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I have been feeding Alex Nutro Ultra. Now it's getting harder to find. The manager at Pet Depot said they were having a hard time getting it. If this is going to be a consistent problem then I will have to switch her.

 

Question: We have 3 dogs in the house.

Elwood: Black Lab who is the pickiest eater in the world. He ate Beneful for awhile. I know it's not a good food,

but it's all he would eat. Then he stopped. He absolutely hates Science Diet Eukanuba, and now

Purina One. He loves Rabbit and Venison can mixed in with his food. He's turned his nose up at

Innova. He did eat Call of The Wild.

 

Ozzie: Black Lab who would eat anything you put in front of him. All he has to do is look at food and he gains

weight. He also has skin problems, except in winter.

 

Alex: Border Collie who loves her Nutro Ultra. Hates Science Diet and Eukanuba. She was not impressed

with Nutro Max. Her only food issue is she's lactose intolerant.

 

I hate switching dog food. She ate Purina One Puppy and did fine. Switched her to Adult and that's how we found out she was lactose intolerant. They put Yogurt in their adult food. That was interesting. So she went to Iams, which she kind of liked, and then I switched to Nutro.

 

If Nutro Ultra is going to be impossible to find what is everyone's opinion on Taste Of The Wild? Ideally I'd like to get all 3 on the same food, but I realize that isn't realistic.

 

Esox

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Taste of the Wild looks like a good food. Quite a step up from Nutro and those other foods you mentioned.

 

Personally, I like all of the Innova products (but I understand one of your dogs doesn't like it) and right now we're giving Nature's Variety Prairie a go, and so far so good. You might consider that, too, if it's available.

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I also feed Nutro, but I use Natural Choice large breed and there hasn't been any problem with getting that. I have friends pick it up in bulk for me and one of the last times they did they said that there was some kind of shortage only with the formulas containing lamb. Mine is just chicken and rice, which may be why I'm okay. I read something somewhere (might have been pets.ca) that it isn't a food shortage or problem, but something to do with the availability of their bags (?) If that was the case though, I would think it would affect all of their products, not just a specific line. Hope it doesn't become a problem for me too, my dogs love their food and do so well on it.

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Don't know anything about Taste of the Wild, but I have heard what's up with Nutro. :rolleyes: They are reported to be having trouble with one of the suppliers of an ingredient in some of their lines - I've heard of people having trouble finding Large Breed Lamb & Rice but not regular Lamb & Rice, for example. The company expects the problem to be resolved in about six weeks.

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You may find this link of interest: Nutro Message Board

 

There is a strongly supported rumor that the current availability problem is related to a supplier change for one of the key ingredients (rice). Overall, there has been speculation on the message boards that the quality of Nutro was degraded with cheaper inferior ingredients when the company was sold to venture capitalists several years ago, and that the situation did not improve when the company was resold to Masterfoods. But keep in mind that this is speculation...

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Thank you for all this information. I checked out the Nutro information board and that has raised another question. Even if if Nutro is readily available do I want my dog to eat it? The fact of most concern to me is the loose stools that people mentioned. Alex has had loose stools lately. I attributed this to the fact that Jackie went back to Purina One for the boys to try and get Elwood to eat. Alex has a habit of bowl surfing. I thought maybe the yogurt had caused a "reaction" for my lactose girl.

 

Esox

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I've been feeding Taste of the Wild to Maddie and Sammie for several months, and they are doing very well on it.

 

One thing to take into consideration, though, is whether or not a grain free kibble is right for your dog.

 

I was advised not to go grain free with Sammie - 8 years old - because he would supposedly "gain weight". He's been on grain free kibble since last fall and he is not only at a good weight, but he seems much less stiff, and his yeasty ears haven't been the problem that they used to be. Grain free seems to be best for him, after all.

 

Maddie eats half-raw, so I like giving her grain free kibble. She is in super condition. Grain free works well for her, too.

 

I do give them the Buffalo and Venison formula. The Wild Fowl has chicken fat added to it, and I'm not sure if I like that idea.

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Taste of the Wild seems like a good product. My gang has been on it for two bags now (that's about a month at my house, lol). No issues, including with my severely allergic dog, who was on it for four days while I was out of town to make life simpler for hubby.

 

Couple things that might help. Consider adding fish oil (salmon oil is easiest to get good quality and easiest to digest) and vitamin E - about 1000 mg of the fish oil and 200 mg E per 40 pounds of dog - there's wide latitude there if your dog is over or under that, better to go over to ensure you are getting the benefit of it. Most foods today are pathetically lacking in omega-3s, and on top of that, many dog foods supply omega-3s via plant oils, which are harder or even impossible for some dogs to process.

