# Affordable good quality food?



## milaneechan (Dec 29, 2015)

We (my mom and I) have been feeding our puppy Iams Smart puppy for large breeds, which I have seen many people say is low quality. It seems to make my puppy's poop runny as well, so we want to change it, but don't quite know what to get. We are on a budget, so about $1.25 per pound is the most we can afford. 

Any recommendations?


----------



## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

I feed BeaverDam puppy and active adult with a bit of canned food (4health) on top or a boiled egg on top. 

Check Dog Food Reviews and Ratings | Dog Food Advisor for advice on ingredients


----------



## GSDKIMBER (Jan 9, 2015)

Fromm?


----------



## viking (May 2, 2014)

I've been feeding Costco's Nature's Domain for about a year now and have been happy with it. Its grain free and comes in three varieties; beef, salmon or turkey. Its pretty economical and the nutritional breakdown is within recommended margins, though as I recall the protein just clears the low end of the margin. I always add some extra fresh cooked protein to his meals.


----------



## Apoolutz (Jan 19, 2013)

I vote Fromm to maybe top it with some yogurt and raw eggs?


----------



## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

The Fromm LBPG is an excellent food but is $1.64 per pound. However, when you price food, look at the kcal per kg. Some of the cheaper foods also have fewer calories and may not have ingredients that are as digestible.

As far as bang for the buck, I think Victor is very good but may be a bit higher in ash than I would want to feed a puppy.


----------



## Sherman the German (Jan 1, 2016)

I just switched back to Solid Gold from previously using Blue Wilderness. I think the largest bag is between $50 and $60. My pup was on it before and had no problems and when I switched to BW he began to itch/scratch. I'm in the process of elimination now to see if my thoughts are right about it being the BW that caused it. Solid Gold has a good rating and I can get it at Petco which makes it convenient for us (as long as it's in stock :wild.


----------



## Wags (Dec 17, 2015)

To go along with the dog food advisor link, which is a good starting point for researching food, here is a link that provides food prices, although some may be out of date, it is a good starting point again!

Dog Food Prices


----------



## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

You can really open up your options with places like chewy.com and petflow etc. Better prices and free shipping over $49


----------



## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

If that price is a "hard" limit, I would look into Kirkland Signature puppy food (yellow bag) at Costco. It gets 4.5 stars on dogfoodadvisor. Or look into Diamond Naturals Large Breed Puppy (3.5 stars). Kirkland is sold only at Costco, Diamond is at Tractor Supply or other stores. Just monitor recalls of anything made by Diamond (Kirkland is made by them).


----------



## Dotbat215 (Aug 19, 2015)

If you have a wegman's near you then look into their back to nature line. Four stars on did food advisor and you can use the $5 off of $25 coupon they send out regularly.

Iirc, 30lbs is like $40.


----------



## Emoore (Oct 9, 2002)

Victor!


----------



## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I second Victor!

sportdogfood.com will Fedex to you free of charge.


----------



## Sherman the German (Jan 1, 2016)

Emoore and Jax... where do you all buy Victor? I've never heard of it until this forum.


----------



## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I posted the link above
sportdogfood.com


----------



## eddie1976E (Nov 7, 2010)

Sherman the German said:


> Emoore and Jax... where do you all buy Victor? I've never heard of it until this forum.


You can also buy from 

victor dog food - Free Shipping at Chewy.com


----------



## Sherman the German (Jan 1, 2016)

Thanks Eddie and Jax. Don't know how I didn't see that the first time. :wild:


----------



## Sherman the German (Jan 1, 2016)

Do you use the Victor with the joint support stuff (not going to try to spell the two things right now - ha) in it... Hero or Pro one?


----------



## eddie1976E (Nov 7, 2010)

I don't use Victor. I use Dr. Tim's momentum. I think Victor is recommended alot here and I considered it seriously. But I wanted something with more calories so I went with Dr. Tim's.


----------



## dogfaeries (Feb 22, 2010)

I use the Pro in the purple bag.


