Is JWB worth the money ?

jenhug

Cyril wrote: »

Thanks for that.

No am not struggling financially but like anyone if I can get the same quality for less I'd be happy. Like you say storing the big bags is difficult as I don't have anywhere suitable.

She is a Bullmastiif with a healthy appetite LOL and I'm looking to get a second dog ( I lost mine other dog earlier in the year and I think she would like a friend again ).

When I get a second I will have to sort something otherwise i'll be forever at the pet store buying it. I so wish supermarkets would sell it tbh it would save going outta town to the retail park.

I feed my English Mastiffs Burns. I'm sure you are aware of the need to feed a low protein food for our big babies. Also I have found cheap food equals giant poo, good food equals small poo.

Rev

Okay, not, I'm not a fan of JWB but it is far from a bad food.

Do I think it's value for money? Nowhere near. I'll throw up a few comparisons (not sure what one you feed, so I'll just grab ingredients for the first one I find).

JWB

Independant review here

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/showproduct.php?product=381&cat=5

Ingredients

Rice, lamb meat meal, ground whole barley, whole linseed, lamb fat, lamb gravy, sugar beet pulp, alfalfa, sodium chloride, natural seaweed, calcium carbonate, chicory extract, lysine, D,L-methionine, yucca extract, threonine, JWB special ingredients.

Review ststes 26% meat. Rice is first so it's obviously a rice based food. Ingredients look like your average dog kibble.

My problem? The price is anything buy average. With a 15kg bag running around £40. (I usually go bet vetuk prices as I've always found them cheapest).

So, say, an average dog of about 25kg will need 280 (ish) grams per day. Meaning JWB costs about 77p per day.

Now lets look at another mid range dog food.

Arden grange lamb and rice.

Independent review

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/showproduct.php?product=1149&cat=4

Lamb Meal* (min 30%), Whole Grain Rice (min 26%), Whole Grain Maize, Chicken Fat*, Beet Pulp, Dried Brewers Yeast, Egg Powder, Fish Meal*, Linseed, Fish Oil*, Minerals, Vitamins, Nucleotides, Prebiotic FOS, Prebiotic MOS, Cranberry Extract, Chondroitin Sulphate, Glucosamine Sulphate, MSM, Yucca Extract. * Preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extract.

15kg bag will set you back £29 (again from vetuk, and berriewood wholesale will do 2 15kg bags for £52 delivered, making it £26 a bag).

Your average 25kg dog will again need around 280grams. So it will cost around 56p per day to feed (49p if you get the two bags from berriewood).

So, 20p less per day to feed what is IMHO a better food.

Fish4Dogs cost 85p a day to feed, so not much more for a food considerably better than JWB.

And surprisingly Orijen is only 84p per day, since the average 25kg dog only needs 200g per day.

Obviously prices go up with the dogs size.

If you're looking to save a little cash, you'll not find a better budget food than Skinners duck and rice or salmon and rice. Not the highest meat content, but very simple foods, not choc full of ingredients.

I feed The simpsons mentioned above. Not sure of the cost per day, it's pretty much the only kibble that doesn't cause my eldest dog upset, so defo worth a look.

Hmm, sorry, bit or a ramble there, but basically, whilst JWB isn't a bad food, I personally think it's bad value for cash and that for the same cash, much better can be had (and you can get the same or a little better for less). Which unless I'm mistaken is what you're asking.

Rev

jenhug wrote: »

I feed my English Mastiffs Burns. I'm sure you are aware of the need to feed a low protein food for our big babies. Also I have found cheap food equals giant poo, good food equals small poo.

Not sure what Burns you feed, but if you look at the ingredients of Skinners duck and rice and burns duck and rice, you'll not spot a difference (besides seaweed).

Burns

Brown Rice (Min 65%), Duck Meal (Min 20%), Oats, Peas, Duck Fat, Sunflower Oil, Seaweed, Minerals & Vitamins

Skinners

Whole rice (40%), duck meal (20%), naked oats, peas, whole linseed, sunflower oil, beet pulp, vitamins and minerals.

Whole rice = brown rice btw.


Big differance being, Skinners is £19.51 per 15kg, Burns is £48.47 per 15kg. Almost £30 less. Not suggesting you change or anything, just pointing it out. I do think burns is stupidly over priced and how they can have the cheek to charge almost £50 for a food consisting of 65% rice is beyond me, but that's my personal opinion.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is, it's not about cost, it's about quality. You'll often find the supermarket crap costs more than decent food to feed.

jenhug

Rev wrote: »

Not sure what Burns you feed, but if you look at the ingredients of Skinners duck and rice and burns duck and rice, you'll not spot a difference (besides seaweed).


Skinners


Whole rice = brown rice btw.


Big differance being, Skinners is £19.51 per 15kg, Burns is £48.47 per 15kg. Almost £30 less. Not suggesting you change or anything, just pointing it out. I do think burns is stupidly over priced and how they can have the cheek to charge almost £50 for a food consisting of 65% rice is beyond me, but that's my personal opinion.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is, it's not about cost, it's about quality. You'll often find the supermarket crap costs more than decent food to feed.

Burns
Thanks, I feed the chicken and rice (white sack) I'll have a look at skinners, although my boy has a sensitive tum i'm always wary of messing around with his diet.

Rev

jenhug wrote: »

Burns
Thanks, I feed the chicken and rice (white sack) I'll have a look at skinners, although my boy has a sensitive tum i'm always wary of messing around with his diet.

If you check Skunners, stick to either the duck and rice or salmon and rice they're the best foods. And have the simplest ingredients so are less likely to upset tums.

Cyril

Thank you all for your thoughts.

I will try Skinners as I know somewhere locally that sells it, if my girl reacts tummy wise I will go back to JWB as I know she thrives on this. She was a rescue dog and had real problems digesting the crap she was given and over time i've introduced better quality food and she's settled down.

Again thankyou all, deffo food for thought.

xx

Cyril

jenhug wrote: »

I feed my English Mastiffs Burns. I'm sure you are aware of the need to feed a low protein food for our big babies. Also I have found cheap food equals giant poo, good food equals small poo.

English mastiffs plural LOL you must have humongous food bills.
How many do you have. I read a wonderful blog by someone who rescued a mastiff called Edward I think. Seeing him blossom from a nervous shy wreck to blossoming as a loved friend was amazing. They are wonderful dogs.

Rev

Cyril wrote: »

Thank you all for your thoughts.

I will try Skinners as I know somewhere locally that sells it, if my girl reacts tummy wise I will go back to JWB as I know she thrives on this. She was a rescue dog and had real problems digesting the crap she was given and over time i've introduced better quality food and she's settled down.

Again thankyou all, deffo food for thought.

xx

As said above though, stick to either the salmon and rice or duck and rice.

If your girl has a sensitive tum I can't recommend Simpson's enough.

Beginning of the year everything was going through my dog. Even chicken and rice. Only thing that didn't cause a mess the other end was egg and potato, poor sod was on that for almost two month.

His main diet is wainwrights or naturediet wet, but any more than half the RDA was again causing upset. So I had to find a dry food to actually feed him enough. Tried all the vets recommendations etc. By chance notied Simpsons and thought it worth a try. Not loked back. Range of grain free options, decent price, and more importantly suits the boy.

Cyril

Thanks Rev.

I don't think she's too sensitive and it was when I first got her so I think it was the transition from coming off rescue center food which in fairness to them has to be what is donated, to my choice of food, perhaps too rich initially.

I'll keep this thread so if I need to refer back to your wise words I can. x

zaksmum

Are JWB and Wainwrights and Burns better quality than Hill's science plan?