|
Doggies
May 14, 2009 5:00:30 GMT -8
Post by flat on May 14, 2009 5:00:30 GMT -8
|
|
|
Doggies
May 15, 2009 18:13:16 GMT -8
Post by thermopoly on May 15, 2009 18:13:16 GMT -8
Allergy season is torturing everyone around here, including Biscuit. I don't know if she has food allergies, but since I switched from Purina One Lamb and Rice to IAMS to save money, I've noticed her allergies have gotten worse. Could just be a coincidence, but after doing research online I've found the general consensus to be that IAMS is total crap compared to other premium foods. Anybody wanna share their experience/advice on choosing a good dog food? I bought a bag of Nature's Balance today - fairly reasonably priced and very good ingredients. No corn or by-products. Biscuit totally turned her nose up at it - seems like the higher quality the food, the less palatable it is. Beneful, for example, is the nutritional equivalent of McDonalds for dogs, and they love it. The cats are easy - they do fine on plain ol' Purina Cat Chow.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 15, 2009 18:40:52 GMT -8
Post by Fearless Heart on May 15, 2009 18:40:52 GMT -8
Allergy season is torturing everyone around here, including Biscuit. I don't know if she has food allergies, but since I switched from Purina One Lamb and Rice to IAMS to save money, I've noticed her allergies have gotten worse. Could just be a coincidence, but after doing research online I've found the general consensus to be that IAMS is total crap compared to other premium foods. Anybody wanna share their experience/advice on choosing a good dog food? I bought a bag of Nature's Balance today - fairly reasonably priced and very good ingredients. No corn or by-products. Biscuit totally turned her nose up at it - seems like the higher quality the food, the less palatable it is. Beneful, for example, is the nutritional equivalent of McDonalds for dogs, and they love it. The cats are easy - they do fine on plain ol' Purina Cat Chow. We had some problems years back with our black lab and skin allergies. I can't remember what we were feeding her when the skin problems started, but when we switched to Pro Plan she had no problems. I would think the Nature's Balance would be good. We lost Sadie to cancer a few years ago so only have to buy cat food now. I've feed them Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul brand. There is also one for dogs. www.chickensoupforthepetloverssoul.com/
|
|
|
Doggies
May 15, 2009 20:03:31 GMT -8
Post by thermopoly on May 15, 2009 20:03:31 GMT -8
It's funny you mention the Chicken Soup brand, because that's exactly what I went in search of today at Feeder's Supply, but they didn't have it. Natural Balance seemed to be the closest thing to it in terms of ingredients and price. But I definitely wanna try the Chicken Soup brand, I may just have to go to a different store. I read that it can be a little difficult to find. Do you get yours online?
|
|
|
Doggies
May 16, 2009 1:37:56 GMT -8
Post by jayell on May 16, 2009 1:37:56 GMT -8
My Mathilda, and to a lesser extent a couple of the other pups, developed a vicious chicken (we think) allergy last summer -- ironically, it started when I switched them from Iams to Blue Buffalo "oh so natural ultra good dog owner" premium food, but once it kicked in, she couldn't tolerate the less-chickeny Iams again. It was hellish. So now all the dogs are on Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Stomach Salmon and Rice formula and thriving. The salmon is really good for their skin and coats.
For a short while, I had them on the Natural Balance super simple Lamb and Brown Rice because that's all it had, no other food ingredients, so you can use it as an elimination or purifying diet. It was fine but ungodly expensive for multiple large dogs and a bit too rich for their digestion. They all like the Pro Plan much better, it's more affordable and easier to procure (two stores in town sell it consistently rather than just one off and on), and the best part is that the kibble is a good size for large dogs and still easy for the little guys to inhale as well.
The main bitch about Iams (which is still a far better food than the generic Wal-Mart crap a lot of people feed their dogs) is that it's largely corn, and that adds a ton of bulk without a lot of the right kind of nutrition.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 16, 2009 3:55:44 GMT -8
Post by Bad Dad on May 16, 2009 3:55:44 GMT -8
My granddoggie is staying here for a week or so. Looked like a little tan sheepdog rather than a miniature white poodle. Gave him a good wash and a trim, try to get a grooming appt. stat.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 16, 2009 6:54:56 GMT -8
Post by Fearless Heart on May 16, 2009 6:54:56 GMT -8
It's funny you mention the Chicken Soup brand, because that's exactly what I went in search of today at Feeder's Supply, but they didn't have it. Natural Balance seemed to be the closest thing to it in terms of ingredients and price. But I definitely wanna try the Chicken Soup brand, I may just have to go to a different store. I read that it can be a little difficult to find. Do you get yours online? Fortunately our local feed store carries it as does another pet supply store - much cheaper at the feed store.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 16, 2009 7:13:25 GMT -8
Post by thermopoly on May 16, 2009 7:13:25 GMT -8
What I'm mostly looking for in a food is not the inclusion of fancy ingredients, but the exclusion of shitty ingredients like corn, beet pulp, byproducts and preservatives. I don't mind if the protein content isn't all that high because I supplement with fresh meat, cheese and eggs anyway.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 16, 2009 10:03:50 GMT -8
Post by Dan on May 16, 2009 10:03:50 GMT -8
Little doggies: Big doggies: King of all dogs: Free the Michigan Six!
