Dry or wet food?

[willowstar]

Our local pet shop has this organic dry food which he has told us is the best for all dogs!

 3 times a day for puppies decreasing to once a day for mature dogs.

I want to give our dog the best for their health, but couldn't bear myself to eat the same thing day in day out!! Please give me your opinion!!

Thanks 

[Annette]

Bear in mind that anyone who actually sells the food will have at least some of a vested interest in promoting one more than another.

I think you need to be happy that whatever food you choose is of good quality, has no nasty ingredients, and if it is important to you, take a look at the ethics of the company too.

As long as your dog actually likes the chosen food and thrives on it then you can quite happily stick with it. Of course, some brands do have lots of flavours some will suit one dog, and not others. Just need to play around a bit to find the one you both like (if you knoe what I mean!)

Then you can choose how often to feed the dog once it is adult. I prefer twice a day, but dogs are fine with once a day and I know some members have chosen to do that.

I had Buddy on Burns for a long time and was happy with that brand. He doesn't care what he eats, he's just a pig in dog's clothing. Now we do BARF, bt that doesn't suit everyone. Personal choice!

[LouiseAS]

2 of my dogs 2yr old Cocker and 1yr old Patterdale have dry food every day, are fed twice a day and are perfectly fine with it.  They do occasionally get vegetables, meat juices or left overs added in.  These two have 2 meals a day, didn't seem to do well on only 1.

My third dog 8yr old Cocker is on BARF (raw feeding) because she wasn't really enjoying her dry food and was diagnosed with arthritis last year and I personally feel that she is healthier and happier on the BARF.  She, out of choice, only has 1 meal per day, breakfast is offered but only rarely eaten.

It really varies from dog to dog, some seem quite happy with kibble while others aren't.  I changed Meg's diet because she was never that happy on kibble and although I used to be tough on her could tell she wasn't happy.  When I found this site I looked at all the BARF threads and decided to try her.  Meg has never looked back she looks forward to her meals every day now.

What brand of food was it your pet shop recommended?

[willowstar]

Thanks for your responses!

He has recommended a local brand, sorry can't remember the adult version. It does not come in fancy packaging just plain sacks. I think the puppy version is called 'Just'. Its supposed to have all the nutrients a dog needs and your'e not supposed to add anything else to it except water as it will upset the balance!

My husband had dogs as a child and they were always fed on wet dog food and biscuits and they lived upto 15 years old. Can anyone recommend a good wet dog food? I will have to look up barf as i'm not sure what that is!

[*Lucy*]

I have started mixing the new Burns moist food with their Burns complete dry food and they love it!!

Burns moist food can be found here http://www.burns-pet-nutrition.co.uk/burns_moist_food.htm

It is suitable for puppies but only to be mixed with Burns dry puppy food!

[Joules]

If you want to feed a wet food, Naturediet or Nature's Menu are both excellent ones with no nasty additives.  Before I swapped Coco to BARF, she used to have half Naturediet and half kibble which was either Arden Grange or Burns.  She did pretty well on this and enjoyed it - I think some dogs find a dry food a bit boring and like some wet food with it to liven it up.    I don't think they mind eating the same thing every day though so as long as you are giving your dog the right balance of nutrients and the dog is eating well, there is no need to get too hung up on this imo

[Cazzie]

I feed both and its Burns