Mass Market Dog Food's Best Lines vs. Canidae = FAIL?

ah dont forget the feeding guidelines.. brands like pedigree ussually suggest feeding 2-3 times the amount that a higher quality brand suggests!

I recently read Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson (as mentioned, I have never loved and hated a book so much at the same time). She bases her training on mostly positive reinforcement. One thing I loved was when she wrote about how people claim that when you use treats, the dogs are doing if for you. I can't tell you how many times I have seen the written in this forum alone. She stressed they are not. They are doing it for the treat. Just like correction based trained dogs do it to avoid the correction. I tried to use treat training with my Lab. I have aske a question on it. Perhaps I lack as a trainer, but I was not successful. On the other end of the spectrum than Bells mentioned, he was far too engaged with the food (and it didnt' matter how full, this dog will eat til he throws up then eat some more). I found it far more effective to use a toy he likes as opposed to a food reward. I still use corrections as well.

I do happen to feed Canidae ALS, (the variety you posted) because I thought it was the best value for the money. It also guarantees that ingredients are sourced in the US and meats are hormone and antibiotic free. Calories per cup is higher than many competitors, also, again giving quality/price. (Price per feeding is somewhat calculated by knowing calories per cup, but not totally. The composition of the food also influences how many of those calories are usable to the dog.)

I'm not sure why more people don't know about this food, as it's a great choice for folks looking at higher-quality foods but working within a budget.

Been feeding it for 2 years and very happy with it.

Canidae would take offense at being called 'mass-market', however. Only available through independent pet stores.

ETA: Uh, you called Canidae mass market. You said this is a comparison of mass-market foods in your question?;)

ETA: @divapom: You're getting into the differences in AAFCO definitions btw Dinner, Formula,etc. There are specific minimum percentages of the titled ingredients assigned to each naming convention. www.dogfoodproject.com does a good job of explaining this.

I'm constantly telling people this! I've done all the math in feeding my cat Orijen and I save money over feeding her the grocery store garbage. But people are put off by the high initial cost, and would rather spread the cost out, even if it means taking a loss at the end of the year. Geez, tuck away $10 a week, I say, but no one ever listens lol.

I agree with Naked That you need to include the price per feeding in your analysis.

I was particularly amazed at the No Lamb in the Lamb & Rice formula.

Well, certainly quality does not equal price. Just compare Science Diet with Costco's Kirkland brand and you'll see what I mean.

OTOH, Beneful is hardly Purina's "best" line. Even those of us who feed a Purina line (ProPlan) would say that Beneful is crap.