Question:
imas or purina or a natural dog food or do you think one that
that has less amount of sugar in there diet so they do not scratch alot..?

Best answer (thank you , Abbful)

In my humble opinion….

Iams?
No. (Corn, fillers, byproducts, etc.)

Purina?
No. (Again: corn, fillers, byproducts, etc.)

Natural/holistic dog food, with high meat content, zero or minimal fillers, no byproducts, etc.?
YES! And there are many of these foods to choose from.

(I personally feed my dog alternating meals of Merrick dry kibble and Nature’s Variety raw medallions. Occasionally, I throw some EVO canned food into the mix.)

Also recommended – Grain free dog food –
I really like this Facebook page with a review of several types of grain free dog food
See here: http://www.facebook.com/grainfreedogfood

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I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to pay for food that is just going to go in one end and out the other. I want food that my dog will get maximum nutrition from without having a lot of fillers that just pass right through the dog.

I will fully admit, I used to be a hard-core Iams feeder, both for dogs and cats. If anyone ever mentioned pet food, I was quick to say “Iams is the best”. (My parents still are hard-core Iams feeders, despite my nudging for them to switch.)

Iams is what we always used when I was growing up. When my parents used to breed cocker spaniels, all the dogs were fed Iams, and many of the other breeders we knew fed Iams as well. And of course, the vet said Iams was good, and vets know best! (Which I have now come to learn the majority of vets do NOT know anything about nutrition.)

It wasn’t until I got my most recent dog that I started learning about canine nutrition. The owner of my dog’s sire steered me in the right direction on food and pointed out some of the things I should look for that are good and also what to avoid. Now I’ve become obsessed with what my dog eats, and have spent many hours upon hours researching dog food ingredients.

By the way – have you tried cooking for your dog? it’s easy, it’s fun, it’s healthy and you have control over your dog’s diet!
A great free recipes book can be found here – http://www.naturaldogfood.college.edu.pe/
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Below the double line is my general information on how to choose a good dog food:
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Read the ingredients on the food you buy. Go with a high quality dog food.

Here is my “short list” of rules when I am looking at dog ingredients:
1) When I chose a dog food, I chose one high meat content. I want to see preferably at least 2-3 out of the top 5 ingredients be meat or meat meal (first ingredient must be!).
2) I want to see higher quality grains, such as barley, brown rice, and oatmeal, instead of seeing wheat and corn. Or an alternative starch/carbohydrate such as potatoes or sweet potatoes.
(grain free dog food, remember?)
3) I don’t want to see any byproducts.
4) I don’t want to see a lot of fillers.
5) I don’t want to see preservatives that are believed to be carcinogens (BHA, BHT, ethoxyquin).
6) I don’t want to see artificial colorings such as the Red, Blue, and Yellow dyes.
7) I don’t want to see added sugars (sugar, corn syrup).
I don’t want to see mystery meats (meats identified only as “meat” or “poultry”.)

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There is no food that is the *best*, different individual dog may thrive on different foods. What is best for one may not be the best for the next. And just because a food is good quality, it doesn’t mean it will jive the best for your dog.

What you want to find is the high-quality food that *your dog* does best on.

Here are some examples of high quality foods:
(You can compare prices – Here)
* Artemis – http://www.artemiscompany.com/
* California Natural – http://www.naturapet.com/brands/california-natural.asp
* Canidae – http://www.canidae.com/
* Chicken Soup – http://www.chickensoupforthepetloverssoul.com/
* EVO – http://www.naturapet.com/brands/evo.asp
* Fromm – http://www.frommfamily.com/
* Innova – http://www.naturapet.com/brands/innova.asp
* Merrick – http://www.merrickpetcare.com/
* Nature’s Variety – http://www.naturesvariety.com/
* Orijen – http://www.championpetfoods.com/orijen/products/
* Solid Gold – http://www.solidgoldhealth.com/
* Taste of the Wild – http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/
* Timberwolf Organics – http://timberwolforganics.com/
* Wellness – http://www.omhpet.com/wellness/

Or check this website for good foods
(I recommend only feeding foods rated 4, 5, or 6 stars. Anything 3 stars or less, I would stay away from.)

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Stay away from grocery stores brands. They are low-quality foods chalk full of fillers, preservatives, dyes, etc.. (Grocery store foods are those like Beneful, Old Roy, Alpo, Pedigree, etc.)

Beware “premium” foods. “Premium” does not always mean good nutritionally, and is not a nutritionally high quality food. Most of these foods have the same types of ingredients as grocery store foods, just a bit better quality of those not-so-good ingredients. (Premium foods are those like Iams, Eukanuba, Science Diet, etc..)

Another thing to be wary of: A lot of vets will recommend what they sell in their office. They get profit from the brands they keep on their shelves, that’s why they push it. Truth is, vet schools don’t focus a lot on nutrition. It’s not saying that a vet is a bad vet because he recommends those foods, a lot of vets just are told “this is good food”, so they pass the message along without proper nutrition knowledge. Also, some dog food brands (like Hills) support vet schools, so vets have heard of it from the time they start college, which makes them think it’s good as well.

Hills company, the makers of Science Diet, are heavily involved in vet schools. “Hill’s scientists author more than 50 research papers and textbook chapters each year and teach at leading schools of veterinary medicine” (Source of quoted section: http://www.hillsvet.com/zSkin_2/company_info/company_info_general.jsp?JSESSIONID=HMz2B3Jn3hv0rnSoxCobfbBhOec35ODG7yh5t3P0vcvhOtzRlQ9M!598359213!167846923!7005!8005&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302026072&bmUID=1196192566575 )

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Higher quality food may seem more expensive at first, but it evens out. The higher quality the food, the less fillers eaten (and therefore the less poop comes out the other end). Your dog eats more to try to get the nutrition it needs, and most of the food just passes right on through. Also, it will make your animals healthier, so you save money on vet bills in the long run.

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“Big box” petstores like Petco and Petsmart rarely have quality foods. (I do believe that PetCo sells “Solid Gold” and “Natural Balance” brands and Petsmart sells “Blue Buffallo”, which are all quality foods, but most of the foods aren’t.)

Also, grocery stores and Walmart aren’t good places to buy food either.

Your best bets for getting quality dog food are:
- small, locally owned petstores
- dog boutiques
- farm supply stores

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When switching foods, do it gradually. I do this over about a two week timespan:
25% food A, 75% food B
50% food A, 50% food B
75% food A, 25% food B
100% food A
.

She just doens’t like dry dog food for some reason, but she’ll eat everything else. I know I will have to provide a lot of chew toys for her teeth. But where do I start in knowing what kinds of food to give her??? Besides the vet, it’s gonna be a while until I see him. Thank you!!
I don’t want raw meat. Just food that I can prepare for her.