Dog food ALERT!

[JMcCullough]

Thanks for the heads up

[SkyCop]

Been feeding both my beagles (2&9yr old) purina beneful for the last 2 years.
Talked to my vet and they recommended 4Health , the performance got 4.5 stars on dogfoodadvisor, and at tractor supply it is actually cheaper then the purina.
Anybody else use this?
And cheaper or not, my pups are family and get spoiled!

Yes. I used to feed my beagle the most expensive dog foods at the grocery store, because if it's expensive it has to be good, right?

Then I had someone recommend the 4Health to me, so I gave it a try. My dog loves the plain, dry, 4Health dog food more than he ever did any of those overpriced, popular dog foods.

I have only found the 4Health dog food at Tractor Supply too. If I remember correctly it is only about $1 per pound. 4Health is a top brand at 4/5 stars. Most brands that people think are really good (the ones mostly advertised on tv) usually don't get higher than a 2 star rating.

You guys should check it out. It breaks down what ingredients are in every brand and tells you what is good and bad for your dog.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/

[fishycatfish]

I feed Taste of the Wild-Wetlands Formula. It is a little pricey but my lab does really well on it. I spend more on snuff, fast food, and junk a month and I would go without it way before I started to feed something of lesser quality. He may be spoiled but Im not the one running through high grass full of snakes in 100 degree heat to fetch my birds.

[Biggs]

I was feeding blue, until I found 4 health at tractor supply. I do believe blue is an excellent food, but it's so expensive. I would recommend reading the label and comparing.

[quackerback]

i am gonna be checking out the 4 health and diamond naturals

[Skullworks52]

I've had good luck with Tractor Supply dog food in the blue bag.

[Mudslinger]

I understand where everyone is coming from when you say a dog is a dog and why spend the high dollars on dog food. With my wife and I, it is different as these are truly our "kids". We were unable to have children, decided against adoption and when I bought my first Rottie in 1989 and am currently on my 4th and 5th ones, we pretty much treat them like our children. We train them, feed them well and give them all the love we can. They are basically house dogs, stay outside during the day, but if we are at home, they are usually in the house. Some say we should treat them more like dogs, but it is my choice to treat them the way want and feed them the food we want and spend the money we want on them. It is our choice. The reason for the $50+ per bag I feed now is that I have a large breed and not a lot of companies offer large breed puppy kibble that is rated at 4 stars and I will have them on this food until they are 2 years old. I guess you could say that our "kids" are our vice!

[Landrover]

I feed diamond naturals lamb and rice.

Rice.......ain't never seen dogs in the rice fields back home. As others have said the rest are made of corn mostly and I doubt they actually eat corn naturally.

Landrover, here is a list:

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/best-dog-foods/best-dry-dog-foods/

I don't believe anyone should go broke feeding his dog, but keep in mind that by feeding a higher quality food, you will be able to feed less and likely have less vet bills as well.

Thanks sir! something worth looking into!

Im a bit appalled at some of the comments on here like "it's just a dog". I'm not married and don't have any kids, so maybe it's different for me, but I doubt it. My dog works his tail off for me September through January. He warns me every time someone pulls into the driveway. He knows when I'm sick and somehow finds a way to comfort me. 24/7, all he wants to do is please me. The least I can do is give him a great life for the short time he is here and put some creditable food in his bowl.

LOL!!! Most dogs do exactly what you described above thus the hard earned title of, "man's best friend" since caveman times. Hunting is natural as ALL DOGS come from wolves, guarding/defending comes from being territorial by nature, and comforting comes from the bond you have with it.......and the fact they know where the meals come from! As far as not married and kids I can see your attachment and can appreciate that.

grew up differently? probably.
our dog ate table scraps and deer/bear kill bones/scraps. I will not spend a grand on a vet bill.
BUT, we feed our dogs good food and they are spoiled. My dog food isnt causing vet bills and death. .

