Food brands and how much

Question
Ok. I have a house full! I have a 5 month old Boxer, 35lbs, a 2 year old golden/lab mix (that I took in to find a home for. I'm kind of fostering him), 73lbs,  a two year old pointer/beagle mix, 26lbs,  and a baby chihuahua I just picked up on the side of the road a few days ago. I have been feeding everyone the Purina one puppy chow because I have the 5 month old boxer, and was wondering if that was a good brand for the chihuahua. Also, I have been giving the older dogs, including the boxer, 2 cups twice a day. Is that ok for everyone, am I over/under feeding anyone, and do I need a new brand for the chihuahua? Thank you for your time!

Answer
This is from my website the link to my website link at bottom of page


DIET/FEEDING/FOODS
There are so many different types and brands of kibbles/dog food on the market today it can get a little confusing when your trying to find the right diet for your pooch.

Top brands

Blue Buffalo co. (I use this)

Royal Canin

Authority via petsmart stores

Science Diet

Technical

Nutreance

Pro Plan by purina

Nutro Max, Nutro Natural Choice and Nutro Natural Choice Ultra



Medium-Low Brands

One by purina

Beaniful

Peddigree

Ceaser

Purian dog chow



Low Foods...best avoided for most dogs

Ol'Roy

Any generic grocery/shopping center foods

Great choice via petsmart



You will notice Iams and Eukanuba are NOT listed this is why = www.iamscruelty.com      I personally would never use the company after they had done such things. By the Way Iams Makes Eukanuba.



Now you see all these good/ok and bad foods what do you feed your pooch? The most expensive foods require the dog to eat less to get all the calories they needs switch means they poop less and when they do it is formed well and is easy to scoop up. The Cheaper foods require the dog to eat almost twice as much to get there daily calorie requirements which means the kibble winds up about the same price because the dog is eating more less expensive foods... also the dog poops more and it is often barely formed and hard to scoop up. The cheaper foods contain lots of corn and wheat these are called fillers and they don't digest well by the dogs system also many dogs are allergic to Corn/Wheat, These cheaper kibbles contain also by-products and little to No real meat and normally just chicken or animal by product meals...real meat is chicken, lamb, fish or chicken/lamb/fish Meal not by-product meal. *Some of the higher priced foods mentioned above do have by products in them but they still have real meat also. Now that you know what's good and bad in a kibble what should you put your pooch on? Well puppies need a special diet they require more fat and proteins then adult or senior dogs so you need to feed a puppy kibble. You need to feed the puppy, puppy food until he or she is 10/12 months old...a Large breed puppy(will be over 50 pounds fully grown) should be fed a Large breed puppy kibble until it is 14 months old. Feed the puppy three to four time's daily read the bags directions and break up the daily portion into smaller meals for the puppy. As the puppy grows you can feed less often cutting down to two meals a day at 6/8 months old. An Adult dog should be fed and Adult kibble & twice daily I really don't like the idea of a dog being fed one big meal per day.... two smaller meals is better. For large breed adult dogs you can but large breed adult kibbles but I am not sure how useful they are compared to normal adult dog food. Feed according to bag instructions again making sure not to overfeed the adult dog is important....My tip- your dog may have developed allergies now that he or she is an adult, There are hypo allergic kibbles out there for dogs with allergies they are fish and potato diets and works very well if your dog has some food allergies. Senior dogs should be carefully fed and should be on senior dog foods...there are large breed senior foods as well. The senior dog may require supplmention of caplets for joint cartilage detrition check with your vet first.



Lite Formulas are available in adult and senior kibbles and are very useful for weight loss in the overweight pooch....a simple Lite kibble fed along with increased exercise will get your dog down to its correct weight in no time. You can tell if your dog is of the ideal weight by feeling the ribs you should be able to feel them without digging too much but should Not be able to see them, also your dog should have a defined waist line...even tubby bull dogs should have a small tuck *Before the hind legs....No dog should be sausage shaped!



My tip- Be Sure to Leave clean cool water down for your pooch at all times..but you can pick it up a few hours before bedtime but only if its *Not overly hot or dry in your home/area to avoid nighttime accidents or outings!





Canned foods, I don't recommend them they can be fully complete but are very bad for your pooches teeth leading to plaque and tartar build up and early tooth loss also high vet bills for teeth cleaning's and removal of rotten teeth. My Tip: If you have a fussy dog or a little puppy you can moisten the dry kibble with hot water in a sealed tupper ware container until it soke's the water up and offer this instead of canned food...this also can be bad for the teeth and should only be done if your puppy can Not yet chew dry kibble well or you have an adult or senior dog with very few teeth....you can also buy small or little chunk kibble for tiny and toy dogs.



There are Also HomeMade diets that work well for some dogs, You would need to get yourself a dog cook book or a recipe from somewhere. As feeding Nothing but table scraps is Not a suitable diet for Any dog.
MY TIP: Avoid feeding your dog Chocolate, Onions, Grapes/Raisins These are TOXIC Also avoid  Pork chop bones, Rib bones, Chicken bones... these will splinter and punture the dogs innards and persent a choking hazard as well.




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