Kibble Feeders: Who DOESN'T feed grain-free? Why?

[Ken Clean-Air System]

There are some great grain-free foods, and there are some great grain inclusive foods. Just as there are some bad grain-free foods and there are some bad grain inclusive foods. In my opinion, it's all about the amount of protein that comes from meat and the quality of the ingredients.

I feed grain-free, and Jazz does great on it, but not because I think that grain-free is superior in any way to a good quality kibble that includes grains. Feed what works for your dog whether it includes grains or not. That your dog does well on the food you feed is the most important thing.

[GusGus]

I used to feed iams, and I switched to BB Wilderness Salmon. He did okay on iams until he stopped eating it. I wasn't exactly looking for grain free, but that's what i ended up with. He loves it, his poops are now good (smaller and firm) and his coat seems a tad softer.

[Packen]

My dogs do super on Canidae and raw. The grain and grain free variety of the kibble made ZERO difference I think it is overrated and people tend to imagine dramatic improvements one way or the other. Unless off course the dog has allergy issues or what not.

[Shaolin]

Honestly, the only reason I switched to Grain Free was to put a little weight on Finn. We were originally feeding Kibbles and Bits, but if he went even a small amount over the recommended amount, he would get severe diarrhea. After a lot of conversation between our vet and his breeder, we figured he was sensitive to either the sugar in the food or the dyes that made the food those pretty colors.

We switched to BB Wilderness purely out of chance. We bought a bag of BB and a bag of TOTW. He loved the BB and turned his nose up at the TOTW. He gained the recommended amount of weight and his stools are better, but if it weren't for the issue with the diarrhea, I'm sure we'd still have K&B in the house.

[Rua]

Originally Posted by Packen

My dogs do super on Canidae and raw. The grain and grain free variety of the kibble made ZERO difference I think it is overrated and people tend to imagine dramatic improvements one way or the other. Unless off course the dog has allergy issues or what not.

I did see a huge difference when I put Juno on grain free and raw when she was a puppy, but that was because she was on Pedigree when I first got her, and she was severely allergic to it at the time. You are right, though...sometimes people can be overly swayed by the hype and be totally drawn into the placebo effect with this sort of thing.

Right now, my decision is becoming more of a financial one. I would be leaving the dogs on Purizon if it weren't for the dreadful SBDs that last for hours after eating it and the fact that Juno seems to have eat gallons of it to keep her weight from dropping. It doesn't help that she easily tires of her food whether RAW or kibble. She's such a drama queen sometimes.

Bowser will eat anything and everything. So I never have to worry about him getting bored with food like Juno does.

[Packen]

Oh yeah, maintaining proper weight is huge for my 2. Both lead very active lifestyles and need a high calorie diet just to maintain weight. Trick is to find something that works well for the dog and then stick to it.

[Jax08]

Originally Posted by Packen

My dogs do super on Canidae and raw. The grain and grain free variety of the kibble made ZERO difference I think it is overrated and people tend to imagine dramatic improvements one way or the other. Unless off course the dog has allergy issues or what not.

I tend to agree. I think many of the "grain free's" are still so loaded with sugars from rice, potatoes, veges, beets, fruits, that it makes little difference.

[Jax08]

Originally Posted by Emoore

This exactly. I tried it, but I haven't seen the much-touted benefits of grain-free. I'm glad you have, but let's try not to judge the one's that haven't.

And WHERE have you been, Miss Emily? I've missed you!

[fuzzybunny]

Originally Posted by llombardo

I don't fee grain free. I was going to switch, but why would I if the dogs are healthy, like the food, have a nice coat, and poop is good. They are doing well with what they eat and I doubt I'll change it. We are all comfortable

Exactly this.

[Freestep]

Grain-free kibble isn't needed for all dogs. Some do just fine with grains.

Right now I am feeding Nature's Domain which happens to be grain-free; I didn't buy it *because* it's grain-free, just think it's a great food (especially for the price). But I sometimes switch to Diamond Naturals which has rice and barley. My dogs have done great on both. I do try to avoid corn and wheat.

I feed raw also, but unfortunately I can't afford to go 100% raw. Raw is great for the cats, but my 11 year old GSD tends to drop weight when on raw, so she gets mostly kibble.

I didn't see a poll option for "both kinds of kibble and raw", so I didn't vote.