----------



## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Sherman the German said:


> Do you use the Victor with the joint support stuff (not going to try to spell the two things right now - ha) in it... Hero or Pro one?


I use Pro.

why would you need joint support for a 6 month old?


----------



## Sherman the German (Jan 1, 2016)

Jax08 said:


> why would you need joint support for a 6 month old?


I never said that I needed joint support for my puppy. I was asking if you used one of those two and IF that was the reason. I was just curious as I'm trying to become educated on nutrition and different types of food.


----------



## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I've never seen a difference in my dogs using any "joint support". The studies don't support glucosamine or chondroitin. If you want something to support the joints, I would look for something that treats inflammation like fish oil. Chronic inflammation causes arthritis. Arthritis causes degenerative disease of the joints.

You need an all stages food for a 6 month old puppy. Just look for that and you'll be fine.


----------



## Glacier (Feb 25, 2009)

I use the Victor Ultra 42, since my dog needs a high calorie food to keep weight on. The Hi-Pro Plus is another option and it's an all life stage formula.


----------



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I do not feed the Diamond Naturals puppy food. I feed regular adult Diamond Naturals chicken and rice. I feed it to all my dogs, and wean puppies on it. It is $31.99 for a 40# bag, but the ingredient list is better than Pro Plan or Nutro's $50 bags which have less weight. 

Check it out.


----------



## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

thankfully I can get Victor locally so check that out first. I pay $35 for a 40lb bag of high pro


----------



## Glacier (Feb 25, 2009)

Dainerra said:


> thankfully I can get Victor locally so check that out first. I pay $35 for a 40lb bag of high pro


I pay 39.99 for the 40lb Hi-pro from my feed store, but I live in California, everything is more expensive here, lol


----------



## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

Jax08 said:


> I've never seen a difference in my dogs using any "joint support". The studies don't support glucosamine or chondroitin. If you want something to support the joints, I would look for something that treats inflammation like fish oil. Chronic inflammation causes arthritis. Arthritis causes degenerative disease of the joints.
> 
> You need an all stages food for a 6 month old puppy. Just look for that and you'll be fine.


I had a vet tell me exactly this about fish oil. They said joint supplements are hit or miss.


----------



## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

I just went through a bag of the hi-pro. I want to rotate foods a bit but I got very very good stools and (ta-da) weight gain on Beau with the Victor. I am not sure that is best choice for a puppy, though. The Fromm's was perfect for that. 

He is hard to keep weight on...even so he was getting 4 cups a day of this and 2 tbsp of coconut oil. Switched over to Dr Tim and got loose stools again.


----------



## dogfaeries (Feb 22, 2010)

Russ has to have 4 cups too. He's always been hard to keep weight on. I'm hoping since I got him neutered, that he'll gain some weight. Every time a girl went into heat, he stopped eating.


----------



## Sherman the German (Jan 1, 2016)

Jax08 said:


> I've never seen a difference in my dogs using any "joint support". The studies don't support glucosamine or chondroitin. If you want something to support the joints, I would look for something that treats inflammation like fish oil. Chronic inflammation causes arthritis. Arthritis causes degenerative disease of the joints.
> 
> You need an all stages food for a 6 month old puppy. Just look for that and you'll be fine.


Thanks Jax. Yeah, the Solid Gold that I am transitioning Sherman to now is the Barking at the Moon one and it's an All Life stages for Medium/Large Dogs. He gets a puppy vitamin daily as well. Thanks for the info about studies on the gluc/chon joint support. I'm going to look that up. My trainer is recommending that we start him on it when he approaches 1 year old but I want to get educated on it first.


----------



## milaneechan (Dec 29, 2015)

Thanks for the info everyone! I've hear a lot about fromm, but that's out of our budget. 

We were going to try kirklands nature domain, but I read so many horror stories about dogs getting deathly ill on that food. He's only 3 months old, and I don't want to test something with such a horrrible reputation while he's so young. 

