Dry dog foods

[sammy101]

Hi PT!
I sent my mom the link on Nutro and she wants to switch the kids food to something else.
Kodie has food allergies and it's something that is put into the cheaper brands. I'm thinking it's most likely corn. Right now they are eating Nutro Nat. Choice Lamb & Rice and Kodie is completely fine with that.
She want's something that is around the same price that won't act up his allergies. Any recommendations? And something that is available at Petsmart.

Thanks! :)

[binka_nugget]

Sorry.. no recommendations as I'm not sure what Petsmart carries and our food is a bit pricey compared to Nutro I think. If it's something that doesn't absolutely have to be from Petsmart, I'd recommend Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul. It's comparable in price with great ingredients. I now feed my guys Acana because their ingredients are slightly better and they have a Sport & Agility formula for Keeva, but my crew did great on CS!

Unrelated, when did you move to BC?? Where abouts are you? :)

[sammy101]

Sorry.. no recommendations as I'm not sure what Petsmart carries and our food is a bit pricey compared to Nutro I think. If it's something that doesn't absolutely have to be from Petsmart, I'd recommend Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul. It's comparable in price with great ingredients. I now feed my guys Acana because their ingredients are slightly better and they have a Sport & Agility formula for Keeva, but my crew did great on CS!

Unrelated, when did you move to BC?? Where abouts are you? :)

There is a small pet store that carries the specialty brands so I will definitely talk to her about it! Thanks!

I moved to Victoria June '08. I just haven't been on PT very much since then. :o You're over in Van right?
I miss the kids like crazy but I'm hoping to adopt a dog this fall!

[kokopup]

My Koko had food allergies and i found that the biggest culprit is corn. I tried "fish and sweet potatoes" by Blue Buffalo and "Venison and Sweet potatoes. I have found that she has had the most success with "Chicken Rice and Oatmeal" by Nutro. I had her on Science diet for a long time while she had allergies. If you look at the label Corn is the main ingredient. From what I've read you need to find a food where the first ingredient is a protein like fish, lamb, venison, or chicken. I had to change her food several times to find one that did not cause the skin allergies but also did not cause stomach problems. The Nutro "chicken rice and oatmeal" for now has worked best for her. There is no magic bullet because each pet is different. It often is a hit or miss until you find the right combo. Allergies are more prevalent with main stream foods like beef, wheat and corn.

[clara4457]

I would recommend Blue Buffalo if you have to get it from a Petsmart. They have a Lamb and Brown Rice formula and a Fish and Sweet Potato formula that should be good for dogs with allergies. Most allergies are caused by corn, I believe.

[Taz_Zoee]

It's good to hear from you again. :)

I feed Zoee the same thing your mom feeds and I'm just now switching Taggart to it. :( Now I must change again, darn it. So I'll be watching this thread for suggestions as well.
I'm going to see what my brother is feeding his dogs but I know they don't get it at PetSmart. I was thrilled to only have to go to one place to get the kids food. Now I'll probably be going to different places again.

[sammy101]

Thanks for the suggestions! I just sent the link about Blue Buffalo to my mom.

I was looking online and there are a few foods I've never head of.
AvoDerm (http://www.petsmart.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=2767072&f=Taxonomy%2FPET%2F2767072&f=PAD%2FBrands%2FAvoderm+Natural&fbc=1&fbn=Brands|Avoderm+Natural&fbx=0) & Natures Recipe. (http://www.petsmart.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=2767072&f=Taxonomy%2FPET%2F2767072&f=PAD%2FBrands%2FNature%27s+Recipe&fbc=1&fbn=Brands|Nature%27s+Recipe&fbx=0)
Anyone know anything about those two?

[Seravieve]

I feed Nature's Recipe, and have for several years now. We've fed both the fish & potato and the lamb & rice. All three of our dogs have done great on it. I'd say its a good -middle of the road- option. Not too pricey, and has pretty good ingredients.

[IRescue452]

Castor and Pollux is a good one. I like it much better than extruded kibble.

[MonicanHonda]

I feed Honda Nutro... but she doesn't have many months left in her so I'm not going to bother changing her. She's been good on it since she was three years old. As for Remy, we figured we could spend a bit more money on her since she'll never eat as much as Honda, so we feed her Taste of the Wild.

[Spiritwind]

so we feed her Taste of the Wild.


I had to, over the last couple months, switch 3 of the "puppies" over to Taste Of The Wild, because they had horrible diarrhea that I could NOT clear up. Dewormed, used metronidazole and tried a different food... NOTHING worked... so finally had them checked out by the vet... and they could find nothing wrong with them...

So we (the vet and I) figured some sort of Food allergy (the 3 are littermates)... FIRST she wanted me to try science diet sensitive stomach food, which I refused.. then IVD duck and potato, which was like $28 for 8lbs... so I just went with Taste of the wild, which is grain free and the one I buy is the wetlands formula, so duck based.

I was already feeding one of the dogs taste of the wild, so now I have 4 Collies on taste of the wild.. and the other 4 are Diamond Naturals Chicken and Rice, which they have been on for a couple years now and have done great with!..... if taste of the wild wasn't so expensive I'd feed it to everyone!..

[MonicanHonda]

Yeah, I'm happy with TOTW. At first Remy had runny stool, but as to be expected switching to a high protein food. But now they are firm, nice coat. She's doing great on it. :) And it is pretty expensive... but it's not that bad considering Remy will only eat about one and a quarter cup when she's an adult. Lol

[mruffruff]

I just switched my two to Precise. The shelter sells it and recommends it. It has been on the research lists as one of the best. It costs about the same as the Nutro that I've been feeding for years.

[Kfamr]

I recently switched to TOTW as well. The Muttlies are doing great on it!

[Sudilar]

Thor, a GSD with allergies eats Fromm Family Salmon Ala Veg....It is expensive, though, but it works for him.:D

[bckrazy]

My boys also love Taste of the Wild, and do amazingly well on it for kibble meals. :)

If you cannot find specialty stores, I would recommend Natural Balance @ Petco. It is super affordable, and they offer many formulas (sweet potato & venison, for one) that are tailored to allergic dogs.