Well yesterday after much gritting of teeth we decided we need to spend the extra money on dog food made from meat not the cheap walmart stuff .
It was not an easy decision but our new addition Mina has gained fat rolls all over in just the short time she has been with us, and Spot has been losing weight .
I started reading around and talked to the dog lady in a proper pet store and learnt some hard facts I did not know
1. Cheap dried dog food has no meat in it and the main ingredient is corn meal
2. The more expensive dried dog food uses real meat.
One of the interesting things which made up my mind was when the pet store lady said I should think of it as US just eating Potatoes and Bread and not a balanced diet.
So now hopefully our fat little sausage Mina may lose a little weight and Spot should stop losing weight.
I will say one thing it was a hard decision , I don't think we are terrible pet owners but like everybody else we have to watch the pennies and it has been so tempting to spend less than half the money we will in future on our beloved pets and only now do I feel guilty
steve
5 comments:
Steve, I just did a post last week about my sister's aggressive dog. Under the recommendation of dog behaviorist/nurtritionist who commented on the post, one thing she recommended was to get the dog off of the food she was on (Iams, which my sister always thought was fairly good.) She wanted the dog on a diet that was all-natural, from real meats, and, containing less fillers and less protein (which could cause her to have extra nervous energy.) I think it is a good idea and I am sure your dogs will be healthier for it, too!
I'm not a huge fan of paying the big bucks to feed my small pets, but I did it for my cats a year or so ago and I'm glad I did. I buy all natural, balanced food for my kitties and I think they are a lot healthier. They stay in good weight, their coats are shiny, thick, and healthy, their teeth are good, and they rarely get hairballs or upchuck their food. I really do think it has made a difference. And while it is harder on the budget, it's been worth it. Kudos to you for trying it for your dogs! I think you'll be glad you did,
My dogs used to get a lot of kitchen scraps and meal leftovers, including meat, vegetables, bread, etc. They seems to do well on what was probably a moderately balanced diet, plus of course lots of running around after the horses on trail rides. I'd hate to think what went into the cheap dog food. The dogs wouldn't touch it after getting used to scraps, unless really hungry.
The hunts here used to collect old horses, euthansase them humanely, and use them to feed the hounds. It makes one wonder whether it is possible to get raw meat not suitable for human use from an abattoir and freeze it for use feeding the dogs.
Don't know if there's a Costco near you, but we switched from Iams about three years ago to the "Kirkland" brand which is Costco's brand name. We read an article about it in their magazine and gave it a try and are very happy with it. It is about $19 for a 40 lb. bag. Our dogs are doing great on it.
Kirkland is a great food according to my research on nutrition as is Pro Plan which has actual meat in it and is given a rating of A+ on the chart I was given...
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