Dog Food Questions Again I Know, But I need help!!!

[LokiDog]

Hello All,
I know that this question has been submitted over and over again, but I do need help.
I have 3 large Rotties who have a severe corn allergy. I have tried several foods over the years and my choices and bank account keep getting smaller and smaller.
I have used and given up on all the Nutro - NutroMax products.
I like the Natural Way Lassie brand but it is so hard to find in my part of the country. Only 1 store carries it and they are out most of the time. (Meijers)
I also like the Nature's Recipe brand, but their cost is going up and up.
I need a good alternative that isn't going to cost an arm and a leg.
:confused::confused::confused::confused::confused:
I have looked at almost every website there is and can't find one that will give me a good price on food and comes with free shipping. Price may be OK, but shipping for a 40 or 50 lb. bag just kills it.
I do wind up cooking for them quite often, but with 350+ lbs. of dog to feed that can get VERY pricey too.
Any/All suggestions and advice will be greatly appreciated.
:);):);)

Thanks
LokiDog

[Karen]

Where are you located? Is there a "feed store" nearby that might be able to order the food in bulk, and get a discount for you?

[LokiDog]

I'm in the Northwest suburbs of Illinois. McHenry County. I don't know of any feed stores, but we do have a large farming community nearby. That's a real good idea.

Thanks:love:

[MonicanHonda]

Farming stores are always way less. And so you know, the better brand of dog food you get, the less of it they have to eat because the less fillers they have. All good brands of dog food should be devoid of corn because corn is not anything for a dog. They are carnivores. It's just a way to make the dog feel full. Dogs get their energy from meat, not carbs. So if possible, go grain free! A lot of dogs end up with grain intolerances too. The cheapest grain free I know of is Taste of the Wild. Remy eats this. The price at PSP is about 40 dollars for 30 lbs but at a farm store it's only 38 for 30 lbs. Good deal! She loves it and she gets no ear or urinary tract infections anymore. (I believe it's because of the carbs)

Do you have a Costco? They have a Kirkland brand made by Diamond. I hear it's pretty darn good food for the price. It's super cheap too! Like... 23 bucks for a 40 lbs bag. That's a deal! They also started a new brand that is pretty cheap, and I'm pretty sure it's grain free... It's called Nature's Domain and may be just a bit more... but you probably could get away with feeding less since it has no grains that will go right through your dog.

[KYS]

If your dogs are allergic to corn, try to find a food that is specific for
food allergies. Natural Balance makes food specific allergy foods with
very few ingredients but they are not cheap.
Once you find a good food for allergies, ask the dog food company for coupons.
(some of them will give $ off coupons which helps a little.)
Some stores and dog food companies also have a frequent buyer plan,
when you buy up to 10 bags you get one free.
Also the feed/pet stores sometimes will run specials too.

[Freedom]

Seems like everyone already suggested anything I thought of --
- feed supply stores
- Natural Balance LID (limited ingredient food) here is a link:
http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/dogformulas/SPFish.html

- Cooking or them, which you said you do already quite often. I recently found this book at my library, decided I liked it so I bought it:
The Whole Food Diet by Andi Brown

She includes recipes, and discusses which food / herb does what.

Good luck!

[Seravieve]

I was just at Petsmart last night and got a bag of Nature's Recipe.. And noticed that lots of them had a $3 off this bag peelie coupon on them.. Pair that with a $5 off $30 coupon (From Petco, but they take competitor's coupons again...) and its not too much for a decent food. One bag of NR feeds our 3 Boxers for about 3.5 weeks maybe. We were feeding Blue but I've gotta cut back some... Only a single income house right now. So $29 for 40# vs $41 for 30#... a big difference.

[LokiDog]

Thanks All,

That's some really good ideas.

I did not know the Petsmart started taking competitors coupons again, haven't been there in a long time.

I have not bought food at Costco, I have always been a little leery about those types of foods because of their allergies. But Diamond is supposed to be a very good brand. I'll look into it.

I do like the Natures Recipe, They like it too and it does not upset their stomach. I have applied for and asked for every coupon that exists, but with over 350 lbs of dog to feed it doesn't go very far. But every little bit helps.

