[blizhagan]

We are seeking help! Our dogs have progressively been having worse and worse stomach issues.

We adopted our 1.5 year old Chocolate Lab in October 13 and we also have a 25 pound 3.5 year old Basenji Mix. We wanted to put the dogs on great food when we got our lab. Our Basenji previously had been on Trader Joe’s Lamb and Rice Formula. He has been fine on that since we have had him however when I researched the food when we got our lab I was disappointed by the quality. Our lab was adopted from a family who could no longer care for him and he was on Kirkland Lamb and Rice Formula.

First we tried out the Kirkland with the dogs but both dogs were constipated and were having hard stools. Our lab was also going through 5-6 cups a day.

So we went to a local natural dog food store and they sugguested for our budget and needs to put the dogs on Diamond food and they said to rotate the flavor every bag so that their stomachs will strengthen.

Well our lab was flying thru the Diamond food and looked like he was losing weight so we were supplementing with wet food for more protein for him. The basenji still had constipation.

So we decided we need to go to Blue Buffalo for all the ratings. They have been on Blue Buffalo since mid November. We feed the Basenji 3/4 cup of food twice a day and the Lab (80 pounds) 2 cups twice a day.

They did ok with the Adult Lamb and Brown Rice and the Adult Salmon and Sweet Potatoes however they had the occasional diarrhea and or constipation. Now we got the Chicken and Brown Rice formula and every day for the past week both have been either throwing up or having diarrhea. They aren’t lethargic or have any other symptoms. They are both very active still and their coats look great except our lab has a bit of dandruff.

I am wondering what other food should we try? Would going grain free or getting the wilderness blend be better? Or should we switch brands entirely? Is switching the flavors what is causing this even when we transition the foods? Just looking for some advice.

We live in the mountains and this time of the year they have to be inside while we are out so their stomach issues are much harder to deal with and I just want them to feel better!

Thank you in advance!

[Naturella]

I second both Shasta and dchassett. I have fed Blue Buffalo Wilderness with no problems and really good results, but it is a bit pricy. I do recommend stocking up on food, but watching the “Best by:” dates. The bigger the bag, the less per pound it is, as Shasta noted.

Here is another link for Victor foods that should be right on the money: http://www.victorpet.com/#!buy-organic-dog-treats-online/c13qg

Make sure you do some research as well, visit local feed or pet stores, shop online:
http://www.chewy.com
http://www.petflow.com
http://www.wag.com

Have good deals and sales often.

And do try to get a 4-5-star-rated food. It IS possible, even on a tight budget, we promise! 🙂

[Shasta220]

I will deeeefinitely say a HUGE no no to Science Diet. It is not much better than Purina dog chow, despite the high price. Blue Buffalo is alright, but it’s more expensive than the quality is worth. The link given for Victor foods was good, too. I’m on a big-time budget with my 3 pigs (oops! I meant dogs!) I buy 40lb bags of Diamond Naturals (some dogs do great on it, others do terrible…luckily my dogs are fine) for about $35

That being said, I’d imagine it’ll be harder to find something around $1/lb for a small dog, as small bags tend to be more expensive per pound, and I honestly don’t know how well a large bag of kibble would last. Possibly going for a 12-15lb bag? Really though, the bigger the bag, the cheaper the food will be per pound.

Hopefully you can find something that works! Oh, and try to make sure it’s a 4-5 star food on this site 🙂

[Dori]

Science Diet and Blue Buffalo are two foods that have terrible reviews so you wouldn’t want to feed them anyway. Jams is another food you wouldn’t want to feed. I agree with Aleksandra check out Victorpet.com. You may want to keep the puppy on the food that he’s eating at the breeder for the first couple of weeks and then do a slow transition with whatever good food you decide on. Leaving the breeder and going to a new home with strangers is always very stressful for the pup so it’s always best to give him a little time to adjust before switching his food. Too much stress all at once. Otherwise you may not know whether it’s the stress or the food if he comes down with diarrhea or vomiting.

[Evonne]

I have a three year old cockapoo, Charlie. He has been eating Blue Buffalo Grain Free Turkey and Potato for awhile now. He loves it, and that is saying a lot because he is super picky. This is the first food that he would scarf as soon as we put it in front of him. He has been having issues with yeast and dermatitis. We decided to have him allergy tested. I got the results back a few days ago. He is allergic to fish mix, potato, wheat, and green beans. He is borderline on lamb, venison, oats, beets, apple, banana, and tomato. I fed him a trial of lamb at one point and he reacted by turning bright red on his underbelly. So, I think that is more of an allergy than something that is borderline. I want to avoid feeding him anything that is on his borderline list. I am having a hard time finding him a commercial dog food. For the last few days, I have cooked for for him. I just used things that I had in the house. I used eggs, brown rice, carrots, and pumpkin. He loved it. I am not opposed to cooking for him, but I want to make sure that he is getting the right vitamins, proper carbs and protein. I am just a little nervous about all of this. I am not even sure what amount to feed him if I am cooking for him. I have been giving him a half of a cup of the stuff I made up twice a day. He is a little over twenty pounds. I have two other cockapoos with no allergy issues or health problems. They are also on the Blue Buffalo Grain Free Turkey and Potato. Since they are doing well, I will keep them on it. I just really need advice on what to do with Charlie! Any tips would really be appreciated.
Thank you!

