Dear Forum,

[Atauwoduhi]

Fruits and Veggies?? I've never heard of anyone feeding their dogs these, I feed "Elsa" Ol'Roy Puppyfood For Large Breeds:) I don't like feeding my pets of any kind foods that contain meat-by-products:( My pets get really well fed:D
But tell me more about the fruit and veggie thing please, i've never heard of this before????


Your New Friends,
Atauwoduhi and "Elsa"

[brunie's mom]

Fresh fruit and veggies are great for dogs!!!
Please read up on the archives of the nutrition board.
Your 'Ol Roy food is full of crap and by products... take a look at the label.
There are many better foods then this such as Canidae, Wellness,Innova etc.
Please keep reading and you will want to feed your pup much better food.:)

Good-luck!
Gina
Adopt-A-Rott Ontario

[rottweiler0wner]

Originally posted by brunie's mom
Fresh fruit and veggies are great for dogs!!!
Please read up on the archives of the nutrition board.
Your 'Ol Roy food is full of crap and by products... take a look at the label.
There are many better foods then this such as Canidae, Wellness,Innova etc.

Do you know what kinds of fruit & veggies to feed them? And what are some good dog foods that are not that expensive cause my parents are getting divorced and we live off my moms paycheck.:(

[Homerhomer]

Rottiewilerowner.
What brand are you feeding now?
The superpremium foods that were already mentioned are more expensive but in general you feed much less than the supermarket kibble. So even though the bag is more expensive, it may last you twice as long making it just a bit more expensive than the lesser quality once.
Canidae, innova, solid gold, wellness are probably the best you can get. If you want something cheaper and lesser quality you may try Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice. It is a decent quality brand, but not one of the best.
In general please look for foods that have no byproducts, no artificial preservatives, no corn and limited amount of fillers. They all have fillers (at least rice), but the less the better. Try to pick up a product that you can understand what's in it, if you think that you need to get a degree in chemistry before reading the list, forget it and look for something else.

What veggies are good. Just about anything exept for onions. They should be mushed for the best benefit to the dog. There are some veggies and fruits that shouldn't be fed in excess amounts, but if you are planning to feed them in addition to the kibble or as a treat, that shouldn't be a problem.
Hope it helps.

[rottmommie]

i was going to say that same thing homer said.....nutro natural choice lamb and rice is moderately priced, and will last you a lot longer than a store bought food like alpo or purina......
i have two large dogs and they use a 40 pound bag in three weeks....i think that is pretty good.
so for three weeks it cost 30 bux to feed them, tx included, gee, ten bux a week???
Alpo lasted one week, it was 20 pound bag for 7 bux.....so it wound up being 21 bux for three weeks....but THE QUALITY is MUCH better with the nutro.....
forget the stuff you can get at the grocery store!

[Atauwoduhi]

Geesh! Maybe I need to get a translator for the ingredients on "Elsa's" food bag, huh? I didn't think there was anything wrong with store bought brands until now.......oops!
I was always told to stick with one brand and to try not to switch brands too often, because it disturbs dogs digestive systems? (i.e. diahrea, excessive weight loss/gain, etc etc.)
BUT if "Elsa" would better benefit from the brands you guys/gals have told me about then I'm willing to switch her to one of them brands!! Where is the most common places to find these different foods? Cause there is quite a few Pet store about a 1/2 hr. from where I live that might carry them.
By the way thanks for the info!!
OOPS! I also meant to ask how to prepare the fruits an veggies and how often do you feed them?


Your New Friends,
Atauwoduhi and "Elsa"

[Atti's Mom]

Atauwoduhi,

I too started with a lesser grade food (Proplan), when I got Atticus, then after reading up on the different premium foods, I decided to go with Wellness. The difference is AMAZING!!! You wont fully believe it till you switch and see the benifits first hand in your dog!:)

Just a tip though, when you decide which brand you want to switch to, do it slowly by adding small amounts of the new food to the old and slowly increasing the new until the switch is complete. This will help aviod upset stomache and diarreaha.
Soon you will notice that your dog probably wont eat quite as much....this is because your pup will be getting more nutrition and less fillers....and this is a good thing! To find a premium food in your area, you can call around to the different stores and ask them if they carry it, or your best bet is, once you decide on a couple of different brands, get on your p.c. and do a search for them, it will be able to direct you to the closest store to you or give you the option to order it right there, and they will ship it to you!:)

