Fellow dog owners - what food do you feed?

Hello fellow dog owners! As the time for bringing home my puppy draws near I've been researching what food to feed my corgi puppy.

What do you feed?

Surely I'm not the only one who is wanting to feed the highest quality food possible. :)


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Originally Posted by missriss2012

Hello fellow dog owners! As the time for bringing home my puppy draws near I've been researching what food to feed my corgi puppy.

What do you feed?

Surely I'm not the only one who is wanting to feed the highest quality food possible. :)


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Wellness is a bit high dollar, but it's a great food. I fed it to my dog, and he loved it.

science diet :gj:

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGeek

science diet :gj:

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Science diet is a fairly poor quality food. There are a few people I've heard that swear by SD, but in general a lot of animals don't do well on it.

What formula do you feed?


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Originally Posted by kat_black181

Wellness is a bit high dollar, but it's a great food. I fed it to my dog, and he loved it.

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Wellness CORE is one of the foods that is on my radar. As are Blue Buffalo Freedom, Canidae, Taste of the Wild, and Merrick.


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We do a blend of Nature's Variety Instinct commercial raw, Stella & Chewy's freeze dried commercial raw, Taste of the Wild, and grain-free Nature's Domain. Sometimes we offer feeder whole prey too, but not often.
I'd like to try Orijin/Acana some day too. My ferrets are on Orijin and raw..

Orijin, Acana, Taste of the Wild, and Wellness Core are top brands and would definitely suggest them for kibble.

Stella and Chewy's and Nature's Variety Instinct are great for commercial raw.

Science Diet is absolute crap. There is nothing very good about their food. Most of their ingredients are plant/grain/corn material.

Check out this site: http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/
It rates every dog food and breaks down evaluations ingredient by ingredient.

Natural balance. Higher grade than blue buffalo. Hands down. But blue buffalo wilderness is my second pick.

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Originally Posted by missriss2012

Wellness CORE is one of the foods that is on my radar. As are Blue Buffalo Freedom, Canidae, Taste of the Wild, and Merrick.


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My dog also loved Blue Buffalo. He hated Taste of the Wild for some reason!

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Originally Posted by satomi325

We do a blend of Nature's Variety Instinct commercial raw, Stella & Chewy's commercial freeze dried raw, Taste of the Wild, and grain-free Nature's Domain. Sometimes we offer feeder whole prey too, but not often.
I'd like to try Orijin/Acana some day too. My ferrets are on Orijin and raw.

Orijin, Acana, Taste of the Wild, and Wellness Core are top brands and would definitely suggest them for kibble.

Stella and Chewy's and Nature's Variety Instinct are great for commercial raw.

Check out this site: http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/
It rates every dog food and breaks down evaluations ingredient by ingredient.

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Thanks! I've spent a lot of time on that website. I would love to do raw but financially it's a little more than I can handle right now. I do enjoy the convenience of a top notch kibble though!


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I like to feed raw to my dogs, but if I have to feed a kibble I feed Orijen.

I feed earth born to my dog and cats


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I feed my dog Fromm... It's not too badly priced. But is currently only in smaller stores ( mainly not petco or petsmart)


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My Husky and German Shepherd/Lab mix are on raw diet and blue buffalo, with lots of uncooked meaty bones to chew on.

Ive fed Blue Wilderness to my pup since i got him a year and a half ago. It's grain-free and has a couple flavors so I can switch it up for him every once in a while.

I feed my corgi/poodle mix Taste of the Wild. She's done really good on it and she's been on it since I got her as a puppy 2 years ago. With her being part corgi and I know corgis can have weight problems I was concerned and wanted her on the best food for her and this has seemed to work. She is 30 pounds and not an inch of fat!

as a puppy:

http://i774.photobucket.com/albums/y...ps1f90e468.jpg

as an adult:

http://i774.photobucket.com/albums/y...ps6c34e380.jpg

When I feed kibble it's Wellness Core. I'm a raw feeder

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Taste of the Wild

I feed my dog Fromm Adult Gold. Meat is the first ingredient (duck) and it has 24% protein.

I feed my blue tongue skink dog food as a primary source of protein, and I like grain free ones. I use Wellness Core, Blue Buffalo, and (Halo?) Spots Stew (the wet versions, but those are good brands) :gj:

To all who are feeding raw diets: Keep it at a minimum, raw diets are ALWAYS deficient in certain vitamins and minerals that are present for a reason in dry, semi-moist, and wet manufactured pet foods.

