Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Mumble loves to show off!
A couple of weekends ago, Mandy and I took Mumble to a doggie event in Hollywood, where we helped to represent the Zoom Room. In addition to all of the booths, etc set up for this event, there was a mini agility park set up in the yard for guests to check out what the Zoom Room has to offer. Mumble was more than happy to show off his stuff running through the little course! Check out pictures and information on the Zoom Room's blog, and be sure to look for the pictures of Mumble in the agility park!
Monday, June 21, 2010
Agility Birthday Cake for Chopper
Happy Birthday Chopper!
Earlier this month, we celebrated Chopper's 4th Birthday with a small gathering at Zoom Room Culver City. It's hard to believe that it's been 3 years and 3 months since Mandy adopted Chopper at the Best Friends Animal Society adoption event.
Chopper's one of my favorite dogs ever, and I'm so happy to be part of his life!
Chopper's one of my favorite dogs ever, and I'm so happy to be part of his life!
About the cake:
Because Chopper absolutely LOVES agility, I wanted to make him a special agility birthday cake with both dog-friendly and people-friendly cakes. The cakes themselves are store-bought - I purchased a white cake with white frosting from the grocery store (very plain sheet cake) and a doggie cake from Three Dog Bakery (peanut butter flavored, size 7").
To set up the agility course, I placed the two cakes onto cardboard cake sheets I bought at Michael's. It took two big sheets to make the area the size I wanted.
The "people cake" was made to match the blue and orange agility equipment with blue sprinkles across the top and orange sprinkles around the sides.
The difficult part, obviously, was creating the miniature agility equipment. After searching online for small model agility equipment and finding none, I realized I had to make these from scratch. I found some other blogs or online posts where people had done this and took some ideas from there, but basically I was making it up as I went along! Thank goodness I grew up with a very crafty mom, so I'm pretty creative myself :)
For supplies, I bought the following from Michael's (well, actually, some of this I already had):
I glued two of the larger rectangle pieces of wood together at a 90 degree angle to make the A-Frame. Once the glue had dried and the frame was securely together, I painted it completely blue. I then cut two smaller stips of orange foam to make the "contact points" at the bottoms of each side (see picture above) and pieces of blue foam to fit over the remainder of the top of the wood piece, and glued these on.
For the weave poles -
These were the simplest to make. I took about 6 of the lollipop sticks and painted two tiny blue stipes around each one, close together and near one end of the stick. These were later put directly into the cake to make a line of weave poles.
For the jump -
I only made one jump, and it wasn't as easy as I had anticipated. Again, I used the lollipop sticks for this, two for the sides and one for the horizontal pole, although I found that the sticks were a little longer than I'd like for purposes of the horizontal one, so I cut one off by about an inch. For the two side poles, I painted one stripe around the pole, towards one end (this would be the top end when it is all together). I then glued the horizontal pole onto the two other poles to make the jump. The glue didn't really hold it, and I ended up using tape as well.
For the Dog Walk -
In my variety pack of wood scraps, there were strips of wood pieces about one inch across and varying in length. I used two pieces about 3-4 inches long, one longer piece (maybe about 5-6 inches) and four little pieces about 1.5-2 inches in length. First, I used the four little pieces to make two "V" shapes that would be used as a support at the bottoms of the Dog Walk. I just glued two of these pieces together at an angle to make this. I then glued the medium lengthed pieces onto one side of my "V;" turning the "V" upside down, I just lined up one end of the medium piece with the bottom of one side and glued it on. Then I glued the longer piece onto the other end of each medium piece, connecting the whole thing together (see picture above). Once it was all glued (and it fell apart and had to be reglued at least twice), I painted it all blue. Again, I used the orange foam to cut small pieces for the bottoms of the dog walk as the "contact points" and blue foam to cover the top of the rest of the piece.
