Canine Grain Free Food

[LakeN]

Wondering if anyone has a grain free dog food that is fabulous. Currently have my Aussie on Petsmart Authority grainfree. All is well except that she seems to be putting on a few extra pounds. Then there's the fact that the food is frequently difficult to obtain. Tried the 4Health brand from Tractor Supply and it is merely OK. Does the grainfree tend to bulk up a dog? Is there a weight control grainfree?
Any comments appreciated.

[Pawz4me]

rockhillmanor wrote:

Grain Free dog food has much higher protein and higher fat content.

Not all of them. Not by a long shot. A lot of them replace grains with potatoes (white or sweet), tapioca, quinoa, etc. Those foods don't necessarily have more fat or protein than foods that contain grains.

Purina Farms and Hill's are the ONLY pet food company's that have their own extensive research labs for their food. And Hill's having the most extensive labs of the two. The other brands do not.

I suspect Royal Canin would disagree strongly with that statement. 😉

[rockhillmanor]

dturm wrote:
Not so much a sore subject as

misinformation, advertising and internet postings taken as fact.

X10
Amen to that.

Once the media started advertising grain free everyone felt the need to run and buy it and drastically change their dog's diet that most likely was WORKING just fine for the dog.

Grain Free dog food has much higher protein and higher fat content.

Most pet owners did not even read the label to see the drastic increase of these percents when changing to these foods........and then wondered why their dogs started gaining weight.

And my obligatory comment: that switching to these grain free products on older or compromised pets? It adds an additional burden on their liver and kidneys.

And if the veterinary world had a source of records like the human medical arena does that can track reasons for illness and/or death, we would easily see an increase in kidney and liver problems in pets since the introduction of grain free products.

And sadly thru no fault of the veterinary industry it will be written off to old age and not the real culprit 'higher protein/fat than the pet needed to be fed'.

Remember many years ago when they came out with pet food just for Giant Breed dogs AND for GIANT Breed puppy food? The protein was dangerously over the top and serious bone growth problems reared it's ugly head directly due to the food when uneducated pet owners where driven by the 'media' to buy these breed specific foods.

When problems started rising within the Giant Breed dog owners and further research showed how dangerous that protein level was, interestingly they pulled it and/or reduced the protein.

Purina Farms and Hill's are the ONLY pet food company's that have their own extensive research labs for their food. And Hill's having the most extensive labs of the two. The other brands do not.

Something to think about. The only dogs that need high protein and high fat is a "WORKING" dog. And 98% of pet owners do not own a working dog.:W

[BCSnob]

You can choose to accept the scientific studies or choose to believe the opinions on internet blogs

For example:
New feeds from genetically modified plants: substantial equivalence, nutritional equivalence, digestibility, and safety for animals and the food chain
Livestock Production Science
Volume 74, Issue 3, April 2002, Pages 223–238
A Aumaitre, Karen Aulrich, A Chesson, G Flachowsky, G Pivad

One huge advantage of GMO feeds is that we get more nutritional yield per acre. This means that the exploding world population can be fed with existing farm land as opposed to forcing people to live in high density leaving sufficient land for food production for our ever increasing population.

[Ultralife]

Nutrasource or Call of the Wild is all we feed.

As far a the grain free myth...I don't buy the argument. The grains have been so genetically modified over the last 10 years or more, do you really know what it is?

[BCSnob]

The best food for your dog is the one you can afford and with which your dog thrives.

There is nothing in general about canis familiaris that excludes feeding starch (cooked grains); there is genetic evidence that dogs developed (about the time of domestication) the means to digest starch. However, this information is about population genetics and not about individual genetics; an individual may not be able to tolerate certain foods. So the diet for an individual may need to be tailored in order for that individual to thrive.

[Dan50]

We use Blue Wilderness Salmon grain free formula.

[ReneeG]

Our lab had food allergies. Our vet recommended a grain free diet and she has quit scratching since then. We feed her Flint River Fish and Chips. They ship to your door. Her dog biscuits with the same ingredients come from the same place. She's maintained her weight well on this diet.

