DK Doodles Are Eating Good!!! The Food Group's Commercial Food Survey

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Several weeks ago, I asked the Food Group Members to tell me what commercial foods they are currently feeding, as a kind of general recommendation for DK members. Although we have an extremely large and active Commercial Foods section, as well as many other discussions about various foods, nutritional info, supplements, allergy issues and everything else you can imagine, some people evidently have trouble wading through it, or just don't want to be bothered looking, lol. We still constantly see the question posted in the main forum "What kibble should I feed my dog?" I hope this will help.
My fellow group members have really been doing their research, and I was just stunned at the wide variety of premium foods and varied diets their doodles are getting. These are some very well fed pooches!
At the time I started gathering information, we had 186 members in the Group. (I'm proud to say that we now have 196!) I received 49 responses, which is more than a quarter of our group, and I would venture to say covers most of the active members.
Although I asked for just the names of the commercial foods (kibble or canned) that they are feeding, I also got information about extras, supplements, etc. I will break the reponses down into separate posts here, and include that info, too.
Two of our Food Group members, Lynne Fowler and Dianne Carter, have done more to help educate, teach and counsel our members than any one could ever ask or expect. Each of these ladies has very special regimens with regard to feeding their dogs, and that will be posted separately as well.
I am not a statistician, and did not use spreadsheets to organize my info. People left me messages, and I wrote everything down on a big yellow legal pad. Then I shuffled through all my yellow papers and counted how many are feeding this, how many are feeding that, etc. (Many of our Food Group members are rotating or alternating between different commercial foods, which is a very good thing to do, so there is a lot more info than just 49 brand names, lol) Anyway, my point is that this is by no means a scientific survey. However, if you're looking for good food(s) for your doodles, this might be a very good place to start.

If you have questions, Please Visit the Food Group: http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup

[Sally loves Maple & Lucky]

Thanks again, Karen. I've learned a lot from this Group and also to keep looking for these sometimes hard to find commercial foods. Our girls were on Blue and loved it, but that was the only holistic food offering at our (rather large) Petsmart - amazingly they have three aisles of corn-based foods! Living in a giant suburb, we are void of specialty shops nearby. I recently went back to our Petco to look for "something" and sure enough, they had many of the brands DK recommends. I have switched them to large dog formulas of Solid Gold and am very happy with all aspects. I especially like to buy dry foods that are vacuum packed. Our Petco is not always the cleanest shopping experience and knowing a food is sealed by vacuum eases my mind. We are still cooking organic ground turkey and adding 2 oz to each meal. I like the idea of yogurt in the morning for probiotics and will try that with my next grocery run. We also give glucosamine/chondroitin tablets, 2 each meal as a proactive measure to build strong hips.Our Vet recommends a min of 1200mg of each ingredient in each human pill form. I buy the bulk bottles at Costco and big dogs have no problem swallowing those huge pills wrapped in a chicken treat :)

[Lauria Orr]

Isn't that funny?! I didn't notice the date on this, being a year ago this last week! Still, these foods sound very good, and I am very interested in seeing what is out there. Great job, though!

[Susan and Sasha]

Wow...what an amazing job you did Karen!
Thank you so much for taking the time and effort to put together such a comprehensive list for us.
You...and so many others in the group have been such a help to me as I did my research...trying to decide which Brand food to choose for Sasha ...when she went from puppy to adult food.
I was away...and didn't realize you were doing a survey at the time...so...I would like to add "ours" to the list.
Sasha totally enjoys Fromm's 4 Star...especially the salmon...which she gobbles right up!! (smile)
As far as treats...I don't give her many...as she feels that the kibble is a "treat" in itself...as far as training goes.
When I do give her a treat...I give her only organic and even with that..I have to be careful because she has a sensitive tummy.
She does do well with the Wellness treats that are soft and chewy....they smell great to her and she loves them!
As far as supplements...I use Halo Dream Coat...which I like very much.
Thank you again for all of your help...which is so appreciated...

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks, Susan! As I mentioned, this survey is over a year old, so we really need to do a new one. Allyson & I have been thinking of putting together an updated list of foods, but maybe we should just do another survey!

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

We could put together a new list and use it to spur the discussion or something? Message me Karen!!!!!!!

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Karen, what about starting a separate discussion on each recommended food and people can give their opinions on it, why they like it, etc., plus whenever there is a change in ingredients, recall or other info on that food, it has one place to go. What'cha think?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

That was the original intention of the Commercial Foods discussion, but it just didn't work out...got too big with too many side discussions, etc., (kind of like what's happening in this one, lol) and people end up not wanting to wade through it. People just won't be willing to look for a discussion on that particular food, or keep the discussion to that. People start a new discussion for everything, lol. But it's okay, it keeps us busy!
We do have the current recall discussion, which Dianne does a good job of updating, and even then, 3 or 4 people post the recalls separately elsewhere.

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

That's why it might be easier to keep each one in it's own discussion and Feature the highest recommended brands, or something similar. Then when someone posts on that food, move it into that discussion. You're right, there is too much to wade through and each food is mentioned in many places. Recalls is on many different products. We could just do a discussion on the top recommended foods. Just an idea.

[Lauria Orr]

The survey you did last year, (that I saw this year!) was so concise and clear. It was very helpful to me. There may be an updated list of foods that you could add as a guide to the same presentation. There are probably several of us that are not familiar with some of the newest updates. I am speaking for myself, of course. Just like with medicine, things change so fast and improvements made at a fast pace.

[Ali & Sonny D.]

Never got or saw the survey but due to the Food Group recommendations, Sonny eats Fromm Four Star. and he loves it!

[Carolyn Plutzik]

 Hi -- This list was a huge amount of work and is much appreciated.  I have a goldendoodle and a labradoodle -- both about 3 years old.  My question is this --- last week one of them decided that they did not like Taste of the Wild -- not any of their varieties-- as I bought a few small bags of each kind -- but NO -- So I ended up putting unsalted broth in it -- she sort of liked it -- but not LOVING it.  Then, my labradoodle decided he didn't like it and why was he not getting any broth, etc. etc.  Anyway, to make a long story short -- This morning I fed them and they didn't eat -- they played all day -- just fed them and they look at it -- smell it and walk away.... I really hate to start having to give them something else with it just so they eat it, but I could do that.  Or, I could try another brand of food that would be comparable to Taste of the Wild....  Suggestions?  Thank you! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Hi Carolyn,

I am amazed that you found this discussion, it is almost four years old. 

In the Food Group, we have a lot of discussions on picky eaters, dogs not "liking" their food, and related topics. It's probably the most common topic we discuss there after soft stool and sensitive stomachs, lol. We also have a new Recommended brands list. Please join us.

In the meantime, here's a link to my favorite discussion on what to do when your dogs don;t like their food. It's pretty entertaining, but there's a lot of good advice in it too. http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/an-ode-...

If you still want to change foods, come talk to us about it in The Food Group! http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup