# Best food



## Megansambec (Oct 19, 2018)

I have a 14 week make GSD who’s been eating Royal Canin. I realize this may not be the best option for him and wanted advice on another choice. Lately he’s been itching like crazy since we switched to it. The vet thought it may be from his first bath. That was 3 weeks ago. He doesn’t have any fleas as he’s on preventative. Any food recommendations? Cost isn’t a problem and I don’t want to do raw.


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## BlitzTheGSD (Aug 30, 2018)

Megansambec said:


> I have a 14 week make GSD who’s been eating Royal Canin. I realize this may not be the best option for him and wanted advice on another choice. Lately he’s been itching like crazy since we switched to it. The vet thought it may be from his first bath. That was 3 weeks ago. He doesn’t have any fleas as he’s on preventative. Any food recommendations? Cost isn’t a problem and I don’t want to do raw.





Honestly, recently Royal Canin has made a nice comeback and is a pretty good food. That being said, my last GS was allergic to chicken so the instant i switched his food to salmon i noticed a huge difference. My new GSD is now 13 weeks and from readng the million blogs here i decided to go with Victor Nutra Pro and i fully recommend it (very well priced and chewy delivers it). Hard solid poops, great coat, great teeth, no crazy itching. I am also staying away from grain free due to the new studies that found it causes DCM, which my last shepherd passed away from. But if you need other recommendations Orijen, taste of the wild, Nutro, wellness.. these are all very good foods


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## ausdland (Oct 21, 2015)

JustFoodforDogs, NomNomNow since cost isn't a problem and don't want to feed raw. Just switched my dog from raw the past 1.5 years to JustFoodforDogs and cook it myself for half the cost.

You have a GSD, if it doesn't have seasonal or environmental allergies, chances are the 'food' is the culprit. I fed Royal Canin to my pup for 6 months, she had runny eyes and was itchy. I will not feed kibble again.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

I checked out the website of JFD. It mentioned ingredients but not the %s. Seems very heavy on vegggies. The pictures of the veggies looked like it was meant for bunnies. We shouldn't forget that dogs are carnivores. They do eat plant material, preferable partially digested as in green tripe, but meat should be the main part IMHO


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## Malibu (Jul 27, 2017)

This is the whole problem...... Not 4 out of 6 people can agree on any food.. I am talking about a LID KIBBLE.. I am talking about a non LID kibble. Large breed dog food. Now you have JFG, NNN, $$$ and people still can't agree on ANYTHING... How can anyone get any consistent help when it comes to feeding a GSD.

For persons not willing to go with the raw choice. Some have grains and some have pea's when some do not have taurine. I guess NOBODY knows how to make a dog food y e t !!

I was intrigued about the pre-made meals delivered and their are many of them but my quick-ish reviewing has found the price and outstanding reviews go to NNN. Just thought I would add this and I will wait patiently to get shot down....


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

I feed them kibble in the morning and raw at night. For kibble, including the large breed puppy kind, I am happy with Fromm, Orijin, Acana and Wellness. I rotate these brands and even the varieties within the brand. Sometimes I get the grain and other times the grain-free variety. No problems so far. They have grown up beautifully on this diet (Deja is 5 years old and Griff is a clumsy 10 months old)
I started the pup on raw once or twice a week after about three months as I wanted to make sure they got all the balanced nutrition.


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## Malibu (Jul 27, 2017)

All great kibble food choices by me... EXCEPT I am dealing with itching....


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## ausdland (Oct 21, 2015)

Malibu said:


> This is the whole problem...... Not 4 out of 6 people can agree on any food.. I am talking about a LID KIBBLE.. I am talking about a non LID kibble. Large breed dog food. Now you have JFG, NNN, $$$ and people still can't agree on ANYTHING... How can anyone get any consistent help when it comes to feeding a GSD.
> 
> For persons not willing to go with the raw choice. Some have grains and some have pea's when some do not have taurine. I guess NOBODY knows how to make a dog food y e t !!
> 
> I was intrigued about the pre-made meals delivered and their are many of them but my quick-ish reviewing has found the price and outstanding reviews go to NNN. Just thought I would add this and I will wait patiently to get shot down....


