the price of dog food

[caseysmama]

i guess like everything else i've noticed the price of dog food is feeling the 'crunch' of our economy. im in NY and im wondering if you folks in other areas are seeing a dramatic rise in pet food prices also.

i've always used Canidae. the smaller sized bag used to run me about $6 -7.

now with the newer packaging (and new formula) its costing me closer to $10!

add a new puppy into the mix, and im going thru dog kibble like crazy. im a believer in feeding them good quality dog food but with working two jobs, 3 kids and everything else on the rise, im feeling forced to cut corners.

Thinking of using a less expensive kibble from the supermarket. any one have suggestions for a good quality budget friendly food?

[Tracy A.]

You might consider buying the larger sized bags. With two dogs myself a small bag of canidae would only last me a few weeks... I buy the largest size bag and it lasts me months... I store it in an air tight container. If you do the math, it's cheapest if you buy it in the largest sized bags.

Also we used to give the boys a bit of canned dog food with the dry food but after the dog food scare we switched to giving them ground turkey... we buy it in the freezer section of the meats it's in 1 lb rolls for 1.49... which actually turns out to be double of what would be in a can of dog food.

Last, I buy canidae when its on sale.... the store I buy it at Complete Pet Mart they have it on sale about once a month. Also, if you email Candidae and ask for coupons, they will send them to you.... In fact I am going to do that when I get done posting... time for me to buy dog food too!

[mrseggcup]

WOOF! Eli, here.

Think of quality dog food as an investment. Good nutrition prevents many health problems, which can be costly at the vet.

Quallity dog food give us cairns the energy to entertain you and to protect you from squirrels, birds, bugs, leaves, elephants, motorcycles, aliens, poltergeists, wind, and any other threats to your safety and well-being.

And don't skimp on the treats, either. In fact, I could use a little pick-me-up right about now. Where is that Alpha B, anyway???

WOOF!

Eli

[Chris's Desta]

The least expensive kibble that I feel is still of very good quality is the Kirkland brand. It's the Costco store brand, so that's the only place you can get it. I haven't used it, but I was walking through Costco a couple weeks ago and read the ingredients just out of curiousity. The only ingredient I found objectionable was their use of beet pulp. I may add it to rotation, if I don't decide to go with a raw diet. We just switched from Canidae to Innova last week, but I'm feeding raw about 3 meals a week to keep their teeth clean.

I agree with not skimping on quality ingredients with the dog food; the future veterinarian bills could more than outweigh the "savings" of less expensive food ingredients. The 16 pound bag of Innova ran about $27 (minus a $5 coupon that Innova mailed me). I would have bought the econo-bag except that I wanted to make sure it agreed with the dogs first. There are about 4 cups in a pound. The two dogs eat a total of 2 cups a day, so it's about 85 cents a day to feed them good quality food.

[Darcy's Folks]

the largest canidae bag USED to be 40 lbs. they've repackaged it to a 35 lbs. bag, but the cost stayed the same. just like everything else in the economy.

[caseysmama]

i priced out per pound the cost of canidae in the larger bags. its makes a substantial savings. from 2.40 per lb down to $1 per pound if i go with the 35 lb bag.

i'll also check kirkland kibble. thats a excellent tip.

[mattoleriver]

I rotate brands of dog food every once in awhile and the Costco Kirkland brand is one that is in my rotation. I think it is good food at a really good price and the dogs like it. The dogs are healthy, they look good and clean-up isn't any worse than with any of the premium brands in my rotation. The only drawback is that, like so many items at Costco, it only comes in the large size bag.

George

[maggie]

I used to buy the 20lbs, well the price didn't change but the bag is now 15lbs so, we are loosing 5lbs. Like everything else....!

I wondered if anyone has noticed any changes in your dogs (attitude, more or less hungry, bowel movements etc) after feeding the "new" formula. I have noticed some and I'm curious if it's us or the food.

[Chris's Desta]

I wondered if anyone has noticed any changes in your dogs (attitude, more or less hungry, bowel movements etc) after feeding the "new" formula. I have noticed some and I'm curious if it's us or the food.

(I assume you're asking about Canidae.)

The new formula has more grains and fillers which could affect some dogs. The major ingredients that are "new" (weren't in the old formula) include the following:

rice bran, peas, potatoes, oatmeal, cracked pearled barley, millet, tomato pomace

I think it's still a good food since the first 5 ingredients didn't change, but it looks a lot grainier than before.

