Author Topic: Stocking up on dog food  (Read 3125 times)

slappy

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Stocking up on dog food
« on: May 02, 2018, 12:01:16 PM »
Any advice for stocking up on dog food? I got a costco membership specifically for the dog food, which was recommended by several mustachians as being good quality for a good price. However, Costco is a bit out of my way, so I'd like to stock up and possibly only go every six months or so. Is it ok to have six months of dog food on hand, or will it go bad? I had an issue with cat food once, although I think it was just a bad batch.

Syonyk

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2018, 12:02:27 PM »
Six months isn't "stocking up."  That's a typical life of a large bag of dog food with a smaller dog...

You're fine.  Stocking up is, "I want to buy 5 years of dogfood at a time," and then you have more interesting storage problems.

slappy

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2018, 12:07:28 PM »
Six months isn't "stocking up."  That's a typical life of a large bag of dog food with a smaller dog...

You're fine.  Stocking up is, "I want to buy 5 years of dogfood at a time," and then you have more interesting storage problems.

Yeah I would definitely not stock up that much. But maybe I will buy a couple extra bags this trip to save me an extra trip over the summer. She's a pup now so the bags do last awhile, but I imagine as she gets bigger she will go through them more quickly. My last dog went through about a bag a month.

PMG

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2018, 12:08:42 PM »
Id check the expiration date before buying and I’d be sure to store it in something air tight in climate controlled space where critters can’t get into it. If it’s stored in a hot garage or shed the oils in it will go rancid, but other than that I can’t see it being an issue.  Dog food certainly sits on the shelf or warehouse for six months.  You might want to have a smaller storage space for daily use and another for longer term storage. I hate seeing people feed pets from open bags of dog food that have been sitting for months and have gone stale and have ant colonies moving in. 

ketchup

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #4 on: May 02, 2018, 12:11:33 PM »
I would just keep them somewhere reasonably cool and keep an eye on the expiration dates.  Kibble is pretty shelf-stable.

My own flavor of "stocking up on dog food" is chopping up free excess deer carcasses during gun season and throwing a year's worth of venison for dogs in the chest freezer.  It's a bit more involved.  :)

slappy

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #5 on: May 02, 2018, 12:16:03 PM »
Id check the expiration date before buying and I’d be sure to store it in something air tight in climate controlled space where critters can’t get into it. If it’s stored in a hot garage or shed the oils in it will go rancid, but other than that I can’t see it being an issue.  Dog food certainly sits on the shelf or warehouse for six months.  You might want to have a smaller storage space for daily use and another for longer term storage. I hate seeing people feed pets from open bags of dog food that have been sitting for months and have gone stale and have ant colonies moving in.

Gross! We definitely wouldn't do that. We would keep it in our cool, dry basement on a shelf. We do keep an open bag in the pantry, but we keep it closed with a chip clip and it generally doesn't last longer than a month.  We keep about a week's worth in a plastic container and feed her from that every day. I'll definitely check for expiration dates.

honeybbq

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2018, 11:02:41 AM »
 I wouldn't.  If the only reason you have a Costco membership is to get dog food, I'd make friends with someone or use the FB neighborhood ap and buy somebody a 6 pack or make them cookies or something once a month and have them pick up the dog food while they are there.

slappy

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2018, 11:51:29 AM »
I wouldn't.  If the only reason you have a Costco membership is to get dog food, I'd make friends with someone or use the FB neighborhood ap and buy somebody a 6 pack or make them cookies or something once a month and have them pick up the dog food while they are there.

I considered this but it seems like a major pain for something that I would need on a regular basis. I am saving approx $15 per month on the dog food compared to the food i fed my last dog, and the membership only costs $4 a month, so I'm coming out slightly ahead. Plus I can get some other stuff there that may be cheaper. For example, I have to buy a 40 ct of frozen hamburgers for my son's preschool fundraiser this weekend and its at least $10 cheaper there than anywhere else. It's slightly out of my way, but no more so than taking a special trip to Sam's Club or BJ's so I figured I would go ahead with the membership. In this instance, I'm only looking to stock up for about six months, but I was considering stocking up again at the end of my membership and the letting the membership expire at that point.

partgypsy

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #8 on: May 03, 2018, 12:45:55 PM »
I wouldn't.  If the only reason you have a Costco membership is to get dog food, I'd make friends with someone or use the FB neighborhood ap and buy somebody a 6 pack or make them cookies or something once a month and have them pick up the dog food while they are there.

