However, flax seed is also rich in the same omega-3 fatty acids. So, try looking for a dog food that contains flax seed or flax seed meal and meets all your other requirements. But without fish products, of course. Hope this helps.

After our recent adoption of a sheltered pit bull and his refusal to eat his food I’ve been reading about dog food. Our other dog (chihuahua/pug) has been on this Hill’s R/D by the vet’s recommendation because of weight gain. We walk her 20 minutes once/twice daily. She is maintaining weight now, but is losing more hair than usual and she is definitely sensitive to fish/fish oil as she gets sick. It seems most quality dog food is using fish as an ingredient, and the only quality dry food I found without fish, Fromm 4 Star Duck/Potato, is not available locally. Do you know of any other dry food that meets her needs?

By the way, in general, and because they are in reality “bakery” products, most kibbles feature a higher glycemic index than canned foods. But not always.

Until we post more information, avoid the foods with the highest carb readings. Hill’s R/D is very typical in carb levels. And be sure your vet agrees with this recommendation.

Hope this helps.

Like many other fools, I trusted my veterinarian to recommend a good food for my older Cairn terrier with pancreatitis. She sold me r/d (canned.) After reading your site and others, I transitioned her to Innova Senior (canned) and am working on getting her over to Wellness Core Reduced Fat (dry), as it is more convenient than canned.

Today, because of another flare-up of the pancreatitis, I went back to the vet and showed her the Innova Senior Can (with no byproducts and no cellulose). After reading the can, the vet got all defensive and had the nerve to tell me that “objectively speaking” the Hills was an “excellent reputable food,” that pork by-products were an excellent protein source” and that cellulose is a perfectly acceptable fiber source. I was floored, and felt like asking her “Well then, why don’t you just enjoy a can for lunch?” It was as close as I have ever been to having a fight with a veterinarian.

So, I e-mailed Hills asking them to justify the use of pork byproducts, cellulose, soy mill run, etc. in a dog food designed to help sick dogs and which costs about $2.50 a can.

Is there no-one in veterinary schools paying attention to the ingredients? Are dog food manufacturers who use these controversial and inferior ingredients just heartless? Are they at all interested in doing the right thing?

All this is by way of thanking you and the other concerned folks who take the time to help us navigate the confusing dog food world.

To narrow your choices, click on the menu tab at the top of our website called “Tag Cloud”. Then click on the phrase “Weight Management”. This will present a list of brands reviewed on our website that contain at least one weight loss dog food.

As you click on each, remember these are brands… and not the specific products made by those companies. Click on each review until you find 3, 4, or 5 star brands and then look for the name of the weight loss product in the list near the top of each review.

This should give you lots of choices. Hope this helps.