the latest trends and ideas but my dogs ended up doing poorly on them especially eagle pack, Baker was as skinny as hell on 7 cups a day!!!! And his coat was dry and dull. I really like royal canine as my dogs did well on it and loved it also but it's about $20 more a bag for a less kilos so it is just not worth the extra money for less food I think. So now my three are on Euk as I can get it pretty cheaply and trust its ingredients.

This post is just my opinion so hope I haven't upset anyone .

[Staranais]

Offal is a by-product so if you feed Barf that I think has some offal in it you are feeding your dog by-products. Your also feeding them by-products by giving them a bone so it's not necessarily a bad word. All the chicken products in Eukanuba come from a whole chicken that has had head, feet and feathers removed. The remaining body is what is ground down into a paste or meal. So it's pretty much the 'whole' chicken but has to be labelled a by-product as it includes the bones and offal etc. It's the cheaper brands that feed dodgy by-products as you don't know what they mean by by-products and their ingredients change bag to bag depending on what is cheapest at the time.

The problem is, though, that when I feed offal at home I know exactly what proportions of offal I'm feeding. I also know that it's excellent quality offal since I selected it myself. Whereas a company that just lists "byproduct" on the bag could be using any type of offal in any proportions.

So I'm happy to buy a food that lists "liver" or "bone" or "kidney" or "tripe" on the ingredient panel. I'm not happy buying a product that just lists "byproduct". Makes me wonder what they're hiding, or whether the company even knows what's in the product themselves.

If they're not prepared to tell me what's exactly in the food, I'm not prepared to buy it.