[Evonne]

I have a three year old cockapoo, Charlie. He has been eating Blue Buffalo Grain Free Turkey and Potato for awhile now. He loves it, and that is saying a lot because he is super picky. This is the first food that he would scarf as soon as we put it in front of him. He has been having issues with yeast and dermatitis. We decided to have him allergy tested. I got the results back a few days ago. He is allergic to fish mix, potato, wheat, and green beans. He is borderline on lamb, venison, oats, beets, apple, banana, and tomato. I had fed him a trial of lamb at one point and he reacted by turning bright red on his underbelly. So, I think that is more of an allergy than something that is borderline. I want to avoid feeding him anything that is on his borderline list. I am having a hard time finding him a commercial dog food. For the last few days, I have cooked for for him. I just used things that I had in the house. I used eggs, brown rice, carrots, and pumpkin. He loved it. I am not opposed to cooking for him, but I want to make sure that he is getting the right vitamins. I am not even sure what amount to feed him if I am cooking for him. I have two other cockapoos with no allergy issues or health problems. They are also on the Blue Buffalo Grain Free Turkey and Potato. Since they are doing well, I will keep them on it. I just really need advice on what to do with Charlie! Any tips would really be appreciated.
Thank you!

[Sheltie_Pom]

I can’t spend over $1.05 per pound. I am looking for a good quality dog food to put my new Pomeranian on once he comes home. So far the one that I like best is Pure Balance, I was considering Iams but I’m not so sure after reading the ratings on it. Right now the puppy is on Purina Pro Plan but I don’t like that it contains menadione sodium bisulfite complex. SO what si your advice suggestions? Science Diet and Blue Buffalo are WAY out of my price range. I can’t afford $52+ dollars a bag.

[Naturella]

Thank you, sue66b and pitbullmomma!

I am guessing it is the fiber in the pumpkin that will help him?

Also, I always thought that grain free causes softer stools than grain-inclusive, and this is his second time on all-grain-free (but the first time was just for a month). So maybe I can add a kibble that has a little bit of grains in it… I had some coupons so I stocked up on Earthborn Holistic Grain Free and Vets Choice HHE, but 2 of my HHEs do have grains in them.

Come to remember, Bruno (my pup) did good on Blue Buffalo Wilderness Puppy 11lbs mixed with 4lbs of HHE Original (with grain), I think those were the perfect stools – firm enough, but not super hard.

So maybe until he finishes his current blend and starts on Earthborn GF and HHE (with grain), I can add some pumpkin and/or any other additives that may help?

[Akari_32]

Hey guys! Bentley is once again having itching problems as the weather stars to warm back up. We aren’t sure if it’s chicken, grains, grass, fleas or a combination of any of these. He’s constantly chewing his feet and tummy, and scratching his neck and chest, and his skin is bright red all over his body.

We’ve got a little (really little) problem with fleas in the yard, and he gets maybe 3 or so a day just from going out side. I wouldn’t think it’s enough to cause a problem unless he’s allergic to them. He’s on Trifexis, which kills the fleas after they bite. We have stuff to treat the yard, as well that we are going to try. He does get pretty decent sized welts, but that could be from fire ants (the dog is pretty stupid– he likes to play with ants), so it’s hard to say.

As for food, he used to be on the red meat Innova Prime before the recall. And before that we tried just about every brand and meat/grain combination all sorts of brands there is in the area, ending with chicken without grain, and non-chicken with grain, just to be sure. We finally settled on no chicken and no grain as it caused him to itch less and his skin looked better, and used $10 off any size bag Innova coupons, which is the only way we could have afforded it at the time. He’s been doing good since then so I figured I’d try him back on chicken, and he did good for a month or so, so I tried him back on grain. For the last 3 weeks maybe, he’s been on half and half, grain free and grain inclusive, with mixed protein sources, and it doesn’t seem to help much, but it has helped some.

We aren’t really sure on the grass allergy either, as it all started to die off for the winter when it occurred to us it could be grass/weed pollen and started taking precautions for that as well (wiping him down with a baby wipe after going outside). But now the grass is starting to grow back, so I’ll have to see about that.

So basically, we have all of these possible irritants back all at once, and we are back to where we were last year: he’s chewed his back legs almost bald, he’s scratching himself raw on his chest and neck, and his sole purpose in life is to chew the bottom of his feet.

Since fleas and grass are easy to take care of (sort of), I need some help on picking a food. The only catch is, it has to come from Pet Supermarket. It’s the only place close that isn’t a grocery store. AND…. Around here it’s pretty much either Natura or Diamond for (“good”) grain free. Lucky me. Being so close to the South Carolina plant (I live in Florida), I have my reserves about feeding Diamond products, but he’s been on most of the TOTW formulas and my other dogs have been on Kirkland with no issues. Here’s my list:

Wellness CORE Wildgame
Taste of the Wild High Prairie PUPPY
Taste of the Wild Sierra Mountain
EVO Red Meat Small Bites
Innova Natures Table Beef and Red Lentils (doesn’t appear to be available here yet, but I’d like to hear thoughts on it)

He doesn’t like fish, and it makes his breath smell nasty, or else I’d be able to add the CORE Ocean Fish in there, too. I was looking at Blue Buffalo, despite what ever they’re going through right now, but I’m fairly sure all their grain free foods have chicken, don’t they? Any thing else to add that Pet Supermarket carries?