|
|
|
Doggies
May 20, 2009 16:31:11 GMT -8
Post by thermopoly on May 20, 2009 16:31:11 GMT -8
The feeding guidelines on Natural Balance dry food indicate 3 to 4 cups a day for a dog of Biscuit's weight (55 lbs). Does anybody else find that high quantity to be strange? I've never seen such a high recommended quantity on any food, expensive or cheap. She's in great shape and I don't ever want her to get overweight. She won't eat the food at all unless I mix gravy in (a mixture of a little microwaved canned dog food and water), but with gravy she'll wolf down a cup and a half in just a few minutes. So I've been giving her a cup and a half with gravy and leaving out a half cup of dry during the day, just in case she gets peckish. Any dog owners wanna tell me if it sounds like I'm on the right track here? This is new territory for me.
Sullaria, any more thoughts on a little brother/sister for Meadow?
|
|
|
Doggies
May 20, 2009 19:53:11 GMT -8
Post by sullaria on May 20, 2009 19:53:11 GMT -8
Sullaria, any more thoughts on a little brother/sister for Meadow?[/quote]
I think we are settling on a pug. When I visited Parisa in Lafayette last month, they were pet-sitting her fiance's brother's dog, Boomer. He was wonderful! Sweet-tempered (I've heard they generally are), low-key personality, obedient, and cute as all get out. Meadow is big and emotionally needy, so we figured a pug pup she could help "raise" might be just the thing. I'd love to get a shelter dog, but she really doesn't care for other adult dogs, and with the 2 kitties in the mix, I need a good doggie balance. My sister says pugs are known as the comedians of the dog world, does anyone here have one or know one?
The sheriff's department entered my house the other night without knocking, and when she lunged and growled at them, they threatened to shoot here if I didn't immediately secure her - not so easy with a straining, growling pit/Lab mix in full protective mode and two officers with guns drawn, but I managed. They had the wrong house! The burglar alarm went off next door, and they came to my house instead. They saw Peter through the glass of the front door cutouts, carrying his Louisville slugger because he'd heard suspicious sounds and had gone to check it out, and they thought it was a home invasion situation. Boy, were those sheriffs anxious to apologize.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 21, 2009 1:13:22 GMT -8
Post by jayell on May 21, 2009 1:13:22 GMT -8
My god, that's scary (the stormtroopers, not the pug). I'm occasionally vaguely worried that someday the po-leese will mistake my house for that of the substance-addled, dog-neglecting throwbacks around the block and mow down my pack.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 21, 2009 7:44:38 GMT -8
Post by F0|50M PR|50N 88 on May 21, 2009 7:44:38 GMT -8
JL, I hope the the throwbacks have castoff toys and rusty shit in the yard so that when I get to the rive gauche I don't mistake their house for yours. That would be awkward.
Sullaria, I love Meadow. I like how she's giant and isn't aware of her giantness and how she's just a teeny bit daft but sweet. The thought of her loping along nosing a pert little pug like a mama and pup makes me smile.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 21, 2009 9:02:54 GMT -8
Post by jayell on May 21, 2009 9:02:54 GMT -8
JL, I hope the the throwbacks have castoff toys and rusty shit in the yard so that when I get to the rive gauche I don't mistake their house for yours. That would be awkward. Oh yeah, the only thing that keeps these people from being a complete, utter stereotype is the fact that they live in a shack rather than a single-wide. The place smells like sewage, there are ill behaved (although not terribly dirty/disheveled or sickly) children, a pitbull chained in the dirt, parts of rusty car carcasses (not even up on blocks) in the yard, the front door boarded up. There used to be a cast-off mattress on the roof of the carport, but I guess someone got the spring cleaning bug. The woman sends her little boy across the street to buy her cigarettes, and the man wears a wifebeater and says things like, "What good is a dog if it doesn't bite?" The younger boy has reportedly begged food from neighbors while saying, "My dad says I don't have to do what some woman tells me." I mean, my dilapidated place isn't the Hearst Mansion and could use a coat of paint and a new roof (or maybe just a competent arsonist), but come on.
|
|
|
Doggies
May 22, 2009 4:28:53 GMT -8
Post by nobodyoudknow on May 22, 2009 4:28:53 GMT -8
Pugs are awesome little guys but some have terrible yeast problems in the ears and nose folds. They are also both prone to dental problems and a bitch and a half about having their teeth brushed, so if you get a little tyke, please try to persuade him/her that teeth brushing is oh so fun.
My stepdaughter wants to get a fawn pug and name it Fig. I think this is brilliant.
Re: food, my theory is that spending money on high quality food now saves you from paying vet bills for cancer later. I make a raw diet for my cats, used to do the same for the dog, and supplemented it with dry food (used the dry food alone if away, made it simpler for pet sitters).
I recommend getting a grain-free formula (e.g., Evo) at a specialty pet food store. You feed less because there IS no filler. Very helpful to calm allergies, too. Poops come out more compact, in my opinion, because of the more complete digestion.
But then, I lived in California and worked the holistic end of the pet care business, so you may feel free to consider me a lunatic, which y'all may anyway, god bless your souls.
P.
|
|