How do you decide what to feed your dog? Share with tails.com – £300 voucher to be won NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

For many of us, dogs are part of the family. Choosing the right food for them can feel really important – but with so much choice, how do you know what’s right for your dog? Share your experiences of finding the right food for your dog, and be in with a chance of winning a £300 voucher for a store of your choice.

To get us started, here’s what Sean, the Head Vet at tails.com, has to say: “From raw feeding to grain free, we are seeing more human diet trends crossing over into the world of dog food. While trends come and go, I believe in three founding principles of a good diet to improve and extend your dog's life. High quality ingredients, tailored to your dog's individual needs, and fed in the right amount to keep them in great physical shape. The question is how do you find the food that meets all three principles?”

What do you prioritise when it comes to choosing food for your dog? How can you tell if the food you’re giving your dog is beneficial to their health and general condition? Do you have feeding tips that you’d like to share with new dog owners? If your dog has ever gone off their food, how have you encouraged them to start eating again? And if you’re thinking of getting a dog, what do you think you’d feed one - would you buy generic dog food or would you think more deeply about their diet?

Everyone who posts on the thread below will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher for the store of their choice.

Tails.com have supplied a 1 month free discount code - if you'd like to use this please click here.

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

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My sadly late dog had wagg - she lived to 15 so obviously did a good job!

I feed my hound food that is breed specific. Greyhounds have quite a different body/blood chemistry to other breeds and also need a lower protein diet then other breeds of dogs, so I use the dry feed that the adoption retired greyhound trust recommended once a day for resting retired hounds, to supplement that we put a teaspoon of oilve oil on the food to help maintain the coat (they get dry dandruff otherwise) For breakfast he have 2 weetabix with water and a spash of milk once a week a tin of oily fish and a little less feed, then at the weekend sometimes a few leftovers from the roast. particular loves carrots broccoli and rice... But don't every feed the dog anything that has "touched" Mustard...toxic to dogs and gives them the runs for several days...lets say lesson learnt.

I feed my dogs Arden grange grain free as one of them has a brain condition and anything with grains in sends him loopy and gives the other one an upset stomach. Tried all different foods and this one works for them. No wet food though, they're happy with the dry. We have to soak the biscuits a little and put rings in their bowls to slow their eating down though!

We tried raw feeding, but DD (darling dog in this case) went off it, as he's not very food motivated, so he's on a grain free high protein content dry kibble, with a few spoons of pedigree tinned food to entice him to eat it.

The main priority for us, is that he's not being stuffed full of additives and preservatives, we want a fit and healthy dog, so we feed him as we would feed ourselves.

Tips for new owners, let your dog lead you, try different brands and combinations, until you find one that they will eat, but has a healthy balance.

The question is how do you find the food that meets all three principles?
I have a little Maltese Terrier, and although pedigree is not too choosy about what food I give him. It is always dry dog food, and I pick one which is no artificial colours no added sugar any hypo allergenic. He is currently on a supermarket own brand which ticks all my and his boxes, and as he has a wet nose, full of energy and goes to the toilet once a day, then I know it is doing its job.

I have a Labrador and a Labrador-pointer cross - like most Labs, they will eat pretty much anything (from their own poo to steaks nicked from the kitchen worktop), which makes choosing food easier - we don’t have to worry whether they will like a new food.

We look at a number of factors - we want a decent quality of food, at a reasonable price. We want to be able to buy it in decent quantities, so we aren’t always at the shops. As our Lab is a bit prone to weight gain, we try to get a light dog food for her.

We buy dry dog food for them, and put water (and sometimes milk) on it.

It comes down to price - the cheapest complete food and ours are very healthy for it

i have changed dog food from dry to raw, as my french-bulldog had terribly stinky wind, changing food has helped, so much thank goodness. Also not a lot of poo to pick up :)

My dog struggled to gain weight when she was young and vet recommended milk instead of water. Still sometimes give her milk from time to time. She doesn’t have much appetite and often leaves food in her bowl for days....so I avoid wet food as it festers. Instead we choose dry, and I try to buy grain free and as natural as possible. Not sure why though when I supplement her diet with egg on toast every morning for breakfast!

What do you prioritise when it comes to choosing food for your dog?
Quality, dry dog food with added vitamin and minerals which is grain free.
How can you tell if the food you’re giving your dog is beneficial to their health and general condition?
I can tell from his overall condition, wet nose, full of energy, they way he holds himself whilst walking, and that his poo is 'regular'
Do you have feeding tips that you’d like to share with new dog owners?
I would leave the dry food out all day so they can graze whilst they settle in, then gradually reduce to 2 or 3 small meals a day.
If your dog has ever gone off their food, how have you encouraged them to start eating again?
My dog went off food after being put into the kennels when we went on holiday, he was not poorly, I think he was just a bit depressed, on this occasion I put a few bits of cooked chicken into his biscuits, whilst he gradually went back to normal eating.

And if you’re thinking of getting a dog, what do you think you’d feed one - would you buy generic dog food or would you think more deeply about their diet?
If I was thinking of getting a dog I would research and ask advice on they best diet to feed him/her and pay a little extra for good quality dog food that helps keep him healthy both inside and out.

I already buy from tails. However my dog can seem to tolerate any food she's given.

