need advice on dog food for a friend.

[dainerra]

where it is sold is less of a worry than what is in the different foods. It's not a top level, 5-star food, but it is a very good mid-level food.

And, not all dogs can eat all brands. Every company has a different process and uses different additives and ingredients. So if one brand gives her lots of gas or he runs, give it a couple weeks to adjust and if necessary switch brands.
In the end, the best food is the one that your dog does well on - shiny coat, clean teeth, solid poop, lots of energy.

 

[Johnn]

where it is sold is less of a worry than what is in the different foods. It's not a top level, 5-star food, but it is a very good mid-level food.

And, not all dogs can eat all brands. Every company has a different process and uses different additives and ingredients. So if one brand gives her lots of gas or he runs, give it a couple weeks to adjust and if necessary switch brands.
In the end, the best food is the one that your dog does well on - shiny coat, clean teeth, solid poop, lots of energy.

He had gas the whole time he was on JWB which was 2-3 months, hes been on a few food, Wagg, Beta, Bakers, Iams, JWB, Autarky and engage, he refused to eat wagg, and he didn't do well on the rest. Especially Beta he was so ill off it. He dosen't like eating do food :/, he liked Bakers but thats a bad food, I kind of want to put him on Harringtons because if its better than engage then i would be paying a lower price for something better but for somereason with all the grain in it it probablies wont taste to good, and JWB might give him bad gas again so i am trying to decide between the two. My friend is thinking of putting hers on burns.

 

[Johnn]

I think im going to try max on Harringtons and if he does well on it and likes it i will stick to it, if not he can just stay on Engage, my friend is thinking of rather harringtons or burns...

 

[Johnn]

 

[RHRanch]

It's actually pretty easy to provide your dog with a healthy home cooked diet. There are a lot of great books out there with recipies, but in general you can keep some basics in mind: Dogs need calcium, so it's good to give them yogurt or cheese every day, or quinoa. You can switch up grains, oats are fabulous, but in my household, I just give our dogs a modified version of what our dinner is. For example, if we are having pork chops and mashed potatoes for dinner, I give them unseasoned pork chop, boiled potatoes, assorted vegetables (depending on what we are having or whats in the freezer, and some yogurt, and a small amount of olive or other oils. Unfortunately, dog food companies have scared people into thinking that they cannot provide a balanced diet for thier dogs at home, and it's just not true. If you are scared about minerals, you can always supplement with something like "Missing Link" dog vitamins. Cats are a bit harder to home feed, but also can be done, reccoment you use recipies for them that tell you how much taurine they need.

 

[Red Barn Farms]

We stick with Taste of The Wild for our Scottish Terrier. It's always been available locally at a farm supply store. We use to feed the buffalo formula but switched to the SouthWest Canyon Formula, he seems to like it better.

As quoted from their site:

This unique formula contains a blend of animal protein sources, including wild boar, for a taste sensation that your pet will love. In addition, nutrient rich vegetables and fruits like chickpeas, peas, blueberries and raspberries provide natural antioxidants for your pet's healthy lifestyle. Your dog craves a taste of the wild. Go ahead and give him one.



Protein: 29% Minimum, Fat: 15% Minimum
Calcium: 1.9%, as-fed; Phosphorus: 1.1%, as-fed
Calories: 3,600 kcal/kg (360 kcal/cup) Calculated Metabolizable Energy
Available in 5lb, 14lb and 28lb bags.

 

[1muttsfan]

It is actually quite difficult - and expensive - to home cook diets for pets that are balanced and nutritious. Most people will not stick to the recipes and end up feeding unbalanced, high calorie diets that negatively impact their pets health. Dogs live longer, healthier lives now, and one of the reasons for that is the improved quality of available manufactured foods.

 

[naturalfeddogs]

I would suggest a raw diet rather than cooked. Anytime you cook, you cook out nutrients and therefore you have to add supplement after supplement to try to get it all back in. Raw is the most species appropriate, and in variety supplies everything a dog needs. Here is a link to help http://preymodelraw.com/how-to-get-started/

 

[RHRanch]

It is actually quite difficult - and expensive - to home cook diets for pets that are balanced and nutritious. Most people will not stick to the recipes and end up feeding unbalanced, high calorie diets that negatively impact their pets health. Dogs live longer, healthier lives now, and one of the reasons for that is the improved quality of available manufactured foods.

If a pet parent wants to feed the best food for thier pet, and will bother to learn the basics of dog/cat nutrition, it is in fact very easy and economical to make your own pets food. Pet food manufacturers have told a lot of tall tales about the "dangers" of feeding your dog or cat homemade rations, but in fact, dogs have evolved to adapt to a diet based on scavenging the human diet. It is actually true that dogs now suffer from more cancers and organ failure since the inception of commercial dog food rations, many of which include rendered animal or other meals made from the diseased or contaminated parts of animals not fit for human consumption (meaning harder on organs like kidneys & liver to filter toxins from), and in the case of many lower quality dog foods, road kill and euthanized animals. Something that many pet parents do not know is that kidney failure is one of the most common causes of death for dogs.... Kidneys just wear out from filtering toxins in thier food - If you ate meal rendered from euthanized dogs, it wouldn't matter how "balanced" the ration was that included that protien was, it would be dangerous for your health, and yet most people feed these kinds of rations to thier pets because they have been told that they are "scientifically" balanced and researched and "better" for thier pets. It's true, some pet parents may find it time consuming or they may abuse the feeding of high calorie snacks to thier dogs.... But those of us advocating the home diet know that it is not that hard to learn how to feed your dog from home cooked meals, and that you can cook ahead and freeze, or modify your own meals (provided you yourself eat relatively healthy foods) to include your dog. Something that is key to remember when home feeding is that diversity is key in making sure your dog gets the nutrients they need, what I mean by that is that you should feed different vegetables to your dog, not one kind of vegetable. You do need to learn what foods are toxic to dogs, and avoid feeding those as well. Fot those of you who want to do the best thing you can for your dog (after providing routine medical and dental care), you should check out this guys website, and his books on feeding dogs, clears up the mystery and the myths and helps you get started feeding your pets at home: http://www.drpitcairn.com/

If you want to learn about whats in your pet food, and if it's really nutritious: http://www.amazon.com/Food-Pets-Die-For-Shocking/dp/0939165562/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_1

http://www.amazon.com/Not-Fit-Dog-T...UTF8&qid=1349208517&sr=1-19&keywords=dog+food

 

[Johnn]

I have decided against harringtons, the ingreidients have been changed and maize is now the first ingredients, i have decided to try skinners field&trial, because i get get it local to me. I would like to feed raw but i think it would be expensive and i think it would give my dog the runs...