[SamsMom]

Hello, I'm new to CyberHound and have a dog food question. Does anyone know if Costco/Kirkland dog food is ok? Sam just turned one and we're moving over to an adult variety of food, we have been feeding him Eukanuba puppy. Any help, insight, opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[FredMom]

What a beauty!!!! Fred will be 1yr old and his vet changed him to Eagle Pac. He loves it and his has 25% protein and has Lactbactillius Acidophillus, which is is great for digestion and his stools.

 

[Rocket]

I would use the best quality food you can afford. I figure it is cheaper in the long run, with fewer vet bills! I use a smaller company out of Oklahoma - they make their own food and I don't have to worry about the recalls. It is called Natures Variety by Prairie. There are lots of good foods out there, I would check the ingredients - most dogs cannot digest corn, so I would try to go corn free. Try this site: http://www.metropetservices.com I wouldn't suggest you order from them, but they have lots of very good foods, and you can check out the ingredients, etc.

 

[SamsMom]

Thanks for your comments, I will check out the website and food suggestions.

 

[Midge n Hazley]

I used the Kirkland brand for a couple of years with my two. It seems to be a decent quality compared to others. When the whole contamination issue started, I switched them over to Wellness. The only change I have seen is they have MUCH less "houndie" smell to them. I used to have to bathe them every two weeks because of their smell. :blink: Now I can go up to 4 or 5 weeks and have to bathe them because they're dirty.

 

[walosdad]

The big recall has been due to wheat gluten imported from China. This has only been used in wet petfood, dry is fine. My new puppy " Waylo " is 12 weeks old and I'm feeding him Pedigree Puppy. My last basset "Reno Emerson Winchester" Was healthy and happy his entire life on Pedigree. I miss that Dude like you wouldn't believe. Walo has some mighty large shoes to fill, but he's working at it.

 

[SamsMom]

Midge and Hazley are too cute. Luv that spot on top of Hazley's head :lol: I'll look at the Wellness brand, a little less "houndie" smell is always good, it's just that the Kirkland brand is very inexpensive and that's good for me, but what's best for my Sam is the most important. Sorry to hear about Reno, we always hold our pets either past or present very close in our hearts and minds.

 

[Marcia]

The Whole Dog Journal publishes an analysis of dog foods every year, sort of like Consumer Reports. If you can get this issue it is an excellent resource. I second the motion about Wellness - I have used their products in the pasy and they are very good. We now feed Innova Evo to our dogs and cats. Less houndy smell, and no more anal gland troubles. Their coats are shiny and beautiful. It is one of the more expensive choices, but the payoff is worth it. Canidae also makes very good products. None of these brands were affected by the recent recalls, as they are very choosy about the sources of all ingredients.

 

[Mikey T]

The Whole Dog Journal publishes an analysis of dog foods every year, sort of like Consumer Reports. If you can get this issue it is an excellent resource. I second the motion about Wellness - I have used[/b]

That is what they would like you to believe but it is far from the truth. It Would be like Consumer Reports recommending cars based only on the sales brochure., Whole Dog Journal does no testing of any kind. It is only based on the list of ingredients the manufacture puts on the Label. Secondly there is a institutional bias no based on any scientific evidence. Much of the choices are made on this bias, rather than scientific evidence. Couple of these biases are "human grade" though no such thing actual exists in the pet food market and "by products". many of the most nutrious organ are by-products.

From Dog Foods - Help in making the choice easier

My dogs tend to do better on what I consider medium grade foods. Not the best/priciest stuff (Innova, California Natural, Canidae) but not the really cheap stuff either (Hi-Pro, Dog Chow). Remember price has nothing to do with what might work for your dog. Just because a food is listed in a magazine as their 10 best, doesn't mean its better than another food that isn't listed. They do no testing of the food, they base their opinions on the ingredients. My dogs have not done well on any of those foods. Think for yourself and don't get brainwashed into thinking you are a horrible pet owner if you don't buy these foods for your dog.[/b]

Wysong Responds to Whole Dog Journal

WDJ’s mission is to provide dog guardians with in-depth information on effective holistic healthcare methods…Above all, we wish to contribute information that will enable consumers to make kind, healthy, and informed decisions about caring for their own dogs.”

Those are worthy and lofty goals. Unfortunately, WDJ belies those words when evaluating pet foods in its March 2007 issue. WDJ’s dilettante-style (a lightweight treatment of a heavyweight issue) makes them deserving of no catbird seat in advising people on pet nutrition. ...The baseless folklore-style information presented in the March issue of WDJ reinforces the skeptic’s criticisms. By perpetuating ignorance and myth, WDJ unwittingly paves the way for immense suffering in animals.

...The editor even admits, “… let me be clear: I don’t have a single study to cite to justify my gut instinct to cull products that contain animal plasma from our “top foods” lists. It feels just as wrong to me as feeding beef products to cows.” Featuring an unsubstantiated hunch, rather than something backed by logic and science, and black-listing Wysong based upon it certainly doesn’t jibe with the above quoted mission statements of the magazine.


...WDJ admits that they have done no more than evaluate ingredient listings to determine food merit. But this is like buying a parachute based solely on the kinds of components it contains. No consideration is given to the expertise of the companies, the games that can be played with ingredient names, whether the food has been successfully fed through several generations, the fact that nobody monitors what actually goes into products, the fact that almost all of the companies on the WDJ list do not even manufacture their own foods.

...WDJ footnote highlights a “grain free” diet indicating that WDJ has been misled into believing “grain free” means the product is primarily meat, and free of sugars and starches—which is not true by any stretch. Upon examination, the “grain free” diet is found to contain potatoes as its starch (sugar). The relatively low protein and presence of numerous non-meat ingredients in the food does not make it even a meat predominant food.[/b]

Wysong Critique of "Rate Your Dog Food List"

 

[Soundtrack]

I've been feeding the Kirkland for a while, my dogs seem to do fine on it and they like it. The ingredients are decent and the price is good. The dry food was NOT involved in the recall. There are foods that I consider better, but with 11 hounds the budget doesn't allow for it. OTOH, there are far more expensive foods on the market that I would not feed my dogs even if they were free.

 

[SamsMom]

Thanks to everyone for their replies and insights. I wasn't aware that there was such differences in opinion and a little politics as to food choices for our fur friends, I need to stay in the know a little bit more :blink: I'm leaning towards the Kirkland C & R and see if Sam will do ok on it, I can always change later if need be.

A little off the subject - does anyone know why I can't see the pictures in the posts? I e-mailed the moderator twice and tried to find something in the help but couldn't find anything.

Thanks