What do your cat and dog prefer?

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Patchouli

Patchouli

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In food.
First off, this is to discuss brand names of pet food and what your pet and you prefer (flavor and price).
If you give your pets raw, wild, or cooked meat, that's great, you go ahead. I'm not in that camp.
I'm concerned we'll get marketers in here trying to sell us pet food.
We've been giving our cat blue buffalo kibble for most of her life. Vet says it's time for a change and recommended what all veterinarians' offices have recommended to me since day 1. Then you see they are selling it also. I don't know what to make of that.
Vet says cat needs grain. Needs this and that and can get it from these pet food brands (spaced the letters to try to thwart marketers): H I L L S (science); p+u+r+i+n+a pro PL AN; I AM S; and one other. She said if there is a buffalo or bobcat on the packaging to run away. LOL Current vet says the "organic" or grain free foods cause pancreatitis and other issues.
Anyone care to tell me what you give your pets? Our black lab had pancreas cancer at the age of 8, had to put her down.
 
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Our dog is old and prone to pancreatitis. So we give her the prescription stuff. Hills I/D canned food. That is very mild and easy on the stomach and works well for her. However, it really is poor food. You read the ingredients and it does not look impressive at all ("chicken meal" - which means whatever crap they can sweep up off of the rendering plant floor). We have tried other foods, better quality stuff that had a nutritional balance similar to the I/D stuff, but she did not tolerate them well. Because of our dogs age and other problems (not just pancreatitis) we have decided it's probably best to just leave her on the I/D even though we don't like it.

You have to really trust your vet to believe they know much about nutrition. My guess is that many of them are parroting the information they get off of pamphlets that dog food promoters give them along with the tons of free samples. Kind of like toothpaste. Tell me, how is it that every stinking brand of toothpaste is "preferred by 9 out of 10 dentists"? Must be a fickle lot of D.D.S./D.M.D. out there.
 
I get the cheap stuff, Patch. Dogs get some kibble and share a can of wet. Whatever's cheap. Or meat scraps on the kibble. One old dog gets half a glucosomine and a baby aspirin on his food.
JayRod and Kev, the cats get cat kibble, and a can of friskies wet. Sometimes a tuna can. Cats also get the nonfat raw milk after I pull out the cream of the whole milk.
Chickens get hi pro chicken crumbles, scratch, table veg and fruit and bread scraps, a bucket of dandelions, and some of the nonfat raw milk.
Everything here eats a leftover or scrap. Dogs don't get the milk, though. One is milk intolerant, and gets the runs.
 
We have had dogs for over 40 years; always at least one, usually two or more. Every one has been rescued with a story that would break your heart. We have always fed them dry dog food. I believe the brand of choice for the past several years is Blue Buffalo. All of them have been healthy and lived out their natural lives, with the exception of one, a dachshund, who was story in himself. Almost all were self fed, and we didn't have any issues. We have a toy poodle now who is a very good dog. Self fed. No messes. Uses the doggie door. Affectionate with all family members. Good with strangers. He barks to much for my liking, but my wife encourages it as an alarm system (insert eyeroll).

With the Dachshund, Kirby by name, when we got him he was a mess. The vet suspected he had been thrown from a moving car, and left to forage on his own. His whole underside was scraped raw, and his nose was so compacted with dirt it was suspected he had been burrowing for some time. He was at least cleaned up when we brought him home, but he was skin and bones. As I mentioned all of our dogs had been self fed.... until we got Kirby. He was a little piglet who must have thought he died and went to Heaven. In about a month he went from skin and bones to having his stomach droop to almost touch the floor. To him self fed meant you eat yours and everybody else's. Suffice it to say that was the end of self feeding, and the start of watching Kirby to make sure he only ate his portion. Everything returned to normal in a short time. Kirby ended up with diabetes, and we had to give him daily insulin shots, but he still had a long happy life.

We have never used anything but dry dog food. We had the good fortune of having a vet who was also a neighbor, and good friend. Anybody else have a vet who makes house calls? We always followed his advice, and he always seemed to get it right.
 
I have had female black labs and the first one was a long time ago so have no idea. Most likely whatever the local market carried in the #50 bags… Back when there were actual #50 bags not the #33 now.

