Best dog food

[lexiedhb]

Dogs are designed to eat raw meat and bones, vets dont like it because it means folk are not buying the latest dry food they are trying to shift at a massive profit. They actually have very little nutritional education.

Nothing cleans teeth like a raw bone! Personally i would not feed something that was full of flour, be it pea or otherwise, as dogs simply are not designed to eat grains.

Go with the highest meat content you can afford.

 

[veronica22]

sorry to jump in but need advice re food.
My Min Pin was diagnosed as diabetic 2 weeks ago. His insurance does not cover food which is £28 for 12 tins from vets. Could anyone recommend a feeding regime which doesn't cost so much - I know he's only small but he has a voracious appetite! Thanks

 

[paisley]

Did you know the recipe has changed, 30% less fish, replaced with pea flour.
Not sure if it is across all their foods or not.

What she said- I used to feed Fish4Dogs and the whippet looked great on it. When they changed the recipe, (with the added pea flour) his didn't look as well in his coat and always seemed a bit 'under the weather'.

It might have been coincidence, but having put him onto the Angell company complete salmon he's back to looking how he used to, coat feels like its been polished, and he's put an extra half a kilo on. The food is on the expensive side, but how my dog looks and the customer care is totally worth it

 

[EAST KENT]

I dunno I spoke to my friend that is secretary at vets are they are very against it says dogs can get salmonella and we can too from them licking us etc and risk of them getting bones stuck etc. what does everyone think of wainwrights and what can we feed to clean teeth etch. I don't think raw meat is going to be for us.

Please tell me this is a joke and you are a troll!!

 

[CorvusCorax]

Well by rights most of the dogs I know/train with and their owners should be dropping like flies if all this stuff about raw food is true...and...they're not. The percentage of dogs I know which have died from bloat and torsion after being fed dry food is much higher. Hey ho!

Raw doesn't suit all dogs though, same as some dry foods don't suit all dogs.
Wainwrights salmon and potato is a good mid-range food.

 

[ktj1891]

No I am not a troll do not know how that makes me one. She spoke to vet and said there are susceptible to food poisoning as well and bones can perforate their intestines. Said research has designed food for dogs to cover all there nutritional requirements. Whereas raw meat doesn't I guess unless you feed a very wide range of different meat.

 

[s4sugar]

sorry to jump in but need advice re food.
My Min Pin was diagnosed as diabetic 2 weeks ago. His insurance does not cover food which is £28 for 12 tins from vets. Could anyone recommend a feeding regime which doesn't cost so much - I know he's only small but he has a voracious appetite! Thanks

Naturediet. Calorie counted -check their website. (a client has just lost their 15yo Westie after 6 years on insulin on this food) About 80p a pack & half a pack a day.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Without turning this into a raw vs dry food debate, dogs are designed to eat raw meat and bones - just look at their teeth! and to digest all sorts of minging stuff - look at what they pick up and scoff on walks and most of them don't keel over and die.

Dry foods usually have high percentages of grain in them, which dogs are NOT designed to eat.

Dogs fed on raw as a rule do not suffer with the teeth and allergy problems which can plague a lot of dogs fed on dry food.

Before dry foods were 'invented' - they are a relatively new phenomenon, dogs were fed on meat and bones and raw green tripe and table scraps and they did not all keel over and die.

 

[brucethegypsycob]

Vitalin. I swear by it. I feed it wet and tart it up with raw mince/tripe. My dogs love it. If I use tins (rarely) then chappie is excellent. Once a week they get raw chicken wings as a treat.

 

[lexiedhb]

No I am not a troll do not know how that makes me one. She spoke to vet and said there are susceptible to food poisoning as well and bones can perforate their intestines. Said research has designed food for dogs to cover all there nutritional requirements. Whereas raw meat doesn't I guess unless you feed a very wide range of different meat.

Sorry but this is utter garbage. Dogs are not designed to be fed dry biscuit food. Did she also explain to you "bloat" which can be fatal, and can be caused by dry food?

I would not take nutritional advice of a Vet's secretary anymore than i would off a postman......

Raw feeding is not chuck one meat at them forever, there are ratio's, requirements etc which most broadly follow, along with them being fed a huge variety of things mostly. There is a huge sticky on it at the top of this page if you are at all interested in it, otherwise pick a high meat content dry and be done with it.

