Dog Food recommendations

[LABS4ME]

I feed Chicken and Rice Diamond Naturals. If they don't have it ask them to start carrying it... if they have other Diamond they can get this also. $26-$28 40lb bag at Maynards...

Good Luck!

Ken

[kevfish1]

Yhey have the naturals here near my home but it is $34 a bag. Is it worth 10 a bag more to get the naturals vs the maint

[MuleShack]

I would say yes, the naturals has better ingredients.

[pureinsanity]

I pay 32 for a big bag of Diamond Performance. Id switch it up to naturals if it only costs 34$

[FishinCT]

So if your store has every variety of Diamond food, which one do you choose for a 1 year old dog that is VERY active?

[pureinsanity]

So if your store has every variety of Diamond food, which one do you choose for a 1 year old dog that is VERY active?

In my opinion I would feed Diamond Performance or Diamond Natural Extreme Athlete.

Diamond Performance Stats:

Chicken, chicken by-product meal, whole grain ground corn, wheat flour, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), egg product, dried plain beet pulp, fish meal, flaxseed, natural chicken flavor, brewers dried yeast, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, glucosamine*, 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, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin, vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

Crude Protein 30.0% Minimum

Crude Fat 20.0% Minimum

Crude Fiber 3.0% Maximum

Moisture 10.0% Maximum

Calcium 1.2% Minimum

Phosphorus 0.9% Minimum

Zinc 150 mg/kg Minimum

Selenium 0.4 mg/kg Minimum

Vitamin E 150 IU/kg Minimum

Omega-6 Fatty Acids * 3.4% Minimum

Glucosamine not less than 300 mg/kg

Omega-3 Fatty Acids * 0.6% Minimum

Chondroitin Sulfate not less than 100 mg/kg

Diamond Natural Extreme Athlete

Chicken meal, chicken, brewers rice, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), egg product, cracked pearled barley, powdered cellulose, dried plain beet pulp, flaxseed, natural chicken flavor, fish meal, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, glucosamine hydrochloride, 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, chondroitin sulfate, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

Crude Protein 32.0% Minimum

Crude Fat 25.0% Minimum

Crude Fiber 4.0% Maximum

Moisture 10.0% Maximum

Zinc 150 mg/kg Minimum

Selenium 0.4 mg/kg Minimum

Vitamin E 150 IU/kg Minimum

Omega-6 Fatty Acids * 3.5% Minimum

Omega-3 Fatty Acids * 0.5% Minimum

Glucosamine 300 mg/kg Minimum

Chondroitin Sulfate 100 mg/kg Minimum

And after you compare, there really isn't much difference in the products them self. I was thinking of switching to Diamond Naturals. But now I think I'll stick with just the regular!

[Kyhl]

Thanks for the ingredient list. It explains why we passed on Diamond. One of our dogs is allergic to chicken. Breaks out in hives really bad.

Fromm has a selection of foods without chicken. We feed our dogs Beef Frittata Veg.

Protein 30% Min

Fat 18% Min

Fiber 3.5% Max

Moisture 10% Max

[pureinsanity]

Its hard to find a dog food with out chicken and bi-products in it these days.

just like its hard to find products with out HFC syrup

[Connan]

Anyone use Precise dog food?

[mnmofro]

Not all dogs 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.

Quoting myself here because everyone is always very sensitive on the issue of dog food for some reason, so I just wanted to reiterate the point. Same with people, there is always a lot more involved to a dogs health than just food such as exercise & genetics. My dog eats food with some corn in it and I get lots of compliments on how nice he looks and how muscular he is!

[ClownColor]

Great feed back and what a thread thus far...

One common theme going around is that just about any dog food can and will do for most dogs.

My original question dealt with some issues my dog was having and this is probably a small percentage of dogs out there so I wanted to follow up.

I switched from beneful to Diamond natural and have been seeing a reduction of sneezing and licking. Way to early to see if It's just the seasons but it seemed to be year long before. No ear infections either but again it's way too early to tell but I will give a follow-up next fall and tell you all if it was just a food allergy. If so, I'm sure any meat/rice switch could work but diamond natural at menards was dirt cheap and good ingredients.

[deerminator]

Good to hear. It is all about what's best for YOUR dog. No one food is right for all dogs or always better than another. I was on the Kare 11 site tonight and found an interesing video on the subject by accident. If interested, just head there and type in "High-priced dog foods: Are they worth the money?" in the search field. They interviewed a number of vets. I know, I know, the premium dog food supporters will jump all over this saying either (a) What does a vet know about nutrition? or ( They're in bed with whatever company is paying them. But in this report, the vets, like my dogs' vet, said to do do you research and find out what's best for your dog, bottom line. What I did find interesting and what I've mentioned before, is how they pointed out that dogs are omnivores and handle grains just fine. In fact, grains are GASP part of a healthy diet. And that these no grain and higher protein scams, schemes, whatever you choose to call them, are just that. In fact, in many cases, some of the higher priced foods contain TOO many proteins and calories (often 3X too much!) which can easily make for a fat, unhealthy dog. Good luck with the Diamond or whatever you use in the future.

[corncob]

Deer , you are off base on the grain thing....Consider what wolves, coyotes, or fox eat....Sure not many grains, but eggs, fowl,mice , deer, rabbits ,squirells, you get the point.

[cavalierowner]

I have always been a fan of the Whole Dog Journal, especially for selecting a high quality food. WDJ is much like Consumer Reports in that they don't accept advertising to ensure their reviews are unbiased; their funding comes from their subscriptions. There is a short article on their web site here [Note from Admin: Please read forum rules before posting again. Thank You] that gives a very basic "How to" on selecting a dog food. They also do an annual review of dog foods and have a list of their top rated foods and an explanation of why they were top rated. They do a whole range of articles relating to dogs besides food recommendations.

