All you dog owners!!

I work with animals and there are lots of good food options for dogs in both wet and dry varieties. Like everyone said, you want the first ingredient to be something that links to a specific animal, like chicken, beef or lam as opposed to poultry or meat. If it says "meal" after it, like chicken meal or beef meal, that is also ok, it's normally dehydrated meat. The biggest thing to avoid is by-products, which can come from things like unappetizing parts of the animal (chicken beaks/feet/heads etc), condemned material from slaughterhouses, road kill, other dead companion animals etc. Also try to avoid grain fractions, instead stick to whole grains (brown rice, barely etc.) and vegetables. Don't go with corn because it goes right through the animals, it is very difficult to digest and just means more waste to clean up. A good rule of thumb to follow normally is: if its a big brand name of food, it probably isn't the best food out there (most of the good foods are brands that you wouldn't recognize because they don't do a lot of advertising). I would suggest you look at brands like Inova Evo, Taste of the Wild, Pinaccle, Wellness, Blue Buffalo, or Caifornia Natural. Hope this helps!
 
bmilla35 said:
Sooooooo...what do you feed to your pet?
Click to expand...

i cook up Dog Soup for two very energetic Border Collies.

the basic premise is that ANY AND ALL food that comes into your house is either eaten by you and your family, or given to the dogs. the point is: someone eats it. no food should ever get thrown away.

i have a big stack of 1 liter tupperware containers. between cook-ups, any leftovers otherwise destined for the garbage go in a container and into the freezer. these containers also store the finished dog soup.

i mean ALL leftovers. vege peelings, spinach and broccoli stalks, meat trimmings, whatever is left on the plate, the lot. anything in the fridge that's just a touch too-far gone can go in. got some bread that's a bit stale? throw it in the DogSoup. cooked too much rice or pasta one night? into the DogSoup.

you'll need some kind of basic "meat" to throw in it. i get the gunk off the bandsaw from my local butcher as my main protein source. you can throw it in the pot raw or fry it up first, your call. if some suicidal kangaroo banzais into my radiator at 100 clicks, they get dressed out and put into the freezer and into the next pot. if i knock over a pig or stinky goat with the bow, into the DogSoup pot (although a pig can stink out the house for weeks if i don't get the breeze pattern right through the house).

some neck bones or similar in ~1" thick chunks is nice. whole chicken necks or busted up chicken frames are also awesome as they leave lots of crunchy bits my dogs love. some Tuna can also serve if you can't get something that's free or super cheap.

have a chat to a local butcher, they'll often thrown that bandsaw gunk away because it's actually not very good stuff to feed to dogs straight (all that bone residue gives them horrific constipation). but added into DogSoup, it's super-mega-power-hound chow.

come Dog Soup Day, i start with 4kg of potatoes (the cheap, on-special ones. ask the supermarket manager what they do with old spuds they can't sell, maybe you can score), chopped quite finely (say, 1/3" cubes?) in a big (~20l?) stock pot with water, all those leftovers from the freezer, a couple of beef or chicken stock cubes, ~3kg of your bandsaw gunk or other basic protein additive, bring to the boil then leave to simmer with a lid for ~4-6 hours. give it a stir occasionally to make sure it aint burning on the bottom. if you're watching your dogs fat intake, skim the fat off if there's too much (make sure to leave some fat in there, very important)

once the water goes kind of like a stock solution, i put four cups of brown rice on to soak in some of the stock in a different bowl. feel free to add in lentils, split or dried peas, barley or similar if the fancy takes you.

when the whole lot is well cooked, turn the heat off and throw in your rice/lentils/etc, give it all a good stir and mix it all up and leave it to sit until the rice/lentils are properly cooked (i don't add trhe rice to the pot earlier as it tends to wind up on the bottom, burnt).

last, i tend to throw in 3-4 100gram tins of Sardines along with 50 grams of plain Gelatine disolved in some hot (not boiling!) water.

mix it all up good.

now decant the finished dog-soup into your stack of 1liter containers making sure to spread the bones around between meals (a 1l saucepan is awesome for this bit).

exactly how much you need to feed your dog is something you'll have to figure out. a tablespoon of olive oil or the occasional raw egg served up with the DogSoup does wonders for my dog's coats.

it'll keep in the fridge for a week and in the freezer for ages. out of one 20l pot, i get about sixteen 1l containers of finished DogSoup which lasts about two weeks.

total cost, not including power to cook it which would be a couple of bucks, is generally about AUD$10 to feed two dogs for two weeks.

THINGS TO AVOID: Onions and Garlic should only ever be present in dog soup in "incidental" amounts. so that little bit leftover curry is fine, but don't intentionally add any extra in. same goes for chillies and the like.
 
