Author Topic: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.  (Read 9514 times)

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Offline Gazrob

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Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« on: August 13, 2017, 02:51:28 PM »
Hi guys I'm looking for some advice. I'm currently feeding my Marley some generic grain free dog food which is £38 for a 15kg bag. However I was out walking my dog yesterday and I bumped into a fellow working cocker spaniel owner and we got chatting. I asked him what he feeds his dogs. He said he feeds them skinners dog food. Is this food any good? I've had a look at it and it is a lot cheaper than what I'm currently buying. I can afford what he's getting at the moment but if I can make some savings that would be great as its nearly 50% cheaper.

Offline Theo961

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #1 on: August 13, 2017, 03:14:59 PM »
Hi

I haven't fed it but think quite a few here do.  :D

You could possibly try the all about dog food website. You can put in the weight, age and any ingredients you want to avoid etc and it will show most brands sold on UK and give you a daily cost of feeding. Sometimes a bag of food may cost more but works out cheaper in the long run because of the feeding amounts.

Offline Micahs Mum

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #2 on: August 13, 2017, 03:25:14 PM »
I was just coming to suggest checking out https://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/the-dog-food-directory too. Its the first place I start when I want to see how good a food is. On there Skinners has food rated from 1.4 out of 5 to 3.6 out of 5. 

Edited to add you could compare what he gets now to Skinners on that website which might help with your decision. Personally I tend to say feed as well as you can afford to.
Sam, ECS Micah & Golden Retrievers Logan and Alby

Offline Gazrob

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #3 on: August 13, 2017, 03:35:26 PM »
Thanks for the advice. I can afford what I'm Feeding at the moment. However sometimes his poos are a bit soft I'm not sure if it's the food or not. He's eating grain free kibble it's unbranded. Also over the past week or so my fuel bills have risen so it would be nice to save some money. I don't want him to eat poor quality food.

Offline Gazrob

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #4 on: August 13, 2017, 03:45:24 PM »
He's currently eating CI tickety boo chicken and herbs it's a grain free kibble it received 4.0 out of 5.0 on allaboutdogfood.co.uk

Offline Guelder Rose

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #5 on: August 13, 2017, 03:47:22 PM »
Thanks for the advice. I can afford what I'm Feeding at the moment. However sometimes his poos are a bit soft I'm not sure if it's the food or not. He's eating grain free kibble it's unbranded. Also over the past week or so my fuel bills have risen so it would be nice to save some money. I don't want him to eat poor quality food.

I had a long battle with Grace with her poo being not quite right, either too bulky and soft or occasionally with mucus.  She is on Butternut Box now and the one thing I can definitely vouch for is perfect poo every time and she doesn't suffer from smelly gas anymore either.  She still burps all the time though! :)  This is now her main food and costs a little bit over £2 a day.

Offline Guelder Rose

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #6 on: August 13, 2017, 04:07:01 PM »
I was just coming to suggest checking out https://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/the-dog-food-directory too. Its the first place I start when I want to see how good a food is. On there Skinners has food rated from 1.4 out of 5 to 3.6 out of 5. 

Edited to add you could compare what he gets now to Skinners on that website which might help with your decision. Personally I tend to say feed as well as you can afford to.

Thank you so much for the link, I never knew about this site and it's really interesting!

Offline Gazrob

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #7 on: August 13, 2017, 04:10:29 PM »
Looks good but by the calculations it's going to cost me £67 a month. However I'm not going to rule it out.

Offline Micahs Mum

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #8 on: August 13, 2017, 04:12:02 PM »
I was just coming to suggest checking out https://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/the-dog-food-directory too. Its the first place I start when I want to see how good a food is. On there Skinners has food rated from 1.4 out of 5 to 3.6 out of 5. 

Edited to add you could compare what he gets now to Skinners on that website which might help with your decision. Personally I tend to say feed as well as you can afford to.

Thank you so much for the link, I never knew about this site and it's really interesting!
Glad its helpful! I use it so much as I get asked quite a lot about dog food. It can be horrifying how bad some food is!

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Sam, ECS Micah & Golden Retrievers Logan and Alby

Offline Theo961

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #9 on: August 13, 2017, 04:21:05 PM »
Are you feeding grain free due to allergy? As some of the cold pressed foods are good, normally work out very reasonable and usually good on digestion, but most do have some form of grain etc in them. May be worth looking at.  :D

Offline Micahs Mum

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #10 on: August 13, 2017, 04:27:20 PM »
Thanks for the advice. I can afford what I'm Feeding at the moment. However sometimes his poos are a bit soft I'm not sure if it's the food or not. He's eating grain free kibble it's unbranded. Also over the past week or so my fuel bills have risen so it would be nice to save some money. I don't want him to eat poor quality food.
His current food has a good rating but if his poo isn't great then it might not be suiting him. I completely understand about needing to balance your outgoings.

I feed Nutriment which is a prepared raw diet, it's a long time since I've fed kibble so I'm not up to date. I buy it in bulk with a group of friends which makes it a lot cheaper, 30% off & free delivery. If you're near Leeds you're welcome to join us!

Have a look at Acana, it's got a great rating and says it'll be 67p a day for a 16kg dog.

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Sam, ECS Micah & Golden Retrievers Logan and Alby

Offline Gazrob

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #11 on: August 13, 2017, 04:28:16 PM »
No I'm not feeding it due to allergy I just heard it was better for dogs because there is no cereal in them etc. Not sure whether to just stick with it or change.

Offline Gazrob

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #12 on: August 13, 2017, 04:32:14 PM »
Micah's mum thanks for the offer but I'm in Durham. I'll have a look at acana. Maybe Grain free isn't suitable for my dog. His poos are very inconsistent he's also been scooting now and again. Not sure whether to get some different kibble change to prepared meals or go raw.

Offline Micahs Mum

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #13 on: August 13, 2017, 06:30:30 PM »
Micah's mum thanks for the offer but I'm in Durham. I'll have a look at acana. Maybe Grain free isn't suitable for my dog. His poos are very inconsistent he's also been scooting now and again. Not sure whether to get some different kibble change to prepared meals or go raw.
It's been a while since I've read up but I don't think there's much nutrition in grains for dogs. When I make treats I make them with potato flour rather than regular.

There's a lot more options for raw feeding now than there was when I first started. I actually first started to hear about raw feeding on COL many years ago. I did DIY for a few years but I researched it for about 6 months first!

My dogs do really well on raw, small poo (and their big Golden Retrievers) that is firm with little odour & they hardly ever have smelly wind.
I actually started to feed raw because my first ECS had a sensitive tummy & he did well on it. One of my ACS also had a very sensitive tummy & when I worked out he had a sensitivity to chicken he thrived on Nutriment. There are a few Companies doing complete raw now so check them all out if you're interested & see what appeals.


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Sam, ECS Micah & Golden Retrievers Logan and Alby

Offline Gazrob

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Re: Advice needed looking to change to a cheaper food.
« Reply #14 on: August 13, 2017, 06:47:41 PM »
Hi Micah's mum. I'm looking at a few options. Looked at Luna and me, butter box might be the way to go. Just need to work out if I can afford it and if I have enough space in the freezer.