WHOA.....no I am confused....what kind of dog food should I be feeding Emma?

Question

I had her on Puppy Chow...then I was told by someone to feed Eukanuba.....now I am being told that it isn't good either...

I am not rich...I mean I could swing $15 20 a week on food for her. But, at the same time, I want what is best for her.

I am being told 15 different things here.

Guess I shouldn't be feeding Buttions my cat 9 Lives either....he likes it and he is WAY picky!

Answer 1

Puppy Chow and Eukanuba are both fine.... there are literally HUNDREDS of good foods on the market, and there's nothing wrong with 9 lives, either. Ignore everyone on here (including me) and ask the vet what you should be feeding. They know best. They're doctors after all. And no, they don't get kickbacks for recommending certain foods, that's just ridiculous. I am a licensed veterinary technician and nutritionist on staff for a 7 doctor hospital..... but online I have nothing but my word to back that up. Trust your vet.

And raw diets DO suck...aside from the risk of disease (which is REAL, all you BARF whackos) it is NOT a balanced diet.

Pedigree sucks, way high in fat and salt. And corn is NOT filler, corn gluten meal is a protein source.

And Iams and Eukanuba are the same company. Hill's and Science Diet are the same too.

The notion that dead pets are in dog food, and that pet food is full of diseased cancerous animals, is BULLSHIT in the highest degree. Euthanized animals are cremated and buried if the owners don't take them home. OH MY GOD THIS KIND OF IGNORANCE PISSES ME OFF!!!!!!!!!

Most pet foods are made from organ meats (which have more vitamins than muscle tissue) and pieces of meat that were too small to be used in human foods. No beaks, feet, fur, or feathers. No diseased livestock either.

And yes, you can cook your dogs a balanced meal, but it takes a lot more than chicken and rice.... you need vitamins, calcium, fiber...all lacking in a pure chicken or hamburger and rice diet. Good way to wreck your dog's heart.

PAWS, I'm not trying to sell anything, unlike you. And YOU are a flaming idiot. I encourage everyone to read your profile and posts, as you prove my point for me.

Answer 2

You should cook for your dog. Yes I know your balking at the idea but its not as bad as it sounds and it is so much better for them. Dog food companies and processors buy back dead animals from vet's sometimes and their bodies are rendered into food. This has its implications. Any diseases, vaccinations, and the chemical injected by the vet to end said animals life are all present in the animal chow (maybe not so much the diseases but think about it an animal is put to sleep and then its body is rendered for consumption? some of those chemicals must be present). There are bad things in that food for your animals no matter what, all breeds of dog actually used to live longer lives when food was less processed and polluted.

The solution? Go to your local butcher or grocery store butcher if you must and pick up a couple of pounds of chicken cuts (if you buy the right cuts this should be under five bucks) and a big 20 or more pound bag of rice. Get a rice cooker and every night cook up the chicken and rice for your pets. They love the food it is easy to prepare and it is WAY CHEAP! Give it a shot, if you wouldn't eat something why would you feed it to your pet who doesn't have a choice?

Answer 3

I won't post the guidelines for choosing a high quality food here since I posted that in your original question.

For $15-$20 you can easily feed your dog a very high quality food. When you are feeding very high quality food, you will often notice your dog will need even less, since nearly all of what it is eating it is benefiting from.

The key to high quality food is ingredients, check your previous question, how to spot good versus bad ingredients can be found there in my answer.

I feed my growing belgian malinois Innova Evo. It runs me about $50 a month, so even that is well in your budget.

My two labs are on a raw diet, and that runs me about $70 a month for the two of them.

I realize raw isn't for everyone, that's why I also recommend high quality kibbles as well.

It can seem quite confusing, but once you get the hang of it picking out a high quality food or feeding raw if you choose to are pretty simple.

And yes, 9 Lives isn't a great choice cat foods either.

Answer 4

Go to www.dogfoodanalysis.com. This site that tells you exactly what to look for in a good dog food and why. It is very informative and uses a detailed 5 star rating system for both dry and canned dog foods. After checking out this site there is NO way I could EVER feed my dogs the "top" brand foods (Pedigree, Purina, Beneful, Alpo). You will have NO problem finding a truly good dog food in your price range.

Answer 5

I feed a prey model raw diet to my dog and cats and will never feed kibble again. This diet keeps my dogs very healthy with white teeth, shiny coats, and no coat or breath odor. For people that do feed kibble, I'd recommend any of the grain free varieties made with human grade ingredients. If you do a search for grain free dog food, you'll find plenty of information. The leerburg website has some good suggestions and you can find it just by searching 'leerburg'. It will be the first one on the list. If you're interested in raw diet, go to this group for more information. http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfeeding/

Answer 6

buy dogfood which are made out of human grade meat or USDA recommended meat. That is all that most *specialty* dog food stores carry.

Other brands, such as you see in commercials...are made out of diseased and rotting carcuses. And the dogfood companies that turn these diseased and rotting animals into so called nutrionally balanced food (i use that term loosely) for you furkids....subsidize the veterinary schools....so their is little insentive for teaching the truth there.

(Note to a certain vet tech who has less knowledge than *anyone* about the truth of dog foods....they subsidize the vet colleges...the vets don't get kickbacks...no one ever said that).

That lack of understanding of simple English shows me why you are so confused....).

So lets see.....Hmmmn...who, exactly invented dog/cat food?

Was it God.....

No. God was busy for 7 days with other matters....

Was it an average dog owner...who decided to spend millions of dollars they didn't have to see if the so called *people food*, which was fed to them at the time.....was good for them?

No. (really, what bank would have lent them the money for such an endeavor at the time...when everyone fed their pets table scraps)...

