What to look for in an adult food?

[Guest maya's mom]

I tried to search through past topics on this, but the system wasn't letting me search. I am switching my 7 month old BC over to adult food, but am wanting to make sure I am putting her on the best food. She currently eats California Natural Lamb/Rice Puppy, and is doing very well. I want to keep her on a CA Nat adult food, but would like to make sure the ingredients are correct. What is the ratio of Protein, Fat, etc that an adult food should contain? I've seen in a lot of posts that the wrong balance could cause growth problems and hyperactivity problems. Thanks!

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

I like The Dog Food Project for a quick "101" course on what to look for in good commercial products. The directly answer your question, macronutrient ratios are a matter of what works for you and your dog. Every dog is different, so if you get 148 answers here that all say something slightly different about what their dogs do best on, that's why. There's no one right answer. Too many factors: Budget, your preferences, your dog's energy needs, your dog's health and sensitivities - that's not an exhaustive list.

[Guest maya's mom]

I guess I should mention that Maya is currently 18" tall and 30lbs at just over 7 months old. She is primarily a "pet", but she does obediance training once a week, takes daily 2 mile walks, (sometimes twice a day) and has numerous play times of free running, frisbee catching, etc.

[nancy]

Bill Fosher can give you the information. Look him up in members and ask. He gave me all the percentages and what to look for. I went to every pet shop, with a notebook. I read like I was in a library! Have you any idea how many bags of different dog kibble one can find in a metropolitan area? I found every one and wrote down its details.

 

I know it's lower protein and higher fat than you'd expect. And I know to avoid corn meal because they can't digest it. So it both makes them poop more and produces nutrient percentages that are invalid because nothing from that corn gets into the dog.

 

We swear by PetsMart's Authority Lamb & Rice Chunks. Fergie is pushing 13 and, allowing for arthritis and some deafness and going grey, is doing incredibly well. The vets are impressed. If we're in a hurry, we get another lamb and rice bag (Nutro - something with "nature"?) at PetCo because it's about a mile away from us.

 

Also, she gets only ~3/4 cup twice a day. She weighs 50+lbs - but, as far as we know, her dad was a lab. So she wouldn't be one of the small bcs.