If you could just pick one, because the chances of mom rotating are slim, which would you pick? And what are your top three, if I can get her to? And thoughts or concerns about any of these? Any other tips as far as natural flea treatments, itching relief, and whatever else goes are also greatly appreciated!

[Mom2Cavs]

Hermione….I agree with the probiotics and enzymes. They should help. However, the Blue Buffalo has grains (rice) and most likely has way less protein than the EB Primitive Natural, which is EB’s highest protein variety. I do know that my 3 dogs could not make such a switch easily, but they are older dogs. Anyway, it can be done, but it may take longer for your dog to adjust to the “richness” of the EB Primitive Natural. Have you thought of transitioning to a lesser protein Earthborn food, like Meadow Feast, or first to one of their grain inclusive foods then when the dog is used to that food gradually switching to, say Coastal Catch or Meadow Feast, then finally to Primitive Natural, providing your dog can handle it along the way? It’s been my experience with my dogs that when switching to a new food if the new food has a similar protein/fat and analysis makeup to the old food the switch goes much easier than if the new food is a lot different makeup. Once I’m on the new, similar food for awhile I can then go on and transfer to a higher protein of the same brand. I hope this makes sense lol.

[Hermione]

I recently switched (slowly, of course) my border-collie mix of unknown age from Grain-Free Blue Buffalo Chicken and Rice to Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural. She definitely enjoys the new food and is eating normally, energy is good, etc. I started the transition on 1/27 so she’s been eating the new food for about two weeks.

My concern is her stool. While she’s going less, when she does have a bowel movement it’s VERY soft. Not liquid, thankfully, but not solid, either. It also REEKS. Is it possible I just need to give her more time to adjust? At what point do I decide that her new food doesn’t agree with her? Any advice?

[BernerdAd]

Yes I misspoke it is of course Blue Buffalo — thanks for the heads up… I switched today to Canine Caviar Open Sky Grain Free.

I have question for anyone who has used pumpkin to manage loose stools — what is the quantity — I have a 42lbs — 21 week old BMD who is fed 3x per day. How would I use pumpkin in his diet effectively?

[theBCnut]

Hi BernerdAd
I haven’t heard of Blue Mountain, do you mean Blue Buffalo Freedom? If so, there have been many, many reports of dogs suffering from vomitting and diarrhea on this brand lately. I would give it up as a lost cause and try a different brand.

[Rambunctious]

TOTW was one of the brands my vet said to stay clear of along with diamond, can soup dog soul, blue buffalo (due to recent issues). But then again they also RECOMMEND Science Diet/Hills , Purina Pro plan..

[crazy4cats]

Hi Aleksandra-
No, Blue Buffalo is not a Diamond product. But, Canidae still uses Diamond for some of their manufacturing and they are a little sketchy about which of their products still come from the Diamond plants. I’m with you on the TOTW food. It looks very tempting.

[Naturella]

This is probably ignorant, but are Blue Buffalo and Canidae also Diamond products?

Akari, to your question, I would guess that you just need to proceed with caution for any Diamond food you choose to get.

I checked my local Petland and since I still have their coupons (to be fully used by the end of the month, for what looks like a lifetime supply of food (62lbs) for Bruno (for $80), I was, and still am, REALLY tempted to get him some TOTW. I just love how the recipe sounds, plus how the price tag looks… I need to ask them where the TOTW came from though.

[doxiesx3]

I have very mixed feelings about DinoVite. First off, let me say that all 3 of my dogs responded very well to the DinoVite with no side effects at all. No diarrhea and no vomiting. On one hand it completely cleared my WH Dachshund’s “yeasty” ears. He suffered terribly with this condition and we tried everything…you name it. After about 30 days on the DinoVite, I noticed a huge difference and after about 60 days, his ears were completely clear. He ( and my other 2 dogs) have been on the DinoVite for about 9 months now. So, that’s wonderful, but on the other hand, he…along with my smooth coat Dachshund have recently developed flaky bumps on their backs. Weird. I believe it is similar to seborrheic dermatitis. The scabby bumps that flake off when you scratch them. I have never tried a homemade diet for my dogs. The get their DinoVite on their kibble (Blue Buffalo-Wilderness-Weight Management). So, this raises a question… do I take them off of the DinoVite at the risk of Sam getting his “yeasty ears” back? I have been looking into the Total-Zymes and was wondering what is the difference between that and the DinoVite? To me, it seems that both products are doing almost the same thing for dog. Am I wrong?

[crazy4cats]

Hi Akari 32-
You could click on the recalls tab above and bring up the previous recalls to see which states were usually involved. I know what you mean. The Diamond products are so tempting. Most appear to be great budget friendly foods. I work for Costco and we sell hundreds of bags of the Kirkland and Nature’s domain foods without incident. I live in the NW and we have not been affected by most recalls (supposedly). I’m still a little leery and still have not started using it again. But with it being almost two years, I’m tempted. Not sure if that means they’ve figured it out or are about due for another one! Hopefully, they have tightened their quality control because I know thousands of dogs are eating it. I think Taste of the Wild is one of the most popular foods along with Blue Buffalo sold in our area. Good luck, but I think you are right about Florida being one of the states affected in the past.

