"Opening a can of worms"
In preparing for our pup's arrival, Jess and I began to do our own research regarding dog nutrition and dog food brands/formulas etc.
Well, we fell down the rabbit hole on that. There is a ton of sites and sources making claims and offering up whats "best" for your dog without providing any evidence of the "how and why" behind their claim.
Below is a link to website that we found very helpful as it provides background information and the tools to sort through the many claims of various companies and "experts". We are curious what others may think of it, and what other sources people found helpful regarding dog food.
http://www.dog-nutrition-advice.com/
Well, we fell down the rabbit hole on that. There is a ton of sites and sources making claims and offering up whats "best" for your dog without providing any evidence of the "how and why" behind their claim.
Below is a link to website that we found very helpful as it provides background information and the tools to sort through the many claims of various companies and "experts". We are curious what others may think of it, and what other sources people found helpful regarding dog food.
http://www.dog-nutrition-advice.com/
Comments
I am not really on one side either. I do feed the Girls a grain free kibble, and I certainly think there is a huge difference between kibbles like Pedigree and Taste of the Wild. I have proof of that, since the Girls ate Pedigree before I moved back in then I switched them to Taste of the Wild and their health rose considerably. I do not attribute this to the food being grain free, but of a higher quality.
Conker gets homemade food and was grain free for a while too, but now he gets grains as part of his meals. The Girls also get homemade stuff every now and then that includes grains. I do think ingredient quality is important, and the site does talk a bit about determining if the ingredients are good or not.
Keep in mind that every dog is different, and what might work for one may not for the other. No any one diet is the best diet since every dog is an individual, just like every person is. It's fine to feed one dog X brand, the other Y, or like me with two on kibble one on homemade.
If you do decide to go the homemade route, no matter what type, research the living crap out of it. It's very easy to make a serious mistake with too many or too little of some nutrients.
I believe in offering a variety of foods. Right now I'm feeding my dogs fresh raw (variety of muscle meats, egg shells, bones, organs) with the occasional alfafa supplement in addition to grain free kibble (Wellness Core & Taste of the Wild) - and at times...even canned Wellness.
I'm kinda "random" as to how I feed them. Sometimes I'll feed fresh raw in the morning and then kibble at night. Other times I'll feed fresh raw for a week or 2 weeks and then go back to kibble. Then cycle back and forth. I also feed cooked foods but mostly as treats (unless I run out of dog food, lol!) and frozen peanut butter. Every so often they'll get a ribeye or knuckle bone to chew on. I like mixing it up. My dogs are always looking forward to dinner, super excited and highly curious to find out what's on the menu! Making meal time a kind of adventure =].
Instead of just telling you which dog food is best (although there is the top 10 food list, which he states is clearly in his opinion, and your dog may disagree), it gives you the tools to make informed decisions for yourself as opposed to a rating with no true explaination of why you want less meal or more of this in a food.
Of all our research, this seemed the most on the level, worth sharing.
@Losech I really don't feel confident in making a homemade diet. I used to keep rats for a short period of time, and primarily went homemade. The alleged "eat everything, survive all" creatures eventually needed a dietary supplement (and less avacado, that was my fault :S). The precision required to feed scavengers, I imagine, is no where near what would be required to do homemade meals for a dog, imho. Although, occasionally would not hurt, I imagine.
@Shikokuspirit We really like the idea of mixing the food up, too. I used to love perogies until a one-month, low-finances stint with them. I couldn't imagine being fed them for the rest of my life. Do you find any digestive problems with switching it up so often? We had a conversation with a lady at a local feed and pet store/animal hospital and she went off about how switching foods too often will be digestive hell (then again, she recommended a high grain food to us, as well), and another at a dog boutique told us not to worry about switching, it's no problem (I didn't have to slowly mix perogies into my new food to ween myself off of them). We're leaning more toward the latter, but I'm wondering if the ease of transition depends a lot on age, the individual, etc? When did you start making dinner exciting for your dogs?
With a young puppy I'd try to be consistent with what I am feeding starting out the first 3 months. Unfortunely, Shikoku can and do tend to have sensitive stomachs. So you'll want to pay close attention to your puppy's stool. In my experience, that's been a pretty good indicator of how well your dog is adjusting to his/her diet. Whether you plan to start out feeding kibble or raw (or both - perhaps raw for breakfast and kibble for dinner...NEVER at the same time), try to be consistent. It's okay to do immediate switch of diet from what the breeder fed and what you'll be feeding when your pup arrives home, by the way. There is absolutely no need "to wean" off previous diet =]. The transition depends on the individual dog.
In all honesty...as long as your pup has healthy stools and is keeping down the food (doesn't throw it up), you should be able to interchange foods as often as you'd like...no problem. If you start seeing some runny or soft stools just go back to feeding 1 diet/brand until it clears up.
