Dog Food Query

[bajoiner]

Well I have finally decided to stop messing with what to feed Sassy and worrying about if it is safe or not. I have put her on Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Organic. I was worried she would not eat it, but so far so good. She needs a little incentive so therefore I am still adding a teaspoon of something, yesterday I added a tiny piece of liver which I smashed up and then stirred it around in her bowl. She ate every tiny piece. I also purchased some Natural Balance Treats which contain no corn, wheat, soy, dairy and are USDA inspected. She loves the Duck and Potato and also the Lamb Roll Arounds. I think I will just keep her on this even after all is settled and done with the dog food recall. I was worried it would upset her stomach but so far she is doing fine and actually appears to be even more energized.

Just wanted to share for those wondering what in the world they will recall next. I have also ordered Fromms Golden Nutritional but I had to order that on the internet and it has not arrived yet. Not sure if I will use it or not. Will see.

Barbara

[Fluffypants]

Good news for Sassy - glad she is doing well on her new rations!

[glencorgi]

Great news Barbara. I believe Sassy will continue to do well on her new diet.

Debbie

[Jespah]

If you are feeding a wet food, sometimes it is more appealing to dogs (and cats) if it is warm - I mix kibble with wet food, probiotic yoghurt and raw canned pumpkin but always add a little hot water to the mess, I mean mix. Being warmer increases the scent and therefore makes it much more yummy to dogs. Both mine snarf their food down in 5 seconds flat!!

[dcole]

Glad to hear that Sassy is enjoying the Natural Balance. That's also what I've switched Trevor and the cats to, and they all seem to like it, as well.

For wet food, I decided that they're all getting Evanger's. Besides having top-notch ingredients, I love the fact that they produce their own food. I also add in a spoon of pumpkin and a spoon of yogurt, plus a little Sea Meal. So far, so good!

I am curently in the process of deciding what other dry food to rotate in with the Natural Balance. I went to our local pet health food store and got a bunch of samples. The cats really liked the Innova EVO (they hated the Nature's Variety.) Of course Trevor liked everything (typical Corgi!! ).
I really liked the Timberwolf Organics Black Forrest samples that the lady at the store gave me, but I am hesitant to patronize Timberwolf simply because they refuse to state who manufacture's their foods ( for a great list of who manufacture's whose foods, see this blog: The PetsitUSA.com Blog » Pet Foods NOT on recall list ). Naturally I respect their right to protect their intellectual property / trade secrets, etc., but with what's been going on in the industry lately, I would think they would be slightly more open to answering the question of where their foods are produced. So I am still deciding on alternate kibbles for my guy and girls.

[mtoy]

I just ran across an interesting (in depth) article about dog food. One thing caught my eye - it says NOT to put water on dry dog food as it can cause any dry bacteria already on the food to multiply quickly.

here's the link:Get The Facts - What’s Really in Pet Food

[bajoiner]

I rarely give Sassy any wet dog food, she gets ground up liver and green beans, or ground chicken and rice, etc mixed with her food. I usually just take the meat that is left from our dinner and a veggie I think she may like and put it in my food processor and grind it up and put it on her dry food. She seems to love it, especially when I have liver. So far with the mixtures I make and her organic dog food (still at 1/4 c for breakfast and 1/4-1/2 c for dinner) she is eating every morsal. Oh and my vet actually told me it takes more calories for Sassy to eat the celery than is in the celery so he said that is a great treat a couple times a day. She has always loved celery.

Barbara