I haven't tried the new formula since I was already planning to rotate to Innova when we finished the last bag of the old formula bag of Canidae. If I put Canidae back into my rotation, I may try the grain-free ALS formula. It has all the "old formula" meats, but uses potatoes instead of grains.

[caseysmama]

I wondered if anyone has noticed any changes in your dogs (attitude, more or less hungry, bowel movements etc) after feeding the "new" formula. I have noticed some and I'm curious if it's us or the food

i absolutely see a change. shes gassier. her poops are softer and lighter in color. which isnt such a big deal but makes picking them up a really gross task, especially when we're on a walk.

i've been unsure if the new formula was the key factor or if its because the new formula coincided with us getting a new puppy. the new puppy brought worms with him which they both eventually got. now the worms are gone (i think??) but the gas & softer poops persist.

i've been looking into different kibble but upon research, canidae still seems like a good brand (even with the extra grain).

[maggie]

i absolutely see a change. shes gassier. her poops are softer and lighter in color. which isnt such a big deal but makes picking them up a really gross task, especially when we're on a walk.

Those are the exact changes I see in Keegan & Kai-lee, lighter much softer b/m, maybe it's just until they get used to it., I haven't noticed the gas but we were camping this weekend, Kai-lee was sleeping next to my son and he definetely noticed it ! So much for a happy camper!

[Tracy A.]

I noticed the gas over the weekend..... I can say that I am less some nose hair!

[Eliz222]

My DH buys the dog food and we keep it in a larger container (minus the bag), so I didn't know they changed their formula. Finch was always my eager eater and lately she just sits by her food and watches it. It takes her about 15 minutes to start eating, and I think she only eats it because Scout is sitting right next to her waiting for Finch to walk away!

Hmmmm...this may be why! Poor Finch....I'm going to look into getting her another brand...maybe Innova?

[caseysmama]

those are the exact changes I see in Keegan & Kai-lee, lighter much softer b/m, maybe it's just until they get used to it

i've been thru a few bags since the new formula. i'd think they'd be used to it by now ????

[maggie]

Kai-lee doesn't seem real excited about eating either, Keegan is okay but he will eat anything we always kid that he should have been named Hoover (after the vaccuum cleaner).

We are in week 2 on the new formula and just yesterday, I've noticed stools are a little bit more firm put still not like before.

I think if things stay like they are I might be making some changes.

[maggie]

After my last post I went to Canidae's website to check out all ingredients and start "comparison shopping".

It looks like they they have added 3 more varieties to their line, you might want to check out the website.

[hallswel]

I didn't really notice too much change in cost until I started feeding the puppies last week, I mix a gruel but part of it is Eagle Pack Holistic Puppy......they have really started eating alot so I had to go get another bag an ouch. Of course they get scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, plain yogart, and other goodies added in. I think it is worth it to get a good food in the long run.

Many of the companies have great coupon offers so if you feed a brand get them to send you the information on how to get free bags or coupons. I know I had to email Eagle Pack to get them to send me the forms.

I started using Eagle Pack because of Dirty Harry, they have an Anchovy, Sardine & Salmon Meal Formula that my Dirty Harry loves, he is a picky picky eater.

I get my food at the local feed store which is a mile from my home. I have found they have decent prices for food and other items. They tend to have many brands you have a difficult time finding and the prices aren't bad.

[jodi0553]

I went for a new bag of food tonight since I'm on my last 5 lb bag of the old canidae formula. The price of the 5 lb bag had gone up over two dollars. I spoke to the clerk to see what Canidae users were saying, and she said it is all bad. They are getting many returns and folks switching to new brands. She said the main complaint was diarrhea. I decided to try out Eagle Pack Holistic. She advised against regular Eagle Pack because it has corn. It is actually barely more expensive to go with Innova or Eagle Pack Holistic than to feed Canidae now. The clerk also told me that Diamond Foods is now making Canidae, but that is not on Canidae's site. There are discussions of this all over the web...I didn't research it too much.

In the end, we didn't buy a back of the new formula. We may in the future, but I decided it might be nice to rotate something new now anyway. We'll see how the Eagle Pack goes. My only complaint is that they had only single protein formulae, but that's ok for a while.