[mzbain2u]

I have fed my Pugs Blue Buffalo Freedom….They all have done really well on this food….No issues at all….I fed them the life protection food briefly and noticed they had loose bowel but that was due to the multi grains in the food, the reason I say that is because when I switched them back to grain free they no longer had loose bowel…..I also compared the ingredients in the wilderness brand to the freedom and they are very similar….I feel my pugs have all done very well on the grain free diet, they have shiny coats and they are healthy young pugs….. I like blue grain free, If blue wasn’t around they’d still be on wellness core but the core costs more, so that is why I am sticking with the Blue buffalo freedom

[Mommadogg]

I have two Corsos they are about a year apart. The eldest has a sensitive stomach. I have been through Blue Buffalo, Chicken Soup for the Dog lovers Soul, Hills, Earth Born, and I decided to try Rachel Ray and she can eat it without pooping water. Now they both poop ALL the time! Any suggestions on an affordable food that will help with this issue.

BTW her stomach problems are from a bacterial GI infection she contracted from pond water a year ago. STAY AWAY FROM PONDS!

Any help would be appreciated!! Thank you!

[kb779]

I have a 6 month old labradoodle. We started him off on blue buffalo freedom puppy food when we got him at 9 weeks but he started having occasional gas then 2 weeks ago started having pretty bad diarrhea. We started him on a shredded chicken, pumpkin and rice diet to curb the diarrhea and after a week of that it was still pretty soft but the gas was gone. We switched to ground beef and it cleared up pretty quickly after that.

Our trainer recommended Fromm Pork and applesauce because we thought he might be sensitive to chicken and because the trainer thought the blue buffalo might be too protein heavy. This week we started him off on the new food but now he seems to be much more itchy than normal and he is farting even more than before. We’ve cut out the treats to rule them out but he still gets gassy after meals.

I really need some advice on a good dog food. There are so many options out there and so far we’ve had bad luck.

[EBM]

Our 19 week old English Cream was prescribed Royal Canin GI Puppy by our vet after three negative parasite samples and repeatedly worsening loose stools. He was on Blue Buffalo Large Breed Puppy. He switched fine to the new food but it is prescription and expensive and I really think he couldn’t tolerate something in the Blue Buffalo. I have read various positions on the cause stemming from too high a protein to a diet too rich. After researching, I am slowly swithcing to Fromm Gold Large Breed. Any thoughts comments or feedback! Just want to feed him a high quality food but don’t wat to feed presecription if it was only an allergy or sensititvity. Thanks !

[Naturella]

For about a month I was giving my 12-ish lb Jack-Rat Terrier a tsp of mushed up canned cod liver in fish oil every other day with his breakfast. He LOVED it! On the days of no fish liver and oil he got a mix of cooked and raw beef liver. He looked and felt amazing, and nowadays he is on raw, unrefined coconut butter (ground up coconut flesh and oils) every other day with breakfast. He loves that too, and people keep commenting on how soft he is.

His coat has been very shiny since I switched him to Blue Buffalo Wilderness Puppy a month after my boyfriend and I got him, but I am not sure if it was that food or the fish skins he got in combination with it. So if fish oil worries you, you can always try the Beams or Wishes by THK (I think?). I need to get Bruno some more, and more cod liver, and alternate them and the coconut butter every few days. 🙂

[Harpers Mom]

Just an update and some advise, We found a food Harper is doing excellent on, Merrick grain free- beef and sweet potato. I still want to have a rotational diet for her so does anyone know of a kibble with similar ingredients to the Merrick? She also does well on the duck formula. The ingredients of each are posted below.

Merrick Grain free- Real Duck and Sweet Potato
Deboned Duck, Turkey Meal, Salmon Meal (source of Omega 3 fatty acids), Sweet Potato, Peas, Lamb Meal, Potato, Duck Fat (preserved with natural mixed tocopherols), Pea Protein, Natural Flavor, Apples, Blueberries, Organic Alfalfa, Salmon Oil, Minerals (Salt, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Sodium Selenite), Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, Rosemary Extract.

Merrick Grain Free- real Texas beef and sweet potato
Deboned Beef, Beef Liver, Lamb Meal, Sweet Potato, Peas, Pork Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extract), Natural Flavors, Potato Protein, Potato, Deboned Buffalo, Deboned Lamb, Flaxseed, Whey Protein Concentrate, Apples, Salmon Oil, Blueberries, Organic Alfalfa, Minerals (Salt, Dicalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Sodium Selenite), Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product.

[joet]

TO *NATA**FROM JOET

1ST-just make the food is at least a 4 star food–from this site–
2-make sure it does not come from the west coast–
im sure **PATTY VAUGHN**can tell you why,she seems to be an expert on everything here-EXCEPT 1 THING PATTY–

her comments on blue buffalo–
you would think she works for a rival company or worked for them and got FIRED.
i live in new york—so you know patty–i have never seen a blue commercial–ever—so there goes your advertizing thing–

2-as far as *gas*–dogs get gas from many many things-cant be helped –as we also do–
3-but–vomit-diar—–give us the names of all the people you personally know that feed blue and have had this problem—-you cant -can you—

teddybear has been on blue for 7 years now—–yellow lab-pure bread—perfect health—-
my drummers little dog–5 years–no problem–
my sister-in-laws lab–7 years—no problem—–

so PATTY VAUGHN—
WHATS YOUR STORY—IM SURE WE ALL WOULD LIKE TO KNOW–SIGNED**JOE~T**

[A.Sandy]

Try something all life stages, that way you don’t have to be finding diffrent large breed foods. I agree with pugmomsandy try whole earth farms they are made by merrick which i highly recommend, or i always say try a feed store always cheaper! because at petco,petsmart it does not get cheaper,forget blue buffalo they’ll take an arm and a leg. check out the review section and research prices. Oh and Joet you need help!

