# What do you feed your dog?



## woollybugger (Oct 13, 2007)

Curious as to what everyone thinks is the best food for your dog and why. I think Science Diet, Iams, and Purina are good. I have heard bad stuff about the Ol'Roy and Old Yeller dog foods. What do you all think about the 'natural' meat only or high meat content dog foods?


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

I think that Science Diet, Iams, and Purina are in the same class as Ol' Roy, Old yeller, et al. Check the label, there is not much difference. The first ingredient is corn meal. Not that corn meal is bad, it just makes my dog fart. The Kirkland signature, and others will have meat, or meat meal as the first ingredient, some have no corn or fillers, but other vegetables. They are less expensive than the "name brand" foods as well. The extra cost goes to pay the vets to reccomend their food, advertising, and paying for endorsements from such fine anti-hunting groups as the ASPCA, and the Humane Society. Not people that I want to support.


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## yfzduner450 (Dec 28, 2009)

I was feeding my dog VF dog food which I felt was a pretty good feed but over priced. I just recently switched back to the IFA extra energy feed which has the same ingredients but is half the price. I've fed my dogs everything from Science diet, eukanuba, ol'roy and everything inbetween and the only difference i see is how much they poop. I also like to supplement raw meat in my dogs diet but beware of the farts.


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## TEX-O-BOB (Sep 12, 2007)

Dog food is over rated. I feed mine big macks and fries, left overs, bird carcases, and they get plenty of poo in the kennel. :mrgreen:


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## Mojo1 (Sep 8, 2007)

TEX-O-BOB said:


> Dog food is over rated. I feed mine big macks and fries, left overs, bird carcases, and they get plenty of poo in the kennel. :mrgreen:


Now I know why you always smell, stop letting them lick you after eating! :lol:

I fed mine O,Roy high preformance till about 6 months ago when I switched over to Purina, they don't fart as much, and when they do it does not stink as bad. They will eat it all about the same.

They occasionaly get selected table scrapes, and canned dog food for a treat, or when I hutning them hard in really cold weather.


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

> I think that Science Diet, Iams, and Purina are in the same class as Ol' Roy, Old yeller, et al. Check the label, there is not much difference. The first ingredient is corn meal.


The Purina Pro Plan products and Iams ProActive Health products both list a meat source as the first ingredient. Both companies make a chicken and rice formula that is pretty good. In other words, even within a company some feeds are better than others.

Woollybugger, there are tons of feeds out there that your dog will do well on. Make sure there is a meat source listed as the first ingredient. That will usually indicate a higher quality feed. Your dog's coat and stools will tell you if the food agrees with the dog. I've fed many different brands over the years. I've had my dogs on Black Gold for some years now and they do great on that. It's not the best feed out there, but it's cheap in comparison to a lot of the feeds and has everything in it that the dogs need.

Feeds my dogs have thrived on 
Black Gold
Nutro (Nutro Natural might qualify as the "best" food out there, IMO. $$$, though.)
Purina Pro Plan
Authority
Eukanuba

Feeds that didn't agree with my dogs
Hi Standard
VF Performance/Arkat (tried several kinds)
Royal Canin
Iams
Science Diet


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## DJS (Jan 2, 2009)

deleted


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## lionhunter (Sep 11, 2007)

I feed lightning dog food it is a newer product it is just as good as black gold ( that is all I fed my dogs till my hunting buddy gave me some of this) If any of you want to try some let me know I can get you in contact with him. He sells it to companys around utah. Pm me for his info


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## Pintail Retrievers (Jul 21, 2010)

I prefer a premium feed because I ask a lot of my dogs and work them hard. 

The first ingredient I look for is meat for a nice source of protein. I avoid anything "by-product" (i.e. chicken by-product). By-products are parts of an animal not acceptable for human consumption. Also the next thing I look for is how many sources of meat proteins follow the first ingredient. If their are more grains listed then meat proteins, the food more then likely carries a lot more grains then meats. I also avoid any corn products, they are simply low cost fillers instead of a more expensive healthier alternative. Some dog foods use corn gluten meal as a source of protein in large amounts instead of meat proteins. Meat is a better source of protein and a lot easier to digest. 

