# need new kibble



## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

my dog has been eating the costco nature domain dog food for about 2 years now. about half way through the bag, it doesnt smell fresh and has this weird smell that comes from it. not sure if thats good or not. 

im looking for a new kibble, what are some hot brands these days? 

he is a lab mix, 65 pounds. 

im looking to spend around $40-$50. ty.


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## riddick4811 (Nov 2, 2011)

In that price range I would look into Earthborn, Nutrisource and Victor. All have grain free foods in that price range for the biggest bag. I order mine online. Earthborn I get at doggiefood.com, Nutrisource at wag.com and Victor at rocketpetz.com


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

I definitely second Earthborn. Awesome prices for a great product IMO.

Also, if you don't mind grain inclusive, Fromm has very good prices. Their grain-frees are going to be pricier, but the Gold line and Classics line are very cost efficient and from a superb company.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

hi, the person at the store reccommended natures vareity. is that ok?


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## SaharaNight Boxers (Jun 28, 2011)

I'm wary of them right now. Too many people are having problems with them and they just had a recall. Plus they have high ash.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

ok, how is wellness? or blue buffalo? are they good brands? there's a petsmart near my home and they carry wellness and blue buffalo.


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## SaharaNight Boxers (Jun 28, 2011)

coolstorybro said:


> ok, how is wellness? or blue buffalo? are they good brands? there's a petsmart near my home and they carry wellness and blue buffalo.


I don't like Wellness. There's a thread on here about Wellness. No one seemed to do fantastic on it. Duke was on Blue all his life before raw. He never did fantastic either.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

alright, right now i got a 5 pound bag of natures variety prairie that the employee reccommended at the pet store. i guess i will do some research on earthborn like riddick and jacksons mom reccommended. 

any other brands i should pick? let me know, ty.


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## Unosmom (May 3, 2009)

check nutri source, its reasonably priced (around $40-45 for 30 lb of grain free), they have several protein sources like chicken, lamb and fish and the company has not been involved in recalls. Although you wont find it at petsmart, its usually sold through feed stores or small pet boutiques
Where To Buy Nutrisource Super Premium Pet Foods Dog Foods and Cat Foods


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

ty unosmom.

are there any brands i should stay away from? like i know science diet isnt too great, and foods w/ by-product meals are bad too.


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## lovemydogsalways (Mar 4, 2012)

I love Earthborn Holistic grain free and Nutrisource. Have not got to feed Fromm yet, but someday probably will.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

my first choice when i went to the petstore was go! kibble, but i asked them and they said they dont carry go! anymore. 

im hearing a lot of + for earthborn. is it grain free? also where can i purchase it? ty.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

also which would u choose: earthborn holistic or now!/go!? ty


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## DDBsR4Me (Jan 23, 2012)

Earthborn has several grain free formulas. I know you can get it online at petflow.com or doggiefood.com. You might wanna check out the Earthborn website earthbornholisticpetfood.com They should have a store locator that will tell you if any stores near you carry it.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

DDBsR4Me said:


> Earthborn has several grain free formulas. I know you can get it online at petflow.com or doggiefood.com. You might wanna check out the Earthborn website earthbornholisticpetfood.com They should have a store locator that will tell you if any stores near you carry it.


hi, which earthborn holistic should i try? primitive natural , costal cost, great plains feast, or meadow feast?


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

Earthborn is sold at the Pet Valu around here - do you have a Pet Valu? As far as quality goes AND lower prices, I think it's a winner.

Fromm, I think, is my favorite company overall though.

As far as Petsmart goes, they sell Innova (which, yes, is owned by P&G but I think it's a good choice).


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

Jacksons Mom said:


> Earthborn is sold at the Pet Valu around here - do you have a Pet Valu? As far as quality goes AND lower prices, I think it's a winner.
> 
> Fromm, I think, is my favorite company overall though.
> 
> As far as Petsmart goes, they sell Innova (which, yes, is owned by P&G but I think it's a good choice).


hi. no pet valu here. 

there is a another pet shop, about 30 minutes away and they do carry earthborn holistic. i also check out doggiefood.com. i will buy from which ever is cheaper. ty. 

i also look at go!/now!, but those were a bit pricey.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

MrChewy is awesome. Ordered Wednesday night and it was at my door by Friday at noon. Free shipping on $49 and up.