 

Plants provide omega-3s in the form of ALA, which must then be broken down into EPA and DHA for the dog to use them EPA is vital in skin and coat health (itchy skin will be the result of a lack of this) and joint health, and DHA is vital in nervous system health and other functions like hormone development. If you see canola oil or sunflower oil as an ingredient in your dog food, then this is what is happening. Some dogs use it better than others, but I believe today that all dogs can benefit from omega-3 supplementation. Don't forget the Vitamin E too.

 

Okay, can someone pass me a stepstool so I can get down off this high horse? :rolleyes:

 

The fish oil may help pick up the taste buds of your picky eater. If not, you may find that adding some fresh foods will help all your varied gang with their different quirks. If you add mashed veggies like green beans, carrots, greens, or anything else you might ahve around the house, your dog with the weight problem will benefit from feeling full without added calories.

 

Stew these with a teeny bit of meat, and you'll have a topping that your picky eater will love. I make these toppings up ahead of time and freeze them in ziplocks - enough for one meal per ziplock. This is a gallon bag for my household, but you would need just a sandwich size.

 

Canned salmon, mackerel, and sardines are all excellent low cal toppings (just don't go crazy with the easy-keeper dog). I love putting a poached egg on their food about once or twice a week - just cooked enough so that the white is opaque.

 

Preparing toppings yourself will ensure that you will not end up with a nasty surprise if your food company decides to change the ingredients without notice (though one thing I've seen Diamond is good for, and that's announcing clearly that they've made ingredient changes). Contrary to what you might think, the variety will start counteracting the pickiness of your two more fussy dogs. I have a five minute rule - if it's not gone in five minutes, it gets picked up and offered again at dinner time. I'll continue to offer the same thing the next three or four meals until it's eaten (not the same food, but the same food items), then they get something different the next time.

 

Good luck!

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I can just see myself getting "flamed" for this. Following on Rebecca's points about toppings, we usually add a bit of shredded baked chicken in the evening as a treat. We also flavor their food (a mixture of Royal Canin dry and Merrick's canned) with some watered-down low-sodium beef or chicken broth. Missy has to take pills with each meal, so we hide them in a small Italian-style meatball and mix it in with the food. But what the dogs REALLY love is a bit of spaghetti sauce; we use the all-natural organic brands as a topping on occasion.

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FYI

I worked at Petco for a short stint. During that time I had the chance to talk to a Nutro rep. about the shortages of product. The report they gave me as a manager of petco was that they were having issues with the company suppling the bags for the product. I was assured that they would be getting back to reg. deliveries soon. But that they would probably be shipping to the larger ordering companys rather than the local small orders first.

just what I heard from a Nurto rep.

Even tho I worked at Petco I could not afford to feed all my dogs the premium dog foods that they offer. I stick with Diamond Naturals chicken and rice, no corn. It's been good for us. I did have a short stint where no one wanted to eat. I think it was the big weather change cause it lasted for a couple days and they were all back to gobbling it up quickly. I also use the 5 minute rule. If it's not gone in 5 I pick it up and they wait till next meal time. They were all skipping about 1 meal per day. I feed 2x's per day. I have 1 older girl who on her own accord skips about 3 meals per week spaced out. I really have to watch her cause if she doesn't feel like eating she'll lay there and guard the bowl all day. So she definatly gets her bowl picked up if she's not eating it.

 

Kristen

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Bustopher,

I don't know why you think you'd get flamed. Lots of us add all sorts of stuff to our dogs' kibble. Mine get meat leftovers (usually venison or lamb, sometimes fish), canned food, mackeral or salmon, cottage cheese, yogurt, excess eggs that we have, left over veggies like green beans and mashed potatoes, canned pumpkin at times, and anything else I think might be good for them, all in addition to their kibble. I use canned food, peanut butter, or cheese for feeding pills as needed. Lark gets browned ground venison or mutton with her breakfast kibble and something raw at night. I count on the kibble to help meet their basic nutritional needs and then let all the other "fun" stuff make their eating life more interesting!

 

J.

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Julie always beats me to things...I was gonna say I didn't know why Bustopher would think we'd flame him, either. I think supplementing a dog's kibble with *healthy, natural* human food is good. Those folks who scoff, "Well, Fluffy NEVER gets people food!" often don't really think about what's in their dog food, and yet they're horrified to give their dog some lean beef or chicken (or veggie or fruit, whatever), it really makes no sense to me.

 

So, Bustopher, give Missy *two* meatballs next time. :rolleyes:

 

ETA: I'm so slow...I didn't see your last comment, Bustopher. But anyway, you said the spaghetti sauce was natural, organic and you only give them a little bit. Sounds fine to me.

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I was wondering about the nutro natural choice. Last time I bought a bag I had to buy the small bites and I don't like feeding that as they tend to gobble their food to quickly. I thought it was just the store. After doing some reading, thanks for posting that link, I might be switching brands when this bag is done.

