Best Food Brands for Dog (Puppy)?

[Miramonti]

I wouldn't be surprised if someone had a quality animal food shop in PR, but you might have to drive across the island to get it.

 

[datalink7]

Orijen is perhaps the best. That being said, it is pretty expensive and the gains over other quality dog food is most likely marginal.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

I wouldn't be surprised if someone had a quality animal food shop in PR, but you might have to drive across the island to get it.

Me neither, but I'd rather just go somewhere I know it'll be available. Gas is pretty expensive here.

Orijen is perhaps the best. That being said, it is pretty expensive and the gains over other quality dog food is most likely marginal.

$40-45 or so for a 15lb bag.
They don't ship it here either, unfortunately. The Innova and Super5Mix seem like near-perfect choices; I just can't decide between the two. I'm open to more choices as long as they're available at PetSmart, though.

 

[Sluggo]

We buy Taste of the Wild for about $45 for 30lbs at the local Tractor Supply.

Our 3 yr old mutts have been on that for about 3 months and have never looked more lean, healthy and muscular while eating a smaller quantity of food, they love it. The bonus is less poo, and it doesn't smell nearly as bed as before.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

Bummer. You should be fine with Super5mix.

Oh, are you a new dog owner? They FLY through the 30 lb bags (2-2.5 months!), let alone 15 lbs. And my breed is a medium corgi. There's no reason you pay more for the 15lbs one. Stick with 30 lbs ones.

Good to know.

The only thing is, I don't know if I should go for the 30lb ones since the 15lb ones are the same cost/lb at PetSmart and I'd be paying less upfront.

 

[Xed]

Castor and Pollux organix here

 

[GoodRevrnd]

Orijen and Wellness CORE.
/thread

you can get CORE on amazon btw.
EVO/innova w/e used to be good then some shit company like proctor & gamble or mars bought them out (i forget which one). afaik, orijen is only indie mfgr left, and i THINK wellness, but i'm not certain.
grain free probably isn't necessary or beneficial, but it is the only way to get food w/ a good protein content (~40&#37.

 

[bobdole369]

I like Blue Buffalo. Not too expensive, relatively widely stocked, and there's a good variety.

Seconded. The subjective best turd lol. We started her on Purina One that the shelter had but I'm not too big on the ingredient list:

Lamb, brewers rice, corn gluten meal, poultry by-product meal, whole grain corn, oat meal, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), soy flakes, soybean meal, glycerin, animal digest

While Lamb is neat, it could be any part of the lamb, including its eyeballs. Corn anything is fairly low-value nutritionally speaking. And Poultry by-product meal means that its literally anything, including chicken shit, all blended together like a chicken nugget and oozed out in a ping alienlike gooey mass. Whole Grain corn is actually bad here - I'd prefer corn germ, or cracked or malted corn. BTW - since you shit corn out - that means that your body passes it right through. So does your dog. Brewers rice is rice swept up from the floor thats broken or otherwise rejected.

Blue Buffalo is slightly better:

Deboned Lamb, Lamb Meal, Whole Ground Brown Rice, Whole Ground Barley, Fish Meal, Oatmeal, Rye, Whole Potatoes, Sunflower Oil (natural source of Omega 6 Fatty Acids), Tomato Pomace (natural source of Lycopene), Natural Flavor, Whole Carrots, Whole Sweet Potatoes, Blueberries, Cranberries, Flaxseed, Barley Grass, Dried Parsley, Alfalfa Meal, Kelp Meal,

 

[bobdole369]

I'm not considering 30lbs since it's a puppy.

My puppy (11lb to 16lb got her in early August at 12 weeks) has already gone through 2 15lb bags. I'm figuring a 15 lb every 2 weeks for now. My puppy eats about a cup and a half a day ( a little less than that).

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_cups_of_pet_food_are_in_a_20_pound_bag

You'll end up using likely 3 or more of the 30 lb bags by the time the year is over.

 

[Nebor]

No one's mentioned Solid Gold? I keep a bag of Solid Gold Barking at the Moon on hand as backup in case I don't have any raw meat for my dog. But it's been months since he's had anything other than raw diet food, and he's been on the diet overall for over 3 years. He's very muscular, slim and healthy. Plus it's hard to beat the price of meat that people won't typically eat.

 

[schneiderguy]

Feed him raw meat so he doesn't turn into a pussy like you.

 

[zinfamous]

Feed him raw meat so he doesn't turn into a pussy like you.

:thumbsup:

 

[GoodRevrnd]

No one's mentioned Solid Gold? I keep a bag of Solid Gold Barking at the Moon on hand as backup in case I don't have any raw meat for my dog. But it's been months since he's had anything other than raw diet food, and he's been on the diet overall for over 3 years. He's very muscular, slim and healthy. Plus it's hard to beat the price of meat that people won't typically eat.

Do you go to the butcher and say "gimme all your shitty scrap meat" or something? Sounds like a good strat. I'm too lazy to make sure the dogs would get enough other proper nutrients tho. =/

 

[Zeze]

Seconded. The subjective best turd lol. We started her on Purina One that the shelter had but I'm not too big on the ingredient list:

Blue Buffalo is slightly better:

WTF. So many fail in one reply.

