Should we give our dogs dry and wet dog food?

[Pauline46]

I have hardly ever given my older sheltie canned food. Is is necessary to give them both for health reasons? I have a collie puppy and was wondering if you give them both? Or just keep them on the kibble?

Does it really matter? :confused:

[Pitguy67]

Well, I Have Read A Lot Of Stuff On This Topic, And I Have Heard A Lot Of Different Results. Some Say That Wet Dog Food Is Healthier Than Dry Dog Food, Because Of The Amount Of Processing Needed For Dry Dog Food Vs. Wet Dog Food. I Have Read That Starting A Puppy On Wet Helps With Them Eating, But It Could Make The Stool Softer And With More Odor. I Think That It Is A Matter Of Opinion. I Personaly Use Dry. If You Want To Get It Softer, You Can Put Some Water Over It, To Make It Softer.

[Doberman's]

Canned food can be very expensive when you look at the volume you get vs kibble. Also canned food can be very fattening and it can be gross what they put in it. IF I was feeding commerical foods I would stick to dry only and offer fresh water 24/7.

[Georgia]

I'm no expert but we give Georgia a cup of kibble and a heaping teaspoon of wet food. Her coat is so shiny and soft she not only gets compliments everywhere she goes but it's almost like she's had a bath. I can't be sure it's because of the wet food but that's why we give it to her.

[Pitguy67]

I Have Heard That Wet Dog Food Can Give Dogs Bad Breath And The Teeth Aren't As Clean. Dry Dog Food Gets The Plaque Off Better Than Wet Food Does.

[Pauline46]

See all the reasons you give are the reasons that I haven't given my older dog canned food. Besides I thought they could get spoiled and stop eating Kibble. I think it's cheaper, cleaner, better for their teeth and stools. My Two cents.......lol

Canidae does make a canned dog food though. Maybe their brand is better than most.:confused:

[Pitguy67]

You Could Always Try. And You Are Right, If You Give Only Wet Food, They Might Not Want Dry Anymore, But You Could Solve That By Slowling Mixing It Together, Like Switching Between Different Brands Of Dry Food.

[skunkstripe]

I put out mostly kibble but also some extra special "something" to jazz it up. Somehow I think that even though they are dogs they do enjoy different tastes now and then. I rotate between canned dog food, canned jack mackerel, fresh heart, fresh unbleached tripe, raw bones from pork, and yes they do get table scraps if we have eaten meat, after they have had the spices rinsed off.
They have plenty of energy, shiny coats, don't itch, smell good, and I always get compliments from the vet on how clean their teeth are. So this works for us. I should mention that both are medium-large dogs who chew everything very deliberately so I feel comfortable giving them any kind of bones.

[Becky]

I Have Heard That Wet Dog Food Can Give Dogs Bad Breath And The Teeth Aren't As Clean. Dry Dog Food Gets The Plaque Off Better Than Wet Food Does.


Actually, this is a myth. Dogs have plaque because of carbs... there are more carbs in dry food than wet food. Also, the concept that dry food "scrapes" food off the teeth is a little odd too... does eating pretzels clean your teeth? Not to mention that dogs don't really chew kibble (they don't even have the teeth for grinding... they have teeth for slicing meat and bone)... the most they seem to do is crunch the kibble in half. Have you ever noticed that when your dog vomits after eating the kibble is usually whole?

It seems, at least to me, that almost all canned foods are better than dry. The usually have more meat in them (because you need carbs to keep kibble from falling apart).

I've been feeding one of my cats Solid Gold Blended Tuna canned and is has whole, real pieces of tuna in it (you can see them). That, to me, is a step above what any dry food can offer.

However, feeding a large breed dog purely on canned food would take more money than I could make in a year... so I opt out on a high quality kibble :D

ETA: Canned won't cause soft stools. Most the moisture will have been taken out in the intestine.

[Pauline46]

Hmmmmmmmmm.........Lots to chew on here!;) LOL....:D

[AnimalHouse]

From what I heard was that Canned food is only good for Cats.. that it is really Fatty for dogs, and the only reason it is good for cats is cause they dont drink Alot of water *Usually* and the Wet helps keep em Hydrated.. So I dunno, I dont feed mine wet.. Dry strickly, BUT EVERY great once in a while i will do a surprise dinner with wet. ;) They like it then.

[bryony]

my dogs are feed on dry food my 16 old flat coatx is feed dry soaked in water and my lhasa was on backers with canneds food i have now moved him to just dry burns chicken and rice and he seem to be healther than ever and his theeth are so much whiter as well i would recomend burns to any one and he has a chicken wing every day to kep the back teeth clean

xxxxxx

[Cheetah]

Also canned food can be very fattening and it can be gross what they put in it. IF I was feeding commerical foods I would stick to dry only and offer fresh water 24/7.

It depends on the brand of canned food. Anything from the grocery store or walmart is disgusting, but brands like Natural Balance, Canidae, Innova, Nature's Variety etc. make good canned food.

[sheplovr]

I do not use canned food for my Shepherds, but do put puppy canned in weaning of pups for taste till they eat good.
I do wet my food or kibble with warm water and stir ten seconds to let gases escape. I give them RAW soup beef bones once a week to chew and their teeth stay in great shape, and gums. If dogs have things to chew on it is better to dampen or wet the kibble than dry then they drink a ton of water and more of a chance for Bloat. Just works for me and a docter that bought one of my pups told me this as he is always researching things on dogs.

[Rivsky]

Mine used to have dry with a bit of Innova canned stuff (he wasn't a big fan of dry food to start with) - then he went off the canned stuff as well so since then I've been giving him dry with some meatloaf (which is either chicken, turkey or roo mince with some pasta and veges (such as carrots, peas etc) which he absolutely loves!!!

BTW - he only started eating his dried food when I mixed it in with another brand (I did this when I was swapping it over) and then when the old stuff was all out he stopped eating it again until I mixed the two brands together - is my dog just weird or could he just enjoy the variety???

[CamzKees]

The only can food that I'd recommend is Solid Gold Green Cow. For the most part, canned dog food is mostly water, and the ingredients can be questionable.

I'd suggest going with a quality kibble (preferable nothing that's Pedigree, Iams, Eukenuba, Purina) and occasionally supplementing with Green Cow, eggs, chicken necks, canned pumpkin and frozen carrots.

My suggestions for a high quality kibble would be Solid Gold, Timberwolf Organic, Fromm's Family Foods, Royal Canin, Chicken Soup for the Petlover's Soul.

Good luck!

[Cheetah]

There is also Canidae... and I'm not sure if Eagle Pack (holistics) makes canned... I think they do.

[Plummy16]

I used to give my puppy royal canine and it has given him a fantastic start in life its great dry food. However I am a poor person haha so i have had to start him on bakers compleate as its all he will eat, I now mix in a bit of buchers trype and he laps it up. He has lovely teeth, bright eyes and a lovely coat but i put most of it down to the first 6months when i had him on royal canine.