As for cooking for them I usually stick with chicken and beef, boiled with oatmeal, rice or barley.

Does anyone know if beans are good for them (Aside from the obvious gas factor)?

[Catlady711]

Does anyone know if beans are good for them (Aside from the obvious gas factor)?

Quite a number of our clients feed their dogs green beans (fresh, cooked, and believe it or not still frozen) as treats. Many dogs also enjoy carrots.

[Seravieve]

I know what you mean about trying to find coupons.. I'd go check out Petsmart and see if they have any $3/1 coupons on their bags. There's a current $5/$30 Petco coupon on Fatwallet.com (search for it on the upper right). Could wait till they run a petperks sale on it and stock up.. you can use more than one petco/mart coupon per transaction, as long as the dollar value is high enough... 2 bags 35.99 each, could use 2 $5/$30 coupons.. etc. Also, you can always look on eBay for people with Nature's Recipe coupons.. I know they're few and far between... but maybe with these $3/1 coupons out, someone might have some. Could always take a few extra if you do go up there and they have them. =) Can you tell I coupon.. a lot?!

[Karen]

Does anyone know if beans are good for them (Aside from the obvious gas factor)?


Dogs have a different digestive system than humans - so gas is not necessarily going to happen. Raw green beans, yes, are doggie safe! Not Karen safe - I'm allergic to them, but I would try a few first, to see how they react.

[LokiDog]

OK, Thanks to ALL!!!:love:

1- Seravieve, Thanks for the info. I found and printed the coupons last night. Their daddy is going there tonight. The coupons are expired (12/31/09) but maybe they will take them anyway. He can be pretty persuasive/pleading when he wants to be. I will let you know if he can grab any of the peely coupons.:D

2- Karen and Catlady711, I do give them green beans all the time. As well as carrots, peas, potatoes… everything really except corn. I was wondering about things like kidney beans, navy beans, lentils, that sort of thing. I would like to add them as a source of fiber-protein, in addition to the meat of coarse. :cool:

Again to all, Thanks for all the info so far. Does anyone else have a suggestion for a good “filler” for their home cooked food? I am using oatmeal, brown rice, barley and fresh, frozen and canned veggies. Sometimes I use pasta, not too often though. Is that a good filler?:)

Any and all advise is greatly appreciated.

[Seravieve]

If they didnt accept those, there should be some that expire on 1/31/10 on Fatwallet.com... =) Sorry I'm no help with the other questions.. I know my dogs would eat them! I dunno if they should though.

[LokiDog]

Thanks Seravieve,

I just went back to the Fat Wallet site and found some 5/30 off coupons that are good until 3/31/10 they are good for 2+ months!!!
Here is the link straight to the PDF with a copy of 4 of them on the same page. I just sent it to the hubby so he could use them tonight and I tested it and it went through. :love::love::love:

http://www.fatwallet.com/attachments/25722_5off30petco_1_.pdf

I did test it in the preview window and it worked so...
I don’t know if it will work directly as a link, but you can always cut and paste into a new browser window and that definitely works.:):):)



Thanks Everybody!!!!

[IRescue452]

Some beans are ok, but don't feed legume-beans. They may reduce a dog's ability to process Vitamin A.

If you are going to cook for your dogs you should read up on the Pottenger Cat study to see how cooked food's lack in nutrients affected cats in a lba study. Yes cats are different from dogs and have more nutritional needs, but it can be an eye opener on how cooking food takes out nutrients.

Why on earth do people like Diamond dog foods? It's ingredients are all made in China and it has one of the lowest ratings ever. Here is Diamond Maintenence: http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/showproduct.php?product=87&cat=7

Absolute Garbage!!!! Dollar Tree dog food is better than Diamond.

[MonicanHonda]

I beg to differ that diamond is worse than dollar tree brand. You're right, it's not a good brand considering ALL the recalls they have had, but it's cheaper and better than Alpo, Ol' Roy, Purina... She asked for a cheap dog food. Cooking for your cat is still better than kibble. Kibble is cooked to so they must both be lacking in nutrients. Taurine is a big one for cats. To make up for it, kibble just overloads its food in it and hopes that it has enough to sustain cats. So they could essentially be getting an overload of it. Cats also shouldn't be on an all fish diet... it's not good for them even though many think it is.

