need some new puppy advise

[redneck posse]

hey folks i know asking about what food is best for a puppy is like asking which riffle is better for deer hunting. but ive done a ton of research in the last few weeks and im stuck between the holistic raw food or the acana dry food. does anyone use either of these or is there something better in your opinion? any advise will help as im picking him up next saturday.

[rwm1273]

Try finding food that is high in actual meat, not fillers and coloring. Other than that, I don't spend much on my dogs food.

When he was a puppy, we fed him the acana, and once he was a few months old, he ate anything. Now my dog prefers cat food. Doesn't matter what cat food.

[densa44]

Buying what we advise will not help much if he won't eat it. We are feeding our adult dogs home made raw + veggies now but we have fed high protein puppy chow. The key is making sure he eats and is well nourished.

Make sure he had had all his shots, good health is the most important thing you can give a pup.

What kind of dog? Post pics when you get him.

Oh ask the breeder what she is using. That is a good pace to start.

[redneck posse]

hes a male yellow lab gonna call him Sako. i get him Saturday and hes book for his shots and a check up Monday. guess im just a little nervous been a long time since i had a pup and i just want to get the healthiest food i can.

[Fry]

Congrats on the dog!

I'm using Orijen for our new pup (GSP),
Used regular purina for our last dog (Lab) and she was healthy as an ox till she got cancer at age 6 (last month), though her coat wasn't super healthy (dandruff and a bit dull).
Only reason I switched was I liked Orijens ingredients and openness about where they get there livestock and how its produced. Trying to find that out about Purina was very hard, and when I did, I wasn't impressed with all the by-products and crap that was in there.
Orijen supports local farmers and ranchers and is made in Alberta, not somewhere in the states.
So for those reasons I figured I would give it a try with this pup and see how it works out. It has good reviews on this site and the dog food sites I searched on the net.
I have to admit the video they have on their site was very convincing to their quality http://www.orijen.ca/orijen/orijen/
Whatever you choose just check the ingredients, if it isn't listed readily on their website maybe you should think twice?
Lots of people say dogs don't digest corn to well but our vet says thats a myth. I noticed the Purina has corn, corn byproducts, etc as the top two ingredients, something to consider.

[lone wolf]

Originally Posted by redneck posse

hey folks i know asking about what food is best for a puppy is like asking which riffle is better for deer hunting. but ive done a ton of research in the last few weeks and im stuck between the holistic raw food or the acana dry food. does anyone use either of these or is there something better in your opinion? any advise will help as im picking him up next saturday.

Have had good luck with Acana, although it is a bit pricey.

x2 on the comment that it won't matter a hill of beans if the puppy won't eat it. Most (labs) are easy to please, but you may get the odd picky one.

[redneck posse]

i was looking at Orijen also its made by the same people that make Acana both are made someplace by lethbridge with all natural products thats why i was really interested in if anyone was using them

[sunsetrider2011]

Ufa handles a brand called prism,, there are 3 different levels,,a hi energy and growth,, and a maitenece i run maitenece on mine and my dogs are extrememly busy and active,, and they do very well on it,, my 10 week old pup is doing wonders on it,

[Tom Pullings]

I've also had good results with Acana and the more expensive Orijen. My dogs were eating away my paycheque though so I switched to President's choice nutrition first and haven't looked back. It has no wheat or corn fillers and has plenty of meat as the first few ingredients. I have used Costco Kirkland food and Purina One (not regular cheaper Purina) with good results too.

The man thing is to look for meat ingredients to be first on the list and avoid corn and wheat altogether.

[bigbaddad]

Sportsman's Pride brand. Excellent bang for the dollar. Did the whole raw food thing for a dog with an allergy, great results, lots of time spent.

[Fry]

Originally Posted by Tom Pullings

The man thing is to look for meat ingredients to be first on the list and avoid corn and wheat altogether.

More to the point as long as those meat products aren't meat by-products your good to go.
got this from wikipedia as a definition or meat by-product

The non-rendered, clean parts, other than meat, derived from slaughtered mammals. It includes, but is not limited to, lungs, spleen, kidneys, brain, livers, blood, bone, partially defatted low temperature fatty tissue, and stomachs and intestines freed of their contents. It does not include hair, horns, teeth and hoofs. It shall be suitable for use in animal food. If it bears name descriptive of its kind, it must correspond thereto.

