Halo Dog Food?

[Pompey]

I've been feeding raw and am very happy with it, but we are planning a two week vacation in July, and the caretaker who we have to look after the dogs is not willing to do raw... my partner is also concerned about the cost and he wants to use kibble as a supplement for the times we are unable to get decent sales on anything

Over the years I've used more brands than you can shake a stick at and am leery of most. But I came across Halo dry food tonight, and waaaaay back when I only had one dog, remember using the wet food to EXCELLENT results. I had a dog who used to go off his feed when he slipped a disc, and this was even better than raw hamburger for getting him interested in food. It wasn't really even a canned food, it actually had chicken, greenbeans, etc. all mashed up and very recognizable. I also used their Dream Coat which was marvelous, but alas, not available in my area anymore. So am excited to see they now make a dry kibble, and was wondering has anyone used this food, and what did you think of it?

ETA: Here is a link to the ingredient list: http://shop.halopets.com/Dry-Dog/Adu...ry-Chicken-4lb

[Tobi]

It looks fine to me honestly, its the average premium dog food,it's not great, it's not terrible imo, it's also not grain free. It's nice it has a named meat source, but it's also very high in vegetable proteins... the thing i'm seeing with it is though, it's $1 per pound + I'm not sure this is any cheaper than Raw, switching a dog back and forth i can't imagine would be healthy, or enjoyable for the dog, you might even be hard pressed for your dog to eat the kibble after eating raw... who knows.

If it was my choice between having somebody feed raw or not, i would find another person to watch my dog, it's not very hard to make pre-packaged gallon bags of food for each day, X amount on X day = easy.

This is their "wholesome Chicken Recipe"

Chicken, Eggs, Pea Protein, Oats, Vegetable Broth, Pearled Barley, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Whole Peas, Chicken Liver, Salmon, Flax Seed, Salmon Oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), Pea Fiber, Sweet Potatoes, Apples, Blueberries, Green Beans, Carrots, Cranberries, Zucchini, Alfalfa, Inulin, Calcium Sulfate, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Salt, Vitamins (Folic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement ,Choline Bitartrate, Niacin, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Ascorbic Acid, Riboflavin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Biotin), Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Cobalt Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Magnesium Proteinate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dried Bifidobacterium longum Fermentation Product, Dried Enterococcus faecium Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum Fermentation Product.

[Serendipity]

Halo is pretty expensive (definitely more than raw) for the low meat content. I too would look for another person to take care of your dog.

[Liz]

How about just prepackaging chicken quarters for taht time the dog won't suffer as it is only two weeks. You might also check into The Honest Kitchen Dehydrated food.

[Jacksons Mom]

I find Halo to be expensive for what it is. Not a bad food, but not fabulous either. Have you looked into Acana? I pay $14.99 for a 5.5lb bag of the Grasslands flavor. It's grain-free and not too expensive and made by Champion Pet Foods -- amazing company, IMO, and I think the ingredients are much better.

[3Musketeers]

Don't even get me started, I do not like Halo at all, the reason being that they do not even at least include a meat meal in their dry foods. I have yet to look at their canned but from the link you posted:

Chicken, Eggs, Pea Protein, Oats, Vegetable Broth, Pearled Barley, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Whole Peas, Chicken Liver, Salmon, Flax Seed, Salmon Oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols).

Now, the pea protein boosts the protein level, and so do the eggs. The eggs themselves are preferred over the peas. However, having both pea protein and eggs, and not having a meat meal? You can guaranteee that less than 1/3 of this food's protein is coming from the chicken. Chicken is inclusive of water, so you only have around 20% of it left so there'd be a lot less than there seems to be.

[doggiedad]

i keep a variety of can food on hand.
i've fed Halo often. my dog does well
on it. i use the can food as a topping for the kibble.
i switch his kibble a lot also.

[doggiedad]

i think $2.72 a pound is a lot for kibble.

I find Halo to be expensive for what it is. Not a bad food, but not fabulous either. Have you looked into Acana? I pay $14.99 for a 5.5lb bag of the Grasslands flavor. It's grain-free and not too expensive and made by Champion Pet Foods -- amazing company, IMO, and I think the ingredients are much better.

[PDXdogmom]

I would think it would be easier to switch back and forth between raw and kibble with a grain-free kibble with low to moderate carbs. I don't know how available it is where you live, but Go Natural Grain-free Endurance is a good one IMO. Go Natural Grain Free Dog Food

[FL Cracker]

Would your sitter feed pre-packaged raw? I know there was a "tiff" here when someone from Tefco came in here bragging up green tripe...got a bit "ugly".
They do make a product called performance dog (comes in a 2 & 5lb roll)....and I know that the raw food Co-op here feeds a lot of it with great results.
Would be a "bit easier" for your sitter to feed a pre-packaged (you would have to portion from the 5# roll) and sliced patty versus kibble.
Tefco....Products...The 100% Natural Raw Feeding Diet...718-745-5537