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I rescued my mutt many moons ago through petfinder.com and he had already been eating Iams® ProActive Health™ Adult Minichunks and he's still eating it to this day. He seems to like it and it keeps him very regular. One load in the morning and one load in the evening like clockwork. :)
 
In January or February I switched to Costco's brand "Kirkland Signature Chicken Rice and Vegetables." It is made by Diamond Company. I had some concerns about how well my dogs would do on it, as I had been feeding Breeders Choice AvoDerm for 17 years.

I am boycotting Breeders Choice because at the end of last year or beginning of this year, they kept the bag the same size, but decreased the quantity by 5 pounds, and increased the price at the same time. Quite deceptive packaging in my opinion. My letter to them went unanswered. I only discovered the switch when I ran out of dog food 2 weeks before I normally did. WTH? I measure my dogs' food at every meal, so I know exactly how much they eat and how long a bag of dog food will last.

Mongo, my youngest munchkin (Lhasa Apso), was clipped down to nothing in early spring including his ears and muzzle. It is now about 3-4" in length. I groomed him yesterday and realized that his coat is luxurious! It has shine and body and there is no dryness in his coat or his skin. I weighed him at the Vet yesterday morning and I guessed his weight would be maybe 20 pounds as he is heavy boned. I have not weighed him for a year or so. Golly gee whiz, he weighed in at 19.9 pounds! I was thrilled! For a pet Lhasa that is a decent weight.

Here is a photo I just took of Dancer outside, with some sun reflection. His coat is varying lengths, because he is growing out from being clipped down, but I think you can still see how nice the texture is.

I'm gonna stick with Kirkland Signature Chicken Rice and Vegetables until it isn't working for my dogs any longer. So far, it is working just fine.

MongoDancer090410.jpg
 
Casper's been getting the same food mix I've given to my last 5 dogs...

Iams dry food (mini chunks for dog of Casper's size) mixed with a couple of spoonfuls of Mighty Dog or on occasion Alpo (with gravy), and about a tablespoon of people food... including vegetables mixed in. I only mix in rice if he has a watery stool. As to dog treats, I've tried several but he prefers Beggin' Strips the most! He does like the Hartz rawhide shaped like little bones but I dispose of any little pieces he has not finished. Don't want him choking on that stuff... especially if I'm not going to be home!


DSCN5442.jpg
 
Hiya Judy! I don't want to sidetrack this thread but I was persuaded to take in Casper by a friend of a friend when he was 2 1/2 years old (good for him & good for me). That was back in the summer of 2007 so that makes him a little over 5 1/2 years old now. :D We're both doing OK but of course I spoil him rotten! :)
 
Clydetz said:
Hiya Judy! I don't want to sidetrack this thread but I was persuaded to take in Casper by a friend of a friend when he was 2 1/2 years old (good for him & good for me). That was back in the summer of 2007 so that makes him a little over 5 1/2 years old now. :D We're both doing OK but of course I spoil him rotten! :)
Click to expand...

To keep us on topic, it sure does look like Casper is thriving on the Iams mini-chunks. Glad you two found each other. And Casper is not spoiled, he is just "indulged" as I like to say!
 
sambo. said:
i cook up Dog Soup for two very energetic Border Collies.

the basic premise is that ANY AND ALL food that comes into your house is either eaten by you and your family, or given to the dogs. the point is: someone eats it. no food should ever get thrown away.

i have a big stack of 1 liter tupperware containers. between cook-ups, any leftovers otherwise destined for the garbage go in a container and into the freezer. these containers also store the finished dog soup.

i mean ALL leftovers. vege peelings, spinach and broccoli stalks, meat trimmings, whatever is left on the plate, the lot. anything in the fridge that's just a touch too-far gone can go in. got some bread that's a bit stale? throw it in the DogSoup. cooked too much rice or pasta one night? into the DogSoup.

you'll need some kind of basic "meat" to throw in it. i get the gunk off the bandsaw from my local butcher as my main protein source. you can throw it in the pot raw or fry it up first, your call. if some suicidal kangaroo banzais into my radiator at 100 clicks, they get dressed out and put into the freezer and into the next pot. if i knock over a pig or stinky goat with the bow, into the DogSoup pot (although a pig can stink out the house for weeks if i don't get the breeze pattern right through the house).

some neck bones or similar in ~1" thick chunks is nice. whole chicken necks or busted up chicken frames are also awesome as they leave lots of crunchy bits my dogs love. some Tuna can also serve if you can't get something that's free or super cheap.

