# Kibble help



## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

They're all fine foods. I fed Frosty Orijen Puppy then switched over to Acana (the fish variety currently) so I could feed them all the same thing. This whole dog food thing can be so overwhelming, but the best food IMHO is the one your dog likes to eat and has good digestion on.


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## galofpink (Mar 14, 2017)

I put our now 12wk old spoo on Orijen Large Breed when we got her (with proper transitioning from Hill's Science) and so far is doing well. She had a couple loose stools about 2 weeks ago, but think it is more related to the volume she was eating (I upped her intake considerably) not the ingredients. She has been growing fairly quickly, like they are supposed to, and is very active, so I was pushing a lot of food to get some weight on her scrawny bones; now have scaled back the volume a bit and have been supplementing with pumpkin on top for the last week and she is fine. Will try without pumpkin late next week. She eats it up like a champ; was a bit hesitant on the pumpkin though! Only reason I went with Orijen over Acana was that Acana only had the large breed food in the big bag (11.6kg ~ 25lb) at our retailer, where as Orijen was available in the medium bag (6kg ~ 13lb).

My SIL also fed Orijen and Acana puppy food to her cocker X poodle pup with good success. Only difference they really noticed was more stool (times, not necessarily amount) with the Orijen.

My 8yo cocker X poodle has a chicken intolerance, slow metabolism and is slightly overweight; so it has always been a struggle to find a low caloric kibble without any chicken or chicken meal. With Acana's new singles diets, he is doing well - maintaining weight, not acting like he is starving, "energetic" for him, firm stool, nice coat and less tooth plaque. Love that the Acana line has many different protein options for him. Throughout the struggles with Rocky, I have fed (post chicken intolerance discovery): Performatrin Ultra Lamb and Brown Rice Puppy, Blue Buffalo Lamb, PetKind Lamb Tripe and now the Acana Singles (Pork, now Duck). Acana certainly has been the best so far *for him*.

Most likely will switch puppy to Acana, so I can feed them the same as adults. We've had good success with it so far in our family. 

Don't know much about Fromm, experience wise. Have read some good reviews.

Think @zooeysmom says it best: feed what your dog eats well and has good digestion on. As long as you can feel like you can trust the company you are buying from for honesty in the quality of their ingredients and your dog is thriving; who's to say what's better. Every dog is unique and what works for one doesn't work for the other, so trust your gut in what you think your dog needs. Both are likely just fine, so don't sweat it.


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## scooterscout99 (Dec 3, 2015)

I fed Fromm to continue with the breeder's diet. When I tried to switch to Orijen, my spoo had loose stools. I still plan on rotating foods, but agree with the sentiment of feeding what you're dog will eat and can tolerate.


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## snow0160 (Sep 20, 2016)

zooeysmom said:


> They're all fine foods. I fed Frosty Orijen Puppy then switched over to Acana (the fish variety currently) so I could feed them all the same thing. This whole dog food thing can be so overwhelming, but the best food IMHO is the one your dog likes to eat and has good digestion on.




That is exactly why I switched out of Orijen puppy and now they are on Fromm. They were having horrible diarrhea and we just went with the one that was most GI friendly. Fromm includes probiotics in all their foods. My little guys are on Acana six fish. I would like to eventually switch everyone to this because it is much higher quality than Fromm. I switched Lucky to Acana and he doesn't get greasy hair anymore. 


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## DrSDOH (Feb 19, 2017)

I feed our pup Orijen large breed puppy and our 14 wk old spoo has tolerated it very well since I transitioned her off what the breeder was feeding. She actually ate the Orijen puppy small breed more readily (they didn't have large breed in stock for a few days) but I switched her over as soon as they had more. 

I initially tried raw, but she was having none of it. Periodically, she also gets a bit of pumpkin and/or instant goat's milk from Honest Kitchen for the probiotics. 

For training, we stick with boiled chicken.

After having a mini that had several food allergies and digestive problems, if I rotate foods, I will not likely do so until much further in the future.


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## sunfunartist (Mar 24, 2017)

You should read whole dog journal they have food ratings. My dogs like Bill Jac. At first I was skeptical because it looks like rabbit food. But it smells so good I think I would eat it too. 


