go ask alice is right, you will have people tell you all kinds of things. The first person you should ask is your vet. Though, be cautious…many vets subscribe only to certain “theories” when it comes to food. Many vets are what I call “Science Diet” vets. They get “commission”, per se, for selling Science Diet. The manufacturer of SD, Hill’s, donates a lot of money and products to vet schools and vets, and they are the sponsor of many veterinary related events, etc. But…many scientific food studies will list SD as a relatively poor quality food. Check out what foods your vet is selling right out of the clinic before you ask! If you don’t ask, surf around various pit forums and see what people feed. This may be your best route.
The best way to judge how a food is doing is to look at your dog. How are her stools? Are they tiny in amount and firm (that is good!)? How is her coat? Is it shiny and soft, or dry and brittle? What about her eyes? Do you have to clean a lot of eye gunk out of the corners? These are just a few of several questions to ask yourself.
The Chicken Soup brand is not a bad brand at all. Many research studies rank it as an above-average food. It ranks higher than what I call “grocery store brands”. Those are the Pedigrees, Benefuls, Purina, etc. The Purina you were feeding isn’t all that bad, honestly. Yes, there are much better foods out there that your pup will thrive much better on, but there are much worse foods! Chicken Soup is what we call a grain-based food, meaning that the meat content is a bit lower than it should be to meet a dog’s needs, and has too much grain. Many dogs are allergic to grains, and plus, it isn’t a product that they need a ton of. Dogs are omnivores, but still have a carnivore background and meat/protein based dietary need. I wouldn’t mind feeding my dog Chicken Soup if I didn’t already have some other favorites. 🙂
Many of us feed our dogs a mix of a a high quality kibble, and add some cooked meat to their mealtimes every now and then. I mix in cooked egg, beef, chicken, turkey, and organ meats into random meals. Tonight, Kayla will have her kibble, plus some cooked liver and tripe. I will also buy high quality canned foods and mix a tiny bit in also with kibble. That helps balance out what the kibble doesn’t provide. Just make sure that you balance the ratio of kibble to the other foods if you choose to do that.
If you are thinking Chicken Soup, go for it. Make sure you get the right one for the age/weight of your dog. I believe that there are 3 or 4 different kinds. Some other kibbles to consider: Natural Balance, Taste of the Wild, Orijen, Acanna, EVO, and Solid Gold. Again, you will know what is right when you see improvements in many facets of your dog’s life. You have to do what your budget allows, but try to do the best that you can!
If you do decide to switch, do it slowly over a period of a few weeks. Don’t do it all at once, or you may have a messed up GI tract on your hands! If you don’t switch, add some stuff to her current diet and that can help out with what your kibble is missing!
Best of luck! 🙂 Sorry that I rambled….I tend to do that. You will see that quite often from me!