have a chat to a local butcher, they'll often thrown that bandsaw gunk away because it's actually not very good stuff to feed to dogs straight (all that bone residue gives them horrific constipation). but added into DogSoup, it's super-mega-power-hound chow.

come Dog Soup Day, i start with 4kg of potatoes (the cheap, on-special ones. ask the supermarket manager what they do with old spuds they can't sell, maybe you can score), chopped quite finely (say, 1/3" cubes?) in a big (~20l?) stock pot with water, all those leftovers from the freezer, a couple of beef or chicken stock cubes, ~3kg of your bandsaw gunk or other basic protein additive, bring to the boil then leave to simmer with a lid for ~4-6 hours. give it a stir occasionally to make sure it aint burning on the bottom. if you're watching your dogs fat intake, skim the fat off if there's too much (make sure to leave some fat in there, very important)

once the water goes kind of like a stock solution, i put four cups of brown rice on to soak in some of the stock in a different bowl. feel free to add in lentils, split or dried peas, barley or similar if the fancy takes you.

when the whole lot is well cooked, turn the heat off and throw in your rice/lentils/etc, give it all a good stir and mix it all up and leave it to sit until the rice/lentils are properly cooked (i don't add trhe rice to the pot earlier as it tends to wind up on the bottom, burnt).

last, i tend to throw in 3-4 100gram tins of Sardines along with 50 grams of plain Gelatine disolved in some hot (not boiling!) water.

mix it all up good.

now decant the finished dog-soup into your stack of 1liter containers making sure to spread the bones around between meals (a 1l saucepan is awesome for this bit).

exactly how much you need to feed your dog is something you'll have to figure out. a tablespoon of olive oil or the occasional raw egg served up with the DogSoup does wonders for my dog's coats.

it'll keep in the fridge for a week and in the freezer for ages. out of one 20l pot, i get about sixteen 1l containers of finished DogSoup which lasts about two weeks.

total cost, not including power to cook it which would be a couple of bucks, is generally about AUD$10 to feed two dogs for two weeks.

THINGS TO AVOID: Onions and Garlic should only ever be present in dog soup in "incidental" amounts. so that little bit leftover curry is fine, but don't intentionally add any extra in. same goes for chillies and the like.
Click to expand...

Very interesting...i'll have to consider that. It would be cool to see how much food I am actually throwing away, too
 
Totally Judy said:
To keep us on topic, it sure does look like Casper is thriving on the Iams mini-chunks. Glad you two found each other. And Casper is not spoiled, he is just "indulged" as I like to say!
Click to expand...

My vet told me Iams uses calcium or some ingredient in their formula to help with clean teeth.
 
navihawk said:
My vet told me Iams uses calcium or some ingredient in their formula to help with clean teeth.
Click to expand...

To help keep my munchkins' teeth clean, I use a product called "Plaque Off." It is made by a company called ProDen. The story behind it is pretty fascinating. It is primarily made of a particular seaweed - near Spain, I believe.

I sprinkle the granules in with the kibble. The plaque off softens the plaque and tartar, and the abrasive action of the kibble against the teeth removes the plaque and tartar. No more Vet teeth cleaning required! It's all natural and easy to use.

"ProDen PlaqueOff™ Animal is a completely natural product which is suitable for both cats and dogs. It is a special type of seaweed which has been found to have specific beneficial effects for oral care. It comes in a granulated form which is easily added to food every day. It is rich in natural iodine and contains important vitamins and minerals and is free from artificial colours, preservatives, gluten and sugar."

I purchase plaque off from California Veterinary Supply. I suppose there are several other places that sell it now.

Willy, my oldest (12 y/o), has a horrible problem with fast plaque and tartar build up. When I started him on plaque off, I accidently dosed him twice a day instead of once a day, and 16 days later, right before I had him scheduled for a Vet teeth cleaning, I checked his teeth and they were as bright white as could be! I was amazed.

Now all of the munchkins get plaque off with their kibble. When Mongo went to the Vet on Friday, they commented on how beautiful his teeth are. And he has never had his teeth cleaned at the Vet. Just kibble, plaque off, and rawhide retriever sticks.

The FDA recently approved Plaque Off for Humans in the USA. It was previously approved for human use in Europe.

Check it out:

http://www.plaqueoff.com/

I love saving money on Vet teeth cleaning, plus it helps keep the munchkins' teeth clean all of the time.
 
innova , or solid gold . we feed solid gold

stay away from grocery stores and places like that. also stay away from anything made thru company DIAMOND.

anyone remember the big animal scare few years ago with pets dying all over the country ?? 90 % of the contaminated dog food was thru DIAMOND.

dont cheap out on crap food.
 
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