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## danea (Oct 25, 2008)

Why do so many like earthborn and neglect pro pac?
Both are manufactured by the same company, quality of the ingredients are the same (I asked).
Primitive has insanely high ash, and if I remember correctly ash is stated as min., so it could be even higher than 12%. Higher ash usually means lower quality meat.
Meadow Feast, Coastal Catch and especially Great Plains Feast all have pea protein (contains around 80% of protein) rather high on the ingredient list, how can you be sure it has a lot of meat?

Pro pac performance puppy is 30\20 food with only 8% ash and according to French pro pac site it is 90% digestible. Sure it has corn in it, but corn is definitely lower in protein than pea protein. and the food is 90% digestible
Pro Pac is available in Europe so it doesn't contain GMO, but if it does are sure they are not using GMO in Earthborn? Corn is not the only GMO crop on planet earth.

End of rant


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## domika (Jul 15, 2012)

danea said:


> Why do so many like earthborn and neglect pro pac?
> Both are manufactured by the same company, quality of the ingredients are the same (I asked).
> Primitive has insanely high ash, and if I remember correctly ash is stated as min., so it could be even higher than 12%. Higher ash usually means lower quality meat.
> Meadow Feast, Coastal Catch and especially Great Plains Feast all have pea protein (contains around 80% of protein) rather high on the ingredient list, how can you be sure it has a lot of meat?
> ...


I agree a lot of people forget earthborn has a high ash content which is why I probably wouldn't feed it. However I don't see any grain free pro pac options. And you said it yourself, high ash usually means lower quality meat and that pro Pac uses the same quality food. I haven't researched this food enough to give a definitive answer on my opinion but first looks its not on the top of my list.


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## Unosmom (May 3, 2009)

I personally don't like earthborn that much, mostly because they use pea protein to bulk up their food. You can also check Fromm gold which I think is under $45 for a large bag


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## danea (Oct 25, 2008)

domika said:


> And you said it yourself, high ash usually means lower quality meat and that pro Pac uses the same quality food.


But at the same time I don’t see any protein boosters in chicken based pro pac.
If I remember correctly lamb and turkey meal (probably also applies to bison) are higher in ash compared to chicken meal, also chicken meal is cheaper.
Pro pac uses simpler ingredients and has less variety in their formulas. I think this is what keeps the price down without compromising the quality.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

so stay away from earthborn holistic? 

should i just go with fromm like unosmom says? also is fromm gold grain free?

ty.


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## lovemydogsalways (Mar 4, 2012)

coolstorybro said:


> so stay away from earthborn holistic?
> 
> should i just go with fromm like unosmom says? also is fromm gold grain free?
> 
> ty.


Honestly you need to do what you want to do. Everyone will have millions of different opinions on food.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

lovemydogsalways said:


> Honestly you need to do what you want to do. Everyone will have millions of different opinions on food.


ty. if u can tell me, what is the most important thing i should look at when picking out a brand? protein level? thanks.


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## newlndnfire (Aug 19, 2011)

coolstorybro said:


> so stay away from earthborn holistic?
> 
> should i just go with fromm like unosmom says? also is fromm gold grain free?
> 
> ty.


I don't think Fromm Gold is grain free but they do have grain free lines. The Classics lines. They are an excellent brand of food and they are my top choice. If you can, I would go with Fromm brand foods. Also, don't worry about what formula to feed, feed all of them. Just rotate to a different formula every time you buy a new bag. The Fromm classics line is interchangeable like that, or so I assume. 

Even if you can't afford the classics line (I'm not sure of the price in the states as I am in Canada), Fromm Gold is still a great food and I would go with that.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

newlndnfire said:


> I don't think Fromm Gold is grain free but they do have grain free lines. The Classics lines. They are an excellent brand of food and they are my top choice. If you can, I would go with Fromm brand foods. Also, don't worry about what formula to feed, feed all of them. Just rotate to a different formula every time you buy a new bag. The Fromm classics line is interchangeable like that, or so I assume.
> 
> Even if you can't afford the classics line (I'm not sure of the price in the states as I am in Canada), Fromm Gold is still a great food and I would go with that.


ty. so fromm gold is not grain-free? 

also, when i rotate different foods but in the same brand, must i mix the foods 1/2 and 1/2 so he wont get an upset stomach? ty.