-Ana Expert/pet nutrition advisor
@pupfacts
pupcatnutrition.com

[JASTECH]

I too agree, stay far away from Hills and Eek, Aims and the like. I rotate variety within the main feed of my yard of 15+. They have been on Fromm a long time. I still feed raw a day or more a week as a good change and add fish oil and milk thistle to it.

[joet]

nothing personal but there are many informed pet owners on this site which i cant comprehend——-chester and teddybear——-
chester had 10 years—-he died naturally
TEDDYBEAR–MY BABY–7 YEARS OLD NOW–WILL POST PBOTO—
there are only a Few foods you should feed your dog—–
1–5-star if you can afford it
2-4-star–
3–nothing less than 4-star –use this site—-
4–blue buffalo—-CHEESTER AND TEDDY-BOTH—-
5–ALL FOODS CREATE GAS—
6–BLUES REP IS THE BEST OUT THERE–CHECK IT–
7-TEDDY GETS THEIR 5 STAR RATED BLUE–FROM THIS SITE—–
8–NO DIRREAR–ABSOLUTLY NO VOMMITING—
9-I AM NOT A REP FROM ANOTHER COMPANY LYING TO YOU—I AM TEDDYS OWNER AND HIS DAD—-
10–ID KILL FOR TEDDY IF I HAD TO—-
11-I KNOW BLUE IS THE BEST TO GIVE HIM DUE TO THEIR REP WHICH IS OUTSTANDING–AS OPPOSED TO ALL OTHER TOP SHELF BRANDS—-
12—-SO TAKE THIS FOR WHAT ITS WORTH——
JOE T AND TEDDYBEAR.

[goldenmamaX2]

Hello,
I’m new here and would like to get suggestions for food for my 2 goldens. They are 8 months old and have had them since they were 8 weeks. The breeder had them on Nutro large breed puppy and at 6 months I switched them to Nutro large breed adult. They are about 73lbs each, (which is what the parents were 70-80lbs). I’d like to get them off of large breed dog food and switch them to a grain free dog food. My only 2 criteria for that is I must be able to get it from petsmart and it cant cost more than $50/ 35lb.bag. So, I’m looking for an affordable decent dog food. We are currently going through about 8 cups a day which is about a bag of food every 2 weeks. I have been considering bil-jack and blue buffalo which are about $55/bag. Thanks for you suggestions!

[steveski]

Sorry to bring this back from the dead, but I’m having the same exact problems as the original person posted. My beagle mix is now 3 and have yet to find a good food for her. Money is not really a factor for me as long as it’s not outrageous.

Same exact thing: My dog scoots and licks her paws and butt a lot. Sometimes worse than others. Strangely, she seems to scoot and lick more when she needs to go out. Maybe that’s just me thinking too much into it, but it seems to be the case. She’s had her anal glands expressed many times and had her stool sample tested multiple times. Been to many different vets, they all say she’s healthy.

Over the past 2 years that I’ve owned her, she’s been on Taste of the Wild, Blue Buffalo, Natural Balance Limited Ingredient, Wellness Simple and more. Some are worse than others. She’s been on Natural Balance LID Duck and Potato for the past 9 months or so because she has been the best on that. By best, I mean not scooting so much that she is in obvious discomfort the entire day and her stool is solid.

Also, if she has any people food, she scoots and is more uncomfortable than normal for the following few days. This usually happens around holidays or when we have guests over and stuff falls on the floor.

Any suggestions? This may sound crazy, but should I try her on “regular” food and see how she does? As soon as I got her, I always wanted her on healthy food and I think she’s always been on Grain Free food the whole time. The vets only suggestion was to try allergy testing at this point, since we already tried an elimination diet and everything.

[Tulmaster]

Hi, new here and hope I reached an appropriate page for comment. First I am searching for the best dry food to give Odin, my 7 yr old Lab/Rot. I have been feeding him Blue Buffalo for years. So to cut to the chase, I was reviewing the Stars, 5 and 4 and noticed when I got to some, and I will use BB as an example, it said in the 4 star category, there were 17 different food that were offered. Of those on the list there were 4 or 5 that did not display a stars rating, and the rest were rated from as low as 2 and as high as 4.5. I tried to find a rating method explanation, but could not so, what do they mean? Did some not meet the 4 star rating and if so why? If they are all 4 star, then why the difference. If they are not 4 star then why are they listed under the 4 star link? All to confusing for me.

[nata78sha]

Hello. I am new here. I have a St Bernard mix (98 pounds) that will be 9 years old in the fall. I also have a 5 year old miniature schnauzer. Our dogs have been on the grain free natures domain from Costco for years (at the advice of our old vet). The vet here wants my Saint on senior food. He suggested canned food, cooked human food (and buy vitamins if I cook his food) and then dry food or mixing canned with dry food . But he suggested Science diet and said he did not like Blue Buffalo … so that has me questioning him. I know BB had a recall but I had always seen high rating for it. I could have also sworn that he said a low protein diet.. I would think it would be the opposite- less carbs.. but I am not a vet. Does the Saint need to be on a senior food , is there an all stages food that both dogs can be on? Also the schnauzer is very active, the Saint..not so much. Price does matter.. I can not afford to pay $50+ for 30 pounds of dog food when I go through 6 cups a day (current food).

