Switched from Royal Canin to grain-free TOTW and Blue Buffalo!

Submitted by Sarah P. on April 30, 2012 - 8:08pm

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I've been feeding Cupcake Royal Canin Bulldog puppy food for the last 11 months of her life...and she has bad skin issues (inflammation around mouth, red bumps that aren't exactly zits but are red and sometimes scab over, vet examined them under microscope and said it must just be allergies...and how exactly can I pinpoint what she's allergic to when it could be literally anything in her environment?)

I may be on to something!

I read on these forums that grain-free is the way to go. So I couldn't decide between Blue Buffalo's puppy formula or Taste of the Wild's Salmon so I bought both. And I've been feeding them the Blue Buffalo in the morning and TOTW at night. Cupcake and Biscuit love both... and I'm not sure if switching back and forth between the two brands every day is good or not, but I examined the ingredients and both are very similar. I think Blue Buffalo has a little more protein, TOTW has a little more fiber.

Pros so far:

I noticed the dog bowls aren't greasy after they eat (so less "crap" fillers/oils)

I like that it is based on meat, and not grains

They eat all their food whereas sometimes I'd have to add a little something to the Royal Canin (like broth or yogurt) to get Cupcake to eat it.

Better looking turds (as good looking as turds go)- more solid and sturdy

Best of all...it's been a week and Cupcake's inflammation around her mouth has gone away! I'm hoping I've found the culprit and solved the skin issue problem. Crossing fingers!

Cons:

Pricey...but really not much more than Royal Canin

No Glucosamine and chondroitin like in the Royal Canin (should I get a supplement with this or wait till theyre not puppies?)

What brands of food worked for your bullies? I look forward to reading your responses.

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Meet Cupcake (born May 15, 2011) and Biscuit (born December 2, 2011)

dog food

Submitted by Katie and Tucker on April 30, 2012 - 8:25pm.

I have never tried TOTW with Tucker but I did have him on Blue Buffalo at one point. He had horrible gas on the BB because the protein level was too high. We also had him on the Royal Canin before the BB and I didn't have any issues but just wanted something with more natural ingredients in it. I remember being told by our vet NOT to have him on puppy food for long becuase bully's can have weight issues. We got Tucker at 12wks and stopped the puppy food after seeing our vet for the first time. Tucker is on a grain free food called "Now" and he gets 3 cups food/day and he weighs about 63 pounds although he's pretty active. Can't comment on the TOTW because we haven't tried it. I think it was the lamb in the BB that gave him the nasty gas so we avoid anything(treats included) with lamb. Good luck sorting things out. As i've read many times here, food can be a bit of a trial and error.

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Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"

i haven't heard the greatest

Submitted by Pegsy on April 30, 2012 - 10:11pm.

i haven't heard the greatest things sbout royal canine either...

my archie was on natural balance and totw...i would alternated...

and b/c his groomer would give us free samples!lol

I would go with the adult food.

Submitted by AmyandSophia on April 30, 2012 - 10:18pm.

Our Bullies don't need puppy food. Taste of the Wild is a good feed, I would just go with that:-)

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Amy and Sophia

Yes, Taste of the Wild is good...

Submitted by Kathy Chester N... on May 1, 2012 - 1:31am.

I would not do the puppy food, too much protein and calories for our guys. We feed the Salmon/Sweet potato to two of our guys and Lamb to Chester. There is a lower priced version of salmon grain free at Costco, we use that occasionally too.