Good dog food? Helping dog gain weight.

[pawner69]

I have ALWAYS fed my dogs Pedigree and Purinia until I learned about what is in that food! (In addition to organs (the nourishing part), this stuff can contain almost anything — feet, beaks, undeveloped eggs — anything except quality skeletal muscle (real meat). YUK!! I felt like such a terrible doggy mommy. My dogs now are fed Exclusive brand dog food which is a slight step down from Blue Buffalo (Blue Buffalo rated at 4 out of 5, Exlusive 3.5 out of 5) but costs about half as much. I get a 16 lb bag for around $22. My dogs seems to really enjoy it. I have also noticed we have not had any accidents in the house and they eat so much less since it is so much better for them and they are getting much better quality food.

 

[couchon]

@pawner69 , Exclusive is CERTAINLY better than Pedigree and Purina. Good for you for doing better by your doggies

However, I wouldn't say it's just a slight step down from Blue Buffalo. Apparently, it doesn't contain quite enought meat (which is also why I wouldn't recommend it to OP, especially with her dog's weight loss). It does contain grains, which is generally considered not something that dog foods should have, and there are also questions about whether it may contain ethoxyquin https://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/showproduct.php?product=1732&cat=all Blue Buffalo is a SIGNIFICANTLY better food!

I know dog food can be REALLY expensive, but I do think you pay for quality ingredients a lot of times. I think it's fantastic that you got your dogs away from Pedigree , but I would definitely say keep looking into foods. Wellness Core, for example is a great food, and it's $56 for a 22 pound bag - that's about $1 more per pound of food. (broken link removed) And there are probably 4 or 5 start foods https://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/ that are probably just a bit more expensive and have more meat in them and no grains. Keep in mind, you may also have to feed LESS of a better food with higher meat content. Basically, foods with not a lot of meat have ingredients like water and fillers to add bulk, but you are not actually getting your money's worth. I feed Orijen, which is outstanding, and my 60 pound dog needs just two cups a day! (he is not very active, but even for an active dog their recommendationis somewhere around 3 cups).

 

[pawner69]

@couchon...I totally agree. I actually have been considering switching to Canidae Grain Free which gets a higher rating but don't want to be switching their food too much. I figured by this summer once they have made the first food adjustment, then I can work into switching them to something even better. They are older dogs (13 and 8) so changes have to be made slowly for them.

 

[couchon]

@pawner69 I really admire you for doing all the research on food for your pups ! There is so much misinformation out there, and sometimes it's hard to know where to look. Your pups are lucky to have you!

The dog that I grew up with ate junky food (Iams is the last one I remeber) - he was actually raised on home-made food, but then we moved to the US and discovered all the dry foods, and we thought they were supposed to be really good - lack of information. Then, he got cancer, and the first thing the vet told us to do was get him off of dry food and start feeding him home-made food (at the time, I don't know if there were as many good brands around, and ordering over the internet was a lot less common, so it was pretty much what was in the pet store). I am sure dogs that are fed good food can get cancer as well, but I want to give my pup the best chance I can.

 

[Aleks]

@couchon I really look forward to talking with you more about this, you seem to be really knowledgeable on the subject.
I actually just went upstairs to see what kind of food she's being fed right now and it's Gravy Train. The first ingredient is corn, followed by grains and meal and animal meal stuff. ugh.

I don't know if it's just happening on my computer, but a lot of the comments just disappeared! o_o

 

[Melissa123]

How fast do you switch from food to food? That may be the issue. Slowly intro the new food little by little over a long time frame. I normally do 1 week, but for your pups try 2 weeks. The slower, the better. You could also add boiled rice until their tummies get use to the new dry food.

The other thing is, how fast do they gobble the new food down? If dogs eat too fast, sometimes they vomit it back up. Have you tried a slow feeder if they do this?
Ol 'Roy has had several issues with their food. There are a ton of brands you could try that are so much better for them. Giving them table scraps aren't good for them (fresh veggies are though!) and they will not get the right amount from those along with the Ol' Roy.

Sorry if it seems I am calling you out on this. It was not my intention, just trying to help you out. Good luck!

