# How much does a cup of kibble weigh?



## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

On average, anyway. I guess it could vary slightly depending on the kibble, but right now we're weighing our options towards switching Frag off of RAW and onto a kibble diet, for monetary purposes, but we're not sure if it'd actually be cheaper to feed kibble or not. Right now we're spending about $21-$25 a week for meat, and if we switched to kibble we'd be feeding him 6 cups a day, but I don't know how much that would weigh and i'd like to be able to do the math to see if it'd be cheaper. 

So, if anyone happens to know.. please share your insight with me. 

btw, is TOTW's praire formula with 23% protein okay for a 7mo GSD puppy or not? I've read a lot of conflicting arguments about large breed puppies and protein, and would like to know for sure, since I don't feel comfortable switching back to kibble anyway for growth issues. Thank you.


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## lrodptl (Nov 12, 2009)

DJEtzel said:


> On average, anyway. I guess it could vary slightly depending on the kibble, but right now we're weighing our options towards switching Frag off of RAW and onto a kibble diet, for monetary purposes, but we're not sure if it'd actually be cheaper to feed kibble or not. Right now we're spending about $21-$25 a week for meat, and if we switched to kibble we'd be feeding him 6 cups a day, but I don't know how much that would weigh and i'd like to be able to do the math to see if it'd be cheaper.
> 
> So, if anyone happens to know.. please share your insight with me.
> 
> btw, is TOTW's praire formula with 23% protein okay for a 7mo GSD puppy or not? I've read a lot of conflicting arguments about large breed puppies and protein, and would like to know for sure, since I don't feel comfortable switching back to kibble anyway for growth issues. Thank you.


We just switched to Orijen dog ($60 a bag) for our 6 month old pup and it appears that's going to cost me about $90-$120 a month. We were never so informed or conflicted or misinformed or confused (friggin internet) with our prior dogs and never had any health issues that were food or growth related.


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

DJEtzel said:


> btw, is TOTW's praire formula with 23% protein okay for a 7mo GSD puppy or not? Thank you.


 
imo, no, but not because of the protein. the Ca is 2% which is high for a large breed pup.

the Orijen Puppy Large is fine in that regard and 40% protein is not an issue. a RAW fed pup is getting more than 40% protein anyway when it is converted to a dry matter basis.

a bag of Orijen Puppy Large ($64) lasted my dog over a month, and she was very active. if you are spending $100+/month on raw, then kibble will definitely be cheaper.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Alright. We've pretty much decided now that it'd be cheaper, so we're gonna switch for a few months until we get money saved up for a house, then we're probably gonna switch back, but we'll check out other foods. 

The store we found TOTW at didn't have the large breed puppy formula, unfortunately, but maybe I'll see if they can order it for us.. "/ 

Any other recommendations on a good food?


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## GSDSunshine (Sep 7, 2009)

The store that has TOTW, what else do they have? Might make it easier to narrow down a few choices for you.

And TOTW doesn't have any puppy formulas


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Haha, sorry, I totally thought Roxy was talking about TOTW, not Orijen. 

About the only good food the store DOESN'T have is Orijen. 

They have Wellness (core), Innova, EVO, Natural Balance, California Natural, Merrick, Canidae, Solid Gold, Blue Buffalo, Diamond, and then the lesser brands that are common.


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## Andy-jr. (Mar 1, 2010)

DJEtzel said:


> and if we switched to kibble we'd be feeding him 6 cups a day.


Will he eat that much food? 6 cups seems like a lot of food in one day.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Andy-jr. said:


> Will he eat that much food? 6 cups seems like a lot of food in one day.


Actually, I think I just read the table wrong on the bag.. I haven't dealt with kibble in a while, and I thought that the weight on the feeding table was for projected weight, which I don't *think* it was now, thinking about it. When he was a puppy he was eating 6 cups a day, so I just assumed it was accurate because they were the same, even though I'm sure that would change..

Even so, feeding six cups is still cheaper, so if I had to feed less, then even better.


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

DJEtzel said:


> Haha, sorry, I totally thought Roxy was talking about TOTW, not Orijen.
> 
> About the only good food the store DOESN'T have is Orijen.
> 
> They have Wellness (core), Innova, EVO, Natural Balance, California Natural, Merrick, Canidae, Solid Gold, Blue Buffalo, Diamond, and then the lesser brands that are common.


 
of those, id look at Innova (adult or large breed puppy) or maybe BB or Solid Gold Wolf Cub. the Core and EVO have the same problem as TOTW, so they're not really well suited for large breed pups (especially the EVO). cal natural and natural balance, imo, are better choices if you need a more limited ingredient diet for allergies or other health issues.

i just realized in your original post, you said if you went to kibble, you'd be feeding 6 cups/day. that sounds like an incredibly large amount of food. most people ive seen feeding Orijen Puppy Large, for example, are closer to 3-4 cups per day. at 6 cups a day, most good kibbles may well approach $100+ per month to feed.


