what to feed?

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yuckaduck

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#1
I have a 4 month old german shepherd puppy who is eating Science Diet large breed puppy food right now. I thought this was good food until now but am very confused at what to feed. Adult or large breed puppy? What kind? It needs to be affordable [one income family] but I don't want him eating garbage. I thought maybe Kirkland Signature or Presidents Coice Nutrition 1st Any ideas on this Thanks
 

Fran27

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#2
I have never heard of them but they don't seem that bad (finding the ingredients of Kirkland online is next to impossible though, but if what I saw is the right one I think Presidents choice would be better), but of course I'm no expert... I'm sure Mordy will be able to give you a better answer though.
 
Y

yuckaduck

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#3
Thank you I am so confused because everyone has a different opinion and I just don't have the knowledge myself. Growing up the dogs were farm dogs and they got fed whatever was on sale at the time. My parents still feed ole roy and swear it is the best money can buy. Ok mom whatever you say?
Thanks again.
 
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#4
yucka...
You will find MANY opinions of food here and sometimes it can get heated. I grew up with goldens that had very long lifespans and they just ate Purina. (not that I'm feeding grocery store dog food today). However, that was before the "gourmet" foods of today. Some are on an all raw diet. Others are on very expensive foods that are hard to find. It's an ongoing debate and don't be offended if you get very strong opions you may not agree with! ;)
 
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yuckaduck

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#5
As long as no one calls me nutso or stupid I can handle it. That's what happened on another forum and as a result I look elsewhere. I'm just information seeking because right now he's on the science diet and if that is not got I would prefer to feed something good. I don't want hip or elbow problems later in life because he grew to fast as a pup or was feed food that was not good enough. I love my dog very much, but on the other hand I can't afford raw or that is what he would be fed. My trainer say go with Kirkland Signature, my vet say stay with the SD and the breeder says President Choice 1st Nutitrion. So you can see why I'm confused :confused: .
I'm not knowledgable on this at all so all opinions are welcome.
Thanks for the advice.
 
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#6
yuckaduck said:
As long as no one calls me nutso or stupid I can handle it. That's what happened on another forum and as a result I look elsewhere. I'm just information seeking because right now he's on the science diet and if that is not got I would prefer to feed something good. I don't want hip or elbow problems later in life because he grew to fast as a pup or was feed food that was not good enough. I love my dog very much, but on the other hand I can't afford raw or that is what he would be fed. My trainer say go with Kirkland Signature, my vet say stay with the SD and the breeder says President Choice 1st Nutitrion. So you can see why I'm confused :confused: .
I'm not knowledgable on this at all so all opinions are welcome.
Thanks for the advice.
Yucka... check your PM...
 

Fran27

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#7
Science Diet is really not good. Vets usually advise it because they're their sponsor or something... (I get SD packages and stuff).
 

juliefurry

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#8
I feed Eagle Pack and Innova. It's a little more expensive per bag but you feed less so it works out to about the same. I also fed Nutro Natural Choice to my dogs for a little bit and they really seemed to like it. Nutro is like $35 for a 40 lb bag. Plus if you sign up for their frequent buy program if you buy 10 bags you get the 11th free. I am in the same boat we have a limited income and have children to think about as well but we feel until we can't find a way to afford it we will keep feeding it to them. Especially our husky (who was diagnosed with cancer) needs the best food we can supply her with.
 

Fran27

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#9
My best advice is to read Mordy's site (http://www.mordanna.com/dogfood/), and compare prices. For example, here Innova is the same price as Nutro for a 33lbs bag (Nutro is 40lbs), but as you feed less of it, it's actually cheaper. And it's better food.

So you can look at the prices, the recommended dose for your dogs, and compare prices per day etc. Sometimes you can have pleasant surprises.

How much are those two foods? They seem close to nutro.
 

juliefurry

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#11
They are I paid the same amount for a 40 lb bag of Nutro as I do for a 33 lb bag of Eagle Pack. I pay I don't even remember what size bag of Innova I get for Shelby but it cost me 15 and it's like a 10 lb bag. I just threw out her bag and I'm too lazy to walk outside and check. Her bag lasts her lasted her for like a month and a half though.
 
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yuckaduck

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#12
Cool gotta look into that. He seems to eat anything so I have a bit of time to research and then figure out what to feed. Thanks again.
 

zoepup

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#13
I was in the same boat with my puppy that I just got. The breeder told me to get a grocery store brand because it was less expensive but high quality and the vet said science diet. Everyone I talked to had a different opinion. Everyone was telling me things like to avoid by products and things like that. It was hard for me because my dog can't have lamb because it will make her skin itch and the only foods without lamb had by products so I stressed about it for a while and then finally had to make a decsion. I just stuck with the science diet I give her small puppy kibbles and will probably keep her on the puppy food for a year and then switch to adult.
 
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yuckaduck

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#14
Each to their own really. What is good for you may not be good for someone else and I figure the most important thing is that the dog gets fed. What you can afford and what you decide on is another matter. My best friend who is very sarcastic told me feed him shavings if you want it is your dog and up to you. It is no one elses business. But I think there is better out there than shavings. He is so funny, cracks me up everytime I see him. Point is no one has the right to make anyone feel bad for what they feed. Advise, tell your experiences and then we all make up our own minds. The husband says were are going to go with the Kirkland Signature[chicken and rice], he's the one who works; he's the one who makes the money so he can decide how to spend it. He wants to feed that so be it as long as the dog is fed and grows up healthy I'm happy. The only other thing is they don't have a puppy so is it ok to switch to an adult at such a young age. I have had people say he should be on an adult now anyway but I really don't know for sure. We need someone to study this and then tell us all. Great ideas though and I love to learn so keep them comin. :)
 

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#15
nutro is really a waste of money. yeah, it's a decent mainstream food and better than many other popular foods, but you are paying a premium price for a fgood that contains less than 30% real meat. the rest is grains, fillers and a small amount of mineral and vitamin supplements.

just as an example, nutro lamb and rice adult has 340 kcal per cup, canidae has 466. they both come in 40 lb bags and in my area pretty much cost the same (between $29 and $26 per bag, depending on where you buy and if you have coupons).

strictly by caloric density every cup of canidae supplies over 30% more nutrition than the nutro, so 40 lbs are going to last much longer, effectively reducing your daily feeding cost.
 
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yuckaduck

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#16
Thank you for laying it out a bit more, starting to make a bit more sense to me now. I am desperate to learn as much as I can so thank you. :)
 

Mordy

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#17
sorry i forgot to address the puppy food vs. adult food topic.

you can feed a good quality adult food designated "for all lifestages". large breed puppies should not eat puppy food at all, it's better for their skeleton if they do not grow at maximum speed, and puppy food tends to be more nutrient dense, allowing for faster growth.
 
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yuckaduck

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#18
That helps even more so I'm defenantly going with adult now I just have to decide which one. Thank you for again helping with my confused little mind. :confused: :)
 

Mordy

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#19
make sure you check for the AAFCO designation "for all lifestages" tho. if it just says "for maintenance", it won't provide sufficient nutrition for a still growing puppy.
 
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yuckaduck

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#20
Thank you will look at the bags closely to make sure. This a great forum boy have I been missing good information. :)
 

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