# Help RE: ARKAT Dog Food



## AmiableLabs (Jan 14, 2003)

There is a good chance we will be switching from Black Gold to Arkat within the next month (Our local BG dealer is closing, making the ARKAT dealer a closer drive).

What formulas are everyone feeding and how happy are you with it? What about the VF line versus the Endurance line?

Thanks in advance.


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## Guest (Aug 19, 2005)

Kevin,

One thing I can say about ARKAT on a personal level is they have awesome customer service. I contacted the closest dealer for a bag of Premium Performance feed and they said no problem. Something got missed along the way so I contacted them again and two days later there was a bag of it sitting on my front door step via UPS free of charge. There has been talk on this forum that holds some decent information on others opinions in regards to how the stools look, coat, etc.


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## Franco (Jun 27, 2003)

The VF Performance is OK. I fed 6 40lbs bags to my two girls and one male. It will produce a lot of stool, much more than I was getting before. I tried it because it has no wheat or corn and that is what I thought caused ear yeast. My two working males are now fed Exceed Lamb and Rice 26/16. They like it and I like it because it is only $22. for 44lbs. at Sam's. My black male gets worked fairly hard 5-6 days a week and he is doing super with it. His trainer feeds it at his kennel. My two girls get the Exceed Chicken and Rice 30/20 and aren't stooling nearly as much. Cost about $19. for 44lbs at Sam's. Exceed is made for Sam's by Purina.

I understand that Arkat has been giving a lot of the HT kennels free dog food. Hard to get an objective opinion from those getting it for free.


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## Cray Stephenson (Jan 3, 2003)

Mr Booty said:


> I understand that Arkat has been giving a lot of the HT kennels free dog food. Hard to get an objective opinion from those getting it for free.



We have fed it since Last December and are pleased with it. We were on Diamond Professional before that and we now have better coats, feed less and have less stools. We are feeding the Enhance Professional Athlete and we are *paying* for it, I have the local feed store (1 mile away) stocking it for me. 

Cray


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## Charles C. (Nov 5, 2004)

I'm feeding the VF Puppy to my 8 month old. She eats less of it than she did the Pro Plan Large Breed Puppy and looks healthier. There hasn't been a big change in her stool, which was always loose, but her dandruffy skin has cleared up. 

Also, her hair, particularly on her back, is softer to the touch and less wirey. I pay for it. I think Pro-plan is a good food. I just think some dogs do better on the no corn, no wheat formulas.


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## AmiableLabs (Jan 14, 2003)

Folks,

I really want to avoid turning this into a thread that more appropriately belongs on the Product Review Forum. Let's try and avoid making it about "Arkat: Yeah or nay."

Unless something happens with BG, we are going to switch over and give it a try, so I am trying to find out from those who already feed it which formulas and why?

Thanks in advance.


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## Mark Sehon (Feb 10, 2003)

I have been through 3 bags of the Enhance Professional Athlete 30/22. I like the result so far. Might be a little more stool the PP. $21.00 and some change after taxs for 40lbs. Coats and energy levels look great.


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## EDT (Aug 5, 2005)

I have been feeding the Enhance Endurance formula. 27/17 I believe. I have noticed a definite difference in my dogs coat losts shinier and softer. Not much difference in the stool quantity. But the one problem I am having, is my dog doesn't seem to like it very much. When I had her on Diamond and I would say 'are you hungry' right before feeding time, she would go bonkers and run into the room that I feed her in. Now she doesn't even acknowledge me when I ask if she is hungry and she looks up at me like she is saying, Do I have to eat this stuff? So I am going to try the VF formula and if she don't like it then it's back to Diamond. Her coat may be better but I would like to know she likes eating it.


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## Franco (Jun 27, 2003)

EDT said:


> But the one problem I am having, is my dog doesn't seem to like it very much.


May not be the dog food. It is so hot right now that I feed at 7pm. A young male of mine went from snorting 6 cups in a blink during the early Spring to barely eating 3 cups now. Same with my girls. they've gone from 4 cups to 2 cups. That's all they want and they don't seem that interested in feeding. Come Winter, their appetite will be up and eating twice as much, no matter what I feed!


