# Better food, similar price?



## acritzer (Aug 23, 2009)

Right now we feed our 6 yr old Iams. She's a bit heavy, maybe 5 pounds and has frequent itching problems. Been reading (always a dangerous thing) and wondering if a holistic/different food would be better. But, would rather not pay twice as much.

Considering we're getting a pup at the end of Sept. I thought it might be a good time to possibly make a switch, with the pup coming, we'll be messing around with different food anyway.


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## Bock (Jun 23, 2008)

First thing is how much do you currently pay and how big is that bag of food? Are you in the US or Canada where many brands are available or in another country with limited choices?


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

IAMS is a perfectly good food. If your dog is overweight, you're either feeding too much or your dog has a glandular problem (thyroid is the most common). The dog isn't overweight because the food is poor; the dog is overweight because she's getting too much food relative to her activity level.


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## acritzer (Aug 23, 2009)

The weight isn't the main concern...it's the itching/irritated paws/"allergies". Sorry if I confused the situation. I've just been reading a lot about how a lot of the supposed allergies that Goldens have might be related to certain food formulas. Holistic brands may offer a more appropriate balance and help clear up nagging issues?


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

The most likely culprit for allergies is a protein source. In IAMS, that's probably the chicken. Why don't you switch to a lamb or fish based food for a few months before you jump around onto anything else? IAMS even has a lamb food.

Some dogs are apparently sensitive to corn, but that's not as common as a plain old protein source allergy.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

It's possible she could have a food allergy, most suspect corn as the culprit first, or possibly the protein source (the meat). 

You could try to pinpoint what causes her itching, pick a food with a different grain, but the same meat source, and see if she improves. Keep in mind it may take 3-4 weeks to see a change. You should be able to find reasonably priced foods with just that ingredient difference. If changing the grain doesn't help her allergies, then try a food with a different meat source.

But I really do think you can do it without increasing the cost that much. There are a lot of foods to choose from. Remember to gradually transition from the old to the new food.


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## Bock (Jun 23, 2008)

acritzer said:


> The weight isn't the main concern...it's the itching/irritated paws/"allergies". Sorry if I confused the situation. I've just been reading a lot about how a lot of the supposed allergies that Goldens have might be related to certain food formulas. Holistic brands may offer a more appropriate balance and help clear up nagging issues?


If your dog truly does have allergies they will either be seasonal or food related. It takes a little analyzing in order to determine which. Since it's his paws that are itching, I'm tempted to say that your dog has "contact allergies" which just means the paws itch because they make contact with the ground and grass. Is your dog itchy in other places? Have any other symptoms?

If you do think it may be the food and want a couple suggestions, I have used and recommend both the California Natural and Healthwise line. They are made from the same, respected, company and are "limited ingredient" foods. All that means is that while some foods have tons and tons of ingredients, these foods do not. If these foods are unavailable or too expensive I would try to find a fish or lamb formula in the brand of your choice.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

mylissyk said:


> It's possible she could have a food allergy, most suspect corn as the culprit first, or possibly the protein source (the meat).


I agree that most people think it's corn first, but I have no idea why they think that. What's the science?


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## Bock (Jun 23, 2008)

tippykayak said:


> I agree that most people think it's corn first, but I have no idea why they think that. What's the science?


Corn has just gotten a bad rep overall in terms of dog foods...I'm sure it has just become a scapegoat for everything people think is wrong with dog foods. I think wheat is headed towards the same reputation that corn has now.


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## MyBentley (May 5, 2009)

Bock said:


> If your dog truly does have allergies they will either be seasonal or food related. It takes a little analyzing in order to determine which. Since it's his paws that are itching, I'm tempted to say that your dog has "contact allergies" which just means the paws itch because they make contact with the ground and grass. Is your dog itchy in other places? Have any other symptoms?
> 
> If you do think it may be the food and want a couple suggestions, I have used and recommend both the California Natural and Healthwise line. They are made from the same, respected, company and are "limited ingredient" foods. All that means is that while some foods have tons and tons of ingredients, these foods do not. If these foods are unavailable or too expensive I would try to find a fish or lamb formula in the brand of your choice.


