Choosing a dog food is a big deal for many pet owners, and one of the main things to consider when pricing out how much needs to be set aside per month to afford a dog. Choosing a proper diet can be a difficult challenge, as some dogs have allergies, some have health issues, some just have specific needs, there are pet food recalls, good and bad ingredients, and other nutritional needs to consider.
Why Quality Matters
Many dogs survive on grocery store dog food, but there are huge benefits to feeding better quality food.
You can buy a 50-pound bag of dog food for
about $20, but it has the
same effect on your dog as
a life of eating
nothing but the cheapest junk food, and may be full of
controversial or even dangerous ingredients.
It’s not always a better value to go with the cheapest. Sometimes you’ll end up spending more money on “cheap” kibble, because the recommended serving sizes are so much larger.
For example, Iams has half the servicing size as Ol' Roy so the food lasts twice as long.
It can take a lot of trial and error to select the best pet food to feed your animals, and a lot of research. Some great places to go are DogFoodAdvisor, DoogFoodAdvisor How To Choose a Dog FoodDogFoodChat, DogFoodAnalysis, and DogFoodScoop as these sites are dedicated to pet health and nutrition. With all the options we have now, these sites can be lifesavers as they provide advice, assistance, and reviews which can help you decide what to buy. Health tip Soy-free is often praised, but some dogs, especially older or spayed female dogs, which are having bladder control issues can do well on soy based diets, but a diet change is just one of the things to try if your dog becomes ill or is having problems.
Always remember, the best food your dog can have, is the best one that works for your dog. It may be important to try samples of a lot of different foods, and see which one your dog does best on. Is their coat shiner, their eyes brighter? Do they smell better, is their poo better, are their teeth whiter, are they healthier? That’s what matters most! Does the food upset their tummy, make them itchy, make them sick? Then it doesn’t matter if it is rated as being the best food out there, because it doesn’t work for your dog.
Rotation diets aren’t bad, either! It gives your dog a variety of flavors, proteins, nutrients, and helps you possibly save money some months, and gives you options if there is a recall or some other reason their preferred food is unavailable.
Dental Benefits
Keep an eye on your dog’s teeth! You want clean, shiny, white teeth free from plaque and tartar. The best way to do this is to
brush your dog’s teeth, but their food has a lot to do with it, as well as using
raw meaty bones that have been frozen for 3 days to kill parasites. I’ve been told a story by someone whose dog lost their teeth and was in terrible health because of their food, which ended up
being very costly. Now
better information is available on how to prevent such things.
Other Helpful Sites for Dog Food
Dry Dog Food Prices
There are many dietary choices when feeding your dog… dry, canned, raw, cooked, freeze-dried, mixed and matched… In this list, I am focusing on dry dog food and I am using
dogfoodadvisor.com for their
5 star Dry food list. I am omitting freeze-dried foods for this list, as I really am just trying to concentrate on dry dog food, for the time being, as it is the most common food used. I hope to get prices on all their 5 and 4 star food, at least well enough that I can update it once a month, but that will take some time.
Please keep in mind, this list is alphabetical, not by ranking, and prices are what I could find them at the day I looked (April 2014), before tax and shipping.
Source: Amazon
Weight: 28.6 lbs
Price: $71.99
Price per pound: $2.52
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 28.6 lbs
Price: $64.99
Price per pound: $2.27
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 11 lbs
Price: $31.25
Price per pound: $3.36
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $66.99
Price per pound: $2.23
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 27 lbs
Price: $64.99
Price per pound: $2.41
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Source:
Weight: 24 lbs
Price: $59.99
Price per pound: $2.17
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Source: Wag
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $79.99
Price per pound: $3.20
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Source: Brother's Complete
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $79.99
Price per pound: $3.20
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 12.5 lbs
Price: $33.99
Price per pound: $3.22
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 24 lbs
Price: $54.99
Price per pound: $2.06
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Source:
No Source Available! Diamond Recall On Product!
