Ok dog food people!

[Akari_32]

I need your inputs smile

My Haley is nearing 11 years old. She's always been fed on mainly dry foods.
In the last year or so, I've been mixing an average of 6 cups (5-7, depending on can size, and if I have human left overs for them as well) with 10-13 oz of wet food, and two whole eggs (shells finely crushed while mixing everything together) to go between the two big dogs. Does this sound ok for daily feeding? I've only just started with the eggs, but I almost always add the canned food because they really love it, and Haley has trouble actually eating plain dry food (she gets grumbly and uncomfortable looking while eating, and just after). Haley gets about 3-4 cups, and the other 4-5.

As far how the food usually looks, I currently am feeding them a mix of Wellness Core Original (3x 4 pound bags), Wellness Core Ocean Fish (2x 4 pound bags), and Science Diet Small Breed Puppy-- for the higher protein content--(3x 4.5 pound bags). This is all evenly mixed in a dog food only garbage can. And then I use assorted flavors of ProPlan or Blue Buffalo for the wet. I use coupons, so I get what I can, but I try to keep the bulk of the dry food Wellness, and because the best coupons I have for the canned food are free ProPlan, thats usually what the cans consist of. Though I have awesome $1 off coupons for any canned Blue Buffalo, so I go crazy when those go on sales, as they are much better.  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

mm, I don't think the puppy food is a great idea because puppy food doesn't JUST have high protein. It is also very high in calcium. If you'd like a high protein Hills product there's Advanced Fitness. The fact that your dog doesn't like dry sort of concerns me. It would be worth a check up to be certain there are no fractured teeth or other dental issues. Wellness Core is a good choice for them. Though Acana/Orijen Pacifica/6 Fish has the highest O3 of any natural food on the market. At their age it's a good idea to strive for a lower fat diet, while still maintaining a high O3 and glucosamine. Higher Fiber would be good too. Without knowing their actual weights and wether their current weight is ideal for them though, could change things. MOST dogs have slower metabolisms as they age and/or are less active. So a lower fat food is appropriate. High protein as long as their kidneys are functioning properly (blood tests would confirm this. I do a blood general on Cowboy every year since he was 5) and a high fiber diet will help maintain good intestinal health and help them feel full with fewer calories.

Cowboy's currently on Hills J/D and I know I have never been a fan of Hills but I tried it to get the techs at work off my back and surprisingly he did very well on it. I expected soft stools because of the corn but I think it must have been whole corn he had an issue with vs. corn gluten he's ok. His stools are actually firmer and it has the highest O3 of any food available plus it's lower in fat and high in fiber. That being said...I get the food at cost. It's bloody expensive.  

[Akari_32]

Haley (lab/golden retriever mix) is about 65 pounds, maybe closer to 60 these days as she isn't as muscular. Dweezle (rottweiler/Australian shepherd mix) is about 130 pounds. Too big to weigh at home, but that was his weight at his last vet visit. He's a big boy :p He's a year behind Haley.

I chose the puppy food because it wasn't going to make up a large portion of their foot and ad the best protein content of all the other choices of of the SD available at the time I went shopping. It had 30% compared to the 21 or so of all the others @.@

Acana and Orijen aren't really available here, nor have I ever seen coupons for them. I'm unfortunately stuck with what ever gets awesome coupons, which is thankfully almost always Wellness. I simply cant afford anything more than $1 per pound right now, and i get the Wellness at a fraction of that with the coupons. Sticking with that, are there any recipes you would recommend for my old guys (doesn't have to be Core)? They do mostly hang around and chill all day, but they'll both still chase someone down the street and eat them if they have to (they don't play games with their "people's" safety), and Dweezle will occationally chase a frisbee or wrestle with me.

Haley's front teeth are worn and yucky from finding things to chew she shouldn't have a few years ago (she grew out of that, thankfully! I think the better food has something to do with that-- mom used to buy what was cheap. Dog Chow, store brand, etc., and that was also when I was away at college for a year). The vet saw it, and doesn't seem too concerned about it. However, I feel it's more of a digestion thing. Her poop is smaller and better looking on mixed food than it is on dry food. She doesn't care about things in her mouth-- she'll play with toys, eat bones, eat crunchy treats.. It looks more like when you eat something that doesn't agree with you, only it's almost right away, a couple minutes into eating (slow eater). She's fine on mixed wet and dry food. My guess is it's the quantity of dry food, and her tummy just can't handle it anymore.  