I'm going to explore that food advisor website and see what I can find. Thanks everyone


----------



## cdwoodcox (Jul 4, 2015)

I can get a 26 lb. bag of fromm for 45.00. I was paying roughly 23.00 for a 15 lb bag of nutri source. Not sure about the price of food your thinking about using but if it's possible to go a little over budget. Food is where you want to do it with.


----------



## GSDKIMBER (Jan 9, 2015)

Just curious, where are you getting a 26lb bag of fromm for $45?


----------



## Stonevintage (Aug 26, 2014)

milaneechan said:


> We were going to try kirklands nature domain, but I read so many horror stories about dogs getting deathly ill on that food. He's only 3 months old, and I don't want to test something with such a horrrible reputation while he's so young.


I've really covered the dogfoodadvisor website.... I checked out victor grain free tonight at the advise of so many victor references here and am going to go with that. No recalls of record and 5 stars on dfa website. And it's twice as inexpensive as what I've been feeding. My girl is over 1.5 years so I feel better about switching now that the major growth is done.


----------



## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

I am not really convinced peas and sweet potatoes are any better a source of carbs than sorghum and millet, but let us know. At least their GFs are not all in the super hi-pro range of 38% to 42% which is where I have seen protein start showing up in the urine of 3 otherwise healthy dogs.

I definitely will be keeping victor in my rotation and THAT is what I have come around to. Variety. One change I have made is that I am bagging my dog food in gallon bags and throwing in the freezer. They all seem to start smelling off to me after a few weeks

Fromm has varied protein sources in LBPG which seems to help prevent allergies. There are many other ways to get there and victor foods also tend to have multiple protein sources. Rotation diets are something to look up.


----------



## dogfaeries (Feb 22, 2010)

I'm right with you in this. I started freezing mine in gallon bags too, and I rotate between the Victor Pro and the Fromms LBA Gold. Occasionally I'll buy one of the 4 Star Fromms too. I've always rotated dog foods.


----------



## dogfaeries (Feb 22, 2010)

Also when I rotate to a new bag, I don't transition. No one has ever had stomach upset from abruptly going from Victor to Fromms and back again. When you all rotate your foods, do you do this week long transition thing?


----------



## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

I have never had trouble. Usually I mix in the last of the ending bag with the first of the new but that is just that one meal.


----------



## dogfaeries (Feb 22, 2010)

That's generally what happens here. A tiny bit left in the bag when I switch over.


----------



## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

jocoyn said:


> I am not really convinced peas and sweet potatoes are any better a source of carbs than sorghum and millet, but let us know.\.


They aren't. It's all a marketing gimmick. If anything, I believe peas and sweet potatoes are higher on the glycemic index. Chick peas would be my choice but very few foods use those.


----------



## Stonevintage (Aug 26, 2014)

If I start ordering the 40lb bags of Victor thru Chewy's, does anyone know how they deliver? Is it UPS?

I've got a locked gate that perimeters my property and worry about a bag of dog food sitting out on the weather if it delivers over the fence when I'm not home.


----------



## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Garbanzo beans ar estrogenizing - though flax is far more so - so much that I have heard it can mess with reproductive function in dogs yet is rampant in dog food. (and, of course, that flax goes rancid very quickly). It is VERY hard to escape that little gem in dog food. And if they don't use flax, here comes the canola. Yikes


----------



## eddie1976E (Nov 7, 2010)

Stonevintage said:


> If I start ordering the 40lb bags of Victor thru Chewy's, does anyone know how they deliver? Is it UPS?
> 
> I've got a locked gate that perimeters my property and worry about a bag of dog food sitting out on the weather if it delivers over the fence when I'm not home.


The food comes in a big box and they leave it at the door. It is by UPS for us.


----------



## cdwoodcox (Jul 4, 2015)

GSDKIMBER said:


> Just curious, where are you getting a 26lb bag of fromm for $45?


 There is a lady about a half hour from me that has a bunch of sled dogs. She was listed on the fromm website as a distributor. So I called and met with her. She has a little store out back of her place. I was surprised at the price myself. I don't imagine she makes much if anything off selling it. I think she just wants to help people like herself feed their dogs a quality food without spending an arm and leg.