I should say the only reason I chose Orijen over any the other quality dog foods, is that its whats available in my area. Its Orijen, more expensive vet food, or regular of the shelf Purina, Iams, Old roy quality stuff. I haven't seen Acana, Purina One, etc, so I didn't even look into them.

[DarkAisling]

While I wouldn't try this right away (the cost is obscene), make a note of CaniSource: http://www.canisource.ca/

I have just put my ten-year-old Lhasa Apso on it. We're through one sample box and are almost done the next size up.

I've been trying for a couple of years to get him back on quality food. After a negative reaction to Orijen (after the formula was changed), and his refusal to eat Evo and every other quality food, I tried everything. He wouldn't eat anything but Kibbles & Bits in the blue bag.

He developed severe gingivitis. Out of desperation to get him off of doggy junk food, I tried CaniSource. He loves it to the point where I have to leave the box where he can't reach it, as he'll attack the box to get into it otherwise.

He hasn't been on it long enough to be able to determine if there are any obvious health benefits, but finding this food has been a huge relief.

[Emo]

Originally Posted by redneck posse

i was looking at Orijen also its made by the same people that make Acana both are made someplace by lethbridge with all natural products thats why i was really interested in if anyone was using them

The main difference I found between Orijen and Acana is the amount of protein in the two foods. I use to feed Orijen however my dog started to the get the runs on a regular basis about two/three times a week. Took him to the vet, nothing was wrong etc. etc. so I switched to a different formula of Orijen which helped a bit, but gave him terrible breath. Then switched to Acana which is almost about 10% lower in protein and it has been awesome.

I think the Orijen was just too rich for my dog in protein. You can feed less of it since it is a good quality food, and the pet food people told me I was feeding too much but I couldn't maintain his weight where I wanted it feeding what they recommended.

Like I said, love the Acana, have been feeding it for a couple years now and zero issues.

Just make sure if you feed your dog a grain free diet, you have to stick to it. if you run out of food and run to the store and grab something with grain in it, you can expect explosive diarrhea.

I have friends that also like Innova and Call of the Wild.
I switched all my pets foods to things made in Canada after all the problems that went on with the melamine from China killing pets.

[C.Noble]

We used to feed our dogs nutro. Weren't doing the best on it, switched to orijen and my male at 3 years old gained 8 pounds very quickly. We were surprised because he is a very very lean dog. Since then we have given our adults and the pups we breed nothing else. I also got one oft friends to switch his American bulldog from pedigree to orijen. She went from eating almost a 40 pound bag of food a week to a 30 pound bag every 2and a held weeks

[Doorguy]

I highly recommend Acana dog food. I use the "sport and agility" line for my border collies, vet is always excited to see fit dogs. I have a buddy that had a plump lab until we got him on the Acana "light and fit" and what a difference it made, now he's solid as a rock! Acana gets my vote!

[Fox red lab]

If you can get to one of the Pet Planet chain of pet food stores they have a great selection of premium foods. They carry pretty much all of the above mentioned foods. There are stores in Calgary and Strathmore but not sure where else.

[pikergolf]

Check "Kirkland super premium puppy" from Costco against the others also.

[Redfrog]

Ask ten dog owners, you'll get ten different answes.


I've raised a lot of great pups on Iam's puppy. I've also had good luck with raw meat diet.

[Skinnydipper]

I use Acana as well for the advertised quality. It seems to work well for my boy:

[Sweetjimmy]

I used Origen for a couple years then switched to acana with no difference in the dogs or their coats. I still give some veggies and bones now and then but I think acana is a good dry food and better value than Origen.

[megtyler]

i use Acana... works just fine for me. but yes, they are expensive. i have 4 pups. it's like putting a child in college

[CeeZee]

Origin or Acana, two of the best out there, they dont use a crapload of grains and fillers. Origin has little to no fillers and acana has a couple and is less money. Not sure where you live but when we lived between redwater and gibbins we got all of our origin from a pet grommer in gibbins, best price around, also origen(not sure about acana) if you save your UPC code off the bag you get a free bag when you present them. Best two food from our research. Ane less poop, origin is higher protien than acana and your puppy may not need that much so acana may work better, hafta see the poop if it gets too runny.

