On the recommendation of the Vet, my dogs get Royal Canin dry dog food which is a US import. There are many formulations, in my dogs case one is low fat, the other is dental.
It is expensive, so my question to Choice and Members are there lesser cost substitutes?
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Royal Canin is actually a French brand. The high price is due to it having a very tightly controlled, heavily researched formula. If your vet has recommended it because of a specific health issue your dog has, it would be best to discuss substitution with your vet first. Should substitution be ok, Advance is a slightly cheaper equivalent that is Australian made.
Other ways you can save money include:
- Making use of repeat order discounts or loyalty program discounts
- Purchasing online or via Click & Collect as many chains offer a cheaper online price
- Shopping around if itâs not on special at your usual place of purchase
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Hi Peter. Many thanks for that information.
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Our experience some years back of Vetâs sold specialty pet products. Unlike GPâs who do not sell food and health products. Our favourite (dog) was routinely recommended a particular brand and formula of dry food product for teeth and gum health and eventually a variety also based on age. Sheâd eat almost anything one put in the bowl. Itâs to ask whether there is a conflict of interest here or if customers/owners are reluctant to ask otherwise.
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Thanks Peter.
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You should ask the vet what specific food characteristics your pet needs and whether only the special-diet food can achieve those. The latter might well be true for your petâs health condition/s, but itâs not always the case.
At the risk of going a little off-topic and mentioning an experience with Royal Canin cat food âŠ
Our vet recommended a Royal Canin âkidney dietâ food for our elderly cat, who was relatively healthy but his kidney function was deteriorating. The vet explained that the main aim was to reduce his protein intake, which would take some of the strain off the kidneys.
As it happened, that cat was very âselectiveâ about what he would and wouldnât eat, and Royal Canin was firmly in the latter category.
No matter how well-designed the food, it couldnât do him any good if he wouldnât touch it! So I suggested to the vet that we could just aim for the right protein intake by mixing foods with different protein levels, that he would eat, and the vet agreed.
The cat lived about another three years, to over 20, without the special food.
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Its a good brand. For a previous pet we had, the vet recommended a Hills science diet. I went home and bought it online cheaper than the vet sold it. I wonât buy pet food from vets.
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We have been using only Royal Canin dog and cat wet food and dry food for our 4 different types of dogs and a cat for 3 years. I would thoroughly recommend it. It is very expensive but our dogs and cat love it. Even 2 picky eaters clean their bowls. Their coats are wonderful and they are all their perfect weights.
Same here, except that when they recommend a particular brand and type of food and can sell you a small quantity of it, you can at least see if your pet will eat it, without having to buy a large quantity of it. Then itâs not wasted if your pet/s wonât touch the stuff.
Lucky you, that your dogs and cat like the special food! 
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There are two ranges of products that vets may sell. The main on is prescription diets. These are only sold through the vets and online as they contain special formulas that may be harmful if given to the wrong animal. If your vet has prescribed one of these, itâs important to stick with it as thereâs a specific health reason itâs required for your pet.
Some vets also sell normal pet foods where the same item can be bought cheaper in other places. To incentivise vets to sell them, some brands also offer normal pet foods in âvetâ ranges that can only be bought at the vet. These can safely be substituted though.
Ultimately, just like a GP, itâs simply a matter of finding a vet who gives you good advice and you trust.
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⊠and you should ask the vet to explain the health reason/s for prescribing particular medications and/or food preparations. You need to know why the specific medication/s and/or diet are necessary, the sorts of complications to watch out for, and whether there are types of food and treats you must not let the pet have while theyâre on this regime.
This can be particularly important if you have more than one pet and theyâre not on the same diet. Dogs and cats often clean up each otherâs leftovers, and you might need to make sure that they canât do that.
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A friend of mine gave her dogs dry food recommended by the Vet. I think they were just finnicky. I donât know what brand, but one dog ended up bleeding from the stomach, so the recommendation apparently was not based on science.
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Not necessarily the vetâs fault. The advice probably did take the dogâs nutritional needs into account, but the vet would have assumed that the product actually contained only what it is supposed to contain and had been prepared safely.
And sometimes pet food is not safe. Every so often there are pet food recalls, even of âpremiumâ brands. Eg, Hills, a premium brand recommended by the RSPCA, recalled a range of their foods a year or so ago.
Pet food isnât subject to the same sorts of regulations as human food is, and recalls arenât mandatory, so it can be a while before a problem is identified and dealt with, too.
A common reason for recalls is the presence of mould or foreign objects such as metal or hard plastic shards. Sharp objects could certainly cause stomach bleeding.
Was your friendâs dogâs bleeding stomach confirmed as caused by the food? Could it possibly have picked up something sharp from somewhere else?
Some dogs will swallow anything, and itâs a very dangerous habit. I know of a few that have had emergency trips to the vet because of that habit.
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My friend stopped feeding her dogs that particular dry feed and with some special soft diet the bleeding stopped
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Thatâs good to know. Poor dog!
So the dry food could have been the cause. Was that actually proved? And do you know what the brand of the food was? It might have been one of the ones that have had a recall because of sharp bits in them.
I have 2 French Mastiffs, one 11 with arthritic & liver problems. The other nearly 2. I buy all their food from Petcircle. Fabulous company & delivery & I live in Perth. Far cheaper & the online site is very easy to use. Use their filter to put in your dogâs condition & all the food your dog needs come out. Look at the back of the Royal Canin packet of dry food you bought & try to get the same type of ingredients.
You should always be careful simply comparing ingredients. It is usually the quantity and quality of each ingredient that makes a difference, not the ingredient itself. For example, vet diets contain higher or lower concentrations of certain ingredients. Or the ingredients have been processed in special ways to remove allergens, increase digestibility etc.
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Very true, sorry I am a googler & very interested in food for dogs. Always been interested & I guess I didnât explain properly.
Im perhaps what youd call a disruptor for the chat. Old, alternate or plain common sense but to me these highly processed food - come suppliments fall in to the equivalent of asking us bipeds ( humans) to live off vitamin pills come powder diet packs. Yes it a technical/science based formula however eating fresh fruit, veg , fish, chicken or whatever, whether fat reduced or specific other need - with some discipline- is a life better lived.
Yes, its a bit old world thinking but a fresh leg of lamb, or chicken with some grain and_ or suppliment must be simply a better option. My son has a GSD (german shep) and is advised to ONLY eat a specifc dry food. He seems ok on weight n health, clearly not a fan of it, but complies⊠come a stay with me he gets fresh clean vital meat and related foods and has a smile on his dial, energy to spare ( not good with a GSD), a clear healthy happy disposition. Yes specific breeds and endemic issues require attention and yes care and consultation (vet) is very good indeed⊠butâŠI think you get my point.
As is with GPs & Pharma companies so is vet n suppliers. Incentivised and trained by the suppliers there is a potential conflict of interest but it is so entrenched in science/education commercialisation its hard to extract kaching$ from âhealthâ⊠bla bla bla.
Just as I consult a GP for advice and opinion I do not (mostly) roll over ( yes a dog pun) and disconnect my brain/personal experiences.
In a long winded way my point is⊠I suggest a degree of common sense should prevail.
Was it all worth reading for that?
R
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My dogs eat Scratch dog food. We have been extremely happy with it over the years.