Remember: Dogs are NOT obligate carnivores. No, not even wolves.

And Science Diet is not bad food, it was once top of the line. The bar has just been raised and now it's a mid-grade food that can easily sustain good overall health in many many breeds.

We Use Nutrena River Run High Pro 50# bags for 21.00 and have always been a fan of Nutrena products

Working in the Veterinary field for over 8 yrs I always feed Medi-Cal/Royal Canin. The company will always support you and your puppy :) they always have Veterinarians on standby as well ;) Great food. Having said that what works for my dogs may not work for yours. Don't buy into the "hype" just because they say they add blueberry for example does not mean it has blueberries. In Canada the only thing that has to be legally correct on a food bag is the weight.....very scary Good luck with your new puppy

Kirkland brand from Costco alternating between chicken and lamb, fish oil and vitamin E, coconut oil & raw meaty bones every now and then.
both are shepherd mixes.

My dogs absolutely hated blue buffalo. We ended up having to mix some water in to make a 'gravy' in order to finish the bag lol. They seem to really enjoy taste of the wild though, and their coats and overall body types are in really good condition.

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Originally Posted by Aztec4mia

Kirkland brand from Costco alternating between chicken and lamb, fish oil and vitamin E, coconut oil & raw meaty bones every now and then.
both are shepherd mixes.

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You know I bred and showed pugs for 7 yrs and so many breeders use the Natures Domain which is only sold at Costco, they swear by it. I did a lot of research on that brand and have to say it seems to be a good brand.

I feed my dogs Canidae dog food. All life stages. It is a really good grade food. When looking at dog food look for the K/cals. Per cup. It is the nutritional value of the food that can be metabolized. Many big name brands have very low K/cals. It is listed on each bag somewhere near the ingredients. Hope that helps?

Taste of the Wild here. Wetlands formula to be exact. My dogs have never been more healthy once I switched over


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Originally Posted by Monty the BP

You know I bred and showed pugs for 7 yrs and so many breeders use the Natures Domain which is only sold at Costco, they swear by it. I did a lot of research on that brand and have to say it seems to be a good brand.

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The kirkland brand gets the job done and is reasonably priced for a 40# bag, and has a 4 star rating on that dog food advisor website that was posted earlier.

Raw feeder here. I budget $1.30 per pound and with 3 dogs it all amounts to the same as Blue Buffalo.

If I have to go kibble, I would go with Blue Buffalo Wilderness or Earthborn Holistics Primitive Natural as they are most accessible. Fromm is also a good one but harder to find. You can get it from petflow.com and if you use ENGLISHBULLDOGS (if that doesn't work try it without the S) in the promotion you can get free shipping for packages over 45 lbs. Yes, I have English Bulldogs who are one of the most finicky dogs as far as nutrition go.

And for whoever said something about dogs not being obligate carnivores... yes, they are not obligate carnivores but they are carnivores nonetheless. The difference between an obligate carnivore and a non-obligate carnivore is that an obligate carnivore cannot process non-meat food at all whereas a non-obligate carnivore can process non-meat proteins if that's the only opportunity presented but their physiology is optimized for meat. Or in simpler terms - a lion is an obligate carnivore and will die if there is no meat to eat, whereas a dog is a non-obligate carnivore and eats whole prey but if they can't find one, they'll make do with whatever protein they can find.

Now, very important words here - whole prey. If you only feed your dog ground beef and chicken legs you're not giving your dog whole prey and would then have a nutritionally deficient diet.

I agree with Anatess. Raw is the best diet to feed a dog. Or any carnivorous pet for the matter. Raw is only bad if it is unbalanced(I.e only using ground and not including organs or bones for example). True finely tuned meals are based off a prey model diet and are does not cause deficiencies. Some people even feed whole carcasses to avoid missing anything.

A dog on kibble is nothing like a dog on a balanced raw diet. The physical difference is an eye opener.

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGuy

To all who are feeding raw diets: Keep it at a minimum, raw diets are ALWAYS deficient in certain vitamins and minerals that are present for a reason in dry, semi-moist, and wet manufactured pet foods.

Remember: Dogs are NOT obligate carnivores. No, not even wolves.

And Science Diet is not bad food, it was once top of the line. The bar has just been raised and now it's a mid-grade food that can easily sustain good overall health in many many breeds.

