Large Breed dog food and nutrition help?

Question

Nature's Recipe Large Breed 1st 4 ingredients.

Chicken meal, oatmeal, pearled barley, brown rice.

What do yall think? I think it has less than 25% protein which is important for giant breed. They said on all their food, NO corn, wheat, by-product fillers, preservatives.

Yes I know there're better food but they're tid bit expensive.

I'm switching from Puppy to Adult food when they hit 6 mos.

Answer 1

I have a great dane that eats Natures Recipe Lamb and rice formula, I had my big boy on what the vet recommended  and his hair was falling out and he would never gain weight I came across Natures Recipe  not only has his hair come back but he has gained weight. His hair just shines. I find he eats less on this than on the other supposedly high quality foods and he don't p**p as much. He is back up to his Ideal weight of 160 pounds my vet says he is looking real good. By the way what type dog do you have?

Answer 2

Check with your vet or even ask questions @ pet stores.

It is true that large dogs one must be careful about growth & bones.

Too much protein may not be the wisest choice depending on the breed & what you consider large.The concern is joint problems & growing to big to fast.

6 months may be a bit young to place on adult mix, that is why I suggested asking a vet.

Everyone will argue the product they use may be the best or one of the best.Yes, for their particular dog perhaps.

Corn is not a digestible grain & is merely used as a filler.Also creates larger piles to clean up after.Some animals may be sensitive to wheat as well.Sensitive dogs often land up on lamb meal products.Barley,rice,millet & other grains are perfectly acceptable.Oatmeal too!

1st 3-4 ingredients translates to main ingredients & in that order.

Everyone cannot afford 40-50$ bags of kibble.Some good(even organic) blends can be found in feed stores rather than big pet outlets.Sams Club or even Walmart offers discounted kibbles.

We all do our best according to what is affordable to us.Supplemental powders,vitamins & even some boiled chicken,broths or higher end canned foods will make up for a lower end food.

Important that your animal is having well formed & solid stools.We often add rice & broth(low sodium)

A number of animal lovers have more than one pooch to feed.High prices do not translate to high quality.

Feed what you can afford & ask for help re: proper protein levels for a large growing puppy.Different breeders will tell you different things as well.There is no ONE right food or way.Animals are as unique & different as we humans are.

Enjoy your new companion.

p.s. consider maybe the raised feeding bowls to avoid bloat with large dogs.

Answer 3

I have three Goldens and reduced pay (hence all my help me feed the goldens blubs on article i write. LOL )

AT any rate I find the middle of road good nutrition food is best value overall as they eat a tad bit less than they do of the fillers. PLUS I DO not need digestive problems (equaly vet bills) by feeding too cheap.  I have fed cheap in a pinch but only very short term and it feel like we are buying more i the log run.

feelings are subjective.  Right now they are mid priced with nutro from feedstore with freq buyer program... 20 bags you get one free...

HUNT for coupons online like at funtasia.net or the dog food places.  

http://golden-joy.blogspot.com (check archives for cooler articles)

Answer 4

Also  as  he  grows consider  joint  health.  There  are  supplements  for  this  for  dogs in snack  size. Also  depending  on  breed, it  may or  may not  be more apt  to hip/joint  problems.  

Answer 5

During the recent mega recall and continued recalls that followed, Nature's Recipe was one of the better brands of food that was not recalled.  Since lower amount of protein is desired, have you thought of the wild blends? They are better tolerated by dogs with sensitivies and allergies.  Our dogs eat venison and rice from Nature's Recipe. They also get a raw meal on occasion.

As far as the ingredients you listed, Chicken meal is the first one.  Chicken meal means chicken that includes bone (great source of natural glucosamine and chondroitin) that has had water removed.

I like N.R. because it has no corn or wheat.

It does have a lot of grains.  Most dog foods do with the exception of Orijen which is very high in protein.

Here's a site for info on raw feeding a balanced diet:

http://www.rawdogranch.com

My dogs followed this diet when one kept getting ill (before Nature's Recipe)

You will find that most dog foods contain grains hidden in the ingredients, not as number one ingredient because they are different sorts of grains or forms of the same grain. This is a way dog food companies list the meat, like the chicken meal, as the first ingredient.  First ingredient indicates largest amount of product. But combined grains would be first if they were listed together.

I am happy with this food and I supplement it with Activia and chicken backs (organic- cheap when requesting this part) and fish oil caps- vet approved amount.

It should be noted that Canidae was sold to Diamond foods. Diamond has a significant history of recalled product and the formula was changed some.

I don't think it would be worth the extra money though it is still probably a decent food comparatively speaking.

Answer 6

Chicken meal, no good.  Oatmeal, terrible.  Barley, bad.  Brown rice, bad.  

I know they say "no corn, wheat, fillers" but that's just what oatmeal, barley and rice are.  Three ingredients your dog can't even digest properly.  

I know the other foods are more expensive, but in the long run they are worth it.  Check to see if you get Orijins where you live, it's very cheap and very good.  If not, price out other no grain foods.  

I know this is a horrible thought, but dog food companys use really bad meat for dog food.  Everything is practically human grade, so you have to think what gets passed on to the dog food industry.  Tumors, diseased meat.  Rotten meat.  You name it.  And "animal byproducts" in dog food is actually dead dogs and cats from shelters and road kill that gets rendered into fat and sprayed on the food.  (if you don't believe me, research it)

If you can't afford the more expensive ones, I understand.  But you might find your dog eats less of it, because he's getting more from the food, therefore it's costing about the same as the crappy foods.  

Just a little "food for thought"!

Answer 7

Sounds good.  

Answer 8

I work at a pet store and read labels constantly. It's a decent food for the price. Always avoid by-products, but meal is fine. As you know there are a lot of better foods out there. But don't always look at the price, because a below par food can eventually lead to health side effects. Also higher quality food have more calories so you feed less. If you can find it Timberwolf Organics makes a great food, and you generally feed about half as much. So a 33 lb bag is about 66 pounds.  

Answer 9

I'm not 100% sure.  I think you want to figure out a few things.

What is "chicken meal".  How good for your dog is oatmeal?  Barely is just another grain, should your dogs' food first ingredients be grains?  (so is oatmeal).  Rice is also a grain.  So how many grains do you want your dog eating?

Answer 10

There isn't anything wrong with chicken meal. That recipe is fine as long as it's 20-25% protien.  

Answer 11

Being MomSlave to 7 furkidz, I am very picky about the foods I feed.  I looked up the chicken meal for Nature's Recipe and they don't list what they use in the chicken meal.   The good points are that the food has chicken as the first ingredient and there is not wheat or corn.  Dogs do not process corn well and many are allergic to it.  Oatmeal, barley, and brown rice are the carbohydrate sources.  The oatmeal and barley are added because they are cheaper sources than using just brown rice.    It doesn't look like a bad food and a much better choice than some of the others out there.  My only concern, personally, is that it is made by Del Monte Foods, who are not just in the business of dog food so they have many other focuses.  Also the big box companies tend to change their foods without little or no notice and use cheaper ingredients.  This can lead to problems.  One thing you can do is oversoak the dry kibble with water to see how much it swells.  This will   help you in a couple of ways.  You can see how much  grain there is as well as forewarn you about the risk of bloat.  In large chested breeds this can be a serious health hazard.

As long as your puppy is doing well on the food and has a shiny healthy coat then it is a good choice for him. My only suggestion is not to change him to adult food at 6 months.  Some large breeds need to be on puppy food for 1-2 years, but at least one year for proper nutrition through the critical growing stage.  You should discuss this with your vet to see what his recommendations are.