----------



## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Stonevintage said:


> If I start ordering the 40lb bags of Victor thru Chewy's, does anyone know how they deliver? Is it UPS?
> 
> I've got a locked gate that perimeters my property and worry about a bag of dog food sitting out on the weather if it delivers over the fence when I'm not home.


It must depend on where you live; it always comes fed ex for me.


----------



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

cdwoodcox said:


> There is a lady about a half hour from me that has a bunch of sled dogs. She was listed on the fromm website as a distributor. So I called and met with her. She has a little store out back of her place. I was surprised at the price myself. I don't imagine she makes much if anything off selling it. I think she just wants to help people like herself feed their dogs a quality food without spending an arm and leg.


 LOL! I am with the OP on this one, $45 for 26# is an arm and a leg. For two bucks a pound, I could feed my dogs raw.


----------



## cdwoodcox (Jul 4, 2015)

selzer said:


> cdwoodcox;.[/quote said:
> 
> 
> > LOL! I am with the OP on this one, $45 for 26# is an arm and a leg. For two bucks a pound, I could feed my dogs raw.
> ...


----------



## 5stargerman (Jan 5, 2016)

Our dog had gotten sick on a few other brands(like wellness, canidae, etc.) so I switched to Taste of the Wild Sierra Mountain Dry Dog Food. He has never gotten sick on this one and it had really good reviews when I switched him about 4ish years ago. I also buy from Chewy when it is on sale(this is the link to the adult food, not puppy formula): Taste of the Wild Sierra Mountain Dry Dog Food, 30-lb bag 

Just to note, he is not a "working" dog if that would make a difference...he is more on like a vigorous walk + few training sessions per day kind of a schedule.


----------



## barnyard (Jun 21, 2012)

Sportmix wholesomes might be another option. It's made by the same company that makes Earthborn and Pro pac. Chewy sells it. Price is between $29 and $34 for a 40 pound bag.Tractor supply carries it as well.


----------



## milaneechan (Dec 29, 2015)

Update, we decided to go with Authority large breed puppy food from pet smart, which has a 4.5 star rating on dogfoodadvisory.com. With such a high rating, I was shoocked we are paying less than a dollar a pound! He's been eating it for a week (mixed with his old food), and he seems to be responding to it really well. He loves the taste, and his poo is looking much more solid than before.


----------



## Cariad (Jan 2, 2016)

My current dog is on Authority with no problems. It's a good food if you are needing to stick to a budget.


----------



## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Authority is PetSmart's "house brand" (private label). I think it might be made by by Menu Foods, which makes many store-brands for various retailers.

Last I checked, it was 3.5 stars not 4.5 stars. It's a mid-grade food, IMO. I definitely don't think it's in the same league as the more expensive foods often discussed here (Fromm, Orijen, Dr. Tims, etc.). According to Dog Food Advisor, the fifth and sixth ingredients are corn (which is a common allergen for dogs, and opens the food up to aflatoxin risks). To me as a consumer, I would put Authority in the same broad market segment as Purina One (or Pro Plan), due to the inclusion of corn. For about the same price, you can get a corn-free budget food from Diamond Naturals (or 4Health/TSC, Kirkland/Costco, which are pretty much the same formula under a different label) -- 40# for about $30-ish.


----------



## Cariad (Jan 2, 2016)

I put my Rottie on diamond once. It gave him the worst case of the runs I'd ever seen. It might have been a once off for the food but I would be hesitant to try it again. 

Authority is not in the same league as other foods and if the dog is sensitive to grains or gluten it is not an option, but if you need to stick to a budget as the OP does its not a bad food. 

American Natural was also a brand I fed when I needed to save money, but it was harder to find. It is grain free and was about $1.00 a pound.


