THE FOOD GROUP GUIDELINES

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

WELCOME TO THE FOOD GROUP- PLEASE READ BEFORE STARTING A NEW DISCUSSION!

We started this group because of personal experiences with many of the issues that are commonly discussed on dog forums regarding food, and because these experiences have led us to do extensive research in an attempt to obtain FACT-BASED knowledge of these issues, rather than relying on anecdotes, myths, and junk-science, much of it put out there by people who are trying to sell something. The 2007 pet food recalls in which thousands of dogs and cats died or were permanently sickened by foods that contained melamine from China substituted for glutens had a profound effect on some of us, and this group was started as an attempt to help educate others on manufacturing practices and pet nutrition so that they can avoid losing beloved pets because of unacceptable foods made by "Big Dog Food" companies. There are also many issues we would like to explore. We thought it would be helpful to put all of these questions, information, and feedback into one place here on DK where everyone can find it, contribute to it, ask questions, and learn together.  
 You can start a new discussion if you have a question, or you can continue in an existing discussion if you prefer. Please do try to use the search feature before starting a new discussion, though, to help eliminate duplicate discussions on the same topics. You can search through past discussions for a topic by clicking "View All" at the bottom of the Food Group discussion forum, and then entering a word or phrase in the box. You will usually find lots of info and possibly the answer to your question. There is a wealth of information here from many good sources.  

Products on our recommended lists have been screened not just for the ingredients themselves, but also for the sourcing of the ingredients.

Membership in this group is voluntary. Everyone is free to feed their dog whatever they choose, but it is assumed that you are here because you want to learn about better nutritional and commercial food options. All questions are welcome. Proselytizing, however, is not welcome. If you want to feed your dog Beneful or Ol' Roy, that's your right, and if you want to learn why those foods may be dangerous to your pet's health, we're happy to tell you. But recommendations for these, Iams, Purina, Hill's, and other products  that have killed other group members' dogs are not okay here, and may result in your being suspended from the group. Similarly, if you believe that the only proper way to feed a dog is with a prey model raw diet, that all kibbles are harmful, and/or that raw food or "holistic" diets and/or supplements such as coconut oil will cure diseases or health conditions, this is not the right group for you. We are fact based. Anyone recommending raw feeding or any type of holistic diet or supplement as a cure or treatment for allergies or illnesses will be suspended from the group.  

Welcome, and thanks for reading!
PLEASE NOTE: WE ASK THAT YOU NOT POST ANY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PRODUCTS FOR WHICH YOU RECEIVE ANY TYPE OF COMMISSION OR COMPENSATION, NOR ANY LINKS TO ADVERTISING. THANK YOU.

[Teresa]

Didn't take it that way at all - no issues! THanks Karen.

[Lauria Orr]

Teresa, I would be very interested in what she has to say. What you have shared even briefly makes a world of sense to me!

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

I add frozen wild blueberries to my homecooked dogfood at every meal. I buy them in a big bag at Costo and have noticed the dogs love them. They are individually frozen, so I can add a small bunch right out of the bag. I also add crazins (cranberries) which I read are good to keep the urinary tract clean. But these are the kinds of things that you discover through YOUR research and reading. Did your vet tell you how good fruits and veggies are? Many of the vet studies are available online.

[Teresa]

Yes, berries are definately high on the list. Most of the natural treats have blueberries, apples, bananas in them. All Yams or Sweet potatoes I know are good for them. My last dog ate every fruit and vegetable known to mankind...well known to me I guess :-). Hudson is not as crazy about them, although the wet food I mix in with his kibble has vegetables in it and he seems to love that. I'll keep working on it and maybe run it by the group once I have a recipe concocted. This is a great group and very interesting to read and get info on food. Thanks for starting it.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks, Teresa, for the vote of confidence. We really do want this to be a place where we can share information, tips & suggestions, and not a "debate club" for arguing over who is "right"...(although some of us, myself included, do have our own issues that push certain buttons, lol!)We are so glad that you are contributing & participating!

[Jacque Reynolds]

I just wanted to bring this post to the forefront again. This is such an amazing resource...thanks so much for starting this group!
I lost an 8 week old puppy to the tainted chicken tenders and had a full litter extremely ill from the tainted dog food (sold at my vet office!) So I, too, am an advocate of research to find healthy foods.
Your comments about adding fruits is excellent...Recently, I read that a study conducted proved that a pregnant dog that gets vitamin C from NATURAL sources, will produce puppies that do not get hip dysplasia. Of course, with all reserach, this has been pooh-poohed by others and it is true that the study was really not well done...but the results were clear...HD was prevented. So, I always add green pepper to my dogs' diets as it is high in vit. C.
Thanks again for caring. :o)

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

My Taquito is suffering from kidney issues from the chicken tenders....I am sorry you lost a puppy from that. This just reiterates the importance of the Food Group.

[Kathy (Ellie & Oliver)]

The food group information has been and continues to be extremely helpful!! I knew that we were feeding our doodles a mid grade dog food. I had checked other dry dog food lists and Eukanuba was scored at 83 points. I didn't think that was too bad! The food is readily available and goes on sale quite often. It didn't bother me until I went to dogfoodanaylsis.com and found out exactly what ingredients were in the food. I was totally grossed out!!! OMG! Right then and there, I spent hours and hours reading all the posts in the food group. The time spent was well worth it! We have started feeding Ellie and Oliver Fromm dog food. When I opened the chicken 'ala vegetable it smelled so good! I could swear that I smelled real cheese. Amazing! Another reason we changed to Fromm dog food is because it is made in our home state of WI. We live around 60 miles from Fromm Family Foods. If it wasn't for this food group, we would of never known that some thing that works so well for our dogs is practically in our own backyard!!! Our dogs are adapting well to the food change and have nice firm poops. So a GREAT BIG THANK YOU to Lynne and Karen for starting the food group and to all of the DK members for sharing their experiences and stories:)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Fromm's does use real WI cheddar cheese in most of their formulas. My recent foster was not eating well while here, a combination of stress over losing her home, spay surgery, and she just didn't like Jack's Orijen, I guess...she was used to crap food, too. At her new home, she gets Fromm's Gold Nutritionals and I'm told she cleans her bowl and is doing great!
Kathy, thanks so much for the kind words. We appreciate your participation very much!

[Doodlegirl]

How do I get to an existing catagory? I'm looking for RAW DIETS discussion.
THanks Dawn a.k.a. Doodlegirl

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You go to "Back to Food Group Discussions" above, and then when you get to the main discussion page, you can enter a search term to find any discussions on a specific topic. Or you can browse through the ones already here.
We do not have many raw feeders here, and most of those who do feed raw use commercial prepared raw products. Many of us have been disturbed by the junk science and inaccurate information presented on most raw feeding websites and by many raw feeding zealots. We would love to get some practical, fact-based information for those who would like to explore this feeding method, without all the nonsense about wolves, curing diseases & the diatribes about kibble.

[Jane & Molly]

This is a very interesting group, certainly lots to read through.
Thanks