High-protein, grain free diets? Wellness/Before Grain

[Britster]

Question...

As I've been trying to understand dog nutrition more and more, I was hoping that maybe someone with more knowledge could explain to me (in simple terms ) what are the pros and cons of a dog dry food with high protein and no grains? I understand every dog is different.. but what are the main benefits of such a diet?

Jackson eats Merrick's Before Grain and he loves it. It obviously, as the name states, includes no grains and is semi-high in protein. The ingredients are as follows (the buffalo flavored one):

Buffalo Deboned, Chicken Meal, Potato Dehydrated, Turkey Meal, Canola Oil, Sweet Potato Dehydrated, (preserved with mixed tocopherols – a source of Natural Vitamin E and Ascorbic Acid, a source of Vitamin C), Yeast Culture, Natural Dried Chicken Liver, Dicalcium Phosphate, Lysine, Guar Gum, Sea Salt, Alfalfa, Salmon Oil, Choline Chloride, Acai Berry Freeze-Dried, Blueberry Dried, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Venison Broth, Zinc Amino Acid Complex,Chondroitin Sulfate, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Natural Venison Flavor, Chicory Root, Marigold Extract, Rosemary Extract, Lactobacillus Plantarum, Enterococcus Faecium, Lactobacillus Casei, Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Natural Celery Flavor, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Vitamin E Supplement, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Natural Color (tumeric), Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Copper Amino Acid Complex, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3, Niacin, Lecithin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate, Sodium Selenite.

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein (Not Less Than) 32.0%
Crude Fat (Not Less Than) 15.0%
Crude Fiber (Not More Than) 3.0%
Moisture (Not More Than) 11.0%


Nutritional statement:
Before Grain Buffalo is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food nutrient profiles for all life stages.




He loves the Before Grain food, Buffalo is his favorite flavor. His stools have been fine on it. He does get eye boogers but they're not horrible - they're usually just small and I can pick them right out with my fingers lol, but is that part of diet or is it just a dog thing? Every morning he usually gets a bit of the canned Wellness for Puppy food mixed in with the BG kibble and loves it. Occasionally, all I have is those Ceasar wet foods which I know are horrible but it's usually only once a week he gets that mixed in w/ the kibble.

His stomach never really seems to have issues... he's eaten Nutro without a problem but he wasn't on Nutro for long. He ate Dog Whisperer Puppy food without a problem (only prob with this food was the kibbles were too tiny for him... he basically swallowed them lol) He ate some of the sample bags of Wellness I had gotten in the mail and loved them and was fine on them.

Jackson is 6 months old and weighs 13 pounds. Not overweight, just a bigger yorkie.

I guess I'm just trying to better understand my dog's diet because I've heard mixed reviews about feeding too MUCH protein, too little, etc.

Also, just randomly, a little "poll"... Wellness vs. Before Grain? Opinions? I know everyones will be different lol.

[Nikitta34]

I have no input, but I can't wait to read the replys. It's a great question!

[bchgirl]

That protein content is higher than what Affco recommends for an adult dog.

Dog Food Standards by the AAFCO

Small breed puppies do not require that level of protein for development. They are not like large breeds who grow larger very quickly. In an adult dog...any protein that is not used during daily excerise will turn into fat.

The benefit of no grains means less fillers and obviously more benefit if your dog has a grain allergy.

[Britster]

Originally Posted by bchgirl

That protein content is higher than what Affco recommends for an adult dog.

Dog Food Standards by the AAFCO

Small breed puppies do not require that level of protein for development. They are not like large breeds who grow larger very quickly. In an adult dog...any protein that is not used during daily excerise will turn into fat.

The benefit of no grains means less fillers and obviously more benefit if your dog has a grain allergy.

Thanks a lot for the info! So, Before Grain may be too high in protein for him? I mean he's not an extremely high-energy dog but he does get quite a bit of exercise during the day and is outside a lot constantly running!

[viviansnickers]

Brittany...hey babe, you're going to get so many mixed opinions. All doggies are different and they all react differently to different foods. Snickers is on EVO which is a whopping 42% crude protein!! That is considered too high for a yorkie, but I liked the food, the company, and the theory behind it and tried it and he is doing very well on it thankfully. I did monitor him ALOT when I initally switched to make sure he was ok on it. Snickers does get walked about twice a day and he runs around alot. I wouldn't consider him SUPER active, but I do think he is active. When he is not napping, he is always beating the gutts out of his stuffed animals and wanting to play fetch and chase us and us him.

[bchgirl]

Originally Posted by Britster

Thanks a lot for the info! So, Before Grain may be too high in protein for him? I mean he's not an extremely high-energy dog but he does get quite a bit of exercise during the day and is outside a lot constantly running!

I personally wouldn't feed a food that high in protein. I see you are mixing it with another puppy food....puppy food is higher in protein too. Small breeds simply do not require high protein content foods.

As I said...if they do not use all those calories, it will lead to weight issues.

