If you had 20 dogs

It isn't not being able to afford good food that bothers me, it's that if a person can't afford food, they likely can't afford veterinary emergencies or other expensive, unplanned expenses.

Or could it be that they feed a lower quality food so that they can have money saved back for vet emergencies?  I'm not talking about feeding Ol' Roy, but here, lower quality is still halfway decent food.

If I had half the things I wanted to say - there's no doubt I would have been banned. Would be interesting to know, though, if one of the members there was a member here, chazhound, ourdogsonline.com, etc. (it was a breed specific forum). I doubt it, though.
 
As long as food isn't a topic, it's otherwise a great forum with a hint of annoying people [8|]

ORIGINAL: ColleenC

Or could it be that they feed a lower quality food so that they can have money saved back for vet emergencies?  I'm not talking about feeding Ol' Roy, but here, lower quality is still halfway decent food.

 
I told someone that if they did a little bit of research, they would find a somewhat good food, and it was ignored. I rather someone feed Nutro or something rather than Beneful and other crappy foods.

and you "couldn't afford" to feed them a good food, why do you have have 20 dogs?

I completely agree! Love and and a warm bed is all well and good,but there are other equally important factors to consider when taking a dog into your home,which IMHO is a privilege,not a right!.If you cant afford or anrent willing to buy a basic but vitally important thing like a good food,then perhaps the huge responsibilty that owning a dog entails shouldnt be taken on. And like the others said,if someone isnt even willing to spend $$$ on a decent food then how prepared will they be to spend money when the dog needs vet attention??

Or could it be that they feed a lower quality food so that they can have money saved back for vet emergencies?

Too many people still arent putting together poor food equals expensive vet bills if and when something does go wrong.What they save on cheap food may come back 100 times the amount they saved if the dogs gets cancer or liver/ kidney issues etc. which are all expensive conditions to treat.

It all depends on your definition of "good food."

I wouldn't have 20 dogs if I couldn't afford to feed them a good food.  That's my answer....

I personally know many people that keep 15+ dogs and feed (what I consider) medial quality food. Alot of these people can afford (what I consider) a better food, but still buy brand X. They feel this food works good for their hounds and that's why they feed it, so it's not always about what someone can or can't afford, but their level of education in regards to canine nutrition. Granted, I also know people that don't feel they can afford more expensive food, but at the same time, are convinced that their hounds are doing well on what they ARE feeding.
IMO (and it's just that), some people should not be so judgemental about how others feed their dogs and whether or not they are *WORTHY* of owning them. I bet there was a time in the "not-so-distant" past, that many here were some of those sorry owners that "couldn't afford better quality food" so they shouldn't have had a dog (myself included). Those in glass houses .......

I really don't agree.   For years I fed two dogs on grocery store food,,,all different kinds besides,,I really didn't know any better.  I used coupons that came in the mail and sales from the store. They lived long and healthy lives.   I don't do that now, but I think the point I see here is that yes, many people have good luck with their dogs and the food they are feeding or most would change it.  Second.. if we consider how many more pets would be out there looking for homes if everyone out there felt that they had to go to places they don't even know exist to buy what we call better food and pay a lot more money for that food,, there would be a lot more pets put to sleep.  I think its great that many people are looking for healthier food for their pets... maybe more now then a few years back, and maybe there will be more in the future, but I sure think we should not judge people who take very good care of their pets and love them just as much as you and I.
Honestly,,this conversation of people not buying premium food for their pets is really getting old.

ORIGINAL: kennel_keeper

I bet there was a time in the "not-so-distant" past, that many here were some of those sorry owners that "couldn't afford better quality food" so they shouldn't have had a dog (myself included). Those in glass houses .......

 
I can't afford good food - yet they still get it, LOL.
 
Dyan, if it's getting old, you can have the option of not coming to the thread []

I worked with the SPCA  my first year in practice and we found people who had that collecter syndrone,,ie one is good, 30 is better and I often wondered how they fed these pups or cats but some how they managed to do it...the rest of the house was in shambles but it seemed that the pets were taken care of...Had to get legal help to have them unload lots of them...this still goes on today

Dyan, if it's getting old, you can have the option of not coming to the thread
 
Thank you Annabel, for being so kind!
I do know I have the option to not come here...of course. And I probably should not have. But this conversation comes up about once every few weeks,,, it always ends in the same place. Who are we to judge people and decide if they should have pets or not by what they feed.   I came to this forum years ago because we were having health issues for our dog, and we learned about how to make him healthier.  If he was healthy to begin with, I would probably not come to Idog...and I would probably be one of the people that keep getting knocked on this forum that have a healthy dog that lives a long happy life but doesn't get fed what some people here think I should feed him.  All of the years I have been here on this forum,,, and read posts about good food, premium food and junk food,,, no one here has really convinced me that their dog is any healthier then most of the others that buy food most of us wouldn't buy.  Some say their dog is shinier, or so...but many say the same about their dog on food that is not premium. If fact, I just read that last night about Bil Jac.
But in the end, with all the homeless dogs in rescues, humane societies or worse,,,,getting PTS on an every day basis,,,how can we possibly say someone should not have a pet because they don't feed premium food?

I can't imagine living with 20 dogs. Not enough room in the bed.  LOL  I would rather see them fed with lower quality food than none at all.  Many dogs have done well on it.  Older folks on fixed incomes have limited choices.  The dogs I grew up with as a child were fed whatever was on sale at the grocery store.  They all lived to a ripe old age despite it.  I cook for my dogs because I enjoy it and worry about what goes into commercial brands.  My motto is if I can't eat it they won't.