Dog Foods??

Question

What is a good quality dog food that isnt very expensive? I have done alot of research on dog foods and found the best quality feed but my father said he cant afford it! My puppy is on Diamond Naturals Large Breed Puppy Lamb & Rice but I told my dad about the poor quality of this food and he said something about feeding Purina I told him that Purina isnt any better then Diamond! And he started to argue with me.....he told me to call the vet and I called 2 different ones to ask them what dog food they reccomend and they both told me Purina or Pedigree? So please help me!!

Answer 1

Read the ingredients on the food you buy. Go with a high quality dog food. A grain should not be in the first couple ingredients ingredient (corn and such are mainly fillers, dogs don't digest it well). Avoid foods that have a lot of "by products" listed.

Beware "premium" foods. "Premium" does not mean good nutritionally, and is not a nutritionally high quality food. It has the same types of ingredients as grocery store foods, just a bit better quality of those not-so-good ingredients. Premium foods are those like Iams, Eukanuba, Science Diet, etc..

Here are some good foods (these are just a few, there are definitely more brands out there that are quality dog food, but it will give you an idea of the ingredients to look for):

Chicken Soup Brand - http://www.chickensoupforthepetloverssoul.com/
Merrick - http://www.merrickpetcare.com/
Innova - http://www.naturapet.com/brands/innova.asp

Or check this website to find GOOD dog foods, not full of fillers and byproducts, they rate dog foods based on the ingredients, 6 being the best. I would recommend feeding only 4+ star foods. Any food 3 stars or less, I would avoid.
http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/index.php

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Here's an ingredient comparison of not-so-good food (in this case, Pedigree), to good food (in this case, Chicken Soup brand):

Pedigree:
Ground Whole Corn, Chicken By-Product Meal, Rice, Corn Gluten Meal, Animal Fat (preserved with BHA/BHT), Meat and Bone Meal, Natural Poultry Flavor, Wheat Mill Run, Potassium Chloride, Wheat Flour, Salt, Carmel Color, Vegetable Oil (Source of Linoleic Acid), Vitamins (Choline Chloride, dl-Alpha Tocopherol Acetate [Source of Vitamin E], L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate [Source of Vitamin C*], Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate [Vitamin B1], Biotin, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement [Vitamin B2], Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement), Minerals (Zinc Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide), Added FD&C and Lake Colors (Yellow 6, Blue 2, Red 40, Yellow 5).

Chicken Soup Brand:
Chicken, turkey, chicken meal, ocean fish meal, cracked pearled barley, whole grain brown rice, oatmeal, millet, white rice, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), potatoes, egg product, tomato pomace, duck, salmon, flaxseed, natural chicken flavor, choline chloride, dried chicory root, kelp, carrots, peas, apples, tomatoes, blueberries, spinach, dried skim milk, cranberry powder, rosemary extract, parsley flake, yucca schidigera extract, L-carnitine, Enterococcus faecieum, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Saccharomyces cerevesiae fermentation solubles, dried Aspergillus oryzae fermentation extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, 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.

Notice how the better food has more meats, less grain, and no by-products than the other brand? That's where to start looking for what food is higher quality. Also be aware, just because it's expensive doesn't mean it's a good food.

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Another thing to be wary of: A lot of vets will recommend what they sell in their office. They get profit from the brands they keep on their shelves, that's why they push it. Truth is, vet schools don't focus a lot on nutrition. It's not saying that a vet is a bad vet because he recommends those foods, a lot of vets just are told "this is good food", so they pass the message along without proper nutrition knowledge. Also, some dog food brands (like Hills) support vet schools, so vets have heard of it from the time they start college, which makes them think it's good as well.

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Even if a better food seems to cost more, it evens out in the end because your dog will eat less of it. (Better foods aren't full of fillers, so your money isn't all getting pooped out in the yard.)

If price is still an issue though, I would recommend Chicken Soup brand. It's a nutritional dog food, but is still priced fairly cheap (I think I pay around $7-8 for a 6 pound bag.)

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When switching foods, do it slowly. I do this over about a two week timespan:
25% food A, 75% food B
50% food A, 50% food B
75% food A, 25% food B
100% food A

Answer 2

When did chicory, carrots, peas, apples and cranberry become dog food ingredients? There isn't much real difference between these foods. One uses chicken and turkey, the other only uses chicken. Neither uses corn or wheat. The biggest difference is the fruits and vegetables in the chicken soup brand. Both are made by the same company and its a good bet that the major ingredients come from the same sources. Unless there is an allergy problem your dog will be fine with either food. Feed whichever one is easier to get. The prices are close enough to the same, especially considering how little one pomeranian will eat. If you were feeding a working dog you might notice a difference between those foods but not with a normal family pet.

Answer 3

Diamond just had another recall today, Nutra Nuggets was recalled for melamine contamination. This product is available at Costco and a Vet had it tested after five dogs under his care got sick and were eating the same food.
Check this site for all the recalled food:
http://www.itchmo.com
Purina is a cheap dog food that is not largely recommended from the standpoint of quality content, BUT at this point and because of all the recalls, and Purina has not been affected yet, it may be your best bet in going cheap.
One thing I have learned is that premium pre-fab food does not mean it is necessarily any better. IN fact, it may be worse.
A good alternative would be to raw feed if that is a possibility for you:
http://www.rawdogranch.com
Home cooking is another option. Raw feeding and home cooking are the safest options at this point.
But if you can't do those, then Purina would be a cheap alternative where your dog will be less likely to be poisoned.

Answer 4

Foods by Purina (even Beneful) and Pedigree both list a corn product as their number-one ingredient--not good. Corn is not easily digested by dogs and accounts for most of their food allergies. Diamond Naturals Large Breed Puppy food is much better than either of them. I'd stick with what you're feeding instead of making a switch and then switch to their adult food when he's older (or even now). One of my concerns with Diamond Naturals is the splitting of brown and white rice, which means there is a lot of rice in the product--probably why they need to add extra flavoring. Another concern is the amount of protein in the guaranteed analysis--on the high side for a large-breed puppy. However, the ingredients are much better for your puppy than either Purina or Pedigree.

Answer 5

Nutro Ultra- Holistic Pet Food
www.ultraholistic.com

Answer 6

Vet's will more than likely try to push Hill's Science Diet on you. It's not a good food either. As with most anything these days, you get what you pay for.

Personally, I would recommend Canidae. It runs about $40 for a 40 lb bag. Due to it's quality, you feed smaller portions because they get more out of it apposed to the fillers in commercial foods making them feel full temporarily, and passing through in quantities as large as what went in.

Answer 7

Nutro/Natural choice dog foods are really good. Dont buy the cans right now cause they were on the recall. The bagged food is not. I have fed Nutro/Natural choice for 12 years. It has quality ingredients and it isnt expensive at all. They also have a line of holistic food that is a bit more expensive. They have all different types and flavors.

Answer 8

I have been using Purina Pro Plan for many years now. My dog loves the flavour and the vet has told me she is in excellent health. Purina commissions many independent studies on not only its own food but those in the competition to ensure the quality. My brother and numerous friends also have their dogs on Beneful and the dogs love it. All Purina foods are affordable and easily purchased unlike many of the so called "best quality". Also you will notice that Purina was not involved with the most recent dog and cat food issues.

Answer 9

Don't listen to these idiots, Purina = Crap. Feed your dog Innova EVO, it's NOT cheap, but my 55 pound Pit Bull only eats 1 and a half cups per day. a 28 pound bag lasts a LONG time.

Answer 10

go with holistic food alot less allergys and it has not been tainted like commercial food has . the fda is not telling us everything we need to know . good luck .