[Cocker_mom]

Hi, InkedMarie! Since about April I’ve been feeding both my dogs the Iams Healthy Naturals Adult Lamb Meal and Rice dog food. They’ve both responded well to it, and it was included on the list of (literally, hundreds–at least one thousand) dog foods the allergy testing company gave me. Basically, it’s an average kibble, but it’s easily accessible in my area. Prior to that, I had my allergy prone cocker on Nature’s Recipe Grain-Free Easy to Digest Chicken, Sweet Potato, and Pumpkin dog food and my older cocker on Blue Buffalo Senior Turkey (both are considered limited ingredient foods). (I’d highly recommend both those foods; it was just a 20+ mile drive one-way every time I needed dog food.)

To put things in context, I got my allergy prone cocker in September, 2012. I was visiting the vet pretty much every two weeks and he was constantly on keto, benadryl, special shampoo for the elephant hide, and various ear medications. The shampoo improved the elephant hide somewhat, but he was still having problems with ears and itching/licking in general. Once I got him on the Nature’s Recipe, he slowly started improving (I was beginning to think we had a definite winner!), but then spring hit and his skin, eyes, ears just drove him crazy with itching, so he really didn’t enjoy a substantial change in his condition. I did the food allergy test first just because I wanted to eliminate as many of the most likely causes as possible before considering something like an allergy panel/allergy shots. After getting the results, I rid the house of any foods, treats, etc. he was allergic to and made the decision to put both dogs on the same food with my vet’s approval. There was a little adjusting of portions for my older cocker, and she definitely liked the Blue Buffalo much better (it has oats, and I didn’t want to risk my allergy prone dog getting a morsel of it), but she’s doing really well on it.

The warm months were a nightmare for the little guy. The exposed skin and the yeast and the elephant hide cleared up completely with the food adjustment but the ears were the worst I’d seen yet–literally Velveeta cheese at the worst, and medicines weren’t providing much relief. More bi-weekly vet visits, and I even participated in some trial drugs when everything else failed. Thank goodness for the first hard frost. It’s winter now, and his ears have cleared up, so I am pretty confident now the food issues have been ruled out. We’ve both gotten a much needed break from the ear agony. He looks far and away better than ever and the constant itching/licking isn’t going on now that it’s winter. That’s what convinced me to do the outdoor panel before his 2nd spring with me. The tests aren’t terribly invasive or expensive–they use only a small blood sample. I couldn’t imagine having a chronic yeast infection! I’m hoping the allergy shots will prep him for the spring allergens.

I could probably start a whole new thread about cockers and their ears, but I can tell you that having owned two cockers now, my experience with the younger dog has been COMPLETELY different than the older one. Basically, I’ve always exercised preventative care with my older cocker just because cockers are naturally prone to infections with their big floppy ears–cleaning and drying the ears once a week or so, keeping the insides or the ear shaved close, and letting them air out. She’s had maybe 3 or 4 ear infections in her 13 years, and her ears are very clean and healthy. My younger cocker’s ears are a mess–gnarly and misshapen on the inside with a lot of scar tissue particularly on the left ear and there is an ugly polyp on the left ear too. He is truly a special needs dog, and I’m thinking the product of overbreeding (resulting in a very cute but very issue-prone pup).

I know a lot of dogs do well on a food elimination diet, and I believe I truly gave that method a fair shake (the food he was on when he took the food allergy test was actually on the testing company’s approved list–although none of the prior foods I tried were), but my dog’s issues are caused by a variety of allergens that aren’t limited to just food. I spent literally thousands of dollars in vet bills for various treatments that treated only symptoms but not the true problem, and I have no regrets with the allergy tests. I truly believe we’ve reached a turning point. They might not be necessary for every dog, but if your dog is experiencing chronic allergies and a food adjustment isn’t completely alleviating the symptoms, the test is worth it.

[shamrockmommy]

I had a terrible time with Blue Buffalo with my dogs- ear infections, itching and diarrhea.

I like Fromm grain frees a whole bunch (only complaint is the stool is a bit large) and PetGuard Lifespan (basically a chicken/rice). They work well for my 4 dogs.

There is also California Natural that has some very simple grain free formulas you might try your dog on. Some are just so very sensitive to all the grains and herbs and “kitchen sink” formulations and it sends their body into itch overdrive.

If you don’t mink cooking, you could look into DogDishDiet.com as well. Crock pot food.
Hope this helps and your guy feels better soon!

[InkedMarie]

I’m not fond of Blue Buffalo, too many complaints. Some good grainfrees are Annamaet, dr Tim’s, Natures Variety Instinct, Natures Logic has one grain, millet, which is a pseudo grain. If you’d like a limited ingredient grainfree, look at Natures Variety lid Instinct and Canidae Pure.

Are you using any salmon and coconut oils?