[FCspringer]

Thanks for the ingredient list. It explains why we passed on Diamond. One of our dogs is allergic to chicken. Breaks out in hives really bad.

Fromm has a selection of foods without chicken. We feed our dogs Beef Frittata Veg.

Protein 30% Min

Fat 18% Min

Fiber 3.5% Max

Moisture 10% Max

You can also get Naturals in Lamb. I am feeding the Chicken mentioned above. I have very active trial and hunting dogs. I used the Athlete and found that I packed on more muscle with adult. And, they have energy to burn. So I doubt I will use The Athlete again unless I just mix in a little during trials.

[FCspringer]

PS I also use a product called Dogzymes MAX. It is a pre/Probiotic/digestive enzyme powder, that I think has amazing results. Muscle, coats, drive and stamina, recovery, stools, breath, all improved greatly.

[klee]

I recently switched my lab to Taste of The Wild Salmon and have noticed that she has been shedding way more than before. She was eating Natives, but I wanted to try something with no grain. I like that the food has made her stool firm and not as smelly when I'm cleaning up. The downside that I've noticed is the excessive shedding and scratching.

Has anyone had this kind of problem when switching food? I never had the problem when we switched to other foods. Could it be the season? She is locked up inside most of the time. Could it be the food? allergic reaction? I'd like to keep her on this food, but if she keeps shedding I will have to switch back. She is a hunting dog and full of energy, so I'm not as worried about that.

[Fish Head]

I've been feeding my 2 dogs Eukanuba. Unless I missed it, I haven't seen Eukanuba discussed here. It's not cheap. Am I waisting my money with this?

[reinhard1]

i've been feeding my dog with Diamond brand dog food and have no complaints. it was recommended here on a former thread. good luck.

[klee]

My dog doesnt do well with eukanoba, runny, smelly stool. I will either switch her back to Natives or try Diamond for sporting dogs. Native is pretty expensive for a big bad, but it will last her a month and a half.

[Jarrod32]

To just refer to "Diamond" is not complete. Diamond foods can run the whole range. The cheap stuff - the "Maintenance", for example - grades out quite poorly. The Diamond Naturals Lamb and Rice, for example, grades out quite high. And yeah, it is more expensive...but you then also have to look at how much you need to feed each day. You will probably find that you need to feed a little less if you get the better quality stuff.

If you only care about your dog enough to seek out the cheapest food you can...well...I guess that would be another discussion.

[Jarrod32]

Yhey have the naturals here near my home but it is $34 a bag. Is it worth 10 a bag more to get the naturals vs the maint

Yes. Easily.

[Jarrod32]

I recently switched my lab to Taste of The Wild Salmon and have noticed that she has been shedding way more than before. She was eating Natives, but I wanted to try something with no grain. I like that the food has made her stool firm and not as smelly when I'm cleaning up. The downside that I've noticed is the excessive shedding and scratching.

Has anyone had this kind of problem when switching food? I never had the problem when we switched to other foods. Could it be the season? She is locked up inside most of the time. Could it be the food? allergic reaction? I'd like to keep her on this food, but if she keeps shedding I will have to switch back. She is a hunting dog and full of energy, so I'm not as worried about that.

We found the opposite. We have a rescue German Shepherd that had some skin problems, and a lot of itching/scratching. Feeding her Taste of the Wild helped solve a lot of those problems. And yeah, you will find less [PoorWordUsage] because the dog no longer has to [PoorWordUsage] out the fillers and other carp you'll find in the cheap dog foods. Try one of the other TOTW flavors. We found that the roast fowl blend is the one that is best for our dog.

[klee]

I figure that since she was shedding, i feed her the salmon for the fish oil and maybe that would help with it. It only made it worst. I like the brand, just not what is happening to her. I don't mind spending a little for good food. Maybe we will try a different TOTW instead of the salmon.

[ClownColor]

It's been about six months since I started this thread and made the switch to Diamonds Natural (chicken) and the dog has had WAY better stools and less scratching. It is also cheaper then the name brand stuff I was buying before. So far I'm happy. This summer will be the big test as that was when my dog had the most ear infections (yeast) but so far..NONE to report.

[Chaws]

If you're feeding Diamond products, make sure the check into their recent recall. Their last recall killed hundreds of dogs.

This recall is for the Naturals Lamb formula so I'd get your dog off it as soon as possible.

http://www.huliq.com/10473/diamond-naturals-dog-food-recalled-possible-salmonella-contamination

[reinhard1]

thanks for the heads up. i think recalls can come from any product at any time as we all know. i will continue to use Diomond dog food however. my pup is doing real well with it. if i had that product i would return it and get another bag with a different code. the article did not mention that this particular batch was shipped to Minnesota but did go to other states. it did say it could of gone to some other states through other methods of distribution. good luck.

[LABS4ME]

ClownColor looks to be on chicken naturals. That is also what I feed.

Not on the recall list by product, state or code...

Good Luck!

Ken

[Jessie_H]

I recommend Taste of the Wild. It's the only food I found that agrees with my dog. It is a little on the pricey side but it is a really good grain free food.

[ClownColor]

If you're feeding Diamond products, make sure the check into their recent recall. Their last recall killed hundreds of dogs.

This recall is for the Naturals Lamb formula so I'd get your dog off it as soon as possible.

http://www.huliq.com/10473/diamond-naturals-dog-food-recalled-possible-salmonella-contamination

Thanks for sharing this! Good info and this is why I like forums. Luckily I'm using chicken.

I'd also be VERY bitter with a company that had cause illness or even death to my dog from a bad batch so I can understand why some feel certain ways from products...but unfortunatly like Reinhard1 stated, it can happen to any company.