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Barnyard Buddies:  Dog and Cat food?  |
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babysmama
True Blue Farmgirl
931 Posts
Elizabeth
Iowa
931 Posts |
 Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 6:29:47 PM
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What brands of dog and cat food do you use? I notice our kitty box stinks and know that more expensive brands help cut down on the odor, as well as the fact that one of our cats gets hairballs and also gets UTI if she has cheap food.
Our dog is a large breed dog and I'm nervous about buying her expensive food because I wonder how much she will go through and how high our bill will be? She is getting older though (six years old now) and I know the cheap stuff isn't good. So does anyone have suggestions on good quality dog and cat food that doesn't cost an arm and a leg?
-Elizabeth |
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KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 6:35:00 PM
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Well, I wish I could help, Elizabeth--our dog food just jumped $5.00 in one week! I buy a 40 lb. bag of Diamond lamb and rice for our 4 large dogs--it lasts us 2 weeks on the dot, and our dogs are very healthy. It WAS $24.95, now it's $29.95. I will probably still continue to buy it, though, because my dogs do very well on it, and well, I could blow $5.00 in my sleep 
We also use the Diamond cat maintenance as it's the only dry that our cats will eat. It's $15.00 per 20 lb. This is gross, but the don't "borrow" food as much on this type of food. I have 3 cats and it seems to last and last (2 feedings a day).
Farmgirl Sister #80, thanks to a very special farmgirl from the Bluegrass..."She was built like a watch, a study in balance ... with a neck and head so refined, like a drawing by DaVinci"...
NY Newsday sportswriter Bill Nack describing filly, Ruffian.
http://www.buyhandmade.org/ |
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babysmama
True Blue Farmgirl
931 Posts
Elizabeth
Iowa
931 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 6:51:09 PM
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It is funny that you mention the Diamond brand of food since I just purchased the Diamond Cat Maintenance at our tractor supply store today. It was $12.98 for a 20 lb. bag. I didn't know if it was a good brand of food or not, it's nice to hear of other cats doing well on it. I hope that they like it and it is pretty affordable, compared to some other brands that are $8+ for just six pounds of food. SOme of the prices on animal food is insane! I will have to check out the Diamond dog food prices and see how our dog likes it.
-Elizabeth |
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KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 6:55:37 PM
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That's funny! I have a female cat who has terrible allergies (the vet said to wheat), and the vet put her on this million dollar food for about a year with ABSOLUTELY no change in her health, so I took her off of it and started them all on Diamond Maintenance, and she's absolutely perfect. No more issues whatsoever. That's been 4 years ago.
My guys (both dogs and cats) will eat it without "bonus" moist food, so I know it at least tastes good to them :) How large is your dog?
Tractor Supply is a bit cheaper than our local feed store where I buy ours, but I like to support them. For a few bucks, it's worth it to run two blocks on my lunch hour than fight rushour traffic to our suburbs :)...
Farmgirl Sister #80, thanks to a very special farmgirl from the Bluegrass..."She was built like a watch, a study in balance ... with a neck and head so refined, like a drawing by DaVinci"...
NY Newsday sportswriter Bill Nack describing filly, Ruffian.
http://www.buyhandmade.org/ |
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babysmama
True Blue Farmgirl
931 Posts
Elizabeth
Iowa
931 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 7:03:55 PM
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Our dog is a St. Bernard/German Shepherd mix, and last week at the vet weighed in at 118 lbs. She is a big baby though and when she is inside (usually just during the hottest or coldest days of the year since she seems to prefer outside and our house is tiny!) she lets the cats boss her around. It's funny!
-Elizabeth |
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KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 7:07:12 PM
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She sounds adorable!!! We have a 115 lb German Shepherd, so I know what you mean about eating alot, but like I said, that 40 lb. lasts 4 dogs (65, 72, 35 and 115 lbs) for two weeks, so it should do your big ole' darling just fine! Our big girl, Rose, likes to TRY to boss the cats, but every now and again she gets a chunk taken out of her VERY long, nosy nose :)
Farmgirl Sister #80, thanks to a very special farmgirl from the Bluegrass..."She was built like a watch, a study in balance ... with a neck and head so refined, like a drawing by DaVinci"...