 

[Rocky01]

I too can't feed raw due mainly to lack of freezer space but my pup will have a raw bigish bone to chew on (once she is over 6 months old) and occasionally things like neck bones (to help with teeth and as a treat). Normally she'll be fed a very meat to other ratio dry/wet food (haven't yet decided between Millie's or taste of the wild). The breeder I'm getting my new pup from doesn't like them having raw up till 6 months and I can see her logic but after that no problem as long as your careful. Just to mention cooked and freeze dried bones are much more dangerous than raw, my old pup could make grooves in raw bones but cooked are sharp, splinter and break up too easily and are dangerous (raw is not).

If yoy relate to horses diet op, my two do badly on commercial supposed balanced feed but amazingly on very little minerals and grass. The manufacturers used to rely on grains the new low starch has been relatively recent and NOT triggered by the manufacturers themselves.

I hope this helps.

 

[ktj1891]

Hi rocky I would like to feed tase of the wild but not sure how much it will cost to feed a boxer puppy. Also what raw Bones would you feed and where would you buy?

 

[Cinnamontoast]

I dunno I spoke to my friend that is secretary at vets are they are very against it says dogs can get salmonella and we can too from them licking us etc and risk of them getting bones stuck etc. what does everyone think of wainwrights and what can we feed to clean teeth etch. I don't think raw meat is going to be for us.

Outrageous of the secretary! What nutritional qualifications does she have?!

Vets do tend to be against it - they also tend to be quite keen to sell you whatever pet food they happen to provide and sell on site!

Invariably Hills or Science Plan, both poor quality and expensive!

Please tell me this is a joke and you are a troll!!

Ha, don't think she is!!

Said research has designed food for dogs to cover all there nutritional requirements. Whereas raw meat doesn't I guess unless you feed a very wide range of different meat.

Same research says dogs are likely to be allergic to cereal, which is what the food at the vet has as a top ingredient.

Wainwrights, as I already mentioned, is fab. I use the trays for my fussy springer. The Wainwrights. Fishmongers has a higher percentage of fish in it than Fish4dogs new recipe.

Please note that puppy food is a marketing ploy: you can just feed them the adult version.

 

[Rocky01]

I'm not sure re cost for a boxer pup but what I did find was that price per bag is very misleading as I had to feed a lot less of the high meat/fish food than the higher grain food. What i did was gave the feed makers a call re quantities, take out some of the kibble for training and then feed what is left over several feeds a day.
Mine had bones from our local butcher after 6 mo the old,( lamb, beef and chicken but not pork). I found that the local butcher knew more than me when it came to bones, although avoid large leg bones as they are very heavy and dense. I also found venison, vegetable and dry fish skin treats and chews excellent until 6 months old and for when they had just had a dry meal as you can't give a raw bone to close to a dry meal.
Hope this helps.

 

[Vicstress]

Lex I've known two dogs die of salmonella. ...thats enough for me not to.

 

[Vicstress]

Ps of course dogs are supposed to eat raw meat....doesn't mean they didn't die of food poisoning. ...digestive systems obviously change over hundreds of years. ...

 

[CorvusCorax]

I've known of many more than two suffer from/die from bloat or torsion - but it's not enough for me to say no dog should ever eat dry food.....

 

[Rocky01]

That is one of the reasons my new pups breeder won't feed raw until the dog is at least 6 months old. I reckon a repressed immune system would also mean no raw. The dog needs the strength and maturity to fight some of the bugs in raw meat.

 

[Rocky01]

I would also say you need to be aware of where you're getting your meat.

 

[TurtleToo]

Just my input on the puppy food being a marketing ploy thing, all very well if the adult food being fed is good quality, but someone thought it was okay to feed our rescue pup a cheap adult food before we got him, and he ended up with a calcium deficiency that had him unable to walk at 12 weeks of age. If puppy food prevents another dog suffering as he did, then I'm all for it. Thankfully we were able to save him and he has made a full recovery, thanks very much to a high quality high calcium (I am aware that too high calcium can cause problems as well) puppy food.

 

[Twizzel]

Did you know the recipe has changed, 30% less fish, replaced with pea flour.
Not sure if it is across all their foods or not.

Yes I know this but she is fussy and it took me a long time to find a food she liked, she likes 4dogs and I struggled to find a comparable salmon based kibble that didn't contain rice.

 

[Vicstress]

All valid points but guess it's personal opinion. I feed Burns which is pretty good but may not suit some dogs. I don't know any who have died of bloat.

