Approved WDJ Pet Food

I can't stand it when people say "well the food is working, so why change?"  how can you possibly know it is working? because the dog isn't puking everywhere? Because the dog isn't dead? 

I would say if your dog ACTS healthy, and LOOKS heathy and IS healthy,,,you know his food is not working against him,,, so you would say his food is working. I think its pretty easy to tell if a food is NOT working for our dogs. 
 
 

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I can't stand it when people say "well the food is working, so why change?" how can you possibly know it is working? because the dog isn't puking everywhere? Because the dog isn't dead?
 

[I would say if your dog ACTS healthy, and LOOKS heathy and IS healthy,,,you know his food is not working against him,,, so you would say his food is working. I think its pretty easy to tell if a food is NOT working for our dogs]


Right on the money, Dyan.  Ever wonder why only the ones that feed premium etc can really tell that their dogs are healthy to a T, but we that feed other stuff, we look at our dogs thru rose colored glasses and can't see the problems.
I guess if a dog looks healthy, has tons of energy, gets great physicals, blood work, tests, and eats Iams, Euk, Purina, SD, etc, then he can't be  healthy. It is all an  illusion. Their owners can't see the thin, greasy, smelly fur, nor the nasty smelling, dirty ears nor the goopey eyes.  Their vet  can't  read test results, blood work results correctly, nor hear a bad heart or whatever.However if a dog looks healthy, has tons of energy, gets great physicals, blood work, tests, and eat premium or raw or whatever, then he IS healthy..  Their owners see all, their vets know all  The rest of us are in the dark.  

I can't stand it when people say "well the food is working, so why change?" how can you possibly know it is working? because the dog isn't puking everywhere? Because the dog isn't dead?

 
You can't ever give it a rest, can you?
 
Of course, being a geneticist/microbiologist/dog trainer/whatever else to win the debate, it must get tiring dealing with us lesser mortals.

ORIGINAL: dyan

I can't stand it when people say "well the food is working, so why change?"  how can you possibly know it is working? because the dog isn't puking everywhere? Because the dog isn't dead? 

I would say if your dog ACTS healthy, and LOOKS heathy and IS healthy,,,you know his food is not working against him,,, so you would say his food is working. I think its pretty easy to tell if a food is NOT working for our dogs. 

You can't really guage a dog's whole life on food, honestly.  Food is only one factor in life that dictates what will happen to the dog (and yourself).  Genetic makeup, environmental influence, viral/bacterial influence, etc all contribute to the dog's overall well being.  If it's in the cards for a dog to get cancer, eventually they'll get cancer no matter what they eat- raw, holistic kibble, alpo or otherwise.

You have to do what is best for YOU and YOUR DOG.  If you can afford raw and your dog does well on it, great. If you can afford kibble and your dog does well, great.

I can guarantee you that most people who fuss and holler about raw and holistic foods being fed and never any bad ingredients dare touch their dogs' lips also eat chocolate, drink soda and  eat a miriad of artificially flavored and preserved foods, not to mention fast food. There are few who eat as purely as they feed their dogs (I was one of them- adn that's a whole 'nother story- we were so broke because I was giving raw, organic meals to the dogs and eating fruit loops and mac n cheese myself!).

Anyway, the OP should know that for the most part, she was preaching to the choir, and that she made a lot of uncouth assumptions. 

What I like about this group is that they are all very accepting, and it's been said several times, if the dog does well, go with it!

ORIGINAL: sandra_slayton

I think everyone should feed what their dog/dogs best on.  At one point I also wanted "better" for my old man, but it didn't work for him.  I know, I know, i only gave it to him twice a day for 4 days and he threw up twice a day for 4 day and I went back to Purina..  I was told i should have tried longer, I was told I should have tried this, that or the other brand. 

Is kinda like human food.  We are told that liver is great for us, but I bet half the people here will not sit down and eat plate of liver because they either don't like it, don't like the thought of eating it, or it disagrees with them.  Same with spinach, broccoli, baked fish, etc. Dogs won't eat food they don't like and we shouoldn't give them food that disagrees with them.  If mine were not doing so great n Purina, I would find something else. 