Be sure you aren't overfeeding too. Read the portion size on the bag of food...cause overfeeding is really easy to do.

[Woogie Man]

Here's a link that discusses protein in dog foods....The Dog Food Project - Is too much protein harmful?
I personally feed my dogs a 36% protein dry food and have had no problems with it. My dogs weigh from 3 to 12 pounds and range in age from 1 to 7 years. Their activity level varies...from a little lazy to very active. None are fat.
I look at the AAFCO guidelines as similar to RDA requirements for humans. They are both minimal levels to maintain health. They don't speak to the levels needed to provide optimum health, which often are much higher.

[Britster]

Originally Posted by Woogie Man

Here's a link that discusses protein in dog foods....The Dog Food Project - Is too much protein harmful?
I personally feed my dogs a 36% protein dry food and have had no problems with it. My dogs weigh from 3 to 12 pounds and range in age from 1 to 7 years. Their activity level varies...from a little lazy to very active. None are fat.
I look at the AAFCO guidelines as similar to RDA requirements for humans. They are both minimal levels to maintain health. They don't speak to the levels needed to provide optimum health, which often are much higher.

Thanks for the article!

[Debgarv]

It seems like the more I study different foods, the more confusing it becomes. I have yorkies adults and puppies
so I mix puppy food w/ adult food since my 6 dogs eat together. I have been using Eukanuba adult yorkie formula mixed w/ eukanuba small breed puppy, and now I am reading that may not that great. I just got another yorkie female 10 mo old this wk and her former owner recommended and sent home w/ me wellness puppy. I have been mixing it in w/ my other food so her diet isn't a drastic change. How can you really know the absolute best diet for yorkies? Is it just trial and error?

[Britster]

Originally Posted by Debgarv

It seems like the more I study different foods, the more confusing it becomes. I have yorkies adults and puppies
so I mix puppy food w/ adult food since my 6 dogs eat together. I have been using Eukanuba adult yorkie formula mixed w/ eukanuba small breed puppy, and now I am reading that may not that great. I just got another yorkie female 10 mo old this wk and her former owner recommended and sent home w/ me wellness puppy. I have been mixing it in w/ my other food so her diet isn't a drastic change. How can you really know the absolute best diet for yorkies? Is it just trial and error?

Well, I do now certain ingredients are a no-no and you're best to stay away from them. They're basically just "fillers" put in dog food, some of the dog food and the way they are made is disgusting. Corn, by-products, wheat, etc is not good. Dogs are carnivores by nature so the first ingredients should be meat. I do know some stuff! lol. But yes, certain things work better for certain dogs. Corn causes allergies a lot in dogs so that's one reason to stay away from it. But some dogs may not have issues with it.

[Britster]

So, I may feed him both Wellness and Before Grain, I've decided. lol. Too many decisions! But he liked the Wellness samples I got in the mail a few months ago. So maybe I'll have both BG and Wellness and give one on one day, the other on the next, etc. Do alot of people rotate foods?

[PrincessDiana]

Originally Posted by Britster

So, I may feed him both Wellness and Before Grain, I've decided. lol. Too many decisions! But he liked the Wellness samples I got in the mail a few months ago. So maybe I'll have both BG and Wellness and give one on one day, the other on the next, etc. Do alot of people rotate foods?

We rotate foods for variety as well as to keep them from developing allergies. I love Wellness CORE and Nature's Variety Instict. However, we rotate every other bag or so (so like 4-6 weeks), not every other day. I think switching so frequently could cause some stomach upset. If you wanted you could mix to two. Be sure to do a gradual switch over a 1-2 weeks when you are switching food also.

[Britster]

Originally Posted by PrincessDiana

We rotate foods for variety as well as to keep them from developing allergies. I love Wellness CORE and Nature's Variety Instict. However, we rotate every other bag or so (so like 4-6 weeks), not every other day. I think switching so frequently could cause some stomach upset. If you wanted you could mix to two. Be sure to do a gradual switch over a 1-2 weeks when you are switching food also.

Thanks for the info!

Yeah, Jackson's stomach seems to be able to handle everything, lol. He doesn't have a very sensitive stomach but you're right, every other day may be a bit much for him. Maybe every other week would be better for him. Or like you said, I'll mix the two.

Is the CORE recommended for dogs over one year of age though? He's 6 months right now.

[kalina82]

i'm currently mixing SG wee bits and Wellness small breed. If morgan didn't have a questionable liver i'd probably mix wellness core and NV instinct.

I've never purchase the before grain food tho.

[PrincessDiana]

Originally Posted by Britster

Thanks for the info!

Yeah, Jackson's stomach seems to be able to handle everything, lol. He doesn't have a very sensitive stomach but you're right, every other day may be a bit much for him. Maybe every other week would be better for him. Or like you said, I'll mix the two.

Is the CORE recommended for dogs over one year of age though? He's 6 months right now.

It is recommended for dogs over one year old. Some people consider Yorkies "adults" at 6 months but I personally waited until mine were a year to feed CORE and would recommend the same to anyone else.