zorianak

She loves J as much as I do, but has only had small dogs and didn't know the difference between big dogs and little dogs. So she gave me some pouches of small dog food.

Of course I can't give those to J as anything other than a treat. Needless to say, she is now working on a frozen kong with part of a pouch. It's not very good for her, but it's not replacing a meal...

That, and I'm sure she appreciates the variety.

Just thought I'd post this up in case someone hits the same conundrum - family member with good, albeit misguided, intentions, and food gifting.

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PatchworkRobot

I'd do what you were doing if that happened to me and/or I'd consider donating it to a nearby shelter.

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Adara

What is the difference between "small dog" and "large dog" dog food"? My friends with smaller dogs feed the same as I do.

I've been given some cat kibble that my cats can't use and I usually donate it to a neighbor who takes in strays or the shelter if I can't use it.

If it isn't what you dog eats, I'd do the same as you and use it for treats, etc.

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Jazi

I've gotten things in the past to give Mocha that I cannot, due to her allergies or chewing habits. I typically find another dog to regift them to or I give them to the shelter. Today my mom gave me all of the treats she's gotten for Mocha from her coworkers (she's a hit at work!) and gave them to me to give to Skoll, because ALL of them have beef!

Small dog food I use as training treats, easy to pop in an expectant mouth while outside usually and good for distracting attention from something good to chase or scary if they're smelly.

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zorianak

Most of them have an EXTREMELY small amount of protein - for example, the training treats I give to J typically have around 10-15% protein, while these had a measeley 4.5%. The bags of food had around 15% protein, whereas J's "normal" food has 24% (if I recall correctly). Plus, some of the treats are a bit small - I'll probably break them up so she doesn't try to eat them in one bite and choke.

Plus, it's a brand I don't feed her (I read the ingredients... yuck). But, it's proven to be pretty good Kong stuffings.

Luckily I haven't found any food allergies with Jaina. I agree that typically I'd just find a shelter or another dog to regift them to - I believe there's a Corgi rescue nearby - but it wasn't very much. Two bags of Pedigree Small Champs, and some Little Ceasar's treats.

Plus, it's one of those things where I didn't want to hurt the friend's feelings... I did gently point out that these are marketed for small dogs (<20 lbs) and Jaina's already a whopping 60 lbs. But, I really appreciated the fact that someone knew that the best way to shop for me was to shop for my dog

I also just really want to limit it - I gave her a few of the treats, and she's had the farts all day. So, itll be used VERRRRY sparingly - I'll probably give a bag of the Little Ceasars to my MIL - she has Shih Tzus.

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Abby

I don't see what the big deal is, if you don't want to feed the food don't feed it. I'm sure your local shelter won't be so picky if you decided to donate. Having too much dog food seems like a hell of a first world problem, to me.

zorianak

Did you read what I said I never said a thing about too much food, nor did I intend to show ingratitude. Any food is welcome, of course, but here's what I received (and let me underline that I was grateful, and because I was grateful I still intend to use the food - even if it isn't what I would give a doberman):

Little Ceasar's Softies (treats that I mentioned that I'm having to break up, otherwise she tries to inhale them)
Pedigree Little Champions (soft dog food that I mentioned that's designed for meals, but has about half the protein I would typically give Jaina - that's why this became designated for treats)
Rawhide bones (which are MUCH too small - she'd probably choke on them - so I'm giving these to the MIL's Shih Tzus)
Greenies chews (these will probably also go to the MIL's shih tzus - I'm not familiar with Greenies, so I have to make sure they're the crunchy treat variety vs. a hard treat J is supposed to chew)

Nowhere is the food being wasted, or otherwise "too much" food.

Edit: I think the point, too, that I probably didn't realize is that I feel a small sense of victory of finding yet another thing I can stuff in Jaina's Kong. She goes through peanut butter (even frozen!) in under five minutes, but the Little Champions (half a bag) managed to last her almost two to three hours Frozen, of course.

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Adara

I think it's an issue of crappier food vs small dog/large dog food Sorry that is what I was trying to say. Small dogs don't have any different requirements than big dogs. A dog is a dog is a dog.

And yea for finding new things to stuff in the kong I know that feeling well!!

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