WHAT is with the Purina people?

Edie, I honestly don't know if switching every meal would bother my crew or not. I see no reason to do that

 
  What would concern me about switching foods every meal or even every day would be whether or not you're meeting the dog's nutritional requirements. Dog foods made by different companies are not formulated with the same nutritional density; sometimes there can be quite a difference. For example, Jessie was on a prescription diet by Royal Canin recently to see if she had developed another food allergy; it is thier potato and rabbit. The feeding instructions called for about 500 more calories than she was getting on Eagle Pack. I e-mailed the company with my concerns over her getting too many calories and they replied that I shouldn't feed her less than 10% of what is recommended or she wouldn't get enough nutrition. Royal Canin says the same thing about thier Sensible Choice foods.
     Each food is designed to meet a dog's nutritional needs for thier weight class with the amount recommended on the feeding guide; some foods allow more flexibility than others concerning the guidelines. IMO, feeding a cup of brand X in the morning and a can of brand Z in the evening may not be the best feeding practice.

What would concern me about switching foods every meal or even every day would be whether or not you're meeting the dog's nutritional requirements.

ORIGINAL: jessies_mom

It's not rocket science.  All dog food is labeled and gives you the information on nutritional density.  I like to vary the proteins and have a fish only meal at least every 3-4 days. 
 
The kibble I use varies quite a bit in nutritional density.  The two extremes are Evo RM (red meat) and Pinnacle Trout and Sweet Potato which is almost diet food.  I add canned salmon to the Pinnacle.  I've only had my dog a few months.  Once the novelty wears off she may be chowing down to nice and purdy Beneful...hehe.  Just kidding []

It must be me but I find it bizarre to switch foods per meal.  how could you possibly know if your dog is getting is daily nutrition from two or more different feeds.
Switching like that is potentially setting you up for a sick dog or not being able to catch an allergy problem or what have you.
I do add extra virgin olive oil on Harley's food and put a teaspoon of Apple cider vinegar in his water.  He occasionally gets cottage cheese or yogurt.

It must be me but I find it bizarre to switch foods per meal. how could you possibly know if your dog is getting is daily nutrition from two or more different feeds.

 
If both foods are balanced I do not see an issue.  A couple of the kibbles I feed when I am adding "people food" and a couple I feed when I'm not. 

Switching like that is potentially setting you up for a sick dog or not being able to catch an allergy problem or what have you. 

 
My thought on that is just the opposite.  I think exposing my dog to different things on a regular basis makes her less likely to develop food related allergies.  Since she currently has no allergy or itching problem I do not see how being able to "catch an allergy problem" is an issue.  If she exhibits symptoms I will then attempt to pinpoint the problem. 
 
Food allergies can develop at any time and I'm not sure if there is definitive evidence that one can avoid the onset.  A dog can develop an allergy to something in a food they've been fed for years.
 
[linkhttp://allergies.about.com/cs/canine/a/aa091800a.htm]http://allergies.about.com/cs/canine/a/aa091800a.htm[/link]
 

 He occasionally gets cottage cheese or yogurt.

Oh my goodness!!  You vary his diet!  []

Oh wow varied diet just because of yogurt and cottage cheese...hmmm...not changing his kibble daily a bit different I think...but take it as you will.[8D]

I agree with DakotasDoode that if a dog can handle switching foods, then it shouldn't be a problem. After all, every meal is still nutritionally balanced.
 
Many dogs on raw switch protein sources, quantities, supplements, extras (tripe etc.) on a daily basis and seem to do just fine.
 
I would much rather see an owner regularly switch foods (as long as there's no digestion problems) than feed one kibble for the dog's entire life. IMO switching insures the most balanced diet possible.
 

It's not rocket science. All dog food is labeled and gives you the information on nutritional density. I like to vary the proteins and have a fish only meal at least every 3-4 days.

 
  I was referring to switching from one brand to another for different feedings in one day; I also expressed concern over changing brands from one day to the next. It may be okay to change brands each day if they're foods the dog is used to but IMO changing brands for different feedings the same day could cause problems for the same reasons I stated above. I do rotate Jessie's food about every three weeks, when she needs a new bag, using different protein sources.

And as luck would have it, anyone interested could get a free sample of pro plan selects.
 
[linkhttp://www.proplan.com/proplanselects/default.aspx]http://www.proplan.com/proplanselects/default.aspx[/link]

Like human food consumption, everything in moderation....    When we are met with next week's headline about what is going to cause disease or death because of what we eat and drink, it is best to have a varied diet.  I also think it keeps dogs interested in their food (some dogs have no problem with this) and adds variety to their life.