For the Teeter -
The teeter was fairly simple. Again, I used two small rectangles from my wood scrap bag to glue together into a "V" shape as the base, and painted this blue. I then used a longer wood piece for the top, painting this blue and then applying the orange foam contact points and the blue foam over the rest. I simply set this on top of the base to balance there to form the teeter totter.
For the Tunnel -
I ended up making two tunnels, because the first one I made wasn't long enough once I put it with the rest. Although I initially rejected that first one, I ended up using both in the end (in the picture above, the small blue tunnel is on the top of the round dog cake, and the larger orange tunnel is on the cake base under the Dog Walk. To make the tunnels, I just cut a piece of foam about 6 inches wide and the desired length (about 5-6 inches for a longer tunnel, 3-4 for a small one). I then rolled it up, and used the foam glue to secure it together.
Missing from my cake - the Tire -
I tried to locate something that would be the right size for the Tire - some small round, donut-like thing that I could paint blue and orange, but I was ultimately unsuccessful and gave up on this :(
"Happy Birthday Chopper" -
Instead of having writing on the cakes themselves, which may have been difficult to arrange with everything else, I made a small square from white foam, on which I wrote with blue markers "Happy Birthday Chopper." I then glued the white foam square onto a slightly smaller blue foam square. On the top of the cake, I inserted two of the extra lollipop sticks for the Happy Birthday sign to prop against.
Because Chopper absolutely LOVES agility, I wanted to make him a special agility birthday cake with both dog-friendly and people-friendly cakes. The cakes themselves are store-bought - I purchased a white cake with white frosting from the grocery store (very plain sheet cake) and a doggie cake from Three Dog Bakery (peanut butter flavored, size 7").
To set up the agility course, I placed the two cakes onto cardboard cake sheets I bought at Michael's. It took two big sheets to make the area the size I wanted.
The "people cake" was made to match the blue and orange agility equipment with blue sprinkles across the top and orange sprinkles around the sides.
The difficult part, obviously, was creating the miniature agility equipment. After searching online for small model agility equipment and finding none, I realized I had to make these from scratch. I found some other blogs or online posts where people had done this and took some ideas from there, but basically I was making it up as I went along! Thank goodness I grew up with a very crafty mom, so I'm pretty creative myself :)
For supplies, I bought the following from Michael's (well, actually, some of this I already had):
- 1 package of white lollipop sticks (in the candy-making aisle)
- 2 variety packs of small wood pieces (I found these in the wood section where there are materials for wood painting projects - each package had pieces of various sizes from tiny little squares to rectangles about 5 or 6 inches by 3 inches in size)
- Orange and Blue paint
- Orange and Blue craft foam (the kind that comes in sheets - about 2 sheets of each color)
- 1 sheet of white craft foam
- Markers
- Wood glue
- Foam glue
I glued two of the larger rectangle pieces of wood together at a 90 degree angle to make the A-Frame. Once the glue had dried and the frame was securely together, I painted it completely blue. I then cut two smaller stips of orange foam to make the "contact points" at the bottoms of each side (see picture above) and pieces of blue foam to fit over the remainder of the top of the wood piece, and glued these on.
For the weave poles -
These were the simplest to make. I took about 6 of the lollipop sticks and painted two tiny blue stipes around each one, close together and near one end of the stick. These were later put directly into the cake to make a line of weave poles.
For the jump -
I only made one jump, and it wasn't as easy as I had anticipated. Again, I used the lollipop sticks for this, two for the sides and one for the horizontal pole, although I found that the sticks were a little longer than I'd like for purposes of the horizontal one, so I cut one off by about an inch. For the two side poles, I painted one stripe around the pole, towards one end (this would be the top end when it is all together). I then glued the horizontal pole onto the two other poles to make the jump. The glue didn't really hold it, and I ended up using tape as well.
