want a good brand for the dogs food

[labrdogs]

Look for real meat in the ingredients no corn cheap filler. Some names I like are natural balance, eagle pack holistic, american natural premium, fromm. there are ones even better like taste of the wild, orjen even raw.

I do a mix of foods and never had issues with this process, helps to prevent allergies to specific foods. I have 5 on kibble and one on raw/kibble diet. The one on raw ups the raw as needed for the high protien levels to repair her back after a freak accident that blew out a disk in her spine.

[TCJACK]

red flannel by pmi is what i prefer. 28/18. 35$ for 50lb bag

[buckwildbirddogs]

Asking the "Food" question can get into a heated debat. There really is no right or wrong food. It is what works for the dog, and what you can afford to feed. Yes some foods have better quality ingredients thus making them higher up on my list of preference. But in the end if the dog has soft stools, gas, not maintaining weight, etc on a supposed "High Quality" food I am not going to feed it.

That being said I can only speak from personal experiences searching for "The Best Dog Food...For our dogs"
1) Science Diet - HATE IT - The dogs had runny stools, did not maintain weight, had the most horrible gas in the world , they had dry dull coats. Plus it was expensive compared to the amount of food/bag.

2) Purina - Proplan/Puppy Chow - Better than Science Diet - Still expensive for the amt we feed. Did not keep weight on the dogs in the hunting season as well but was good in the off season. Minimal gas and stools seemed ok.

3) Diamond - LOVE IT - This is the best we have found. There are many formulas to choose from for different activity levels. Stools are formed but not hard and very minimal mess. No Gas. We feed High Energy in the off season and Extreme Athlete when running hard. All pups are started out on the puppy food. CHEAP to feed.

4) 4 Health - Also Love this food - We have one pup that for some reason is prone to UTIs. This food was very comparable to some of the "High End" foods for half the price. It is more expensive than the Diamond but if it keeps her from getting UTIs it is worth it. She also has no gas, formed stools, no mess, a very nice coat, and is maintaining weight wonderfully.


This is just my opinion and my experience with foods. We also Do Not feed canned or moistened food as it builds tartar on the teeth. We don't supplement our dogs (unless in extreme circumstances), and we don't bother with raw diets as the kibbles now are very well made to suit the dogs needs. They will occasionally get treats every now and then but that is the extent to extras. We also Free Feed which some on here see as wrong but it works for us and we do not have any dog overweight or with problems from it. JMO

[kninebirddog]

How a food is processed also will make a huge difference if a dog can get any value out of it or not

We are feeding Loyal maint and performance depending on if they are trial dogs or pups to just kennel dogs that aren't used like the others and the dogs are doing extremely well on it

edit to add .....I also look at my average puppies whelp weights and by far the best average weights I have seen is with the Loyall performance. My last liter whelped of Brittanys the pup were 13 plus ounces where this last female her pups are normally are around the 10-12 oz mark...This really lets me know how much nutrition the mother is getting while pregnant...

[Rustygunskennel]

Gentlemen,

By far I believe the best brand going right now is Black Gold dog food. i switched to it about 2 months ago from Purina Pro-plan and i see a huge difference in the dogs. more lean muscle, feces that crumbles and washes away with ease. most of their offerings are in the 90%+ digestibility.

Buck,

I used to use Diamond a while back and almost lost 3 dogs to the "issue" they had. I hear a lot of people say that they have it all ironed out. but i'm still a little gun shy if you get my meaning.

[buckwildbirddogs]

Most all reputable companies have recalls. Shows that their checks are in place and working. Better that they come out and announce it and recall the product than to let it circulate further. IMO

[garybedwell]

I used Royal Canin Dog Food for my dog. It is really very healthy.

[Shelite's Shorthairs]

We were also feeding Red Flannel and love it. Then I was told I should be feeding Diamond, we are in the middle of switching over so I will see how it compares. It is cheaper so I will see how the dogs look in a few weeks.

[swbell]

Lots of choices. Good information from personal experience. I'm wondering where each person lives and where they purchase their food? I'm in S. Minn and we have Fleet/Farm, a couple of dog chain stores & Gander Mt. - So I'm trying to find something I can buy here in town.

thanks,
-steve

[Ashby Kennels]

red flannel by pmi is what i prefer. 28/18. 35$ for 50lb bag

I have been feeding this now too for a couple of months. First the Prime, then switched to Puppy for a litter and momma. Everything good so far.