[GoldenGirl]

Let me start off by saying that I’m going to school for veterinary technology and am working at a holistic pet store at the same time and I’ve received more training in nutrition at my job then in school haha now I would deffinatly stay faaaaar away from Hills and Eukanuba, Blue isn’t the best food but its leaps and bounds better then the other two. Most of the Hills and Eukanuba formulas fist 4 ingredients are corn, wheat, by-product meal, and meat meal. Meaning their grain based food and have very little fresh meat (which should ALWAYS be the first ingredient). Personally I’m on a big Merrick kick right now, their a smaller family owned brand that is really great about locally sourcing their ingredients, balancing everything, and adding in extra supplements. If you have any question feel free to ask!

[scooter]

I adopted a rescue dog the end of June and he has been having anal gland problems on an ongoing basis. He has needed to go to the vet every three weeks to get them expressed and has now been on antibiotics and a steroid for just over a week. He is just under two yrs old and is part papillon and terrier. My vet just mentioned possible surgery to remove the glands if we can’t get them under control. Don’t want to have to put him through that surgery because of the possible outcomes so have been researching changing foods. He gets dry food and I give him a tablespoon of pumpkin and And yogurt every day. He has never had diarrhea And always has firm poop. I am trying to figure out what else I can do to help this problem. Has anyone tried glandex? What about blue buffalo dry food?

[Naples_vidiot]

This is what Blue came back with:

Hi Christine,

Thank you for contacting us. We are sorry that BLUE did not work out for your pet. When switching foods, there is always a possibility that the food will not agree with your pet or they may not like it. Which Wilderness formula were you feeding your dog? Wilderness is a higher protein and fat diet for active, sporting and working dogs. Due to the higher protein and fat, it is not always the best fit for some pets. Whenever you purchase BLUE it comes with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. If you find that BLUE is not a good fit for your pet, you can return the unused portion to the retailer for a full refund or exchange with your receipt.

We do not have any current recalls. In the unfortunate event of a recall, we would work with each of our retailers to immediately remove affected product as well as post signage alerting consumers of a recall. In the case of our larger retailers, such as PetSmart and Petco, we are able to work with them in contacting customers that purchased a recalled product based on information obtained from their Pet Perks and PALS program. We would also post the most up-to-date information on our website as well as work with veterinary websites (such as Veterinary Information Network) to educate veterinarians across the country of the issue so that they can share it with their clients.

We are aware of the postings and blogs that are unregulated. Unfortunately we can’t control what is posted in an online forum and unless the Pet Parent contacts us directly, we can’t investigate their claim fully. We always encourage pet parents to contact us if they feel there is an issue so that we can gather all of the product information for our QA Team and investigate. Product quality is our #1 priority. We have strict controls in place to make sure that our ingredients meet the highest quality standards.

These controls include the following:

Certificate of origin for all ingredients
COA’s (certificates of analysis) on all our ingredients prior to accepting
Testing of each ingredient for known toxins prior to accepting
Testing during production to ensure that our formulas meet our nutritional specifications.
Testing after production to ensure product stability and freshness.

We use a government certified laboratory to test for normal analyticals, toxins, bacterial contamination, and spoilage.

Please feel free to contact me with any further questions.

Take care,
Tracy

Blue Buffalo Co.

Yada yada yada

[Luna Bear]

So I have been dog sitting for Luna for a couple of weeks. When her regular food ran out, I did not know what it was so I went to Pet Smart and got Blue Buffalo for older dogs. She is a hearty eater and usually will eat anything she can find…and she ate the BB food for about a week and then started getting sluggish and then stopped eating. She is old so I was worried she might be on her last legs. Then she ate a little and started throwing it all up. She laid in bed for two days hardly eating a thing and having diarrhea. I stopped putting it in her bowl and fed her some chicken broth and chicken meat for a couple of days and she started looking much better. In the four days since I stopped feeding it to her, she has completely turned around and is back to her old self. Who can say…but I am going back to get my money back and will never feed another dog this food again. I am no scientific expert but this just seems way too coincidental. Good news is that she has her energy back and definitely her interest in food!

[theBCnut]

Usually they are made out of ingredients that you would recognize as food ingredients rather than things that you have to look up to know what you are feeding. The term is not regulated though, so anyone can claim it.

[jcosler]

what the heck is a “holistic food???”

[PugLove]

We recently bought a Pug puppy (we was 7 weeks at the time). The store told us they had no idea what brand of food he was on prior to them getting him but they put him on Royal Canin puppy. He was only at the pet store for a few hours before we bought him. He received a free bag of the food to take home & he has been on it for 6 days now. His stool is getting softer and softer and he seems to be going #2 more than normal. I did a little research on here about food and found that the Blue Buffalo Life Protection Small Breed Puppy was a 5 star brand. I think we are going to make the switch over to that. He is eating 1/4c 3 times a day (vet recommended to reduce from 1/3c 3 times). Is this a good food choice for a pug this young? or should I be looking at another brand?

Thank you to anyone who helps!

[theBCnut]

They had a recall from that years ago, Oct. 8, 2010.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 12 months ago by theBCnut.

[weezerweeks]

My vet just put on his facebook that BB has recalled certain bags of food because of too much vitamin D,actually michigan state discovered it from blood work on dogs that were all on BB. Probably the only reason they recalled it. Sorry I just don’t like BB.

