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Blue buffalo

9K views 19 replies 14 participants last post by  RubyTuesday 
#1 ·
I've been feeding my pup blue buffalo Basmati
Food
and I was wondering on what's everyone opinion on this brand of food and if there's something that would be better and healthier then what I'm giving him now. Thank you for y'all's time.


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#2 ·
I feed my GSD Blue Buffalo Wilderness - Large Breed. She loves it. Coat is shiny and stools are regular. I have no issues with their food. I have not tried the regular Blue Buffalo, but my breeder fed all of her GSD regular Blue Buffalo.
The best way to know is how your dog reacts to it and how excited he/she gets when you feed them.
 
#5 · (Edited)
I wouldn't feed BB if it was free. I wish I could find the BB thread I posted on a few years ago. I went through all kinds of hoops trying to find out their cal/pho levels. It's top secret which tells me they are too high.

They kept quoting what was on the bag which is only the minimums. THey would not reveal the maximums. If it was in range they would be happy to publish it. SOmeone commented on that thread that they use to work for them and they couldn't even find out.

There are better foods out there.

Found it: http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/diet-nutrition/145562-blue-buffalo-what-they-hiding.html
 
#19 · (Edited)
I agree, I would never feed any thing made by Blue. I suspect my last girl Died from BB. They had a recall from VIT D. The symptoms sure equal to what happened to my girl.

I am in the process of opening a holistic pet food franchise, Blue will not be in the store.

http://karensk9s.com/poisoned-treats-from-china-update/

Dog Food Brands That Source From China/Asia:

Solid Gold: Taurine in their food comes from China
Chicken Soup For The Dog Lover’s Soul: Some vitamins and minerals from China
Arthemis: Vitamins and minerals from China
Castor & Pollux Organics: Vitamins from China
Holistic Select: Vitamins and Glucosamine from China
Nature’s Recipe: vitamins and minerals sourced from “other countries” (which could be China)
Weruva: ALL ingredients sourced “overseas”
Eukanuba: Ingredients sourced from “world suppliers” (which could be China)
Iams: Ingredients sourced from “world suppliers” (which could be China)
Natural Planet’s Organics: Vitamin/Mineral premix from Asia (which can mean China)
PureVita: Vitamin/Mineral premix from Asia (which can mean China)
NutriSource: Vitamin/Mineral premix from Asia (which can mean China)
Nutro’s: Some Vitamins and minerals from China
Innova: Vitamins pre-mix component sourced from Europe
California Naturals: Vitamins pre-mix component sourced from Europe
Evo: Vitamins pre-mix component sourced from Europe
Nature’s Variety: Rabbit comes from China
Wellness: 6% of ingredients are purchased internationally ??????
Blue Buffalo: Some vitamins/minerals from reputable foreign suppliers (which can mean China)
Science Diet: Ingredients sourced from USA and other countries which can mean China
Petcurean: 1/100th of one percent of total finished diets are sourced from Asia (which can mean China)
Pup-Peroni: Ingredients sourced from U.S. and global suppliers (which can mean China)
Eagle Pack: Some Vitamins B’s and Glucosamine sourced from China
 
#7 ·
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I'm not a dogfood nutritionist, but I'm sure there are much worse foods out there with tons more non nutritional fillers than BB. Most companies that formulate thier formulas guard them with thier lives. It's in thier best interest not to put out sensitive formula information. I wouldn't think it has anything to do with being unhealthy levels. If you really want to know, sample the food and have it analized by a lab.

But yeh, I've fed BB almost all the way through with Cruz. He has done great on it. Started with puppy and now on Wilderness. His energy levels are great, coat is great. No real problems. Thing is, dog food topics are like car or people food topics. Everyones got opinions, and for me can make settling on one brand tougher. I just decided to stay with BB, as he has done well with it.
 
#9 ·
I didn't ask for their formula, only the cal/pho max levels. Some of the better foods show both min and max on their labels. You cannot tell me if they were in the correct range the would keep it secret. They would brag about it if they were. Yes there are worse foods then BB but there are certainly plenty of better ones, especially at their price range. BB price isn't due to their 'quaility' ingredients, it's because of their aggressive ad campaign. I jumped off that train immediately after discovering what kind of company they are. I've contacted other companies that did not have the max on their label and they gladly told me what their max cal/pho levels were. That info is not part of a 'sceret' formula.
 
#11 ·
I can understand your choice to not feed it. I don't particularly like that they aren't as transparent as some other companies, however, that isn't actually proof of wrongdoing on their part. My 14 year old has been on BB for years (on their BB Wilderness Senior currently) and has done well on it.

I'm currently feeding Fromm LBP for my GSD pup and have been happy with it, other than issues with having it shipped from Chewy and the puppy acting like something is wrong with the food (old? mildewed? I dunno). I CAN buy Fromm locally but hate to as the only store selling it has started selling 'purebred' puppies again.
 
#12 ·
If your puppy is doing well on Blue then keep at it. Its a good food, not all dogs do great on it (runny poos), but its working right for your individual pup. Sticking with this food that works is going to be better than playing the switch the kibble game. I feed Royal Canin right now and Rommel snarfs it, has a good coat, and normal poos. If that ever changes Blue and Fromm would be my next choices if we are not in a position to switch to raw.

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#13 ·
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Just because someone decides not to tell you thier name doesn't mean they are guilty of anything either. Sample the food and have it analized. It's that simple. The lab can tell you about anything you want to know.

An I was speaking in general terms as far as formulas go. Disclosing levels can tell you what? How much of something is in the formula. But just because one company puts out or shares info about thier formula does not make the other guilty of wrong doing or hiding anything bad.

Thats all I'm saying.
 
#14 ·
It's a moot point for me as I feed raw...well except one that won't touch it. He eats Earthborn and Fromm. It doesn't matter to me what people choose to feed. The OP specifically asked about BB and I gave my 2 cents. There is no need for anyone feeding it to get defensive. I won't feed a food unless I know the cal/pho levels are in range and after speaking with mulitple companies that disclosed their #'s with the one exception being BB, I choose to believe they are out of the recommended safe range.
 
#15 ·
Galathiel have you tried doggiefood.com? They ship out of Arlington. I have't had any issues with them shipping Fromm or Earthborn and they are cheaper than Pet Supply Plus AND shipping is free, my guess is the same for Petco if they carry it. I'm sure Petsmart doesn't, they pretty limited on the better brands.
 
#18 ·
BB is a great food, but it's one of those foods that the dog either does exceptionally well on it, or doesn't. Finn hasn't looked better since we started the BB, but Abi couldn't tolerate the formula at all and neither could our Collie or my parent's Chow/Husky. None of them could ever get over the nearly liquid stools.

Finn is on the Wilderness formula. I was concerned as we were going through a 50# bag of Kibbles and Bits with him per month and the biggest bag BB sells is 24#, but the better food made him eat less. A 24# bag gets us through a month with no issue. We even switched the cats over to Wilderness and they've had less hairballs and eat less.

If your pup is doing well, why rock the boat?
 
#20 ·
Regrettably, at one time China was the only source for many food vitamin/mineral supplements, including taurine. When I fed kibble, one of the things I liked about Nature's Logic, was that it met it's nutritional claims without added supplements. At that time it was one of the very few pet food companies (possibly the only 'major player') that could make that claim.

High cal/pho levels are an issue with growing pups, especially large/giant breeds, not adults. For this reason, when mine were youngsters, I was very particular about the cal/pho levels. After they were grown it simply wasn't a concern.
 
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