Dog Food

[enfield]

There ain't nuthin' wrong with a man who loves dogs!

[Hidalgo]

Guys, my wife has been a veterinarian since 1983. She's got more letters after her name than I can comprehend. She's a board-certified specialist in more than one field. Taught at NCSU for 2 years. Managed several emergency facilities as the medical director. I would say that she's "qualified" to comment on dogs and their food needs.

According to her, either Purina ONE or Science Diet are the only 2 foods that she would recommend for a "healthy" animal. Some dogs & cats require special diets due to a physical situation. Otherwise, they do not. Feeding Alpo, Gravy Train, Old Roy, etc is not doing your dog any favors.

Just saying .......

[Guest Sgt. Joe]

When this guy was a pup I fed him Science Diet exclusively for the first year or so, as he grew and began eating more and more and I added the Husky to the family I have had to start buying them either Purina or Benneful (sp?) They seem to like both of those just fine. I also have a mini-wiener dog who thinks the Bennefull is the best stuff in the world. I dont know what it is about that stuff but it drives that little dog nuts, he even seems to recognize the bags when I bring them in. All of them are also given table scraps pretty regular.

The one below was a street rescue and when I picked her up it was the dead of winter and she was extremely thin and I feel very near death from starvation. I was a bit concerned about how the Lab would react to her but he simply fell in love.

The two of them are a trip to watch as they will nibble at each other like monkeys grooming each other for hours on end.

Very close to where I grabbed her was a convenience store that sold fried chicken and I am sure that the owner either fed her that stuff or at least she got it from their trash because she goes crazy every time any chicken is cooked and simply can not contain herself whenever I bring any KFC into the house. I call her my chicken hound.

She has made a fine addition to the family and is very healthy now. She is also just as sweet as she looks. I am sure glad the wife saw her when she did because I doubt she would have made it more than another day or two. She spent three days at the Vet before I even brought her home. The Vet even said that she would have not made it much longer.

I also think she has at some point been shot at because if I take out a gun or she sees me putting one on or taking one off she will get out of dodge very quickly. The Lab on the other hand just wants to sniff them to see if they are edible.

I feel like whomever left this dog to the streets to starve should have the same done to them:death:

From time to time if I see it on sale I will grab some of the Science Diet and when I do they both act as if someone has brought them a T-bone steak or something, they really do like that stuff. But the wiener dog will darn near starve himself before he will eat it.

I have from time to time tried some of the cheaper stuff like Old Roy and Gravy Train and pretty much all the others but while they will eat it I can not stand the gas that the cheaper foods gives them.

If I did not have three kids to feed and thought I could keep up with them I probably would try to cook for my dogs, they are my best buds and have a big place as part of the family and of course in the overall home security system here. If I had more room I would have more of them.

Thanks to the OP for giving me a chance to show off my buddies.

[lewisbd]

Science Diet - - - it's vet recommended!

It's vet recommended because they get kick-backs from it.

[enfield]

It's vet recommended because they get kick-backs from it.

You have documentary evidence you're going to share with us?

[Guest Sgt. Joe]

Recommended or not, kickbacks or not, I've got empty bowls and healthy dogs for evidence.

As far as I know they can not read any recommendations and if they are getting any kickbacks they sure are being discreet about it.

[BigK]

"Taste of the wild" grain free here. High protein Good for grain allergies. Supposedly digest more so less waste. "less " which is helpful with 3 great danes. This is according to my wife she's the expert . We get buy 5 get 1 free from feed store. I did get her a giant pooper scooper for xmas last year.

My 75# Olde English Bulldogge and my 85# American Bulldog are leaner and healthier since we switched to feed store dog food too. I get them a brand called Exclusive for the same reasons you said: less poop, less allergies, & high protein. Exclusive also contains omega vitamins for their skin and glucosamine & chondroitin with msm for their joints. My 2 favorite things are the every 6th bag is free and that it's completely corn-free. The first ingrediet on the bag is chicken, not chicken meal or bone meal (which appear farther down the list), but chicken!

My AB had some gnarly stomach issues for what seemed like forever. We switched to this food and poof! gone in a matter of days. We carried an empty bag to the vet b/c she asked what food we switched to. It seems she had other clients with dogs who had similar digestive issues and didn't carry that brand in her little store. Anyway, she was impressed for the price it's darn good food.