For the Dog Walk -
In my variety pack of wood scraps, there were strips of wood pieces about one inch across and varying in length. I used two pieces about 3-4 inches long, one longer piece (maybe about 5-6 inches) and four little pieces about 1.5-2 inches in length. First, I used the four little pieces to make two "V" shapes that would be used as a support at the bottoms of the Dog Walk. I just glued two of these pieces together at an angle to make this. I then glued the medium lengthed pieces onto one side of my "V;" turning the "V" upside down, I just lined up one end of the medium piece with the bottom of one side and glued it on. Then I glued the longer piece onto the other end of each medium piece, connecting the whole thing together (see picture above). Once it was all glued (and it fell apart and had to be reglued at least twice), I painted it all blue. Again, I used the orange foam to cut small pieces for the bottoms of the dog walk as the "contact points" and blue foam to cover the top of the rest of the piece.
For the Teeter -
The teeter was fairly simple. Again, I used two small rectangles from my wood scrap bag to glue together into a "V" shape as the base, and painted this blue. I then used a longer wood piece for the top, painting this blue and then applying the orange foam contact points and the blue foam over the rest. I simply set this on top of the base to balance there to form the teeter totter.
For the Tunnel -
I ended up making two tunnels, because the first one I made wasn't long enough once I put it with the rest. Although I initially rejected that first one, I ended up using both in the end (in the picture above, the small blue tunnel is on the top of the round dog cake, and the larger orange tunnel is on the cake base under the Dog Walk. To make the tunnels, I just cut a piece of foam about 6 inches wide and the desired length (about 5-6 inches for a longer tunnel, 3-4 for a small one). I then rolled it up, and used the foam glue to secure it together.
Missing from my cake - the Tire -
I tried to locate something that would be the right size for the Tire - some small round, donut-like thing that I could paint blue and orange, but I was ultimately unsuccessful and gave up on this :(
"Happy Birthday Chopper" -
Instead of having writing on the cakes themselves, which may have been difficult to arrange with everything else, I made a small square from white foam, on which I wrote with blue markers "Happy Birthday Chopper." I then glued the white foam square onto a slightly smaller blue foam square. On the top of the cake, I inserted two of the extra lollipop sticks for the Happy Birthday sign to prop against.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Dog Food Series Part 2: The Woes of a Dog with a Sensitive Stomach
Mumble has always had both allergies and food sensitivities. From the first day I got him, he's had diarrhea off-and-on on a fairly frequent basis. In addition to the laundry list of things he just can't seem to tolerate / digest, there is the list of foods that make him itchy, sneezy, have watery eyes, or have dry skin.
Food:
Mumble eats two meals per day, each containing 1/2 can of Party Animal wet food (turkey and sweet potato flavor), a scoop of Blue Buffalo dry food, and the special homemade "mix" I make myself.
Wet Food: My vet is a big believer in the benefits of all wet food versus dry kibble. Early on in the process of trying to find a food that Mumble could tolerate, she recommended that he eat only "Party Animal" brand food. Party Animal is a dog food made with organic ingredients, including organic meats, veggies and fruits. Because it is organic, it doesn't include artificial preservatives and other additives that are not good for dogs with allergies and food sensitivities.
Mumble eats only the one called "Turn up da' Turkey" recipe. Initially, I rotated the turkey flavor, chicken flavor and sometimes the fish flavor, but I have found that Mumble doesn't do as well with digesting more than one protein source. I use this particular Turkey option because it has sweet potatoes, rather than carrots, as the main vegetable ingredient. Aside from the fact that Mumble doesn't digest carrots very well, sweet potatoes are known to be a "super food." Super foods are those that have substantially higher nutritional value than other foods, and I read somewhere that dogs with digestion issues (and who thereby may be "losing nutrients" through frequent bouts of diarrhea) actually absorb more nutrients if their diet includes super foods. (note: the Party Animal recipes also include another super food - blueberries).