Chief Purina proponent
 

My dogs are doing much more than surviving, they are living a healthy happy and active life

ORIGINAL: sandra_slayton

From "The whole picture - what do you feed?" thread

ORIGINAL: sandra_slayton
Kibble
My 11 3/4 year old golden  "old man"gets Purina One Senior
My 7 year old and almost 5 year old golden girls get Purina One weight managment
 
Human food
Crock pot food--5 pounds of chicken  legs or thighs and calf liver, ground turkey, chicken hearts, any combo.  This time it is calf liver & chicken hearts.  This is cooked with sweet potaotes, apples, green beans, and what other veggies take my fancy--white potatoes, broccoli, yellow squash, pears. This lasts 4 or 5 meals.  On the nights they do not get this, they get fresh caught & bake fish (if I have luck) or canned salmon or mackeral with canned unsalted green beans and carrot slices.  They get mostly plain kibble in the morning, sometimes topped with a small jar of baby food sweet potatoes or squash divided between the 3 of them somtimes a little cottage cheese or yogurt , etc.  Kibble makes up 2/3 of their daily food, the cooked makes up the other 1/3
 
Also, i make them Frosty paws using plain yogurt, bananas, peanut butter, and honey, sometimes jars of baby food fruit, etc.  I also occasionally make the rice pudding with just rice, eggs, milk, vanilla and a little nutmeg, no sugar, salt or raisins.
 
Supplements.
All three get an Ester C (immune system), all purpose vitamin, Fish Oil capsul (2 on days they do not get fish, 1 on the days they get fish) and a vitamin E on the days they get 2 fish oil capsuls.  Buck, the old man also gets a cranberry capsul each day as he had his first and only kidney infection 4 months ago.  I also give him a B Complex on M, W & F.  He gets two regular Glucosamine/MSM caps in the morning and two Osteo Bi Flex cps at night.  And his thyroid meds, 1 1/2 tabs of .8 soloxine twice a day.  KayCee, who had her knees operated on for luxating patells, the first at 16 months, the other a little over ayear later also gets 2 of the glucosamine caps and one SynoviG3 each day. 
And I think that about covers it.

 
If you are feeding your dog all that other stuff, the kibble you feed is almost irrelevant.  They may not do too much worse on fortified sawdust (if they would eat it) as long as they get all that other stuff.
 
My dog gets (non Purina) kibble alone when fed the "high octane kibble" and a little meat added (salmon or chicken gizzards & hearts) when I feed the lower protein/fat kibble.  I add yogurt in her fish kibble but she does not get a bunch of  "people food" and no supplements.  To be fair about the supplements I will point out that my dog is only a year old and yours are significantly older.

Why would one want to feed a dog as a human or these feeds that say they have human grade meats?  What do wild dogs eat?  It makes one wonder...I am sure wild dogs do not eat the best.

Why would one want to feed a dog as a human or these feeds that say they have human grade meats? What do wild dogs eat? It makes one wonder...I am sure wild dogs do not eat the best.

ORIGINAL: Firestorm

I'm not sure if you are referring to Sandra's feeding choices or mine. 

I only buy canned salmon when it is on sale for $1.54/can and feed no more than 1 can a week (over several meals) mixed with kibble.  The chicken gizzards & hearts are ~$1.50/pound and when boiled with sufficient water, create a good amount of broth which I use with kibble to ensure my dog consumes sufficient water with her kibble (though that has not been an issue).  It's nothing extravagent or time consuming.

I use the cooked gizzards and hearts themselves with a low(ish) protein grain free duck kibble to boost the protein level.  Since that kibble includes potatoes as a major ingredient the crude protein listed likely significantly is higher than usable.

When hunting wild dogs eat fresh killed, highly digestible protein.  When scavenging its a different story.

ORIGINAL: Firestorm

Why would one want to feed a dog as a human or these feeds that say they have human grade meats?  What do wild dogs eat?  It makes one wonder...I am sure wild dogs do not eat the best.

 
You're right, a diet made up of mostly of ground corn gluten, brewer's rice, wheat gluten, chemical preservatives and meat by product much more closely approximates a wild dogs diet.

ORIGINAL: Firestorm

Why would one want to feed a dog as a human or these feeds that say they have human grade meats?  What do wild dogs eat?  It makes one wonder...I am sure wild dogs do not eat the best.

 
I don't know about anyone else but because I can choose what my dogs eat as opposed to what wild dogs get because beggars can't be choosers, I'd rather that they eat the healthiest food my money can buy them. I love my dogs more than life itself. If feeding them a healthier diet will keep them in my life longer, that's what I'll do.

I love my dogs more than life itself.

ORIGINAL: meilani

Is there a shrink in the house? []