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Original poster

Dog owners what food do you give your dog?

56 replies

dd666 · 06/11/2007 23:00

we have been given a nearly 2yr old staffi she is lovely, but very thin her previous owner gave her the following for a days meal
bowl of sugar puffs (breakfast)
2 cans dog food (lunch time)
1 can (dinner time)
bannanas and apples for snacks

we are not happy to continue this we are aware that it will take some time to change her meals

so was wandering really what you feed your dog and the amounts my moms dog always had dry complete biscuits so very different to what rosie has. thanks in advance

OP posts:
handlemecarefully · 07/11/2007 14:32

We use James Wellbeloved complete dried food, with a wee taster of canned dog food on top to make it more appetizing

Threadworm · 07/11/2007 14:34

My dog is only 8kg. If I was organised I could prob feed him fresh food by collecting leftover veg from human meals and mixing this with tuna or leftover human meat.

Hmm. Not sure. It's another stick to beat myself with, though!

Threadworm · 07/11/2007 14:36

When I say 'leftover human meat', what I mean is leftovers from our meals, not any sort of Sweeney Todd malarky.

handlemecarefully · 07/11/2007 14:36

Just read CD's post, and it's interesting and I am sure it works for some dogs...However, my dog until 12 months old was - on breeders advice - eating raw meat (slightly browned in microwave to get flavour and smell going), tripe and some vegetables. Thing was her stools were quite wet (not pleasent to pick up at all) and she had regular diarrhoea. I'm not sure vegetables suit all dogs? Would that have been their natural diet? Think I might google it

She's been better on the James Wellbeloved

haychee · 07/11/2007 14:38

Also, CD,

You reference "commercial dog food" this to me means, bakers and pedigree or anything you can buy at the supermarket.

The better quality dog foods can only be found in pet shops etc. Science plan, Nutro choice, eukanuba etc.

Was your vets advice meaning the lower quality foods or all of them i wonder?

numptysmummy · 07/11/2007 14:39

Thing is , yes wild dogs do eat raw meat etc but our pets aren't wild - they come from generations of dogs that aren't used to raw food. Is it not possible their digestive systems have changed?

Nbg · 07/11/2007 14:41

I made a point to my dh the other day that I had never ever seen a real dog eat a bunch of raw sausages.

Its always shown in cartoons and kids programms but if I put raw meat infront of my dogs they'd sniff it and walk off.

CountessDracula · 07/11/2007 14:41

Yes haychee but they have all this hydrogenated fat in them!

Honestly, the vet said that the incidences of tumours in dogs is getting much higher since all this dried food.

Horses for courses though!

LadyOfWaffle · 07/11/2007 14:42

Arden Grange - 3 times a day, no tinned food because it stinks.

haychee · 07/11/2007 14:43

Oh god, mine has been known to steal all of oyr bbq meat. Has been caught licking the frying pan left on top of the hob (ugh!)

They would eat any raw meat they could possibly get ahold of.

Probobly would suffer later though, diarrhoea etc.

Threadworm · 07/11/2007 14:43

Just looked at the ingredients for Wellbeloed. The oils seem to be just lamb fat and linseed. All looks pretty healthy I must say. But it can't be as good as fresh food, can it?

ChubbyScotsBurd · 07/11/2007 14:44

Personally I'd suspect apparent increased incidence of tumours is multifactorial - 20 years ago less people would bother vets with lumpy dogs, dogs have been bred extremely intensively, dogs are exposed to as much of the crap in the environment as we are these days etc etc

haychee · 07/11/2007 14:45

Is interesting CD. Could well be a cause for increased tumours.
But to go on one persons say so (your vet) is not enough for me. I need solid evidence first.

handlemecarefully · 07/11/2007 14:45

Yes the breed of my particular dog is genetically predisposed to cancer - not much to do with their diet

numptysmummy · 07/11/2007 14:46

Exactly,they are all different and what works for 1 may not be the best for another. Would see vet,get it wormed and start things slowly on a decent complete and then re-introduce meat and veg if thats what the op wants to do.

haychee · 07/11/2007 14:46

I will be checking the labels for hydrogenated fat next time i go in for food.

handlemecarefully · 07/11/2007 14:49

God I wont! I have enough to think about re the children's nutrition!

numptysmummy · 07/11/2007 14:53

Going back to the thin staffie - when i couldn't get any weight on my lurcher my vet and mum who had kennels and was a breeder both said put a spoonful of sunflower or veg oil on his food... Field and trial maintenance contains whole wheat,maize,poultry meat meal,chicken fat, soya bean meal,beet pulp vits and minerals. Which bit is meant to be bad?

Magicmayhem · 07/11/2007 15:44

My dog has James Welbelove adult twice a day, she also has a stuffed kong when I go to work.. stuffed with cheese, cooked sausages, ham, pate whatevers in the fridge really

I gave my dog raw steak when we first got her while out on walks, to help practice her recall... we didn't need to practice it as she didn't leave our side we kept tripping over her...

brimfull · 07/11/2007 15:54

I have tried the raw meat and veggie diet with my dog.She just got the runs .
SHe prefers anything but her dried dog food,but gets the runs if she eats any "people" food at all.

Original poster
dd666 · 07/11/2007 16:44

not sure of weight got to wait till dp gets in so i can check her on the scales, needing to know for the worming stuff that i will pick up tomorro when we go large pet store to get all the bits for her.
that food is what she was given by previous owner dropped sugar puffs this morning!
she currently asleep after dd (18mo) has read a fifi book to her and kept saying ssshhh sssshhhh lol
wish i had the time and cash to give dog fresh! but i dont have neither i stuggle to cook t without dd in way with dog and dd i have no chance

OP posts:
numptysmummy · 07/11/2007 16:49

Why not ring round a few staffie breeders and see what kind of things they feed? My friend has had a couple and they often get dodgy guts.

VanillaPumpkin · 07/11/2007 16:52

Our dog is on Burns dry food. It is great. She was a rescue dog and looked shabby when we got her. Her coat changed within days of putting her on Burns and she has thrived on it. Because it is such a pure food there is very little waste too. Her poos are so much smaller and easier to deal with. It is not cheap but we won't change now we have seen the difference it has made. Website here

VanillaPumpkin · 07/11/2007 16:53

Our dog has the brown rice and chicken dried food twice a day.

EmsMum · 07/11/2007 16:55

Our dog has Royal Canin Dachshund dry dachshund food. [yes, he's a dachshund]. Its what his breeder had him on when he came to us at 10 months and the vet recommended staying with it. The breeder had also been giving him weetabix and milk in the morning, we cut that out cos he was a fat sausage!

I just checked the label, it does not contain hydrogenated oils.

He does get some scraps including raw meat trimmings. He also loves tea, as we discovered when DH left half a cup on the floor.

he also eats - if we arent careful - roadkill and stuff thats dropped off slurry wagons. Eww.