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I could see how SD was once a great food. If you compare ingredients, it does use a lot more by-products and non-animal protein sources. These days for the same price you can get a much higher quality food. Each dog is different though!


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGuy

To all who are feeding raw diets: Keep it at a minimum, raw diets are ALWAYS deficient in certain vitamins and minerals that are present for a reason in dry, semi-moist, and wet manufactured pet foods.

Remember: Dogs are NOT obligate carnivores. No, not even wolves.

And Science Diet is not bad food, it was once top of the line. The bar has just been raised and now it's a mid-grade food that can easily sustain good overall health in many many breeds.

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Raw diets don't just include meat... A well balanced raw diet has everything the dog needs and is perfectly safe and healthy to feed.

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGuy

To all who are feeding raw diets: Keep it at a minimum, raw diets are ALWAYS deficient in certain vitamins and minerals that are present for a reason in dry, semi-moist, and wet manufactured pet foods.

Remember: Dogs are NOT obligate carnivores. No, not even wolves.

And Science Diet is not bad food, it was once top of the line. The bar has just been raised and now it's a mid-grade food that can easily sustain good overall health in many many breeds.

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That is 100% FALSE! A proper fed RAW diet is not deficient in anything, thats like saying YOU only feeding your snakes rats is making it deficient in vitamins and minerals.

DOGS ARE CARNIVORES FACT. BUT if you are still one of the weirdos who thinks they arent OR you heavily work a dog you can go with the BARF or semi-BARF diet (like we will be doing come heavier work season). That includes some vegetable matter BUT for dogs to digest vegetable matter you need top blanch it (cook) and then blend it into a paste otherwise it passes through and little if any is absorbed, you know, cuz they are carnivores and all.

A little snippit from some research I have done over the years of raw feeding

"3.) Internal anatomy and physiology

Dogs and cats have the internal anatomy and physiology of a carnivore (Feldhamer, G.A. 1999. Mammology: Adaptation, Diversity, and Ecology. McGraw-Hill. pg 260.). They have a highly elastic stomach designed to hold large quantities of meat, bone, organs, and hide. Their stomachs are simple, with an undeveloped caecum (Feldhamer, G.A. 1999. Mammology: Adaptation, Diversity, and Ecology. McGraw-Hill. pg 260.). They have a relatively short foregut and a short, smooth, unsacculated colon. This means food passes through quickly. Vegetable and plant matter, however, needs time to sit and ferment. This equates to longer, sacculated colons, larger and longer small intestines, and occasionally the presence of a caecum. Dogs have none of these, but have the shorter foregut and hindgut consistent with carnivorous animals. This explains why plant matter comes out the same way it came in; there was no time for it to be broken down and digested (among other things). People know this; this is why they tell you that vegetables and grains have to be preprocessed for your dog to get anything out of them. But even then, feeding vegetables and grains to a carnivorous animal is a questionable practice.

Dogs do not normally produce the necessary enzymes in their saliva (amylase, for example) to start the break-down of carbohydrates and starches; amylase in saliva is something omnivorous and herbivorous animals possess, but not carnivorous animals. This places the burden entirely on the pancreas, forcing it to produce large amounts of amylase to deal with the starch, cellulose, and carbohydrates in plant matter. Thus, feeding dogs as though they were omnivores taxes the pancreas and places extra strain on it, as it must work harder for the dog to digest the starchy, carbohydrate-filled food instead of just producing normal amounts of the enzymes needed to digest proteins and fats (which, when fed raw, begin to "self-digest" when the cells are crushed through chewing and tearing and their enzymes are released).

Nor do dogs have the kinds of friendly bacteria that break down cellulose and starch for them. As a result, most of the nutrients contained in plant matter—even preprocessed plant matter—are unavailable to dogs. This is why dog food manufacturers have to add such high amounts of synthetic vitamins and minerals (the fact that cooking destroys all the vitamins and minerals and thus creates the need for supplementation aside) to their dog foods. If a dog can only digest 40-60% of its grain-based food, then it will only be receiving 40-60% (ideally!) of the vitamins and minerals it needs. To compensate for this, the manufacturer must add a higher concentration of vitamins and minerals than the dog actually needs."

I wouldnt say raw feeding is the end all be all to dog health, and have seen some dogs who do terrible but the majority thrive on it, they dont just live and survive but THRIVE and you dont completely understand that until you start feeding an animal a species appropriate diet.

