Dog Information

What is the best dog food for a toy breed, specifically a papillon?

I have two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels who eat Natural Balance small bites, but the kibbles are too big and too crunchy for my papillon. She gets bored and stops eating too soon. She needs something that is smaller or not quite so hard. What is the best dry dog food for such a small toy breed as the papillon?

Public Comments

1. with my papillon I feed him the Little Bites by Purina. But that's pretty much the same thing as puppy chow. Either way, they still get the nutrients they need to be healthy and happy. The Puppy chow I think is a little softer for them to chew vs the Little Bites, but its still the dogs preference. Good luck :)
2. Our pets need quality pet food. Read the ingredients list and learn what the stuff on there is and what it does (or does not do) to/for our pets. A quick pet food 101. If the pet food contains corn/corn products or by products it is a poor quality food. Corn is a filler that can trigger skin problems. (allergies, skin problems, itching and excessive shedding) By products is anything from an animal not fit for human consumption, including cancerous tissue. Do not pay attention to advertising, they all say there food is great. "Vet approved" means they have a vet on staff to approve their product. In other words, someone paid to approve it. Same with foods most vets recommend. Salesmen "gift" vets then the vet recommends the food. Most vets are not nutritionalists! Quality foods have meat as the first ingredient. Solid Gold, Innova, Wellness and Merrick are a few of the best brands available. If you want to learn more check out: http://www.sagekeep.com/petfood.htm www.api4animals.org/facts?p=359& more=1 http://animalark.eapps.com/animal/PetFoods.nsf/$$PetFoodsByRating?OpenForm
3. why don't you try adding a little water to her food so that it softens it a bit instead of having to buy another dog food just for her
4. I agree with MandeSue, Indoor little bites,would be good. It is a middle grade food, that is still affordable. You don't always need to buy what is most expensive, for your dog to be in great health!
5. Buying the most expensive food isn't necessary, but buying the healthiest food is. The healthier foods usually are higher priced due to better ingredients. Just like with people feeding a good diet is very important and brands like Purina, Pedigree, Beneful etc... aren't going to cut it. Adding some canned food or water to moisten the food is a great idea too. Some good brands are Natura Products (Innova, EVO, California Natural etc... EVO makes a small bite option) Solid Gold (also has a small bite option) Ziwi Peak (isn't a kibble and easier to chew) Orijen Taste of the Wild Nature's Variety Nature's Logic (has small kibble) Merrick Wellness (has a small bite option as well) Fromm (the kibble is also quite small) to name a few Here's some sites as well http://www.dogster.com/forums/Food_and_N... http://www.dogfoodproject.com/ http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_... Nutro has had a lot of quality control issues. They have made many dogs sick and even killed some. They are owned by Mars and have yet to take responsibility for what they have done. They have also changed ingredients recently and are quite over priced for what they are selling.
6. i feed nutro ultra, has a papillon the the bag. starting blue for small breeds. she eats both.
7. I would try Canidae All Life Stages. http://www.canidae.com/dogs/all_life_stages/dry.html Stay away from all store bought brands like Purina, Pedigree, Alpo, Might Dog, Iams, Eukanuba, Caesar, Kibbles and Bits, Beneful, etc., etc. They are all Road Kill and the worst thing you can feed your dog!
8. I was having that problem with one of my Yorkies. I switched to Innova Adult small bites, and they are the perfect size for my little one.
9. leah123marie, I haven't had any problems with my king charles spaniel.