# Dry dog food



## Raindancer411 (Oct 4, 2009)

Hi All

I was wondering what dry dog food does everyone feed their dogs? Millie was on Eukanuba, Remy was on Iams and Daisy was on Bakers/Pedigree wet when we all got them. My question is, is there a difference in quality with the different foods. Eukanuba is very expensive to buy, IAMs is in the middle and Pedigree seems to be the cheaper... 

View please...


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## *Princess* (Feb 7, 2009)

mine eat bakers and they seem to like it more than dog meat x


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## phoebedog (Sep 19, 2009)

Mine have James Wellbeloved. I think it's abit pricey (I pay £7.50 for 2 kg) but it says it has no bad stuff in it. I have tried every other brand and they will not entertain them.


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## xxxxdeedde (Jul 3, 2008)

Royal Cannin 28!
I highly recommend it, I have weaned puppies on it and feed all my chis on it and they have beautiful coats, very healthy. My mum has a dog, now 13 years old and has not been to the vets for anything apart from jabs and check ups! It is pricey, £8.00 for 2KG.


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## Terri (Aug 21, 2009)

Mine are still on Royal canin right now.
Daisy is on mini adult 27 and Darla is on mini Junior 33.
This is what the breeder had them on.
They do both scoff the lot right away.
I am still not sure about keeping them on it, but since they have only been here just over 2 weeks i dont want to change just yet.


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## rache (Nov 10, 2009)

I feed Billy on a dried food called Arden Grange puppy and weaning stage and he has a little bit of james welbeloved puppy meat to go with it. I think the dried stuff was about £4-89 for 1kg and the wet food is 69p a pouch. It sounds expensive but lasts ages cos he dosent eat very much. The pouch lasts for 4 feeds (2 days) and i'm only just on my second bag of dried food and we have had him for 6 weeks.

I would have liked him to still be on 3 meals a day but he turns his nose up at the middle one so i have stopped giving him it. Apperently the dried food dosent have a huge cereal amount in it so keeps him feeling full for longer......or something like that!


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## ~*~ Angela ~*~ (Nov 17, 2009)

I've gone round and round with dog food and I have been really seriously considering going back to either a total raw diet or a modified raw diet. There are others on here much more well versed in feeding raw than I am. I think that all the additives, etc. that are going into the dog foods today are causing some of our more serious illnesses with our pups. Just my theory. I wonder about these things because I had a collie that lived to be 16, survived prostate cancer and was fed Alpo, Gaines burgers and table scraps. Of course that was in the 70s before dog food became so "formulated". I am *not* saying we should feed those foods now, but its interesting to think about what has changed in the last 30 years. Off my soapbox on that...lol..sorry!

My breeder likes the Eukanuba small breed puppy for her Chi pups and I have fed it before but I like Southern States puppy. Its only available in certain areas of the U.S. and its in feed stores but they will tell you that their food may go up and down in price depending on the price of the ingredients but they will not change the formula just to keep it at the price it was before. If the label reads that chicken is the first ingredient that is what will be the first ingredient. The other little tidbit I learned lately was that the FDA does not make the manufacturer of the food adhere to its label's ingredients that the first listed is what is the majority of the food! I was shocked. The label is a general idea, not necessarily what you are getting. Its why you may feed Pedigree or Purina for a while and all of a sudden everyone has loose stools. They will change the formula to keep the price low. So, something to consider when feeding the cheaper dog foods. 

Hope I didn't confuse you more.


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## Jerry'sMom (May 5, 2009)

My little ones were started on Royal Canin by their breeder. They have been on RC Mini Adult 27 since I brought then home. Now that they are a year old, I am transitioning them over to Wellness Core which is Grain Free. They are healthy and, may I say, beautiful


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## pam6400 (Oct 5, 2008)

Therese, may I second that motion. YES, they are BEAUTIFUL!


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

I have Brody on prey model raw. It's 80% meat, 10% bone, 5% liver, 5% other organ. He's doing great on it. The dog food industry scares me. Especially the recalls on multiple brands of pet foods. I've read and researched so many horrible things. And really, if you think about it, I didn't want to feed a dried up pellet that can sit on the shelf for a year and still be considered "fresh" to feed. It's a personal choice, but after doing the reading and research, I decided to put Brody on a raw, natural diet and have never looked back.

