Dog food help

[Ranger351]

I am sure it has been discussed on here quite a bit but I am currently going to be getting a 15 week old lab puppy and I am unsure what to feed. I used to use diamond and Canidae but that was several years ago I've been out of this for a while I'm not sure what is currently good for approximately a dollar a pound. Not looking to get into a huge debate and I understand that there are a lot of bad dog foods out there but I'm just trying to find something around that price range

[Dakotazeb]

This could open a can of worms as dog foods has to be the most discussed issue on the hunting/gun dog forums. There are literally hundreds of dog foods to choose from. Spend some time doing your homework looking at ingredients and the analysis. Every dog may respond differently to various foods.

That said, you really can't go wrong ProPlan. Personally, I feed NutriSource and my dogs have done very well on it. Both ProPlan and NutriSource are a little over that $1 per pound target. I'm sure you will get a lot of other suggestions!

[ezzy333]

There are many good foods and probably a few that aren't, but most are pretty much alike in basic nutrition. They just have different ways of providing it. I am not going to tell you diamond is the best food out there but it is good and I have found it does provide the dogs needs and does it cheaper than most. In other words I think it is the best buy for what it provides. But there are others about as good such as Sportsmix and several others. Find a food your dog likes, one that is readily available and one you can afford then stick with it no matter how much marketing BS or pesonnal hype you hear and read.

Ezzy

[pato y codoniz]

I'd pull up all the foods that meet your price range. Look at the guaranteed analysis for the protein to fat ratio that you desire then compare ingredients.


The way I'd select between the food would be as follows:

I'd look for a named animal meal or two before any grains or vegetable protein.

I'm not opposed to grains but I'd look for whole grains. I'm not a fan of shorts, middlings, etc.

Lastly, my tie breaker would be the minerals. I'd look for chelated or proteinated supplements.

[RayGubernat]

Good advice above. There are any number of good dogfoods out there. Many in your price range. That being said...

Can't go too far wrong with Pro Plan Performance(30/20). It has absolutely everything your dog will need from a nutrition standpoint and it will be the same formula two years from now as it is today.

If I only had one dog, that is, without question, what I would be feeding. I understand that there are services which will deliver the product to your dog for prices that are VERY competitive with what you can buy it for at chain petfood stores.

RayG

[Dakotazeb]

Has anyone compared ProPlan to Purina ONE? If you look at the analysis and ingredients on similar products they appear to be very close to the same. And Purina ONE is priced quite a bit lower. My step-son has been feeding his Brittanys Purina ONE for some time and they seem to do very well on it.

[Sharon]

Yes. As I have old dogs and a 2 year old , I have spent some time comparing Pro Plan Focus ( 7+), Pro Plan Savor ( Maintenance) and Purina One.

They are basically the same except DHA EPA, Fatty Acids and Glucosamine not in Savor and no Omega 3 in Purina One. As I have no idea how important those ingredients are , I use the cheapest one of the 3 ,and my dogs are doing great ( most important reason).

(As the 2 year old is a JRT , he doesn't need ProPlan Performance imo.)

[Dakotazeb]

I guess the lack of Omega 3 in Purina ONE would cause me some concern. Check this link for info on Omega 3 for dogs. The NutriSouce Adult I feed my Brittany has exactly the 5:1 ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 that he recommends.

http://www.1800petmeds.com/education/be ... pets-9.htm

[Sharon]

Thank you . That was very helpful and I am going to re think. I see the Focus 7+ has that ratio too.

How important is DHA and EPA?

[CCBIRDDOGMAN]

Diamond Naturals lamb & Rice and Chicken & Rice rates higher than Pro Plan on Dog food advisers website and is cheaper. No brainer for me. I fed Purina one with good results for a few years but Diamond naturals is cheaper than it too.

[j944]

I always rotated between Canidae and Innova for my lab and GSP until I found Merrick. Now it's between Canidae and Merrick Buffalo & sweet potato. Both of them have dark shiny coats.

[Dakotazeb]

DHA and EPA are forms of Omega 3 fatty acids. Here's a fairly good article explaining the benefits.

http://petsci.co.uk/health-care/nutriti ... -for-dogs/

[Dakotazeb]

Diamond Naturals lamb & Rice and Chicken & Rice rates higher than Pro Plan on Dog food advisers website and is cheaper. No brainer for me. I fed Purina one with good results for a few years but Diamond naturals is cheaper than it too.

I know a lot of people feed Diamond and their dogs to very well. My biggest concern with Diamond is that they have had more dog food recalls than any other manufacture.

[shags]

Been feeding Diamond for years and have been happy with it.