[Naples_vidiot]

First time here and thanks for having me. Purchased (dry pellets) Blue Buffalo several months ago and noticed that my Sheltie was getting sick once or twice a week in the morning then not eating till early afternoon. She’d drool first then vomit stomach fluids and sometimes the actual Blue Buffalo. This went on for months. Thought of all reasons why she was getting sick from low sugar levels to alergies. Tried feeding her treats at night to keep her belly full but that failed. The BB never crossed are minds as being the culprit because of its reputation. Just recently, my dog was getting sick every morning for a week straight…we finally took action. After feeding her the dry pellets from Blue Buffalo for months, we changed to a canned wet food. Miraculously she stopped getting sick. It has been 72 hours now. Wife googled Blue Buffalo and a whole page of articles populated about BB making dogs sick. She informed me and then I called the store that sold us this product then the BB headquarters. They did not pick up their phone in any department. The store that I spoke with claimed they knew nothing about the articles….you’d think they’d be aware because the multiple articles were from last March 2013. Were they protecting BB? All I know is, if I was selling food that was potentially getting pets sick, the product would be pulled immediately. We use a store swipe card everytime we buy product so maybe the seller would have looked up what we / everyone were buying and notified us about possible tainted food from BB? Waiting on BB to email us back so will check back later. Love my dog and it killed me seeing her vomotting every morning. Take her to a vet you say? Who can afford a vet these days? Or am I being obtuse. Happy Holidays!

[nconlee]

I’m about to get a new puppy in two weeks.I’m wondering if anybody had suggestions for puppy food,I’ve been looking myself and my head is spinning there are so many choices.From what I could tell Blue buffalo puppy food didn’t seem bad and Earthborn puppy food also seemed good.I’m more than willing to ask my vet when we go in for puppy shots but I was curious what others were using,what has worked for them and what hasn’t. This is my first dog and I want to start out their life right!Any help would be awesome!!!

[Akari_32]

Just picking out PetSmarts grain free foods off the top of my head…

Innova Prime
Natures Recipe (only a few are grain free, but I don’t recall if any have chicken or not– I know one is salmon, though some brands use chicken meal to boost the protein content of their novelty foods)
Blue Buffalo (this makes up most of their grain free selection)
Pro Plan (just came out, and my store doesn’t have it yet, so I haven’t gotten to investigate. Probably has chicken, but should it do well, more proteins are likely to become available– something you might look into for future use should it rank well on DFA)

I really think that’s it, other than Authority, which is chicken, and Simply Nourish, which you already use. Royal Canin and Hill’s have some grain free foods, but those are just… Those are just no…

[PetClubEmployee]

Hello
sorry for pulling up an old post!
What i have noticed as far as Blue is it is very popular
as far as ingredients it is a good brand
I feel however with blue you are paying more for there name than anything
I have tried blue when i had three dogs a mastiff, doberman, and pitbull cause it was the highest quality that petsmart sold, however after doing research i found for the same price i could get a higher quality product that was more appropriate for my dogs.
however all dogs are different and i have personally nothing bad to say about the company besides that it always gave my dogs gas and loose stools

[BernerdAd]

Hi sorting through all the good information — I’ve come up with a few questions
1) why did Grain Free Canine Caviar Open Sky make the list but Grain Free Canine Caviar Puppy did not?
2) None of the Blue Buffalo dry products made the list at all – why is that.

Ive created some spread sheets and in particular looked at calcium and there are not major differences? At what point do small percentage points — i.e. the difference between 1.2% and !.5% make a difference – I mean statistically what is the variance in these numbers when a food doesn’t make the list by only a few tenths of a %?

3) While numerical data is great isn’t there any sage wisdom out there for specific large breeds? I have Berners (bernese mountain dogs) – on the main website it says ”

“Bernese Mountain Dog owners feed a range of food from raw diet, homemade diets to commercially prepared kibble. No matter what type of feed, Berner owners seem to agree to feed a high quality food with relatively low protein level, approximately 18 -26% and a moderate fat content, under 16%. High protein/fat feeds (> 28%, >16%) can be ‘too much’ for many Bernese, especially those that are not very active working/performance dogs. Feeding a diet that is too ‘heavy’ in protein has been known to precipitate hotspot outbreaks in some Berners. A diet too high in fat adds unwanted pounds and in some cases causes diarrhea.”

So did one study on large breed puppies looking at critical variables protein levels, calcium etc debunk all the sage wisdom from breeders – some of which specifically notice concerns with high levels of protein over 30%

[A.Sandy]

Hi,
My name is Ana, I am the owner of a small pet canine and feline nutrition consultation business called Pupcat Nutrition Consulting. I am a pet nutrition expert/advisor and also a dog handler/caretaker and professional bather. I fully understand what you are saying, Blue buffalo is not exactly my favorite brand they are expensive and since they are a big company who knows what they put inside their food. And of course vets will tell you anything to make an extra buck. Ok, so absolute good choice on choosing merrick my dog loves this stuff!! So what’s going on is they are not used to the richness that merrick has since it’s grain free it’s more protein dense so that means you feed less so be careful how much you feed so you’re doing ok, 1 cup should be enough. But them begging for food after doesn’t mean they are hungry, the only time that you would increase food amount is if they are extremely active. Don’t be afraid to add some canned merrick fish proteins or beef (just 1 tbsp or less) just as a topper it also adds extra moisture. Or try adding salmon oil on top of food so they can get their omegas and sooth their skin and helps their coat. And for now try to stay away from chicken and rotate proteins. for more help and info on other topics follow us on twitter @pupcatfacts and on facebook and pupcatnutrition.com
Good luck!

-Ana