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## InkedMarie (Sep 9, 2011)

Fromm Gold is not grain free. You need to figure one thing out first: do you need grain free or not? From there, you can look for foods. Someone said about pea protein in one of the foods (earthborn?); this is one of those you get what you pay for things. I'm not saying *you* but i read when people have $50 to pay for food; they want grain free and the highest quality.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

InkedMarie said:


> Fromm Gold is not grain free. You need to figure one thing out first: do you need grain free or not? From there, you can look for foods. Someone said about pea protein in one of the foods (earthborn?); this is one of those you get what you pay for things. I'm not saying *you* but i read when people have $50 to pay for food; they want grain free and the highest quality.


ty. my dog has been going grain free for 2 years. first he had taste of the wild, then i switched to costco's grain free dog food because it was a tad cheaper. now id like to upgrade to a good brand. 

u think there will be any difference if i get him the food w/ grains? i dont think he is allergic to anything. ty.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

hi,

also what % of protein level should i pick? i am looking at the earthborn primitive and the protein is 38%. most other brands are at 25-28%.


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## Dana (Oct 27, 2009)

For what it's worth, my sister used Earthborn Coastal Catch for about 6 months and she said it gave both of her dogs really smelly gas and poops. She has since switched to Nutrisca (salmon, I think?) and problem solved.


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## newlndnfire (Aug 19, 2011)

Yes, Fromm Gold is not grain free but the Classics line is. I'm not sure if you would have too do half and half but I would, just in case. In terms of protein levels, what you pay for is what you will get, generally.


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## InkedMarie (Sep 9, 2011)

coolstorybro said:


> ty. my dog has been going grain free for 2 years. first he had taste of the wild, then i switched to costco's grain free dog food because it was a tad cheaper. now id like to upgrade to a good brand.
> 
> u think there will be any difference if i get him the food w/ grains? i dont think he is allergic to anything. ty.


If he's been on grainfree and doing well, keep him on that, IMO. The problem is, you're looking to spend, if I remember correctly, $40-$50, that's going to be hard. I think you can get Earthborn grainfree for that but unsure about anything else. What about having it shipped to you? There are some online places that have great prices and free or cheap shipping: PetFlow, Doggiefood.com, wag.com, take a look at those. Nutrisource would be one to look at.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

InkedMarie said:


> If he's been on grainfree and doing well, keep him on that, IMO. The problem is, you're looking to spend, if I remember correctly, $40-$50, that's going to be hard. I think you can get Earthborn grainfree for that but unsure about anything else. What about having it shipped to you? There are some online places that have great prices and free or cheap shipping: PetFlow, Doggiefood.com, wag.com, take a look at those. Nutrisource would be one to look at.


hi, ty.

yes that is my main problem. hard to find cheap grain free foods. 

yes i dont mind shopping online as long as the price is right. 

so far my choices are: fromm, earthborn, and nutrisource like u mentioned. i will do more research on these, ty.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

newlndnfire said:


> Yes, Fromm Gold is not grain free but the Classics line is. I'm not sure if you would have too do half and half but I would, just in case. In terms of protein levels, what you pay for is what you will get, generally.


ty. u think going from grain free to grain will do anything to him?


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## meggels (May 30, 2010)

It really depends on the dog. My hound mix does amazing on Earthborn's Great Plains Feast, probably the best of any kibble. Even if ithas some ingredients that may not make me happiest (though, I'm not really complaining, just touching on the pea protein thing), more important to me is how my dog physically reacts to it. She looks the best and has the best poo on the Earthborn, so that's what I use as my determining factor.


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## DaViking (Sep 27, 2011)

coolstorybro said:


> hi, ty.
> 
> yes that is my main problem. hard to find cheap grain free foods.
> 
> ...