Second and third got the P u r I n a Pro-plan. Purple label, I believe it was the all stages hi-performance, for active dogs (or hunting breeds or something like that). The packaging has all changed so I would need to take the time to real labels. I do not recall specifically what it was, but there needed to be a certain percentage of ‘fats’ for their coats to oil up. Mine would get some gravy once a week, real nice and fatty.

My last gal did great on it. Maintained her weight as she was overly ‘enthusiastic’ and was eating 7 cups a day. The one before was less active so was 3 cups/day and gaining weight on that. All had great looking coats on that food.
 
Mom's dog likes to watch Hannity but totally ignores Levin. Mom feeds her oatmeal in the morning which she tolerates, most of the time, and I feed her Blue Buffalo in the evening which she seems anxious to get.
 
Amish Heart said:
I get the cheap stuff, Patch. Dogs get some kibble and share a can of wet. Whatever's cheap. Or meat scraps on the kibble. One old dog gets half a glucosomine and a baby aspirin on his food.
JayRod and Kev, the cats get cat kibble, and a can of friskies wet. Sometimes a tuna can. Cats also get the nonfat raw milk after I pull out the cream of the whole milk.
Chickens get hi pro chicken crumbles, scratch, table veg and fruit and bread scraps, a bucket of dandelions, and some of the nonfat raw milk.
Everything here eats a leftover or scrap. Dogs don't get the milk, though. One is milk intolerant, and gets the runs.
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Ours too Amish ,they are paupers liek us so thet get what we can get them. Butwe do try to buy the Racell Ray now.

My 75lb. part gryhound,part yellow lab dog Alice lived to be almost 19 and she got the old Field Trail or whatever full of corn,grains and chemicals. All our doges were large till these last two and not a one lived less than 14.They did get good treats now and then.They loved Thanksgiving scraps.
I think its in the genes and breeding, ours were mutts adopted dogs.
Our vet for past 22 years still says " I don't know what yall do,but keep doing it".
 
We have 5 cats, 4 of which are over 10 years old. Our oldest is 14 and has hyperthyroidism. She is to eat a grain free diet higher in protein than standard kibble. The vet says canned/frozen raw is preferred but the other cats are plump and on a diet while she is to be fed on demand. I try to feed they raw/freeze dried food. The brand is Instinct. They sell a kibble based raw food that is high in protein. It comes with or without the freeze dried raw nuggets. You can get the freeze dried nuggets seperate to add to any food you chose to fed. The protein I prefer feeding the cats is duck or rabbit. I feed chicken or turkey if I can't get the other protein sources. They do make a lamb, salmon and beef cat kibble but I only get those in wet food form. I do give them fresh wheat grass. I grow it for them in a stainless sprouter. They enjoy it.

As for our 2 dogs I feed them a dry kibble with a tablespoon of wet food topper. I feed the Kirkland Nature's Domain kibble since it is grain free and most kibbles give the girls tummy upset. They got the worst hershey squirts when they ate the Pedigree at my folks house. I give them freeze dried raw nuggets from time to time and frozen raw in the summer.

My opinion is grains are fillers used by the manufactures to cut costs. Yes, in the wild carnivores do eat grains and vegetation but that is from the stomachs of their prey animals or if they have digestion issues and need to vomit.

As for the vets pushing the sciency diets for pets... they get a kick back from sales. I go to a vet that does not sell any foods in their office. They will order prescription foods if needed or asked but they do not keep any in stock. They make recommendations about foods when asked but they do not push any type or brand unsolicited.

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My folks use to feed Kirklands too and they had a Brittany that lived to be 16. If you know anything about Brittanys you know a healthy one lives to be 7-9. They have some issues with their current pair of Brittanys having skin issues (from dog park) so they are following the vet's recommendation.
 
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Average life span for a doberman is 10 years. Mine lived to be 14 on P U R I N A P R O P L A N. I used it because the local dog rescue uses it. Does it have the best ingredients? No, but it isn't that bad. I've used Nutro and other higher end stuff before but I don't think they were any better.

As for cats... they're supposed to catch their own food. 😂
 
Spikedriver said:
Average life span for a doberman is 10 years. Mine lived to be 14 on P U R I N A P R O P L A N. I used it because the local dog rescue uses it. Does it have the best ingredients? No, but it isn't that bad. I've used Nutro and other higher end stuff before but I don't think they were any better.