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## Matt Miller (Apr 22, 2004)

I feed VF Complete active adult and also feed VF Complete puppy. Dogs love it and stool is same as PP and Exclusive as far as I can tell. I like the No Corn or wheat. Coats are better than ever and energy is amazing. 

about 20 a bag for 40 lbs


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## jwarren (Mar 16, 2004)

I switched from Diamond to Endurance 30/22. Very impressed with energy level and coat. Most importantly, this is the first food that has been able to put weight back on my dog. He paces in his kennel and has a high metabolism. I'm also feeding him a cup less than Diamond or Eukanuba. Down to 3 cups and will probably cut it by another half cup. 

I've been thru 2 bags and just bought another 2. My dog loves it. Can't beat it for $21/bag.


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## EDT (Aug 5, 2005)

Hey Matt Miller,

What size is the kibble on the VF food? That was one of the other things I don't like about the Enhance is that the kibble is very small pieces. I would like to have something alittle bigger so she has to chew a piece of it now and then.

Mr. Booty,
She is still eating it all, she just doesn't seem like she likes it very much compared to the Diamond. It hasn't been all that hot up here in Montana lately. Today it may have seen 80 but it has been a little bit cooler here this last week. By the way when I switched her I still had half a bag of Diamond so for a couple of weeks she was getting half and half and seemed to eat normal until the mix started to become more of the Enhance is when I started getting those looks, that say "Go get me the stuff I like moron"


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## Pushbutton2 (Apr 9, 2004)

*Arakat!*

I Statred off withe Performance. It is to HOT for me. 
Switched to Active Adult. Really like it.

EDT:
I was told the Kibble is small to Promote better Digestablility. I give my Dogs things to Chew on the help with the Teeth Cleaning. I have seen no problems in Training with Hardmouth.

Kyle


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## jwarren (Mar 16, 2004)

Just curious....what do you mean by "too hot"?


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## KC Steve (Jan 6, 2004)

I switched to Arkat about 6 months ago from BG (red and black bags). I feed my lab Enhanced Proathlete because of his metabolsim and it has hleped keep weight on him. My bitch Golden gets Enhanced Endurance (22/18) as she has a slower metabolism and gets fat on the Proathlete. Ihe ahve been please with coats and energy, stools have been about the same as BG. At $16/40lbs (pro) and $15/50lbs (enhanced) can't beat the price for the results.

Shoot me a PM for any additional infor or feel free to call me at 
913-488-0307 to chat.

Steve


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## Matt Miller (Apr 22, 2004)

The Kibble is really small on the arkat, especially the puppy formula, but even the adult and perf are small, 

Too Hot = To much protien and fat for some dogs. Seems some Chesapeakes blow their coat when the fat and protien content is higher than their bodies need. 

Matt


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## Franco (Jun 27, 2003)

EDT said:


> What size is the kibble on the VF food? That was one of the other things I don't like about the Enhance is that the kibble is very small pieces. I would like to have something alittle bigger so she has to chew a piece of it now and then.
> 
> Mr. Booty,
> She is still eating it all, she just doesn't seem like she likes it very much compared to the Diamond. It hasn't been all that hot up here in Montana lately. Today it may have seen 80 but it has been a little bit cooler here this last week. By the way when I switched her I still had half a bag of Diamond so for a couple of weeks she was getting half and half and seemed to eat normal until the mix started to become more of the Enhance is when I started getting those looks, that say "Go get me the stuff I like moron"


The kibble for the VF is tiny too. Heat probably not a problem in Montana. Down here I find that my dogs eat much less in summer. I like Diamond and fed it when I lived in a rural area. It was too hard to find Pro Plan or Euk, so I fed Diamond. I prefered it over the Arkat. I heard some horror stories from a Pro that fed Arkat, so that make me a bit leary. And, this wasn't some small pro, this was a big time Field Pro who pays close attention to dog food and its realtionship to his dogs.


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## jwarren (Mar 16, 2004)

What were the general problems that made up the "horror stories"? It could help those of us that are using it keep an eye out. THanks.


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## Franco (Jun 27, 2003)

This is what he told me; Said after a few days he started getting several dogs with loose stool. Then he started noticing blood in the stool. He thought that his kennel had become infected with some kind of parisite. He had to take the entire kennel in for individual blood work. It was very costly. Vet ended up suggesting that he switch dog food. He did and the problem went away. It may of just been a bad batch, who knows? I had blood panel work done on a dog this past winter and I can tell you, it ain't cheap. Have it done for 18 dogs and the bill is around 4K!


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