[key]

Hi everyone, I just ran across this forum while looking for another option for my pup. He's a cockerspaniel/poodle mix and he's 8 months now. He has been on Royal Canin mini puppy 33 since he was 10 wks, before that he was on royal canin baby, the transistion was seamless. now after a little research i'm noticing that there may be better options for him. i'm afraid of him having a harsh reaction but i think i'm leaning towards switching to blue buffalo which seems healthier and more cost effective than royal. any suggestions?

also i was thinking about adding wet food to his diet as a treat every now and then. when is a good age to start doing that?

thanks for any help or suggestions u may have!

key

 

[CorgiPaws]

Well first off, welcome to the forum! Glad you found our little community.:biggrin:

now after a little research i'm noticing that there may be better options for him.

Good for you for doing your research! Royal is not the worst food on the market, but it's definately far from the best, and wayyyyy overpriced for what you get. It's safe to say that you could improve the quality of your dog's diet, and save money while doing so.

i'm afraid of him having a harsh reaction but i think i'm leaning towards switching to blue buffalo which seems healthier and more cost effective than royal. any suggestions?

Some transitions are rougher than others, you were very lucky to have a seamless one the first go around, but with just a little time, most dogs adjust just fine to a new food. Blue Buffalo is definately a better quality food than the Royal, and because the big chain pet stores carry it, it's pretty easy to get, I think it would be a great alternative to what you're feeding now. (look at little mom and pop shops for better prices, even!)

If you don't mind spending a little more, Blue's Wilderness line is even better, and because it's more nutrient dense, you'd feed less of it. I'd say it's a pretty top-notch food, but the regular Blue line is decent as well, and still better than Royal.



There are about a million and a half options out there, and I'm sure you'll get replies to this thread giving list after list of them, so I won't even go there.
Remember with any kind of diet, variety is best, so it's a good idea to rotate the flavors/ formulas around a bit. If you want to stick with one brand, Blue does make several formulas to rotate, but you can also mix it up and rotate several different brands to get a good array of animal protein sources.

Hope I helped a little, and hope you stick around!!:biggrin:

 

[spookychick13]

Hello and welcome!

This is what we tell clients to do for a switch:
For the first week, mix 3/4 of the old stuff, 1/4 new
Next week 1/2 and 1/2
third week 3/4 new, 1/4 old
finally all the new stuff.
It seems to help ease the transition.
Putting a dollop of yogurt can help too.

We carry Royal Canin at our clinic, and while it is okay, I definitely think you'll prefer something else.
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I have heard good things about the Blue line, but never tried it in my kibble days.
I had good luck with Orijen for my puppy before I switched him off of kibble entirely. Good luck to you and feel free to ask any more questions!

p.s. We love pictures around here, so if you have any of your cockapoo, please share!!

 

[harrkim120]

Hi everyone, I just ran across this forum while looking for another option for my pup. He's a cockerspaniel/poodle mix and he's 8 months now. He has been on Royal Canin mini puppy 33 since he was 10 wks, before that he was on royal canin baby, the transistion was seamless. now after a little research i'm noticing that there may be better options for him. i'm afraid of him having a harsh reaction but i think i'm leaning towards switching to blue buffalo which seems healthier and more cost effective than royal. any suggestions?

also i was thinking about adding wet food to his diet as a treat every now and then. when is a good age to start doing that?

thanks for any help or suggestions u may have!

key

Welcome, welcome!

I totally agree with what CorgiPaws had to say...and I second the Wilderness line recommendation. Wellness Core is another good one. A lot of us around here are advocates for more grain-free diets as I'm sure you'll soon find out. lol

As for adding some wet food, it would be just fine to add at any age, however I'm not a huge fan of it. In my opinion, it tends to make the dog more picky and sometimes will result in the dog not wanting to eat dry anymore. Plus, to me, there just isn't a need for it when you have a healthy dog. ONE EXCEPTION: I do like the supplemental feeding only canned meats. They're a great, easy way to add some extra meat to their diet. These can also cause the dog to lose some interest in kibble, but so long as you're strict and feed the two separately, you should be fine. :smile:

Well first off, welcome to the forum! Glad you found our little community.:biggrin:

Surprisingly enough, the first result that pops up on Yahoo when you search for 'dog food forum' is this little community. :smile:

 

[Khan]

Welcome to the forum!!
There are alot of knowledgeable people eager to help.
Whatever you do, don't go into information overload! It's easy to do. Especially around here!

If you take the food transition slow, he should not have any problems.

Good luck and welcome aboard!!