What do you feed your dog ....?

[BraggSurvivor]

Dog food or table food ?

Considering the high prices for dog food, and how the stuff smells

Isn't table food the way to go ?

(cheaper, more humane)

[Tahyo]

Dog food here. If my dog depended on table scraps to survive, she'd starve to death.

[Alpine_Sapper]

Dog food or table food ?

Considering the high prices for dog food, and how the stuff smells

Isn't table food the way to go ?

(cheaper, more humane)

Right now I feed an "all natural" holistic dog food. He's a lot healthier than when I feed something cheap like Purina, and Iam's and Science diet are crap with good marketing departments.

He does get a lot of "table food" like jerkey or if I roast a chicken or something, but that's because he's spoiled.

In the wake of the recent Pet Food recalls there's been a big push for people to make their own dog food. I've been researching it but haven't taken the leap yet. I agree with the dude that does the "BARF" (biologically appropriate raw food) diet for dogs, but don't want to pay what they're charging.

If your looking just for cost, sure go cheap. but don't be surprised if you have a lethargic unhealthy dog.

best thing you can do for your dog is to investigate the ingredients on the back of the bag. Make sure the first ingredient is NOT corn meal. Dogs pretty much just pass it out and don't get the nutrition you're paying for. Almost all dog foods contain it, but it's the percentage compared to other ingredients. The food I feed has chicken meal, brown and white rice as the first three ingredients, with a substantial amount of lamb meal and poultry fat. Almost 30% protein, which is pretty good for commercial dog foods.

Also, you can supplement your dogs food diet with some pretty cheap stuff. After a long morning run (4+ miles) I stir in 1-2 tablespoons of peanut butter for a calorie boost. He goes crazy for it, and I know he's getting the protein and fat that he needs. Rice and eggs are also good for them. My dog LOVES fish, so he gets canned tuna and rice on occasion as a treat. Watch out with the eggs though. Too many and you won't be able to stay in the same room with some dogs.

[Alpine_Sapper]

And to save you the trouble of google'ing, here's the FDA site for the pet food recalls:

http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html

One thing I forgot, don't overfeed, of course. I give 2-3 cups, depending on activity level, twice a day. Less, depending on the amount of "treats" he's had.

And he's an 80 lb. Akita, still growing.

[Sam Reeves]

Dog food here. If my dog depended on table scraps to survive, she'd starve to death.

Same here. Occasionally, I'll feed my mutts parts of a kill that we don't eat but other than poor Superman and Kaiser get cheapo dry dog food.

[BraggSurvivor]

Tayho, I live in an area full of tree huggers that they think hunting should be banned. In recent years the deer population has exploded. Any given night I can look out into my back yard and see 10-20 deer hanging out around the bird feeders.

So, inturn road kill is very plentiful. In the winter, I stop my truck and grab the fresh kill and throw it in the back. When I get home, I hang the carcass from a tree and let the dogs at it. Couple times a week I lower it down so they continue to consume.

Summer is a different story as temperature comes back into play. I just cant get my head around paying $45 a bag X 4 dogs a week for crap like that. Thats $180 a week for dog food that I consider is 90% waste byproduct anyway. I'm considering raising my own dog food that would cost 1/3 of the price and much healthier.

Just think is all......

[Alpine_Sapper]

Summer is a different story as temperature comes back into play. I just cant get my head around paying $45 a bag X 4 dogs a week for crap like that. Thats $180 a week for dog food that I consider is 90% waste byproduct anyway. I'm considering raising my own dog food that would cost 1/3 of the price and much healthier.
Just think is all......

Jeeeeeeezus, how much are you feeding them? weigh the dog, and then determine the amount from the weight. A lot depends on the food, but....shiza, a $45 bag of food lasts me almost a month with no supplementation. Also, what kind of dog?

You may consider switching back to puppy food. More calorie dense than the adult stuff.

[BraggSurvivor]

Jeeeeeeezus, how much are you feeding them? weigh the dog, and then determine the amount from the weight. A lot depends on the food, but....shiza, a $45 bag of food lasts me almost a month with no supplementation. Also, what kind of dog?

You may consider switching back to puppy food. More calorie dense than the adult stuff.

Sorry, typo, should have read per month.

I have a young 15 month old 165 lbs Leonberger thats eats 12 cups a day (use to eat 18 cups) and 3 working 90lbs - 120lbs Maremmas that eat 6-8 cups a day each. The oldest Maremma is down to about 4 cups. They are on the go all the time, especially at night. Lucy I bet does 20 miles a night (followed tracks with ATV) and seems to patrol the same area everytime.

[Alpine_Sapper]

Sorry, typo, should have read per month.

I have a young 15 month old 165 lbs Leonberger thats eats 12 cups a day (use to eat 18 cups) and 3 working 90lbs - 120lbs Maremmas that eat 6-8 cups a day each. The oldest Maremma is down to about 4 cups. They are on the go all the time, especially at night. Lucy I bet does 20 miles a night (followed tracks with ATV) and seems to patrol the same area everytime.

