[rn1tv]

Barefoot, we have 2 shelties. We used to give them peas and carrots and the vet told us to stop but green beans are ok. We pick up the frozen beans when Publix's has it's Birdseye frozen vegetable 50% off sale, Walmart, or Winn Dixie. We give each pup about 1 cup each day and they love them! In the long run, frozen may be cheaper. I think our pups like the cold and the crunch! Give it a try.

[Grandfinch]

Top 10 BEST Dog Foods - Best Dog Food Reviews 2015

This site. Has good I formation about good and poor quality and why their ratings.

[xcaligirl]

We have two dogs and have been through different dog food but have finally found the right one for them. It's Nature Logic ~ not cheap but! I suggest to go on the Dog Food Advisor to research the 5 star foods. We have tried other 5 star foods for our two ~ some they liked but both of them didn't like it or it didn't agree with them. If you purchase the food locally, it is more expensive. We've been using chewy.com for years as they have the best prices we've found and it's delivered to your doorstep.

[thekeithfan]

I have a 12 year old pug. I have given him Iams dry dog food his whole life. Sometimes he gets "board" with it and won't eat so we sprinkle some canned green beans on top. He usually eats it then. Lately we think his teeth are getting loose and so we put him on canned food. He loves it.

[Sandancer]

Reccommendation for a good vet

[dbussone]

Originally Posted by Sandancer

Reccommendation for a good vet

Buffalo Ridge Animal Hospital. And they have 24/7 care available with their emergency service that is open after normal business hours.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by rn1tv

Barefoot, we have 2 shelties. We used to give them peas and carrots and the vet told us to stop but green beans are ok. We pick up the frozen beans when Publix's has it's Birdseye frozen vegetable 50% off sale, Walmart, or Winn Dixie. We give each pup about 1 cup each day and they love them! In the long run, frozen may be cheaper. I think our pups like the cold and the crunch! Give it a try.

Our human finally gave us frozen beans and we LOVE the crunch.

Biggins
Lollipop

[K9-Lovers]

Here is a link to an old thread where I have a listing show safe and nutritious and UNSAFE foods for dogs.

The Whole Dog Journal is the best source for recommendations. However, you can use my list. My dogs are gone now, but I used wet food (canned) instead of dry food. (actually, I ended up cooking for my babies). Think about a wild dog -- he eats small prey that is easy to catch. Birds, rabbits, lamb, etc. The prey is wet, not dry. Dogs do not often take down a large animal like a cow. So avoid beef. Also, dogs get their greens (veggies) from eating the intestines of their prey. You never see dogs munching in wheat fields and climbing corn stalks or wading in rice paddies. So do not feed corn, wheat and rice to your dogs. Big food companies like Purina get rid of all the grain not fit for human consumption by putting it in dog food and telling you it is good for your dog. By far, the worst dog food is Beneful, even though they have the best tv commercials. Dogs have died from malnutrition just from being fed Beneful.

Feed wet food (it does not contribute to "bad teeth"). Do not feed beef. Feed zero or low grain. Give your dog fresh food from your table that is good for them such as LEAN chicken (no skin), fish, vegetables.

Do not give them any fat as it can cause pancreatitis. Dogs have a short intestinal tract and cannot deal with fats like humans. Do not give cheese, grease, cream (ice cream). For treats give those baby carrots.

If you are buying good food, don't forget the healthy snacks and cookies. Don't buy the worst biscuits please.

Dangerous to dogs are: onions, garlic, chocolate, raisins, look at google for more info.

I retired from animal control in my city, and ran two dog businesses including food sales before coming to the villages.

Here's my link: http://dev.talkofthevillages.com/arc...p/t-30151.html

[JerryLBell]

My dog (a cocker spaniel) is not really food-driven unlike our previous dog (also a cocker spaniel but basically a four-legged eating machine). She has an easily upset stomach and my wife was trying all kinds of dog foods to get her to eat without throwing up. My sister, a vet assistant, told us to stop trying all kinds of dog good and just find a brand where the main ingredient was venison. Her thinking is that dogs came from wolves that eat deer. Whether her thinking is right or not, our dog hardly ever vomits any more.

She does get tired of the dry dog food we get (I forget the brand) but I won't feed her anything else. My wife tries to reward her with treats but those few times that the dog pukes, it's nearly always after having gotten a couple of treats. Now the treat is a small amount of canned dog food that is also based on venison. It ain't cheap, but neither are vet bills.

