Labrador puppy and food drama

Dog Food Advisor Forums Diet and Health Labrador puppy and food drama

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  • #87925 Report Abuse
    Patricia T
    Member

    I really need some advice on dog food with this guy! My neutered Labrador puppy is eight months old and was sent home by the breeder at eight weeks old with Eukanuba Large Breed Puppy Dry Dog Food. He was a slow eater and we decided to switch to a higher-rated food. Since then, we have tried these:

    Royal Canin Labrador Retriever Puppy Dry Dog Food
    Wellness CORE Grain-Free Puppy Formula Dry Dog Food
    Fromm Heartland Gold Grain-Free Large Breed Puppy

    He loved all of them (ate fast and finished bowl) but they all produced an abundance of runny stool, and he was going at least four times a day while fed twice. We’ve gone back to the Eukanuba, but it’s obvious that he hates it – he only nibbles at the bowl.

    The Hill’s® Prescription Diet® i/d® Canine Dry from the vet is great, and they offered to let us keep him on it, but it isn’t a puppy food. Does anyone have any suggestions for another puppy food that maybe isn’t as rich as the ones we tried before?

    Thank you for any suggestions!

    #87927 Report Abuse
    anonymously
    Member

    Do not free feed. Feed twice a day. Pick up anything not eaten within 10 minutes, store in the fridg and offer at the next mealtime.
    The guidelines on the dog food packages regarding amounts are usually too much. Add a splash of water to the kibble, especially if your dog isn’t a water drinker.

    I might try a limited ingredient food, such as Nutrisca, check chewy.com for reviews.

    Are you sure you are not feeding him too much?

    #87928 Report Abuse
    crazy4cats
    Participant

    Hi Patricia T-

    Did the vet do a fecal test? Giardia, worms and Coccidia are common for young pups. NutriSource has a large breed puppy dog food that you may want to give a shot. And as Anon mentioned, make sure not to overfeed!

    Here is a link that I find helpful: http://www.dogaware.com/health/digestive.html

    Good luck!

    • This reply was modified 7 years, 8 months ago by crazy4cats.
    • This reply was modified 7 years, 8 months ago by crazy4cats.
    #87933 Report Abuse
    DogFoodie
    Member

    Hi Patricia,

    I second C4C’s recommendation for a fecal test. I also second her recommendation for NutriSource, which is generally well tolerated by sensitive stomachs.

    I looked at the NutriSource Large Breed Puppy (grain-inclusive formula) and it has 4% fiber. I also looked at the three foods you specifically mentioned and with the exception of the Royal Canin (of which, I’m not a fan), the others are pretty high in fiber. How is he doing on the Eukanuba? Any loose stool while eating that? Right now, whatever he’ll eat and does well on is what he should be eating. Prolonged loose stool can actually do more damage. His digestive tract is healing when he’s not having the loose stool, even if that means temporarily using the I/D – at least the Calcium is OK for a LBP in the I/D.

    I’ve been through this with my Golden when he was a pup and finally have a good handle on things. What I would do is sit down and look at all of the foods you’ve fed him. See if there’s anything in common in those foods that he doesn’t do well on and those he does. Compare ingredients and nutrient profiles. Sometimes it’s a fiber issue, sometimes it’s an ingredient issue, sometimes it’s a protein issue.

    #87939 Report Abuse
    Susan W
    Member

    VeRUS has a puppy formula for large breed dogs (who will grow to be more than 60 lbs) and a smaller (average?) puppy formula. I’m very happy with their adult foods. Maybe you should try them. If you go to their website (http://www.veruspetfoods.com) you can fill out a form and they’ll send you samples. The samples arrive quickly and have a lot in them.

    #87944 Report Abuse
    Patricia T
    Member

    He was tested for all of the possible issues a couple of times and is clear. Currently, he is about 65 pounds and getting 4 cups a day of Eukanuba, which is slightly less than the recommendation. His output on Eukanuba is OK – twice a day and a good consistency. He just has no interest in eating Eukanuba, but gobbled up the other foods that he has tried. And, he loves to drink water.

    I compared the top ingredients for all the foods we tried, and all but one were chicken-based, and the fiber content didn’t seem to matter. No rhyme or reason – I was suspecting fiber but Eukanuba seems pretty high too.

    I’d really like to find a food he likes to eat, so I’m going to give the NutriSource a try. I’m in the Chicago metro area and will have to drive out to Gilberts, IL to buy Verus, so that is the second choice. I’ll do it if I have to …. but I hope I don’t have to!

    Thank you, everyone, for responding and for your great insights!

    #87947 Report Abuse
    Susan
    Participant

    Hi Patricia, sounds like my Patch when I rescued him he did really good on the Eukanuba Intestinal but cause it has maize & gluten corn he started to smell yeasty & have itchy skin,
    the maize, corn gluten & beet pulp firms up their poo….
    Start looking for another kibble with around the same fat % protein % & fiber %..With the fiber keep it LOW around 2-4% fiber what I noticed about Patches Eukanuba Intestinal the fiber was low, a lot of these grain free formulas are higher in fiber cause of the potatoes, pea, chick peas, lentils, etc & I think that’s what happened with Patch he needed a lower fiber not higher over 4% made big sloppy poos….
    Finally after trying a heap of kibbles Patch does well on ‘Taste Of The Wild’ Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb has 4%max fiber & their Pacific Stream Smoked Salmon has only 3%max fiber, I was looking on a few Face book sites & started to noticed dogs with IBD & EPI were doing really well on Taste Of The Wild kibbles, I was worried cause the fat % was 15% but its been OK for Patches stomach, Taste Of The Wild has All Life Stages formulas, The Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb is an All Life Formula it tells you in their booklet.. Contact TOTW on
    http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/ & ask for their booklet & some samples.. I got a small box full of all their formulas & the samples were pretty big…..Your dog will love the taste & do firm poos….Keep Taste of the Wild in mind if poos are still sloppy on new kibble.. 🙂

    #87954 Report Abuse
    crazy4cats
    Participant

    Hi again-
    The food that worked the best for my dogs when they were going through a similar stage was a Victor’s grain free formula. But I’m not sure if it is suitable for a growing large breed pup. You also may want to think about using a supplement that contains a probiotic and ingredients that help soothe and heal the gut. I like and still use from time to time supplements such as Perfect Form, Vetri Pro BD, Gastriplex, Forti Flora or Phytomucil.

    I have two lab/retriever mix male siblings who turn five this week. We had a rough start too, but are doing well now and can rotate between a few different kibbles and toppers finally without issue.

    Best of luck to you. I know it’s stressful!

    • This reply was modified 7 years, 8 months ago by crazy4cats.
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