Gotta change kibble, need advise on something affordable at TSC. DIamond?!

I have decided to go with a brand called exclusive which is similar to diamond.

 

After doing some research and making calls I decided to go with a brand called Exclusive that is similar to diamond

 

SEMO: How many dogs you feeding? Are you thinking 25-30 bucks for a 40 pound bag of dog food is what you're willing to spend? What have you been feeding? How old is the dog? I think BLUE BUFFALO (something like that) is sold at TSC, but I don't know how much it costs. You're going to get a lot of backlash, I think, from folks that wouldn't consider DIAMOND due to all the dead dogs.

 

I like orijen. its expensive but i am only feeding one dog and it is a superior feed imo. Even if i had more dogs this is what i would feed. I switched from canidae and have noticed big improvements.

 

cheese: is orijen at TSC or bucchetis? I have not heard of that food, can you post something on it?

 

its kind of hard to find around here but i can always get it. its 70% meats 30%carbs(fruits veggies) and no grains. i think i pay 60 for a 30lb bag
http://www.championpetfoods.com/orijen/orijen/

 

Can't agree more.

 

Orijen is the absolute best...and very expensive. I spent nearly $70 (shiping was expensive). I am now feeding wellness puppy (5 stars) and they are doing great.

 

Yea that is alot. I buy it locally $55 for the large bag.

 

Taste of the Wild is sold at Tractor supply. It runs about $45 for a 30lb bag. They also sell Natures Recipe in the Lamb and Rice for about $32 for a 40lb bag. TOTW is made by Diamond and is rated as a 5 star food. The other is rated a 3 star for needs more protien. I like both feeds. I am trying raw on some of my dogs. That is working out pretty good and it is cheap too. TSC doesnt' sell Blue Buffalo. At least ours doesn't. I have seen that one at Petsmart.

 

I switched my female to Innova. She was having some itching with lower quality feed. I noticed an improvment in her coat, lean muscle and no more itching or runny eyes. $60 for a 33lb bag and worth every penny.

 

That's what I was gonna say. I feed TOTW the pacific one, it's grain free and my two allergy dogs do great on it!

 

Yeah, if you can get TOTW at Tractor Supply, it'd be well worth it. I've been very impressed with the Pacific Stream.

 

Orijen is a great feed but IMO it's not suitable for pups it's really high in protein over 40%. I think it's a great working feed for adult dogs but I wouldn't give it to a pup JMO I plan on switching mine to EVO from innova once they hit 1

 

diamond chicken and rice- and canidae are the cheapest best food you can get for 30-40$... iam paying 34$ for diamond chicken and rice i remember seen canidae was like 42$ at the store

 

I have heard that before and I was actually on the fence with it for a long time. After giving it alot of though I decided to go with the origen.

For the most part dogs are carnivores. I mean they will eat just about anything but wolves and wild dogs primarily eat meat. Not to mention alot of people feed the RAW diet which is basically pure meat and have had great results. I think that having my dog eat really good food with a little extra protein is still better then eating a crappy food.
My dog actually started on innova so don't think I am calling it crappy. I was thinking more along the lines of Old Roy.

 

No I know anything is better than ol roy ... I thought about orijen/evo red meats myself and went with innova because of the high protien my kids are still pups so I don't want to give them that much protien but when they get older it's a different story. You have to go with what works for you just persoanlly speaking I don't feel comfortable with giving pups that much protien. But I have heard nothing but good things about Orjien .

 

There is a food made by science diet called Z/d. It is made for dogs that have or may have food allergies. Normally I don't like science diet but they do have really good RX diets. You can get it over the counter at most vets. You need to identify what the dogs is allergic to. To find out what she is allergic to this works best and it's expensive.... You should feed them Z/D and nothing else. No treats, nothing till your trial is done. If you put them on Z/D for 3-4 weeks and you don't see an outbreak then it's food related. If they are still having an issue then it's environmental. If it's environmental then you can get an allergy test done to find out what it is. It’s expensive but they can give injection therapy that really works.
If there is no outbreak then you slowly add things back into the diet.
You keep a log and try 1 item a week. You keep them on Z/d but maybe boil chicken and add it for a week and see how they do. Sometimes it's not the first feeding that will cause a problem it's accumulative. This should give you results but it's a long process. If it’s food allergies then you know what you can have in the dogs food.
I have had two dogs over the years with food allergies and this is how we found out it was egg and wheat. Those are the most common.
Many of times the dog is allergic to more than one thing. Another alternative to Z/d is a grain free food with Duck as the meat source. Dogs are usually not allergic to Duck.

You can try different foods but if it is an allergy this is the easiest way to find out what not to feed. If you just keep switching foods that might be more expensive in the long run. I think a 30lbs bag of Z/D is like $50 but that one bag would last the entire trail for one dog. Then you don't have to guess what it is. Good luck it's a pain, been there done that!

 

For $50-$70 a bag you can feed a very simple raw diet! Best feed = No Kibble!

YIS

 

You have a point there!!