[IRescue452]

Purina is actually better than Diamond believe it or not. Regular Purina dog chow outranks Diamond in all reviews I've seen. I'm not saying Purina is good, but its better.

I never recommend fish at all in a cat's diet, I'm just giving an example of how a diet based entirely on cooked meat is not the best. This is a very extreme example, but it sometimes takes extremes to get people to take notice and do more research into their pet's food.

There's more to foods than their ingredients tell you. In one of the worst foods I've researched (for ferrets), I found that some of the listed bacteria to aid digestion were actually by-product bacteria from the pharmaceutical industry. More specifically, they were what was left over after culturing and harvesting bacteria to treat yeast infections. Bacteria normally found in certain areas of the human body that don't make for an appealing food additive.

[MonicanHonda]

Is it the Diamond or Diamond Naturals, because I totally agree the Diamond is SCUM. Diamond Naturals still isn't a good food, but I feel that if you're on a budget... it might be a better choice...

I wasn't saying you were suggesting an all fish diet. Lol I was just saying that I've heard it's bad for cats to be on it permanently. Random factoid I spurt out occasionally. Lol Some of the things they add to food is disgusting. That's why it's always best to do research. I couldn't afford the good 'brand' of dog foods like Orijen and Acana and Evo... etc... so I decided to go raw. Plus, I'd be nervous to go on such a high protein diet with a dalmatian.

*eidt* Of course after I think about it, raw is a protein diet. LOL! But all the high protein good brands are usually the high purine meats.

*2nd edit* I also forget about purina one... for that, I would say that Purina One would be better than regular Diamond... but maybe Diamond Naturals would be slightly better than Purina One?

[LokiDog]

Hey All,

I thought the original reply referred to the Diamond brand sold at Petco. I don't use it because it has corn, but I know a few people who use/like it. I guess Diamond is a popular brand name????:o:o:o

"Do you have a Costco? They have a Kirkland brand made by Diamond"

Here are the ingredients from the Petco website-
Ingredients
Chicken by-product meal, whole grain ground corn, wheat flour, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), brewers rice, beet pulp (sugar removed), fish meal, egg product, flaxseed, natural chicken flavor, brewers dried yeast. Vitamin


Guaranteed Analysis
Crude protein (min.) 26%, crude fat (min.) 18%, crude fiber (max.) 3%, moisture (max.) 10%, ash (max.) 5.5%, calcium (max.) 1%, calcium (min.) 1.1%, phosphorus (max.) 0.8%, phosphorus (min.) 0.9%, omega-6 fatty acid* (min.) 3%, omega-3 fatty acids* (min.)

[MonicanHonda]

Sorry! Lol I meant Diamond Naturals. I haven't even seen the original Diamond brand in a store before so I forget they sell it. The naturals ingredients are:

Chicken, chicken meal, whole grain brown rice, white rice, cracked pearled barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), oatmeal, beet pulp, egg product, flaxseed, natural chicken flavor, fish meal, potassium chloride, choline chloride, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin, vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

This is the chicken one.

This is the chicken of the kirkland dog food

Chicken, chicken meal, whole grain brown rice, cracked pearl barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and vitamin E), egg product, beet pulp, potatoes, fish meal, flaxseed, natural flavor, brewers dried yeast, millet, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, carrots, peas, kelp, apples, dried skim milk, cranberry powder, rosemary extract, parsley flake, dried chicory root, glucosamine hydrochloride, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, chondroitin sulfate, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin, vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

This is the Nature's Domain:

Salmon meal, sweet potatoes, peas, potatoes, canola oil, potato protein, potato fiber, natural flavor, flaxseed, ocean fish meal, salt, choline chloride, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, yucca schidigera extract, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, dried Trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

[LokiDog]

OK,

I may be a little dense, but are you saying all of the Diamond named products are bad??