This post pretty much expresses my opinions also.


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## Bender (Dec 30, 2008)

The thing to consider too, is digestability and calories in a food - it may be more expensive per bag, but if you are feeding a lot less because your dog is digesting it better... then in the long run you're saving money. If there are ingredients that are causing problems and vet bills, shedding etc... then that's a factor too.

I found with our cat she eats about half of the 'expensive' (california natural) kibble that she's on, compaired to the neighbor's cats who are on cheap stuff - yet it's not half the price...

Lana


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## acritzer (Aug 23, 2009)

Maggie does have some itching in other places as well. If I had to guess I'd say it's more of a seasonal thing (since it's not ALWAYS there), but I may look into an alternative protein source with the same brand. I just got caught up in some posts/articles about food choices.

Thanks everyone.


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## Garfield (Apr 7, 2009)

acritzer said:


> Maggie does have some itching in other places as well. If I had to guess I'd say it's more of a seasonal thing (since it's not ALWAYS there), but I may look into an alternative protein source with the same brand. I just got caught up in some posts/articles about food choices.
> 
> Thanks everyone.


If your dog truly has an allergy to the protein, changing protein sources among Iams is not likely to help as their lamb formulas contain chicken ingredients. To help address your question better, what formula of Iam's are you feeding (please be specific as there's a ton of em now :nervous and how much of it do you feed daily?


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Garfield said:


> If your dog truly has an allergy to the protein, changing protein sources among Iams is not likely to help as their lamb formulas contain chicken ingredients. To help address your question better, what formula of Iam's are you feeding (please be specific as there's a ton of em now :nervous and how much of it do you feed daily?


Goodness, you're right! I had no idea IAMS put chicken in the lamb food.


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## acritzer (Aug 23, 2009)

I think it's a weight control formula, but will have to check at home (wife does the buying). Maggie gets about 1 1/4 cup twice a day, she's about 70 lbs, but could probably afford to lose 5. When we got her at 14 months, she was pushing 80, so it's something we keep working on.


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## NuttinButGoldens (Jan 10, 2009)

Swapping my allergic Dakota to California Natural Lamb & Rice cleared all his allergies and his many years long nasty ears up in like 6 weeks. It was amazing... He was on ProPlan prior to that.


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## acritzer (Aug 23, 2009)

NuttinButGoldens said:


> Swapping my allergic Dakota to California Natural Lamb & Rice cleared all his allergies and his many years long nasty ears up in like 6 weeks. It was amazing... He was on ProPlan prior to that.


Is California Natural one of the holistic brands? Know of any comparable brands that are cheaper? I just checked, a 30 lb bag was $45.


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## acritzer (Aug 23, 2009)

Also, how much should I lessen her intake? She now gets about 2 1/2 cups a day...of Iams weight control. Lower caloric count compared to the California.


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## artbuc (Apr 12, 2009)

acritzer said:


> Maggie does have some itching in other places as well. If I had to guess I'd say it's more of a seasonal thing (since it's not ALWAYS there), but I may look into an alternative protein source with the same brand. I just got caught up in some posts/articles about food choices.
> 
> Thanks everyone.


Inhaled allergens and food allergens add together to create the total allergen load on your dog's system. Your dog could have a "low level" food allergy which you don't see during periods of low inhaled allergens. It may be possible to achieve year round relief by eliminating the food allergen. Unfortunately, allergic dogs tend to get worse with age so the right food may work for a couple/few years and then you could see the problem recur. I had great luck with Natural Balance LID Sweet Potato & Fish. You may want a higher protein for the long term, but this is a great food to use for an elimination diet. Also, make sure you give 1500mg of EPA/DHA (in the form of high quality fish oil) per day. It will take up to 2-4 months to see the full benefit of this supplementation so stick with it.


