best dog food?

[Cristina]

Originally Posted by Jatango

I actually just buy organic turkey hot dogs, dice them, and chuck them in a warm oven to shrink down. Kinda like making jerky actually. Much cheaper per lb. than the store bought stuff and I feel okay about giving them to my parents' golden. They have some small amount of natural preservative, so they keep for a decent period. If I don't use all the hot dogs to make a batch, they freeze really nicely. You can also buy bison dogs, or regular beef, whatever your dog fancies. I think you can actually get them in chicken too. The treats smell a bit, but my dogs go bonkers.

EDIT: Man, I really am nuts. I'm on this thread like white on rice, eagerly awaiting the next post. I should go to the barn and get myself a life. :-p

i know me too!! I also have done the turkey dogs when I use to train dogs for clients in Cali..They went nuts

[Jatango]

Originally Posted by jme04c

Hey! My dad's a vet. He says Purina or Science Diet. He feeds our old lab Purina OM (overweight management lol) and I feed my english mastiff Purina for extra large breeds. They've got something for everyone

I'm not trying to dis your dad, I swear. I think most vets are not trained in super premium foods at school and it's hard to keep up with most nutrition advances when you're in surgery saving lives all day. I have a couple friends at Cornell, and they've said similar things. Purina is not a food I would recommend due to the high levels of corn, by-products and wheat that they use. In many breeds, these can induce severe allergies and other skin and immune conditions.

Science diet is okay if you need a very specific food for a medical condition. If my dog had a kidney issue and I didn't want to feed a raw diet, I may go with a Hill's Science Diet food. They do have something for everyone, but so do a lot of other foods that have a higher nutrition profile than these two.

Purina and Hills do a lot of research into dog nutrition, but I think that research costs them money and they don't usually reflect these nutritional breakthroughs in their foods. As a general rule, I stay away from anything you can buy in your neighborhood grocery store. (except for costco)

Just my honest opinion, I love my vet and he's a brilliant man, but he recommends purina and science diet too. I think it's just what used to be best before these superfood companies exploded onto the scene.

[Cristina]

all vets recommend those brands b/c they offer them the info and free stuff. Foods w/ corn are bad for dogs.

[morti]

I like my vet. They only sell prescription dog foods for specific ailments. I have been to too many vets that the lobby looked like a science diet warehouse.

[NicoleRussell]

Amazon.com: Steve's Real Food Chicken for Dogs: Kitchen & Housewares
this sounds close to what shane uses

[Ranger]

I like Wellness. So does Ranger:

[Cristina]

BTW Wellness also makes catfood..my cat is black..her coat is so shiny..I was really impressed when I switched