**DOG FOOD - The Owners Tell All**

ORIGINAL: jjsmom06

Here is the timberwolf organics website.
[linkhttp://www.timberwolforganics.com/Pet_Foods_s/12.htm]http://www.timberwolforganics.com/Pet_Foods_s/12.htm[/link]

There are multiple formulas so it is easier just to give you the link to them so you can view for yourself.
They have:
Dakota Bison, Wilderness Elk, Ocean blue (grain free), Wild and Natural ( grain free and the highest in protein of all the formulas), Black Forest (lowest in protein), Lamb and Apples, and Southwest Chicken and Herbs.   They also have a  formula for cats, salmon oils and soon will have canned formulas.

 It can be difficult even in the states to find this food. Many of us order through their website.  It doesn't appear though that on their website they offer shipping to Australia, but may be worth your time to contact or e-mial them and see if they ship out of the country.

Thanks! The ingredients do look pretty good for a kibble. I've been checking every ingredient list for every variety of kibble I've come across in the last few months and haven't found anything in Australia that is grain free or even doesn't have grain in the first 4 ingredients. I'd personally never go back to kibble, but I know a lot of people that want to go raw or homecooked, but don't want all the work. I'll be looking for something like TimberWolf to recommend to them. I think it's criminal that pet food companies can get away with charging a fortune for food that doesn't really agree with a lot of dogs. I've found homecooking to be pretty easy, and that's saying something considering I don't really like cooking.

For the record, those with breeds prone to bloat/gastric torsion, I'd think very carefully about kibble if I were you. I read a study in which over 60% of bloat cases could be attributed to feeding kibble. Things to especially avoid include animal fat or citric acid in the first four ingredients, a lot of grains in the kibble and soybean fillers. Bloat is fast and deadly and it kills painfully in 2 hours or less. I find it to be a terrifying thing that I want to avoid at all costs.

ORIGINAL: corvus
Things to especially avoid include animal fat or citric acid in the first four ingredients, a lot of grains in the kibble and soybean fillers.

I totally agree that bloat is terrifying and to be avoided at all costs, but I just want to say that animal fat being in the first four ingredients is illogical. Because ingredients are measured by volume, a food with fat as the fourth ingredient could have the same amount of fat as food with fat as the sixth ingredient. This is interesting reading [linkhttp://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/on_my_soap_box_purdue_bloat_study.htm]http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/on_my_soap_box_purdue_bloat_study.htm[/link]

Bloat is one reason that when I feed Ella kibble, I add water to it. AND, it's also why I feed her three times a day in smaller amounts.
PLUS, I exercise her BEFORE I feed her.
But, hopefully the raw thing will work out and I won't have to feed her too much kibble anymore.
When I do, it's T.O. for her!

Just when I find something that seems like a good source of information someone counters it with another source of information! []

I'm going to start another thread so I don't hijack this one. I don't quite understand your comment on the fat, so feel free to explain it there or PM me. []

There are many people in American that eat a vegetarian diet. Some people also put their pets on these diets. There are a whole range of foods that may be included or may not be, depending on the person's definition of the word vegetarian. At minimum, it means that meats, usually including fish, are excluded from the diet. Other diets also exclude anything of animal origin, eggs, and milk. The most extreme is called vegan, which anything that is anywhere near animal related is excluded. If the person prepares these diets right, they can taste good and be nutrious too. But, is the same true for pets? You first must consider the make up of the dog and cat. Dogs and cats are carnivores, although most have been transformed into omnivores. It is obvious that their teeth are designed to tear flesh of animals. Their intestinal tract obviously shows that they are not designed to break down large quantities of plant material, unlike the horse or cow. Their nutrional needs are high protein and calcium. Cats are the true carnivors. Cats are unable to convert beta carotene into vitamin A. They need already formed vitamin A, such as in fish oils and liver. They also need taurine and several different kinds of amino acids, which are only found in appropriate amounts in animal tissue. Even though both can break down small amounts of plant material, they are not designed to eat a vegetarian diet, unlike cattle and sheep. Many people believe that vegetarian diets are healthier, and assume this to be true for dogs and cats too. But this is based on their own eating habits, not their pets. Dogs and cats do not suffer from the regular heart problems that many people do. Reducing amounts of artery clogging material in their diet is not going to help them, like it would people. But, there is a concern about bactia in meats that can cause disease to dogs and cats. This is a concern when feeding your pet uncooked meats, but properly prepared dry or canned foods will cut this risk to a minimum, far that from raw fruits and vegtables.

Hybriddogs many of your posts look very familiar...Are you copying and pasting other stuff and posting it here as your own? [8|]

What has vegetarian diets,and cats, got to do with this thread??

I've come across in the last few months and haven't found anything in Australia that is grain free or even doesn't have grain in the first 4 ingredients.

EVO is grain free and is available in Australia,as is Innova,california natural,healthwise and other natura products.