 

[porkchophamster]

I just want to add a few things.
While Pedigree and Ol Roy are awful, I have been seeing some supermarkets carrying better foods. Ol Roy actually has a grain free line now that is pretty decent and Publix has a higher quality food as well. While a raw diet definitely has its benefits, it is not necessarily the best for your particular dog especially if it's not done properly. Personally, I stick to high quality, grain-free diets because I can't afford premade raw and I don't trust myself to do raw correctly. I switch between a variety of foods like Blue Buffalo Wilderness, Wellness Core, Nature's Variety Instinct, etc. I avoid Diamond products mostly because they have so many recalls but if there is a sale on them, I will sometimes buy a bag.
OP, feed what you can afford but I wouldn't bother with raw if you don't think it will be kept up once she gets new owners.
Also, google "Satin Balls." I have heard they are great to help dogs gain weight.
Good luck and keep us updated

 

[2198lindsey]

I do a lot of rescue and for putting weight on a dog we usually use puppy food.

A good brand that won't break your pocket is Natural Balance. I feed it sometimes.

I also use Nutro, Blue Buffalo and feed raw. Don't feel bad, I used to feed Pedigree and Ol 'Roy before I decided to actually research it

 

[PerfectPiggie]

My dog Bilbo, he is 10 now and he was starting to get a bit skinny. So we changed his dog food to a food called Applaws, its really good stuff, its really good stuff and it works, Bill is starting to put more wait on now. If you type it into the internet there is loads of info about it. My mum orders it online.

 

[lissie]

For those that prefer dry food on low budget, Kirkland food is not bad. If you have Costco near you, you might want to try them.
https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/natures-domain-dog-food/

 

[chip123]

bread(with butter optional) will bulk her up and u can also feed her plain white boiled rice with nothing else

 

[Aleks]

About the rice suggestions, everyone else was saying grains are bad, and rice is a grain is it not? So wouldn't that be bad, or is it only certain kinds of grains that are bad?

 

[Wenzerito]

Canidae is my personal favorite.

Blue buffalo, wellness, and Nutro are also good.

Raw is the best way to go if you can afford it.

Mostly you want to look for the first ingredients in the food to be meat-meal (eg. "chicken meal"). I prefer meal over actual meat (eg. listed as just "chicken"). The difference (for those who do not know) is that the actual meat when listed as just "chicken" or just "turkey" means that it was weighed BEFORE it was cooked, whereas cooking eliminates much of the water content that makes up the weight, therefore it is technically lower on the list in ingredients, and not as much used compared to the higher up ingredients. Meal is the meat that has been cooked THEN weighed, telling you how much meat is in the food compared to other ingredients in the list.

 

[chip123]

im sure its different kinds of grains as I have fed it to a litter of 11 pups to try and get them to bulk up abit while coming off milk

 

[Paula]

Bread is not a good suggestion at all. I wouldn't follow that advice at all. The dog will likely eat it, but it's not good for them and they aren't evolved to digest grains, especially overprocessed grains like bread or white rice.

On the raw comment about affordability, it can be very inexpensive to feed raw depending on your location. I get whole chickens on sale for $.49/lb and have found a local farmer where I get horse, beef, chicken, geese, rabbit, you name it for under a buck a pound. Totally doable and so worth the benefits over kibble.

Back to the original post, has this dog been to a vet? That she's eating smaller bites could mean she's picky, but it could also mean the larger pieces hurt her mouth somehow. Also, some bloodwork to rule out thyroid or other issues might be a good idea.

 

[lissie]

bread(with butter optional) will bulk her up and u can also feed her plain white boiled rice with nothing else

That's not healthy for the dog at all. It's better for them to bulk up their muscle mass, than to just get fat. They need protein, not carb.

 

[ShihTzuLover]

Please ignore the posts suggesting poor quality brands and to feed your dog grains of any kind. It's better have a trim dog with muscle mass than a heavy dog fed too much fat. Dogs are supposed to be very lean! I feed my dog Earthborn Naturals. It's completely grain free, has very high quality ingredients, and the proceeds go to saving trees. It's very high in protein, so it helps maintain a healthy weight. All your dog needs is a high quality food or raw diet. If he doesn't bulk up to the size you think he needs to be, he is likely at a healthy weight unless there are health issues. My dog is fed a single cup of kibble a day, and nothing else. He is in peak physical health.

Here's the website, where you can see all of the ingredients : (broken link removed)

 

[madelineelaine]

I don't have dogs but I must say, that is a really int resting bit of information.

 

[lissie]

Here's an interesting chart to see if your dog is too thin or overweight.
https://clicktreat.blogspot.com/2012/03/does-your-dog-have-waist.html

 

[Agrimony]

I don't have dogs but I must say, that is a really int resting bit of information.

I agree, I don't have dogs either but I've been reading this thread, very interesting!