We stuck with what the breeder was already feeding him as he was used to it and it had good reviews and the ingredients looked to be the best that is about. If we hadn't thought it was right for him we'd have changed it for another brand though. He seems to be thriving on it.

I feed my dogs On Wainwrights wet and dry food they love it I wouldn't give them anything else

I used to feed my lab Chudleys dry food - it was recommended to us when he was young and he was very well on it and always had a lovely coat etc. We changed to Hills j/d when he started to experience mobility issues and I must say I was sceptical about how it would work but it’s been amazing and although it’s expensive, we’ve saved on medication which otherwise might have been needed. I would recommend it to any owner whose vet has suggested it is worth it.

Sorry if this is a silly question but if you are choosing to give your dog a grain free dog food why are people then giving the dog toast? Am I missing something? Is it only certain grains dogs should avoid?

I have a rescue labradoodle who had lethal farts when we first got her. We started her on James Wellbeloved and the farts stopped! All was well for a while but now her skin smells really bad - a vinegary smell. Awful. Vet says her health is fine.Looking to change her food but not sure what to!

We have a retired greyhound. In terms of how we choose his food, we started with what he was used to. When we adopted him, the rescue charity had him on a raw diet. They weren't fans of the quality of greyhound-specific feeds on the market and actually advised against them. We were also warned that wheat makes greyhounds even fartier than usual!

We tried to keep the raw diet up, but found it really onerous in terms of making sure we always had food in stock (the nearest pet shop that did Nature's Diet was only open on Saturday mornings at weekends) and having the right quantities of food defrosted. DH had a chance conversation with another dog owner while picking up DHound's food, which led to the pet shop owner giving us a week's supply of high percentage meat, grain free kibble to try (free samples rock!)

DHound loved it, and we could tell it was good for him as his coat became shinier and his patches of dry skin improved. His, ahem, outputs also became firmer and less noxious. We also keep a close eye on his weight, to avoid putting strain on any old racing injuries, and the vet tells us that he's in great shape.

In terms of tips for new dog owners, I'd say to do your research on dog food ingredients and think about the nutritional needs of your particular dog in terms of their breed and their lifestyle. Also, if you're adopting a sighthound, beware of their counter-surfing antics. Mine guzzled a sponge cake that had been left out to cool in his first week with us (so much for grain free!)

My 7 year old dog Barney enjoys Tails.com foods, and often has these dishes. However, he also enjoys other brands, such as Slingers and Bakers. Although Bakers foods don't have such a good reputation.

Each week I buy 1kg raw chicken pieces, and I cook and feed these to Barney each morning, following his walk. He also has kibble during the day.

With the variety of foods which Barney eats, he bounces round like a 2 year old. They're definitely doing him good!

What do you prioritise when it comes to choosing food for your dog?

I try to balance cost with health. The higher quality food can seem costly but our dog doesn't eat as much of it, so I think it's a good investment.

How can you tell if the food you’re giving your dog is beneficial to their health and general condition?

Output, firstly. As long as poo is firm and a good colour, I'm satisfied. Her coat is soft, her eyes are bright and she has good behaviour.

Do you have feeding tips that you’d like to share with new dog owners?

I like feeding a mixture of raw food and tinned Butcher's tripe. She prefers raw food best - just this.morning she was gnawing away on a chicken carcass. I think it's best to observe your own dog and see how food affects them.

I choose high protein, low grain dry foods as I like the quality and they’re the next best thing to raw feeding IMO but much more convenient. I use the All About Dog Food website which reviews lots of different products and try to find a suitable one that’s available at local pet shops.

I will check out the Tails products as they sound as though they’re worth looking at. We currently get Taste of the Wild, which is stocked by our village pet shop.

We feed our Jack Russell puppy Bubby Wainwright food - it seems to work for him although the kids do complain about his smelly trumps!!!

Was raw food for 10 years now wainrights grain free.

We use a generic dried food bought in big bags for a fairly cheap price. They used to be on much more expensive good and it gave one of them a funny tummy so we tried a different (and cheaper) one which suits him much better. They are quite old now but still very healthy and active plus vet always comments on their good figures, eyes, ears and teeth so we will stick with it while it suits them. The get a biscuit once a day too and sometimes the teeth chews.

What do you prioritise when it comes to choosing food for your dog?

If they like the food and it’s good for them.

How can you tell if the food you’re giving your dog is beneficial to their health and general condition?

If they look healithy, have lots of energy, are happy, how their poo looks, how their breath smells.

Do you have feeding tips that you’d like to share with new dog owners?

Read the ingredients, loads of commercial, highly advertised complete pet foods are full of crap and fillers that dogs don’t need. The actual meat content can be as low as 4% and that’s often ‘meat and animal derivatives, not even proper meat.

If your dog has ever gone off their food, how have you encouraged them to start eating again?

One of my dogs never liked kibble so I would put olive oil on top or scrambled egg to make it more interesting. I tried lots of different dry foods but she hated them all. Since moving to raw food she has never refused a meal.

And if you’re thinking of getting a dog, what do you think you’d feed one - would you buy generic dog food or would you think more deeply about their diet?

Not planning on getting any more dogs as I have 2 but even without the fussy eater I would stick to raw food. It’s easy and it’s relatively cheap and it’s good for them.

We feed our dog Wainwrights wet and dry food and he seems healthy and happy. Luckily he's not a fussy eater and he has plenty of energy.