Maybe the "dog's condition" is in the eye of the beholder, but after being around dogs for 60 years, I do think i know a scruffy, smelly, dry coat, stinky gooey ears, goopy eyes, etc dog from one one with nice soft glowing thick fur, no smell (my goldesn sleep in the bed with me), etc.  As for their "internal health" I go by their physicals, blood work, energy and their looks.  I know that any one of them can be diagnosed with cancer at any time as it is a disease that strikes many,m many goldens regardless of what they eat.

It simply goils down to one thing for me.  I look at a list like this, I look at my dogs, and I know that list is not correct according to my dogs.  For others it is ideal.

Sandra, my bil feeds his shepX and sheltie purina dog chow (and nothing else) and the dogs do not smell, have wonderful soft and shiney coat, are very happy with plenty of energy and are very healthy.  It all depends on the dog.
I think that is the main key with dog food- listen to the dog.

Sandra, my bil feeds his shepX and sheltie purina dog chow (and nothing else) and the dogs do not smell, have wonderful soft and shiney coat, are very happy with plenty of energy and are very healthy. It all depends on the dog.
I think that is the main key with dog food- listen to the dog.

 
Some would not agree with this, but i think many here, including many of the premium feeders would agree with this. Because I was taught in nutirtion we needed so much meat, I could say anyone who does not eat meat can't be healthy.    I was taught to drink os much milk, so i could say those that do not drink milk can n ot be  healthy.  I was taught to eat so much grain (bread, etc) a day and i could say those that do not eat grain can't be healthy.  But that would be wrong.  They can be every bit as healthy as the ones that do eat those products.  It all depends on the person, their chemistery, etc, etc.  And i think the same applies to our dogs.

And dogs WILL eat food that they don't like. Mine will eat, while they make faces and whine "Mooooom, do we HAAAVVE to eat the greeeens?" Yeah, they have to eat it if they want the chunks of meat to ever see their bowls

 
Yes, any dog will eat anything if forced to.  You set down something they like and something they don't like and they will not touch the unliked food.  But if that is all there is, they will eat.  If i was starving i would eat roaches and worms, but given the choice of roaches & worms or a plate of shrimp, I woudl take the shrimp hands down.  I eat a few things i am not partial to simply because I know are good for me, like spinach I don't think dogs think like that "Gee, i need to eat this because it is good for me"  I just had to luagh thinking of Honey and KayCee bouncing around this moring when I put their kibble in their pans.  You would have thought it was T-bone steak and baked potato to watch them. not purian Weight management with a tablespoon of baby food squash on it.

I can't stand it when people say "well the food is working, so why change?"  how can you possibly know it is working? because the dog isn't puking everywhere? Because the dog isn't dead? 
The only test of whether your food "worked" is if your dog makes it to a healthy old age.

 
     I don't agree with that statement at all!!! Its actually quite simple to determine whether or not a food is giving your dog(s) results. To suggest that one would only be able to ascertain whether or not the diet truly worked was after the dog perished is ludicrous, IMHO. If you open your eyes and objectively evaluate the body condition, energy level, coat, muscling, and state of the teeth, ears, eyes, and joints of the dog - and periodically evaluate over the course of weeks or months, you have a pretty accurate indicator of health.
     If I come to the conclusion that my dogs have consistantly thick, glossy coats, bright eyes, even energy levels, healthy joints, are well muscled and athletic looking, maintain a lean body weight ... if my bitches are free whelping more often than not, they are producing plenty of milk, their pups are well muscled and of a good size, gain weight well and seem to thrive ... I want to see how well the dams recover from lactation and also average number of pups produced. If my field dogs have plenty of energy and are able to focus, we're not having hypoglycemic hounds, if I can keep their weight stable without feeding ridiculous amounts ... and of course, if they are all having small, dark, firm & infrequent stools - well, I think thats a pretty damn good indicator that the food is working and there's no palpable reason why I should think the food isn't working and my dogs need to be switched!
     When you start playing around with the diet of a perfectly healthy dog, more often than not, you'll unwittingly cause problems, as many of us here can attest to ...
    