My dog has been on PMR (prey model raw, so zero vegetable matter) for almost 3 years now..
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-0...o/DSCN5863.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-A...o/DSCN5861.JPG

This is our other dog, PMR fed since Jan
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-q...o/DSCN5835.JPG

https://scontent-b-sjc.xx.fbcdn.net/...18509031_n.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-a...o/DSCN5816.JPG

People seem to think and forget that a proper raw diet contains specific amounts of muscle meat, bone, organs and you can add in oils, green tripe, eggs, apple cider vinegar, and yes the odd vegetable that can benefit your dog if you so choose upon proper preparation for it to be beneficial.

Typical meal for our dogs
https://scontent-b-sjc.xx.fbcdn.net/...62005121_n.jpg
(chicken quarter, chicken gizzard, hamburger, beef liver, mackerel, whole egg, acv, and fish oil)

The problem is when people not educated on the subject try and explain it.

If anyone is interested in learning about or starting a raw diet with their dogs, here ya go.. factual information http://preymodelraw.com/page/articles.html

Quote:

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGuy

To all who are feeding raw diets: Keep it at a minimum, raw diets are ALWAYS deficient in certain vitamins and minerals that are present for a reason in dry, semi-moist, and wet manufactured pet foods.

Remember: Dogs are NOT obligate carnivores. No, not even wolves.

And Science Diet is not bad food, it was once top of the line. The bar has just been raised and now it's a mid-grade food that can easily sustain good overall health in many many breeds.

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That is 100% FALSE! A proper fed RAW diet is not deficient in anything, thats like saying YOU only feeding your snakes rats is making it deficient in vitamins and minerals.

DOGS ARE CARNIVORES FACT. BUT if you are still one of the weirdos who thinks they arent OR you heavily work a dog you can go with the BARF or semi-BARF diet (like we will be doing come heavier work season). That includes some vegetable matter BUT for dogs to digest vegetable matter you need top blanch it (cook) and then blend it into a paste otherwise it passes through and little if any is absorbed, you know, cuz they are carnivores and all.

A little snippit from some research I have done over the years of raw feeding

"3.) Internal anatomy and physiology

Dogs and cats have the internal anatomy and physiology of a carnivore (Feldhamer, G.A. 1999. Mammology: Adaptation, Diversity, and Ecology. McGraw-Hill. pg 260.). They have a highly elastic stomach designed to hold large quantities of meat, bone, organs, and hide. Their stomachs are simple, with an undeveloped caecum (Feldhamer, G.A. 1999. Mammology: Adaptation, Diversity, and Ecology. McGraw-Hill. pg 260.). They have a relatively short foregut and a short, smooth, unsacculated colon. This means food passes through quickly. Vegetable and plant matter, however, needs time to sit and ferment. This equates to longer, sacculated colons, larger and longer small intestines, and occasionally the presence of a caecum. Dogs have none of these, but have the shorter foregut and hindgut consistent with carnivorous animals. This explains why plant matter comes out the same way it came in; there was no time for it to be broken down and digested (among other things). People know this; this is why they tell you that vegetables and grains have to be preprocessed for your dog to get anything out of them. But even then, feeding vegetables and grains to a carnivorous animal is a questionable practice.

Dogs do not normally produce the necessary enzymes in their saliva (amylase, for example) to start the break-down of carbohydrates and starches; amylase in saliva is something omnivorous and herbivorous animals possess, but not carnivorous animals. This places the burden entirely on the pancreas, forcing it to produce large amounts of amylase to deal with the starch, cellulose, and carbohydrates in plant matter. Thus, feeding dogs as though they were omnivores taxes the pancreas and places extra strain on it, as it must work harder for the dog to digest the starchy, carbohydrate-filled food instead of just producing normal amounts of the enzymes needed to digest proteins and fats (which, when fed raw, begin to "self-digest" when the cells are crushed through chewing and tearing and their enzymes are released).

Nor do dogs have the kinds of friendly bacteria that break down cellulose and starch for them. As a result, most of the nutrients contained in plant matter—even preprocessed plant matter—are unavailable to dogs. This is why dog food manufacturers have to add such high amounts of synthetic vitamins and minerals (the fact that cooking destroys all the vitamins and minerals and thus creates the need for supplementation aside) to their dog foods. If a dog can only digest 40-60% of its grain-based food, then it will only be receiving 40-60% (ideally!) of the vitamins and minerals it needs. To compensate for this, the manufacturer must add a higher concentration of vitamins and minerals than the dog actually needs."

