What kind of dog food do you guys use?

Can't say as I don't eat dog food

 

my great dane is allergic to pork and rice its in like every dog food ever. even if it does not list it animal by products are code for pork so the poor dog has to eat hills science diet ZD natural balance chicken and sweet potato. dude if you could check your bag and let me know i would like to give my little boy some variety every once in a while.

 

lol he always looks so confused hahaha

 

Blue Buffalo FTW! my Boston Terrier loves this stuff and it dosnt give her bad gas like the cheap Walmart stuff...

 

Go to the dog food analysis site, they list all the ingredients for all the foods on the site, I looked for a long time before finding one that didn't have all the allergy causing stuff in it

 

Wow... great thread... We recently rescued a lab/hound mix puppy about 5 months ago and have been feeding him Iams Premium Protection, and he seems to be enjoying it. His coat is incredibly shiny, but I have noticed that he constantly seems hungry. He's about 40#s now and eats about 4-5 cups/per day, which I think seems high.

Also (kinda gross, but) he eats his own poop, is that a sign of not getting enough nutrients or something?

The Iams lists Chicken, Chicken By-Product Meal, Corn Meal, Brewers Rice, and Chicken fat as the first 5 ingredients, and from looking the other foods that are widely available that looked pretty decent...


Anyway, I was at Petco, and I have pretty much decided that I am going to switch to Blue Buffalo or Wellness, but not sure which. SO... what would TW recommend for a Lab puppy about 6-7 months old?


EDIT: another question... Is there really that much of a difference between puppy and adult foods? How long should a dog be on puppy food?

 

I wouldn't feed that if it was given to me for free! Besides my dog is allergic to corn which is the main ingredient.
I'd never take nutrition advise from a Vet who isn't a nutritionist as a specialty. Ask your wife how much nutrition training the Vets get in school and what companies sponsor it.

Ground Whole Grain Corn, Chicken By-Product Meal, Animal Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Dried Beet Pulp, Soybean Oil, Dried Egg Product, Flaxseed......YUCK!
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/hills-science-diet-dog-food-adult-light-dry/

I don't feed anything that contains by-products. I also only feed grain free products, so no rice or wheat in their food or treats. There are plenty of foods that don't contain rice or any grains and that don't contain pork or by-products.
I feed Acana. Orijen is their sister company and makes a great food, but there is turkey and eggs in all their formula's so I can't use it.
http://www.championpetfoods.com/acana/show-product.php?formulation=pfd

Ingredients:
fresh boneless salmon (source of DHA), fresh boneless herring, salmon meal, herring meal, russet potato, peas, pumpkin, fresh boneless flounder, salmon oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary), ground lobster shell (natural source of glucosamine), sun-cured alfalfa leaf, red delicious apples, carrots, turnip greens, organic kelp, organic bladderwrack, organic dulse, juniper berries, cranberries, Saskatoon berries, black currants, angelica root, chicory root, red clover, red raspberry leaf, dandelion root, peppermint leaf, marigold flowers, chamomile flowers, rosemary, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Enterococcus faecium. Vitamins (vit. A, vit. D3, vit. E, niacin, riboflavin, lysine, thiamine mononitrate, vit. B12,
pyridoxine, folic acid, biotin). Minerals (iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, manganese proteinate, cobalt proteinate, copper proteinate).

Evo is another great grain free food that doesn't contain by-products or pork. http://www.naturapet.com/brands/evo.asp
Taste of the Wild is an awesome food...
http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/products/
Nature's Variety Instinct....
http://www.naturesvariety.com/Instinct/dog/kibble/all
Wellness Core...(sold at petsmart/petco)
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/categories.aspx?pet=dog&cat=2

 

There is not a difference in most puppy and adult foods, mostly just a marketing scheme. You can compare ingredients and nutrition info on an adult and puppy formula of the same brands and check for yourself.
Also you can check for something like this on the bag or website if you are really concerned (though you shouldn't be).
"(brand/formula) is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for all life stages."


Blue Buffalo Wilderness is a great food.
http://www.bluebuffalo.com/products/dogs/wilderness-chicken.shtml

Wellness Core is great, their Super5Mix are also really good. Their canned 95% meat formulas are great for supplemental feeding and adding meat to the diet.
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/dog-wellness.aspx

He will eat less and poop less on a higher quality food, Iams has a lot of fillers so more stuff just passes through and isn't absorbed/used as nutrition.

 

for non gassy BT's!!
These pups do best on high quality foods and grain free foods with their sensitive systems.

 

If anyone is interested in a good dog food forum check out http://dogfoodchat.com/forum/

 

Don't know what you are paying for it...but I suggest checking out Acana, Orijen, Evo, Taste of the Wild. Those are all better quality than Versus, but if you prefer a grain based food there are some better quality grain options also and those are cheaper than grain-free foods.
Blue Buffalo, Nature's Variety, Wellness are my suggestions for grain foods.

Taste of the Wild is a great food and reasonably priced.

 

We use Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed and Small Breed Adult. We had them all on Blue Buffalo, but they wouldn't eat the life bites! However, we supplement their food in addition. They get veggies and meat, with some gravy in the winter to keep the dry skin at a minimum. They are all really healthy. To keep their teeth clean, we get the butcher to cut up beef shanks. They last a long time and keep their teeth shiney. They also like live tree roots.

 

Well, after quite a bit of reading I decided on the Wellness Super5 ... I'm transitioning it in now, but I am cutting down the portions from 5 cups/day to 4 cup/day and eventually when its pure Wellness 3 cups/day. I have noticed that even with the small amounts of food, he does not seem any hungrier...

 

Body condition is a much better way to determine feeding amounts, the guidelines are the bag are just a basis to start with. Better quality food=less filler and more nutrients, so less food and less poop, but even better a healthier dog!

It takes about 6 weeks or so for a dog to fully adjust to a new food, so if he gets weird poops don't be too concerned.

 

nutro, chicken rice and oatmeal, my corgi has an overly sensitive stomach, she'll throw up iams and a few other "good" brands

http://www.thenutrocompany.com/natural-choice-dog/adult-dog-food-meal-chicken-rice-oatmeal.aspx

 

I know you said you decided on a food already, but the Blue Buff. Wilderness is a good choice also, mine have been on it for a while now. I have a 1/2 lab who has food allergies and she does great with the Wilderness stuff. Like some other people have said, if your dog eats crap (literally) most times it indicates they're missing something from their diet.

 

I have a black lab / boxer mix. When we adopted her she was on the Purina One food which she seemed to like but no matter how much we fed her, her ribs always showed and she ate her poop. The vet said it was a phase she was going through and not to worry. At the suggestion of a friend / dog enthusiast, we switched her to California Natural. Since, she's put on a few lbs so you can't see her ribs and she doesn't eat the poop anymore.

 

Sojos Complete
Eagle Pack Holistic Select

 

We feed our Vizsla Organix from a local health food store. We also give her some sort of frozen vegetables on top of that.

She likes her vegetables.