Just a little history. I adopted a 1 and half old gsd male that is right now 89 pounds. Sounds like he is fully built but to be honest he looks like he needs about another 10-15 pounds more. I know that he wasnt exercised like he should of been because his front shoulder and back thighs are seriously lacking muscle and over all structure. Right now having him for about a month I am wanting to finally take him off the food that the previous owner had him on and that was "oh no" pedigree. She had two bags left over because she bought it in month supplys and now with a half of bag left I am wanting to switch but don't know what to switch to. I've feed eukanuba before then I hear that Royal Canine is good, then I hear about Blue Buffalo, Natural Balance, Nature's Variety. The list can go on and so can the price. Though price isn't the concern my gsd's health is and I am hoping to get some feedback from some people about switching. All I know is I want him off of corn with some high protein and fat to help put him where he looks like he needs to be and healthy.

Are you familiar with Whole Dog Journal's annual kibble ratings?

No what is it a site based on reviews of dog foods?

 Quote: Joseph Eubank

No what is it a site based on reviews of dog foods?

No, WDJ is a monthly publication that accepts no advertising and so has no income besides subscriptions ... making them beholden to no manufacturer.

I thought prior years' lists were available online, but I don't see them.

Here's some good material. The first one, in fact, is Mary Straus, nutrition writer for WDJ (and an excellent source).


http://www.dogaware.com/diet/dryfood.html

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/

http://www.dogfoodscoop.com/best-commercial-dog-food.html

What do you feed?

I feed raw.

There are kibble folks here, though.

I know you will get personal recommendations, but Sunday is typically slow on dog boards because people are often out training.

See I would love to do raw but I don't know if it is a good idea going from a life since a puppy of kibble to raw. Even more I know I can monitor the rotation of the feed from day to day to ensure no spoilage and making sure it doesn't sit thawing too long to catch bacteria infection.

I feed raw, but do keep kibble on hand.

I use a variety of types, all grain free.

I have fed Wellness CORE, Acana, Origen, Taste of the Wild, Canidae Grain Free, and most recently Nature's Domain from Costco.

I think I will stick with the Nature's Domain because I can get 35 lb bag for under $40. If it were the only food I was feeding, then I would pick something that had less vegetable matter (this has sweet potatoes, peas, and potatoes in the first 5 ingredients) or add additional fresh ingredients like cooked or raw meat. That 35 lb bag lasts me months between 4 dogs since I primarily use it for training treats, so not much of a concern for me.

If you want to do raw, there is no reason why you can't. My first dog was 6 1/2 y/o when I switched her from kibble to raw.

I switched my youngest dog to raw when she was 2 y/o and her digestive issues have finally cleared up so the change was very positive for her.

If you want a better quality kibble while you're deciding (or just want to stay with kibble) I'd suggest looking into Canidae. It's readily available, has quality ingredients (first three are meat and there is no corn or soy in it) And it's not as rich as some of the other premium kibbles so your dog should be able to adjust pretty well. I've fed it before and have been happy with how my dogs did on it. My youngster with digestive issues did the best on Canidae of all the different kibble I tried with her.


Edited by Mara Jessup (09/11/2011 07:33 PM)
Edit reason: clarify

Any feedback or any talks you know of about Royal Canine or Blue Buffalo?