As for cats... they're supposed to catch their own food. 😂
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When we lived in the cabin the cats did catch their own food- mice in the basement. But they are indoor kitties so they can only catch the odd fly now and then that Roo lets in the house when she leaves doors open. I'd be fine with them eating flies except they'd need more frequent deworming treatments. Damn flies give them worms...
 
Spikedriver said:
Average life span for a doberman is 10 years. Mine lived to be 14 on P U R I N A P R O P L A N. I used it because the local dog rescue uses it. Does it have the best ingredients? No, but it isn't that bad. I've used Nutro and other higher end stuff before but I don't think they were any better.
As for cats... they're supposed to catch their own food. 😂
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Spike, you know dogs are supposed to catch their own food too.
@Grimm I know of a couple who feed their cats wild rabbit. It is delivered to them frozen and they boil it up and that's all I know. Apparently their cats are healthy.
Grimm said:
My opinion is grains are fillers used by the manufactures to cut costs.
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I hadn't thought of that specific reason but makes sense to me.
Our black lab's diet was Nutro most of her life and the vets are telling me that kind of food has always been on recall. (I can vouch for that). I switched her to Simply Nourish but she ended up with cancer.
Simply Nourish is what current pupper dog gets too. She is 9. So which did it, Nutro or Simply Nourish?

PLUS, I asked the vet today about giving the cat organ meats, like the livers and giblets from chicken. The vet sounded like a rehearsed script. Boiled chicken breast is what you should give your cat, with white rice, if she is having a digestive upset. I asked again. Same answer. Would not discuss the nutritional value of organ meats for pets.
dancing chicken
I know some of these foods are very expensive. Both pets seem fed up with their current choices but eat it anyway. :)
 
Dogs need a diet like people, cats, well they are carnivores and need more protein.
If I added rice a dog would get along quite well on my diet. I don't have to deal with cats anymore.
 
We've had 2 Golden Retrievers. 1st one almost made it to 16. The other is 12.5. Both mostly have ate Purina One Lamb and Rice. Both seemed to have trouble with some foods, but neither ever has with what we feed.
Both LOVE/D bread of any kind.
 
Amish Heart said:
Patch...chicken organ meat is not expensive if you butcher chickens. We had a wheelbarrow full of guts and feathers last week. I think the livers were given to my cousin Harry.
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Yep, you can buy a little container of livers at the grocery for less than $2! The dog and cat love livers and hang out near the kitchen, waiting for theirs. (I cook it).
 
I really don't like liver. Cats eat whatever. I watched JayRod eat the guts out of a rat he caught. Barn cats should still be fed catfood. They don't stay healthy just eating wild stuff. I feed the barn cats, and they still will mouse.
 
Amish Heart said:
I really don't like liver. Cats eat whatever. I watched JayRod eat the guts out of a rat he caught. Barn cats should still be fed catfood. They don't stay healthy just eating wild stuff. I feed the barn cats, and they still will mouse.
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When I had barn cats they got the cheapest crap Walmart had for sale. I fed the enough that they stuck around, but not enough to make them comfortable. But they weren't really pets, they were there for rodent control.

When I had a pet cat she got taste of the wild cat food, but that was mostly because she was skinny and had a hard time putting on weight. The good food didn't help and the vet never could figure out why. The cat had some kind of nervous breakdown one day, started acting weird and bolted out the door. Never saw her again. Kind of sad because she was a housecat and I'm sure she didn't make it more than a week or two out in the real world...☹️
 
That is sad. These cats I think are our neighbors. But they came over here. So they get food and water, and they get attention. But they don't get to come in. Noticed granddaughter put a soft blanket on one of the rocking chairs on the porch for them. It's getting cold at night. But they can sleep in the barn in the straw, or even in the milkhouse if they want. The greenhouse is pretty warm.
 
The dog got a treat tonight. I fixed her shrimp, scallops, squid, and veggies all in a savoury sauce. She seemed rather pleased. Okay, I didn't exactly fix it. I dropped a container of oriental takeout and it landed upside-down. She still liked it and made my cleanup a lot easier.
 
Caribou said:
The dog got a treat tonight. I fixed her shrimp, scallops, squid, and veggies all in a savoury sauce. She seemed rather pleased. Okay, I didn't exactly fix it. I dropped a container of oriental takeout and it landed upside-down. She still liked it and made my cleanup a lot easier.
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Dogs are good like that. I used to call my dog the pre-dishwasher. Never had to scrub any caked on food off a dish with him around and never had to clean up a kitchen spill either...
 