Now...with the fruit and vegie thing.....Im not an expert by all means, but I have been told, you want to blend them up and add them to your pups food in order to get the most nutrients out of them because dogs either cant or have a hard time digesting them otherwise. I also give my boys a chunk of carrot once in awhile to munch on because it does a great job cleaning their teeth! I am just careful to make sure they are chewing them up. I will also admit....every now and then, I slip them a peace of watermelon (seedless!) because they love it. :D Good luck to you, hope this helps!:)

[AngelBunny]

Atauwoduhi:

What's Really in Pet Food (http://www.api4animals.org/doc.asp?ID=79) discusses the less than premium ingredients that legally can be--and are--put into the food we feed our pets.

The food you're feeding Elsa is inferior--there's just no two ways about it. Various types of dog food--the good and the bad--BARF, canned vs. dry, the fruits & veggies to feed and how to feed them, supplements, and more have all been extensively discussed in Nutrition & Grooming. Reading thru the postings here and those archived would be well worth your time.

[rottmommie]

got a petsmart??
htat is where i buy nutro, i dont think they carry canidae tho, but if you check the websites for some of these foods, there is a link to find places to buy them.

[Atauwoduhi]

YYIIPPEE!! I did some checking around on the Net and found out that there IS a PetSmart only 30-40 mins. away from where I Live:D
I came across 5 different brands.......NutroMax Puppy Formula, Nutro Natural Choice for Large Breeds, Nature's Recipe Lamb & Rice, IAM'S Puppyfood for Large Breeds and Eukanuba Puppyfood for Large Breeds:) I'm going to try the Nutro Natural Choice for Large Breeds;)
OOPS! I forgot to mention one......theres also a puppyfood made by Bil-Jac too.
I don't know how to Thank You guys and gals enough!! For directing me in the right direction on "Elsa's" Nutrition, and I'm sure "Elsa" would Thank You to.......but in her own special way:D


Yours Truely and Sincerly,
Atauwoduhi and "Elsa"

[Homerhomer]

While searching for the food checkout this link
www.canidae.com
Go to the store locator section and put in your area code. Maybe there are stores near you that sell this brand. The best kibble isn't sold at petsmart, there are sold in small "speciality" stores and chances are that store which sells canidae will also sell wellness, solid gold and other exellent kibbles.
If you insist on Petsmart and Nutro Natural Choice I would be inclined to use Lamb and Rice and not Large breed formula. The quality of this is lower and the "large breed" thing is just a marketing scam.

[rottmommie]

i agree with homerhomer "again"
the large breed thing is a marketing thing.....and I think they have more fillers....you may not be satisfied with this!
I am not sure about the other foods mentioned, no experience with them other than the Iams AND eukanuba ore of lower quality in my opinion than the nutro natural choice lamb and rice

[Homerhomer]

And I agree with you rottmommie :D
Eukanuba is the most expensive food with meat byproducts in it. Another example that high price doesn't always buy you high quality.

[Atauwoduhi]

I forgot to mention too that I give "Elsa" 3-4 times a day warmed fresh farm milk:p I give her a coffee cup full each time, she seen the cats and Kittens that my fiance and I have getting theirs, so I started giving her some too:D (It helps to keep her from trying to jump on our kitchen table.) You wouldn't believe the shine it gave her coat and the butterfat in the milk keeps her skin healthy too;) I haven't seen any signs of dandruff since she has been drinking the milk either:D



Your New Friends,
Atauwoduhi and "Elsa"

[RottnKid1]

Hi A,

You really shouldn't be giving Elsa milk. Too much calcium can cause major problems. There is a special ration for calcium/phospherous. Elsa will get all she needs in her dog food. I also wanted to say that I agree with the previous posters about Canidae dog food. It's excellent! The website has a store locater, but if there isn't one listed in your area, contact them to double check. The store closest to me wasn't listed. Also, pet supply stores are sometimes willing to special order the food for you. Good luck!