 

[BWa]

Sorry to hijack but...
I have been inspired by what I have seen in this thread and others on this subject. I won't tell you what my current sack of dog food as you might not be impressed! I'm not keen to go down the raw route due to a lack of freezer space and I'm a fair trek from the shops, so today I bought a sack of Skinners duck and rice to start. I also like to give mine a tin of meat and am currently feeding Butchers tins. I have had a look at this tonight and it says it Gluten free, does this mean it is cereal free and will complement the skinners? And finally, what do you give as treats as clearly I need to rethink the biscuits too?
All for a border collie (working sheepdog and pet) and an active JRT who is very Plummer like with long legs.

 

[EAST KENT]

Sorry but this is utter garbage. Dogs are not designed to be fed dry biscuit food. Did she also explain to you "bloat" which can be fatal, and can be caused by dry food?

I would not take nutritional advice of a Vet's secretary anymore than i would off a postman......

Raw feeding is not chuck one meat at them forever, there are ratio's, requirements etc which most broadly follow, along with them being fed a huge variety of things mostly. There is a huge sticky on it at the top of this page if you are at all interested in it, otherwise pick a high meat content dry and be done with it.

Should be a like button.BARF is NOT complicated at all...if it`s pulse has stopped you can feed it.We throw in raw eggs,offal,head meat,and chook carcases are reared on raw meat,by eight weeks they are on the same diet as the adults ..and leave here with a food parcel,no one has died,humans included,the dogs are disgustingly healthy!A little thinking outside the box will tell you that it just so happens the vet SELLS dried rubbish dog food,that should give you a clue.However,it will profit your vet so much more if you feed dry with no bones.All those skin itches and descales to come,he`ll be rubbing his hands in anticipation.

 

[lexiedhb]

I've known of many more than two suffer from/die from bloat or torsion - but it's not enough for me to say no dog should ever eat dry food.....

This!!!!!! I have only been a dog owner 2 years. I have known several dogs have bloat ( mainly through the rescue and its forum) all apparently down to a dry diet , and some heartbreakingly fatal - does not mean i catagorically tell folk not to feed dry, just looking at a dogs teeth, his stools, his lack of wind, his gusto fir his food tells me he has not evolved away from his natural diet!

 

[cremedemonthe]

Should be a like button.BARF is NOT complicated at all...if it`s pulse has stopped you can feed it.We throw in raw eggs,offal,head meat,and chook carcases are reared on raw meat,by eight weeks they are on the same diet as the adults ..and leave here with a food parcel,no one has died,humans included,the dogs are disgustingly healthy!A little thinking outside the box will tell you that it just so happens the vet SELLS dried rubbish dog food,that should give you a clue.However,it will profit your vet so much more if you feed dry with no bones.All those skin itches and descales to come,he`ll be rubbing his hands in anticipation.

Good post and I totally agree

 

[chesnut90]

I struggled to get weight on my cocker spaniel, had been a fussy eater for a long time, only ate pedigree wet food, but I tried him on Lathams vet food from tesco and it worked a treat, it's dry so lasts longer and 6.50 for 3kg or 25.00 for bigger bag. Definitely recommend it. It's done jake wonders.

 

[blackcob]

I dunno I spoke to my friend that is secretary at vets are they are very against it

I'm a veterinary secretary (as of next week ) and I feed a raw diet. Of the vets at the practice it's about a 50/50 split for and against. One of my dogs would either still be projectile squirting liquid faeces or be dead if I'd continued trying to feed expensive veterinary approved dry diets.

Why do you think it's necessary to feed a very wide range of meat? Processed foods, wet and dry, typically only contain one meat source (and very little of that).

 

[Maisy]

I feed mine the Advanced Nutrition food from Pets at Home....iirc its £33 for 12kg, but its the only food that makes my dogs poo pick-up-able!!!! (I haven't tried raw and would forget to defrost it!!!)

 

[jodie3]

Mine are raw fed and when I got puppy last year she came with lots of dry food she had been having at her breeder's. I was going to use it up and then put her on raw too but she took one look at what the others were eating and said she wanted that too please! So she has been on raw from 9 weeks.

I think when you first start feeding raw it is easy to get stressed and weigh every chunk of meat and keep trying to remember how to do percentages and work out the correct ratio of bone to meat to offal. But, and I still wouldn't class myself an expert, I think you learn to relax and throw the scales away and go on what your dog looks like. If you feed a bit more of one thing today but less tomorrow it all balances itself out.

My four look really well and have pearly white teeth. They are rarely windy too which is a great improvement!

If you only have one dog then you can feed something like Natural Instinct who do a puppy range and all the guesswork is removed with the bone ratio.


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