NY Newsday sportswriter Bill Nack describing filly, Ruffian.
http://www.buyhandmade.org/ |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 7:41:06 PM
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We feed the dogs (2 bassets...one old and one middle aged and one very old mini weiner dog) Pedigree small bites. I get the big bags at Costco when I get there or walmart (which I hate to do but but it is $7 cheaper than our local grocery store for the 40 lb. bag!) when I can't get to Costco. It is about 18.95 at Walmart for a big bag and the one at Costco is bigger yet and is a good deal. I wish I could get there more often but I am lucky to get there once a month or even less. They have always done really well on Pedigree. It was recomended to me by our vet when we lived in Calif. I feel sort of bad that the cats are treated like second class citizens...they get Ally cat in the big bags since half the neighborhood cats eat on our mud room porch too..We go through ALOT of cat food when we only have 3 ordinary sized cats!! We only have one house cat (out of those 3) and she eats the same but eats inside the house. She is more than a little spoiled by my husband..who is more of a cat person (I am partial to dogs, cows and chickens myself) and gets alot of human food too.
Jenny in Utah
Proud Farmgirl sister #24
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
Edited by - Aunt Jenny on Jul 17 2008 7:42:26 PM |
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nubidane
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Lisa
Georgetown
OH
2900 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 7:53:55 PM
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Jonni
We feed Diamond too, on the recommendation of my Dane friend who has bred many champions & used all of the designer foods. I find it to be a consistent food for all my dogs.. Good poopies etc..
I just about cracked up when I read your post about the price..Right when I read it Jim came in & said "Do you know how much I just paid for that new bag of dog food??" |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2008 : 10:56:00 PM
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I don't think I have ever seen Diamond brand here..is it not in the rocky mountain states do you think??
Jenny in Utah
Proud Farmgirl sister #24
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 03:39:05 AM
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For the dog I feed Wellness and Merrick products.
They const a bit more, but worth it if it keeps my dog healthy and cancer free.
For the cats, they stay outside now, so fresh mice and baby bunnies are on the menu. I do feed mainstream catfood though (boo-hiss) just cause I'm afraid to pour expensive food into an animal that could easily disappear tomorrow. If I have to fall back on a brand, its usually Purina. |
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babysmama
True Blue Farmgirl
931 Posts
Elizabeth
Iowa
931 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 05:14:42 AM
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Aunt Jenny, you can google Diamond dog/cat food and find their site. Then just type in your zip and find a store near you. I did my zip code and it showed several stores but it is funny because the one store I got it at didn't even show up. By looking at the site though you can see the bags of food and may realize that you have seen it, just didn't reconize the name.
-ELizabeth |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
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KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 10:45:35 AM
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Jenny, I don't know if you've found it yet, but here is the direct link with testimonials and all that jazz. I just know our guys do very well on it and I used to buy extra high end foods, but it would sit in the bowl for days, or overall, I didn't see any real benefit to their systems.
http://www.diamondpet.com/
*Lisa* that totally makes me laugh! Jim and I said the EXACT same thing!!! I came in and said to Justin, "Do you know how much our dog food has gone up???"
Farmgirl Sister #80, thanks to a very special farmgirl from the Bluegrass..."She was built like a watch, a study in balance ... with a neck and head so refined, like a drawing by DaVinci"...
NY Newsday sportswriter Bill Nack describing filly, Ruffian.
http://www.buyhandmade.org/ |
Edited by - KYgurlsrbest on Jul 18 2008 10:51:14 AM |
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lisamarie508
True Blue Farmgirl
2648 Posts
Lisa
Idaho City
ID
USA
2648 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 11:04:00 AM
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That link says I can buy Diamond brand at D&B in Meridian and Garden City. We don't get down to the valley very often. Like Aunt Jenny, we go down for shopping and such about once a month or longer if I can get away with it. People's driving habits down there scare me!
Anyway, I have been buying Purina Dog Chow for our dogs. We used to feed them Atta Boy but then they suddenly started getting sick and losing their dinner shortly after eating. So we switched in a hurry. We bought one more bag of Atta Boy after that and the same thing happened which only confirmed that it was the food.
