Dog Community

Volhard's NDF2 - a review

Posted : 12/21/2007 2:32:32 PM

In Oliver's 14 months on the earth, I've changed his diet a few times trying to find one to help his skin and . Have found some things that worked (raw) and some things that didn't (anything Wellness or chicken based). I then tried Volhard's Healthy Dog Diet (raw and kibble base). Oliver's daycare/health place just started carrying the dehydrated version of the Natural Diet Foundation, so I thought I would give it a shot, as it is a lot more simple than trying to pull it together myself. Thought I would share in case others are interested.

Things I like:

Easy to make - simple mix with water
Oliver seems to like the taste
Poops have never been better and he has always been "hit" or "miss" on other kibbles (including Eagle Pack and Nature's Variety), despite long transition times and staying on each kibble for months
The persistent dry, flaky skin seems to have gone away (to the point that I'm cutting back on the supplemental salmon oil)

Things I don't like:

It has to be refrigerated. As if the raw food isn't taking up enough space in my freezer, I've now lost part of a shelf in my fridge side too (with a ten pound bag)
In the beginning it gave him some really noxious gas, but it lessened quite a bit after a week
Can only get it from one place in town or one distributor on line
Percentages of content and calories are not posted

He has been on it for two weeks and I'm pretty pleased with it. The downsides I can live with, especially given the things that I like. I'll post updates if needed.

Ingredients (as posted on the Volhard website and on the bag)

Oats, Wheat Bran, Wheat Germ, Chicken Liver, Calcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Safflower Oil, Brewers Yeast, Dried Apples, Carrots, Molasses, Eggs, Buckwheat Groats (Omega 6), Cd Liver Oil (Omega 3), Parsley, Kelp, Alfalfa, Burdock Root, Dandelion Root, Rosemary, Garlic, Ginger, Yucca, Apple Cider Vinegar, Diatomaceous Earth, Vitamin C (Calc. Ascorbate), Vitamin E, Natural Mix Tocopherols (Vitamin E), Montmorilomite Clay, Fermented Probiotics: Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bacillus Subtilis, Bifidobacterium thermophilum, Bifidobacterium longum, Enterococcus faecalis, Charcoal, Chelated Zinc, Manganese,, Iron, Copper and Cobalt. Vitamin B Complex consisting of Niacinimide, Choline, Niacin, Riboflavin, d Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine, Pyridoxine, Biotin, Vitamins A, K and D3. Sodium Selenite.

NDF2
does NOT contain corn, rye, gluten meal, soy, spinach, celery, bell peppers, tomatoes, artificial preservatives, artificial coloring, trans fats or genetically modified products.

Crude protein, min. - 15%
Crude fat, min. - 10%
Crude fiber, max. - 8%
Moisture, max - 10%

When raw meat (beef 80/20) is added, the percentage of protein goes up to 28% - 34%

Stacita

Posted : 12/21/2007 5:03:59 PM

I looked at that and thought it was pretty good stuff. With three dogs though, I feel the savings is worth messing with it myself.

Do you know if it can be used with cooked meat? Two of my dogs don't like raw. If it can be used with cooked, I might keep a little on hand in case DH needs to prepare food for a few days.

g8rfrog

Posted : 12/21/2007 6:23:21 PM

I don't know how you manage three - I'm just learning how to handle one! :-)

I'm not an expert on the diet, but I'll ask your question tomorrow when I visit the daycare to drop off gifts for the staff. Are your dogs eating homecooked without any kibble added? The reason I ask is that NDF2 is designed to fill all the gaps that straight raw might leave. I suppose in a pinch I could just feed NDF, but the protein count would be pretty low.

mudpuppy

Posted : 12/22/2007 12:28:58 PM

it looks like it's mostly just oats with some sources of vitamins and minerals. Is it pricey? if it is it's a rip-off. Since it has all that calcium I suspect you're not supposed to feed RMBs, only ground meat.

Edie

Posted : 12/24/2007 9:26:46 PM

My first thought was that i am really impressed that your dog would eat this.It looks like it would have an interesting taste.I know mine wouldnt be into it at all :(

g8rfrog

Posted : 12/25/2007 11:14:24 AM

It was pricey as an intiial outlay of $$$, but after I figured out the cost per feeding, it was within a couple cents of feeding NV kibble. RMBs are meant to be a bit more recreational than a full part of this diet.

For convenience sake I'd rather be feeding kibble, but I just can't find one that goes through his system consistently. This is the only thing so far that seems to agree with him.

g8rfrog

Posted : 12/25/2007 11:19:40 AM

After it is mixed up, it looks very much like oatmeal. It is really stinky, and I think that is appealing to Oliver. I do have to be careful about mixing it up. If I make it too soupy, he is little reluctant to chow down. I try to keep it pretty thick for him and that seems to work.

I'm not saying this is the answer for all dogs, but something that seems to be working for my "no chicken meat and sensitive to some binding agent in kibbles" dog.

Stacita

Posted : 12/28/2007 7:29:35 AM

Are your dogs eating homecooked without any kibble added?

My dogs eat one or two meals a week of kibble/canned and the rest is home cooked. DH doesn't know how to prepare home cooked and he lacks the basic kitchen skills to follow a recipe. Confused , so I like them to eat commercial food often enough that they won't get an upset tummy if I am unable to cook for a few days. It's also sort of a nice break on Friday night to just plop food into a bowl. They think it is wonderful as long as they don't get it every day.

I've read Volhard's book and find it very useful.