Any Good Grain-Free Foods via PetSmart

[Adrienne]

I just recently joined this group and have learned a great deal.  I fed my last dog Eukanuba for 14.5 years and was clueless about the dangers of grain, etc. in dog foods.  I would love to feed my new pup a grain-free food but I see that most have to be ordered online.  Are there any recommended brands available through local pet stores like PetSmart, Petco, etc.?  If not, I guess that I need to start warming the DH up to the idea of mail-order pet food :)

[Stephanie Brown]

We started ordering online because it is cheaper than at a local store usually. Amazon has it set up where it is ordered automatically each month, three months, etc. ;). It is actually quite easy. I'd have to drive an hour or more to buy at a petsmart or something.

[Lynne A]

You can find a ton of grain-free foods at Petco and Petsmart. Blue Buffalo, Merrick, Wellness to name just a few.

[Tait & Finn]

I feed my boy Natural Balance which has several grain free choices and it can be found at Petco as well as other specialty pet supply stores. But not PetSmart.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I do think some grain free foods are available from the pet stores. I feed Acana grain free and I do order it on line, from Doggiefood.com, which is very reliable and has free shipping.

[Adrienne]

Great news!!  Also, I didn't think about Amazon for pet food.  I absolutely love Amazon.  I am going to do a search of grain free foods right now :)  Thanks a million.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It isn't really that there is a "danger" in foods that contain grains; it depends on what kind of grains they are, and what percentage of the food they comprise. What you want to avoid are corn and wheat, or foods with lots of grains listed among the first 5 ingredients. There are lots of foods on our recommended list that contain healthy grains. There are grain-free foods that contain high carbs in the form of potatoes, peas, beans, etc., so while they may technically be "grain-free", they are also lower in protein than is desirable. Many dogs here do very well on foods that do contain some healthy grains. 

You can buy a lot of our recommended brands at the pet supply stores. Your best bet is to check for smaller, privately owned "boutique" style stores in your area, many people are not aware of these until they happen upon them on a manufacturer's website; but even stores like Petsmart and Petco carry many of them: Blue Buffalo and Wellness are two that come to mind. 

Here's our list: Recommended Brands

And of course, make sure that you do not change your pup's food for at least two weeks after he comes home, no matter what your breeder is feeding, and that includes treats, too. 

[Adrienne]

Karen thank you for clarifying that for me and for the tip about transitioning my pup's food.  I am not sure which food my breeder uses but I know that she includes a 1-2 week supply on pick-up day.  I have a lot to learn.  I am glad that I have more time before the pup gets here.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

It's a bit of trial and error in the first few years too.  We tried any food for at least 4 months (2 different flavors) before deciding if it was right for Luna.  

After we finished the supply of Kirkland food from her breeder, we started Luna on Blue Buffalo, but she didn't do that well on that.  We transitioned to Wellness when she was about 6 months old... that wasn't so great either so we then tried Taste of the Wild, but then they had a recall and we started on Acana.  Acana has been great ever since so we stuck with it :)

Through trying the different foods we discovered a few things:

- Luna needs a grain-free food 

- She doesn't digest chicken very well, so we avoid any formulas with chicken

There are lots of great foods but not every food works for every dog!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Exactly. There is never one "best" food that works for every dog. 

[Tait & Finn]

Im still trying to find a food that works well for us. I was just looking at the Acana website and their puppy food has chicken, which Finn doesn't seem to do well with. I suppose I can wait a while and try their adult formula. How old was Luna when you went to Acana?

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

I think she was about 1.5 years old.  We use the 3 grain-free formulas that don't have chicken in them.  I could be wrong but I think those formulas can be used for puppies, you'd just have to adjust the daily serving amount.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Exactly.  For example, Peri started out on Taste of the Wild (grain-free). It just wasn't working for her. She was a piggy doodle and you do feed less grain-free (because it is more calorie dense). She never seemed full and really did have mushy poops for a while.  We tried that for about 6 months, I would say. Then transitioned to Fromm 4-Star varieties (with grains). She has thrived on Fromm - but it is different for every dog!

 

And I agree - just check what local stores may have.  I haven't been to Petsmart in YEARS.