Our dogs aren't all that big. But, Girlie Girl, our pit bull would eat non-stop if we let her. Her nickname is Hogdog. Cody, the border collie, is one of those dogs that has such a high metabolism that I feed him twice a day and he's still thin. His ribs and hips aren't showing or anything, but I'm so used to more fuller-looking dogs that I constantly worry that he's not getting enough. I've been assured by other border collie owners and the vet that he is perfectly normal. Both dogs have a wonderfully shiny coat and are in very good health (except for Girlie Girl's hips).
Farmgirl Sister #35
"If you can not do great things, do small things in a great way." Napoleon Hill (1883-1970)
my blog: http://lisamariesbasketry.blogspot.com/
My Website:
http://www.freewebs.com/lisamariesbasketry/index.htm |
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KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 11:16:13 AM
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Lisa, your pittie and my pittie are total opposites!!! My guy, Finn, only eats when I'm in the room. It's very odd...and most of the time, I'm not in the room, so the poor little guy must be hungry! He's just my shadow, I guess... Now, our lab and our shepherd will eat anything that's not tied down, and the beagle, Daisy Bad Seed sortof picks at food, and plays "goldilocks" with everyone else's bowl!
Sounds like your b.c. dog is just right. My friend Candice, has 4 and they are all the same way. They do agility and the eat like hogs, but they never gain a lb.!
Farmgirl Sister #80, thanks to a very special farmgirl from the Bluegrass..."She was built like a watch, a study in balance ... with a neck and head so refined, like a drawing by DaVinci"...
NY Newsday sportswriter Bill Nack describing filly, Ruffian.
http://www.buyhandmade.org/ |
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willowtreecreek
True Blue Farmgirl
4813 Posts
Julie
Russell
AR
USA
4813 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 11:33:54 AM
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My cat is trained to use the bathroom outdoors so we don't have a litter box issue. I have tried lots of catfood from organic to vet reccommended science diet but all my cat will eat is...Meow Mix!
Our dogs are MAstiffs. They eat Hunters Special.
Farmgirl Sister #17
Blog
www.willowtreecreek.wordpress.com
Felt and Fabric Crafts
www.willowartist.etsy.com
www.willowtreecreek.com
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lisamarie508
True Blue Farmgirl
2648 Posts
Lisa
Idaho City
ID
USA
2648 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 12:26:18 PM
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Jonni, wouldn't it just be great to have a metabolism like border collies? I know I'm dreaming. Your pit does the same thing our Cody does with playing outside. He chases the light that reflects off the windchime I have out there and he'll cry at the door until I let him out to play with it. But if I don't stay outside to watch him play, he barks to come back inside and then begs to go back out, again! If I stay out in the back yard, he'll play with that light reflection for hours.
Julie, I don't envy you feeding mastiffs. That's like feeding horses! They're great dogs, though.
Farmgirl Sister #35
"If you can not do great things, do small things in a great way." Napoleon Hill (1883-1970)
my blog: http://lisamariesbasketry.blogspot.com/
My Website:
http://www.freewebs.com/lisamariesbasketry/index.htm |
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eskimobirdlady
True Blue Farmgirl
700 Posts
connie
fairbanks
ak
USA
700 Posts |
Posted - Jul 18 2008 : 4:14:12 PM
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| when i had a dog i fed iams and found that while it was more expensive she didnt need as much to be nice and healthy. a side benefit is that there was much less poop to clean up since its not full of fillers! |
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KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Jul 19 2008 : 05:46:31 AM
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This may be "urban legend" or something, but I had heard from my feed store rep that the two brothers who startd Diamond, worked for the Iams Company and felt they could make the same quality product for less. I have never made an effort to research that (as we know, EVERYTHING on the internet is true :)), but it might not hurt to find that out :)
Farmgirl Sister #80, thanks to a very special farmgirl from the Bluegrass..."She was built like a watch, a study in balance ... with a neck and head so refined, like a drawing by DaVinci"...
NY Newsday sportswriter Bill Nack describing filly, Ruffian.
http://www.buyhandmade.org/ |
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eskimobirdlady
True Blue Farmgirl
700 Posts
connie
fairbanks
ak
USA
700 Posts |
Posted - Jul 19 2008 : 06:37:14 AM
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| very interesting point. when i find my new dog (been looking for years!) i will check out the diamond brand. this is the first time i have heard of it so it may not be available here. peace connie in alaska |
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Barnyard Buddies: Dog and Cat food? |
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Dog and Cat food?