The right food is a huge part of your dogs performance. Finding a feed with the ingredients that meet your expectations and one that sits well with your dog (most important) may take a couple of brands to determine. I have fed Innova Evo, Blackwood (not Black Gold), and Euk. All of which are great brands with excellent ingredients, but they just didnt sit well with my dogs. I currently use Enhance 30-22 and VF Performance which was recently bought by Ainsworth. One thing I really like about the new Enhance line although it has very much the same ingredients as before is the additional increase of ingredients such as Vitamin E, Ascorbic Acid and Beta Carotene. These ingredients aid in reducing stress placed on dogs during periods of heavy training. I have seen no reason stool wise, coat wise, recovery wise, or stress wise to make a switch. That is what works for my dogs so I have stayed with it. 

Sorry for the rant.....I have dogs on the brain toooo much. "My name is Kory and I have a problem"!!

Take care!!


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## 2labs (Sep 24, 2007)

I used to feed Pro Plan, but it got too expensive to feed. I then started using VF Complete and have been happy with it, but it looks like I am not going to be able to feed it anymore because my supplier is not going to carry it anymore. He is switching over to Diamond. What have you heard about Diamond?


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## bearhntr (Oct 6, 2008)

I have tried purina pro plan, eukanuba, Iams, and Science diet. My dog loves the science diet lamb and rice. She is only six months old but a picky eater. Her stool is fine and her coat is shiny and not shedding like I have seen other labs do. I have too been curious about other brands of dog food but have a hard time spending the cash on wasted products.


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## yfzduner450 (Dec 28, 2009)

Hey Kory, did you hear that the enhance line was sold to another company and they are in the process of rebranding. I have also heard that they are gonna change some of the formulas, so it will be interesting to see if they do in fact change for the better or worst. This is what the manager at ifa told me after they've been outta the food i was feeding for 2 weeks now.


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## Pintail Retrievers (Jul 21, 2010)

yfzduner450 said:


> Hey Kory, did you hear that the enhance line was sold to another company and they are in the process of rebranding. I have also heard that they are gonna change some of the formulas, so it will be interesting to see if they do in fact change for the better or worst. This is what the manager at ifa told me after they've been outta the food i was feeding for 2 weeks now.


Arkat was bought out by Ainsworth Pet Nutrition. In my opinion, the new formulas are pretty much the same but with a couple of increased portions of certain ingredients. I think they have done a good job at focusing on what ingredient increases will be the most beneficial for the hard working dog and moved in that direction. The new formulas were supposed to hit the shelves a couple of months back, but I know they have been behind. I was at the Ogden IFA last week and did notice all the Enhance (Ainsworth) formulas were on the shelf. I only checked the price on the 30-22 blend which was 34.99. Below is the link to their site. It is still under construction but all the Enhance formulas can be viewed. Also, the VF Performance blend was marked down to 39.99 last I checked so they could clear their supply for the new line to hit. I dont know where you live, but if you have questions on dates/suppliers for the mix you feed let me know and I will get you thecontact info for the Ainsworth rep for our area.

Take care,

Kory

http://www.ainsworthpets.com/


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## yfzduner450 (Dec 28, 2009)

If you could pm the reps name and number that would be awesome. I sure like their food but when i couldn't find any at 2 different ifa's and they had no news about the delivery other then it's behind schedule, i had to switch feeds. I would switch back if the formulas didn't change to much.


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## bearhntr (Oct 6, 2008)

Ok, so I decided to try the Enhance puppy formula today and all I can say is my dog treated it like it was a treat. I used the 21-32 I think. I did notice that it did state that they do use ground corn/corn meal in their formula. I am not sure if this is the same with all brands with their puppy food. I thought that from the posts here that enhance does not use corn fillers. Maybe they don't on their top of the line food but my dog is only 6 months old so I will stick with the puppy formula. Thanks for the info on where to get the Enhance I think my pup has a new favorite.


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## Pintail Retrievers (Jul 21, 2010)

bearhntr said:


> Ok, so I decided to try the Enhance puppy formula today and all I can say is my dog treated it like it was a treat. I used the 21-32 I think. I did notice that it did state that they do use ground corn/corn meal in their formula. I am not sure if this is the same with all brands with their puppy food. I thought that from the posts here that enhance does not use corn fillers. Maybe they don't on their top of the line food but my dog is only 6 months old so I will stick with the puppy formula. Thanks for the info on where to get the Enhance I think my pup has a new favorite.


Their is corn present in their puppy mix but it is not considered a "premium blend". It is tough to find a puppy mix without a corn ingredient somewhere in the mix. I know Euks puppy blend has corn in it as well. One of the few puppy blends I have seen which doesnt have corn in it is Diamond, but I never tried it. When both of my dogs were pups I fed them Innova Large Breed puppy. It is an expensive mix, I believe around $65 or so for a 30lb bag and the Evo blend is just as expensive so I had to make a switch. You will be fine feeding that, most people buy it and never realize their is even corn in their. Hunters Edge is now corn free as it is considered a premium blend for the harder working dog. Hunters Edge Basics however still has corn present. Most premium blends you will not find corn present.


