What I feed Kai, and what I'd feed him if my budget changed.
Kai is my red merle Aussie, born July 2024. I cook his food in my kitchen. There is exactly one food on this page I can tell you about from his bowl — Orijen Six Fish, mixed in every single day. Everything else I researched carefully and ranked honestly. I'd rather tell you what I don't know than pretend I've fed my dog six different bags of kibble.
Two badges. I never blur them.
He has actually eaten it.
Right now that badge belongs to one food and one food only: Orijen Six Fish. It's mixed into his bowl daily, so I can talk about how he does on it. The home-cooked part of the bowl is also his — 90% lean ground beef, rice, sweet potato, eggs sometimes. When something else earns the badge, I'll say so — and I'll say when he started.
I read the label, not his bowl.
Protein numbers, ingredient panels, bag sizes, and real cost per day. Useful, but it isn't personal experience, and I'm not going to dress it up as one. Kai has never eaten any of the researched picks — including the budget one.
Six foods, ranked honestly.
Protein percentage and cost per day figured for a 50 lb active adult Aussie. One food here is Kai-tested. The other five are researched — good options I'd genuinely consider, but my dog hasn't touched them.
| Food | How we vetted it | Protein | Cost / day | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Orijen Six Fish in Kai's bowl daily |
Kai-tested | 38% | $4.10 | KAI'S PICK | Check Price |
Open Farm Active Dog quality sourcing |
Researched | 32% | $3.40 | Quality sourcing | Check Price |
Farmina N&D Ancestral low-glycemic grains |
Researched | 30% | $2.95 | Best value | Check Price |
Purina Pro Plan Sport Kai has not eaten this |
Researched | 30% | $2.25 | Budget pick | Check Price |
Wellness CORE Active high-protein formula |
Researched | 34% | $3.15 | High protein | Check Price |
Hill's Science Diet Adult vet-familiar staple |
Researched | 22% | $2.50 | Sensitive stomachs | Check Price |
Costs are per day for a 50 lb active adult Aussie. Only Orijen Six Fish is Kai-tested — the other five are researched picks, and yes, that includes the budget one.
I cook his food. Here's the bowl.
It's mostly 90% lean ground beef. Some white rice, some sweet potato, and Orijen Six Fish goes on top and gets mixed in. Scrambled eggs show up sometimes when I'm making breakfast anyway and he gives me the look. That's the whole thing — no scale, no measuring cups, no spreadsheet. I eyeball it based on how he's looking and how much running around he's done.
Scrambled eggs happen too — not every day, just when they happen.
What Kai actually eats →
The questions I get asked most.
How much protein does an Aussie need?
For a working-energy adult I'd look at 28% and up. Kai's mix-in sits at 38%, which is at the high end, and it suits a dog who does not sit still. Hill's at 22% is the outlier here — that's a gentler formula for a different kind of stomach, not a failing grade.
Is the expensive bag worth it?
$4.10 a day versus $2.25 a day is real money over a year. I feed Orijen because it works for Kai alongside home-cooked food. If I were feeding kibble alone on a tight budget, Pro Plan Sport is the researched pick I'd start with — and I'd say plainly that Kai has never eaten it.
Can I just cook for my dog?
You can, and I do, but not exclusively. Balancing a home-cooked diet properly is harder than the internet makes it sound. The kibble in the bowl is my insurance policy, and your vet is a better source on this than I am.
How do you switch foods?
Slowly. Mix the new one in a little at a time over a week or so and watch how the dog handles it. Aussies can be dramatic about sudden changes, and nobody enjoys the consequences.
More on feeding an Aussie.
The recipe post is what most people ask for after they see the bowl photo. It's coming. The puppy-food post below is an older piece — useful context, not a Kai-tested ranking.
The Aussie Owner's Kit. Free.
The four sheets I wish I'd had on day one: a feeding chart, a grooming schedule, a vet-visit checklist with MDR1 questions, and a first-year training timeline.
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