Does anyone NOT feed their dog grain free?

SaddlePsych'D

SaddlePsych'D

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Apologies if this is one of those things which has been done to death!

I've had Ivy (Greyhound, 6 years old) on various Millie's Wolfheart mixes over the four years we've had her. She started at around 23kg (underweight) and is currently around 27kg having recently lost some. Rehab vet was getting concerned that Ivy was heading towards too much weight and that we had Ivy on a high-fat mix to improve her condition post-house move in March, so we're now on supposedly a higher carb but lower fat mix which should apparently be better for a Greyhound, but Ivy's weight has dropped off. I've upped the feeding amount for now to see if that helps.

Worming is done regularly and recent bloods all came back showing she is in good health. Historically we added raw tripe, greek yoghurt, sardines, salmon oil as toppers (not all at the same time!) to help with weight gain. I just think surely for an otherwise healthy dog these things should be bonuses for good skin and coat etc. rather than to maintain a basic weight?

I'm starting to think screw it let's give non-grain free a try, although it seems tricky to find something that's not just 'meat derivative'.
 
Oh there's plenty if kibble about that cobrains grain. I had real trouble finding a low oil, grain-free kibble for our brown Lab who can't tolerate rice. If you'd rather not feed grain, how about potato?
 
Pearlsasinger said:
Oh there's plenty if kibble about that cobrains grain. I had real trouble finding a low oil, grain-free kibble for our brown Lab who can't tolerate rice. If you'd rather not feed grain, how about potato?
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I'm pretty open minded to grain containing food as long as the ingredients are reasonably good quality.

The mix she's on now has sweet potato and potato in. I'm also having a look at mixes with brown rice and oats. Fish4Dogs have a potato mix so that might be a good one.
 
I use this web site to compare the price/ingredients of dog food.
www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk

All About Dog Food: The UK's Best Dog Food Reviews & Comparisons Site

The UK's #1 dog food advice site! Find independent dog food reviews, feeding guides, nutrition tips, retailer locator and so much more!
www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk

I used Arden Grange for years, for lurchers, rottiX and now light for weight control of the dachshund, and labdoddle mixed with something else, they were doing too well on Wolf in the Wilderness.
When I look at all the rubbish they scavenge it does make me think why do I worry.
 
honetpot said:
I use this web site to compare the price/ingredients of dog food.
www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk

All About Dog Food: The UK's Best Dog Food Reviews & Comparisons Site

The UK's #1 dog food advice site! Find independent dog food reviews, feeding guides, nutrition tips, retailer locator and so much more!
www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk

I used Arden Grange for years, for lurchers, rottiX and now light for weight control of the dachshund, and labdoddle mixed with something else, they were doing too well on Wolf in the Wilderness.
When I look at all the rubbish they scavenge it does make me think why do I worry.
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Ah thank you, I was Googling earlier trying to remember Arden Grange! Will look that one up.
 
Clodagh said:
I would happily feed a food with grain but they all seem cheap and rubbish!
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I'm still sifting through on AADF but Symply looks quite good (a bit more ££ than MW) and possibly Arden Grange but they do a lot of mixes so I need to work out which one.

Supposedly Greyhounds need no more than around 20% Protein and often the higher quality foods have much higher than that, which is also making it tricky!
 
The feed we give now contains grains, wheat. I'm not sure that it's ideal but the dogs all look good on it. If it works, that's usually the most important sign.

If the dog is a thin type, maybe it needs a lower quote of protein and energy? I'm not sure about this, just a thought.
 
I’m currently using calibra as the hooligan’s dry and am happy with it &he also has nature diet wet.

I like that a lot of their foods are single source protein (they do still have added fats, as most dry foods do to get the right composition but they do mostly seem to state what the origin is rather than it just being meat / animal derivatives, which as the Hooligan has some protein allergies is something I do need to know)

Admittedly I was after the tricky combo of NO CHICKEN, low calorie and not grain free which it turns out is really hard to find 😂 (everyone uses chicken in their low calorie food and most manufacturers assume if you want a non chicken single source protein food then you don’t want grain either)

Hopefully you’ll have an easier time finding something that suits Ivy.
 
Fish4dogs is good. I've never fed it for weight gain, but everyone seems to do well on it, has shiny coat, good poos etc.

I originally started feeding it because they had some sort of sponsorship deal with the flyball club I was part of so I used to get a discount. At the club there was quite a lot of very active dogs fed on it and all seemed to look well for it.
 
My greyhounds (and GSD) have all done well on Burgess greyhound and lurcher. I put some water onto the dry kibble, add a condiment or two (canident and a joint supplement) garnish with a dried sprat if I have any. Two meals a day. Bob's your uncle.
 
I have come full circle from raw and grain free and both the current ones are on Eukanuba, with a spoon of Forthglade to dampen and mix. On this even the very active racing snake sort keeps weight on well.
 