I've been consistent recently with switch ups every 2 weeks. Raw food is a bit easier to change up dinner menus within a single week (chicken, canned fish, pork, turkey, beef). The kibble (Wellness Core, Taste of the Wild, Solid Gold Wolf King & Acana) can sometimes give soft/runny stool during day 1 and 2. I'm also a fan of combination kibble (the mixing of 2 or more brands - like chex mix!). Poop wise...raw food is the best (probably cause of the bone)...easier to scoop and less odor. Kibble tends to make my dog's poop richer in color, softer and has more odor. Just an interesting observation I discovered.
Yeah, it'll be up to you to find out which diets/brands will benefit your dog.
I try to get odd things like that.. Saya had a whole baby bunny that she caught in my yard coarse I froze it for a month to be careful.
Saya as a puppy ate chicken soup for puppy's lover soul when I first got her since that's what the breeder fed, then she was switched to wellness puppy food, I'd also feed her cooked meats, eggs, and caned fish as kibble topper.
at 7months I started offering raw eggs to her and giving her lamb ribs as meals then 8months she was switched to full raw.
My next pup will be switched to full raw at 8weeks I feel confident with the knowledge I have and resources close to me my pet carnivore is 2 hour or so drive plus local farmers.
Bella my parent's boxer ate wellness puppy she had loose poop on it some, but on wellness core and core ocean she is much solid could been the grains I dunno.
I've been working on getting her used to a rotation of Totw lamb and Totw bison/deer I plan to try a different brand of kibble too. She also gets cooked meat, eggs, caned fish, and three times a week or two times she gets a raw meal.
Either a chicken quarter and a bit of liver or bit of heart or tongue etc.. She also gets ground beef and a chicken drumstick. Bella being a 55lb boxer she is pretty good about chewing her food and not trying to swallow it in one gulp.
I do feed smaller items frozen so that might help even a thawed chicken neck she ate it fine, but not every dog is like that feeding bigger is better frozen helps slow down too.
The site looks good.
I can understand if the dog has sensitive stomach, but I think variety is good for a dog even if you just add a bit of cooked meat, organs, caned fish, eggs or cooked veggies as kibble topper once or twice a week it's great to give the dog some variety.
In the wild they don't just eat just fish, they eat variety..
Even though all good quality kibble is well balanced it's not all the same. Some kibble formula have different protein source some have different fruits and veggies or herbs too..
Some people on this forum do a rotation diet with their dogs.
Coarse as a puppy it's best to not switch a lot, but a treat on the kibble can't hurt much if it's small amount.
If your worried about stomach upset with it maybe give probiotics or enzymes to help or maybe both?
Coarse going slow helps especially when the dog's new to it.
Giving an RMb(Raw Meaty bone) every so often is good for dental benefits..Turkey necks, pig's feet, lamb and pork ribs are yummy stuff.
Looking up which food to give is a bit daunting I was a bit overwhelmed at first. Wellness core ocean works for Bella and so has Totw deer/bison and Totw lamb.. We don't have orijen or acana near me so we never tried it.
Orijen can be rich for some dogs, but Acana being lower protein might be better..
Wellness core and core ocean is pretty good food Bella does good on it it's adult only, but some don't seem to mind it for pups.. I dunno though.
Totw is pretty decent it's made by diamond which some people are bit Leary of over some recalls, but I think it was a long time ago. the kibble agrees with Bella and Saya and it's decent price.
There's bunch different kibble to look at. Read the labels and look up what other people think of the companies and kibble.
At least the research will help pass the time.
Yoshi will eat basically anything we put in front of him. Kimi, on the other hand; seems to require a change up every couple months. A lot of people swear by the current Costco kibble; rated 3 star on a nutritional site. I have rotated between various Limited Ingredient formulae; rated 4 star, differing Acana blends; rated 5 star, and occasionally Orijen; rated 6 star (highest on the site). I have to say though; neither of my Shikoku are overly eager for the Orijen blends; and truth be told, I don't think they really need *that* much protein. Acana is higher protein than most should need; but our dogs do not lack for exercise, and if the multiple daily trail hikes we give them don't wear them down, my wee ones take over and play them out. I pit my 3yr old against any Shikoku energy wise...
When I switch diets, I usually just go to a half old/half new mix for a day or two, then full new...at most we see the odd soft stool during the change. And...well...anything that is primarily chicken based tends to cause some rather obnoxious odours for the first few days only...I swear; it *is* the dogs, no matter what my wife says...
Every so often we use chicken, steak, etc that we have cooked, and have left overs of, for treats...I have yet to find an off the shelf product that gets as much attention as the real deal...but then...who doesn't like something fresh off the grill.
In short; don't over analyze and obsess over the kibble too much. Stick to quality product; it isn't much more expensive, and if you shop around, it can be nearly the same price as supermarket brands...and you will be fine.
Oh...and one other thing...I would stay away from canned worms...thats just nasty...