Weight:
Price:
Price per pound:
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Source: Wag
Weight: 15 lbs
Price: $43.99
Price per pound: $2.93
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Source: Pet Supplies
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $64.85
Price per pound: $2.60
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $41.99
Price per pound: $1.40
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $53.99
Price per pound: $1.80
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 28 lbs
Price: $47.99
Price per pound: $1.71
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Source: Wag
Weight: 16.5 lbs
Price: $38.99
Price per pound: $2.36
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Source: PetFlow
Weight: 13.2 lbs
Price: $32.99
Price per pound: $2.50
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 26.4 lbs
Price: $64.99
Price per pound: $2.46
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $61.20
Price per pound: $2.45
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Source: PetFlow
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $64.99
Price per pound: $2.60
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $46.99
Price per pound: $1.47
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Source: The Animal House
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $49.99
Price per pound: $2.00
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Source: PetFlow
Weight: 25.1 lbs
Price: $57.99
Price per pound: $2.31
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 23 lbs
Price: $59.99
Price per pound: $2.61
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Source: Infinia Pet Food
Weight: ???
Price: Varies by location
Price per pound: Varies by price and size.
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $53.79
Price per pound: $2.15
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $49.99
Price per pound: $1.67
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $49.88
Price per pound: $2.00
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 40 lbs
Price: $60.60
Price per pound: $1.68
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Source: Chewy
Weight: 26.4
Price: $51.84
Price per pound: $1.96
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Source: Nature's Select
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $65.95
Price per pound: $2.20
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 25.3 lbs
Price: $63.99
Price per pound: $2.15
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 23.5 lbs
Price: $62.74
Price per pound: $2.67
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Source: PetSmart
Weight: 24 lbs
Price: $57.99
Price per pound: $2.42
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Source: Canada's Pet Shop
Weight: 25 lbs
Price: $66.99
Price per pound: $2.68
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 18 lbs
Price: $38.99
Price per pound: $2.17
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 28 lbs
Price: $51.35
Price per pound: $1.83
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Source: PetFlow
Weight: 28.6
Price: $73.99
Price per pound: $2.59
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Source: Oven Baked Traditional
Weight: ???
Price: Varies by location
Price per pound: Varies by price and weight.
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Source: Bosleys
Weight: ???
Price: Varies by location
Price per pound: Varies by price and weight
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Source: Wag
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $68.99
Price per pound: $2.30
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Source: Doctor's Finest
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $49.72
Price per pound: $1.66
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Source: Sammy Snacks
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $62.99
Price per pound: $2.10
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Source: PetSmart
Weight: 24 lbs
Price: $46.99
Price per pound: $1.96
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Source: PetCo
Weight: 28.5 lbs
Price: $69.99
Price per pound: $2.46
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Source: PetCo
Weight: 28.5 lbs
Price: $69.99
Price per pound: $2.46
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 24 lbs
Price: $64.80
Price per pound: $2.70
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $56.99 + 20 shipping
Price per pound: $2.57 (shipping included)
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Source: Rocket Prtz
Weight: 30 lbs
Price: $47.99
Price per pound: $1.60
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 26 lbs
Price: $52.95
Price per pound: $2.04
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Source: Amazon
Weight: 26 lbs
Price: $53.95
Price per pound: $2.08
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Source: 1800 Pet Meds
Weight: 20 lbs
Price: $79.99
Price per pound: $4.00
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Source: 1800 Pet Meds
Weight: 20 lbs
Price: $132.99
Price per pound: $6.65
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Source: Young Again Pet Foods
Weight: 40 lbs
Price: $129.00
Price per pound: $3.23
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Features
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Logo is mine, as is the dog. That's Lakoda, my German Shpherd / Siberian Husky mix. Journal coding by
kuschelirmel-stock, thumb_table code by
nichtgraveyet
