Going Grain-Free in a Dog

Do you have a Tractor Supply near you? Their 4Health brand is really well rated and they have grain free options. They also carry several other well-know brands with grain free options. The prices are cheaper than Pet Smart or PetCo.

My pup, Bailey, has been on Halo Spots Stew grain-free dog food for almost two years and she loves it. I buy it either from Amazon or Petco. She likes the chicken flavor the best, and she loves the wet food. My cats also eat the Halo Spots Stew wet and dry cat food and won't eat anything else.

When researching dog food, I found that this site incredibly helpful.

Dog Food Advisor

You can search for a grain free dog food and then read the review. There is also a forum if you have any questions or want some feedback about your pup's ear infections.

We feed Earthborn Holistic Coastal Catch. It's a fish based protein (supposedly easier on the stomach-our dog is a puker) and so far so good. The pet store here will take back opened food if your dog doesn't like it.

We use Taste of the Wild too my dogs gobbled it down, mine are labs and those things eat anything but they are healthy and there coats are beautiful .

Tucker ate Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream food (kibble with a little wet food added texture) and Wagatha’s treats from Vermont. Those come in a huge variety of flavors and he loved them all.

We feed ours Wellness core. He eats a salmon based food because the chicken one was too much for his stomach.

Have you thought about cooking for your dog.

I throw beef/chicken/sweet potatoes and brown rice into a large crock pot. I add all kinds of vegetables at the end. You can omit the rice.

I buy everything at Costco or the grocery store on sale.

My 70 pound dog loves it. She’s thriving.

My lab eats the 4Health grain free large breed food from Tractor Supply.  

As far as food goes, she's always been on the grain free.  Treats is another story, but we're working to get her grain free there too.  I'm currently treating her for an ear infection.

I have a 50 lb Shephard mix who had ear infections and poops not formed well. Vet recommended going grain and chicken free. We switched to Natural Balance bison and sweet potato. Both issues cleared up immediately. It's well worth the money.

Our dog had a corn allergy. So we went grain/corn free. We used Taste of the wild, and blue buffalo I think it was. It helped greatly. Unfortunately the little stinker would walk all the way out to the pasture and eat the horse's grain! We always knew when he was doing it, as he would lose all the hair around his eyes.

Is there any groups in your city that help the homeless with pets? They could probably use it.

I have an allergy dog. We actually tested her for environmental and are trying immunotherapy injections currently. With that said we've gone round and round with food, thinking food allergies. I'm pretty sure she's allergic to chicken and I found in my research that chicken is a common allergen. The other thing they suggest is a protein they haven't had before.

We tried a strict diet to try to see if she had food allergies first. They have prescription food or you could certainly try it with regular brands, but the KEY to it is 60 days strict food only. So her treat jar just had kibble in it because she needed to be strictly on one food (no flavored heartworm/flea either.)

Good luck, allergies are no fun. And just to add interest, we have a 2nd dog who like your dog turns his nose up at half of what we feed them. He's kind of funny, the other dog had tummy troubles and vet prescribed probiotics for a short time this summer. He sometimes waits and will eat only if I put some probiotic on his food....just cause he likes it that way

I have no idea as to what our dog or the cat eats. I do know our payments to Pet Smart is about the same as our expenditures at Safeway.
Anyhow, this reminded me of a story; Yesterday I was at my local Wal-Mart buying a large bag of Purina dog chow for my loyal pet, Biscuit, the Wonder Dog and was in the checkout line when woman behind me asked if I had a dog.

What did she think I had, an elephant? So since I'm retired and have little to do, on impulse I told her that no, I didn't have a dog, I was starting the Purina Diet again. I added that I probably shouldn't, because I ended up in the hospital last time, but that I'd lost 50 pounds before I awakened in an intensive care ward with tubes coming out of most of my orifices and IVs in both arms.

I told her that it was essentially a perfect diet and that the way that it works is to load your pants pockets with Purina nuggets and simply eat one or two every time you feel hungry. The food is nutritionally complete so it works well and I was going to try it again. (I have to mention here that practically everyone in line was now enthralled with my story.) Horrified, she asked if I ended up in intensive care because the dog food poisoned me. I told her no, I stepped off a curb to sniff an Irish Setter's butt and a car hit us both.

I thought the guy behind her was going to have a heart attack he was laughing so hard, and now Wal-Mart won't let me shop there anymore.