Blue Buffalo?

[Roxyluvsme13]

I feed Blue Buffalo to my dogs up until recently. I was very happy with and my dogs loved it. The only reason I switched is because I used to drive an hour to get it. We recently moved though and we now have pet stores closer to us, but none that sell Blue Buffalo. So I switched to Nutro. I tried to feed Nutro a few years ago but my dogs weren't real big on it. I thought I'd give it another try and this time they're eating it quite well. Nutro is also much cheaper than Blue Buffalo, so I'm pleased. I think we paid around $40 for a 30lb. bag of Blue Buffalo and we now pay $31 for a 40 lb bag for the Nutro. It comes out to $.78/ pound for Nutro and $1.33/ pound for Blue Buffalo.

Ahh, so Nutro's just as good as Blue Buffalo, except cheaper?

[Crazy-Cat-Lover]

Nutro Natural Choice Chicken Meal, Rice & Oatmeal

Top 10 Ingredients:

Chicken Meal
Rice Flour
Ground Rice
Rice Bran
Poultry Fat
Oatmeal
Soybean Oil
Sunflower Oil
Natural Flavor
Dried Beet Pulp.

Blue Buffalo Chicken & Brown Rice

Top 10 Ingredients:

Chicken
Chicken Meal
Whole Ground Brown Rice
Whole Ground Barley
Rye
Oatmeal
Chicken Fat
Whole Carrots
Whole Sweet Potatoes
Ground Flax Seed

Just so you could compare...

[BC_MoM]

I thought rice and flour were bad for dogs? Correct me if I'm wrong. I just get confused with all "what's good" and "what's bad".

[Roxyluvsme13]

It looks as if Blue Buffalo is better.. =/

[K9soul]

I'd personally choose Blue Buffalo out of those two, but Nutro is certainly better than most Purina brands

[Roxyluvsme13]

I'd personally choose Blue Buffalo out of those two, but Nutro is certainly better than most Purina brands

Okay . If I can't afford Blue Buffalo at first, Nutro will do I guess. But for now I'm stuck with Pedigree..

[Crazy-Cat-Lover]

I thought rice and flour were bad for dogs? Correct me if I'm wrong. I just get confused with all "what's good" and "what's bad".

I found this info at Natura Pet...

Rice Flour

Rice flour consists principally of the soft, finely ground and bolted meal obtained from milling rice (containing essentially the starch and gluten of the endosperm) together with fine particles of rice bran and the offal from the 'tail of the mill.'

Whenever flour is part of an ingredient's name, the grain has been processed and some (or all) of the nutritional value has been lost. Frequently these flour ingredients are simply the leftover dust from processing human food ingredients.

Rice

Rice is a high quality source of carbohydrates. Rice is the most digestible grain for pet foods and is relatively hypo-allergenic.

[zoomer]

I say Blue Buffalo first, and Nutro second. Ingredients sound better.

[Roxyluvsme13]

I'll see how much money I can get before I make a real decision.. and I'm not 100% sure I've seen Blue buffalo at Petsmart.. Do all of them sell it?

[IRescue452]

For the price, you'd be cheaper going with raw. Another thing about dog foods with veggies and meat is that dogs' stomachs are meant to digest one type of food at once. Wild dogs don't eat a deer with a potato as a side dish. They eat one kind of food at a time and vary the diet from day to day. Rice is helpful for dogs with upset tummies, but most it isn't necessary in dog food. Whole grains of rice are packed with nutrients, but as they are processed they lose most nutritional value. Rice bran and rice flour usually are made in such a way that nutrients are preserved. Nutro doesn't add that they have had food test positive for pentabarbitol, which is a chemical you want to avoid.

[Crazy-Cat-Lover]

Here's a little breakdown of the two brands we're discussing. I added the top 10 ingredients, the price of the biggest bag, and how much it costs per pound.

Natural Choice Chicken & Rice

Top 10 Ingredients:

Chicken Meal
Rice Flour
Ground Rice
Rice Bran
Poultry Fat
Oatmeal
Soybean Oil
Sunflower Oil
Natural Flavor
Dried Beet Pulp

40 Pound Bag: $30.99 works out to $0.77 per pound

Blue Buffalo Chicken & Brown Rice

Top 10 Ingredients:

Chicken
Chicken Meal
Whole Ground Brown Rice
Whole Ground Barley
Rye
Oatmeal
Chicken Fat
Whole Carrots
Whole Sweet Potatoes
Ground Flax Seed

30 Pound Bag: $39.99 works out to be $1.33 per pound

Nutro is much, much cheaper - but Blue Buffalo has better ingredients. You could start with Nutro and see how well Roxy does on it. I know many dogs that are fed Nutro and do fine on it.

Good luck!