I went to the Diamond Naturals website and found out that they carry it at Menards. Can't find a price there but I found it at Pet Direct and their price is ~37.00 for 40 lbs, so that's not too bad. Menards must have a comparable price.

I went to the Natures Domain website and found it is only sold at Costco. Can't find the price on their website, so I did a little research on the web and found a few posts that say it's 28.00 for a 40 lbs.

So...

Are any/either of these a good food???

[MonicanHonda]

Okay, I've found a few personal reviews of Diamond. These are by no means made by nutritionists or anything... just customers...

I have used Diamond all natural. The lamb and rice. My dog liked it. But there is another brand out that is made by diamond, and it is called Taste of the Wild. They have 3 flavors out. The prairie formula(bison and venison) The wetlands(roasted waterfowl) and the pacific stream(salmon) The first 2 are 6 star and the other a 5. It is an all natural food, containing fruits and veggies. My dog loves it, and she has gotten alot shinier coat since she has been on it. It costs me $40 for a 30 lb bag.



The Diamond Naturals is better than the straight Diamond. I know a lot of people like the Natural's line as a decent midrange dog food (IE better than Dog Chow but not Innova or Origen by any stretch of the imagination.

The Eagle Pack Holistic is about it's equal, I'm not a big fan of the regular Eagle Pack though.

I feed my girls Innova, but if price is a concern, Diamond Naturals is good, I'm trying to convince my mom to try it with her two dogs, she feeds Dog Chow. YUCK.


I think it's a crappy food. Diamond puts out /some/ decent diets (Chicken Soup For The Pet Lover's Soul, Taste of the Wild) but most of their diets are crap.

Not all pet food is made equally. A lot of it is full of corn, by-products, dyes, unhealthy preservatives, filler grains and all sorts of nasty stuff. A lot of pet food companies are perfectly happy to the dump cheap leftovers and things that aren't safe for human consumption (from human food processing plants) into their foods. Will it kill your dog? No, it has to be nutritionally complete and safe to even be marketed. Is it healthy? Not by a long shot.

Corn is a low quality ingredient you never want to see in your pet food. Corn and low quality grains are two of the biggest culprits when it comes to food allergies in our pets.

Thankfully, there are some excellent dog foods being made these days that include organic, human grade ingredients rather than trash not fit for human consumption.

Examples of low quality foods to avoid: Anything you can find in a grocery store will be low end, Purina, Iams, Eukanuba, Science Diet, Royal Canin, Pedigree, Kibbles n' Bits, Beneful, Ol'Roy.

Examples of high quality foods to look for: Innova, Wellness, Solid Gold, Canidae All Life Stages, Fromm Four Star, Merrick, GO Natural, Nature's Variety Prairie, Nature's Logic, Artemis Fresh Mix, Timberwolf Organics.

Although the high quality foods are more expensive, you're getting what you're paying for. Less filler material means more concentrated nutrients... this means you typically need to feed far less of the high quality food than you would of the low quality one. Which also means less poop!

Before following your vet's food recommendation, keep in mind that vets get /very/ little nutritional training during their schooling. Besides that, what training they /do/ get is usually sponsored or taught by the crappy pet food companies! They also often get paid to sell some of their products at their clinics (Science Diet, Royal Canin etc.)

A great option is to go with an entirely grainless diet. Many of the high quality foods now put out grainless formulas. Some good grainless diets include: Innova EVO, Wellness CORE, Blue Wilderness, Nature's Variety Instinct, Orijen, Horizon Legacy, Merrick Before Grain, Canidae Grain Free All Life Stages, Fromm Surf & Turf, Now! and Sold Gold Barking At The Moon, Taste of the Wild.

Some pretty decent foods can even be found in common pet stores. Petsmart carries Blue Buffalo products (such as the excellent grain free diet Blue Wilderness). Petco carries Wellness, Solid Gold, Natural Balance, Eagle Pack Holistic, Blue Buffalo, Castor & Pollux Organix, Pinnacle, and Halo. If you can't find a food, most of the high quality food brands have websites with store locators on them.

