Which Food?

[OldJack]

Any suggestions on what to feed a six year old bc? Currently use Arkwrights dried food and often have to add something to make it appealing. I’m also reading a lot of articles saying dried biscuit isn’t good for dogs long term??

thank you

[D'Elle]

I like to utilize the Dog Food Advisor to inform my choices in dog food, because they analyze all the foods and explain what the ingredients are and what they do or do not do for your dog, and rate them on a 1 to 5 star scale.  I have found this very helpful. Mostly I choose a food based on their ratings, and whether or not the first three or at least two ingredients are meat, without byproducts. I tried to find an ingredient list for Arkwrights but was not successful. I noticed that it is a food sold in the UK, so you may need to find a Dog Food Advisor-type of website that analyzes UK dog foods if you can't get the 5-star foods they recommend there. 

Some people do say that feeding kibble alone is not healthy, and some say that the best thing to feed is a raw diet. I personally feed a good quality kibble supplemented with raw food, home cooked food, and carefully chosen canned food I use as a topper (20-30% or so of the meal) in a rotation so that they get variety.

but not all dogs do well on every good diet, no matter how good it is for others. One of my dogs gets serious gastro-intestinal issues with raw meat unless it's just a tiny bit. Some dogs have allergies to one thing or another. So buy a food with good ingredients, and then look at your dog. Healthy weight, active, good shiny coat, clear eyes, energy. That combination of those 2 things should tell you whether your dog is getting the right food for him or her, or not.

 

[mseaver]

On 2/4/2021 at 3:11 PM, OldJack said:

Any suggestions on what to feed a six year old bc? Currently use Arkwrights dried food and often have to add something to make it appealing.

I am unfamiliar w/ Arkwrights, but I see there are a number of choices.  Are you feeding just one version or offering a selection of their products?

My present dog is a fit 3yo 48lb male BC rescue that was adopted at 1-1/2 in a state of emaciation at 35lbs (after being in shelter 3 mo !)  My previous pup was a 17yo female Aussie that was adopted at 7 in a somewhat overweight & unfit state.

I presently serve a selection of dry foods from Royal Canin's retail series and Acana to the BC.  I previously served products from Royal Canin's Veterinary dry & canned series, Orijen dry and Blue Buffalo dry & canned to the Aussie.  The BC likes fresh blueberries, but has little interest in raw carrots.  The Aussie liked carrots.  Both received dry beef liver sparingly and dental chew products periodically.

With the exception of becoming uncomfortable about the suitability of Orijen's protein levels as the Aussie aged, I feel all these commercial foods were beneficial for my pets.  On occasions when I looked for evaluations, the opinions of others who claimed to be experts were favorable.

All of which is a long way of saying, a variety of appropriate foods will be appreciated by your pup.

In addition to the indicators suggested in D'Elle`s last paragraph, I will add that the study of fecal matter ought to be a key guide for evaluating the food offered to your dog - it seems I am not alone in referring to this as Poopology.  Since the thread is about intake, rather than output, fecal study may seem off topic.  However, if you begin to experiment with dietary changes, then I recommend observing (and keeping notations about), err, outcomes.

To close, I will finish with questions that perhaps should have been at the beginning.  Is the dog prone to seasonal variations in appetite?  Has there been a change in the dog's activity level or environment that could explain the reduced appetite?  Are there any other signs that might suggest an undiagnosed health issue (teeth, gut, other)?

 

[adadrian]

The simple answer and reply is just get your dog the best food you can afford :-) its like your own diet you can survive on take away every day but you would feel horrible. 

[quipproquo]

On 2/5/2021 at 7:57 AM, D'Elle said:

I like to utilize the Dog Food Advisor to inform my choices in dog food, because they analyze all the foods and explain what the ingredients are and what they do or do not do for your dog, and rate them on a 1 to 5 star scale.  I have found this very helpful. Mostly I choose a food based on their ratings, and whether or not the first three or at least two ingredients are meat, without byproducts. I tried to find an ingredient list for Arkwrights but was not successful. I noticed that it is a food sold in the UK, so you may need to find a Dog Food Advisor-type of website that analyzes UK dog foods if you can't get the 5-star foods they recommend there. 

Some people do say that feeding kibble alone is not healthy, and some say that the best thing to feed is a raw diet. I personally feed a good quality kibble supplemented with raw food, home cooked food, and carefully chosen canned food I use as a topper (20-30% or so of the meal) in a rotation so that they get variety.

but not all dogs do well on every good diet, no matter how good it is for others. One of my dogs gets serious gastro-intestinal issues with raw meat unless it's just a tiny bit. Some dogs have allergies to one thing or another. So buy a food with good ingredients, and then look at your dog. Healthy weight, active, good shiny coat, clear eyes, energy. That combination of those 2 things should tell you whether your dog is getting the right food for him or her, or not.

 

Hi D'Elle, 

 

Would you mind elaborating on what canned food you use and what home cooked food you integrate with it? I have a new BC arriving next week and am researching diet options. :) Also (if you're comfortable saying-- no worries if not) how much do you spend per month on the raw food? I've been looking into it but think it is unfortunately out of my price range for now.

[D'Elle]

On 2/12/2021 at 1:41 PM, quipproquo said:

Would you mind elaborating on what canned food you use and what home cooked food you integrate with it? I have a new BC arriving next week and am researching diet options. Also (if you're comfortable saying-- no worries if not) how much do you spend per month on the raw food? I've been looking into it but think it is unfortunately out of my price range for now.

The raw food I give them is only small bits. Half a carrot, for example, or a slice of carrot or a bite of the meat I am cooking for myself that day. I can't give my current dogs a raw diet because it doesn't agree at all with one of them, and there's no way I can give it to one without the other. I do know you can make your own raw dog food, and there are a lot of websites that will help with that. I do know that you need to give raw bones of the right size and type or else give a calcium supplement if you are feeding exclusively raw.

As for the canned food, once again I recommend the Dog Food Advisor. I personally give them Wellness  or Merrick canned food. I use the kind that is 95% meat because it is a topper rather than a whole meal. The cans are not very cheap, but since I use them as toppers it is really not expensive. 

Home cooked topper is meat (either boneless skinless chicken breast or venison mostly) with all the fat trimmed carefully of it. I usually add heart and/or some liver, but I go light on the liver. I boil the meat in only enough water to cover it and for the last few minutes I add the vegetables, any assortment of : kale stems, carrots, etc, but avoiding cruciferous veges. After it cools I put it through the food processor with the liquid I cooked it in, which will be a lot more than it started with. I freeze this mixture in small container, enough for one to three days of toppers. Sometimes I add hard boiled egg to the mix before I mince it. Price varies a lot depending on whether or not I have been able to get my own venison.  But you don't have to buy filet mignon for dogs, just any cut of lean meat that you can trim off the fat.