Cheap Dog Food

Discussion in Pets started by Jason76 • Oct 17, 2016.

  1. Jason76

    Jason76Active Member

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    Is cheaper dog food a wise choice? At first, I thought my dog hated cheaper dog food, but the other day he seemed to enjoy it. Does cheaper dog food provide the right vitamins etc.. for a balanced diet?
     
  2. Happyflowerlady

    HappyflowerladyWell-Known Member

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    It is important to read the ingredients which are in the dog food. Sometimes, the expensive brands of dog food do not have any more actual nutrients than some of the cheaper brands because the same vitamins and minerals supplements are added into both of them. However, the actual food material that the dog food is made out of might be quite different. things like hair, and feathers can be used as "byproducts" , which is a whole lot different than actually using real meat from a cow, pig, or chicken.
    Also, the order of the ingredients is very important because whatever is first on the list is the main ingredient in that dog food. Thus, if the first thing it says is meat, then you know that is the main ingredient, and if it says corn meal, then that is mainly what you are feeding your dog.
    Since corn is hard for dogs to digest, this is not a good ingredient for the food to have, nor is too much rice, or any grain.
    I buy cheaper dog food, but I also supplement my dogs with home made food so that I know what they are eating, and the dry food is just there so that they always have some kind of food and water available when they want a bite to eat.
     
  3. biege

    biegeActive Member

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    Cheaper dog foods are friendly to your pocket but most of the time not to your dogs. I would prefer making my own dog food instead of the commercial ones because I know, what I make for them is safe. But if you are going to ask me which one is better, the cheap ones or the expensive ones, it depends. I would first ask our vet if the product is safe before giving them to my dog. There's one brand of dog food I know that kills dogs but I won't disclose it here, our vet told us that although it's cheap, it isn't safe to ingest for dogs. I'm not sure why these manufacturers still sell the product but I hope people would think first before buying the food.
     
  4. moondebi

    moondebiActive Member

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    I do not have an idea whether the cheaper variety would meet the nutritional need of dogs, but sometimes dog foods are costly only to maintain the brand value of the product. If the ingredients are same then there is no harm in trying.
    I, though, never have tried to substitute what my vet has prescribed. Actually, I do not want to take chance as I don't want to compromise with my canine's choice and health.
     
  5. Diane Lane

    Diane LaneWell-Known Member

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    I think it depends on the brand and type of food, as well as the nutritional requirements of your pet. Just as each person has slightly different nutritional requirements, so can animals. Some may have allergies or other medical issues that require specific ingredients, or require the elimination of certain ingredients. I had been using the same cat food for years without thinking much about it, and then I noticed my cats weren't doing well, and were acting up more than usual.

    I decided to try switching foods, and have been experimenting with several different brands over the past several months. I have been wanting to try a specific brand that I had difficulty obtaining, and just yesterday was able to buy a couple of new types of that brand and am interested to see what effect they will have on the cats. Although the ones I purchased aren't the most expensive, I've been told they have worked well for others with similar pet issues, so I'm hopeful that the cats will do well with this new brand.
     
  6. AlexZ

    AlexZMember

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    Cheap and healthy are contradictory.

    Home cooked meal seems cheap but if you calculate per month expenses of veggies, meat, rice and cooking gas it is no less than what you will be spending on dry dog food per month. Nutritionally too home cooked meal may seem healthier as it is customized and fresh but do we really factor in the daily required nutrition of our dogs? We just make what we think is nutritious. Similarly, in terms of dry dog food, one brand/one type cannot cater to all breeds.

    So what is cheap may not be nutritious and what is nutritious may not be cheap.
     
  7. janemariesayed

    janemariesayedActive Member

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    Dogs are the same as us humans and can eat almost everything that we eat. I think that giving the pet the same food every day must be very boring for them so I like to give them a good variety.

    They should have a portion of complete food each day as well because they also need some things in their diet that we don't as humans.

    Of course, the more expensive food should be of a higher quality and so better for the dog. I like to give my dogs a variety of complete dry food, complete wet food and also I cook up other food for them. Today, for example, they have some liver, cut very small and boiled up with some rice. It gives them variety and is exceptionally good for them.
     
  8. stream26

    stream26New Member

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    I give my dogs raw eggs every once in a while. It helps with their coat keeping it shiny. I've fed them to every dog I've had. Frankly speaking, dogs are animals. They're omnivores. If they weren't domesticated, they would have a wide diet. They would even be somewhat scavengers. Because of so many recalls on foods, I'm considering a more homemade diet.
     
  9. TheKnight

    TheKnightActive Member

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    I lived on a ranch for a few days and I found that feeding a dog leftover chicken bones and chicken or any other sort of meat was enough. I even fed him tortilla and beans. They were stray dogs my family welcomed into our home but we didn't have money for modified dog food. They lived their entire full life without a single problem. They were always energetic until the day they passed away. They ate what we ate.
     
  10. Alexandoy

    AlexandoyWell-Known Member

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    We have no issue with dog food except the availability. There was a time when a dog food brand was pulled out from the market. What now? That made us think because at that time we had 2 dogs. We shifted to cooked food after consulting with our vet. Boiled chicken is the best because our dogs like it. And then we added fish in the menu and later pork as well. So now we either boil or fry the fish or chicken. With the pork, it is either boiled or roasted. They are okay with the vet, nutritious and healthy.
     
  11. dealsonet

    dealsonetNew Member

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    just check all the ingredients in your food are safe or not harmful , it doesnot mean that they are healthy for pets also . they need right combination of diet inclusive protien, moisture,fiber etc for happy lives wrong or cheap (unhealthy ) diet can lead to both physical and mental problems . giving them daily a fix food treating them, like dog i dont think its cool . they are as good as humans(may be better thn us) so their should be variety in their food .
     
  12. larryl332

    larryl332Active Member

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    I would like to think that I can somewhat land in the middle, and get a good deal but also get something that is somewhat high quality. There are some that are nice and cheap, but they look like they are not much in terms of nutrients.