Switch cold turkey? Kirkland to ???

[Deanna M.]

When we got Sulley we began feeding him Kirkland brand dog food after researching it online and having a co-worker, whose opinion I respect, recommend it.  Sulley, and now Molly, have been doing very well on it and I have been quite happy.  In the last few days I have seen several posts come up, in various Facebook groups I am in, about dogs getting sick on it and now, having searched it on this site, I am switching.

Should I do this cold turkey?  I know it is suggested to switch gradually but if feeding it could make them ill then I want them off it as quickly as possible.  They both have cast iron stomachs considering what they have eaten counter surfing and have not gotten sick from.

I think I am going to go with Fromm Adult Classic, it seems to be the most bang for my buck for the prices around here.  I will have to cut back on their daycare time to make it work budget wise.

Thanks for your help.

[Abigail *George & Juno*]

I'm sure Karen will chime in on the plan to switch, but I just want to ask...are you calculating cost by what a bag costs? Because it's cheapest for me to feed Orijen, even though it's much more expensive per bag. I have two doodles and we go through one bag of orijen a month. One of my doodles littermates alone goes through two bags of fromm a month. So his mom essentially spends more on feeding her one dog than I do on my two...


http://www.fidosmarket.com/the-cost-of-food/


http://www.crittercabana.com/dog-food-costs-per-month-comparison/

These are good examples of how cheaper food can actually "cost" more. :)

[Deanna M.]

I did check out several brands with the calculator on goldendoodles.com and the Fromms seems to be the best cost wise. It was just under $3/day for my two. With Orijen it's about $4.50/day.

[Abigail *George & Juno*]

Hmm, I just double checked and it would still be much more expensive for me to feed Fromm, so it must just be the expense of the food in our individual areas! :) Fromm is a great food and they have impeccable quality control, here's to hoping your fur kids do well! :)

[Deanna M.]

What is your price for Orijen?  I'm in Canada and it's about $80/bag and the Fromm is $55.  The Fromm four star line is more expensive at $75.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Orijen contains almost 100 calories per cup more than the Fromm Classic, though, so you do feed less. It would cost less to feed than some of the Fromm Four Star Line formulas, but not the Classic or Gold lines.

[Abigail *George & Juno*]

My Orijen six fish cost $86 for a 28 lbs bag. I feed each dog 2 cups per day for a total of 4 cups per day used. The fromm classics would cost me $57 for a 30 lbs bag where I would have to feed 4 cups per dog per day for a total of 8 cups per day used. The price is close for me, but I also use a more expensive Orijen than the adult dog. :)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Abigail raises a good point about not being able to judge the cost of a food by the price per bag. If you have to buy 3 bags of the "cheaper" food in the same time period that you would buy 2 bags of the more expensive food, the "cheaper" food can actually end up costing you more.

Regarding how to switch as well as what food to choose, it's best to look at the ingredients and the nutritional analysis  in the current food and choose something similar. What specific Kirkland formula are you using? 

[Deanna M.]

The Kirkland is adult dog chicken and rice.  The Fromm one I'm looking at is chicken and rice as well.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It's a pretty good match. The ingredients and nutrient profiles are similar. The calorie content is very close too, so your feeding amounts should be the same.

If your dogs have no digestive issues, you can try just switching cold turkey. 

Otherwise, you can give 3/4 of the old food with 1/4 of the new food for a day or two, then feed a 50/50 mix for another day or two, then go to 3/4 Fromm with 1/4 Kirkland, and then 100% Fromm. The transition should not be drawn out longer than a week. 

[Deanna M.]

Thanks, I think I will try cold turkey, will sleep better! :)

[Lynda Kamrath]

Sounds like a good plan, but rather confusing for an ol' gal like me.  I think I would go cold turkey also and get small bags of what you think would be a good food and see what the dogs think.  I'd bet they will like the change.

[Lynda Kamrath]

Well, Deanna, I would not feed Kirkland because their food is made with money in mind and the cheapest ingredients they can get.  Chicken is very suspect these days because of all the hormones they are fed and the fact that chickens are raised here (inhumanely), slaughtered, and then shipped to China for processing. Everything is put into dog food (skin, feathers, bones, etc.)  Get some food  made in the US or Canada and really look at the labels.  I have found that fish and sweet potato is a good food for my dogs with a high ration of Omega 3/6.