Cost effective dog food for health longevity of life?
Jun.30, 2009 in
Health
mommy to be of 3 asked:
Looking for a cost effective dog food for health, longevity of life, where they get the most out of it, less bowel movements, less shedding? is that possible 2 austrailian sheperds 1 year old and 5 mo. old. thanks oh and no animal byproducts.
We arent looking for cheapo or anything I just want what is best for them at the best price definitely not grocery store brands like purina etc. thanks
by animal by products I mean bones the four d’s dead dying deceased and cant member the fourth. please list brand names and where to possibly buy
Looking for a cost effective dog food for health, longevity of life, where they get the most out of it, less bowel movements, less shedding? is that possible 2 austrailian sheperds 1 year old and 5 mo. old. thanks oh and no animal byproducts.
We arent looking for cheapo or anything I just want what is best for them at the best price definitely not grocery store brands like purina etc. thanks
by animal by products I mean bones the four d’s dead dying deceased and cant member the fourth. please list brand names and where to possibly buy
July 3rd, 2009 at 10:46 am
Make it yourself.
Start researching here:
July 4th, 2009 at 11:36 pm
Canidae:
Innova/California Natural (other foods on the site)
Timberwolf Organics:
Solid Gold:
Chicken Soup for the Pet Lovers Soul:
Here is a list of the Top Ten Dog Foods:
You sound like you know what to stay away from, which is Science Diet, IAMS, Eukanuba, Purina, etc etc
And Yes! With a good quality food you WILL get less poo! LOL I noticed that big time w/ my 2 dogs, I got worried and took them to the vet and he said that since they are getting a good quality food, they wont poo that much. I feed my 2 dogs Innova dry and wet mixed.
Just look through those foods to see which one fits your budget! You can also shop around at different health food stores that sell dog food to get a good price.
Hope that helps and Good job for researching!
July 5th, 2009 at 10:07 pm
By Nature, is the brand that I adore right now. Here are the top ingredients in their adult food:
- Chicken Meal, Ground Barley, Ground Oats, Ground Brown Rice, Chicken Fat (Stabilized with Mixed Tocopherols), Lamb Meal, Chicken
July 7th, 2009 at 11:48 pm
in truth all dog foods have byproducts in them, chemicals and the such. in some part of manufacturing it, it will get in there. the best is to feed them what we know as ‘human food’, though human food is real food, my doberman eats nothing but boiled chicken, fish, liver, and the such. also, corn is not easily digestable, causes fur problems, and in truth, it causes the same problems in people too
July 9th, 2009 at 3:59 am
Our dogs are 10 – 12 years old and very healthy. They eat Alpo Prime Cuts and love it.
July 9th, 2009 at 4:27 pm
A good name brand, if home made dog foods were so good, then why dont they market it and make a ton of money? Nuff said…..
July 11th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
Dog food isn’t going to minimize shedding. Brushing them everyday and only bathing them 4 times per year will help the shedding.
There are no cost effective (cheap) dog foods that are healthy for them. You get what you pay for when it comes to dogs and their food. Look for Solid Gold, Canidae, Innova and California Natural in the pet store and get either of those brands. Very healthy and nutritious but can be expensive.
July 12th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
I’m a veterinary technician at a local pet clinic. Maybe I can help! I recommend feeding your dogs homemade foods. Sweet potatoes, chicken, and rice are very heatlhy for dogs. I recommend going to walmart and buying a huge bag of those chicken wings/legs for 5 bucks and baking them in the oven with the sweet potatoes and rice. When its done cooking though, take the chicken off the bones. Chicken bones are bad for dogs. And give each dog a bowl-ful of the mixed ingredients once a day. Not only is this pretty cheap, but it will keep your dogs coat shinier, less shedding, less hunger, and you can save the cooked chicken up to 3 days in the fridge. Or, if you don’t want to do this…the best brands are Science Diet (expensive but very healthy) or Purina One (10 lb bag $16.00) and its pretty healthy. Good luck!
July 14th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
The better quality (and usually more expensive) the food the less they will need to eat. The cost usually evens out in the end – for example you buy a bag for $40 and they eat 1 cup a day or you buy a bag for $10 and they will need to eat 4 cups a day to get the same out of it. More **** and same amount of money. It’s not best for dogs to not have any animal byproducts. They are carnivores. If you plan for a vegetarian diet you really need to make sure your vet is okay and that they are taking suppliments to get everything they need. I myself am a vegetarian and not against it, so if your vet okays it, go for it. Here’s a site I found on goodsearch.
July 15th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
Natural Balance is great. Also, Purina One. It’s not a premium food but my coworker feeds it to her dogs and now recommends it to everyone. Her one dog has horrible allergies and has been doing great on this food. Her other dog is a picky eater and this is the only food he likes to eat.
July 18th, 2009 at 12:54 am
nature’s variety
July 21st, 2009 at 8:09 am
I have a mix chow and german sheperd. He is six months old. I feed him Natural Choice he has a healthy skin and shiny coat.People alway asked me how do I get his fur to shine.Its his food.For twenty pound bag it cost 24.99 of course they have smaller bag.they have dry food and wet food.I give him dry food. For older dog they have Ultra and Max for adult.I shop at petsmart or I go to the pet wharehouse.I cannot find this food at a grocery certain stores only sell this food. they also put out for the dogs treats bones and other items in their brand name ata costly price.Its well worth it. Good Luck
July 22nd, 2009 at 6:12 am
Try the Canidae.. Not an expensive food, but has no wheat, corn, fillers, is human grade, naturally preserved, no animal by products, and more… They eat FAR less, I was stunned how much less the dogs ate and still got all the nutrition they needed.. FAR less ****.. even more shocking when you go to clean up the yard.. I was also very pleased when it came to shedding. This was a bad year for shedding no matter the breed.. Weird weather etc.. Our guys really shed alot, within a week of feeding the Canidae, it was down to nearly nothing again.
Forget Iams, Beneful, All Purina, Eukanuba, Kibbles n Bits, Ol Roy, Pedigree, Science Diet etc.. They are all garbage foods that are preserved with cancer causing BHA/BHT or ethoxyquin, or cancer causing dyes, or use a Synthetic Vitamin K which makes the body not be able to normally use K from other sources. Horrible foods..
Some of them have sugars that your dog gets hooked on, making you feel like he loves the food, and it’s a horrible addiction to something that is dangerous and causes diabetes
Good Quality dogfood, might seem like it costs more but they actually eat far less and get their nutrition easier from the quality foods.
July 24th, 2009 at 4:46 pm
One food that hasn’t been mentioned yet is Orijen. A friend of mine recommended it as the next best thing to feeding raw (which I’m unwilling to do).
Here’s the science and rationale behind the food:
Here are the reviews of the food by people that have used it:
And I bought my first bag from, which hass free shipping.
It hasn’t arrived yet, so I don’t know yet how my girls will take to it. I thought it was really expensive at first, but since I’ll be feeding about half as much as I do of Eukanuba (what they’ve been on for several years), it turns out its about the same price.