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

Corn meal is found in most puppy formulas because it contains more carbs than wheat and most rices. Puppies need carbohydrates as much as they need protein and fat. When ground into meal, corn nearly triples its caloric content per kilo, making corn meal a very effective (if less digestible than whole grain rice) carb source. 

The premium adult feeds usually have some form of rice or potatoes as the carb source. Whole grain rice is digested easier and burns slower than corn. Potatoes are often included as a carb source in "Ultra Premium" feeds. Potatoes are high starch like corn, less valuable than corn meal as a carb source. Dogs don't come with allergies to potatoes, though, like they might to wheat or corn. Rice flour and rice bran are cheap fillers just like corn. Brewer's rice is a cheap filler. Corn gluten meal is a cheap filler. 


One thing to keep in mind- dogs are individuals. My Lab does 100x better on Black Gold than he did on the Hunter's Edge or VF Performance blends. The Black Gold just agrees with his stomache, corn included. My Griffs could eat nails and they've done great on whatever has been placed in front of them, including the Hunter's Edge and VF formulas. 

Just find what works and stick with it.


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## Pintail Retrievers (Jul 21, 2010)

Great points BD!

We have talked a lot about ingredients like corn (since it has been the most discussed) but really havent gotten into why many choose to avoid it other then it is harder to digest. Corn gluten/corn gluten meal is hard to digest because it expands and binds faster and will remain binded longer then most ingredients, therefore making it tougher to digest. When you have food that is tougher to digest, it remains in the stomach for longer periods of time. Why is this a concern to me, because of the possibility of gastric torsion/bloat even if adequate time is given to digest their food. 

Their are other ingredients known to be tough to digest (fillers like mentioned) and we will never be able to eliminate them all, but if I can eliminate one from the list, I will go in that direction. 

Great Thread!!


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## Matt B (Sep 10, 2007)

Wolly B congrats on the new pup! I've been feeding mine the Loyal brand for over a year now. I usually get the high performance, but they have several. The only place I've found it is at Cal-Ranch. The dogs have looked the best in years since feeding this brand.


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## cornerfinder (Dec 4, 2008)

cats


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## Gumbo (Sep 22, 2007)

I on my last bag of Arkat Hunter's Edge, and will switch to the new version as soon as it's gone.

Does anyone feed Native? I see it advertised on a few bird hunting shows, but don't know anything about it.


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

Pintail Retrievers said:


> Also, the VF Performance blend was marked down to 39.99 last I checked so they could clear their supply for the new line to hit. /


From what I have read elsewhere....the VF Performance blend was staying the same(?)


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## fishnmachine (Jan 5, 2011)

Pro Plan
Fed Iams puppy till about 6mo and went off to trainer.


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## tshuntin (Jul 13, 2008)

Gumbo said:


> Does anyone feed Native? I see it advertised on a few bird hunting shows, but don't know anything about it.


I like what I have seen and heard of Native, but I don't think anyone in Utah carries it and it is pricey.


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## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

I'm the odd man out here I guess.... Paisley is on Purina Beneful puppy food and then she's going on Purina Beneful Playful Life dog food. Thats what my other duck dog and the wife's pug eat. I'm sure the food makes a difference to somebody but for me, the dogs fetch, they run, play and do what dogs do while eating pretty basic dog food and my wallet lives comfortably for the most part.


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## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

cornerfinder said:


> cats


ha ha.... thats a great answer. :lol:


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## Bret (Sep 7, 2007)

I feed High Standard 26-18 these days. The setters seem to be doing well on it. I had them on the hot stuff during the season and I really liked that. They had great energy levels all season.


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## Sprig Kennels (Jan 13, 2009)

i put my dogs on VF but i am sure once the enhance food is going they will change the VF line as well....why cant they leave well enough alone? do they think everybody wants to pay $40-$50 per bag of food?


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## bearhntr (Oct 6, 2008)

Ok here is a question for ya. Does anyone feed their dog premium dog food during the hunting season and then switch to something of the cheaper side. I have some cousins that do this and their dogs shed like crazy and some times they even look to have mange because of the bald spots. Now during the hunting season they feed the good stuff and then the dogs look happy and healthy.


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## Hellacious (Jan 13, 2011)

Dog food


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