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## Andy-jr. (Mar 1, 2010)

My pup is 6 months old and he is eating about 3 cups a day.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Thank you for your suggestions Roxy. We'll check those out next time we're in the city. We still have a few turkeys and lbs of organ and bone left so we have a little while until we'll switch over.. 

I addressed the amount of kibble thing in the post right before yours. You probably didn't notice because you were busy replying yourself..


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Andy-jr. said:


> My pup is 6 months old and he is eating about 3 cups a day.


Makes sense. Like I said, I'm fairly positive I read the table wrong. We'll probably take Frag by the vet for a weigh in once we switch so that we can feed him the accurate amount.


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## lrodptl (Nov 12, 2009)

I think Orijen has about 116 cups in a 29 pound bag. My 6 month old pup eats between 5-6 cups per day,so a bag should last 3 weeks at $60 for me. Better than my earlier projection.Very active pup showing a hint of rib.


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## ch3ckpo1nt (Nov 30, 2009)

Holy crap, either I was starving Damian or you guys have VERY active pups. I just recently got Damian off of Orijen and onto a RAW diet. The most kibble he ever got was right before we switched to RAW. That was 4 cups a day. 6 cups seems like alot even for an active pup. But I guess as long as they don't look overweight, all should be good.


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## lrodptl (Nov 12, 2009)

ch3ckpo1nt said:


> Holy crap, either I was starving Damian or you guys have VERY active pups. I just recently got Damian off of Orijen and onto a RAW diet. The most kibble he ever got was right before we switched to RAW. That was 4 cups a day. 6 cups seems like alot even for an active pup. But I guess as long as they don't look overweight, all should be good.


Fritz is definitely not overweight and my wife comments that he looks too light.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

I got a lot of comments from people on Frag that he looked too skinny when he was eating 6 cups of kibble, and got a few still once we switched to RAW and he was eating 3lbs a day. Of course, it's just the lean growing shepherd look, but the point was, he wasn't by any means fat.


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## arycrest (Feb 28, 2006)

I have a hard time getting weight on Faith because she's extremely active. I feed her six cups of INNOVA a day which is a little over 3,200 kcals - a bag lasts about a month.

Of course you have to keep in mind that the foods list RECOMMENDED amounts to feed, it's really an individual amount for each dog - some dogs need more, some dogs need less, and with some dogs the recommended amount is just right.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Well, I picked up a 33lb bag of Solid Gold Wolf Cub today, and it actually listed the amount of cups in a lb.. 4.85 

And the table said that for his weight he should be getting between 5 and 6, so I'll start with five and see how eager he is to eat all that. It will still last almost a month and will still be cheaper. I'm hoping this will help with his skin issues too..


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## Andy-jr. (Mar 1, 2010)

Let us know how he does. Good luck with the Solid Gold


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## Czechmate (Mar 22, 2010)

Highly recommend Royal Canin GSD formula, it is specifically formulated for skin and stomach sensitivities, joint care, and digestive health. Switched my 8 year old to it, she gets 2 cups a day (94 cups in a 30lb bag), and is still slightly overweight at 76lbs despite lots of walks. She has never looked or acted better in her entire life! Coat is shiny and the color is very rich, she sheds less, stool quality is perfect and consistent, and the actual kibble shape promotes dental health. 

I have never been one to promote one brand over the other, but the change in my dog has been astounding, even friends and family members have noticed!


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Well I'm not really worried about coat health because we feed fish oil, and we give RMB now a couple of times a week for teeth. I'm just worried about healthy growth. 

btw, I love the fact that solid gold vacuum packs their food. It makes it a lot easier to handle.


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## lrodptl (Nov 12, 2009)

Czechmate said:


> Highly recommend Royal Canin GSD formula, it is specifically formulated for skin and stomach sensitivities, joint care, and digestive health. Switched my 8 year old to it, she gets 2 cups a day (94 cups in a 30lb bag), and is still slightly overweight at 76lbs despite lots of walks. She has never looked or acted better in her entire life! Coat is shiny and the color is very rich, she sheds less, stool quality is perfect and consistent, and the actual kibble shape promotes dental health.
> 
> I have never been one to promote one brand over the other, but the change in my dog has been astounding, even friends and family members have noticed!


You won't like this review.


Dog Food Reviews - Royal Canin Maxi German Shepherd 24 - Powered by ReviewPost


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Yeah, I've never heard anything good about royal canin and wouldn't consider feeding it. That review doesn't surprise me. "/


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

Royal Canin is not the worst. it is certainly better than grocery store foods.

their pricing structure is what is offensive. id be ok with RC if they cut their prices way back to reflect the product. i wouldnt feed it, but at least they wouldnt be ripping people off.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Very true. I don't consider it the worst by any means; but like you said, especially because of the quality for the price, I wouldn't feed it. Reminds me of science diet.. 

Good news though; Frag switched food this morning and is loving it so far. We're feeding two 2.5 cup meals a day right now, which is actually a little less than the bag recommends, but we'll see how it goes..


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