1. Blue Buffalo is a 6 star food. And you compare it to 1-star major brand crap like Purina One full of by products? It's not 'slightly' better. It's a night and day.

2. And no, learn more about ingredient classification. When they say 'Lamb' that doesn't mean it contains eyeballs and intestines. Those fall under by-products.

3. Don't buy into urban legends and hypersensationalism. Chicken nuggets at all major fast food chains are 100% white meat. They don't use by-products.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

My puppy (11lb to 16lb got her in early August at 12 weeks) has already gone through 2 15lb bags. I'm figuring a 15 lb every 2 weeks for now. My puppy eats about a cup and a half a day ( a little less than that).

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_cups_of_pet_food_are_in_a_20_pound_bag

You'll end up using likely 3 or more of the 30 lb bags by the time the year is over.

:hmm: I'll have to think about it. As of right now, though, I don't have $50-60 to spend on dog food.

No one's mentioned Solid Gold? I keep a bag of Solid Gold Barking at the Moon on hand as backup in case I don't have any raw meat for my dog. But it's been months since he's had anything other than raw diet food, and he's been on the diet overall for over 3 years. He's very muscular, slim and healthy. Plus it's hard to beat the price of meat that people won't typically eat.

Solid Gold seems very good for the 33lb bag. Like I said, though, I don't know about spending $55 now. Since I got the dog three days ago, I still need to buy her more toys and need to continue training her and what not.

Also, trying to troll on a thread asking for actual advice=fail.

 

[Nebor]

Do you go to the butcher and say "gimme all your shitty scrap meat" or something? Sounds like a good strat. I'm too lazy to make sure the dogs would get enough other proper nutrients tho. =/

You could do that, or you can just check out that section of the meat cooler that's full of stuff like chicken livers, cow bones, pig feet, etc. All you have to do is maintain a decent mix of organ, muscle and bone. I keep a couple big bags of individually frozen chicken thighs, wings, and breasts in the freezer that he really likes to eat frozen, so that keeps me from having to go to the store too much. That's like 90% of my dog's diet. Other than that, if I'm eating something that he'd be able to obtain in the wild, I'll give him some, like eggs, berries, or nuts. The thing to keep in mind is that dog's aren't really meant to eat carbs like grain or vegetables. The tiny amount they do need they'd get from their prey's stomach in the wild. So if you buy a dog food, buy one that has MEAT as the top three ingredients.

Also if you do feed your dog raw meat, expect people to freak out, "OMG, he's going to get sick!" People are retarded. Dogs are dogs. They can drink out of puddles, eat 4 day old roadkill and stay awake for days at a time.

 

[ccryder]

Orijen

 

[Sinsear]

I use Blue Buffalo Wilderness salmon flavor.

 

[thescreensavers]

You could do that, or you can just check out that section of the meat cooler that's full of stuff like chicken livers, cow bones, pig feet, etc. All you have to do is maintain a decent mix of organ, muscle and bone. I keep a couple big bags of individually frozen chicken thighs, wings, and breasts in the freezer that he really likes to eat frozen, so that keeps me from having to go to the store too much. That's like 90% of my dog's diet. Other than that, if I'm eating something that he'd be able to obtain in the wild, I'll give him some, like eggs, berries, or nuts. The thing to keep in mind is that dog's aren't really meant to eat carbs like grain or vegetables. The tiny amount they do need they'd get from their prey's stomach in the wild. So if you buy a dog food, buy one that has MEAT as the top three ingredients.

Also if you do feed your dog raw meat, expect people to freak out, "OMG, he's going to get sick!" People are retarded. Dogs are dogs. They can drink out of puddles, eat 4 day old roadkill and stay awake for days at a time.

Just feeding meat alone will not give a dog a balanced diet, it requires alot more then just feeding meet.

Dry Dog food is not the best Raw>Wet>Dry but Dry is the easiest out of all of them to feed.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

I still have not made a decision. :\

I think I'll go for whichever is cheapest when I go to PetSmart this weekend: Innova or Wellness.

To be honest, training a dog, especially a puppy, is a PITA. I'm not gonna bother with raw for now; not until I finish training her.

 

[thescreensavers]

^ Thats cool man you have done your research and know whats good, I am sure you'll do fine. As long as your not buying the 1-2star foods it will be good.

 

[Nebor]

Just feeding meat alone will not give a dog a balanced diet, it requires alot more then just feeding meet.

Dry Dog food is not the best Raw>Wet>Dry but Dry is the easiest out of all of them to feed.

I'm not trying to feed a "balanced" diet. Just feeding him what he would eat in the wild.

 

[preslove]

I feed my corgi Blue Buffalo Wilderness, which is grain free. It's ~$28 for 15 lbs where I live. Chico is his optimal weight.

 

[96Firebird]

Do NOT feed a puppy grain-free, unless it is Orijen. That is the only one made for puppies, but is also very expensive. Even the grain-free brands that say ALS (all life stages) aren't recommended for puppies.

I fed my guy Wellness Super5Mix LBP because he is a large breed and they need to control the calcium/phosphorous levels to prevent the bones from growing too fast. You can always find coupons for Wellness too, which is nice...