I am not! This post is in my own words. I'm sick of people saying that. It's getting very annoying. I DID NOT copy and paste! The forum is about dog food and nutrition. I was JUST adding my thoughts about a specific subject. Excuse me. Honestly, I don't know why my posts would look familiar to you, unless you read it twice.

Let's stay on topic...please...[]

ORIGINAL: jessies_mom

Pinnacle--Only complain is I couldn't get her to have firm stools--other than that it was fine

Is it possible that Jetta's allergic to grains? You said she was fine on the Pinnacle except for her stools and Pinnacle is grain free. It looks like verything else you fed her had grains.

Pinnacle isn't grain free... all of the formulas I've seen contain some form of grain. The Duck & Potato, Chicken & Oats and, Trout & Sweet Potato have oat flour, toasted oats, and quinoa. 
 
 
When  I got Gingerbread at 9 weeks he was eating Eukanuba and had really itchy ears/face. He's always had normal stools. These are the foods I've tried:
 
Pinnacle Chicken & Oats- Nothing really noteworthy, itching didn't change, kibbles were kind of large.
 
Nature's Variety Chicken & Rice- Nothing really different here either. Kibble is very small and round, that worked fairly well for him.
 
Eagle Pack Holistic Duck- He was the itchiest EVER. I don't know what it was, but within a few days of starting on the food he was itching like CRAZY. The hair behind his ears got matted and he had scabs in his ears. Within one meal of switching to a different food he went back to normal. He really liked the taste of this food more than any other unfortunately.
 
Solid Gold Hunchen Flocken- This is what I switched him to after Eagle Pack. He was doing okay on it, but the kibbles are huge and the food had a kind of cereal smell. That was about the time that I read Dogtor J's posts, so I wanted to switch him over to a food with less grains and not the "big 4".
 
Natural Balance Venison and Rice- He did fairly well on this one, he wasn't itching too much. The kibbles are discs that remind me of cookie crisp. The canned version of this food smells really good (like jerky) and has a really nice smooth texture.
 
CA Natural Lamb and Rice- This food was fine, but it had a sick sweet smell and I hated opening the bag to feed him. He also wasn't crazy about the taste and I wanted a food that didn't have sunflower oil or rice.
 
Innova EVO- I actually tried this one after Nature's Variety (this time line is totally messed up! lol). I stopped feeding him this because I was concerned about the very high fat %. He also drank a ton of water on this food... overall I didn't feel comfortable with it.
 
Timberwolf Organics Wilderness Elk- This is the latest food that I'm feeding him. I really like the ingredients- the only grains are millet and oats. The kibble size is really small, which is great. Gingerbread isn't terribly crazy about eating this food, so I've been mixing in meat babyfood. I really think we're going to stick with this one.
 
When I first got Cinnabun from his breeder he was eating Purina Healthy Morsels. He had a really bad yeast infection in both ears and the fur on his chest and front paws instead of being white was actually a pinkish color. He was constantly itching....
 
I switched him over to Healthwise and he started having bloody, mucousy diarrhea. [] I think it was from the stress of going to a new home and eating a new food. The vet prescribed Albon and I also added very small amounts of plain yogurt and canned pumpkin to his food. He's still eating Healthwise and now his ears are much better (also used an ear cleaner and antifungal ear cream from the vet). The kibble is a tiny square with a hole in the middle, which I think is perfect for a toy breed puppy. The only problem he's having is that his stool is still a little soft. I think I'm going to go ahead and switch him over to Timberwolf Organics Wilderness Elk also to see if that will help.
 

I'm glad I'm not the only who has been through a huge variety of dog (and cat) foods!

When Roxie first showed up at my house, I went to Wal-Mart and bought her a bag of Puppy Chow.  At the time, I had no clue how lousy it was for her.  She did like it, of course.  My last dog had done very well on Pedigree, so I ended up switching her to its puppy formula.  She didn't like it, though.  I eventually began researching dog stuff and came across this board.  That changed things for me.  I began feeding a better food at that point.  Anyway, I'll just list and describe each food.  It's a long list ...

Puppy Chow - She liked its taste and had normal stools. 

Pedigree Puppy - This one didn't go so well, with loose stools and little interest in the kibble.

Chicken Soup for the Large Breed Puppy's Soul - She was on this food for a while, and her coat really improved tenfold.  Her stools were fine and she loved it.  Well, she loved it for a while and suddenly stopped liking it. 

Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy - Yeah, I went downhill in quality, but I hadn't gone to a feed store yet.  She liked this food more than CS.  Stools were fine and her coat improved quite a bit. 

Eagle Pack Holistic: Fish & Duck Formulas - She hated the duck and refused to eat it; she LOVED the revolting fish forumla and wanted more of it.  That crap made me want to vomit, as I hate fish.  Its smell was absolutely hideous, and she smelled like rotten fish after eating it.  Never again.