[dturm]

Not so much a sore subject as misinformation, advertising and internet postings taken as fact.

You have given a great example of finding a food type that works for your dog and trying to stick with it. There is obviously a GI issue that has been addresses successfully with diet and you have a happy, healthy dog.

This situation points out a difficulty with getting information (especially medical) over the internet. None of us have the history and medical information that you and your vet have and run the danger of giving inappropriate responses.

[LakeN]

Thanks for all the replies. Yes, of course, I have been feeding less food! She is eating a measured amount. It is not left for her to eat freely. For those asking why grainfree....over a year ago, my Aussie went thru a period of bilious vomiting. This would occur early in the morning waking us up and causing her distress. After much research, I learned that this was common in deep chested breeds and caused by too much stomach acid being produced. Also, I read that dividing up food into 3 meals with last feeding in the evening would help. Grainfree food with low fiber and fat is recommended. She was eating Nutro Chicken at that time. She started on Diamond Puppy as recommended by her breeder. The stomach issues have ended. Seems to me that the 3X feeding grainfree has been the fix. I merely do not want to have a future overweight Aussie. She is happy, healthy and active weighing about 42# at 4 years old. I guess dog food & diet may be a sore subject here. Thanks to xteacher for answering my question with reduced fat grainfree Wellness Core!

[DOTLDaddy]

dturm wrote:
....
Find a food that your dog does well on and is readily available and you should be good to go....

Gee . . . . that makes sense to me. 🙂
Maybe I'll sit this one out.:W

[Crowe]

We use Purina Pro Plan, grain free, salmon and sweet potato. We only wound up there because we were trying to determine if Jesse had food allergies. In our area it's one of the least expensive brands. Jesse is 50 lbs, Jake 60 lbs, but we feed Jake a little less because he has a tendency to chub out if we aren't careful. I'd just try feeding a little less like others have suggested.

[xteacher]

The beauty of grain free is that you can usually feed less of it to keep your dog healthy, thus making it affordable. I'd try cutting back a little and see if that helps slim down your dog.

If you really want to switch, brands I like are that come in grain free varieties are: Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream, Pro Plan (grain free only - never thought I'd be saying anything good about Pro Plan - lol, but it's actually more expensive than TOTW in my area), Back to Basics, Victor, Acana, Now, Fromm, Farmina (Italian company - no GMOs used), and Dr. Tim's. Many of these are only available at specialty pet stores or online. Amazon.com and/or Chewy.com carry most of these.

Yes, there is grain-free weight control: Wellness Core Reduced Fat. Just make sure you feed the amount for what the dog SHOULD weigh (vet recommended weight, of course), rather than the current weight. Also, the suggested amounts on the bags are usually excessive, IMO.

Each dog is different, so what works for one dog may not work for another.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

dturm wrote:
Why are you concerned with grain free??? Absent a true allergy to corn, wheat or soy there is no proven benefit to grain free in dogs (or cats for that matter). Apparently Blue Buffalo has done a good job marketing.

The grains do add calories, but adjusting amounts is usually all that is needed.

I agree with Dr Doug - as a matter of fact, my late Aussie seemed to do VERY well on oatmeal as part of his diet 🙂 The higher carbs in his diet seemed to stave off dementia a bit?

Don't forget that fat has 9 calories per gram; carbs have 4 calories per gram. Currently, I have my aussie-mix adult dogs on a lower-fat "maintenance" dog food (Diamond Naturals lamb and rice) and they are at a good weight.

I'm not sure how the theory got started that dogs only eat meat - the first thing a wild dog eats is the entrails - which contain carbs.

[Bionic_Man]

We have been very happy with Evangers. Our local boutique pet supply store always has it. Costs a little more, but we feel it is worth it. Can see a difference in the coat of the dogs. Made in the USA, and they ahave never had a recall.