A good natural dog food???

[frawri]

HI Group, I am looking for a good dog food that is 100% natural. No bad products in it. I am using Wellness brand dog food, but they have since gotten a bigger cibble. And my one dog wont eat it, unless I mosten it up for her. The other is eating it, but he doesn't chew it up much. I love the product, just not what they have done with it, for cibble size. Do any of you know of a good product? I have heard that Royal Canine is a good one or Blue Buffalo. Any one have any ideas about these and other products?

Francine

[frawri]

Oops for got to tell you, I have Chihuahuas, they weigh about 5 lbs. With small mouths. Hence the reason why I am looking for a new dog food. I have heard that Royal Canine is good because they have dog food for specific breeds. I like that idea, but is it just a gimmick or do they really know what they are doing in regards to the proper diet for different breeds?

[jennawing]

Flint River Ranch is a good food, if you are able to order from the internet- though in a few places it is carried in stores. With little dogs, you could go raw for very little difference in cost. Pet-Grub.com will help you with that.

[frawri]

Thanks for the info, but I don't like to get things off line. I find the price for the iteams are as much as you would pay for in the store. And then they charge you a shipping fee. No thanks. I need something that is out of a petstore like Petsmart.

[binka_nugget]

The raw diet is basically as natural as you can get. It's not as hard as most people think it is. The main idea is to give lots of variety.. different meats, bones, organs (and fruits and veggies if you choose to feed those too).

As for kibble, Innova Evo is really small and probably a good size for a Chihuahua. The ingredients are great and it's what I feed my dogs when I can't feed them raw. Some other good foods are: Innova, Chicken Soup, Go! Natural, Canidae, California Natural and lots more than I'm forgetting.

Edit: I don't think Petsmart or Petco would carry the above brands, but some of the smaller, independant stores around you should.

[jennawing]

There are places online where you can order the FRR for free shipping.

[bckrazy]

Royal Canin is a VERY poor brand of dog food, and overpriced. Blue Buffalo is ok, but again, super overpriced! I think it's at least $3/lb, and you can get better kibble for less.

Innova Evo does have really tiny bites, and it has great ingredients. It's one of the best kibbles available. Innova also has a formula with smaller pieces for adult dogs. :) Canidae has small bites, really good ingredients and a great price.

[frawri]

All right I have read up on Evo, and it sounds just what I want for my guys. Especially if it is small kibbles. But do you think it will be too rich for them? Also I found a place where I can get it from. But my question is, I would like it to be a one-stop shop type thing. I have two cats that need a good food too. I don't want to have to go to petsmart for theirs and then this other pet store for Evo. Do you know of a good holistic type cat food? Do you think Evo carries anything like that. Or is it all dog food?

[K9soul]

Evo also carries cat food. It'd be ideal to mix it with their old food for a couple weeks, starting with mostly old food and a little Evo, and ending with mostly Evo and a little old food. I switched my two dogs not long ago. The only thing I noticed was one of the dogs got.. rather gassy :o. But that seems to have died off now. I'm guessing it was just an adjustment to a richer diet. Overall I've been very pleased.

[bckrazy]

My Mom feeds our cat, Lola, Felidae. It is made by Canidae, and she LOVES it! She's also gotten down to her ideal weight since switching from Nutro. Felidae should be available at most stores that sell Evo. I've also heard good things about Evo for cats.

If you're concerned with the richness, which some people can have issues with, you can either mix with Innova or just feed Innova, which is less rich but still great quality.

[labmomma]

Flint River is excellent and I order it off of the internet (www.flintriver.com) and the shipping is free. If you go online you can order samples and try it out. I have my food autoshipped and they are extremely good to work with.
I have two labs but don't have to feed them as much as most grocery store products because there aren't any fillers. My two big labs get 3 cups/day and I add a little chicken broth and non-fat yogurt to it. :)

[frawri]

I really like the idea of feeding them both Evo. But about it being too rich, do you think my guys will have a problem? I have had the dogs on Wellness brand dog food, and the cats on Nutro choice kitten food. Do you think it will be too different from what they are eating?

[frawri]

I just read that Evo might be too high in protein for some small breeds. Because of hyperlipidemia or kidney problems. Do you know if Chihuahuas have these problems? Any one?

[lv4dogs]

I just read that Evo might be too high in protein for some small breeds. Because of hyperlipidemia or kidney problems. Do you know if Chihuahuas have these problems? Any one?

Any dog can have these problems, some are more prone to it than others. Luckily the Chihuahua is not one who is commonly known to aquire such a diesease.
The common health problems in Chi's are: slipped stifles and fractures and may suffer from jawbone disorders, eye problems, heart disease, and tooth and gum complaints.

[frawri]

I belong to a chi site, and asked on there what is good for our chi's to eat. One of the breeders came back and gave me this site to look up some info on this. Here is a blip from her site.

EVO, Solid Gold's Barking at the Moon and Nature's Variety's Raw Instincts are grain free marketing gimmicks made with potato or tapioca. These foods are not raw substitutes at all- they are fully cooked and contain high glycemic starches. The high ash content in these foods is another major concern. Here is what Mary Strauss, renowned canine nutrition expert, has to say in response to my comments about EVO:

"I do agree with this, (my comments on ash) and your points about white potatoes may also be valid. I will admit to some concern over reports from people who have fed EVO for some time, whose dogs do not do that well with it (many drink a lot more water with this food than other kibbles, for unknown reasons, and reports of poor coats after a few months on this food also seem common)."

Here is the site if you want more info on backing up what she is saying here.

http://members.cox.net/starsen/feeding%20guidelines.html

So is potatos that bad?