Dog Food recommendations

[ClownColor]

I saw on here a while ago of certain dog food( i thought it was something like healthy choice or life balance...)But my dog is constantly sneezing. I'm not going to be giving benadryl daily but thought i heard of some better dog food that might help. Currently giving purina healthy weight. Dog has no problems switch food brands either.

Not going after web advise on helping my dog out...just looking for some better dog food is all...

Thnanks and love the info you guys share!

[pureinsanity]

Use to be a Purina guy, Switched to Diamond brand. Not the best food but for the dollar you get quality in my opinion. All the breeders I have bought my pups from have and still do use diamond brand.

My dog starts sneezing a lot in falls as do I because of the dry everything. Could just be fall sneezing....

[nofishfisherman]

If its fall allergies I'm not sure a switch in food will do a lot.

I feed my vizsla Taste of the Wild and he does great on it. I had him on Nutra Source which is still a good food but made the switch about a year ago. His coat is a soft now as it was when he was a puppy, less mess, and the cost per meal isn't much of a difference since he needs less of TOTW at each meal.

[reinhard1]

our prior two dogs who lived to be almost 15 years old i fed Purina and other dog food of that type. now with my new pup [chocolate lab 16 weeks old] i am feeding her Science Diet Puppy Large Breed. only because that is what my daughters are feeding their lab pups which are a little older.

so you guy's that have had experience with dog food and the quality of it vs price, what do you think of the more you spend the better it is or are there some that cost less but just as good. the Dimond brand was mentioned for example. good luck.

[ClownColor]

I'd also like to add she gets chronic yeast infections in her ears and some skin irratations...

We usually give ear drops bi-weekly. Just thought I read on here some people saw improvments by switching to certain dogs foods...

Thanks again

[Jarrod32]

Within certain brands there are differences in quality. Diamond has the maintenance and another type...those are awful (though cheap). There is a Diamond Naturals Lamb and Rice that is a pretty good one. Taste of the Wild is one of the best foods out there. Nutri Source is not too bad; and there is a brand called Royal Canin that is a good, quality food.

I wouldn't feed my dogs Purina or Science Diet. I like my dogs.

[pureinsanity]

Check around online, there are plenty of websites that rate dog foods. Some that are mentioned here that are good top quality foods aren't rated as top quality foods....

Feed your dog what you think is best, it is your dog.

[rundrave]

I have had good luck with the Diamond High Energy for both of my dogs. Nice shiny coats, and good stools.

If I could find the Diamond High Performance locally I would buy it instead.

I have had mixed results with the Diamond Premium Adult Formula (green and yellow bag)

[reinhard1]

hey, i love my dog. Science Diet is spendy but i thought it was top of the line. i will check into the one's you recommend. what is it about Science Diet that you dont like if i may ask? i can check on line, but i know that there are guys like you and others that know about good dog food, and have good results with it. that's why i ask. why is Science Diet so expensive, is it just advertising hype? good luck.

[Setterman]

I feed Native. They have 4 different levels of feed depending on how active your dog is. I feed 3 cups a day of level 3 for my 40lb setter during hunting. In the off season I switch to level 2 and the same amount.

Here is a link that rates all the popular and some of the smaller brands of dog food. I hope this is helpful.

[reinhard1]

thanks for the site, i was actualy looking at the same site prior to you posting it. it is very helpfull. thanks again. in looking into Science diet ratings the highest rating i saw was 2 stars. although it's interesting looking at all the ratings i realy like the input by the people on this thread. we all love our dogs and want whats best. there seems to be a preference of non grain ingrediants. makes you wonder if you switch from one food to another if it will affect the dogs digestive workings so to speak. funny, i never worried about all this with our other two dogs we had.

they lived a long and loving life [including some table scraps at times] with just the purina type stuff. kind of like the only child now, and only pure bred we ever had. good luck.

[mnmofro]

The dog food websites will only recommend foods that do not have any or much corn products in it. It is an opinion so take it with a grain of salt. My dog was started as a puppy on a corn based food, when it was time to switch to an adult food I tried two different grain free foods but was unable to achieve a good stool with my dog. Yes I did the switch slowly by mixing in his old food with his new stuff, still wasn't working for him. I switched him back to a corn based feed and everything is good now, no other issues and he is a hard working dog. Not all dog will do well on the same foods. If you find something that works, is reasonably priced, and is easily found locally for you then stick with it. I feed pro plan performance currently and am happy with it, I also like that they support many hunting groups and NAVHDA which I am a member of.

[PartyWhine]

Well ... this is just a personal observation but...

In years when the fall is very dry, pine trees can give dogs allergies.

Just something I've noticed in my crew.

Normal or wet fall, not an issue.

So I'm curious, you got a pine or 2 close by. ?

ie can the dog get within 10 feet of it ?

My experience is they gotta get atleast that close.

symptoms = sneezing and red paws

If you do, give the area a good watering and things will improve.

And no, I can't explain it.

Anyone else observe this or have a possible explaination ?

[kupman]

Started our setter on puppy Pro-Plan, now she eats Native and seems happy and healthy! Good luck

[caseymcq]

We had been feeding our dogs Science Diet. We now feed them Eagle Pack.

