Dog Food Diet?

[Aquatic_blue]

Our dog is on raw food but that's because there's a chain of stores in NZ specifically set up by a vet to provide a huge range of raw foods from human grade sources. Green tripe is an essential element as well as variety being the key to ensuring your dog receives a balanced diet. Our dog lives for her food and she's so healthy and happy.

I too read about 'grain-free' kibble potentially causing heart disease in dogs. It's to do with the ingredients used as an alternative to grains - peas, lentils, legumes and potatoes/sweet potato and their high levels of starch. Nothing is conclusive yet but it's something to keep in mind.

I will definitely keep that in mind!

That sounds like a real gem of a pet store you have there in NZ! =D

 

[rosemarythyme]

It is scary something as simple as a rock could cause so much harm. I am glad they could save your dog!

Dogs are amazing at getting themselves into trouble. My first dog swallowed some sort of fruit pit and it lodged in her intestines. Two weeks before my wedding, I was taking out an emergency credit card for $1750 so she could have an operation to have it removed - she recovered in time to walk in the wedding!

One of my current dogs ATE pajamas off herself. They were super cute custom made pajamas with cartoon sharks and she ate them. And then she began pooping fabric and vomiting fabric so off to the vet we went. Thankfully in this case she managed to vomit out the majority of the fabric, but we still had to pay for 2 rounds of x-rays.

 

[Aquatic_blue]

Dogs are amazing at getting themselves into trouble. My first dog swallowed some sort of fruit pit and it lodged in her intestines. Two weeks before my wedding, I was taking out an emergency credit card for $1750 so she could have an operation to have it removed - she recovered in time to walk in the wedding!

One of my current dogs ATE pajamas off herself. They were super cute custom made pajamas with cartoon sharks and she ate them. And then she began pooping fabric and vomiting fabric so off to the vet we went. Thankfully in this case she managed to vomit out the majority of the fabric, but we still had to pay for 2 rounds of x-rays.

Definitely not fun!

Maybe it is animals in general. One of my cats I used to have seemed like she had pica or something. We baby proofed the house long before we had kids for that cat. She would try to eat anything - beads, buttons, nail clippings, plastic, dental floss (don't even get me started on dental floss - I thought cats didn't like mint...) right from the garbage, she would dig in the trash, etc. Think either trauma or diet, but she stopped after a few years (and diet changes).

One day, she wasn't quite herself. Wasn't eating, drinking, or making it to the litter box so we took her to the vet. They said they felt a lump and that I should consider euthanasia before any tests! I was mad. After $400 worth of xray and bloodwork tests, the rude vet said she had partial renal failure due to a blockage, but they didn't know what it was. She said to either take her an hour and a half away to have her observed overnight with IV fluids, which I didn't have the means to do at the time or put her down. The vet left the room and said she would be back with more tests that I refused so I went to pay and left. We got some pedialyte, soft canned food, and she went and it seemed she had bitten a chunk of rubber from a carpet we had that had some edges coming loose and she recovered after some time. That vet office called me right after I left and was begging me to come back to the vet's office and put my cat down. I don't know why, but I never have used that vet again. That vet practice also faced charges for animal abuse years later. They are still open, though, and the vet practice we do go to complains about them oftem, they have a lot of second opinions coming in.

 

[Molpet]

https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/

I feed combo of diamond natural large dog, eggs, poultry byproduct (when I butcher) and he gets a joint pill and a taurine pill. He is st Bernard/Newfoundland and NF are know to need more taurine. Eggs and a lot of kibble are low in it. Organ meats are high in taurine.
He gets 6 eggs and a pill for breakfast and 3 cups of kibble at evening.
He is 12

 

[Aquatic_blue]

https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/

I feed combo of diamond natural large dog, eggs, poultry byproduct (when I butcher) and he gets a joint pill and a taurine pill. He is st Bernard/Newfoundland and NF are know to need more taurine. Eggs and a lot of kibble are low in it. Organ meats are high in taurine.
He gets 6 eggs and a pill for breakfast and 3 cups of kibble at evening.
He is 12

Wow! Awesome! Sounds like a healthy boy =D

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Dog food is such a touchy subject. We all want to feel what we are doing is the best for our dogs. Picking a diet is a personal thing.

I used to feed Taste of The Wild until the whole DCM and grain free problems started to crop up. I spent months following dog food pages and reading up on stuff. Eventually I settled on feeding Purina pro plan based on the fact that they do long term feeding trials with their foods and they invest in research and testing. Many companies do not. They also have nutritionists on board. Many companies do not. That's why I choose them. I also feed some canned Iams for the same reason. My 6 dogs are doing great on it.

So read up, and find what's important to you. Don't always just follow ingredients as companies are good at breaking up ingredients so it looks better. Obscure companies, and ingredients aren't always better.

I definitely would avoid foods with peas and legumes in the first 5 ingredients, but that's just my opinions.

This is all my own opinions, I'm not looking for a debate of any sort. I guess I'm used to Facebook and all those rough replies.

 

[Folly's place]

There's so much 'fantasy' information out there right now! Pet stores offer too many choices, with pretty pictures on the food bags, and sometimes poor advice from staff, who aren't nutritionists.
Some companies do better than others, have done actual feeding trials, and have been around a long time. I feed Hills Science Diet, and have fed Eukanuba. Purina One seems good too, and some of the other diets. Exotic ingredients might matter if there's a food ingredient sensitivity (allergy) but otherwise, stick with 'tried and true' instead.
There's good research on pets fed raw diets providing families with Salmonella, and other nasty food related problems. I don't eat raw meat from the store, and won't feed it to my pets!!!
Flame suit on here...
The pet food market in the USA is huge, and competitive, and all about marketing claims that can be interesting, at best.
Mary

 

[JaeG]

Having fed raw food to our dog for 8 years we've never had a case of salmonella, or any stomach upset for that matter, and I used to look after 2 babies in our home who both had dogs at home so loved our mutt too. As long as you follow safe food handling advice and your dog's digestion is in optimal condition there's nothing to be concerned about. There have been recalls on dried cat and dog foods as well as treats because of the risk they were contaminated with salmonella, so it's not just raw food that carries such a risk, and people don't often think to wash their hands after handling kibble or treats.

 

[Matzwd]

This will contain all the information you could possibly want. Good detail:
https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/
We feed good food, but our bulldog can't handle rich, high protein, grain-free food. You'll have to try things and see what works for you and your dog.

 

[Folly's place]

This was really not so good, last year in the UK. A fairly large number of pet cats fed a raw food diet tested positive for TB! Amazing, not in a good way. Wonder what the source of that company's meat was?
Hasn't happened in the USA, fortunately. Seems nuts to me...
Mary