I downgraded from expensive fancy, to skinners field & trial and tbh both dogs do better on skinners 🫣 just looked at the ingredients, rice & oats seem to be the main carb source for one and maize/oats/barley for the other.
 
I wouldn't have a problem feeding grain, though Zenya is on a mix of Millie's and raw as she showed signs of an allergy as a youngster. I usually just either increase or decrease feed to manage weight. If Ivy isn't a picky eater I would just give her more kibble and don't worry too much about all the extra toppers.
 
ihatework said:
I downgraded from expensive fancy, to skinners field & trial and tbh both dogs do better on skinners 🫣 just looked at the ingredients, rice & oats seem to be the main carb source for one and maize/oats/barley for the other.
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Same. I used to exclusively raw feed, then switched in some very expensive grain-free food and now on Skinners Maintenance or Muesli if they need a bit extra.

When I was doing Flyball I used the CSJ range of foods and do rate them.
 
Our old terrier was definitely grain free as he had seizures (Spikes/CECS/atypical epilepsy) which may have been linked to gluten but tbh I didn’t see a correlation. Current dog is fed grain free too but only because it’s how her “calm and relax” or some such food comes 🤣

The cat gets some fancy 100% meat stuff because he’s a t**t
 
I do switch up to keep them interested.

Sometimes its grain free. Sometimes it isnt.

Barking Heads have their big foot golden years or puppy days food on offer atm. If you select the subscribe and save (which you can cancel at any stage) then 12kg is only £27.99.

There are some grains in it. It isnt terrible though.
 
ihatework said:
I downgraded from expensive fancy, to skinners field & trial and tbh both dogs do better on skinners 🫣 just looked at the ingredients, rice & oats seem to be the main carb source for one and maize/oats/barley for the other.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I feed skinners when I can't sort a delivery of the other out. Like you, I think it seems pretty good.
 
SaddlePsych'D said:
Yes that's really annoying when trying to do comparisons!
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I've found punching the numbers into a calculator such as this one can be helpful in getting an idea for quick comparisons or working out the likely cost. Sometimes has shown up to me where the marketing can mislead 🤫

blackcob said:
I have come full circle from raw and grain free and both the current ones are on Eukanuba, with a spoon of Forthglade to dampen and mix. On this even the very active racing snake sort keeps weight on well.
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I've fed Eukanuba large breed chicken since the end of 2022. Used do all sorts- toppers and extras, trying to find "good" foods but found myself in a bit of a revolving door having to change things. (Bouts of bilious vomiting would have her unwilling to eat her food at all). Changed absolutely nothing since, no omeprazole either. Just some warm water, always excited to eat 😄

It does also contain sodium hexametaphosphate for dental health, I brushed most days regardless but I have noticed an improvement in her teeth as well
 
Escapade said:
I've found punching the numbers into a calculator such as this one can be helpful in getting an idea for quick comparisons or working out the likely cost. Sometimes has shown up to me where the marketing can mislead 🤫


I've fed Eukanuba large breed chicken since the end of 2022. Used do all sorts- toppers and extras, trying to find "good" foods but found myself in a bit of a revolving door having to change things. (Bouts of bilious vomiting would have her unwilling to eat her food at all). Changed absolutely nothing since, no omeprazole either. Just some warm water, always excited to eat 😄

It does also contain sodium hexametaphosphate for dental health, I brushed most days regardless but I have noticed an improvement in her teeth as well
Click to expand...
Ooh thank you for the calculator link, that will be really useful.

I wasn't expecting to get so many responses from people who do feed grain containing foods as the grain free is such a 'thing'. Just not sure it's the right thing in all cases. I'll give it a bit longer on the higher amount of MW but if she's still not looking great, will make a switch because we're at the top of the suggested feeding range for dogs up to 35kg which is way over her healthy weight.

We're back at the Rehab vets this week so will weigh Ivy and get a view on her condition. It will help to have a view from someone who hasn't seen Ivy in a while.
 
Can only speak from my own experience but I had a bit of a wibble around the time there started to be evidence of a potential link between grain-free foods and heart disease (DCM), then planning to get a large breed puppy that would grow at a terrifying rate solidified my decision not to dick around with raw this time.

The poos are admittedly bigger and stinkier on kibble but the dogs look as well or better than my raw fed ones did.
 
blackcob said:
Can only speak from my own experience but I had a bit of a wibble around the time there started to be evidence of a potential link between grain-free foods and heart disease (DCM), then planning to get a large breed puppy that would grow at a terrifying rate solidified my decision not to dick around with raw this time.

The poos are admittedly bigger and stinkier on kibble but the dogs look as well or better than my raw fed ones did.
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Yes, vet daughter who worked in USA for several years advised me to be cautious with a totally grain free diet, which is why mine have a bit of a mix. The zealous raw feeders would have a fit at the variety of foods mine get.
 
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