Best low cost dog food

[Cargo]

We feed both our dogs raw. Have done so over a year. All but 10 weeks of their lives.
I would never go back to bagged food.
Really took a look at TOTW just recently but the cost was about 50% more than my raw blend.

Once you find the meat sources it is quite inexpensive.
I get beef for $1.15/lb. and chicken for 1.40/lb

 

[lisarn3]

I use the Drs Fosters and Smith. It is 34.00 for 28 lbs BUT I feed far less food than the cheap brands that are full of fillers. My 60+ lb boxer only eats a total of 3 cups of food a day vs 6+ cups of food some of the cheaper brands say. She is a pudgy girl even.
I also love the fact that the Fed Ex guy drops it straight onto my porch.

When we got the boxer she had the most atrocious gas ever. This also is under control. The few times I have fed anything else you can very quickly tell.

 

[lishah2000]

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It is very hard to figure out allergies. My golden had bad reactions when she was younger. I started her out on Science Diet thinking it was the best. Then she started having reactions. We started the elimination diets, but she really didn't get much better. About that time I adopted another dog and kept him on what he was already eating (Pedigree). When he started having aggression issues the food was the first change recommended. So I started researching. I switched both dogs to Canidae and both issues improved.

We have used many different brands through the years, but what I found was she did best on foods with more than one meat source. I try and change the food from time to time or go with one that you can rotate different formulas. As long as I stick with a high rated food she does fine. I did try raw and neither dog would eat it.

I did find most of the golden's problems were environmental (once she was on a quality food). Biggest issue was the yard sprays people use. Once we moved where there are no close neighbors and don't spray ourselves, she hasn't had a single reaction. If she just stepped into the grass that was sprayed, she would have a full blown reaction before we got home. The only confirmed food allergy is cheese or something in cheese.

I did re-test the other dog in regards to the Pedigree and aggression. Only a little bit as a treat and you could see the change in his attitude.

For mine the health benefits outweighed the cost difference. But there is no perfect food for every dog. My pyr eats grain-free, but she also loves to get into the chicken feed.

Nature's Recipe is pretty good for the price. The Cosco brand also rates good for the price. Natural Balance isn't bad for the price, but I used the Ultra, not the limited ingredients. Purina has some pretty good foods, but I find them to be almost as expensive as the better brands.

I have fed two dogs that were between 55 and 65 lbs. and they ate two cups a day to keep a perfect weight and they were active. My pyr is 90 lbs. and only eats two cups a day of TOTW.

 

[sheila3935]

I had a chihuahua that i was feeding old roy and he was losing weight vet said old roy wasnt very good . I have a lab that has allergies to wheat I feed them kibbles and bits wholsome blend no wheat. I tried Diamond but my boxer/boston terrier mix had stomach problems on it. Lots of gas tummyache and runny poo. So went back to the kibbles and bits. I would love to find something better that they all could eat but right now am stuck using this.

 

[vicki2x2]

I agree with Hound, I am by no means rich, in fact, I am definitely in the poor house right now. Struggling to keep my house and did have to read labels and find a cheaper food for my dogs, but one that I could still live with that wasn't absolute crap. Cheap dogfood often spray their foods with fat on the outside to make them more palatable which makes the inside of the bag greasy and will quickly turn rancid.

Here are some label tips:

by products mean all the extra parts like in chickens feathers, feet, beaks, heads, etc. = BAD
meat or bone meal whenever they don't define what type of meat it is = BAD
Meal as in chicken meal, lamb meal, etc is a good thing, it is actually better than just the chicken label, because straight meat has a very high percentage of water content and once cooked down is much smaller amount. Meal is already cooked down, so if chicken meal is the first ingredient, you are getting more actual chicken then if it lists chicken as the first ingredient.

Your first ingredients should be meat, chicken, lamb, beef, salmon, turkey, venison, etc. meal form is best, but it can be listed in other forms too. Stay away from fillers like corn, wheat, soy, not good for dogs. Rice is a filler too, but not quite as bad. There are more, but I can't remember them all now. I had read a big article once that broke them all down. It told what each thing meant, like one of them, I think wheat middlings, but it could have been brewers rice, was simply the left over stuff on the floor after it was processed for people that was swept up and put in pet food. Nice!

 

[vicki2x2]

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Which Diamond though? There are several formulas, in fact at least 10. I feed Diamond Natural, Chicken and Rice Adult. No Wheat, No Corn, No Soy. Family Farm & Home carries a 40 pound bad for $24.99.

 

[RabbitMage]

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Some people live on McDonald's, and I'm sure a few of them don't go on to have heart attacks.

 

[Ashmeade]

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I have my chihuahua on Pedigree small bites and he seems to do well on that. He is a pretty easy keeper though...

 

[WriterofWords]

It comes down to each their own. My soon to be 28 year old Beagle has always eaten either Ole' Roy or store brand Appetito from Pet's Barn because the fancy expensive ones make him sick. I hate to think I've cut his life short. Of course he also gets canned Ole' Roy Chunks with gravy because he loves it. The Heeler has a picky tummy, she does better on Appetito. The Borders, they could eat tin cans and it's wouldn't upset them but I prefer they get a bit more nutrition than tin cans provide. Some vets love Ole' Roy, one of mine does, the other thinks Satan markets it. One says if you don't mind paying for the name on the dog food spend a fortune, but it doesn't mean you are getting good quality food, just a well-known name that has the money to advertise more. If you feel you are feeding your dog nutritious food , then fine, don't let anyone else tell you what to feed.

 

[RabbitMage]

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Actually you'll find most of the best dog food brands do little to no advertising at all. I know I've never seen a TV commercial for any of the good brands I've fed.

And while paying more doesn't mean you're getting better food, researching and reading labels does.

AGAIN, let's compare Ol' Roy to, well, anything that isn't awful.

Ol' Roy: Ground Yellow Corn, Meat and Bone Meal, Soybean Meal, Chicken By-Product Meal, Wheat Middlings, Animal Fat (Preserved With Bha and Citric Acid), Natural Flavor, Brewers Rice, Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Color Added (Titanium Dioxide, Yellow #5, Yellow #6, Red #40, Blue #2), Zinc Sulfate, Vitamin E Supplement, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Niacin, Copper Sulfate, Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Source of Vitamin K Activity), Riboflavin Supplement, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Iodate, Folic Acid, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Cobalt Carbonate.

Wellness CORE: Deboned Turkey, Deboned Chicken, Turkey Meal, Chicken Meal, Potatoes, Dried Ground Potato, Tomato Pomace, Natural Chicken Flavor, Canola Oil, Chicken Liver, Salmon Oil, Flaxseed, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes, Kale, Broccoli, Spinach, Parsley, Apples, Blueberries, Vitamins & Minerals, Chicory Root Extract, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chondroitin Sulfate, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus Fermentation Products, Rosemary Extract.

I know what I'd feel better feeding my dog.

EDIT: But I'm also broke, so my dogs get the Costco food, which is probably the best low-cost dog food you can find.

Chicken, chicken meal, whole grain brown rice, cracked pearl barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and vitamin E), egg product, beet pulp, potatoes, fish meal, flaxseed, natural flavor, brewers dried yeast, millet, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, carrots, peas, kelp, apples, dried skim milk, cranberry powder, rosemary extract, parsley flake, dried chicory root, glucosamine hydrochloride, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, chondroitin sulfate, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin, vitamin D supplement, folic acid.