I'll may try NNN next as it's way cheaper than JFFD and cooking every 11 days sucks. My holistic vet and PT vet both recommend JFFD or NNN and say their patients are thriving on lightly cooked, supplemented food.

Ppl give their opinions based on their experience I guess. There are some nutritionally versed ppl on this forum that avoid kibble as do I. It's dehydrating period. If kibble is all a person can do financially or otherwise so be it. Some are better than others I guess but they are all extruded and dehydrating. The OP said cost wasn't an issue, there are healthier alternatives that are almost as convenient, raw, air dried, lightly cooked, base mixes, etc. 

Unless you are buying the ingredients you feed your dog yourself it's really hard to know the source.


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## Malibu (Jul 27, 2017)

If I was to chose a diet it would be 1/2 kibble of choice and 1 pre-made- delivered NNN pouch that I would serve 1/2 in the AM and other half in the PM both with kibble. BUT.. people shoot that down too


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## gsdoglife (Apr 15, 2018)

I use a pre made ready to eat complete raw product (comes in patties, can be baked in the oven if you want it cooked).. however you said no raw so respecting that i might recommend Ziwi Peak dry dog food (although i would probably soak in a bit of water or bone broth to re-hydrate before feeding).


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## huntergreen (Jun 28, 2012)

I have been using Fromm large breed puppy formula with success. IMHO, the best dog food is the one your dog does well on.


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## McGloomy (Mar 13, 2018)

Opt for No soy no wheat no corn. That'll possibly help. Once my dog was on Iams it was the only food I'd ever fed him that had corn, he kept on itching, his coat was dull and unshiny, and the shedding was more out of control. Soon as we changed, in 2 weeks he was back to normal.

Recommendations: Victor, ProPac, Taste of the Wild, Crave, American Journey


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## Orphan Heidi (Sep 21, 2018)

I believe we should feed out dogs like wolves. Mostly meat, mostly protein from meat. No grains, no veggies, no

kibble that's 30-40% carbohydrates. Carbs turn into types of sugar once digested. It's these carbs that make

dogs hyper, fearful, full of anxiety and because the carbs are vitamin and mineral deficient we see skin problems

as well as long term health problems.

Meat is essentially all protein. Read, read, read and you will see that commercial dog food is loaded with fillers.

Wolves/dogs don't directly consume these fillers like beet pulp, alfalfa, oat flour, carrots, blueberries, peas, etc.

So many behavior problems, digestion problems, allergies and skin problems come from what you're feeding.

Kibble is mainly JUNK FOOD. You can spend your money on a healthy diet or you can spend it at the vet, trying

to heal what junk food is causing.


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## Malibu (Jul 27, 2017)

huntergreen said:


> I have been using Fromm large breed puppy formula with success. IMHO, the best dog food is the one your dog does well on.


I will be giving this try when I get my puppy in Dec. and as long as she has no allergies maybe she can even stay on it. :grin2:

My 5 year old on the other hand has allergies. I have tried. HOLISTIC BLEND, NATURES WAY, TUSCAN NATURALS, FROMMS, ZIGNATURE, INSTINCT, ACANA, I & LOVE & YOU, CANINE CAVIAR, BROTHERS, These are just a few off the top of my head. 

People talk about feeding raw one meal and kibble the next. My GSD would never touch the kibble after offering raw or NNN.


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## Orphan Heidi (Sep 21, 2018)

Malibu said:


> People talk about feeding raw one meal and kibble the next. My GSD would never touch the kibble after offering raw or NNN.


haha, mine too!! 5 weeks out of the shelter where I'm sure she only ate kibble, and now she

only wants her healthy meat. Smart girl.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Orphan Heidi said:


> haha, mine too!! 5 weeks out of the shelter where I'm sure she only ate kibble, and now she
> 
> only wants her healthy meat. Smart girl.


Then she isn't hungry enough. Dogs have evolved from wolves as scavengers a long time ago and the comparison is not as accurate anymore so kibble shouldn't be that foreign to them IMO. Sorry, but I guess refusing food, no matter which kind, has more to do with being spoiled :grin2:
In this house I decide what they eat and if they don't, no food at all and they get the same offer next meal time. But that's just me. Never had finicky eating dogs or kids for that matter.


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