I don't know many grain free foods cheaper than Horizon Pulsar Chicken if you want to avoid Diamond brands. $41.99 from Petflow. Personally I'd throw in the extra $10 and go for Horizon Legacy, free shipping.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

DaViking said:


> I don't know many grain free foods cheaper than Horizon Pulsar Chicken if you want to avoid Diamond brands. $41.99 from Petflow. Personally I'd throw in the extra $10 and go for Horizon Legacy, free shipping.


ty. is fromm 4 star grain free any good? its a bit pricey, but im hearing good things about fromm.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

also i think my dog is sick. i ran out of my costco grain free food, so yesterday for dinner i gave him 1 cup of natures variety prairie with 1/2 teaspoon of a digestive aid powder. yesterday was fine. 

today i took him out, and his stool was very wet and loose. he had very nice hard stool on the costco grain free food. 

and tonight he isnt feeling good. he's ignoring me and family members, and is in the corner by himself looking upset. he's giving us the eye, a look telling us to go away. 

i just took him outside and all he did was pee. no poop. 

i will wait til tomorrow morning to see if he is ok. ty.


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## coolstorybro (Nov 3, 2010)

danea said:


> Why do so many like earthborn and neglect pro pac?
> Both are manufactured by the same company, quality of the ingredients are the same (I asked).
> Primitive has insanely high ash, and if I remember correctly ash is stated as min., so it could be even higher than 12%. Higher ash usually means lower quality meat.
> Meadow Feast, Coastal Catch and especially Great Plains Feast all have pea protein (contains around 80% of protein) rather high on the ingredient list, how can you be sure it has a lot of meat?
> ...


hi, what is ash? 

i was gunna choose the primitive food, but ur post makes me not want to purchase it. ty.


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## danea (Oct 25, 2008)

*coolstorybro*
Here is a good article
Why Is There Ash in Your Dog's Food?
Usually lower quality meat meals contain more bone = more ash in the meat meal and in the end product (kibble).

Grain free kibble is always more expensive than grain inclusive, if your dog isn’t sensitive and you are on a budget then what’s the point in using it? 
I mean cheaper grain free foods aren’t always better than grain inclusive for the same prize, you need to look at the ingredients and guaranteed analysis. They still could contain low amount of meat and have high carbs.
And you can never know for sure if the food\formula will work for your dog. There is a chance that even the best grain free will make your dog sick in the end.

If I was in your place I would go for Fromm Classic Adult and throw some home cooked meat in it. Because I don't see the point in overpaying for that 1% extra protein in Gold Adult, both formulas have similar ingredients. 
Good company, good ingredients, lots of positive reviews, decent price. I would definitely give it a try 
Although I am perplexed by the recommended feeding amounts, way to high considering calorie content
Or as DaViking said throw some extra $ and go for better product.

PS: I hope your dog gets better soon! Might be due to rapid transitioning… and are you sure you didn’t overdo digestive aid powder (diarrhea is one of the side effects)?


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## DaViking (Sep 27, 2011)

coolstorybro said:


> ty. is fromm 4 star grain free any good? its a bit pricey, but im hearing good things about fromm.


Fromm as a company is very trustworthy. Never had good results from the 4-star line though. Personally I'd recommend Gold over 4-star.


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## lovemydogsalways (Mar 4, 2012)

coolstorybro said:


> ty. if u can tell me, what is the most important thing i should look at when picking out a brand? protein level? thanks.


Well since the Diamond recall I have been looking at company before anything else. Then I look at protein percent and carb percent. Also want to make sure meat is at least first ingredient first two is better yet.


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## Goldens&Labs4Me (Sep 2, 2012)

newlndnfire said:


> Yes, Fromm Gold is not grain free but the Classics line is. I'm not sure if you would have too do half and half but I would, just in case. In terms of protein levels, what you pay for is what you will get, generally.


Fromm Classics is not grain free--but they do have a few grain free flavors in the 4-Star Line.

In Fromm, the Classics is the most economical, followed by Gold, then 4 Star, then 4 Star Grain free.

All of them are great foods, though.


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## tthrdg2 (Sep 11, 2012)

*treats*

can someone please tell me what kind of treats are the best for pup's/dogs?


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