F4Dogs has faaaaantastic customer service, and I'm sure if you e-mailed them explaining you want to try their food, they'd be more than happy to send you samples of all of it including the brilliant packs of salmon mousse which I mix with my kibble, OR you never know, they might offer you a small bag at a special price just to get you hooked? Try it, they really are very nice people to deal with, can't fault them.

Yeah we use the wainwrights wet trays too sometimes as well as the kibble like I said for keisha, ours love them!

If you join the Arden Grange breeder club (minimum two dogs) you get the food VAT free (ie around £29 per 15kg bag). There is a small delivery charge and a minimum quantity of two bags but it comes within 48 hours.

Do you actually have to be a breeder though ?

I think there a few things to consider when changing foods.

First of all I note from some of your posts that you say your dog is slim, but that would be normal for a year old dog, they may have finished (most breeds) growing in height but they have still to fill out, so they are the equivalent of a lanky teenager!

Two meals a day would be the average frequency of feeding in a dog of this age and an adult.

Most of us who work full time would struggle to fit in more than that I think!

There are literally HUNDREDS of dog foods out there, and what suits one dog will not suit another 9just like I cannot eat vine leaves)

There are some key things to look for on the label.

The higher the fat/oil content the more palatable it is to dogs, it also means that it is more calorie dense than one that is low, therefore that means you do not have to feed as much in VOLUME or WEIGHT usually.

That is why unless you know this, you cannot compare foods properly as ingredients alone will not give you this info.

Then you should be looking for a food that has as FEW ingredients as possible eg grains; a food that has one source or at most two is better than a mish mash.

The reason for manufacturer's doing this is to disguise certain things from consumers.

EG most people believe that if (insert relevant protein) is the FIRST on the label that the food contains MORE of this than anything else.

It does not.

It means it is the largest SINGLE ingredient but when you say add up oats, barley, maize, rice then it is clear that products marketed as Chicken and Rice should really be named Grain and chicken!

Some things to be aware of.

Apart form foods such as Orijen 99% of all dog food are at LEAST 50% carbohydrate (whether that is in potato or grain form)

Dogs get their energy from oils/fats not carbs.

If you find several foods that come within your price range, then read the labels and write down a comparison chart to see what you are ACTUALLY getting for you money!


It is tough deciding what to feed!

No, years ago (when I fed kibble) I used to get JWB on breeder's terms so to speak, you just filled in a form then and I think there was a minimum order if I remember correctly?

Things might have changed since then, it was in the early 90s!

No, you don't.

I didn't know this, i'm surprised more people don't do it as i would imagine you could get quite a discount !

I feed Arden Grange and buy it from Berriewoods. I tend to buy four 15kg sacks at a time, and get them for £24.88 per sack with free delivery.

Thanks, I rang them to see if they could help find stockets near me but no luck! I did try a little sample bag my family got from a garden centre somewhere so she does like it I have ordered a small bag off their website, hoping it arrives Monday

Thanks, that's interesting to know. I have gone for F4D this time - Arden Grange looks good too though.

Thanks so much for all the nutririon advice, I wasn't even aware of grain splitting until I read it in one of your other posts! F4D has around 54% meat (fish!) which seemed to be the highest as Wainwrights is only 26%. It only has around 2% more oil and fat but I guess any extra is a good thing.

Thanks, that is good value!

Thanks to everyone for all their advice It's definately not easy..took me the best part of yesterday deciding! Hopefully the Fish 4 Dogs will work out nicely