[kissmelatr]

Does anyone have a dog with allergic dermatitis? Nothing seems to really help. The vet will give her a shot but doesn't last. And that is a steroid so I don't want to give her that anymore. Has had this in past but usually goes away. Not this time. Any help or if you experienced this please let me know.

[CFrance]

Our dog had terrible contact allergies. he would be licking and scratching. It got worse during high pollen seasons. He would also get lots of hot spots and skin eruptions on his chest and underside. He had so little hair in his groin area you could see all the skin. Eruptions there too.

We and our vet tried everything. Antibiotics and steroids would clear things up, but then the condition would come back, several times a year. You can't keep a dog on steroids like that, and the antibiotics alone didn't help.

I gave in and finally spend the $1K to take him over to AVS in Maitland and have him tested for allergies and a vaccine developed. (My vet referred him.) After three months, I couldn't believe the difference. He hasn't had a hot spot in over a year, has stopped licking and scratching, and his hair is so lush again you cannot see the skin anywhere.

I give him one shot a week. He can be on these for life with no harmful side effects. I so wish I had done this when he was two.

Some people pooh-pooh these allergy shots, and they apparently don't work in about 30% of dogs, but our guy was so miserable I had to give it a try.

AVS stands for Affiliated Veterinarian Services, and the derm vet we used is Dr. Wassaman. She is fantastic with dogs. Crosby loooooooooooooves her.

[lightworker888]

It was suggested that we give her some local honey to alleviate the itching and so I give them both local honey a week before we get here and then for awhile when we are here. It seems to have helped. Just a thought.

LW888

[DonH57]

We recently swtched to a weight management formula dog food since seizure medications increase appetite. On a happier note I got a recently better dental checkup!

[GeoGeo]

Check out: Dog Food Reviews and Ratings | Dog Food Advisor

Years ago we never gave dog food much of a thought. You didn't spend hours researching on-line or reading the back of bags. You just grabbed something from the store shelf. Things are different now. And with the internet you hear so many scary stories like the story how Beneful was allegedly killing dogs and how Blue Buffalo lied about its ingredients, etc.

I fed Beneful for years and one of my dachshunds lived to be 18. I fed Rachel Ray and my current dachshund had seizures while on it. I believe different dogs are sensitive to different foods. One food may cause your dog's hair to get dull or fall out. Another food causes loose stools. A lot of it is looking at the ingredients and seeing what you think of the ingredients. Then see how your dog does on it. You may have change a number of times to find the one that agrees with your dog or your dog may do fine on any of them.

This is one of the biggest talked about topics on-line when it comes to dogs.

I, personally, don't like foods that have things like by-products listed. By-products are things like lips, feet, etc. I like meat as the first ingredient whether it be lamb, turkey, bison, chicken, or whatever protein you prefer. I don't see any dogs grazing in the corn fields.

And you have to watch out for those special words used in marketing that don't mean much.

Good luck.

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by GeoGeo

Check out: Dog Food Reviews and Ratings | Dog Food Advisor

Years ago we never gave dog food much of a thought. You didn't spend hours researching on-line or reading the back of bags. You just grabbed something from the store shelf. Things are different now. And with the internet you hear so many scary stories like the story how Beneful was allegedly killing dogs and how Blue Buffalo lied about its ingredients, etc.

I fed Beneful for years and one of my dachshunds lived to be 18. I fed Rachel Ray and my current dachshund had seizures while on it. I believe different dogs are sensitive to different foods. One food may cause your dog's hair to get dull or fall out. Another food causes loose stools. A lot of it is looking at the ingredients and seeing what you think of the ingredients. Then see how your dog does on it. You may have change a number of times to find the one that agrees with your dog or your dog may do fine on any of them.

This is one of the biggest talked about topics on-line when it comes to dogs.

I, personally, don't like foods that have things like by-products listed. By-products are things like lips, feet, etc. I like meat as the first ingredient whether it be lamb, turkey, bison, chicken, or whatever protein you prefer. I don't see any dogs grazing in the corn fields.

And you have to watch out for those special words used in marketing that don't mean much.

Good luck.

All good advice.

We went through four kibbles before landing on Nature's Logic on the advice of a local pet food store. The first three kept changing their ingredients and ingredient sources. I was told the coat is the last thing that receives the nutrition from the food. If the nutrition is not good, the coat will be dull. Most vitamin additives are manufactured in China. Nature's Logic has no added vitamins. Everything needed is in the food.

In any event, be careful of the fillers used. Most pass through as waste. If you're not seeing small, firm waste, your dog food contains a lot of useless, non-nutritional junk that isn't being absorbed. When they're "pooping cigars," it's a good sign.