Wellness small breed vs Solid Gold Wee Bits vs Natures Variety Instinct vs EVO

[aquinn]

Okay everyone. I've had Tucker on Nature's Variety Instinct Turkey & Duck kibble with Raw Medallions every other day or so, but it is very difficult to get in my neighborhood. The one place that carries this kibble seems to always be out of stock, and I need at least a good back up option. So I've been looking at a few others. Wellness and Solid Gold are very easy to get as they are sold at Petco, but they aren't grain free.

I don't exactly remember how I got on this whole grain free kick--maybe it's really not all that important? Has anyone really researched this? Can you give me a breakdown of the pro's and cons of feeding a grain free food?

I'm also looking at EVO, but again it isn't available very many places, yet seems to always be in stock where it is sold. It is grain free like Nature's Variety Instinct.

The price doesn't matter. I just want to feed the best food I can, and that's hard without knowing the ins and outs of yorkie nutrition. Can anyone help me out?

A bit about Tucker. He is 9 lbs and extremely active. His vet always says he's pure muscle so I'm not worried about the fat content too much. Also, he has no known allergies and does fine with any size kibble. He's a good eater as well, and hasn't turned his nose up at food yet. Also, homecooking isn't practical for our home, even though I know it is a great option for those that can do it, and feeding raw medallions exclusively wouldn't work either as I free feed and am not always home when he needs to eat (and I'd be concerned about the raw being left out too long). I also like having him on a kibble for travel.

So, what kibble should I put him on? Feel free to suggest other brands not mentioned here as well. My requirements are: no by-products, no corn, no soy, & no artificial colors

Thank you in advance!!!

[Britster]

Hey I started a thread on this yesterday because I was curious

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/yor...ore-grain.html

There's some info!

[kalina82]

Both wellness and solid gold DO make varieties that are grain free

Natural Dog Foods - Wellness CORE
Barking at the Moon High Protein, Low Carb Adult Dog Food

[aquinn]

Oh, I'm glad you brought these up. I forgot to mention, I had tried the barking at the moon and Tucker wouldn't touch it. Strange. It's the only one he has ever refused to eat!! Thank you for jogging my memory!! I had forgotten all about that!

Originally Posted by kalina82

Both wellness and solid gold DO make varieties that are grain free

Natural Dog Foods - Wellness CORE
Barking at the Moon High Protein, Low Carb Adult Dog Food

[kalina82]

Originally Posted by aquinn

Oh, I'm glad you brought these up. I forgot to mention, I had tried the barking at the moon and Tucker wouldn't touch it. Strange. It's the only one he has ever refused to eat!! Thank you for jogging my memory!! I had forgotten all about that!

have you tried the wellness core? morgan has eaten it and she loves it

[aquinn]

Originally Posted by kalina82

have you tried the wellness core? morgan has eaten it and she loves it

No, we haven't tried that yet. Do you think it's the best out of all of the ones listed?

[kalina82]

Originally Posted by aquinn

No, we haven't tried that yet. Do you think it's the best out of all of the ones listed?

I love wellness products. My one cat has been on healthy weight for 8 years, my other cat/kitten is on core. Morgan the yorkie is on wellness small breed right now, and has been on core in the past. she was also on the puppy formula when she was a babe.

Morgan also gets solid gold wee bits mixed in to her wellness sometimes. like right now i have the small breed and teh wee bits mixed in one big container for her to enjoy.

Evo didn't work for morgan. she vomited whenever i gave it to her and she can eat ANYTHING without getting sick.

I used to feed the NV frozen raw as well which morgan LOVED. Feed in the morning before you leave. your pup will gobble it up in minutes. you can either give it once or twice a day. Mine did fine with once a day feedings, but sometimes i would split it up to twice a day. depended on my schedule. With the raw feeding you can also leave kibble down when you are not home if you think he'll be hungry but most people that do this find that their dogs do not touch the kibble because they love the raw so much. if you go this route you can always just continue the kibble that you know he likes when you travel.