Sounds like a nice pack. With a pack of all large breeds, especially if you have the land, I'd definitely say raise your own food. You can find tons of recipes online for kibble so you can make use crops you're growing, although I doubt you have the marshland to grow the rice. It's usually pretty cheap though.

[beerrunner13]

Dry food with people food supplement, My big one loves chicken and rice with hot peppers so I make 2 pots at a time when I make it. I do fees the cheaper stuff but the High pro and my big one is almost 7 and people don't believe it he still acts like a puppy chaseing our Aussie mix around the yard all day. I keep thier
bowl full and they have acces 24/7 I go through about 50# a month plus whatever we mix in with it.

[Sourdough]

FMV (Fred Meyers Value) $9.85 per 50# bag last one month. And squirrels, everything but the tail. 61 pound brown Standard Water Poodle.

[Tahyo]

Bragg, unfortunately I live in an unincorporated area in Illinois where if I stopped to pick up a road kill, the law would be all over my @$$. It's full of tree huggers around here. In fact I just saw a road kill deer this morning when I went to run an errand.

Fortunately we live on a small lake which gives me some sort of sense of nature.

Where as our dog is concerned, I feed her Iams lamb reduced fat. Is there better dog foods out there? You bet there is and if it were up to me I'd be feeding her Inova brand, but at the prices they want for that stuff... not going to happen.

Our dog is basically a house dog. I take her for walks every day around the lake and she has a fairly sized back yard to spend a lot of time in.

One thing more... This past February someone "gut shot" our pooch with a pellet rifle of some sort and I spent more on saving her than I did bringing my firstborn into the world. Some of you may thing I was nuts for spending that kind of money on a dog and could have bought 10 or more of the same kind for what I spent on saving her, but one look on my wife's face and there was only one choice to make.
No, I don't know who shot her, don't know if it was intentional or accidental and if all of a sudden I drop off the forum, you'll know I caught the culprit.

Anyway, Hayley, on occasion nails something in the back yard and eats it. Opossums, rabbits and she is very skillful at nailing chipmunks. She get's some tape worms from eating some of that stuff on occasion.

[Alpine_Sapper]

One thing more... This past February someone "gut shot" our pooch with a pellet rifle of some sort and I spent more on saving her than I did bringing my firstborn into the world. Some of you may thing I was nuts for spending that kind of money on a dog and could have bought 10 or more of the same kind for what I spent on saving her, but one look on my wife's face and there was only one choice to make.
No, I don't know who shot her, don't know if it was intentional or accidental and if all of a sudden I drop off the forum, you'll know I caught the culprit.

I'm sorry, that sucks. I know how you feel though. I just finished paying off a vet bill that was over $1000. My wifes cat had an abscess from a fight that was life-threatening. $400+. My dog caught giardia from somwhere. Probably from people not cleaning up after their dogs in the city. $600+. Not having to listen to anyone's mouth about letting their animal die: priceless.

[BraggSurvivor]

Thats terrible that he got shot. Any clue of what neighbor did it?
Ive had neighbors dogs sniffing around here but my dogs chase them down pretty quick. I wouldnt shoot anyones dog unless they were after my livestock. I only give the owners 1 warning to keep their dogs on their own property. No incidents in over 20 years. (they just know I'd do it)

[BraggSurvivor]

Sapper, Aurther has chicken, he just needs the rice.

The chickens hang around him all the time. He will get up and move but they just follow him. I guess they know where it is safe.

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[Tahyo]

Thats terrible that he got shot. Any clue of what neighbor did it?
Ive had neighbors dogs sniffing around here but my dogs chase them down pretty quick. I wouldnt shoot anyones dog unless they were after my livestock. I only give the owners 1 warning to keep their dogs on their own property. No incidents in over 20 years. (they just know I'd do it)

We have no clue who did it. I have pretty much "deducted" from the direction it came from, but without proof I can't run around pointing fingers. Our dog is not a noisy or a bad dog at all. Just the opposite, she's just a big baby.

[BraggSurvivor]

FMV (Fred Meyers Value) $9.85 per 50# bag last one month. And squirrels, everything but the tail. 61 pound brown Standard Water Poodle.

hopeak, does your dog do well outside during the cold snaps?

[Sourdough]

hopeak, does your dog do well outside during the cold snaps?

Yes, they have curly hair, (not fur) that is up to 5" thick if you do not trim it. They have been used on dog sled teams running the Ididarod Anchorage to Nome.

They are a strong, powerfully built animal.

[Alpine_Sapper]

Yes, they have curly hair, (not fur) that is up to 5" thick if you do not trim it. They have been used on dog sled teams running the Ididarod Anchorage to Nome.

They are a strong, powerfully built animal.

Unfortunately, modern society has robbed them of that legacy:

http://ihasahotdog.files.wordpress.c...ist-poodle.jpg

[dilligaf2u2]

Strangers. The neighbor hood kids. The lady down the streets, cats. what ever TDW is having he gets his share.

Don