My personal opinion...

[Punkygirl0101]

My dogs were doing fine on beneful..and I switched to a better food, Kirkland Signature (not the best, but much better than Purine beneful) and they are EVEN better! So I bet if you switched to a better food, you would notice an even great improvement!! My mom used to feed them Science diet, and again..they were fine on that food as well, but EVEN better on their current food. The only thing I did notice, when Peanut was eating Beneful he didn't have bad tear stains..and now he has bad tear stains on the Kirkland...I am working on switching his food to a higher quality food. Hes very picky though.

(And not for the sake of argument!! Just saying, how do you know your cat will only eat purina if you said that's all hes ever eaten?). My cats ate Meow mix for many years, and they easily transitioned to Kirkland Signature.)

Edit to add: My dog Brad was on Science diet and then Beneful and had REALLY terrible skin allergies. My mom denied that it was the food, and even the vet didn't think it was the food (Which is why I would never listen to a vet when it comes to dog nutrition). He lived most of his life with balding skin, scratching and biting himself all over...being red and inflamed.

And then a couple weeks after we switched to Kirkland, his fur grew back in, he didn't scratch at all. And his fur was beautiful and soft and shiny and silky!

 

[Sniperess]

I have fed everything from Joy, to Evo. I had a chow chow that did phenomenal on Joy but couldn't tolerate a bump up to say Purina ONE. She was on Joy for 14 yrs of her life and looked great.
I now feed 3 of mine Eagle Pack Holistic and absolutely love the results, and my epileptic cocker gets Wellness Core as grains make him seize. My vet comments on their overall looks and health so I won't change anytime soon. I have also fed raw for a bit but found it too overwhelming to keep up with with my schedule.
I think personally, if it's not broke don't fix it, if your dog does fine on a particular food then let it have that food!

 

[Dakotah]

Thanks everyone for you input.

 

[mrose_s]

We're all comfortable with what we are I suppose, each to their own.

Here its pretty much the norm to give your dog bones atleast every now and again and a lot of people feed mainly raw, its what we've always done, occasionally throwing in a can of food and they get kibble a few times a week (not Buster anymore though) so I don't really know how they do on other food but I wouldn't be comfortable with feeding only dry food. I feel bad when I feed the same meat 3 days in a row.

I can tell the difference when they sometimes get an emergency can for dinner, and for the first few years of Buster's life he couldn't handle canned food at all, threw it up everytime.

 

[ihartgonzo]

Honestly, I am not a fan of the saying: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Or whatev. How do you KNOW it ain't broke if you don't even TRY to fix it? It just seems like such an apathetic, defeatist attitude. Why not try to make improvements, and better your dog's life, if there is a chance of doing it?

If you HAVE tried the best kibble available to you according to ingredients, like Sizzle, and a slightly less quality kibble just works best for your dogs... that's great. Sizzle HAS made an effort. She KNOWS what does work best for her dogs, but you don't know, until you make an effort and TRY.

I do find it hard to believe people who say they cannot afford even a medium quality kibble, or that they aren't located anywhere nearby. I mean, don't even the smallest of towns have feed stores of some kind? I think the biggest problem is not making an effort to educate one's self about what is really in kibble, what kibble is out there, and what a carnivore truly needs to thrive. Cats, IMHO, need premium kibbles with high meat content even moreso than dogs... being that they are obligate carnivores. Plus, the fact is, paying $10 for a 40 lb bag of corn middlings, sawdust and low grade vitamins is a RIP OFF. If anything, a premium kibble saves money, not the other way around.

As long as a dog is not malnourished or unhealthy, I cannot judge the food that some one chooses to feed. But, there is ALWAYS room for improvement, and I just don't like hearing people settling for a diet that can be vastly improved, if it is at all possible.

Mrose, that is just one of the many reasons that I love Australia! It is actually *commonplace* to feed Raw there, and has been forever, while here it is largely considered a trendy fad. D: Erghhhh

 

[Paige]

My cats currently have a bag of purina sitting in the closet that they eat because it's all I can get them to eat when it comes to kibble. They won't eat anything else and believe me I've tried.

The cats have been eating a weird meal plan since I got them. I for some reason had a boat load of canned meat in my cuboard I had forgotten about so I've sort of stuck with feeding them that. They do the best when they're fed meat. Especially Bellla my skinny cat. She'd look right vulgar if I relied on kibble to feed her. Darn picky eater.

Do what works for your animals.