Dry Food: For a while, Mumble was on a strict diet of only this wet food. However, over time, he still had some occasional digestive issues, and I started doing some research about commercial foods with high levels of fiber and probiotics and other digestive enzymes. I was also concerned about the cost of his wet-food-only diet, and hoping to reduce that by supplementing with a high quality dry kibble. I tried out various dry foods, only adding a little to his wet food. Nothing seemed to be OK. Many dry foods seemed to increase his itchy allergic reactions. Others made him have increased digestive problems.
Then we went to home to Georgia for Christmas, and Mumble and I were staying with my sister and brother-in-law and their two dogs. I was very stressed about the dog food situation for this trip, because Party Animal was not available in Georgia (at least anywhere near where they live). I planned on bringing some cans of wet food with me in my luggage, but knew that ultimately I'd need to supplement it with something available there.
Enter Blue Buffalo dry food. My sister has a Husky, and she had been feeding him this brand at the recommendation of a rescue group. In advance of my coming to GA, she switched her dogs to a "flavor" of this dry food that included a protein Mumble could digest, and I added that to his food while he was there. It was miraculous how well he digested it! He had the most consistently good digestion during the time we were in Georgia that he has ever had before! I was sold.
Back in CA, I started buying the same Blue Buffalo food (it was at that time the Fish flavor). Ultimately, Mumble did start to have some issues again, and it was during this time that I realized the difficulty with digesting two very different protein sources simultaneously (turkey and chicken seem ok, but turkey or chicken with fish is not, and he simply can't digest beef, venison or duck; lamb makes him itchy). So I switched him to Blue Buffalo's Chicken and Brown Rice recipe, which is in their line of "Life Protection" foods. (note: now that they have added some limited ingredient products, called "Blue Basics," I'm considering switching to Turkey and Potato).
Overall, this combo has been good, but ultimately, Mumble still has digestive woes. Recently, we went through a period where it was so bad that I had to make his food myself for a while. Since that, I have been supplementing his food with the homemade "mix" that I make every week. The mix is cooked sweet potato, canned pumpkin, cottage cheese, and a tiny bit of yogurt. (Mumble LOVES cottage cheese, that's definitely his favorite part). This may sound ridiculous, but it works!
A note about canned pumpkin: Above, I talked about sweet potato as a "super food;" my other favorite addition for dog food is canned pumpkin. Early on, I read an article that talked about using canned pumpkin for dogs that have frequent diarrhea. I was skeptical, because the traditional approach of plain rice didn't have any impact whatsoever on Mumble's digestive problems. But the pumpkin really works! I know other dog owners who add it only when their dog has an upset tummy, and they swear by it as something that will stop the diarrhea pretty much right away!
Medications:
In addition to the homemade mix, Mumble has probiotics added to his food at least once per day. He is also on a supplement prescribed by his vet called Antonex, which helps him maintain appropriate histamine levels (and thereby prevents allergy attacks), which he takes with every meal.
I hope this is helpful to any of you out there suffering through the ups and downs of dealing with doggie digestive issues. It's definitely a challenge (don't even get me started about treats), but ultimately, you can find something that will keep your dog healthy and eating well.
p.s. Always consult your vet if your dog is having chronic diarrhea or other health issues, and if you are considering adding a supplement or medication to his diet.
Food:
Mumble eats two meals per day, each containing 1/2 can of Party Animal wet food (turkey and sweet potato flavor), a scoop of Blue Buffalo dry food, and the special homemade "mix" I make myself.
Wet Food: My vet is a big believer in the benefits of all wet food versus dry kibble. Early on in the process of trying to find a food that Mumble could tolerate, she recommended that he eat only "Party Animal" brand food. Party Animal is a dog food made with organic ingredients, including organic meats, veggies and fruits. Because it is organic, it doesn't include artificial preservatives and other additives that are not good for dogs with allergies and food sensitivities.
