I've decided to put my boy on a higher quality diet than he is currently on (Royal Canin). He is 13 weeks old and about 23+ lbs.
His father is 20 mth old and about 80-85 lbs, and both of his grandfathers were around 80 lbs, so he will probably be on the bigger side.
I've read a lot on here and narrowed my choices down to 5 based on several factors, including local availability. My top choices are Wellness, TOTW, Natural Balance, Before Grain and Orijen.
Of course, there are +/- to each.
Orijen- High protein content is the main factor that is steering me away. I would prefer something with closer to 30% whether protein is a factor in health issues or not. It is grain free, which is something I want to stick to!
TOTW- Grain free, important to me because I myself an intolerant to most grains. I don't want to put my boy in a position to have issues. Main drawback, not specifically ethoxyquin-free, and questionable ingredient quality. I was recommended against this product by the pet store I visited due to quality control issues. Priced well!
Before Grain- If I recall from my visit to the store, this seemed to be priced a little higher than most foods. The DFA site suggests that all ingredients are high quality, it is grain free and the protein content is around 32%. Seems like a good choice to me, but people seem put off by the Merrick name, why is that?
Wellness- I was warned away from this product by the store citing the same quality control issues with ingredients that TOTW has. However, if I'm not mistaken, Wellness states that they use ethoxyquin-free ingredients, which is a plus. Protein level seems good, price is a little high. As a major downside, this product contains grains, although I could potentially switch to the CORE products after he is the appropriate age.
Natural Balance- This product was recommended to me by the pet store I visited. Several employees have their personal dogs on this food and it is grain free. It seems to focus on allergy suffering pets, which is good and bad. My main issues with this option are the LOW meat/protein levels. All of the "all life stage" bags I looked at claimed 20-21% crude protein, which seems a lot lower than necessary. I would like to stick to a kibble without adding in other protein sources.
Have I overlooked any other viable options for grain free, all life stages foods? Acana looked good to me, but it isn't available. I've probably over-thought most of this, but I would value the input!
I know all of these choices are better than what he is currently on, but I want to make the right call.
His father is 20 mth old and about 80-85 lbs, and both of his grandfathers were around 80 lbs, so he will probably be on the bigger side.
I've read a lot on here and narrowed my choices down to 5 based on several factors, including local availability. My top choices are Wellness, TOTW, Natural Balance, Before Grain and Orijen.
Of course, there are +/- to each.
Orijen- High protein content is the main factor that is steering me away. I would prefer something with closer to 30% whether protein is a factor in health issues or not. It is grain free, which is something I want to stick to!
TOTW- Grain free, important to me because I myself an intolerant to most grains. I don't want to put my boy in a position to have issues. Main drawback, not specifically ethoxyquin-free, and questionable ingredient quality. I was recommended against this product by the pet store I visited due to quality control issues. Priced well!
Before Grain- If I recall from my visit to the store, this seemed to be priced a little higher than most foods. The DFA site suggests that all ingredients are high quality, it is grain free and the protein content is around 32%. Seems like a good choice to me, but people seem put off by the Merrick name, why is that?
Wellness- I was warned away from this product by the store citing the same quality control issues with ingredients that TOTW has. However, if I'm not mistaken, Wellness states that they use ethoxyquin-free ingredients, which is a plus. Protein level seems good, price is a little high. As a major downside, this product contains grains, although I could potentially switch to the CORE products after he is the appropriate age.
Natural Balance- This product was recommended to me by the pet store I visited. Several employees have their personal dogs on this food and it is grain free. It seems to focus on allergy suffering pets, which is good and bad. My main issues with this option are the LOW meat/protein levels. All of the "all life stage" bags I looked at claimed 20-21% crude protein, which seems a lot lower than necessary. I would like to stick to a kibble without adding in other protein sources.
Have I overlooked any other viable options for grain free, all life stages foods? Acana looked good to me, but it isn't available. I've probably over-thought most of this, but I would value the input!
I know all of these choices are better than what he is currently on, but I want to make the right call.
