Larger kibble size and grain free??

[Anthony8858]

Last week, my local food merchant was generous enough to give me a bag of TOTW Grain free for Kira. I was in between foods, and he offered to let me see how she likes it.

She loves it.. HOWEVER, I'm very much aware of it's deficiencies, and do intend to change.
The grain free food gave me immediate results with firm stools, no more flatulence, blah blah.

However, she loves it SO MUCH, that she doesn't even chew it. I thought I was crazy, but she devoured her meal in a minute. She literally licked it up, without a single chew of a kibble.

Since she likes TOTW, but TOTW is not the most recommended, what would be the closest kibble to TOTW, but with larger bits?

[jocoyn]

Why does the kibble size matter? Chewing kibble does not really do anything for the teeth.

[Anthony8858]

Originally Posted by jocoyn

Why does the kibble size matter? Chewing kibble does not really do anything for the teeth.

OK, wasn't sure if it matters or not. I'm applying some human logic to the equation.

What I'm finding is that Kira's appetite is voracious on the TOTW, and I'm attributing it to having something to do with hocking her food down, and not having a satisfactory chew experience

I always felt that dogs needed to satisfy their urge to chew.

[jocoyn]

I dont think so dogs bolt their food as quickly as possible. ........ they are not really designed for chewing, just crushing and tearing as in small bones. .. if you have ever watched one eat a leg quarter it is a pretty fast operation.

[Anthony8858]

Originally Posted by jocoyn

I dont think so dogs bolt their food as quickly as possible. ........ they are not really designed for chewing, just crushing and tearing as in small bones. .. if you have ever watched one eat a leg quarter it is a pretty fast operation.

Thanks for clearing that up.

I won't have to watch Animal Planet this evening

[Emoore]

I'm thinking Kira is too young for most grain-frees due to the calcium content? Whichever food you settle on, keep an eye on the calcium.

[chicagojosh]

TOTW is great food. nothing wrong with feedin that...I feed high prairire formula most often, but switch it up among the TOTW flavors

[jprice103]

If you go with TOTW, you might want to choose the Sierra Mountain (lamb based version) as it is lower in calcium/phosphorus/protein than the other versions...and would be more appropriate for a puppy.

[jocoyn]

Well if you want to go grain free - Diamond makes both Natural Balance and TOTW.
NB LID (single protein, grain free) is closer to the numbers you would want to see on calcium etc. though you hear it may not be as single protein as suggested so I think the recallissue a few years ago had to do with a NON LID formulation, not the LID.

......... I am happy with Fromm and it does have grain.

[sable123]

Originally Posted by jocoyn

Why does the kibble size matter? Chewing kibble does not really do anything for the teeth.

The size of the kibble and the speed a dog eats are related to bloat risk.

Naturally, a large kibble allows the dog to eat without ingesting so much air and slows the dog down dramatically. Large pieces are much more natural for a large dog to eat.

These two factors are among the few that have survived the original conclusions of the first Bloat Survey.

Labradors are the worst at this and a very large kibble like Royal Canin slows them down better than anything I have seen.