Brody was the world's pickiest eater. I must have tried 10 different brands of premium food. Everything from Blue Buffalo, to Solid Gold, Wellness Core, Orijen..... he just picked at everything I gave him until I started learning about raw and decided (in desperation really) to try and get the boy to eat! 

I did start out with Nature's Variety raw medallions just because I was scared to jump into raw. It's a ground product that is frozen into little meatballs. I loved how he did on them and decided to take the plunge. There are several of us here who feed raw.

I also feed some prepackaged raw for convenience or when we are traveling .... Stella and Chewy's dehydrated raw is a staple I give several times a week and I alternate between it, ZiwiPeak, and Wysong Archetype for variety. 

If anyone is interested in learning more about a natural diet ....

http://rawfed.com/myths/

http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html

http://rawfeddogs.net/

Or feel free to ask questions, I'm glad to help as are others here who feed raw. 

Brodysmom


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## Pookypeds (Jun 20, 2006)

My guys eat Wellness!


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## Raindancer411 (Oct 4, 2009)

I am looking into either Burns or james welbeloved now... Not too sure about the raw... does it take long to do and what foods do you use?


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## kfrisbee (Dec 8, 2009)

Mine gets an ounce of pedigree canned in the morning and is free-fed pedigree dry during the day. He is very healthy.

I started feeding the canned because he was losing weight and he looked bony. With the canned he maintains exactly 4 lbs, looks good and his coat is very shiny.


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

I feed Lily "Burns "mini bites as they are small pieces and as she's a little PIGGY with her food she won't crunch her biscuits they go straight down these are ideal and made by a vet,with no nasties in it.


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## Raindancer411 (Oct 4, 2009)

Where do you get yours Michele? I am trying to find the cheapest place to get more for my money. I want my dogs to have the best as we all do, but monies not exactly free flowing  lol


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## *Chloe* (Feb 6, 2006)

Mine have Arden Grange Sensitive which is grain free and Lily's Kitchen wet which they love


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

Raindancer411 said:


> Where do you get yours Michele? I am trying to find the cheapest place to get more for my money. I want my dogs to have the best as we all do, but monies not exactly free flowing  lol


Most BIG pet shops have it,you can order on line.I get mine from Pets at home.Maybe google "Cheapest burns mini bites " see if it comes up with prices.


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## JRZL (Jul 10, 2009)

Small But Mighty said:


> Royal Cannin 28!
> I highly recommend it, I have weaned puppies on it and feed all my chis on it and they have beautiful coats, very healthy. My mum has a dog, now 13 years old and has not been to the vets for anything apart from jabs and check ups! It is pricey, £8.00 for 2KG.


i also recommend royal canin 28 - all my chis are on it & love it!
i think the price much vary tho as i only pay £6 for 2kg


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

After feeding many foods and doing tons of research (on kibble) I feed Wellness Core and mine do very well on it


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## L2druid (Dec 28, 2009)

I feed a complete raw diet and I probably won't ever go back to kibble. It's not difficult to do, not that expensive and the dogs absolutely thrive on it. 

They get various chicken parts ( Sometimes just leg quarters and sometimes I quarter a whole chicken and this is a meal) , ground beef and turkey, turkey parts from the whole bird, chicken organs, whole fish, whole rabbit, pork and even squirrel. They also get various cuts of freezer burned meat or venison when I can get it. Eggs are thrown in whole a couple times a week as well as a daily supplement of fish oil and vitamin E. They get what they get every day and I try to round out the types of meat over time.

For awhile though I did have my girl on Wellness puppy when she was younger and she did well on it. We fed wellness for awhile then switched to innova puppy and she did really well on that too. I ended up switching to raw because of the price of these good brands were actually more than raw with the price of meat around here.

If I had to go with kibble again I'd probably choose Evo because it's good quality and grain free. http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1485

They also get this in addition to raw: http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/products/embark/

It's a great alternative to kibble and for someone not willing or just not ready for raw. The dogs lick their bowls clean when it's in there. This is what I'm starting my chi pup on when he comes home on sunday. It's not cheap and I wouldn't buy it for them if it's all they ate ( I have big dogs, though. One is 100lbs and eats like a horse ), but it is a good addition to their main diet. Keep in mind that you add water to it, so a 4lb box would last a chi awhile.