I wouldnt say raw feeding is the end all be all to dog health, and have seen some dogs who do terrible but the majority thrive on it, they dont just live and survive but THRIVE and you dont completely understand that until you start feeding an animal a species appropriate diet.

My dog has been on PMR (prey model raw, so zero vegetable matter) for almost 3 years now..
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-0...o/DSCN5863.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-A...o/DSCN5861.JPG

This is our other dog, PMR fed since Jan
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-q...o/DSCN5835.JPG

https://scontent-b-sjc.xx.fbcdn.net/...18509031_n.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-a...o/DSCN5816.JPG

We have half a litter of puppies here now too and they will starting raw once the bulk are shipped off to their new homes :)

People seem to think and forget that a proper raw diet contains specific amounts of muscle meat, bone, organs and you can add in oils, green tripe, eggs, apple cider vinegar, and yes the odd vegetable that can benefit your dog if you so choose upon proper preparation for it to be beneficial.

Typical meal for our dogs
https://scontent-b-sjc.xx.fbcdn.net/...62005121_n.jpg
(chicken quarter, chicken gizzard, hamburger, beef liver, mackerel, whole egg, acv, and fish oil)

The problem is when people not educated on the subject try and explain it.

If anyone is interested in learning about or starting a raw diet with their dogs, here ya go.. factual information http://preymodelraw.com/page/articles.html

I fed my dog pedigree his whole life and he grew up to be a big strong wonderful doggy :) Pedigree was the only brand of dog food that didn't give him horrible gas and diarrhea.


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We feed pedigree large breed, never heard of raw feeding looks interesting. This is my big girl :) http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/08/e3yny8ub.jpg

It's not false. Nor is it objective research. It's me sitting in my Animal Nutrition course, which is aimed entirely at the nutritional requirements of canine/feline diets what good methods are for providing them with solid maintenance nutrition throughout all life stages.

My mutts get feed Earthborn. My lab gets the coast catch (grain free and fished based) and the pup gets the puppy variety. I love Earthborn and my dogs seem to love it as well.

It's amazing the difference quality food will make in a dog. My lab gets a lot of comments because he has a beautiful black coat that is really shinny. When I got my puppy they were feeding Purina Puppy Chow, after slowly switching him to the Earthborn puppy food the change in his coat was amazing.

My dogs (and cats) are on a purely raw diet. I'm following the "prey model" version of the raw diet, which involves feeding ratios of meat, bone, and organ that would mimic that found in a whole prey animal. These don't necessarily need to be fed on a daily basis, as long as the overall diet (say within a week's time) comes out to the right ratio. No supplements necessary. My cats have been on this diet for more than 7 years, my older dog for more than 5 years, and my younger dog for almost as long as I've had her (she's going on 3 years now, got her when she was 3 months old, and switched her to this diet after she got out of the vet hospital and recovered from parvo). They are doing fabulously, always a perfect 5 on the body condition scale, vet always has good things to say about their health, bloodwork always perfect, teeth in excellent condition, etc. I couldn't be happier.

Oh and in terms of cost... I have actually found raw to be LESS expensive than a high quality kibble. That will depend on your location and availability too. I'm part of a local co-op and able to purchase my raw foods in bulk (human-grade food too, so I can eat it also if I choose!). Only catch is having a freezer to store it in.

And about Science Diet. It is crap food.

They went through an overhaul last year - getting new packaging, re-formulating to make the product seem like it has more animal-based protein now, getting rid of artificial dyes and animal by-products... but looking at it closely it is still the same crap food it was. Yes, meat is now the first ingredient but then it is followed by a whole bunch of high-protein cereals. Which means, most of the protein still come from plants, not animals.

So, you ask, so what? So what if the main source of protein is corn or rice? It is still high protein! Protein is the most critical nutrient in a dog's diet. Dogs require 22 amino acids for its survival - if only 1 of these amino acids is missing, the rest of the amino acids cannot do the needed function. Protein is the carrier for these amino acids. A dog can produce its own amino acids by breaking down proteins. But the dog's body cannot produce 10 out of the 22 amino acids that is essential for its survival on its own, so it needs to get those amino acids directly from the protein it consumes.

