Commercial Foods-The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Tell us what commercial foods have worked for you and which have caused problems; information, questions, warnings and advice on dog food companies, ingredients, brands, and switching foods.
(Recall information now in it's own discussion here in The Food Group)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here are a couple of links:
http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/all-lif...
http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/no-from...

[Liz & Emma]

Thanks Karen you are so helpful! Do you think it's okay to feed half Fromm half Eukanuba for awhile (we just opened a new bag of the Eukanuba and dont want it to go to waste)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

At the risk of being offensive, don't worry about the Eukanuba going to waste; you can always donate it to a local shelter or rescue group. In fact, many stores will take back even opened bags if you request a credit to use for another purchase at the store. Eukanuba contains some really unhealthy ingredients and I wouldn't keep her on it any longer than necessary. Plus it would be better for her digestive system to get transitioned to one formula rather than continuing to eat a mixture over a longer period of time. It will be harder for you to know what's going on with her if she develops a digestive issue, too.
You can transition Emma by replacing one quarter of her usual serving of Eukanuba with Fromm, and then gradually increase the amount of Fromm while decreasing the amount of Eukanuba over a week's time.
Most dogs love Fromm's, so it might not be a bad idea to just transition her to the new food "cold turkey". Expect a few days of loose stools either way.

[Clifford, Cloud, Jake..and Kim]

We've been using Blue Buffalo Large Breed Puppy food for Clifford - he liked it quite a bit in the beginning but now only really likes it if something is mixed in with it (like chicken or yogurt). He's also had recurring bouts of very loose stool - and now I'm wondering if it is something in the food not agreeing with him. I see Fromm getting good reviews here and am wondering if I should switch. Clifford's been on chicken breast, rice and pumpkin for days trying to get him back on track and while he loves it, I'm sure he is missing things nutritionally.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

How old is Clifford?

[Clifford, Cloud, Jake..and Kim]

13 months, best guess. And weighing in at about 55 pounds.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'd definitely stop the puppy formula; it contains more fat than adult formulas, (and large breed formulas usually contain more fat than regular formulas) and that alone can cause some loose stools. If you want to switch brands, Fromm's would be a good choice, but if loose stools have been a problem for him on a regular basis, you may want to consider going to a grain free food...that has helped some other FG members whose dogs had this problem.

[Clifford, Cloud, Jake..and Kim]

Thank you for the advice. Not many stores carry Fromm's in our area so I may be better off looking for a good grain free variety instead.

[Suzann, Rosey & Bandit]

I just received Rosey's Smartpak of Wellness and it is supercool! Her name is on every pouch it came with storage drawer, I am switching her back to Wellness from Innova because I think her coat looked better on wellness. The only reason I switched in the first place was Bandit's stools were not good on Wellness and I wanted them to eventually be on the same food...

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Good time to switch from Innova; if you haven't heard, Natura (makers of Innova, Calif. Naturals, and EVO) has sold the company to Proctor & Gamble. :(
What is a Smartpak? I haven't heard of that before.

[Nina Vantschip]

I am wondering if anyone has their Doods on Iams large breed food? I have heard it is good, but I'm a bit reluctant as we have always bought the higher priced foods (ie. Orijen). I was thinking of switching due to cost, but need to hear more feedback.
Thanks :)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Nina, there has recently been a huge recall of Eukanuba & Iams foods. These companies have been plagued by recalls for years. Iams is absolute garbage, filled with corn, by-products, and chemical preservatives which are known carcinogens. We do not recommend any of their products. If you need a less expensive food than Orijen, which is just about the most expensive food there is, there are dozens of good choices, all of which would be better than Iams. Please read through our discussion forum, you will get lots of ideas & info.