I would never feed almost any of the brands you find at grocery stores. They don't need corn or the incredible amount of chemicals going into it and the meat that goes into this feed is the stuff rendered inedible on human standards. Cancerous and infected meats go into this pet food. If corn is in the top four ingredients...then it's _really_ bad. I could go on forever because I did alot of research before switching to raw, but I won't be a bore...besides it's your choice completely on what you feed!


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## ChiChi's Mom (Sep 16, 2009)

I must be the exception here, I feed mine Diamond Naturals small breed puppy formula. It is Wheat and Corn free, they love it and they seem to be thriving. I know that many people have an issue with Diamond because of past pet food recall, ect. but many other companies also got caught up in that disaster, and I feel comfortable feeding Diamond brand now that they have introduced much more rigorous testing procedures. Btw, I believe that Diamond also makes Taste of the Wild.


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## mandiepantz (Sep 13, 2009)

Bella eats 1/4 cup of Orijen puppy twice per day and scarfs it right up! doesn't even chew it! :-/


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## MChis (Oct 13, 2009)

My Chi's have been on EVO for almost a year now. It's grain free & they are all doing great on it.  My favorite dog food website is www.dogfoodanalysis.com . You can see what your dog food is rated (on a 6 star rating system - 6 being the best quality). The RAW diet is great as well. I've not done a lot of research on it but everyone I've talked to & everything I've read says it's great.


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## Deme (Aug 18, 2009)

When feeding raw how do you know your Chi is getting enough vitamins and minerals


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## WeLoveHiro (Apr 14, 2009)

hiro was given royal canin when he started out... but then i switched him to orijen. he liked it for a while but then would refuse to eat it. so i switched to solid gold wee bits... and he loves it. he has a nice shiny coat...and is healthy.


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## L2druid (Dec 28, 2009)

Deme said:


> When feeding raw how do you know your Chi is getting enough vitamins and minerals


I believe feeding raw is natural as we can get it. As long as you are rotating proteins and feeding a percentage of edible bone, muscle meat and organs than your dog will thrive like it's wild relatives. Dogs are not so far away from wolves that they need to eat heavily processed bagged food..Dog food hasn't even been around that long.

http://rawfed.com/myths/balance.html

I've fed raw for almost 2 years now and they check out perfectly healthy at any vet. Even the ones who frown at me and lecture me on what they eat when they find out have to admit they are in top shape. Their coats shine, their teeth are clean, no dog smell, no bad breath, very lively... I love their stools, as they are very compact and only go once a day. No poop to pick up..ever. It's not that huge spongy poop you see piled in people's yards. All it is is kind of a hard, compact, scentless ( I never picked them up to smell them, but I can't ever smell them standing next to the dog ) small piece that degrades in the yard amazingly fast. The neighbor lovingly let their dogs poop in my front yard occasionally....and they stay around for weeks sometimes. This doesn't happen with my dogs. After a day or two they turn white and just crumble into the grass in a bone powder and disappear.

Alot of vets get money from selling hills products like science diet and these companies fund their nutrition training. They will even get downright nasty with me pushing their products. 

I've had to walk away from one woman because she just would not let up-her opinions went through the roof when I told her their diet, even after she did a check up and considered them in great health. She ended up running around the office looking for a pamphlet about how corn was good for dogs. Her words were...and I quote: "Corn is nutritional, and healthy. It is good for us so it is good for our dogs." Lady, dogs digestive systems are nothing like ours.. They can eat decayed ROADKILL off the highway with minor ill effects if any at all. See what happens if a person tries that. 

Now I understand that you can't throw, say, a pork butt in their bowl every night and expect them to have a good diet, it takes a little research for the dog owner..but there's vets out there that assume their customers are all retards and it is frustrating.


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## rocky scotland (Jun 15, 2008)

michele said:


> Most BIG pet shops have it,you can order on line.I get mine from Pets at home.Maybe google "Cheapest burns mini bites " see if it comes up with prices.


I feed Rocky Burns Mini Bites and I get it from the vets, they order it in for me.


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## Deme (Aug 18, 2009)

I honestly wouldn't even know where to start, what I can give andhow much each day to ensure they are healthy and fit.

I am a complete dope when it comes to canine nutrition. As a kid my parents fed chum with some sort of dog biscuit. I feed James Wellbeloved with Ceaser Dog food which he loves and also like today he got some mince but admittedly I cooked it first.

I have read the websites but they confuse me.. :-(


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## Lynnie (Sep 18, 2009)

I am wondering what to do about Leia's food actually. She was fed on Royal Canin 33 by the breeder and I've kept her on it but lately she doesn't seem too bothered about it and I have been thinking about changing her over. It is expensive, I pay £16 for a 3kg bag but if it's best for her that's not a problem. I don't know whether to keep her on that or change it, it's a tough decision.


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## L2druid (Dec 28, 2009)

Deme said:


> I honestly wouldn't even know where to start, what I can give and how much each day to ensure they are healthy and fit.
> 
> I have read the websites but they confuse me.. :-(


I know what you mean, lol. My parents bought what was cheapest. It was the brands you've never even heard of at the dollar store. It smelled like cardboard and probably tasted similar.

You usually give a percentage of the dog's weight each day. Here's a simple calculator: http://www.raw4dogs.com/calculate.htm. 2.5-3% of the dogs weight a day. 10% if it's a pup. I started out weighing their meals each time on a scale but quickly got good at simply eyeballing it.

I know you said it confuses you but here's some common questions and I found it a great read..it's good for anyone: http://leerburg.com/feedingarawdiet.htm.

I personally don't feed veggies but some do. I've thought about it, but they're doing fine without it. I might try it in the future and see.

If you want me to break it down completely PM me and I'd be happy to answer any questions you have and help you get what you need to start.


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## MangosMama (Oct 7, 2009)

Mango started eating Eukanuba Mini Breed Puppy Food when I first got her. I softened it with chicken broth. I got Royal Canin 33 for her and she loved it for a while, but started wanting the Eukanuba.

She is VERY VERY PICKY!!!

Right now she is eating her Royal Canin mixed with Purina Puppy soft food (lamb w/rice). She will once in a while eat her Royal Canin dry but would rather eat it soft.

I would like her to start eating dry food because I'm worried her teeth will go bad because of the soft food. Because she does not like me to brush her teeth!

And I don't wanna get bit again lol....


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## Chihuahuasloveme (Jan 8, 2010)

My chi's were eating eukanuba small breed and their coats were dry rough and always falling out the vet told me it was a good food but I thought otherwise. I switched their food to blue buffalo and their hair is shiny soft and doesn't fall out at all anymore.


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## Chihuahuasloveme (Jan 8, 2010)

oh I forgot to mention it comes in so many different flavours I just switch it up everytime I get a new bag and they love it


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## Tink (Oct 14, 2009)

I feed my dogs Evo Innova Red Meat Small Bites. It's grain free with no additives. I had Jazz on Merrick Puppy Plate for a little while, but Tango kept eating it, and he gained a couple of ounces, plus Jazz kept stealing Tango's food. Consequently I started mixing the Evo with the Merrick for Jazz. She'd pick out all the Evo kibble and leave the Merrick kibble, so I got the message, and now I feed them both the Evo. They love it. They are now extremely healthy dogs, having had a very bad start in life (they were both rescues from deplorable conditions.) Tango maintains an ideal weight on the Evo (3.9 lbs,) and though Jazz is still growing (she's 6 months) she remains trim and muscular. They both have shiny, soft coats with no flaking or irritation, clear eyes, no issues at all. The Evo continues to work very well for us.


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## Lexie's Mom (Dec 4, 2009)

Lexie was eating Eukanuba Small Breed Puppy when we got her, but now we're almost out, so I got Wellness Just for Puppy and we're in the process of transitioning to that right now.


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

okay im gonn amake this simple list lol
from early to present
1. royal canin
2. orijen puppy
3. wellness 
4. ttotw
5. natural balance
6. merrick pot pie
7. blue wilderness

currently on: blue wilderness but he stopped eating it. been feeding boiled chicken for a year but he stopped eating it unless it's mixed with something yummy with flavor...picky chi!...tried natures variety freeze dried...lets just say i wasted $26. now i'm lost. the only thing he'll scarf down is anything mixed in the omega juicer...like a mix of carrot...apples...and chicken lol...bah humbug


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## newmom (Jan 9, 2010)

I use fromm surf and turf because of small size mixed with Merick Turducken. My chi didn't take to Canidae, Evo. Grew tired of Wellness and Artemis fresh mix.


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