Hundreds of thousands of dogs have been raised on Dog Chow. I know it is corn, likely parts of dead dogs, etc. etc. and it is not natural, not perfect in many ways---but it gets many dogs grown, with shiny coats, (and lots of stools in the yard!) and it's cheap. They do preform continuous testing on litters of dogs and tweak the formula constantly--granted,they tweak the formula mostly for "least cost", but it is, or was, a results based outfit. It makes my dog hyper or I would be feeding it, probably. I have fed it to many other dogs I have owned.

I trust this brand more than these new brands which have ingredients seemed to
appeal to the person buying the bag - eg blueberries and dried barley, oatmeal and cranberries--whatever, that's not calories, and calories are what FEED.

 Quote: betty landercasp

Hundreds of thousands of dogs have been raised on Dog Chow. I know it is corn, likely parts of dead dogs, etc. etc. and it is not natural, not perfect in many ways---but it gets many dogs grown, with shiny coats, (and lots of stools in the yard!) and it's cheap. They do preform continuous testing on litters of dogs and tweak the formula constantly--granted,they tweak the formula mostly for "least cost", but it is, or was, a results based outfit. It makes my dog hyper or I would be feeding it, probably. I have fed it to many other dogs I have owned.

I trust this brand more than these new brands which have ingredients seemed to
appeal to the person buying the bag - eg blueberries and dried barley, oatmeal and cranberries--whatever, that's not calories, and calories are what FEED.

I agree - the new companies are catering to humans. Wolves have survived in the wild eating whatever they can get but our dogs need to have "human grade" foods or we are terrible dog parents for not feeding these types of foods. I think it is ridiculous to pay $50+ for a 30lb bag of food (which I do) when my dog would be very healthy raised on one of the "lesser" foods.

 Quote: betty landercasp

Hundreds of thousands of dogs have been raised on Dog Chow. I know it is corn, likely parts of dead dogs, etc. etc. and it is not natural, not perfect in many ways---but it gets many dogs grown, with shiny coats, (and lots of stools in the yard!) and it's cheap. They do preform continuous testing on litters of dogs and tweak the formula constantly--granted,they tweak the formula mostly for "least cost", but it is, or was, a results based outfit. It makes my dog hyper or I would be feeding it, probably. I have fed it to many other dogs I have owned.

I trust this brand more than these new brands which have ingredients seemed to
appeal to the person buying the bag - eg blueberries and dried barley, oatmeal and cranberries--whatever, that's not calories, and calories are what FEED.

While I agree with you in one way - Purina is a top mainstream brand (and I don't think they've had recalls so they are doing something right). And many dogs do fine on it - dogs are pretty adaptable. Our family dog was Ol' Roy or something similar and lived to be 15 - not bad for a GSD mix. But OTOH she was free to roam 150 acres of property and got many extras with her diet. She'd stand at bushes and pick off raspberries and blueberries. She'd go catch a woodchuck or squirrel and eat it. So she wasn't just getting the kibble. And all the exercise she got also went a long way toward keeping her healthy.

But I've also seen changes in Kipp as he's gone from one food to another - he's the dog can eat just about anything and do fine on it. When I got him he was on basic Diamond food - pretty much corn and chicken. He was doing just fine, lots of energy, good coat, etc. He had the markers of a healthy dog. I went ahead and put him on Diamond Naturals - higher meat content and no corn. His energy stayed the same, but his coat got softer. He's pretty much been on DN in one form or another for 5 years now. He's done just fine and I'd have no qualms about putting him back on it.

But Kenzi does better on raw and I'd rather feed both dogs the same thing so Kipp is now on Raw and THK. It's been about a month and his coat has changed a bit again is amazing - soft, thick and shiny.

So while he did fine and was plenty healthy on the cheaper food (and I certainly don't fault a person for choosing a cheaper option that works for their dog - if money gets really tight again this winter I'll put Kipp right back on DN) there is something in this premium food that is making a difference.

Just my unscientific observation!

 Quote: Erika Hallberg

....are there any kibbles that folks on this board do approve of? Suggestions would be appreciated.

http://leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/344175/page/0/fpart/1

(Blue Buffalo on page 2)

I also agree with you that the brand of food is not causing slow development. And your vet thinks his development is fine ....

Checking for parasites is still probably a good idea, and so, IMHO, is adding long-chain Omega 3s in the form of fish oil, particularly now that you mention flaky skin as well as rough coat.

Hi Erika. The number one kibble is Orijen. They make a large breed food. It's a little more expensive but I've seen great results with my dog. I add a few squirts of salmon oil (I buy a big pump style bottle from Leerburg). My dog has the most beautiful coat and doesn't shed like crazy.

I remember our first puppy class and how puny my pup looked compared with another shepherd in the class. He was just developing at his own pace, much like kids do.

I hope you got your pup to the vet and that he is in good health and growing.

Don't get frustrated with this board. The group here can be "harpy" about going raw, etc. but in the end they want our dogs to be in supreme health and they have helped me a lot with any dog issues I've had.