Dogfood "taste test"

[Richard]

Dogfood \"taste test\"

To boil a short story into a long one /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Long ago I was looking for what might be considered a 'good' dogfood. Vet told me of Nutro. One of our dogs (mind you, this is one year later) started throwing up in the middle of the night & vet found nothing wrong with her. We (me) thought perhaps she'd acquired an allergy to the food or perhaps we got a bad bag. We swapped brands (plan pro I think?) and her vomiting stopped. hmmm /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif Doesn't mean anything conclusive I know, but I was baffled. After all, she'd been eating the same stuff for a year, then she starts tossing it back out?

I've stuck with the 'new' food since then but have always had a voice in the back of me calling me to revisit this issue.

Oh, and I might add, I gave our neighbor 3 full bags of nutro (something like $30 a bag if memory serves) when I pulled Chloe off the food. Didn't want any chance of her stealing Otis' food.

Fast forward to today a year later and this still bugs me. They've never taken to the 'new' food quite as much as they did the Nutro. could the newer stuff not taste as good to them?

Stopped by store and they just happened to have some 'sample' bags of Nutro on sale for $2.00 / 3 lb bag. I bought their last two bags.

I put their now 'regular' food in one bowl and this in a second bowl.

Bottom line (you never thought I'd get here, did ya /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif)

They have eaten 3 pounds of Nutro and about 3 BITES of the 'regular' stuff.

Chloe is showing zero signs so far of blowing it back out the wrong end. Makes me wonder if there was perhaps a bad batch.

None the less... would that be a fair test as to which they might like more, a simple side by side & which do they eat first?

Or, perhaps since this is now "new & different" to what they've had for a while, could they just be focusing on it?

I've got about 1/2 bag (40 lb bag) of their now 'regular' stuff so I've got some time to work it down before buying any new stuff.

At the risk of sounding gross... after they eat and are taken outside, I always thought their "business" looked better when they were eating the Nutro verses what they're now on. the stuff they're now on has a slight (to me) greenish tint to it so when they do their business, it has always struck me as looking like they might have an upset stomach, simply based on the color of it.

Anyways, fair taste test? have the dogs spoken with their buds?

 

[Soundguy]

Re: Dogfood \"taste test\"

I think dogs and cats ARE way picky on taste. We feed nutro also. A year or two back had a cat come up with 2 kidney stones the size of quarters.. almost killed her.. vet said.. ' you must be feeding her the cheap stuf.. if she had been eating nutro or hills this wouldn't have happened' .. to which i replied.. well.. we do feed nutro.. exclusively.. then the vet said ' oh... well.. we need to switch her to hills'.

The cat ate the hills for a while.. and we still 'force' her to eat it by making it the only food available sometimes.. but she really doesn't like the flavor of it... go figure..

Soundguy

 

[dubba]

Re: Dogfood \"taste test\"

My dog will eat the food from the new bag over the older bag every time. Same food, just 2 weeks newer. He thinks it tastes better. Maybe it does?

 

[gmsssi]

Re: Dogfood \"taste test\"

I taste everything my dogs fed and he eats what I like....
Beneful

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Re: Dogfood \"taste test\"

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I taste everything my dogs fed and he eats what I like....
Beneful )</font>

We just got a new Papillon pup the weekend before last. We were looking for a good small "treat" to aid in her training. That's when I stated reading all the various flavors available for these mutts! (My favorite was the Maple Bacon Yummies)

I joked with the teen-aged girl working at the pet supply store about how I'd like to taste test a few of 'em myself. At that, she pops a couple "Gormet Cheese Drops" in her mouth and tells me they taste almost every new flavor when they re-stock shelves.

No, she didn't bark or chase the car when we left.

 

[Freds]

Re: Dogfood \"taste test\"

Here's my thoughts.
I think dogs prefer new foods and treat them like its a treat. I also think people can make their dogs become finicky eaters by switching their dog's food too quickly just because it misses a meal or two, some dogs just do. Cheaper foods usually taste better (my guess on the tatse) because they have to jazz them up with sugars and syrups to make them palatable (sp?). They also have to put beet pulp, much of the time without the sugars removed, in them to keep the dog's stools tight and firm, so you may think it's better for them if you are just judging by their poop. Any Nutro I've seen swells big time when it gets wet, so if it is doing that in the dog's stomach... That could be the cause the dog is throwing it up later at night, along with any other food that swells bigger than its original size when gulped down.
Look at all the sugar in most grocery store treats that smell good to us. I've seen it has high as number one!, so if you think your dog is hyper all the time.....