I am feeding Nahli about 2 cups per day 1 in the morning 1 at night, at 12 weeks. She poops regulary and its good in consistancy and color. Im currently using some Rachel Ray grain free food at the moment but am about to switch over to Simply Nourish puppy - chicken + potato, grain free. Has blue berrys and other healthy ingrediants. Im wondering what food is BEST for her. Ive heard nothing but good things about the Simply Nourish food.

Thanks

Welcome to the forum Jared......The Simply line isn't a bad food, it's a Petsmart brand, so be watchful of recalls. I also think you can get a somewhat better quality food for as good of a price, seemed expensive to pay $28 for 11 pounds of food. If you are limited to Petsmart, I would go with that or Natural Balance, anything else they offer on the website, so I assume it's also the only items available at the store I would not feed. Natural Balance has been consistently ranking 5 stars at most dog food sites, the Simply a 4.

There are tiers of good dog foods, the Simply line I view it as a quality kibble, Natural Balance used to be a mid quality, but it is ranking as a high quality. My recommendation....Fromm, Earthborn, Acana to be on the top end of quality, Taste of the Wild, Diamond, Nature's Domain(if you have a Costco), 4Health (if you have a Tractor Supply) would be mid quality.....I would stick to mid quality or better.

MiyasMomma wrote:

Welcome to the forum Jared......The Simply line isn't a bad food, it's a Petsmart brand, so be watchful of recalls. I also think you can get a somewhat better quality food for as good of a price, seemed expensive to pay $28 for 11 pounds of food. If you are limited to Petsmart, I would go with that or Natural Balance, anything else they offer on the website, so I assume it's also the only items available at the store I would not feed. Natural Balance has been consistently ranking 5 stars at most dog food sites, the Simply a 4.

There are tiers of good dog foods, the Simply line I view it as a quality kibble, Natural Balance used to be a mid quality, but it is ranking as a high quality. My recommendation....Fromm, Earthborn, Acana to be on the top end of quality, Taste of the Wild, Diamond, Nature's Domain(if you have a Costco), 4Health (if you have a Tractor Supply) would be mid quality.....I would stick to mid quality or better.

What are your thoughts on Blue Wilderness puppy kibble? (To avoid starting another thread regarding the same question)

Some dogs do ok, some don't. Blue tends to be a high protein like Orijen, which in reality, should be considered for adult working dogs. Personally I have had better success with under 30% protein, and recommend 23-28% (right around there), my current pup is doing better at 25%. Many dogs go through constant battles with loose stools, imo, can be attributed to the high protein %.

with that said Blue was recently sued for misrepresenting their food. Claiming grain free,, when corn has been found, and claiming no by products, again, determined to include. For the price of Blue, Fromm, Acana, Earthborne are much better choice.

@Loki_Weston, take a look at my 'Recall' which I try to keep updated.

Also, primarily, for general information about dog food, take a look at DogFoodAdvisor. They rate different dog food - but be aware that they do it based on the package label and some labels have been (intentionally?) misleading.

aljones wrote:

@Loki_Weston, take a look at my (wont let me quote external link) l which I try to keep updated.

Also, primarily, for general information about dog food, take a look at (wont let me reply with external link in reply).  They rate different dog food - but be aware that they do it based on the package label and some labels have been (intentionally?) misleading.

 Unfortunately i am in Canada and the Fromm and Acana is harder to find in my area. However the local Pet Value has the adult Earthborne and told me today they can order the puppy formula. We talked to the vet and he advised us to avoid switching foods again so quickly, so i think we will finish the bag of BWP and transition him over to Earthborne ASAP.

 I was not aware of the lawsuit regarding Blue and i guess i should have investigated further into the brand. We really wanted to feed him a high quality kibble and under some internet reviews and the advice from a few Petsmart employees we went with BB. Thank you for the advice and we will be special ordering him Earthborne Puppy!

**Edit** It seems Earthborne does not offer a grain free puppy formula! They do have TOTW in stock, and a boutique shop in town says they carry Fromm and Arcana, so i will have to go and see exactly which lines they stock. Unless its ok to use an "All life stages" kibble?

All life stage food is fine for a puppy, since huskies are a medium breed dog. If you think he will be above breed standard, say over 60-65 pounds as an adult then I would suggest a large breed puppy food. Taste of the wild is what I am more familiar with, they have 2 puppy foods and 3 all life stage, and then they have 3 or 4 adult only, the key with a non puppy food, or as is stated all life stage is to get one that lists feeding instructions for puppies. If it only has feeding instructions for adults do not use. so for an example...TOTW all life stage is....Pine Forrest, Southwest Canyon, and Sierra Mountain, they have Pacific Stream Puppy and High Prairie Puppy. Both puppy formulas and the Southwest canyon are a smaller kibble, the Sierra Mountain is a slightly larger kibble, I have not tried the Pine Forrest yet. I opted to go with the all life stage since my pup inhaled her food, and the slightly larger kibble of the Sierra Mountain made her chew her food. You will have to look at the other brands, since I am not as familiar with them. Fromm Heartland Gold Large breed puppy is grain free and perfectly fine to feed, if you can get that. I am shocked you can not find Acana easily, since it is a Canadian made food, they have just started switching over their formulas, and it is not easily available to me, so I can't help you on which is more appropriate for pups, their website is also a little difficult, since I am thinking they are switching to all life stage for their blends, and can not really find any puppy food info. Hope that helps you out.

My vet told me at the time I got Kohdi (as a puppy) that yes, all life stages is fine. And I don't have any argument with that. He did however suggest that while Kohdi is a puppy, to feed him puppy food. Puppy food (according to him) is higher in nutrients that support better brain development, stronger bones, etc...basically the things you want your puppy to have to serve him well as an adult. To me, and it's only my opinion, I have no fact to base it on, all life stages food is ok, no harm done, but basically has just enough to get the puppy by whereas a puppy food is specially formulated to give the puppy everything he needs in an amount that is proper for a growing puppy.