I worked at a flax crushing plant and 85% or thier product went to the states to a dog food manufacturer. Just a tidbit of other foods. Dogs eat protein, meat, not grains.

[rhuntley12]

Originally Posted by redneck posse

i was looking at Orijen also its made by the same people that make Acana both are made someplace by lethbridge with all natural products thats why i was really interested in if anyone was using them

Been feeding ours Acana for about a year, few friends of ours have started with Acana too, nothing but good things to say about it and our dogs love it.

Did Orijen for a bit and they liked it, had some medical issues with one of our dogs and the protein was a bit higher in Orijen so we moved to Acana. Dogs loved that brand too.

Our big dogs(Golden and pyr) eat the blue bag which I think is the cheapest, with some lamb and apple mixed in, our little one just eats the lamb and apple.

[tina-marie]

The raw food is really good, my boys have a sheltie that is on it. You can get it with fruit and veggies in it as well. Their dog Champ just loves it. It comes in frozen blocks, and can be a nuisance to measure out, but what you do is feed the dog according to weight. So many ounces of food for whatever their weight is. The actual name of the diet is BARF, bone and raw food. sounds gross!! Champ has always had a really nice coat from it. Other than that, always check the first three ingredients on a bag of dog food as those are that are the most in the food. Stay away from by product. Good luck with your new puppy, can't wait to see pictures!!!!

[ACKLEY ABE]

Nbr one: Ask your breeder what they have been feeding...and why. They should know which food their dogs have done the best on.

I prefer to stay away from the "new" improved foods and any trendy foods or diets.

Different breeds do well on different foods.

Any of the "premium" foods are probably the best bet. Some of the newer foods are just based on tried and true formula's that have been developed by the larger companies.

[Reeves1]

I feed puppy chow to the Peacocks. They need the animal protein.

How's that for being off topic ?

[FCLightning]

Orijen and Acana have a great marketing campaign - they understand that the feeding of dogs has less to do with what is necessary for dogs health and more to do with the emotional aspect of the owner. Your dog will not be bigger, stronger, healthier or live longer than any other quality food (no wheat straw and soy protein.)

Chicken by-products and corn will fuel most dogs longer and harder than any other ingredients.

Ask your breeder what they feed. Buy what you can afford, is readily available and makes you feel good about feeding your dog.

[AndersonSkiTeam]

Orijen wasn't good for my dog but lots of people swear by it. This sounds crazy as they are dogs, but the vet said the protein was to high in Orijen for my dog to handle. Acana grasslands was good but after a couple years they got tired of that. Lots of good food that can't go wrong with. Try to slowly transition the pup to the new food or you might be having some sloppy messes in the house.

[Sooner]

Ask the breeder and your Vet. Myself, I have fed all 3 of my GSP's Proplan right from puppy food to adult. Chicken and rice formula. In the 14 plus years I never had a issue with them eating it, upset stomachs or diarrea. It has been a good brand for my dogs. Will be looking for the next GSP puppy soon, it will be on Proplan unless my Vet says different.

[Sneeze]

Originally Posted by FCLightning

Orijen and Acana have a great marketing campaign - they understand that the feeding of dogs has less to do with what is necessary for dogs health and more to do with the emotional aspect of the owner. Your dog will not be bigger, stronger, healthier or live longer than any other quality food (no wheat straw and soy protein.)

Chicken by-products and corn will fuel most dogs longer and harder than any other ingredients.

Ask your breeder what they feed. Buy what you can afford, is readily available and makes you feel good about feeding your dog.

This is the best advice on the thread.

It's not like choosing what color shirt to buy. Buy the best quality food you can afford. In my experience the price on the bag reflects the quality of the ingredients. Having tried two dogs on Ancana, I don't think its necessarily a bad dog food. However when I spent another 20 dollars per bag changing to Royal Canin; I noticed a big difference in my dogs. I would love to upgrade again, but buying 2 big bags of Medi-Cal a month is out of my budget.