Edited January 10, 2011 by BigK

[usnbud]

My mastiff is 160lbs and my boxer is 75lbs, they both are doing very well on Purina One and all the table scraps they can beg! Neither are "fat" they are just solid, active, and both are happy and well adjusted.

[Hidalgo]

It's vet recommended because they get kick-backs from it.

You're an idiot. There are no "kick-backs" in the veterinary industry ... I can ASSURE you of that. What other words of wisdom, about things that you know nothing about, do you have for us?

[Guest Daelith]

We've been feeding our dogs Taste of the Wild for about a year now and they love it. As a rule of thumb for me now, if I see corn listed as an ingredient, I will not feed it. If you'll look, you will find most of the more popular brands have corn listed as one of the first 4 ingredients.

Never feed your dogs the following - grapes, raisins,currants, onions, garlic, chocolate or artificial sweeteners.

Grapes, raisins and currents can cause kidney problems.

Onions and garlic can can damage red blood cells and cause anemia.

Chocolate can cause vomiting and diarrhea and be toxic to the heart and nervous systems.

Artificial sweeteners can cause liver failure.

[BigK]

We've been feeding our dogs Taste of the Wild for about a year now and they love it. As a rule of thumb for me now, if I see corn listed as an ingredient, I will not feed it. If you'll look, you will find most of the more popular brands have corn listed as one of the first 4 ingredients.

Never feed your dogs the following - grapes, raisins,currants, onions, garlic, chocolate or artificial sweeteners.

Grapes, raisins and currents can cause kidney problems.

Onions and garlic can can damage red blood cells and cause anemia.

Chocolate can cause vomiting and diarrhea and be toxic to the heart and nervous systems.

Artificial sweeteners can cause liver failure.

+1 on the corn AND the other foods to avoid...will harm them over time. Maybe not the first time or when given infrequently, but why knowingly harm the animal? I'd also like to add bones to the list. They splinter and break into pieces with sharp edges that can tear their intestines. Again, why risk it?

[Guest Daelith]

I'd also like to add bones to the list. They splinter and break into pieces with sharp edges that can tear their intestines. Again, why risk it?

We don't feed ours bones either. I briefly worked for a vet many long years ago and have seen the results of a bone puncturing the stomach.

[lewisbd]

You're an idiot. There are no "kick-backs" in the veterinary industry ... I can ASSURE you of that. What other words of wisdom, about things that you know nothing about, do you have for us?

Now the retarded monkey resorts to name calling?

Edited January 12, 2011 by lewisbd

[enfield]

Heated arguing over dog food? Name calling?

If it doesn't stop I'll close the thread.

[frontier737]

A few years ago I had to put my 15 year old Springer down...damn, I cried like a baby. Swore I'd never get another. Till my wife and son wore me down. The new pooch is 20 pounds and we buy some crazy crap from Dizzy's Dog wash in Nashvillle.

I do love our new dog. Funny how the animal wraps itself around your heart.

[Guest ArmyVeteran37214]

My two Chihuahua's go through a $11, 20 pound bag of food every 45 days. I've been feeding them Kibbles and Bits, but I plan on changing that up here soon.

Edited January 23, 2011 by StreetWK05

[Guest tnxdshooter]

When I started dating my wife she had this little dog and I have gotten pretty attached to the little fellow. He is just a great dog.

We had to mix something in with his dog food or he wouldn't eat it unless he was starving.

I went to get him some dog food several months ago and wondered "What is the difference between $2.99 a bag dog food and $7.99 a bag dog food?" (He's 9 pounds so a 5 pound bag lasted awhile, and can't feed him table scraps cause he would puke more than half the time).

Best I could tell there is no difference what so ever. It's all crap and lots of corn. I dunno just didn't sit right with me to be feeding him that crap after I looked at the ingredients.

So I did a little research and found the same recipe on several different sites and started making it for him. His coat seems better and he seems better over all. Plus it's so funny to watch him. He knows when his meal time is and goes banannas to get it and cleans his bowl completely.

I mix 2 cups rice

pound and a half of sale meat (steak or chicken)

some green beans, sweet potatoes and or carrots

Lasts about a week and a half.

