<div>I know there's been a lot of discussion of different dog food recently. I've had Joey on a whole bunch of different ones since I got him. His foster momma said she put him on Royal Canin at the suggestion of her neighbor, who was a dog nutritionist. He did relatively well on that; we used the large breed, and later the large breed weight control. But, I went and started researching afterwards, and switched over to Canidea. About that time, I had Joey in obedience classes, and they spent one evening talking about dog nutrition, and how you want to see the meat (chicken, beef, venison, whatever) listed, and that it's a bit better than "meat meal," which was what Canidea used, so I went hunting again, and this time found Merrick. This has been our "old reliable" for almost a year now. I used Evo for one bag, but it was too strong and he had diarreha the whole time, and I used some of the Hundeflocken (adult formula, we got Checkers the puppy formula when dad first adopted him) for a little while, as when Joey was "extra fluffy," the folks at the natural dog food store suggested to use it, as it's higher in protein, and lower in fat. Well, he wasn't too keen on it, and back to Merrick we went, just less from cans, as it has a higher fat content, and was helping cause the "fluffiness." (Though, Joey mantains Brats 'n tots didn't make him fluffy... he likes the sausages!!) Now, we heard that Merrick makes a product called BG, for Before Grain. It's all natural, made in the USA, etc. I did some research on it, and it looks to be pretty good! The cans are pretty much meat and water, and the dry is meat & veggies that have been extruded, I believe. It's also easier on the tummy than the Evo. (Joey says he doesn't recomend the tripe!) I've been giving this to Joey for about 2 months now, and he's regrown hair!! Yes, seriously, he's regrown hair in his gray spots! Not completely, but when he came into rescue he had no fur at all on his gray spots, they got him to regrow a little, but since we've switched, we've seen a drastic improvement in hair growth & texture. Also, he just seems more "up," in temperment, and we think that the food, and the suplaments have been doing him a world of good. (He also gets "pet vites," glucosamine, fiber & flax seed oil once a day). So far, it's working for us, and I'm sold on the product! It's a bit more expensive than Benneful, or the store brands, but on par with the cost of other Merrick bags, and Canidea, etc. So, it's decently afordable, and a little goes a long way! (For warning if you try it, the Salmon flavor smells a lot, and in the wet food, the Salmon & the Tripe will more than clear out a room! Especially if your basset is prone to gas issues; it's even WORSE on the way out!)</div>
<div>-Karrie, momma to Joey (I still want my Brats 'n tots!), aunty to Checkers (I'll eat anything!) & Crispin (big puddle of drool thinking about the food!)</div>