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## Salt n Pepper (Sep 3, 2009)

I don't know if you have tried Canidae, but its a great food and not all that expensive.


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I've found I really like Honest Kitchen's selection of dehydrated foods. They have several different varieties, and it costs less than any of the kibble I buy. (You have to remember when looking at prices that it's dehydrated. A 10 pound box will actually make like 40 pounds of food).

Jodie


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## Garfield (Apr 7, 2009)

acritzer said:


> Is California Natural one of the holistic brands? Know of any comparable brands that are cheaper? I just checked, a 30 lb bag was $45.
> 
> Also, how much should I lessen her intake? She now gets about 2 1/2 cups a day...of Iams weight control. Lower caloric count compared to the California.


Yes, the California Natural formulas are excellent for helping dogs with food sensitivies (which it sounds uncertain your dog has) and also, because of their lower-moderate protein and fat content, good for achieving/maintaining a healthy weight (recommend them over Natural Balance for quality reasons).

Granted there are cheaper foods on the surface, but there's a reason they are cheaper (i.e. more grains, common allergens, questionable preservatives/comprimised quality etc). In comparisons, it's important to look deeper into the issue, which gets to your question on feeding amounts. 

For sake of example, take California Natural Chicken & Rice Adult Formula which has 511 calories/cup (with 110 cups in a 30 lb bag). Assuming you are currently feeding the Iams ProActive Weight Control (363 calories/cup), it would only take ~ 1 1/2 cups of said CN formula to equal the same caloric content that's in 2 1/2 cups of said Iam's formula. Therefore, a 30 lb bag of the C&R CN would last you about 2 months at your current feeding amount. 

If you're feeding the Iam's LB Weight Control (which has 313 cals/cup), it would only take 1 1/2 cups of the CN to achieve the same Iam's calories there and a 30 lb bag of the CN C&R should then last you about 2 1/2 months.

So the cost per CN bag may be more expensive but it goes farther and will likely equal out cost-wise in the end (and that's not factoring in any savings on vet bills for common problems dogs on cheaper foods sometimes encounter). Plus, the Cal Nat derives at least 80% protein from animal meat, whereas Iams uses grains for the majority of its protein account.

This is not to slam Iam's - my Golden was on the LBWC for years 2-6 of his life and it served him well in terms of muscle tone, healthy weight and overall health & well-being. However, he had dry skin on it and was prone to itchiness, dandruff, hot spots and ear issues on it, all of which were alleviated with a switch to holistic food a year ago. Interestingly, both he and my younger Retriever mix (who was on the same Iam's formula) actually LOST weight (good thing:yipee after the food switch despite the higher protein/fat content - go fig!

Whether you stay with Iams or try CN or another brand, recommend you avoid the weight control/lite/diet formulas of whatever as they typically contain more grains/fillers which can be problematic (just feed corresponding calorie count of regular formula and the weight control should stay on track). Also, some omega fatty acids as Artbuc mentioned should help with skin itchies (did in my dog's case at the time) but if you change foods, recommend holding off on that a couple months or so until you can see how she reacts to the new food first (and they can also make weight loss more difficult).

Hope this is helpful and you're not now sorry you asked!:burnout:


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## Bock (Jun 23, 2008)

Garfield said:


> Yes, the California Natural formulas are excellent for helping dogs with food sensitivies (which it sounds uncertain your dog has) and also, because of their lower-moderate protein and fat content, good for achieving/maintaining a healthy weight (recommend them over Natural Balance for quality reasons).
> 
> Granted there are cheaper foods on the surface, but there's a reason they are cheaper (i.e. more grains, common allergens, questionable preservatives/comprimised quality etc). In comparisons, it's important to look deeper into the issue, which gets to your question on feeding amounts.
> 
> ...



Good post.


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