Anyone else make dog food for their dogs? Or am I just wierd?

I did find out grapes and onions can cause long term problems in pooches and also fat can be bad for them.

Your just weird dude, extremely weird.

[Guest tnxdshooter]

We've been feeding our dogs Taste of the Wild for about a year now and they love it. As a rule of thumb for me now, if I see corn listed as an ingredient, I will not feed it. If you'll look, you will find most of the more popular brands have corn listed as one of the first 4 ingredients.

Never feed your dogs the following - grapes, raisins,currants, onions, garlic, chocolate or artificial sweeteners.

Grapes, raisins and currents can cause kidney problems.

Onions and garlic can can damage red blood cells and cause anemia.

Chocolate can cause vomiting and diarrhea and be toxic to the heart and nervous systems.

Artificial sweeteners can cause liver failure.

My vet as well as numerous other vets I have talked to have all said chocolate is not toxic or deadly to dogs. They said do not ever feed it to cats though. Where are you getting your information?

[Guest FiddleDog]

Dog's are pretty intolerant of the theobromide that's usually in chocolate. It's not specifically toxic, but your dog will try to void it if they eat it (hence the diarrhea and vomiting). It will raise their heart rate substantially and can cause heart damage in large enough doses.

[SithL0rd]

My 75# Olde English Bulldogge and my 85# American Bulldog are leaner and healthier since we switched to feed store dog food too. I get them a brand called Exclusive for the same reasons you said: less poop, less allergies, & high protein. Exclusive also contains omega vitamins for their skin and glucosamine & chondroitin with msm for their joints. My 2 favorite things are the every 6th bag is free and that it's completely corn-free. The first ingrediet on the bag is chicken, not chicken meal or bone meal (which appear farther down the list), but chicken!

My AB had some gnarly stomach issues for what seemed like forever. We switched to this food and poof! gone in a matter of days. We carried an empty bag to the vet b/c she asked what food we switched to. It seems she had other clients with dogs who had similar digestive issues and didn't carry that brand in her little store. Anyway, she was impressed for the price it's darn good food.

I've been using the Exclusive Chicken and Rice as well. The operators of the county Co-op back home talked my dad into trying it years ago for his 3 dogs. When I brought one up here with me the only place I could find around here that sold it was a feed store in Collierville. I take her on the 30min ride with me every 6 weeks.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Was looking thru some saved clippings tonight, and found this which came from an old old hunting book, or maybe an old old dog book. I didn't write down the name of the old book, but it is somewhere out there on the internet if you care to look.

Just thought it interesting what was recommended a long time ago for the serious dog fancier. Probably there were numerous contradictory recommendations back then, just as there are today.

Feeding.—This is a subject of greatest importance to the health of the dog, and is responsible for a large amount of the ills of the canine race. For young dogs milk is most desirable; but the fact must be remembered that food must be varied according to the environments. Cooked meat is better when fed in large quantities ; when raw meat is used, it should be closely examined to see that it contains no germs. Cooked liver is excellent, but not as a regular diet. An agreeable dish for a dog consists in boiling sheep's or ox's heads until the flesh comes off. Flavor the broth with salt, skim off the fat, and mix with it meal, corn-meal, spare bread or biscuits. Dog-bread, as Spratt's for instance, is convenient, but not good for regular use. Cake, candy, or other sweets, it is needless to say, are most injurious to a dog's digestion and bring on many troubles. Dogs that have a great deal of exercise, such as hunting, may be allowed about all the food that they will take ; but dogs who are kept close at home and toy-dogs require a great deal of care. The breakfast should be simple, but at night the meal should be substantial. Toy-dogs must be given very little meat; milk, stale bread and eggs are good substitutes. Two meals a day are sufficient for any dog.

[FX4F150]

I agree with Daelith 150%. Taste of the Wild all the way. It doesn't smell like fish are a blend of junk, it actually smells like meat. Of, course i get the wild prarie flavor and not the pacific stream. I have 7 dogs that agree and believe me, bought and tried EVERY food out there. I buy a 50lb bag every week to week and a half, which sucks by the way. But they are all healthy and that's all i care about. We don't eat crap, why should they? I know...some say "because there dogs". These are my kids.