Hi Jason:
I recently went through the same situation you are going through. I tried all the Rx kibble and canned k/d foods. At first he would eat them, then after a few meals would stop. Adding additional toppings is something you must be careful with because you can quickly unbalance a diet which can be detrimental to his health.
I also tried homemade with the guidance of a Vet nutritionist, he didn’t care for my cooking…
What I ended up doing was working with my Vet to find OTC recipes of canned and kibble that were a close match to the Rx food phosphorous %’s as I could get. If we couldn’t get the info we requested from a company, we did not consider them for a second. I recommend contacting any company you consider feeding for accurate numbers rather than trusting the info they have posted on their sites are up to date.
There were also times throughout his illness when he needed anti nausea meds, another thing to keep in mind.
The OTC foods worked beautifully, he ate like a champ and was comfortable until his final days. What I found are the larger pet food companies made recipes that were more suitable for his condition; some were even a pretty close match. I gladly fed recipes that I wouldn’t have normally fed because he was finally eating on a regular basis!
Another option is to try other Rx k/d diets such as Purina or Royal Canin.
If homemade is an option the Vet nutritionists at BalanceIT will formulate a diet for the specific needs of your dog with your Vet. There is a fee for the consultation, after that you have a recipe and what is needed to balance it. The foods used to make their recipes are easily found at your local grocery store. I currently use a product from their OTC line to make a few homemade meals for my dog throughout the week. He loves my cooking! Check them out:
https://secure.balanceit.com/