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I can just see myself getting "flamed" for this. Following on Rebecca's points about toppings, we usually add . . .

 

No flames here. My kibble fed dogs get raw meat with their meals sometimes. They get yogurt, eggs, and canned pumpkin whenever the raw fed dogs get those things.

 

All of my dogs get a very tiny "sample" of almost every meal that I eat. I enjoy sharing it with them and I've never had a problem with any of them gaining weight or getting sick from having tidbits. (Of course, no onions, chocolate, grapes, or raisins). None of them have ever refused a meal because of those tidbits, either.

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I've been feeding Nutro Max for quite some time now, and I noticed recently that not only did Petco (Nutro?) hike the price up $5 a bag ... they are also now sold in 35 lb. bags instead of 40 lb. I was looking for a new food, but now this thread only confirmed that I really should get on it. Thanks.

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I like Canidae quite a bit. I feed it, along with raw, to all mine (7 at the moment), and have been feeding it for about a year and a half. Like Julie, I feed this to cover all my "nutritional bases," but really like what the raw does for them (and they sure love it). The Canidae is available at my local feed store (I think if you check their site online, you can find a local distributor), and I am on their "breeder program"--I buy 5 bags, save the receipts and the bar codes, send them in, and get a voucher for a free bag. And it's cheaper than a lot of the crap foods!

 

A

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Just about anything California Natural makes is great feed. Innova makes Cal Nat, and I really like thier Cal Nat lamb and rice. You can switch them straight over with no problems. I havent seen to many dogs turn thier nose up at it. I use to feed it in my boarding kennel, and even the pickiest of eaters would eat it.

Bustopher, I feed anything ( that wont hurt them) left on the plates after supper, they expect it!

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Canidae is actually one of the least expensive of the premiums, and it's certainly far cheaper than Nutro Ultra (and I think better in a lot of ways).

 

Usually, if you are interested in some particular brand of food, you can look up distributors on the brand's web site, and then call around to make sure those stores actually have the variety you are looking for (sometimes they will order it for you if they don't stock it). If the company doesn't have an online listing, they will have a number you can call and get that information.

 

Diamond Naturals is an excellent brand also. We feed the Extreme Athlete to the working gang here (Ben excepted of course). It's the most cost efficient food I've ever fed, bar none. I practically only wave the food bowl at Gus and Ted, my easy keepers, and they gain weight from the smell of it. Everyone has great teeth and coats on it, too. Min and Maia, who were terribly malnourished when she got here, transitioned easily to it (easy to digest) and gained weight quickly. Min had no undercoat and just a weird, thin, layer of guard hair, and now she is growing out a normal double coat from her spine down her sides, and from her head and around her neck. She looks like she has a mohawk right now, it's hilarious.

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I checked prices on some of the dog food and ya'll spend a lot of money ! I feed Sportmix, $18, and supplement raw left overs from a local butcher when the mood strikes me. Seems to me there's always a lot of people who complain that their dogs don't like their food/will only eat a certain food/don't eat enough/etc etc. and I think a lot of it is all in the head. Dogs don't need as much to eat as many people think they do and a lot of times they don't take into consideration all the dang treats they're stuffing in that dog. Got a dog in recently to train and the lady who owns him told me I had to buy him a certain food or he wouldn't eat... dog eats what I feed it just fine. At my house it's eat what I give or starve.

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I don't think it's so much people talking about their dogs being choosy. Some of us are choosy on behalf of our dogs. I won't deny that the vast majority of working bred dogs do great on Big Red Chunks from the feed store ($12/50 lbs). In fact, I've developed a lot of my homemade diet on that principle. But, I personally avoid putting "mystery scraps" in my dogs.

 

Sure, there's lots of people out there who imagine their dogs to be choosy when they are not. But, a lot of us are simply pickier about commercial foods ourselves.

 

I feed thirteen dogs on a super premium kibble, a moderate grade kibble, raw meaty bones, homemade doo-dads, and farm scraps. I haven't got the final word in on how this does in the long run, but other than spay/neuter and stuff the rescues come in with, and Ben's annual crash (down to every other year now, though), none of these dogs goes to a vet for anything other than rabies shots).

 

Ben is twelve and still well able to pitch in as well as he ever did (not to mention play flyball). Maggie is fourteen and literally has never been sick in her life. I have a Chinese crested, which supposedly are supposed to have teeth and skin problems, but she never does. If Ted's still going as strong as Ben, in ten years, as opposed to retiring at eight or ten, that's two years of dog I've saved - I don't know how we value do years but I know the last couple years I've been troubled with trying to replace Ben, as lousy a dog as he is. Ted's already a better dog than Ben - what will he be in eight or nine years? Much more valuable than a few thousand I'd save in cheaping out on dog food for him, I'm fairly sure.

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