Per the points above: Your definition of "growing up differently" is not what I was eluding to. We grew up feeding scraps and cheap dog food. Dogs lived outside and hunted the swamps & sugarcane fields like champs......and were some of the best in the River Parishes of south Louisiana. A grand on a vet bill was and is NOT in the cards. Heck, I had a bluetick beagle that broke his leg and the vet said $185 in 1981.......we loaded him back in the truck and the leg healed on its own and he hunted/bred and lived till his was about 10. LOL.......dogs are way more resilient than folks give them credit for.
Furthermore, my mom had a toy poodle (house dog), some local azz-wipe shot him 3 times with a .22 when he was about 7 years old. My mom cleaned him up, treated the wounds daily or as needed and made him comfortable. He recovered in about a month or so but ZERO on a vet bill. Years later on a trip home from college my dad told me to take the now 17 year old poodle outside and shoot it as he was blind and his stool had turned black. Pretty much what folks did in south Louisiana when the time came......kinda like Ole Yella! I took him out but for the first time in my life I could not pull the trigger. My mom took him to the vet and had him put down for $12. Did I mention he lived his total 17 years on table food! Your assumptions about "feeding GOOD dog food" probably warrant praise but there are millions of examples that folks could list of dogs doing just fine without $45 bag dog food.

a 36 lb bag of 40ish dollar food would likely last a couple of months.
I just visited the "show your home" thread.
Surely, you can afford 45 dollars every two months to keep your dog healthy...
(beautiful house by the way!)

Not sure a correlation between our home or income level has anything to do with my/our thoughts about $45 dog food. It is far from a issue of cost, more of an issue of giving animals (any animal) humanlike qualities. That is what PETA and the HUMANE SOCIETY do to win mis-informed converts . Sorry, just not part of my DNA. Bayou is definitely NOT like the 30+/- other beagles I have had over my lifetime but he still is a DOG!

Yes. I used to feed my beagle the most expensive dog foods at the grocery store, because if it's expensive it has to be good, right?
Then I had someone recommend the 4Health to me, so I gave it a try. My dog loves the plain, dry, 4Health dog food more than he ever did any of those overpriced, popular dog foods.
I have only found the 4Health dog food at Tractor Supply too. If I remember correctly it is only about $1 per pound. 4Health is a top brand at 4/5 stars. Most brands that people think are really good (the ones mostly advertised on tv) usually don't get higher than a 2 star rating.

Another good post! No emotion, just facts that MAY give a working dog a few more days, months or years as a companion. Also, it seems to have a reasonable cost!

[Landrover]

I understand where everyone is coming from when you say a dog is a dog and why spend the high dollars on dog food. With my wife and I, it is different as these are truly our "kids". We were unable to have children, decided against adoption and when I bought my first Rottie in 1989 and am currently on my 4th and 5th ones, we pretty much treat them like our children. We train them, feed them well and give them all the love we can. They are basically house dogs, stay outside during the day, but if we are at home, they are usually in the house. Some say we should treat them more like dogs, but it is my choice to treat them the way want and feed them the food we want and spend the money we want on them. It is our choice. The reason for the $50+ per bag I feed now is that I have a large breed and not a lot of companies offer large breed puppy kibble that is rated at 4 stars and I will have them on this food until they are 2 years old. I guess you could say that our "kids" are our vice!

Fully respect that Doug!!! $50 for rotties is understandable. How do they react to all those dead animals in your house.....especially that big cat??

[westtexducks]

Rice.......ain't never seen dogs in the rice fields back home. As others have said the rest are made of corn mostly and I doubt they actually eat corn naturally.

Thanks sir! something worth looking into!

LOL!!! Most dogs do exactly what you described above thus the hard earned title of, "man's best friend" since caveman times. Hunting is natural as ALL DOGS come from wolves, guarding/defending comes from being territorial by nature, and comforting comes from the bond you have with it.......and the fact they know where the meals come from! As far as not married and kids I can see your attachment and can appreciate that.