      
    

Ever wonder why only the ones that feed premium etc can really tell that their dogs are healthy to a T, but we that feed other stuff, we look at our dogs thru rose colored glasses and can't see the problems.

 
     Ah! That must be it! I get it now ... My vet and I, and other breeders who've been hands on with my dogs are all just misguided! My dogs can't REALLY be healthy on bad ol' "Pukanuba" with its yucky by products ... Just look how nasty and ratty their coats look ...
lol ... sorry, got carried away, lol lol

I can't stand it when people say "well the food is working, so why change?" how can you possibly know it is working? because the dog isn't puking everywhere? Because the dog isn't dead?
The only test of whether your food "worked" is if your dog makes it to a healthy old age.

 
I have to agree with this however it's not real helpful to me in deciding what to feed my living dogs today. All of my dogs before the current crop of poodles were shelter dogs or strays and I have no idea what they ate before I got them. My last one (and my first poodle) was 5 when I got him, had already lost a lot of teeth and needed more pulled. He could only eat soft dog food and this probably added to the problem. I didn't have the first clue about dog foods then. (Pre-Internet and pre-select, organic, holistic, zen, good-karma dog foods we either fed what was in the grocery store or what was left on our plates.) He lived to 13 (not very old for a poodle) and he did so with almost no teeth and with a lot of joint pain.
 
I too would like to see a good study done on dog foods over a long period of time but who would go to the expense of doing that? urina most likely.
 
I try to base my decisions on what kibble seems to work now, supplemented with raw foods, education and prayer along with blood work.
 
What's a mother to do?

I have to agree with this however it's not real helpful to me in deciding what to feed my living dogs today. All of my dogs before the current crop of poodles were shelter dogs or strays and I have no idea what they ate before I got them. My last one (and my first poodle) was 5 when I got him, had already lost a lot of teeth and needed more pulled. He could only eat soft dog food and this probably added to the problem. I didn't have the first clue about dog foods then.

But I honestly don't think that the reason for your 5 yr poodle lost teeth because of its food especially!   GENETICS play a bigger roll on that to me. Its not like he was probably eating sugar the first 5 years and his teeth rotted. (But maybe he did,,,who knows??) 
I feed my dog Eagle Pack,,,it was recommended for Great Danes from someone who raised many of them, so I will stick with it.  I'm hoping to ward off problems for her. I will stick with it because so far she is doing great.   But I sure don't  know if she would do equally as great with any other food including Purina. 

Ah! That must be it! I get it now ... My vet and I, and other breeders who've been hands on with my dogs are all just misguided! My dogs can't REALLY be healthy on bad ol' "Pukanuba" with its yucky by products ... Just look how nasty and ratty their coats look ...
lol ... sorry, got carried away, lol lol

Amen []

Mudpuppy i think your posts would have a lot more credence if you actually came back and argued your points when people challenged you! I happen to agree with most everything you say,and i do believe you have alot of valued opinions and experience to offer this forum.But when you post something and then 'run away' it leads me to believe you have no argument to back up your opinions,which is evidenced further by your pm and e-mail inactivation.

My personal opinion is that if you are going to state your opinion so strongly,at least have the guts to back it up when someone challenges you on it,or else it means nothing [&:]

UB, I just wanted to put my nose to the screen and smell that breath on that beautiful puppy!!!  I reckon that is the Mom and she is a beauty also.  My sister has a beagle, about 11 or 12 I guess, named Jazz.  They are such cute dogs, and can be so funny.

but given the choice of roaches & worms or a plate of shrimp, I woudl take the shrimp hands down.

What's the difference? Seriously, shrimp are bottomfeeders! YUCK!

My dogs are not forced to do anything. I am of the opinion that it's not about what they want. They're dogs, not people. They live by OUR attitudes. It's all about the way we act. Mine do whine about eating plain greens, but that's because they know I have chunks of raw meat, waiting for them. Usually, I mix it together. Sometimes I don't, because one thing or the other isn't finished, and they eat it seperated. The whining is just an attempt at manipulation[] They eat 3-4 times a day. They're SO not starving, LOL!