[kelsey s]

I am looking for a good food in the lower-middle price range; I am on a fixed income and feed 3 cats a chi-pin and a pregnant German shepherd mix. It don’t have to be the best, but better than what they eat now; the cats eat meow mix and the dogs eat gravy train. I must admit that I was quite surprised that these foods are so bad.. So please help, I feel so bad that they’re eating such low quality food.

[Akari_32]

I would suggest you take up couponing. It’s easy, as long as you can do a little math and spare some time to search for deals. I get a lot of high quality food for $1 a pound and less. It’s a great way to take advantage of sales. Check out the thread i started on that. Everyone shares good coupons they find, and we all share our shopping sprees.

/forums/topic/coupons/

If you don’t have the time for that, Pure Balance is a pretty good food, as is Purina Beyond (a bit more expensive, but it’s higher calorie, so you feed considerably less), Rachael Ray Zero Grain or Simply Nourish (available only at PetSmart). There’s also Nutrisource, Dr Tims and Victors if you can find them, and Wellness isn’t too bad with the coupons they usually have right on their website if you don’t mind buying several small bags.

Momma dog will need to be on a good puppy food, and she will need to eat more than usual. I also urge you to get her spayed after her puppies are weened, and also ensure the pups are placed in homes where they will be spayed and neutered as well. They will live longer, healthier lives when spayed and neutered 🙂

As for the cats, it’s best to get them on canned food, but not all cats will eat it. Go for as high protein and low carb as possible. A pretty good “rule” to go by: if they make good dog food, they make good cat food. Here is another thread of mine, dealing with cat foods:

/forums/topic/cat-food-recommendations/

[InkedMarie]

If you will order from online, Chewy.com has Dr Tims in 44pound bags for a nice price. Did you take the gsd in pregnant? If not, please get her spayed.

[Bobby dog]

Hi kelsey s:
Wal-Mart has Pure Balance stews for $1/can and small tubs for 68 cents each. Here’s a thread that has suggestions for kibble sold at Wal-Mart. There is also info on where to find coupons for a few of them:
/forums/topic/need-advice-about-walmart-brands/

Like Akari suggested, stop by the coupon thread for sale info. Come over to the cat food thread, we have lots of budget friendly suggestions for cat food there. 😉

Consider rotational feeding. I feed my dog this way so he gets a healthy variety. Find at least three different brands of food with different carb and protein sources that your dogs do well on and like eating. Once your dog is used to eating a variety you never have to worry about a recipe changing and the possibility of your dog not liking it, a recall (can happen to any food at any time), or your food just not being available. The added benefit is that you can take advantage of sales and coupons to help with your budget. You can read more about it here:
/frequently-asked-questions/diet-rotation-for-dogs/

Edit: Also check out Tractor Supply and local feed, hardware, or garden supply stores. One line of food I like that you might find at feed stores is PMI Nutrition. If you can find it check out the Exclusive and Infinia lines. Here’s a store locator: http://www.pminutrition.com/main.html
Tractor Supply has 4Health kibble and canned food (99 cents). I would recommend the GF turkey, beef, or whitefish kibbles. Print a list of the 3, 4, and 5 star foods from the review side and take them with you to where you shop for food to see what is available within your budget.
3 star food list: /dog-food-reviews/dry/3-star/
4 star food list: /dog-food-reviews/dry/4-star/
5 star food list: /dog-food-reviews/dry/5-star/

• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by Bobby dog.

[kelsey s]

Thanks for the help! And to answer your question Marie, she most likely was bred at her old home, as I personally never let her outside without me on the other end of the leash while she was in heat; I got her at the end of her heat cycle, so I am unsure as to what happened before then, as the person who gave her to me found her as a lost dog and couldn’t find the owner.

[Akari_32]

She probably escaped from an unattended fenced yard looking for love. Females in heat can be just as naughty as un-neutered males. She’s lucky to have someone that cares so much for her. And of course, we expect baby pics 😉 You can’t tease us with momma dogs and not post pics of the puppies!

One thing that you will find on a better food is that you will feed considerably less because they are (usually) more calorie dense. My 130 pound rott mix eats 2.5-3.5 cups a day, and my 60 pound retriever mix eats 1.5-2.5 cups a day. If you do it “right,” you’ll probably find yourself actually spending much less on dog food.

[Susan]

Hi Kelsey, being pregnant she will need a really good diet, & some extras, how many pups do German Shepherds have, I hope its not a large litter, is their a German Shepherd rescue group you can contact, they may take the pups when they are old enough & vaccinated, worm & desexed then find them really good loving homes…
I rescued a whippet X when I was younger, the man was going to shot her cause she kept pooing under the clothes line, I didn’t even know she was pregnant, until my other dog Pebbles was stressing out one morning, I went to see what was wrong & in the garage where they slept was 13 puppies, yes 13 I nilly died….
Good-Luck

[kelsey s]

I don’t think she will have very many. It was probably her first heat cycle, she seems very young; has a lot of behaviors most older dogs have been trained not to do, like taking food from the table. And she’s nearing the halfway point and her belly isn’t as big as I thought, as this is my first large breed. On a side note, what is a good flea remedy for her? She’s been scratching so bad that she has cut her nipples.

[Akari_32]

A combination of Nitenpyram and Lufenuron (generics of CapStar and Program, respectively) would be the cheapest, safest option. Little City Dogs is the brand I buy for Lufenuron on Amazon, as well as their own website (little city dogs .com) sometimes amazon is cheaper, even with shipping, than the website, even though it’s the same people company, so just price check the two. The “Flea Killer” is the CapStar and the “Flea Control” is the Program. Both are safe for momma dogs, and both can be given directly to puppies once they are 4 weeks old. Use Nitenpyram daily until most of the fleas are dead, and then continue Lufenuron, at the same time, monthly to prevent eggs from hatching. Any existing eggs will hatch, so keep the Nitenpyram handy for the second generation. Also keep the house and furniture vacuumed and flea comb all pets daily, rinsing the comb in warm, soapy water often. It doesn’t take long until you’ll see a difference.

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