Quality Dog Food
We place top priority on the health of our wonderful Golden Retrievers, and that begins with good food. Over the years as breeders we have had the chance to try a great many brands, starting with cheap off brands from the big box stores and working our way steadily toward what genuinely serves our dogs. The cheap brands left our dogs looking less vibrant, with dry coats, flaky skin, and an odor we did not care for. We did not want our dogs to suffer for poor food, so we moved up to something more expensive that promised more. Instead of a real improvement, they kept that same thrifty look, dull coat, and generally uninviting appearance.
So we kept trying. Our dogs turned their noses up at some foods and loved others, and we were still less than satisfied even though we were spending twice what we started with. What follows are the three foods we truly stand behind, ranked from best to least best. All three are good, and any of them will do right by your dog. The ranking is simply about how much nutrition you get for the effort and the cost.
Our three approved foods
Ranked from best to least best.
B.A.R.F.
B.A.R.F. is a truly raw food, and it gives a growing puppy the finest nutrition we know of, especially if you make your own and source your ingredients from organic farms. Their freeze dried raw formulas preserve the vital nutrients your dog needs to be at their healthiest. This is about as true to life as a diet can be for a Golden Retriever.
You can also make your own food based on the B.A.R.F. formula. It takes some extra work and some extra expense, but if you have the time to keep it up, the results are well worth it.
View the B.A.R.F. formula
The Honest Kitchen
The Honest Kitchen is one of the few brands you can count on for the highest quality human grade organic ingredients, in both grain and grain free varieties. They make kibble, but the one we are truly interested in is their low heat dehydrated food, which holds onto far more of its nutrition than kibble ever does. They also offer treats, snacks, and supplements in the same natural line.
If raw feeding is more than you want to take on, this is the next best thing, and it takes about a minute to prepare.
Shop The Honest KitchenWholesomes
Wholesomes is what we feed here at Windy Knoll, so it is what your puppy will be eating on the day they come home. It is a straightforward, well made kibble at a sensible price, and it has kept our dogs in lovely condition. They make several puppy formulas and we are happy with every one of them, so you are free to choose whichever suits you best.
It sits third on our list because kibble, however good, is still kibble. If you would like to feed the very best we know of, work your way up to one of the two above. If you would rather keep things reliable and easy with a food your puppy is already thriving on, stay right here. That is a perfectly good answer.
See the Wholesomes formulasSwitching foods
Your puppy goes home eating Wholesomes. If you plan to feed something else, please change over gradually across about a week, mixing a little more of the new food in each day. Switching all at once will upset almost any puppy’s stomach, no matter how good the new food happens to be.
Questions about any of this? Please call us at (207) 977-2300 and we will gladly talk it through with you.