[jparrucci]

I would highly recommend chicken soup for the dog lovers soul or canidae. You want a food that is not corn or rice meal based like most of the big named brands are. Whole rice should be the only main grain. Lots of the ingredients in the major dog food brands is not nutritious and many are cancerous.

[deerminator]

We used to feed our beagle Science Diet because that's what they had at the humane society where we got him. When we got the second from the kennel, we decided to shake things up. They fed purina and have a long line of hunting champions to show for it. We switched to Nutro Max (chicken and rice or lamb and rice). You can usually get it on sale for about twenty something for a thirty pound bag at the Farm. The first ingredient is the respective meat and no byproducts, I believe.

However, most foods out there will work fine unless your dog has some specific issues the vet identified. I recommend a book called The Complete Healthy Dog Handbook as a primer for a variety of health issues, including what to feed. The vet who wrote the book recommends that meat be one of the first three ingredients in dry food and the first in wet food. She also dispels myths like corn, wheat and rice are bad for dogs. While some dogs have issues digesting them, the lions share do just fine. And she calls out that byproducts are usually fine too and by FDA regulation, cannot contain horns, hooves, roadkill and so on. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[ClownColor]

Thanks....Setterman, could you repost that site? not showing up for me.

Thanks again

[Harmonica Bear]

Diamond Performance for me. Been using it for years. Never had an issue. ever. I truelly beleive a lot of the dog food discussions are a bit extrweme and over the top IMHO. Feed what you feel comfortable with. And the rice vs. corn debate reminds me of Budweiser vs. Miller.

[reinhard1]

Diamond brand was rated on the top 5 on the site i looked at. ok, so lets say i change brands. do you gradualy go half and half with diamond and the science diet i have now or just switch over? good luck.

[deerminator]

It's recommended you go half and half for a little bit but if you're almost out of the Science Diet, I think you'd be fine just switching over.

[reinhard1]

i think i'll go with the Diamond brand. realy dissapointed with the ratings and comments on line about Science Diet with the price they charge. good luck.

[Todd Caswell]

Sounds like your dog may have a corn allergy, corn isn't bad unless your dog has a problem with it. I don't like corn or grain as the first thing on the list but almost all fodd has some grain in it. Iv'e fed alot of different foods and almost always go back to Exceed from Sams club, very similar to pro plan performs and 32.00 for a 40 pound bag. Nice shiny coats, and good muscle mass. You have to remember what agrees with one dog may not agree with another..

[Todd Caswell]

i think i'll go with the Diamond brand. realy dissapointed with the ratings and comments on line about Science Diet with the price they charge. good luck.

Iv'e fed diamond and had good luck with it, in fact I ran out of Exceed last night so I picked up a bag of diamond "lamb and Rice" I'm fortunate that my dogs don't have a problem switching foods.

If you have a Sams Club nearby check out Exceed I know ALOT of pro's and Field Trial people that feed it..

[tybo]

I feed my two setters Nutrisource. Large breed adult in the offseason and super performance starting 4-6 weeks before the season and through the season.

[pureinsanity]

Nestlé’s bought Purina to form Nestlé Purina Petcare Company (Fancy Feast, Alpo, Friskies, Mighty Dog, Dog Chow, Cat Chow, Puppy Chow, Kitten Chow, Beneful, One, ProPlan, DeliCat, HiPro, Kit’n’Kaboodle, Tender Vittles, Purina Veterinary Diets)

.

Del Monte gobbled up Heinz (MeowMix, Gravy Train, Kibbles ’n Bits, Wagwells, 9Lives, Cycle, Skippy, Nature’s Recipe, and pet treats Milk Bone, Pup-Peroni, Snausages, Pounce).

MasterFoods owns Mars, Inc., which consumed Royal Canin (Pedigree, Waltham’s, Cesar, Sheba, Temptations, Goodlife Recipe, Sensible Choice, Excel).

Other major pet food makers are not best known for pet care, although many of their household and personal care products do use ingredients derived from animal by-products:

Procter and Gamble (P&G) purchased The Iams Company (Iams, Eukanuba) in 1999. P&G shortly thereafter introduced Iams into grocery stores, where it did very well.

Colgate-Palmolive bought Hill’s Science Diet (founded in 1939) in 1976 (Hill’s Science Diet, Prescription Diets, Nature’s Best).

[pureinsanity]

As for changing over your dogs food.

If i have a bunch of dog food left over from the other brand i just mix it in the container. if there is only a little bit left i will do 3/4 old food, 1/4 new food for two days, then switch it 1/2 & 1/2 for two days then 1/4 old food 3/4 new food. for two days then all new food.

[Setterman]

I forgot that you can not post direct links. You can google dog food advisor. That should get you there.

[reinhard1]

i went to Fleet Farm and picked up a 20 pound bag of Diamond Puppy Food. will take your advice on the feeding as far as mixing in exsisting food [ science diet ] which i have some left. she gobbled up the first batch no problem as usual. she eats about as fast as i did in basic training. good luck.

[pureinsanity]

before I changed my girlfriends dog food over to Diamond I took a handful of what he was use to eating and put it on the floor, I then took a hand full of diamond on the floor. Dog sniffed the old food, then the new food and ate the new food and left the old food.

That has to tell you something when a dog leaves food!