But, not all proteins contain those 10 missing amino acids. And in addition to that, not all protein sources are digestible to dogs (low biological value). Basically, my leather shoe that my dog likes to chew is rich in protein - but when the dog poops, the pieces of leather comes out undigested, so it has practically no nutritional value to the dog. So, what we need to do is to find a good protein source that has a high biological value to the dog and is rich in all 10 of these amino acids.

Proteins from animals have a much higher chance of containing all of these amino acids than plant material. But not all body parts of an animal is a good source either. Beaks, hoofs, and most animal by-products are rich in protein but is of low biological value and is not rich in those missing aminos. So, when you see a dog food that boasts of high protein content but contains the words (any kind of animal) by-product, that's low quality.

You can also get these essential aminos from the right combination of plant matter. But, plant matter has low biological value to a dog. Think about this - biological value is measured from 1 to 100. 100 is egg - a dog can digest and use 100% of a raw egg. Fish meal is 92. Beef is 78. Corn is 54. Wheat gluten is 40. So, basically, a dog can only use 54% of a corn's protein. So, you see a dog food bag and it lists Protein at 25% and you think, that's high protein, and you realize, a big bunch of it comes from corn, so you can just go ahead and slash half of it because it's not going to get digested. And what's more, plant matter is high in carbohydrates. Carbohydrates is not essential to a dog. The dog can break it down and use it for energy but it is not very efficient in doing so. Basically, most of the carbs-breakdown-work is done by the pancreas which is very taxing on a dog's system. So, the more carbs a dog food contains, the bigger chance you got of a sick dog.

Anyway, vets sell Science Diet in their offices. This is even well before Science diet overhauled their formula last year. Vets are terrible at dog nutrition because vet schools are sponsored by dog food companies. So, unless they do their own research on the matter, they just go by what dog food company researchers say. Of course, that research has bias. They're working for the dog food company. And so they go open their vet practice... and they get subsidy if they prescribe or carry Science Diet in their offices.

So yeah, this is such a long-winded post just to say... Science Diet is still crap food.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGuy

To all who are feeding raw diets: Keep it at a minimum, raw diets are ALWAYS deficient in certain vitamins and minerals that are present for a reason in dry, semi-moist, and wet manufactured pet foods.

Remember: Dogs are NOT obligate carnivores. No, not even wolves.

And Science Diet is not bad food, it was once top of the line. The bar has just been raised and now it's a mid-grade food that can easily sustain good overall health in many many breeds.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGuy

It's not false. Nor is it objective research. It's me sitting in my Animal Nutrition course, which is aimed entirely at the nutritional requirements of canine/feline diets what good methods are for providing them with solid maintenance nutrition throughout all life stages.

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I'm not going to repeat everything everyone has already said. I am going to say I disagree with your assessment of raw diets. I have to ask, what kind of animal nutrition course you are taking, and who is funding it (or who is funding the professors). Nutritional research is notoriously flawed to show results in favor of the funding source. I’ve been doing nutritional research for a few years, including reading articles from scientific journals (over 100 articles downloaded). This is the trend I’ve seen in doing my research. If the funding source says “xyz” nutrient or food is healthy, then the research study will show the same. If the funding source says “xyz” nutrient or food is unhealthy, then the research study will show the same. It’s a flawed system, and there are ways to tweak studies without outright lying. What this means is you need to take everything you read and hear with a grain of salt, and do your own research.
Dogs are carnivores. They are not obligate carnivores like a cat is, but they are carnivores. Canines are only opportunistically omnivorous. Some species (i.e. foxes) are a little more opportunistic than others. Typically the plant matter canines will consume are sweet tasting fruits. Courser plant matter that is available year round (i.e. leaves) can’t be digested by canines, as they do not have the digestive system. (I say this not only from my independent research on nutrition and physiology, but also as a biologist by trade.)
As I stated in my other reply, my dogs and cats are on a purely prey-model raw diet. They have been for years. They get blood work done at least once a year, and are regularly seen by the vet. Everything always comes back normal, and ideal. If a raw diet weren’t complete and healthy for them, I’d be seeing that by now.

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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

I fed my dog pedigree his whole life and he grew up to be a big strong wonderful doggy :) Pedigree was the only brand of dog food that didn't give him horrible gas and diarrhea.

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What other foods have you tried?