Mumble eats only the one called "Turn up da' Turkey" recipe. Initially, I rotated the turkey flavor, chicken flavor and sometimes the fish flavor, but I have found that Mumble doesn't do as well with digesting more than one protein source. I use this particular Turkey option because it has sweet potatoes, rather than carrots, as the main vegetable ingredient. Aside from the fact that Mumble doesn't digest carrots very well, sweet potatoes are known to be a "super food." Super foods are those that have substantially higher nutritional value than other foods, and I read somewhere that dogs with digestion issues (and who thereby may be "losing nutrients" through frequent bouts of diarrhea) actually absorb more nutrients if their diet includes super foods. (note: the Party Animal recipes also include another super food - blueberries).
Dry Food: For a while, Mumble was on a strict diet of only this wet food. However, over time, he still had some occasional digestive issues, and I started doing some research about commercial foods with high levels of fiber and probiotics and other digestive enzymes. I was also concerned about the cost of his wet-food-only diet, and hoping to reduce that by supplementing with a high quality dry kibble. I tried out various dry foods, only adding a little to his wet food. Nothing seemed to be OK. Many dry foods seemed to increase his itchy allergic reactions. Others made him have increased digestive problems.
Then we went to home to Georgia for Christmas, and Mumble and I were staying with my sister and brother-in-law and their two dogs. I was very stressed about the dog food situation for this trip, because Party Animal was not available in Georgia (at least anywhere near where they live). I planned on bringing some cans of wet food with me in my luggage, but knew that ultimately I'd need to supplement it with something available there.
Enter Blue Buffalo dry food. My sister has a Husky, and she had been feeding him this brand at the recommendation of a rescue group. In advance of my coming to GA, she switched her dogs to a "flavor" of this dry food that included a protein Mumble could digest, and I added that to his food while he was there. It was miraculous how well he digested it! He had the most consistently good digestion during the time we were in Georgia that he has ever had before! I was sold.
Back in CA, I started buying the same Blue Buffalo food (it was at that time the Fish flavor). Ultimately, Mumble did start to have some issues again, and it was during this time that I realized the difficulty with digesting two very different protein sources simultaneously (turkey and chicken seem ok, but turkey or chicken with fish is not, and he simply can't digest beef, venison or duck; lamb makes him itchy). So I switched him to Blue Buffalo's Chicken and Brown Rice recipe, which is in their line of "Life Protection" foods. (note: now that they have added some limited ingredient products, called "Blue Basics," I'm considering switching to Turkey and Potato).
Overall, this combo has been good, but ultimately, Mumble still has digestive woes. Recently, we went through a period where it was so bad that I had to make his food myself for a while. Since that, I have been supplementing his food with the homemade "mix" that I make every week. The mix is cooked sweet potato, canned pumpkin, cottage cheese, and a tiny bit of yogurt. (Mumble LOVES cottage cheese, that's definitely his favorite part). This may sound ridiculous, but it works!
A note about canned pumpkin: Above, I talked about sweet potato as a "super food;" my other favorite addition for dog food is canned pumpkin. Early on, I read an article that talked about using canned pumpkin for dogs that have frequent diarrhea. I was skeptical, because the traditional approach of plain rice didn't have any impact whatsoever on Mumble's digestive problems. But the pumpkin really works! I know other dog owners who add it only when their dog has an upset tummy, and they swear by it as something that will stop the diarrhea pretty much right away!
Medications:
In addition to the homemade mix, Mumble has probiotics added to his food at least once per day. He is also on a supplement prescribed by his vet called Antonex, which helps him maintain appropriate histamine levels (and thereby prevents allergy attacks), which he takes with every meal.
I hope this is helpful to any of you out there suffering through the ups and downs of dealing with doggie digestive issues. It's definitely a challenge (don't even get me started about treats), but ultimately, you can find something that will keep your dog healthy and eating well.
p.s. Always consult your vet if your dog is having chronic diarrhea or other health issues, and if you are considering adding a supplement or medication to his diet.
Dog Food Series Part 1: Everyone has an opinion!
