Dog Food advice

ShayK1

Hey,

January of 2009 myself and my G/f adopted a dog from Ash Animal rescue. On the recommendation of Remi from Ash we've been feeding our dog Royal Canin.
I had dogs as a kid but this is my first dog as an adult and I know NOTHING about the nutritional value of food. I was warned away from a very popular brand which I'm sure you all know already but the Royal Canin is quite expensive.

My cousin, who always had dogs recommended me a brand called Kasco. I think its a Royal Canin product but I'm not sure. He also got me a sample of Salters Maintenance. The Salters is €10 cheaper per bag than the Royal Canin (I think we're talking 15kg here) and the Kasco is a mere €18.

Can anybody give me some advice or educate me about dry dog food please?
Is Royal Canin worth the extra money ?

Thanks,
ShayK1

Cutie18Ireland

Equipet have the small bags for half price or a €8 discount on mini junior almost constantly so might be worth checking. They are launching an online site soon. So special offers are not accesible online but I sure if u rang they could give you prices

star-pants

Sometimes they have deals on Royal Canine up north, like 3 for 2 on the smaller bags etc.
One of our dogs eats that, the younger (still a pup in my eyes) gets bad skin eating it so she eats James WellBeloved (for now anyway)

ShayK1

thanks for the info on the offers. The last-time I went to my local store it was half price so I stocked up a bit but that's the point of my thread.

I'm really looking for info on nutritional values or value for money or that type of thing.

Do you guys think that Royal Canin is worth the money? Or would Kasco be just as good a product.

Educate me please!!!

star-pants

You want lists of ingredients like this

Ingredients: Dehydrated poultry meat, rice, maize, dehydrated beef and pork protein (L.I.P*), maize gluten, animal fats, hydrolysed animal proteins, barley, vegetable fibres, beet pulp, minerals, fish oils, vegetable oils (soya and borage), fructo-oligo-saccharides, psyllium husks and seeds, sodium polyphosphate, taurine, hydrolysed crustaceans (source of glucosamine), DL-methionine, green tea and grape extracts (source of polyphenols), L-carnitine, marigold extract (source of lutein), hydrolysed cartilage (source of chondriotin).

taken from Golden Lab - http://www.royalcanin.co.uk/my_pet/dog_products/breed_health_nutrition/labrador_retriever.aspx

You want less 'fillers' and more real meat/protein (usually). Rice maize, maize gluten etc are all high up on the list. Doesn't mean it's bad, but you can get foods with more meats less fillers.

Finding it hard to find info on Kasco, though it does appear to be by Royal Canine too.
Orijen is

INGREDIENTS
Fresh deboned chicken, chicken meal, turkey meal, russet potato, fresh deboned pacific salmon (a natural source of DHA and EPA), herring meal, sweet potato, peas, fresh deboned lake whitefish, fresh deboned northern walleye, chicken fat (naturally preserved with vitamin E and citric acid), chicken liver, salmon meal, fresh deboned turkey, fresh whole eggs, fresh deboned herring, sun-cured alfalfa, salmon oil, chicory root, dehydrated organic kelp, pumpkin, carrots, spinach, turnip greens, apples, cranberries, saskatoon berries, black currants, choline chloride, psyllium, licorice root, angelica root, fenugreek, marigold flowers, sweet fennel, peppermint leaf, chamomile flowers, dandelion, summer savory, rosemary, sea salt, vitamin supplements (vitamin A, vitamin D3, vitamin E, niacin, vitamin C, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12), mineral supplements (zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, selenium), dried Lactobacillus acidophilus, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product.

http://www.orijen.ca/orijen/products/adultIngredients.aspx

It's also what breed your dog is and what it's needs are too


Found Kasco on an american site

Ingredients:
Poultry by-product meal, ground yellow corn, ground wheat, poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), beet pulp, corn cellulose, fish meal, brewers dried yeast, potassium chloride, salt, calcium carbonate, choline chloride, zinc proteinate, vitamin E supplement, ascorbic acid, zinc oxide, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, extract of rosemary, manganous oxide, copper sulfate, vitamin A acetate, niacin supplement, calcium pantothenate, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin supplement, thiamine mononitrate, calcium iodate, biotin, sodium selenite, folic acid.

Guaranteed Analysis %:
Crude Protein (min.) 26
Crude Fat (min.) 15
Moisture (max.) 11
Crude Fiber (max.) 3.5
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http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/dept.asp?dept_id=1&brand_id=10

lorebringer

Royal Canin is a good food but as you said, pricey. Arden Grange and Burns are slightly cheaper but still great foods. Unfortunately, with dog food you really do get what you pay for. Generally the more expensive the food is, the better it is (this tends to be because the manufacturer has to spend more money on better ingredients and thus the price is passed onto the customer). I always recommend Orijen, which is expensive but brilliant. There is a slightly cheaper food that the same company produces (Champion PetFoods) is Acana, also very good. Have a look on www.dogfoodanalysis.com to see evaluations of different foods.

It's really nice to hear that you are keen to keep your dog on good food, often the price come before the quality, which is a pity. In my opinion, dog food is worth every penny - the dog needs less volume of food if it is good quality so it works out, in the long term, as not too much more expensive. The wallet does really feel it though when €60 and over needs to be spent in one go on dog food though! I think the best thing you can do is avail of special offers and shop around www.brendaspets.ie is generally cheaper than most places and www.zooplus.ie tends to have good offers.

smilerf

in my opinion royal canin is just ok we have our fella on arden grange and he loves it and looks great
we tried him on burns for a few months but it didnt really suit him
its trial and error just be sure u know ur ingrediants as star-pants said

looserock

ShayK1 wrote: »

Kasco is a mere €18.

Can anybody give me some advice or educate me about dry dog food please?
Is Royal Canin worth the extra money ?

Thanks,
ShayK1

If you feed the dog exclusively the dry food then the likes of Royal Canin is worth it, but if you give you're dog other stuff with his food like some mince a couple times a week and give him the leftovers from dinner etc then the cheaper foods are ok.

I used Kasco for about a year and found it to be a pretty good food.

Take a look at the link below for some good info.

http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=myths

sadhbhc15

I feed my dog Royal Canin Club Performance Adult as it's the cheapest in the Royal Canin range and my dog is incredibly happy and healthy on it. Lovely shiny soft coat, bright alert eyes, very good weight control and tons of energy (without being hyper).
I always buy it here http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dry_dog_food/royal_canin_size#Club%20Performance

In my view, it's well worth the money. However, Royal Canin doesn't suit every dog.

ShayK1

That's what I was looking for

Wow star-pants that looks like you searched hard for that info. Thank you. It much appreciated.
My dog is a German-sheppard Cross. He's in great condition and the royal canin is agreeing with him. Great coat and plenty of energy. I feel he's a little bit skinny but he's been getting a little extra food lately so I'm sure that'll come right soon.

He gets about 3 handfuls of Dry food along with tinned food and a spoon of over cooked rice. (all on the advice of ASH). There's a pic of him on here somewhere, I'll have a look.

Found it:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=59577600&postcount=10