Should my puppy eat chicken or lamb dry dog food? Which is better?

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Great question. I like to stick with the more common protein sources such as chicken unless the pet starts to have problems from a suspected food allergy to chicken. I don't think one is more digestible than the other but that would also depend on the quality of the food and how well Annabelle tolerates the particular food. I like to leave the lamb and other proteins out of the regular diet in case you need to do a food trial down the road. Then lamb, duck, rabbit, kangaroo, etc all become possibilities. I will say one more thing. The grain free pet foods are just a marketing ploy by the pet food manufacturers. Very few pets ever have problems with grain and these diets are usually more expensive. Allergies to food are due to the protein source and not the grains. A grain problem in pets is very very rare. Good luck and I hope this helps.

This is not a good quality food, i would recommend trying to look for a food with better ingredients meaning more quality meat and less corn. some examples include- Orijen, Acana and taste of the wild. Royal canin is also a decent option.

Overall, the differences in the ingredients make little difference. They are likely somewhat equal, because they are both formulated foods that will have the adequate nutrients. Most importantly, neither are harmful. Where the nutrients come from makes little difference if any. The differences in ingredients and the claims by the companies usually amount to nothing more than marketing gimmicks. The truth about most of these foods is that their claims usually amount to nothing more than that of a fad diet (i.e. paleo or atkins) and are not supported by sufficient evidence (even though they will make it sound like it is). One of the things I vividly remember a veterinary nutritionist professor telling me was that he completely ignores the front of the bag of any pet food...it's all marketing. The most important thing on that bag is a tiny bit of writing under the guaranteed analysis called the AAFCO statement. This statement tells you what actual research went into making the product. Below is a link to an article that will help explain this more and give some other info about feeding your dog: https://www.petcoach.co/article/what-to-look-for-when-choosing-your-pet-s-food/ I know the answer may still be somewhat vague, but if you stick to the basic principles of choosing the right food, then you should be successful in feeding a good and nutritious food to your dog. If your dog does better with the Fromm, then I see no reason not to feed it. I hope that helps. I put one more link to credible resource below if you are interested in researching more about the legal requirements of the formulated dog foods. https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/ResourcesforYou/ucm047113.htm

The truth is that any of these are fine as long as the food is formulated for puppies. After that, the ingredients are normally not that important and are usually more for advertising purposes. The best thing to check on the bag is the AAFCO statement, which is just below the guaranteed analysis. This will tell if the food has actually demonstrated what it claims. I've included a link to an article below that explains all of this. Make sure you feed the food according to the bag's instructions and you should have a healthy pup. https://www.petcoach.co/article/what-to-look-for-when-choosing-your-pet-s-food/ Sorry to be vague, but there really is no benefit of feeding one these foods over the other; unless you know that she has an intolerance to one of them. I hope that helps and all is well with Lilo.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Korbyn. These are all great questions! There are few dogs that are actually allergic to grains. The ones that are tend to be Irish Setters. Grain free diets have developed mainly as a marketing ploy to add a niche market in the pet food department. Now if your individual dog does better on a grain free diet that is great and fine to feed it to him. However, these diets tend to be higher in carbohydrates and will lead to weight gain. Protein source typically a personal preference of the dog. You can see what he likes and how it agrees with him. You need to determine what your goals are for the new diet. Is your puppy experiencing vomiting and diarrhea on his current food? Is he passing large frequent quantities of stool? Does he have a dry brittle hair coat? These are all signs that his diet is not right for him. When transitioning to a new diet, you want to do it gradually and then see if any of these things improve for him. As far as a brand, I recommend using one that has AAFCO certified. You can find this information on the side of the bag or on the company website. This means the diet has undergone testing and proved efficacious. I hope this information helps!

You should be able to find several other types of puppy foods that do not contain chicken like lamb or beef based. If you want something different than that, I would look into natural balance. It is a good diet and has other flavors as well. I hope this helps!

This is a great question, and one which does not have a simple answer, as there is no one pet food that is best for all dogs, even within a specific breed. Certain types of specialty dog foods, including grain free diets may be linked to heart disease in dogs, so I recommend talking to your vet about potential risks for Lilly and her sibling. I recommend a small breed adult food until they reach 7-8 years old, and then switching over to a senior formula slowly over the course of a week. You can mix a small breed adult wet food in with the dry if you think they'd prefer it, and a skin support formula such as the one below with omega 3 fatty acids can help support the skin https://www.royalcanin.ca/products/catalog/Royal-Canin-Veterinary-Diet-Canine-SKIN-CARE-SMALL-DOG-dry-dog-food/223038 See the links below for more information: https://www.fda.gov/animalveterinary/newsevents/cvmupdates/ucm613305.htm https://talkspetfood.aafco.org/rightpetfood https://www.hillspet.ca/en-ca/dog-care/nutrition-feeding/how-to-transition-my-dogs-food If your dogs are overweight or have other health issues, I recommend speaking to your vet as there may be other diets they recommend that can both help the skin and help manage their other conditions. I hope that helps!