Another option, if you can't find anywhere around you that sells good foods, is to order your pet food online. Here's an excellent place to do so: http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/

Remember that foods should be switched gradually (mixing new slowly in with the old over about a two week period), especially when switching to a higher quality one, so as not to upset tummies.



This is basically the majority of my feeling on the dog food. Diamonds had a MAJOR pet food recall in 2007.

*Edit* On another forum I belong to, they talked about the Kirkland and Nature's Domain brands. Out of those two, I would do Nature's Domain because it's grain free.... but I believe it's right up there with Taste of the Wild.

[MonicanHonda]

Also, if you think about 38 dollars for 35 lbs isn't bad, I had Remy on Chicken Soup before. But it had to much grains for her and gave her ear infections, but I hear a lot of pups do fine on it. Now she's on Taste of the Wild.

[Catlady711]

OK, Thanks to ALL!!!:love:

1- Seravieve, Thanks for the info. I found and printed the coupons last night. Their daddy is going there tonight. The coupons are expired (12/31/09) but maybe they will take them anyway. He can be pretty persuasive/pleading when he wants to be. I will let you know if he can grab any of the peely coupons.:D

2- Karen and Catlady711, I do give them green beans all the time. As well as carrots, peas, potatoes… everything really except corn. I was wondering about things like kidney beans, navy beans, lentils, that sort of thing. I would like to add them as a source of fiber-protein, in addition to the meat of coarse. :cool:

Again to all, Thanks for all the info so far. Does anyone else have a suggestion for a good “filler” for their home cooked food? I am using oatmeal, brown rice, barley and fresh, frozen and canned veggies. Sometimes I use pasta, not too often though. Is that a good filler?:)

Any and all advise is greatly appreciated.


http://www.petdiets.com/default.asp?Menu=Home&PageName=/main.asp

That website has alot of good information on it by an accredited veterinary nutritionist. For a fee they will do a custom home cooked diet for you to use based on your pet's personal needs, in this case no corn.

[LokiDog]

I just want to say thank you to everybody who took the time to look at and reply to this post. I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate the time, effort, and the research you all did.:love::love::love:

I think for now that we will be OK with the Natures Recipe since they do well on it. And with the great info on the coupons that you gave me the price is very manageable for the time being.

I will continue to look around for alternatives and cook for them on a regular basis. Maybe I'll just start my own dog food company and sell it to everyone at cost.:D:rolleyes::D:rolleyes:

Anyway - Big Thanks to all of you.

[Seravieve]

Glad to help! Was at Petco tonight.. and noticed they have the $3/1 coupons on their bags as well.. Might want to stock up on coupons.. Since theyre good through October. I know I did. =)

[Bea]

Hi, everybody, I am new here and was reading all your posts.
Have you ever thought that you are comparing commercial dog food with commercial dog food. Instead of comparing commercial dog food and a natural diet? There is absolutely no comparison which is healthier and cheaper!
I own 4 Golden Retrievers, I used to breed them. I feed all of them a biologically appropriate diet. Called BARF. It is a lot cheaper! Twice! Once on your wallet by paying a fraction for dog food. Second by not having dogs sick. So I am saving on the vet bills too, well into old age.
Consider it, specially with big dogs like Rottweiler, just perfect.

I am a professional dog groomer, ex breeder, dog trainer, and teach people how to feed their dog correctly. The one thing that ALL the dog brands have in common is 3rd grade ingredients and they are all cooked. There is no anti-oxidants in them. The cooking processed makes food rancid for dogs. So you are actually slowly poisoning your dogs. As the cooking process kills most nutrients that dogs need and is only available from raw and fresh foods!
The Vets know about this too! But they stay silent, as they like to earn money of your sick pets! Plus the average Vet had about 4 hours of training in food! and that by Pal!
I live in Australia, so Im not advertising here, OK? But, I do have a website set up for my clients, to unravel the mystery of feeding your dog better. If you like have a look, maybe it will help you to feed your dogs healthier and cheaper. www.pet-affair.com.au
Got any more question write to me or buy the book "Give your dog a bone, by Ian Billinghurst, he will open your eyes to what is going on in the commercial dog food industry! All I can say, YUK!!