----------



## milaneechan (Dec 29, 2015)

Magwart said:


> Authority is PetSmart's "house brand" (private label). I think it might be made by by Menu Foods, which makes many store-brands for various retailers.
> 
> Last I checked, it was 3.5 stars not 4.5 stars. It's a mid-grade food, IMO. I definitely don't think it's in the same league as the more expensive foods often discussed here (Fromm, Orijen, Dr. Tims, etc.). According to Dog Food Advisor, the fifth and sixth ingredients are corn (which is a common allergen for dogs, and opens the food up to aflatoxin risks). To me as a consumer, I would put Authority in the same broad market segment as Purina One (or Pro Plan), due to the inclusion of corn. For about the same price, you can get a corn-free budget food from Diamond Naturals (or 4Health/TSC, Kirkland/Costco, which are pretty much the same formula under a different label) -- 40# for about $30-ish.


If you look at the individual Authority products listed on dogfoodadvisor, it says that the Authority PUPPY Large Breed food is 4.5 stars. That's what we are feeding him. 

I read HORRIBLE accounts of diamond naturals. Dogs nearly dying from food poisoning. Constant recalls, as well as constant recalls on another brand packed by the same processing plant (Kirklands).


----------



## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

If you are worried about recalls, anything made in the Menu Foods plant wouldn't be my first choice either:
Menu Foods' Tainted Pet Food Spurs Congressional and FDA Reforms : The Humane Society of the United States

Many of us who Fromm, Victor, or one of the brands that never had a recall do so _because _of the lack of a recall history. I think that you get recalls in cheaper brands because of the corners they cut to stay cheap.


----------



## shedogs (Feb 24, 2016)

I buy a great kibble and watch sales for beef. Then I mix rice and beef and kibble for my adult dogs. Cheaper than most low cost kibble.


----------



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

milaneechan said:


> If you look at the individual Authority products listed on dogfoodadvisor, it says that the Authority PUPPY Large Breed food is 4.5 stars. That's what we are feeding him.
> 
> I read HORRIBLE accounts of diamond naturals. Dogs nearly dying from food poisoning. Constant recalls, as well as constant recalls on another brand packed by the same processing plant (Kirklands).


 I have had all my dogs on the food for 3-4 years. There was one recall in that time, it was one plant, and I watched the item numbers to be sure. But nothing serious anyway. 

Years ago after switching from Diamond, the recall for the aflotoxin came through. That was in the food with corn, and what I had been feeding wasn't included. 

I was then feeding Nutro, and Nutro was involved in the menu foods recall, well actually it was wider than menu foods. Lots of food was involved. I lost half a litter, and one dog to that situation. 

I went from there to Canidae. And my dogs were ok with that for a while. Then they started loosing weight. All of them. Then they lost a lot of weight. 

I tried Taste of the Wild, Wellness, Raw Instinct (prarie) Solid Gold. 

Then I put my dogs on Kumpi and we were on that for a while. The dogs were holding their weight on it, but they weren't doing well.

I came back and did 4Health for a bag or two and switched to the Diamond Naturals. 

Personally, I think dog food is a racket, and the more expensive dog foods really aren't that much better all in all. Like TOTW? My dogs get horrible runs from that. I ended up taking it to the shelter. But that is made by Diamond too. 

If the food is working for your dogs, use it. If you think you can get better results with another food, try it. If you are totally disgusted with dog food, feed raw or cook for you dogs if you have the means.


----------



## dz0qp5 (Oct 12, 2004)

My favorite value food is also a Diamond food at Costco called Natures Domain, very similar to TOTW but much less expensive. Good palatability and good results.


----------



## viking (May 2, 2014)

I've been feeding Nature's Domain from Costco for over a year now and am very happy with it. I don't think the criticism is warranted. Evidently there was a voluntary recall in 2012 due to salmonella contamination which was primarily a risk to the human owner.

A company that recalls a problem product is a good, responsible company. 

I've read a lot of the complaints on line from that time period. I don't find that the claims were credibly caused by the product. Anyway, I think Selzer is right on with her advice, in essence: find what works for you and your dogs.


----------

