# Teach me about Dog Food



## BroncoK (Jan 4, 2012)

With the recent recall on two of the dog foods that we feed our dog, I have NO IDEA what to look for in a dog food. I have read on other threads/forums that too much calcium is bad for a growing dog, I have been told "don't feed a GSD dog puppy food", I know all about the Raw diet, and love it, however where we live, it's almost darn near impossible to get raw meat (should take up hunting I think). With that, one of the things that has been ENGRAVED in my mind is not to feed any kind of grain. SO, we looked into Grandma Z's from Zamzows, but found that they have 40% protein in it. I think I read somewhere that that is too much? 

Grandma Z's Chicken with mixed vegetables dog food

Grandma Z's Grain Free Dog Food - 25lb. (their grain free food)

Anyway, what do YOU look for in your food, and why do you make the choice to go with what you go with?


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

Talk to ten different pet food experts and they'll tell you ten different things. It is confusing!

I look for two of the first three ingredients to be meat of some kind.

Protein levels, for an active dog, 24 - 30%.
Fat levels, depending on the dog's needs, 14 - 28%.

Grain is controversial, but some dogs do just fine on grain. I try to avoid wheat and corn, and lately, I've been feeding grain-free because so many pet food recalls have been due to contaminated grain.

The rest of the stuff, I don't stress over too much--I look at my dog and see if the weight is good, coat is glossy, stools are firm, ears are clean, and no foul doggy odors. If all these things are in line then I keep the dog on the food. If the dog starts to lose weight, get sloppy stools, or anything like that, I take them off the food and try something else. 

It's all about what works for the dog.


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## Momto2GSDs (Mar 22, 2012)

BroncoK said:


> With the recent recall on two of the dog foods that we feed our dog, I have NO IDEA what to look for in a dog food. I have read on other threads/forums that too much calcium is bad for a growing dog, I have been told "don't feed a GSD dog puppy food", I know all about the Raw diet, and love it, however where we live, it's almost darn near impossible to get raw meat (should take up hunting I think). With that, one of the things that has been ENGRAVED in my mind is not to feed any kind of grain. SO, we looked into Grandma Z's from Zamzows, but found that they have 40% protein in it. I think I read somewhere that that is too much?
> 
> Grandma Z's Chicken with mixed vegetables dog food
> 
> ...


This food has A LOT of undesirable additives and not much meat.
You're dog will be better off with a food with higher quality ingredients like Acana, Orijen or The Honest Kitchen. You can pm me for specifics if you like.
Hope this helps!


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## 3ToesTonyismydog (Dec 27, 2009)

Here, this is as good a site as you'll find. She is not associated with any brand.

The Dog Food Project - Identifying better products

The Dog Food Project - Ingredients to avoid


http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=protein_myth


Be careful because I have already seen a false statement about protein. Your products listed are fairly decent, but Acana has a Chicken and Burbank for a little less and a better prduct,


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## GrammaD (Jan 1, 2012)

BroncoK said:


> With the recent recall on two of the dog foods that we feed our dog, I have NO IDEA what to look for in a dog food. I have read on other threads/forums that too much calcium is bad for a growing dog, I have been told "don't feed a GSD dog puppy food", I know all about the Raw diet, and love it, however where we live, it's almost darn near impossible to get raw meat (should take up hunting I think). With that, one of the things that has been ENGRAVED in my mind is not to feed any kind of grain. SO, we looked into Grandma Z's from Zamzows, but found that they have 40% protein in it. I think I read somewhere that that is too much?
> 
> Grandma Z's Chicken with mixed vegetables dog food
> 
> ...



Those both look like solid kibbles. But neither list the calcium % so you should probably investigate that, contact the company, before you switch to it. They are on the pricey side, imo, compared to similar products. But if you are comfortable with the manufacturer, that, to me, is the bigger issue.


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## StellaSquash (Apr 22, 2010)

for my GSD and lab, I look for protein's in the low 20's. Much more than that and I have poop issues. I also look for anything but chicken. Chicken gave my GSD the itchies. I like to see a good priority list of ingredients, meat first, oil, no corn, no fillers, no nonsense. I also have grain free on my list, but it's not AS important but it is important to me. I try to do my research, but bottom line, it simply has to work for my dogs. 

Orijen is an excellent food, but way too much protein for my GSD and she just couldn't handle it. 

We were affected by the Diamond recall of Taste of the Wild so I am switching to Infinia for now. The meat I feed is salmon as it's allegedly the most gentle on the stomach. Since my GSD will get diarrhea if I look at her funny.. I'm sticking with with salmon.


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## StellaSquash (Apr 22, 2010)

well it looks like Infinia is made by Diamond (per PM from another member here)..... *sigh* back to the drawing board.


