# Is Royal Canin’s Golden Retriever dog food worth it?



## taylor_mumma (12 mo ago)

My boy is a little over a year old and we are switching him from grain free to grain inclusive food with everything that is coming out about how it can lead to heart disease. Naturally, not knowing anything about dog food really I wanted to get the “golden retriever specific” dog food but it is so expensive…even more than the grain free we are getting now.

My dog is overall 70ish pounds, healthy weight and great coat. He does have some digestion issues we have noticed recently but it comes and goes. He is not super active so I don’t want to put him on something that will make him gain weight. 

is Royal Canin’s golden retriever food good or do you have any other suggestions for me?? I need help


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

Dogs have to eat, so what you pay for their food is worth it. Think about it this way, if the bag of food is $60, and lasts 30 days, that's only $2 a day to feed your dog. 

I have never understood why it's even a concern how much dog food costs.


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## taylor_mumma (12 mo ago)

mylissyk said:


> Dogs have to eat, so what you pay for their food is worth it. Think about it this way, if the bag of food is $60, and lasts 30 days, that's only $2 a day to feed your dog.
> 
> I have never understood why it's even a concern how much dog food costs.


No I completely understand that, I just didn’t know if Royal Canin was good for purebred golden retriever ingredient-wise. A lot of people suggest PPP but I am stuck between those two about which ones to get.


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## Riley's Mom (Jul 6, 2008)

Royal Canin is still having production issues so you might have a hard time getting it on a consistent basis. I also find RC to be very high priced compared to Pro Plan which is what I use.


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## ArkansasGold (Dec 7, 2017)

I think RC would be perfect for a 70-lb not-very-active dog.


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## pawsnpaca (Nov 11, 2014)

I’m not a fan of Royal Canin myself, as I believe the ingredients are poor quality, especially for the price of the food. I also think the whole “breed-specific” thing is just a marketing ploy.

A lot of people here feed, and are very happy with, Pro-Plan Sensitive Skin and Stomach, which in my opinion has higher quality ingredients than RC. It may also be a good choice if your puppy has digestive issues.

Another food I like personally is Fromm Gold.

If you want to do some reading on what makes a quality dog food, I also recommend the “diet” section of the Dog Aware site.

This article is also a good summation of things to watch for in a quality food: Best Dog Food | What To Look For In Dog Food.

The Whole Dog Journal puts out a recommended dog food list every year that might give you other brands to consider. The most recent year’s list is only available to subscribers, but you can find older lists online. Note that the list includes some grain-free varieties, so since that’s a concern for Goldens, I’d stick with the foods on the list that are grain-inclusive.


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## Tagrenine (Aug 20, 2019)

I have been happy with RC, it is a lower calorie food and is palatable for the dogs. Every dog in this house wants to eat it despite having their own food (grass is greener?)


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## Jasmyne (Dec 28, 2021)

taylor_mumma said:


> “golden retriever specific” dog food


There is no such thing…


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## JP1 (Jan 10, 2022)

Not to sound like a conspiracy theorist but I'd be cautious of most publications' recommendations these days. What one trumpet's as the best today may not be the case a year from now. We have had good success cooking our own, enough to last 4 days or so. Research the ingredients you desire, eliminate the ones you feel are detrimental and cook um up with coconut or olive oil, Throw a spoon of pumpkin on top at each feeding. This way you know where the ingredients came from and if it was prepared properly. Ask yourself this ... would you eat the Royal C ? or any other dogfood for that matter ? I wouldn't so I won't feed it to my dog. Just my opinion.


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## sevans (Jul 18, 2021)

I think the “I wouldn’t eat it so it can’t be good” argument is a bit thin- I wouldn’t eat what my horse eats either. Humans and canines are completely different species so the food they ingest does not need to be human palatable nor should it contain all of the same nutritional requirements. As for cooking your own- hey- whatever you are comforatble with. Personally, I am not a canine nutritionist and I would not feel comfortable being able to determine if the food was correctly balanced- even a minute required missing trace mineral can cause major problems. As for the RC food- we check ingredients carefully- especially comparing the protein levels in the various puppy foods- we have had very good experiences with it. If your dog has allergies- always check the protein source- our senior is on the hydrolyzed protein. I do supplement our senior or with Glucosamine Sulphate and for both of them- (the puppy too) Wild Salmon Oil. The puppy also gets dried chicken breast (single ingredient) as training treats. Also have had very good experiences with Purina feeds for horses for decades- though I have not fed them to my dogs.


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## Hildae (Aug 15, 2012)

taylor_mumma said:


> My boy is a little over a year old and we are switching him from grain free to grain inclusive food with everything that is coming out about how it can lead to heart disease. Naturally, not knowing anything about dog food really I wanted to get the “golden retriever specific” dog food but it is so expensive…even more than the grain free we are getting now.
> 
> My dog is overall 70ish pounds, healthy weight and great coat. He does have some digestion issues we have noticed recently but it comes and goes. He is not super active so I don’t want to put him on something that will make him gain weight.
> 
> is Royal Canin’s golden retriever food good or do you have any other suggestions for me?? I need help


Try Pro Plan


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## JP1 (Jan 10, 2022)

As I stated … just my opinion. Btw people are omnivores and so are dogs. Horses on the other hand are herbivores. 
My dog lives in my house and sometimes sleeps in my bed. I don’t own a horse but don’t think I’d eat horse food or let him sleep in my bed either. Horses/dog comparison was a bit thin imo.


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