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

I change kibble almost every bag so I'm no help at all! Molly has an iron tummy so I never worry...if she eats its, I'm happy with it! LOL! The advice I am going to give you though is to give your pup a raw chicken wing or leg a few times a week so as to benefit tooth health and start tooth brushing ASAP! Kibble does NOT keep teeth clean!


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## LizzysMom (Sep 27, 2016)

I have a VERY picky eater, went through multiple high-quality kibbles (Fromm, Acana, Orijen), tried high-quality canned, and even home-cooking, to no avail. She would eat very little. I wanted to try raw, but like you, I was worried I wouldn't balance it correctly. I finally tried Stella & Chewy's freeze-dried raw, and Lizzy gobbles it up. I feel like it is an acceptable compromise.


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

Get a supply of what the breeder has fed and transition slowly. My breeder recommended we stick to her diet for a while, Infinia Turkey and Sweet Potato, and a evening meal of raw necks. That way, you could eliminate diet if there were intestinal issues with your new puppy. Another suggestion she made, which works with Buck, is to add a little topping of something - cottage cheese, yogurt, a mince of last night's leftovers, to keep the same old kibble interesting.


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## spindledreams (Aug 7, 2012)

RE: Fromms there are different levels of quality in Fromms. Basic and Mid level have grain. The highest level doesn't. We fed the middle level for a long time but I have one that was having goopy eyes a lot so I moved to Earthborn a grain free food. Helped the big boys eyes and the others do well on it. Until we tried to put weight on Twilight. Nothing was working, even my friend who kept her for a while was concerned as she was giving her over 6 cups of food a day (a Purina Pro version) and she couldn't keep weight on her. 

Was at the Dog Food Store and saw RedPaw puppy. Snagged a bag for the new puppy and put miss can't gain weight on it also as it said up to 18 months... Shock she gained weight and no longer looked like a skeleton. Now she and Pup get RedPaw Performance and she looks nice on 2 -2 1/2 cups a day. Older dogs still get Earthborn. Sigh Oh well as said before what ever works best...


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## BeverlyT (Mar 22, 2017)

I am getting my SPOO in 6 days and while I know the breeder will send her with some food, I did a lot of research.

I originally planned to use Fromm, but I read a lot of good reviews for the Kirkland Puppy Grain Free, so I picked up a bag when we were at Costco last week. It was rated 4.5* so I thought it would be a good choice.

25 lbs. for $14 seemed like an amazing deal.

If she does well on it, then I will stick with it.


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## kontiki (Apr 6, 2013)

I made a mistake with my Spoo, a huge mistake. The breeder sent me home with a raw that she made herself. Duh, I thought I was smarter than she was and saw raw as too much work, and it was not supported by my vet. 

So I put him on really high quality kibble. After several months he was really ill, almost died. My vet was totally against raw. But I didn't want to lose him for sure. Contacted my breeder. Several generations had been fed raw.

Within three days on raw he was going back uphill. I am so glad I listened to the breeder the second time around. He is now 8 and most people think he is about 3.


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## Viking Queen (Nov 12, 2014)

I fed EVO to Iris, miss picky, for 14 years and she thrived on it.

When I got Poppy I tried Origen puppy for a while but her poo was too soft and she was gassy, whew, and she ate HUGE amounts and always seemed hungry. 

I changed her to EVO which is an all life stages food. She was no longer ravenously hungry all the time. Her poo was much more normal and a huge bonus was that the gas went away. I alternate EVO chicken/turkey with EvO red meat and we are both happy. She free feeds and eats about 1 1/2 cups per day and her weight is stable. After switching to EVO her coat became so very shiny as well.

I have been to the EVO manufacturing plant and have seen the 100# sacks of carrots and apples, and the vats of eggs and cottage cheese as well as the refrigerated rooms full of huge boxes of fresh chicken, turkey, beef, etc. it's all stuff you or I would eat. No mystery ingredients there!

I do give her a little treat of a small amount of Dave's canned food each day. It is 95% meat. She just enjoys it so much first thing in the morning.


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## Charmed (Aug 4, 2014)

I believe the one thing that I would do is to stick to the same protein the breeder is using, especially if the pup is doing well on it. Later, when the pup is a bit older you can experiment with different proteins. I personally like to stick to a single protein food at a time, so that if there is an allergy problem it is easier to isolate the source. If you read the labels, a lot of dog foods have more than one protein(labeled Chicken, but contains chicken and beef livers). I err on the side of caution because I have had to deal with food allergies.


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