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## Anastasia (Oct 7, 2011)

This post will teach you about dog food

http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/feeding-our-puppy/163201-feeding-puppies.html

From following the guidelines in the thread linked above

Calcium 0.7 - 1.2% AAFCO 
recommendation is 1 - 2.5% which is accepted but not ideal

Energy or dietary Fat no less than 9% to a maximum of 12% 
Total kcal/kg of food should remain in the 3.2 to 3.8 range

Protein 15 - 27% AAFCO recommends minimum of 22%

we settled on Innova LBP


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

StellaSquash said:


> for my GSD and lab, I look for protein's in the low 20's. Much more than that and I have poop issues. I also look for anything but chicken. Chicken gave my GSD the itchies. I like to see a good priority list of ingredients, meat first, oil, no corn, no fillers, no nonsense. I also have grain free on my list, but it's not AS important but it is important to me. I try to do my research, but bottom line, it simply has to work for my dogs.
> 
> Orijen is an excellent food, but way too much protein for my GSD and she just couldn't handle it.
> 
> We were affected by the Diamond recall of Taste of the Wild so I am switching to Infinia for now. The meat I feed is salmon as it's allegedly the most gentle on the stomach. Since my GSD will get diarrhea if I look at her funny.. I'm sticking with with salmon.


 
Ow I hear you - I had one with chicken allergies and he would up on Purine ONE Sensitive Systems - not my best choice but I don't think Natural Balance LID was around then and anyway, if it was, I did not know about it......and of course Diamond makes a lot of Natural Balance.

Fromm has a whitefish and potato recipie that might work but it does have chicken CARTILAGE which may not induce allergic reaction and is very low on the list. And it meets your lower protein requirement. Not grain free though.

Whitefish & Potato dog food - Fromm Family Foods


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## AEA (Sep 17, 2010)

Earthborn Holistic Grain Free Dog Foods made by Midwest Pet Foods is comparable to TOTW (actually better) in quality and price.

Dog Formulas : Earthborn Holistic Pet Food

Midwest Pet Foods has NEVER been involved in ANY recall.

Their Grain Free Formulas are available at doggiefood.com

I switched from TOTW (because of the recall) and went with their Primitive Natural Formula. $45.99 for 28lb bag at doggiefood.com (buy 2 and get it for 43.99ea and free shipping).


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

I actually looked at the primitive natural formula and could not get past the high levels of calcium and ash (I called them and that formula is 12% ash which is higher than EVO at 11.7%) because it was such a good price point. I was concerned when I saw that there were no "meats" in the first ingredients, only meat meals.


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## AEA (Sep 17, 2010)

jocoyn said:


> I actually looked at the primitive natural formula and could not get past the high levels of calcium and ash (I called them and that formula is 12% ash which is higher than EVO at 11.7%) because it was such a good price point. I was concerned when I saw that there were no "meats" in the first ingredients, only meat meals.


Nancy,
Meat Meal is better than "Meat". Meat such as chicken, turkey, bison, fish.....whatever is 80% water and most of the nutrition is boiled away when cooked. Meat Meal is high concentrate that is not as affected by cooking. Check up on it a bit further.

And....I doubt that .3% more ash over EVO will make that much difference.

It may not be for you and your dog, but I am satisfied that it meets my needs and price point. It is rated 5 stars (Best rating) by dogfoodreviews.

I hope you find something that is both nutritious and not cost prohibitive for your dog.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

No, for some ash levels are important -- typical range is 5-8% and you do get lower ash by having both meat and meals to offset the high levels of minerals in most foods based solely on meat meals which are heavy in bone. Ash above the minerals needed for growth and maintenance puts unnecesary stress on the kidneys.

The higher calcium of these foods also makes them unusitable for growing puppies. Just a point for consideration. I guess I should have added that I am feeding a growing puppy but my older dog had wonky urinalyses on Evo which resolved when I went to TOTW. Now Orijen, unlike Evo is 7.5% ash so I am not concerned about trying that as an alternate to TOTW. Pup eats Fromm right now.


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## AEA (Sep 17, 2010)

Sorry, I meant dogfoodadvisor for the rating
Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural Dog Food | Review and Rating


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

I simply picked up the phone and called the company because I was interested in the food and calcium, phosphorus and ash values were not listed on the site. This is what I was told direction on the telephone. If those levels are not important to you, they may be important to others.

Calcium 2.45%, Phosphorus 1.4%, Ash 12%

The lkinked review site "assumes" all dog foods are 8% ASH because the numbers are not on the bag? Why are they bothering to review a food if they can't even pick up the phone to call the vendor? 

Why Is There Ash in Your Dog's Food?

Actually the owner of that site also discusses in the discussion forum following the ash article the dangers of high ash in a dog food and why it is higher in some than others.


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## 3ToesTonyismydog (Dec 27, 2009)

AEA said:


> Nancy,
> Meat Meal is better than "Meat". Meat such as chicken, turkey, bison, fish.....whatever is 80% water and most of the nutrition is boiled away when cooked. Meat Meal is high concentrate that is not as affected by cooking. Check up on it a bit further.


Wow have you ever read the AAFCO Definitions??? It might surprise you and where did you get 80% from??? Yes, there is less meat in said meat's, but by no means can you say 80%, that would be your OPINION. Plus meal can and does include other parts other than muscle and in fact may and can include ucky's.

The Dog Food Project - Meat vs. Meal
*
*


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## AEA (Sep 17, 2010)

Well, I am not going to get into a pissing contest.
I could have been off on the 80%.

Just forget I posted anything about food. Feed what you want and I will do the same.


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## BroncoK (Jan 4, 2012)

Oh my goodness! Thank you all for your replies!!!


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