As far as recalls, most if not all in the past several years have been voluntary, on the * possibility* that certain lots may have a problem. Checking an exhaustive list, it seems like most major manufacturers have had recalls.

[pato y codoniz]

Diamond Naturals lamb & Rice and Chicken & Rice rates higher than Pro Plan on Dog food advisers website and is cheaper. No brainer for me. I fed Purina one with good results for a few years but Diamond naturals is cheaper than it too.

I know a lot of people feed Diamond and their dogs to very well. My biggest concern with Diamond is that they have had more dog food recalls than any other manufacture.

I don't feed Diamond but, if I was going to use that $1 per pound parameter and I wasn't buying by the pallet, I'd be giving Diamond Naturals Extreme Athlete serious consideration.

Imho, it is a much better food than purina pro plan 30/20.

[Sharon]

DHA and EPA are forms of Omega 3 fatty acids. Here's a fairly good article explaining the benefits.

http://petsci.co.uk/health-care/nutriti ... -for-dogs/

Thanks very much.

[RayGubernat]

Folks -

Many dog foods have a sliding scale for ingredients, so that when, say commodity wheat prices go up, they cut back on wheat and add some other, less expensive grain or grains to make up the difference. That is how they maintain their margins. Usually you can't tell in the dogs, but sometimes, their stools will soften, increase in volume or get runny for no apparent reason. Now you know a common reason. Might save some anxiety or a vet visit.

One of the things you pay for...and usually get ...with the higher priced performance feeds is a fixed formula. The variations in price of the ingredients is already built into the price.

RayG

[pato y codoniz]

Folks -

Many dog foods have a sliding scale for ingredients, so that when, say commodity wheat prices go up, they cut back on wheat and add some other, less expensive grain or grains to make up the difference. That is how they maintain their margins. Usually you can't tell in the dogs, but sometimes, their stools will soften, increase in volume or get runny for no apparent reason. Now you know a common reason. Might save some anxiety or a vet visit.

One of the things you pay for...and usually get ...with the higher priced performance feeds is a fixed formula. The variations in price of the ingredients is already built into the price.

RayG

Not only do the higher priced feeds have fixed formulas but they'll operate their own plant and have a fixed supply chain, using small suppliers, where they can dictate preservatives used, meal formulas, etc.

[ezzy333]

Folks -

Many dog foods have a sliding scale for ingredients, so that when, say commodity wheat prices go up, they cut back on wheat and add some other, less expensive grain or grains to make up the difference. That is how they maintain their margins. Usually you can't tell in the dogs, but sometimes, their stools will soften, increase in volume or get runny for no apparent reason. Now you know a common reason. Might save some anxiety or a vet visit.

One of the things you pay for...and usually get ...with the higher priced performance feeds is a fixed formula. The variations in price of the ingredients is already built into the price.

RayG

Not only do the higher priced feeds have fixed formulas but they'll operate their own plant and have a fixed supply chain, using small suppliers, where they can dictate preservatives used, meal formulas, etc.

Sounds good but don't think that is how it works. However the differences have little effect on quality of the feed.

[pato y codoniz]

Folks -

Many dog foods have a sliding scale for ingredients, so that when, say commodity wheat prices go up, they cut back on wheat and add some other, less expensive grain or grains to make up the difference. That is how they maintain their margins. Usually you can't tell in the dogs, but sometimes, their stools will soften, increase in volume or get runny for no apparent reason. Now you know a common reason. Might save some anxiety or a vet visit.

One of the things you pay for...and usually get ...with the higher priced performance feeds is a fixed formula. The variations in price of the ingredients is already built into the price.

RayG

Not only do the higher priced feeds have fixed formulas but they'll operate their own plant and have a fixed supply chain, using small suppliers, where they can dictate preservatives used, meal formulas, etc.

Sounds good but don't think that is how it works. However the differences have little effect on quality of the feed.

It works that way with a few of the higher priced feeds like Orijen, Acana, Inukshuk, etc. They operate their own plants. They source their ingredients from the same small providers. They dictate preservative use. They dictate meal formulas.

[ezzy333]

I think rather than doing a whole lot of dictating they find suppliers who sell them the ingredients they want to buy. And as you know many companies own and operate their own plants, but those that don't still have the control of their own formulas. They just contract the manufacturing but the product is still theirs from formula to finished product/ I've been there and done that is the old saying. By the way, what Ray was referring to is called Least cost formulation. The guarantees are set and the computer will come up with the cheapest way to get to those set standards that will not change the quality of the feed. There really are very few ways to use it with pet foods but can be a very important part of livestock feed formulation that keeps the cost down when a certain ingredient is in short supply and the price sky rockets..