best quality cheap dogfood

~Chameleon~

Fire_Fox wrote: »

I can understand why people would want to prioritise veterinary care over good nutrition but perhaps that is a mistake - look at the human epidemics of depression, type 2 diabetes, cancer, asthma/ COPD, obesity. It's taken several decades for our government to realise prevention is better (and far cheaper! ) than cure.

And much of these "epidemics" of disease have been caused by manufacturers in the food industry, adding goodness knows what to make it all look and taste palatable! Come on, you claim to be qualified in nutrition, have you seen some of the ingredients that go into our food??

Exactly the same is happening in the pet food industry!!

What on earth do you think dogs & cats ate 30-40-50 years ago? They thrived perfectly well, just as we did, eating natural food, and less of it!!

foreign_correspondent

Until a few decades ago most dogs were fed on entirely on dry bread, bones, scraps and leftovers - as they will have been throughout their entire history of domestication - which will have changed, depending on whether the humans they attached themselves to were hunter gatherers, or settled communities which cutivated crops. Even now, people in financial crisis have leftovers! (Fish skins, tough or dry bits of meat, leftover rice and veggies etc) I think a basic cheap kibble and occasional scraps (whether leftovers, freebies from the butcher - bones etc, or cheap sardines or offal) is more than adequate.

The longest lived dog in the UK (till it was overtaken!) was a totally vegetarian border collie, which suggests that dogs can thrive, rather than merely exist, on diets with no meat at all... I don't think anyone 'knows' with any degree of certainty what a domestic dog's ideal diet is, as there is so little unbiased research, so in the interim, really all we have to go on is opinion and anecdotal evidence.

The OP says they have no choice but to cut back, and expresses their guilt at this - I think so long as the dogs are fed and healthy they have no reason at all to feel bad.

Raksha

I feed Costcos own brand Kirkland Lamb variety - the price has varied recently but currently around £19 for a 15kg sack (I think) although I will be looking at Skinners Duck variety as my Doodle can't tolerate chicken

~Chameleon~

foreign_correspondent wrote: »

Until a few decades ago most dogs were fed on entirely on dry bread, bones, scraps and leftovers - as they will have been throughout their entire history of domestication.......

Hear! Hear!



......really all we have to go on is opinion and anecdotal evidence.

You've hit the nail on the head there! Far too many experts around here claiming they are the font of all wisdom when it comes to animal nutrition, when the only 'knowledge' they have is anecdotal evidence from people on internet forums!!

I guess years of training at college/uni as well as CPD count for nothing these days :rotfl:

foreign_correspondent

~Chameleon~ wrote: »

I guess years of training at college and uni don't count for anything these days :rotfl:

I wouldn't like to the knock the value of training and knowledge at all - it certainly enables people to make educated guesses, which is perhaps all we can do, but as far as I can ascertain, the knowledge base to draw on is quite restricted when it comes to pet food - as almost all research is completed by pet food manafacturers, and so not unbiased.. also, on any given subject, even the most eminent and well qualified of experts can disagree! (Just look at some of the scientific dispute around the causes and nature of some human diseases)

I think it is quite logical to assume, that as descendents of wolves, a diet which resembles a wolf's diet is a fair bet, but then again, we cannot ignore the fact that dogs have evolved to live alongside humans for perhaps 10-20,000 years (which is clearly a lot of generations in dog terms!) and that the dogs that survived and bred would be the ones that could live on what food we left.

I have no problems with a raw food diet, for example, if it suits the dog and owner, but you do have to exercise caution, for example, liver is cheap and nutritious in small amounts and loved by dogs, but too much vitamin A, found in liver, can cause toxicity. Too many bones can cause constipation, too much fat, pancreatitis. There are also debates about whether any dry, extruded food is safe, but I cannot say I have ever seen any compelling evidence that the majority of dogs do better on a £30 sack of kibble than a £10 sack.

Interestingly, it seems that domestication of dogs may have coincided with people becoming settled farmers.. just found this:

This finding puts the first known domestication – that of dogs – in the same place as the domestication of plants and other animals, and strengthens the link between the first animal to enter human society and the subsequent invention of agriculture about 10,000 years ago.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/world/stories/DN-dogs_19int.ART.State.Edition1.4b9bfbe.html

Hintza

I tried to get a group of shooting friends together to buy Skinners in bulk.

All I managed to do was discover that virtually everyone fed something different, so my great idea of a ton at a time quickly went out of the window.

Worth also bearing in mind is that working dog food is cheaper (no VAT)

I feed Skinners Crunchy during the shooting season and Muesli Mix off season.

Very reasonably priced (no huge advertising budget to drive up prices). Currently Seapets are cheapest with free P+P on orders over £29.

Fire_Fox

catlou wrote: »

Hi Firefox!

I was just wondering as you seem to have a good knowledge of these things what your opinion is on CSJ dog food say the one below as an example compared to a similar Burns product which is what I'm feeding now?

http://www.csjk9.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=5&idcategory=4

http://www.burnspet.co.uk/dog/chicken_brown_rice.asp

I'm considering changing to CSJ in the future as it seems to me like a cheap dog food that unlike most other cheap ones is not rubbish and is excellent value for money?

Will PM you.

lizzy1950

I have 2 greyhounds that thrive on Autarky/Autarky light and they also are OK with CSJ sensitive. They need a relatively low protein food when they retire and many of the more expensive foods seem to produce flatulence in greyhounds. Not pleasant to live with. Most of our local dog owners seem to have turned to either Autarky or CSJ not just because of the cost, but because their dogs seem to thrive on it.These foods may not suit more energetic dogs that need higher protein levels, though.

millsymuttleylaugh

My previous dog was on Hill's prescription diet (£50ish for 14kg)... very expensive food and he wouldn't eat it on its own, so alongside that he had abit of meat. Bless him

However our new dogs, came out the kennels where they were eating some dry stuff mixed with boiling water, we bought some Wagg, was only about 1.50 for 2kg in ASDA on a special, and mixed it with a bit of water, they love it. Or another suggestion is meat and mixer, you can get about 3kgs of mixer for a couple of quid, and at the minute in poundland winalot dog meat is on 3 tins for £1, making it quite a bargain.

Far as I'm aware theres nothing wrong with Wagg and it seems very reasonably priced. Both dogs are happy, energetic and shiny

PinkPeach

I feed my dog (springer spaniel) on Wagg Sensitive, and have also tried the standard Wagg. He's thriving on it and even the vet has commented on the good condition of his coat.
If you feel you need to spend less on dog food then I'd definately recommend this. It's often on offer in the supermarket with a pound or so off and there are several different varieties, not only of flavour but also a "light" version.
I initially started buying this due to having less income to spend each month but carry on with it now 1 year on even though my money situation has improved because it seems like a generally good food.