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Originally Posted by Mrl249

We feed pedigree large breed, never heard of raw feeding looks interesting. This is my big girl :)

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Lots of people fed their dogs Pedigree and they grew up to be relatively healthy dogs well into old age. It's just like ball pythons getting fed small mouse all their life and they still thrive and grow up to be relatively healthy snakes well into old age.

It's crap food and should not be recommended, but, of course, you decide what is good for your dog or ball python.

When you have dogs like English Bulldogs you'll see a drastic difference with Pedigree and the like. Purebred English Bulldogs fed on Pedigree is a sure bet of $$$ vet bills.

And here's my dog "pantry". Yep! I scored a 21 cubic feet freezer in craigslist for $100. If I fed my snakes FT, this would be where it would go... but I feed live, so the dogs and the birds get to own the freezer.

And yeah, those small yellow tubs? Pork brains. Yep! $1.99/lb at the local meat market. And the thing on the bottom that says "treats" - lamb liver, chicken liver, rabbit liver, beef liver... all kinds of liver. Yum. LOL.

Each container is one serving. 1 day for 1 dog. So, my kids can just grab a container for each dog to thaw before they go to bed and they can feed them in the morning. Easy breazy.

http://i314.photobucket.com/albums/l...psa743eb72.jpg

I started with Taste of the Wild, and then moved through all the "high end" foods, seemed like nothing worked for all of my dogs, until I tried Kirkland brand. Now that is all I feed. They all love it and with 5 dogs its a great dog food for a great price.

Oh well, I wasn't really recommending pedigree 100% I just wanted to say that that's what my dog ate. He was a bouvier des Flanders/Golden Retriever mix and was a very very large dog. We've tried lots of different foods can't remember them all specifically because we tried a long time ago in his teen years. But kibbles and bits was the main one that gave him gas and diarrhea the others he just wouldn't eat. He was really picky. But that's was just for him personally. I don't know what makes pedigree such a bad dog food and I'd like to know why you think that. I can't really recommend a dog food for your new corgi puppy. Just try whatever you think is best and something that he will eat. Dogs don't eat all kinds of dog food. But Hossy lived for 15 years which is very long for a dog his size. When we did take him to the vet the veterinarian told us that he was doing amazingly well for his age and size. He never had any serious health issues. His only Heath issue was allergies. We had to put him to sleep this year August 10th because he was very very old and was struggling so much just to walk and go to the bathroom and really enjoy life. But whatever dog food you choose I hope it carries your new puppy through a long long happy life :)


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I attend the Vet Tech Institute of Houston. Nationally accredited program, and one of many existing schools. My nutrition class isn't geared or biased toward anything other than knowing what it takes to make up a healthy animal diet. They wouldn't be teaching us anything that we weren't meant to pass on to pet parents to ensure their animals' health. There is no emphasis towards any specific food brand or type.

I do a rotation diet. Currently I'm feeding Merrick, but I've fed everything from Nature's Variety Instinct to Orijen to Fromm and many, many more. Always grain free. I change brands after every 12-15 lb bag, but I have a small dog so it takes a few months to get through one bag. I like trying different brands, and I really think my dog appreciates the variety. These days I can switch his food cold turkey without having to do the annoying transition thing, which is nice.

Dogs have been eating and thriving on raw far longer than kibble has been invented.
I agree with 100% with Pookie, Sorraia, and Anatess. A balanced raw diet does not cause deficiencies and I personally believe that SciDiet is still really nasty/below average. Might as well put a dog on a bread and hotdog diet in my opinion.

(The first 5 ingredients of a kibble is the bulk of the diet.)
The first 12 ingredients of an adult Science Diet:
Ingredients: Lamb meal, brewers rice, brown rice, corn gluten meal, whole grain wheat, whole grain sorghum, animal fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), cracked pearled barley, chicken liver flavor, flaxseed, lactic acid.

Now compared to a quality kibble.
Orijen adult kibble:
First 12 ingredients: Boneless chicken, chicken meal, chicken liver, whole herring, boneless turkey, turkey meal, turkey liver, whole eggs, boneless walleye, whole salmon, chicken heart, chicken cartilage

Orijen Freeze dry:
First 12 ingredients: Chicken (ground with bone), turkey (ground with bone), whole herring, chicken liver, chicken heart, whole eggs, spinach greens, pea fiber, turkey liver, turkey heart, whole flounder

And I don't think I have to explain a raw diet. Especially if its whole prey.