Morgan isn't on the raw or high protein right now because she has asymptomatic microvascular dysplasia. since its asymptomatic i don't have to restrict her diet but sometimes i get paranoid. i loved feeding raw because the poops in the backyard were non-existant and i didnt have to pick up

[dre1141]

Hi Kellie, so my little yorkie has Asymptomatic MVD too and I just wanted to ask although because I'm sure since you feed Morgan it already but the protien isn't too high on the wellness core for Morgan? Do you feed her the grain free? I currently feed the NV prarie turkey kibble which was reccomended by the person at the pet food store but sometimes I never know if they really know-

[kalina82]

Originally Posted by dre1141

Hi Kellie, so my little yorkie has Asymptomatic MVD too and I just wanted to ask although because I'm sure since you feed Morgan it already but the protien isn't too high on the wellness core for Morgan? Do you feed her the grain free? I currently feed the NV prarie turkey kibble which was reccomended by the person at the pet food store but sometimes I never know if they really know-

There are many different opinions on protein amounts in liver compromised dogs and even in small dogs altogether. Some say the protein cannot be processed properly and that they need simpler forms like soy or something like that. However there is also another train of thought that says a simple protein for a dog is a RAW based diet. A dogs main diet in the wild is meat, so their digestive systems are meant to break down meat the easiest. They are not meant to digest fruits and vegetables which is why if you feed them you will see them come right back out in their poop (unless they are pureed). The holistic vet i saw when i first found out about morgan's asymptomatic MVD said to keep her on the raw, even if she was symptomatic, it was still good for her. The internal medicine vets i worked for at the referral center said to feed said whatever i wanted while she was showing no symptoms but would have to change her diet to lower protein if she started showing signs.

Since i've worked for vets for many years i always have that information in the back of my mind, even tho i agree with the holistic approach. With morgan's diet i kinda go back and forth with what i feed her. She's been on RAW, high protein kibble, and regular kibble. She was eating Core for a while and now she is on small breed. I still have the raw in the freezer and she does get it occasionally.

As you can see i don't have a straight answer for you. This is one of those things where you need to make your own informed decision. Read up on all views and decide what is best for your yorkie.

[yoon714]

I just put Mimi on Wellness small breed. I looked at the Wellness Core and the kibbles are too big for Mimi. Mimi won't eat big kibbles, she only likes small. I also like Before Grain by Merrick. I will probably rotate on those two brands Wellness and Merrick.

[BonBon]

I feed NV raw in the mornings and free feed the Instinct kibble throughout the day. Only two stores in Tulsa carry NV, and one of those carries the kibble only in chicken (which my oldest can't have). The other is all the way accross town and usually closed by the time I get off work. So, it's very inconvenient for me to get as well. But, I really like this food & didn't want to give up on it so I found a great store that I order from online. This is their website: Premium & Organic Dog Food and Dog Treats - Free Shipping. They offer free shipping on orders over $50. They are a few dollars higher than the local stores, but I did the math and figured I was saving at least that much in sales taxes! I have received excellent service with every order, and they ship almost immediately. Oh, and they occasionally have really good sales on Instinct so I wait for those and order a couple of large bags. I do still buy the raw locally (although this site does carry it) - I just buy several bags at once so I don't have to make as many trips. Hope this helps. Good luck!

[Britster]

Originally Posted by yoon714

I just put Mimi on Wellness small breed. I looked at the Wellness Core and the kibbles are too big for Mimi. Mimi won't eat big kibbles, she only likes small. I also like Before Grain by Merrick. I will probably rotate on those two brands Wellness and Merrick.

That's what I'm planning on doing!

Jackson's on Before Grain right now and loves it. Buffalo flavor the best. But he liked the Wellness samples I got in the mail too so I may just buy both!

[chestermama]

Chester has done very well on the wee bits, he needs the extra fiber 4%, some of the other dog foods are 2-3%, he has issues with his anal glands. My vet says grains are apart of a normal dog diet and the protein is too high for these little guys, alot of people have their dogs on it and do well, it is just a personal preference and what your dog does well on and how active they are

[Princes mom]

Originally Posted by chestermama

Chester has done very well on the wee bits, he needs the extra fiber 4%, some of the other dog foods are 2-3%, he has issues with his anal glands. My vet says grains are apart of a normal dog diet and the protein is too high for these little guys, alot of people have their dogs on it and do well, it is just a personal preference and what your dog does well on and how active they are

Prince eats Solid Gold's wee bits as well. He loves it, and I like the size of the kibble. (He also eats Blue Buffalo for small picky eaters). You know, we have never had any issues with anal glands...his vet attributes that to the high quality food.

[dre1141]

I tried to give Lexi the wee bits recently after reading everyone's replies and she wouldn't eat it which is unusual since she eats anything but I did exchange it for the wellness small breed and she gobbles it right up!

I have it mixed with her current food while transitioning and she picks all the wellness pieces out and leaves the rest, she's made quite the mess of her food area as she takes a mouthful drops it on the ground and then picks out the new food and leaves the old food, good thing Zeus likes both brands and cleans up her mess! LOL!