Patchouli said:
Spike, you know dogs are supposed to catch their own food too.
@Grimm I know of a couple who feed their cats wild rabbit. It is delivered to them frozen and they boil it up and that's all I know. Apparently their cats are healthy.

I hadn't thought of that specific reason but makes sense to me.
Our black lab's diet was Nutro most of her life and the vets are telling me that kind of food has always been on recall. (I can vouch for that). I switched her to Simply Nourish but she ended up with cancer.
Simply Nourish is what current pupper dog gets too. She is 9. So which did it, Nutro or Simply Nourish?

PLUS, I asked the vet today about giving the cat organ meats, like the livers and giblets from chicken. The vet sounded like a rehearsed script. Boiled chicken breast is what you should give your cat, with white rice, if she is having a digestive upset. I asked again. Same answer. Would not discuss the nutritional value of organ meats for pets.
dancing chicken
I know some of these foods are very expensive. Both pets seem fed up with their current choices but eat it anyway. :)
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I always liked Instinct because they use organ meat. They use to make a cheaper (but still high end) basic kibble but they no longer make lower end food. That says something about a company. Instinct Pet Food | The Raw Brand. And, NO I do not work for them or get any kind of payment for recommending this brand. I just have great results with this food.

Instinct is a bit pricey but seeing as how you can get discounts and rewards from places like Petco for using their automatic delivery service (which you can totally customize and even skip orders) I find it affordable. I get our cat litter this way and it is even cheaper than buying the same size bag and brand at Walmart. Plus the delivery is free even on single item orders. I shop the deals for my pets so I can get the best I can afford but at discount prices.

You could always top the pets food with the freeze dried raw from Instinct. They sell 2oz bags of various meats (including rabbit) that come with a $2 off coupon for a larger bag.

I never liked Nutro. I fed it to our previous corgis and the cardi had skin issues only when he ate it. I did like Natural Balance. They use to make food for carnivores in zoos but I just looked up their products and found they are owned by Smuckers now. I noticed a lot of the brands we had great results with are owned but crap companies now like Purina owns Merrick and Castor Pullox.
 
Just came home from taking our cat, Alice, to the vet for her vaccines. The vet said Alice needs a diet (already know this) and wants her on a wet/canned/frozen raw food diet only. He said that cats being strict carnivores can't digest carbs (grains and vegetation) the way dogs can and their bodies turn it into fat. He said even high protein kibbles have a large amount of carbs and are a no-no for cats.
 
We've been trying to switch kitty to Hills but she will not eat it. We mix it in, she eats around it. Prefers blue buffalo. Have been giving her a portion of canned once or twice a day as well. I think she's losing weight, which is good cuz she's a tubbalard. Seems frisky, friendly and happy enough so I'm not going to worry about the weight loss.
I hope Alice enjoys her new diet, Grimm. Let us know how it goes.
 
Amish Heart said:
Patch...chicken organ meat is not expensive if you butcher chickens. We had a wheelbarrow full of guts and feathers last week. I think the livers were given to my cousin Harry.
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Amish be kind ya know some of us are city slickers that think meat comes from the store not real animals.Mr.meer knows the difference ' nothing was safe from their table'but I'm still 'sensitive'.

 
OK, the power-ball is up to 192 million. You take the cash payout... you get about half... you pay 50% in taxes (state and federal) so you get 48 million. Wow! that first 144 million went fast! ;) Now you need to get some land and a home and a tractor and a truck. You are left with a decision... do you take a vacation or put the rest in an investment so you can pay the taxes, licenses and insurance on all your stuff... You need to buy some cattle, pigs, chickens and other future food sources and you need to educate yourself on how to keep them healthy and pay the vet when they get sick or to prevent them from getting sick. You might want some spending money from the interest account with enough interest left over to build on the principal. You need to set aside some for the church and liability insurance so someone can't take it away from you in a law suit. How much are you going to have left? Well if you aren't silly with your purchases you can end up with about 35 million. That is enough that the interest will support you and your ranch/farm with some left over to add to the principal each year so your income will stay close to the inflation as long as the government doesn't raise your property taxes too fast.
 
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