Per the points above: Your definition of "growing up differently" is not what I was eluding to. We grew up feeding scraps and cheap dog food. Dogs lived outside and hunted the swamps & sugarcane fields like champs......and were some of the best in the River Parishes of south Louisiana. A grand on a vet bill was and is NOT in the cards. Heck, I had a bluetick beagle that broke his leg and the vet said $185 in 1981.......we loaded him back in the truck and the leg healed on its own and he hunted/bred and lived till his was about 10. LOL.......dogs are way more resilient than folks give them credit for.
Furthermore, my mom had a toy poodle (house dog), some local azz-wipe shot him 3 times with a .22 when he was about 7 years old. My mom cleaned him up, treated the wounds daily or as needed and made him comfortable. He recovered in about a month or so but ZERO on a vet bill. Years later on a trip home from college my dad told me to take the now 17 year old poodle outside and shoot it as he was blind and his stool had turned black. Pretty much what folks did in south Louisiana when the time came......kinda like Ole Yella! I took him out but for the first time in my life I could not pull the trigger. My mom took him to the vet and had him put down for $12. Did I mention he lived his total 17 years on table food! Your assumptions about "feeding GOOD dog food" probably warrant praise but there are millions of examples that folks could list of dogs doing just fine without $45 bag dog food.

Not sure a correlation between our home or income level has anything to do with my/our thoughts about $45 dog food. It is far from a issue of cost, more of an issue of giving animals (any animal) humanlike qualities. That is what PETA and the HUMANE SOCIETY do to win mis-informed converts . Sorry, just not part of my DNA. Bayou is definitely NOT like the 30+/- other beagles I have had over my lifetime but he still is a DOG!
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Another good post! No emotion, just facts that MAY give a working dog a few more days, months or years as a companion. Also, it seems to have a reasonable cost!

Amen king of multi quotation. I also understand that for some folks their dogs are their kids, but at our place the dogs are dogs and treated as such.

[Javelin]

I am in the camp of feed the cheap stuff. I had a dog as a kid that was near 20 when it died and Ole Roy was the food of choice.

[Atfulldraw]

When we take a rescue in, it only takes about seven days of feeding quality food to notice a difference in their eyes, coat and overall health from whatever garbage they were getting fed.

I'll spend the little bit extra.....

Thanks for the heads-up!

[Strummer]

I use to feed it to my dogs. They did get sick but we got lucky and figured out it was the feed . They got blisters on their bellies and shed real bad. .

[CTUSMC]

My cousin began breading and raising 80% wolf/20% siberian husky many years ago. He lost several pups and a few adults, vet bills were outragious, and he couldnt figure out the problem. So he began and all natural raw diet and never had another problem. This led him later to began researching the dog foods available on the market and what all that crap is in them. You would be suprised to find out that some of that stuff is actually antifreeze among other things, and the grains are not something that dogs are suppose to have. This leads to many stomach problems, cancers, kidney failures etc. He then started and all natural dog food line and a store that promotes only all natural grain free dog foods. Some of the most readily availbale at most pet stores are Blue Buffalo, and Taste of the Wilderness. Taste of the Wilderness is great but is very high protien and can be hot on some dogs stomachs in the hotter months so keep that in mind. I personally feed Blue. There are many flavors and types available for different dogs, it keeps their coats looking healthy, energy levels high, weight managed, and never have to go to the vet. Will never go back to regular dog foods after researching whats in them and losing a dog to it. I even have to travel 45 min to the closest place that sells blue, and it aint cheap but its worth it to me.

[Mudslinger]

Oscar, my lioness is not here yet, still in RSA awaiting shipment. As far as the other animals, they look through the french doors into my trophy room, but nothing else. They are not allowed in there period. With a full body Nyala and the way they are chewing right now, if one did get in there and chew on a leg or something on the Nyala, one of us would be leaving the premises! They did bark for a while at my euro of my big elk, but have gotten use to it now.