There's a lot of information out there these days about what makes a good dog food versus a bad dog food. Google phrases like "good dog food" or "what should I feed by dog" and you'll come up with an overwhelming list of links, with opinions, analysis and information about all kinds of options from "raw food diets" to low end commercial dog foods and everything in between. It seems like everyone, from trainers, to vets, to random people you meet in pet stores, will have an opinion about what you should feed your pet. And some of those opinions are conflicting - one vet may swear by dry food as being the way to go while another opines that you should only use wet food. Those "random people" in the pet store often turn out to be reps from some pet food company. They'll give you tons of information about ingredients and how this food is so healthy and digestible, but ultimately they are trying to sell a product.
So how does the average dog owner comb through all of this information and decide on the food that right for her pup? It can be a difficult decision, and speaking as an owner of a dog with pretty significant digestive issues, it is a vital decision.
There are plenty of other websites out there with lengthy and informative articles about what you should look for, and even websites that have done the analysis for you. Some examples can be found at the bottom of this article. Keep in mind, just like opinions of professionals and your friends, the information contained in various websites can be contradictory!
In addition to reading up and doing your research, here are some practical tips for deciding what dog food to use:
(1) Be realistic about what is important to you. Your dog's health and well-being is likely the most important thing, or you wouldn't be doing all of this research. But let's face it, cost is a factor. While we all want what is best for our pets, most of us can't afford to simply feed our dogs the most expensive food on the market. Sit down and calculate how much you feed your dog and what it costs per day (based on the cost of one bag). You can find tools on the web to help you figure this out, based on your current dog food, and use this as a guide. There's even an iPhone app.
(2) After you've researched online about ingredients, etc, take a good look at the food you're already using and consider its overall quality.
(3) Ask your vet. Presumably you trust your vet about all kinds of things related to your pet's health, and what your pet eats is an integral part of his overall health and well-being. Don't just ask "what food do you recommend?" Your vet may be selling a specific brand directly from his/her office, and will "recommend" only that. Instead, ask for your vet's opinion about specific food choices - what you're feeding your dog now and what you are considering. If there is a specific food that your vet recommends as "the best," ask what it is about that food that makes it so. The information you take away from this can help you make an informed decision that is individually right for you and your dog.
(4) Ask other dog professionals. Do you have a trainer working with your dog, a dog walker, or a groomer that you trust? They are sure to have an opinion, not just based on what they feed their own dogs, but on the information they have from other dog owners they've worked with. This can be a good source of info about a variety of options.
(5) Rather than asking for the opinion of sales reps who hang out in large retailers of pet products on the weekends promoting their own food, go to a smaller, local pet food store and ask the opinion of the staff there. Some of these people are very knowledgeable about all of the different foods they sell, and can tell you why some are better than others in terms of quality. (Two places where I've found such useful people are Got Pet Food in Santa Monica and Collar and Leash in Pacific Palisades.)
(6) Ask your friends what they feed their dog and why. Note that not everyone is knowledgeable about dog food options, and you may have some friends still using the "grocery store brands." But if you trust your friends' opinions regarding this kind of thing, they can give you a realistic, helpful point of view based on what actually works well for their dog instead of just on research, etc.
This last tip gets straight to the point of what this series of blog posts will be about. While you can find a plethora of websites out there with an overwhelming amount of facts about ingredients, health benefits, etc, sometimes its more helpful to hear from real people with real dogs about what they choose and why. In my circle of "dog friends," none of us feed our dogs exactly the same thing, and I think this exemplifies the reality of this decision - everyone may have a strong opinion and good reasons for what they choose, but at the end of the day, there are many, many good options out there. Therefore, I've invited some of my dog owner friends to guest blog for this series. We will each discuss what we have chosen to feed our pups, why we made the choice we made, and what benefits we see of the particular food we are using. I hope you find this useful! And please feel free to also post comments!