[Akari_32]

I got a good deal on Racheal Ray Zero Grain, because PetSmart is mad at me for taking all their cans of Pro Plan, so I decided to temporarily ditch them and shop at the human store. Its not a bad food though. It's not Wellness, but it's certainly not Purina or something nasty like that.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/rachael-ray-nutrish-zero-grain-dog-food/

I did however get two small bags of Wellness and a small bag of the SD Advanced Fitness (gotta use my coupons before they expire!), so now it's mostly Wellness Core with some SD Puppy and Advanced Fitness mixed in. They have about a weekish of that before I can dump it out into containers and put the Rachael Ray stuff in the bottom of the tub, and I fully intend to take advantage of the sale and coupons on that, as well as any rainchecks I can scrounge up after the sale is over.

I would still love any opinions about their diet-- if I should change anything, if it's good, or whatever.

Gabrielle_AnimalLuver

^^^ quoting Gabby so she doesn't forget me! smile  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

Akari_32

I got a good deal on Racheal Ray Zero Grain, because PetSmart is mad at me for taking all their cans of Pro Plan, so I decided to temporarily ditch them and shop at the human store. Its not a bad food though. It's not Wellness, but it's certainly not Purina or something nasty like that.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/rachael-ray-nutrish-zero-grain-dog-food/

I did however get two small bags of Wellness and a small bag of the SD Advanced Fitness (gotta use my coupons before they expire!), so now it's mostly Wellness Core with some SD Puppy and Advanced Fitness mixed in. They have about a weekish of that before I can dump it out into containers and put the Rachael Ray stuff in the bottom of the tub, and I fully intend to take advantage of the sale and coupons on that, as well as any rainchecks I can scrounge up after the sale is over.

I would still love any opinions about their diet-- if I should change anything, if it's good, or whatever.

Gabrielle_AnimalLuver

^^^ quoting Gabby so she doesn't forget me! smile

Seems like you're doing well with what you have. If anything, you could add *gasp* table scraps. GOOD quality table scraps. Lets not forget this is what dogs lived off of for decades. If you have any lean meat leftovers, toss em in with their food. Could toss in veggies too.  

[Akari_32]

Gabrielle_AnimalLuver

Akari_32

I got a good deal on Racheal Ray Zero Grain, because PetSmart is mad at me for taking all their cans of Pro Plan, so I decided to temporarily ditch them and shop at the human store. Its not a bad food though. It's not Wellness, but it's certainly not Purina or something nasty like that.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/rachael-ray-nutrish-zero-grain-dog-food/

I did however get two small bags of Wellness and a small bag of the SD Advanced Fitness (gotta use my coupons before they expire!), so now it's mostly Wellness Core with some SD Puppy and Advanced Fitness mixed in. They have about a weekish of that before I can dump it out into containers and put the Rachael Ray stuff in the bottom of the tub, and I fully intend to take advantage of the sale and coupons on that, as well as any rainchecks I can scrounge up after the sale is over.

I would still love any opinions about their diet-- if I should change anything, if it's good, or whatever.

Gabrielle_AnimalLuver

^^^ quoting Gabby so she doesn't forget me! smile

Seems like you're doing well with what you have. If anything, you could add *gasp* table scraps. GOOD quality table scraps. Lets not forget this is what dogs lived off of for decades. If you have any lean meat leftovers, toss em in with their food. Could toss in veggies too.

Haley must like the Rachael Ray because I left a few bags in the living room, left her home alone all day, came home, then went back out for two hours, and came home to one of the bags torn into and missing about 2 pounds rolleyes

When I run out of this (I have fourteen 6 pound bags, and four rain checks for 3 bags each, so it'll be a while), I plan on going back to Wellness, simply because it's cheaper with the coupons I can get. What are you opinions on the reduced fat one?

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/wellness-core-reduced-fat/

I've never paid much attention to reduced fat and weight management foods, but curiosity got the best of me and I was very surprised at how highly it rated. I'm feeding the two oldies, and a 1 year old 8 pound Jack Russell mix, who is a crazy maniac and eats twice as much as most bags say rolleyes

Everyone gets the occational dog-safe scraps. Bentley (the little guy) loves yellow squash (which is fed to my Uromastyx). I also give them turkey neck/back, ham hocks and marrow bones every couple weeks. And mom always sneaks the occational junk food to them lol

Also, because of Haley's little snack time the other night, they are all getting pumpkin, because I only have huge cans, and I wanted to give Haley some for her tummy because she ate all the dry food. So, pumpkins going into everyone's food till its gone lol It's Bentleys favorite, atleast :p