Canidae - She was not crazy about this.  I liked its ingredients, but it wasn't appealing.  Her stools were fine.

Nutro Ultra Large Breed Puppy - Of all the foods we've tried, this was her absolute favorite, even over the EP Fish crap.  Her coat was great, the stools great, but it was overpriced and used corn gluten meal as its third ingredient.  Ridiculous.

Innova Large Breed Puppy - Huge kibble size in comparison to other foods she had eaten, though she hated it anyway.  Well, she did at first.  For some reason she began to eat it after I'd decided to return the unused portion.  Big mistake.  She had explosive diarrhea.  After that, she didn't want to eat it again, either. 

Solid Gold Wolf Cub - She refused to eat it. 

California Natural Puppy: Chicken and Rice - She did extremely well on this one.  Her stools were the best they'd ever been and she genuinedly liked it.

Timberwolf Organics: Dakota Bison - She wasn't impressed and wouldn't eat much of it.  Too bad, because I like its ingredients. 

Healthwise Puppy: Chicken Meal and Brown Rice - This is what she's eating NOW.  Overall, I think it's the best match for her.  She has no problem with chicken, she really likes its taste, and her stools are fine. 

As for canned foods, I cannot remember what all she has tried.  So many. 

Trixie (the kitten) has eaten Nutro (I knew about pet food by this time) most of her life.  I tried Felidae and Innova, but she hated them.  And the Felidae gave her bad diarrhea.  She also turned down CA Natural's cat formula, so I tried Healthwise Cat 'n' Kitten.  She actually LOVES it; go figure. 

Both of my girls are doing very well on Healthwise.  That's what we're sticking with.

ORIGINAL: Edie

I've come across in the last few months and haven't found anything in Australia that is grain free or even doesn't have grain in the first 4 ingredients.

EVO is grain free and is available in Australia,as is Innova,california natural,healthwise and other natura products.

California Natural is not grain-free, I don't believe.

ORIGINAL: chewbecca

ORIGINAL: Edie

I've come across in the last few months and haven't found anything in Australia that is grain free or even doesn't have grain in the first 4 ingredients.

EVO is grain free and is available in Australia,as is Innova,california natural,healthwise and other natura products.

California Natural is not grain-free, I don't believe.

 
Yup- Innova, CA Natural and Healthwise all have grains.I think Edie was saying that EVO is grain free and also letting the person know what other higher quality foods are available in Australia. I could be wrong though! []

D'oh. No, you're right. I read his sentence wrong. I read it BEFORE my morning coffee.

Wow, this should be fun.  Haha!
 
Eukanuba (for about 2 weeks when I got my first dog)
-Palatability: He seemed to like it.
-Energy level: Nothing different
-Stool analysis: He pooped a few times a day... definately more than he does now
-Effect on skin and coat: Rough coat, dry skin
-Overall appearance of your dog: Not very good... it made his fur wirey.
 
Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice (for about 3 months)
-Palatability: Madison liked it
-Energy level: Nothing different
-Stool analysis: Better than while on Eukanuba, but still more than he should have.  Softer poop than on holistic foods
-Effect on skin and coat: Coat still wirey and rough.
-Overall appearance of your dog: Still wirey and rough fur.
 
Innova Puppy
-Palatability: Rylie and Madison liked the taste
-Energy level: They were sick while they were on this food... diarrhea, gas... we tried Innova when we brought Chloe home as well, and she had the same problems.
-Stool analysis: bad diarrhea
-Effect on skin and coat: They were not on this long enough to tell
-Overall appearance of your dog: Again, not on it long enough to tell
 
Wellness Puppy Super5 Mix
-Palatability: They didn't really like the taste... ate it slower with less enthusiasm... kibble size was large for chihuahuas as well... and this is how we found out for sure that Rylie had food allergies
-Energy level: Great, lots of energy!
-Stool analysis: Pooped 2 times a day... firm, dark, odorless, small stools
-Effect on skin and coat: Shiny coats, still a little dry skin, though
-Overall appearance of your dog: They looked pretty good while they were on this, other than Rylie's allergies.
 
Wellness Simple Food Solutions
-Palatability: Same as the other Wellness
-Energy level: Rylie did pretty well while she was on this food... she was the only one on it.
-Stool analysis: She pooped 2 times a day, small, dark, odorless stools
-Effect on skin and coat: Shiny coat with a little bit of dry skin
-Overall appearance of your dog: Pretty good, shiny coat.
 
Timberwolf Organics
-Palatability: My dogs all love this food... small kibbles, and they love the flavor
-Energy level: They have so much energy and seem so healthy on it.
-Stool analysis: Small, dark, odorless stools.  They poop twice a day, and this is the smallest their stools have ever been.
-Effect on skin and coat: Coat has never looked better!  They do not have dry skin anymore either.
-Overall appearance of your dog:  They look so healthy... shiny coats, healthy weights... they look great!