Was it RENDERING companies...who had to pay to dispose of diseased and rotting animals...that couldn't be fed to humans? The same companies that picked up the Euthanized pets...since someone had to do it? And did they figure out a way to get *billions* of people to pay for disposing of those animals......

YES!
By convincing people that it was not only easier to feed, it was natural and balanced. (they could say that...since there was no such thing as pet food....so of coarse it wasn't regulated).

Could that be the truth?????

Hmmmnnn...doesn't take a genius when you think about it.

Anyways.. nowadays, there *are* some good dog foods.

Some good brands are Wellness, Solid Gold, Innova; and natural balance.(there are many more).


Stay away from brands like Eukanuba, Hills Science diet, Iams, puppy chow, purina, ect.(there are also many more).

You can do a search on dog food made out of human grade meats.......that would help you alot.

Read the book *Foods that Pets die for*....

Answer 7

There are many high quality dog foods available these days..I used to feed Nutro Chicken/Rice...My pups grew great, and, as my breed is long-coated, they had gorgeous coats in no time...
However, their teeth were always stained..I never knew why, but they seemed to need constant cleaning, to be ready to show..

So, I switched to Eukenuba, and they had better teeth, and nice coats..but bowels were always loose...

I fed Abady's for 2 litters, and liked what it did for the pups..but it stank..and was too un-handy....

I fed Purina Pro Plan when it came out..Pups did well..no complaints...

However, my supplier recommended Canidae 21/2 years ago..WOW! I never knew that my oldsters could be so rejuvenated! Suddenly they were putting on gorgeous coats, and acting as puppies..full of play..dancing as we walked...It just blew me away...
Then I took a 10 year old to have a cyst removed, and the vet came out amazed at her blood-work..he said that it was that expected in a 4-5 year old...He also said that he always cleans teeth while they are 'under', but that her teeth were absolutely clean..

I took another in to be spayed, at 7 years old, and the vet was amazed at how white and clean her teeth were..and then when he took out stitches..commented that she healed so fast that the incision was already hard to see...

All my dogs have just thrived on Canidae, and I would sure recommend it..It is made from all human grade ingredients, and natural preservatives..
there are other foods that are likely as good..but, as Canidae is easy to find, and they are doing so well, I wouldn't want to switch..
Other great dog foods that you can find most places, are Wellness, Innova, Solid Gold, Wysong, Natural Balance, Royal Canine..

canidae makes Felidae for cats. It is awesome..I'll bet she likes it..
Canidae doesn't cost any more than Eukenuba. I get a full 40pounds for $37 and every sixth bag free.

Answer 8

Lizzy, I've given up trying to convince you that you have been seriously misinformed about pet foods. I'm not going to waste my time other than to say go to this link:

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/0106-03.htm

It is one of MANY that show about the horrible ingredients that go into pet foods. All you need to do is goggle pet foods and you will see that there are NO secrets about what really ends up in pet foods. Read Ann M Martin's book 'Foods Pets Die For". I'm sorry but foods like Iams, Science diet, Eukanuba, Royal Canin, Pedigree, Purina are all garbage.

Here are some reasons to stay away from the mass marketed foods:
-they provide NO nutrition for your pet, only sufficient for sustaining life but often have horrible side effects like chronic disease.
-ALL of the major companies have been reported to test on animals. That includes Science Diet, Purina, Iams, Pedigree, etc
-Many of these companies STILL use PROVEN cancer causing chemical preservatives (Science Diet Vet Prescriptions are really bad for having chemical preservatives)
-They ALL contain fillers, by-products, chemical which would NEVER be fit for human consumption.
-They spend most of their time on warehouse shelves. Companies like Natura (makers of Innova) will only produce a bag of food when it has been ordered by a distributor)
-These companies hike up their prices all the time and instead of seeing better quality food, you see a change in packaging and a new advertising campaign. Aren't you glad your dollars are being spent on commercials??
-Companies like Science Diet spend a lot of money supporting Vet colleges in the US. This may sound nice but the only reason they do this is so that they have a monopoly over vets. Vets have been educated to believe that Science Diet is the best and then make a lot of money for selling the product in their office. Ever wonder why a bag of potatoe starch and cellulose cost twice as much as a bag of fresh chicken, turkey, brown rice and carrots??


I could go on and on about why companies like Iams/Eukanuba, Science Diet, Royal Canin, Pedigree, etc should NEVER be fed to pets but its the same as telling humans to eat healthy and exercise, you'll only take my advice if you're really ready to make a change.

My best advice is look at the ingredients of the food. You want EVERY ingredient to be simple, easy to understand. You want to see chicken, turkey, apples, carrots, sunflower oil, garlic, brown rice, barley, etc. If you start seeing terms you don't understand don't buy the food. Stay away from by-products, middlings, flours, brans, product, pomace, yucca, beet pulp, animal digest, corn gluten meal, hulls, starchs, cellulose, and so on. Common sense.

If you really want to buy the best quality food check out some of the following: Innova, Solid Gold, Wellness, Fromm, Merrick, Canidae, Blue Buffalo, Evolve, Nature's Variety, Flint River, Wysong, etc.

Answer 9

people have said not to purchase food from supermarkets. if you have to buy food. check out a local pet store like pet food express or pets mart. they are great with helping you chose something.

if you are looking for something that's good, look at the ingredients. make sure the first thing is chicken or lamb or something that's some form of meat. the first ingredient is always the most in the food. try to avoid anything that has corn or wheat as the first product.

i feed my puppy Nutro. he seems to like it.

Answer 10

You need to get your puppy, special puppy food. Store bought pet food (local grocery stores)IS NOT good for your lil pup. I suggest Royal Canin from a pet store where you bought the puppy. The have different kinds of Royal Canin puppy food, pick which is best for her. This will last about a month and it costs about 10-20 dollars depending on the type of dog. Hope this helps.Gluck!