I've taken a number of animal biology, physiology, and nutritional courses myself.
Studied Animal and Wildlife Biology at UC Davis with a little Animal Science on the side.
And was praised for feeding raw by their vet school staff.
Most of my ferrets are fed whole prey. Only one is a strict kibble eater because he doesn't want to switch, but he's fed Orijen cat.(Ironically, his name is Pookie)
My dogs are on a mixed kibble/raw now, but I would like to transition to 100% raw.

In the end, everyone should feed what works for you and your dog. But know that not all food is made equally. Surviving, living, and thriving are completely different things.

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Originally Posted by TheSnakeGuy

I attend the Vet Tech Institute of Houston. Nationally accredited program, and one of many existing schools. My nutrition class isn't geared or biased toward anything other than knowing what it takes to make up a healthy animal diet. They wouldn't be teaching us anything that we weren't meant to pass on to pet parents to ensure their animals' health. There is no emphasis towards any specific food brand or type.

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What does your Nationally Accredited Program say about the biological value of Brewer's Rice, Brown Rice, Corn Gluten, and Whole Wheat to a dog's diet? I would think that this program has mentioned that by FDA regulations, a dog food's ingredients list has to be listed according to pre-processed volume, right? Those 4 ingredients are in the top 5 ingredients list of Science Diet.

Also what does the Vet Tech Institute of Houston say about the 24% protein content of Science Diet? Does it think that most of that protein comes from the animal meat that is listed as the first ingredient, or does it think that it comes mostly from the next 4 ingredients?

Wait, even before that... does the Vet Tech Institute of Houston believe this claim from the Hill's website:
Corn is an excellent ingredient because of the benefits it brings to the product. Corn is a highly nutritious ingredient chosen as a source of protein (for muscle and tissue growth), carbohydrates (for energy), fiber, antioxidants (Beta-carotene, Vitamin E, Lutein) and linoleic acid - an essential fatty acid that promotes healthy skin and a luxurious coat.

Hill's uses grades 1 and 2 corn for our pet foods, which are the grades traditionally used for human food products.

While some individuals are concerned about allergies in pets, corn is NOT a common cause of adverse food reactions in pets. Studies have shown that corn causes no more food allergies than any other grain.

Most grains, including corn, are poorly digested before they are cooked. Once cooked, however, they become highly digestible. Corn is also highly digestible, higher than several other grains such as rice, wheat, barley and sorghum.

Does the Vet Tech Institute of Houston teach that just because Corn is finely ground and cooked which makes it highly digestible that that makes its proteins have a high biological value? (In case your school did not teach you this, corn has a biological value rating of 54% compared to muscle meat at 92%).

And, on top of that, does the nutrition class mention anything about the glycemic index of finely ground cooked corn and how that affects dogs?

There are a jillion more moving pieces to this... these are just the main things that are easily "pointable".

I really, honestly, want to know what that school is teaching you about dog nutrition.

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Originally Posted by AlexisFitzy

I don't know what makes pedigree such a bad dog food and I'd like to know why you think that.

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This is really a crazy thread. We're talking dog food and I, among others, are telling people about the difference between feeding high quality food versus Pedigree and Science Diet...

For all we know, we're talking to people who feed Fruit Loops to their kids everyday for breakfast and chicken nuggets for lunch (very common thing in the USA).

If you're the fruit loops/chicken nuggets to your kids kinda person, the Pedigree is just going to fly over your head. Lots of children grow up and die of old age eating Fruit Loops for breakfast.

So, we Prey-Model Raw feeders would be like your human Paleo Dieters. The BARF/Blue Buffalo/Fromm/etc crowd are those who would go buy their groceries from Whole Foods and maybe the edges of Publix where the fresh stuff is or the middle part under the Health Food sign. The Science Dieters would be those who buy the main bulk of their groceries from the middle of Publix, and the Pedigree folks would be those who feed mainly on Ramen Noodles.

Here's the first 3 Pedigree ingredients:
Ground whole corn, corn gluten meal, poultry by-product meal

Corn - high protein, low biological value. Poultry by-product... beaks, feet, dregs. Maybe feathers. Maybe unidentifiable bird-like roadkill. High protein, low biological value.

In other words... Ramen Noodles. Crap Food.

What's very interesting about this is that there are lots of people who feed Prey-Model Raw, or BARF, or Fromm, or Blue Buffalo to their dogs who feed Fruit Loops everyday for breakfast and chicken nuggets everyday for lunch to their kids.