As promised, here are some examples of informational cites:
Drs. Foster and Smith's "FAQ" about what and how much to feed your dog
Dogster's article "How to Choose a Healthy Dog Food"
PetEducation.com's article "Choosing a Dog Food"
Even WikiHow has an artile: How to Choose Healthy Dog Food
And here are some that rate / analyze specific brands of dog food:
Dog Food Scoop
Dog Food Analysis
So how does the average dog owner comb through all of this information and decide on the food that right for her pup? It can be a difficult decision, and speaking as an owner of a dog with pretty significant digestive issues, it is a vital decision.
There are plenty of other websites out there with lengthy and informative articles about what you should look for, and even websites that have done the analysis for you. Some examples can be found at the bottom of this article. Keep in mind, just like opinions of professionals and your friends, the information contained in various websites can be contradictory!
In addition to reading up and doing your research, here are some practical tips for deciding what dog food to use:
(1) Be realistic about what is important to you. Your dog's health and well-being is likely the most important thing, or you wouldn't be doing all of this research. But let's face it, cost is a factor. While we all want what is best for our pets, most of us can't afford to simply feed our dogs the most expensive food on the market. Sit down and calculate how much you feed your dog and what it costs per day (based on the cost of one bag). You can find tools on the web to help you figure this out, based on your current dog food, and use this as a guide. There's even an iPhone app.
(2) After you've researched online about ingredients, etc, take a good look at the food you're already using and consider its overall quality.
(3) Ask your vet. Presumably you trust your vet about all kinds of things related to your pet's health, and what your pet eats is an integral part of his overall health and well-being. Don't just ask "what food do you recommend?" Your vet may be selling a specific brand directly from his/her office, and will "recommend" only that. Instead, ask for your vet's opinion about specific food choices - what you're feeding your dog now and what you are considering. If there is a specific food that your vet recommends as "the best," ask what it is about that food that makes it so. The information you take away from this can help you make an informed decision that is individually right for you and your dog.
(4) Ask other dog professionals. Do you have a trainer working with your dog, a dog walker, or a groomer that you trust? They are sure to have an opinion, not just based on what they feed their own dogs, but on the information they have from other dog owners they've worked with. This can be a good source of info about a variety of options.
(5) Rather than asking for the opinion of sales reps who hang out in large retailers of pet products on the weekends promoting their own food, go to a smaller, local pet food store and ask the opinion of the staff there. Some of these people are very knowledgeable about all of the different foods they sell, and can tell you why some are better than others in terms of quality. (Two places where I've found such useful people are Got Pet Food in Santa Monica and Collar and Leash in Pacific Palisades.)
(6) Ask your friends what they feed their dog and why. Note that not everyone is knowledgeable about dog food options, and you may have some friends still using the "grocery store brands." But if you trust your friends' opinions regarding this kind of thing, they can give you a realistic, helpful point of view based on what actually works well for their dog instead of just on research, etc.
This last tip gets straight to the point of what this series of blog posts will be about. While you can find a plethora of websites out there with an overwhelming amount of facts about ingredients, health benefits, etc, sometimes its more helpful to hear from real people with real dogs about what they choose and why. In my circle of "dog friends," none of us feed our dogs exactly the same thing, and I think this exemplifies the reality of this decision - everyone may have a strong opinion and good reasons for what they choose, but at the end of the day, there are many, many good options out there. Therefore, I've invited some of my dog owner friends to guest blog for this series. We will each discuss what we have chosen to feed our pups, why we made the choice we made, and what benefits we see of the particular food we are using. I hope you find this useful! And please feel free to also post comments!
As promised, here are some examples of informational cites:
Drs. Foster and Smith's "FAQ" about what and how much to feed your dog
Dogster's article "How to Choose a Healthy Dog Food"
PetEducation.com's article "Choosing a Dog Food"
Even WikiHow has an artile: How to Choose Healthy Dog Food
And here are some that rate / analyze specific brands of dog food:
Dog Food Scoop
Dog Food Analysis
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