I considered this but it seems like a major pain for something that I would need on a regular basis. I am saving approx $15 per month on the dog food compared to the food i fed my last dog, and the membership only costs $4 a month, so I'm coming out slightly ahead. Plus I can get some other stuff there that may be cheaper. For example, I have to buy a 40 ct of frozen hamburgers for my son's preschool fundraiser this weekend and its at least $10 cheaper there than anywhere else. It's slightly out of my way, but no more so than taking a special trip to Sam's Club or BJ's so I figured I would go ahead with the membership. In this instance, I'm only looking to stock up for about six months, but I was considering stocking up again at the end of my membership and the letting the membership expire at that point.
We got this as a gift and I love it for my dog's food. I can pour the whole big bag in there, and it seals tight.
As I am paranoid of having old food mixed with the new, I do make sure to use up the last of the food in there, before I open and pour the new bag in.

https://www.amazon.com/Vittles-Vault-Stackable-40-Container/dp/B0002H3S5K

slappy

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #9 on: May 03, 2018, 12:49:17 PM »
I wouldn't.  If the only reason you have a Costco membership is to get dog food, I'd make friends with someone or use the FB neighborhood ap and buy somebody a 6 pack or make them cookies or something once a month and have them pick up the dog food while they are there.

I considered this but it seems like a major pain for something that I would need on a regular basis. I am saving approx $15 per month on the dog food compared to the food i fed my last dog, and the membership only costs $4 a month, so I'm coming out slightly ahead. Plus I can get some other stuff there that may be cheaper. For example, I have to buy a 40 ct of frozen hamburgers for my son's preschool fundraiser this weekend and its at least $10 cheaper there than anywhere else. It's slightly out of my way, but no more so than taking a special trip to Sam's Club or BJ's so I figured I would go ahead with the membership. In this instance, I'm only looking to stock up for about six months, but I was considering stocking up again at the end of my membership and the letting the membership expire at that point.
We got this as a gift and I love it for my dog's food. I can pour the whole big bag in there, and it seals tight.
As I am paranoid of having old food mixed with the new, I do make sure to use up the last of the food in there, before I open and pour the new bag in.

https://www.amazon.com/Vittles-Vault-Stackable-40-Container/dp/B0002H3S5K

Haha that thing looks awesome!

shelbyautumn

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #10 on: May 03, 2018, 01:36:59 PM »
I wouldn't.  If the only reason you have a Costco membership is to get dog food, I'd make friends with someone or use the FB neighborhood ap and buy somebody a 6 pack or make them cookies or something once a month and have them pick up the dog food while they are there.

I considered this but it seems like a major pain for something that I would need on a regular basis. I am saving approx $15 per month on the dog food compared to the food i fed my last dog, and the membership only costs $4 a month, so I'm coming out slightly ahead. Plus I can get some other stuff there that may be cheaper. For example, I have to buy a 40 ct of frozen hamburgers for my son's preschool fundraiser this weekend and its at least $10 cheaper there than anywhere else. It's slightly out of my way, but no more so than taking a special trip to Sam's Club or BJ's so I figured I would go ahead with the membership. In this instance, I'm only looking to stock up for about six months, but I was considering stocking up again at the end of my membership and the letting the membership expire at that point.
We got this as a gift and I love it for my dog's food. I can pour the whole big bag in there, and it seals tight.
As I am paranoid of having old food mixed with the new, I do make sure to use up the last of the food in there, before I open and pour the new bag in.

https://www.amazon.com/Vittles-Vault-Stackable-40-Container/dp/B0002H3S5K

Haha that thing looks awesome!

I have have two of these (one for each dog) and it works really well: https://www.amazon.com/IRIS-Airtight-Food-Storage-Container/dp/B00186O0LU/ref=sr_1_2?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1525376152&sr=1-2&keywords=dog+food+container

ETA: I also use Amazon subscribe and save for our dog food. It's a better brand than we bought at PetSmart and cheaper, too!
« Last Edit: May 03, 2018, 01:38:31 PM by shelbyautumn »

SunnyDays

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Re: Stocking up on dog food
« Reply #11 on: May 03, 2018, 02:32:28 PM »
I second the Amazon storage container.  It's easier to open.  It comes in various sizes.  I have the 3 piece one, so can use the smaller one for cat kibble, and all food is in one place.