I wouldn't say any of those foods are the greatest premium brands out there. Canidae has cheapened their ingredients and is now manufactured by Diamond, which many people don't trust because of past recall problems. Wellness was recently sold off as well, so I'd watch for any formula changes with them. My dogs didn't do well on Wellness because it was very grain-heavy and I found them eating grass all the time. My dogs are now on Orijen and have never looked better. I just think the

I have a senior boxer and two approaching senior age. I switched them to Orijen from Canidae and have seen great improvement in muscle tone, weight loss and shiny coats. I know Orijen is very expensive but I don't feed as much. A 29 lb. bag feeds a 70 lb boxer, a 58 lb boxer and a 47 lb. boxer mix for 3 weeks. I only go through 7 cups a day for all 3 dogs (with a little canned topper). So you definitely need to factor in the calories per cup when comparing costs. Wellness Core has a moderate

I never stopped feeding it. I've heard reports of people who opened cans that smelled really bad and they threw them out. I also heard somewhere that it was more than a paperwork problem, but I never saw that confirmed anywhere. It's easy to spread misinformation on web boards where we know some companies have ulterior motives. Since I never saw any FDA report that there was a confirmed bad batch somewhere, I continued to feed it and haven't had any problems.

I use Seapet fish oil with vitamin E, that I order from www.seapet.com . I like that it is super-concentrated so I don't have to use a lot of (because it can make one dog vomity, and vomited fish oil is pretty bad). The only downside is the bottle cap leaks, even though they've changed it, so I keep it in a ziploc bag so any run-off collects in the bag and I don't have to touch a slimy bottle.

I would feed kibble and canned. The reality is that most adoptive homes will not spend the money or go through the expense of feeding Orijen and/or raw. I always try and suggest the best food I can at a moderate price. I used to recommend Canidae because it was far superior than Dad's, etc. but since their formula and factory change I don't trust them anymore. I have a new placement that I just recommended California Natural Puppy for. The puppy formula has higher protein than the adult and

I would cut back on the kibble and add more green beans as "filler" to make it seem like he is getting more food.

[quote user="Pit_Pointer_Aussie"] Some foods also work better for individual dogs, so maybe shopping around a bit would help. That's what we did for Rosco and it turns out he thrives on Orijen. [/quote] Same thing here. Orijen has really slimmed down my two chubsters, and they are more mobile and playful than before.

I've heard too many bad things about Nutro to trust them. They've also recently downgraded their ingredients in a lot of their kibbles, so I think you could do better. Off the top of my head I think that Eagle Pack, Solid Gold, and maybe Innova might be in the same price range but much better quality. I'm sure other people will have more suggestions.

I disagree that carbs are better for putting on weight. Yes, they add weight, but it is mostly fat. Going grain-free has added more muscle to my super-skinny girl, and it's also helped my two with joint problems keep their weight down. Grain-free has made them leaner and more muscular, but nicely filled out. I think it's easier to manage their weight with fewer carbs. I think EP is a good food, but I'm not so sure its a good idea to use the power formula if all you're trying to do

It sounds fairly grain-heavy with 4 out of the top 6 ingredients being grains. Barley in particular can be troublesome for a lot of dogs. If you're dogs are ok with grains, then it doesn't sound bad. My only other concern would be the iodine level (which can affect thyroid function). It contains dried kelp and a second source of iodine, which sounds like it could be a lot of iodine, but this information is typically not listed in the guaranteed analysis. I would call or e-mail the company