[Ashlee B]

If you want to gain weight for your dog, First of all you should give the best dog food. There are so much dog food in the world, But here I’d like to say some best dog name. Hopefully this will be the greatest and helpful food for your dog.

01. Royal Canin Puppy Dry Dog Food.
02. Nutro Wholesome Essentials Puppy Dry Dog Food.
03. Hill’s Science Diet Large Breed Dry Dog Food
04. chicken
05. Meat

[Anonymous]

i have a cockapoo ( cocker spaniel- poodle) and I was wondering what type of food we should use because he doesn’t seem to like the food we are using now (Purina one beyond dry). It is hard to find a good type of food for my dog because of his sensitive skin. Advise would be appreciated.

[Cameron M]

Hi,
perhaps read my post to Patti. You mention the fish kibble seems to work best..maybe it is the protein? I assume the others you tried had protein other than fish – such as the chicken you mention or beef which is common?

My gal seems to do equally well on either grain free or regular salmon based food. beef seems the worst for her. Due to the concerns regarding “grain free” I am trying the regular salmon based food.

Also – I have learned that only a small percentage of dog allergies are food based with the majority being caused by environmental triggers just like humans. Grasses, pollen and even dust triggers reactions in effected dogs.

I hope your issue is easily resolved and hey a 3.5 star food isn’t necessarily bad. The reviewers tend to place emphasis on protein content etc…and frankly I try to have a lower but high quality protein percentage so as to avoid kidney issues later in life.

Solid Gold has a great Salmon based dry kibble but since the protein is only 21% it has a lower rating. Just food for thought. ( and btw I am not pushing a certain brand…I used to stand by Solid Gold but haven’t checked…they may be sold out to some super large corp now? And I do realize marketing image is always in play)

Cameron

[Susan]

Hi Pat,
Sorry for what has happened 🙁
if you can afford it I’d cook meals or feed 1 cooked meal & the other meal feed a freeze dried dog food that has human grade ingredients, I’d stay away from dry kibbles & wet can dog foods…
Take back the 3 bags of TOTW food & get your money back..if pet shop wont refund then contact TOTW..
also here’s link for FDA to report a problem.
https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/ReportaProblem/ucm182403.htm

Ask vet to do full blood test see if liver is OK ??

My Patch was doing really well on TOTW Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb from 2015-2017 then 2017-Nov he started to go down hill & refused to eat his TOTW Lamb kibble, Patch NEVER refuses food, thats when I knew something was wrong.
I blammed the TOTW Lamb kibble he was eating had made him very ill being a Diamond product he didnt get better after I stopped teh TOTW kibble so in January 2018 he had endoscope & biopsies done & he has LES – his Lower Esophageal Sphincter flap doesnt close properly this was causing bad acid reflux washing back up & was burning his wind pipe & esophagus were both red & inflammmed but I still think TOTW made him ill aswell, his liver results weren’t good, I’d say a few things were happening cause he does have IBD & Skin Allergies but we are what we eat & he was eating the same dry food I wasnt rotating & feeding any other foods like I normally do….

Never feed the same brand of pet food month after month, year after year, this is when health problems can start to happen…
Now I rotate his foods again, I change between 3 different brands now & try & add as much fresh food as possible in his diet.. When I started feeding him “Wellness Core” Large Breed Adult dry & “Wellness Simple” Turkey & Potato he started to get better, he hasnt become ill again..but it took a while for him to get well again

There’s a company that test/studies for toxins, heavy metals & contaminates they test
the best selling Pet Foods in America, these dog foods are tested in an accredited analytical chemistry laboratory for 130 harmful environmental and industrial contaminants and toxins. Results are published as Product Ratings.
I cant post the link as DFA, DFA doesn’t believe in this testing & blocks the link, different batches of Dog/Cat wet, dry & treats get tested every 3-4 months these are all “new different batches” that are being tested everytime, certain brands of pet foods keep coming back time & time again very high in toxins, heavy metals & contaminates &

TOTW High Prairie adult formula & TOTW Pacific Stream Smoked Salmon have been on the 1 star – high toxins, heavy metals & contaminate list for nilly 2yrs now cause they have poison ingredients in them… 🙁

Google, heavy metals, toxins in dry dog foods,
so you can see all the 5 -1 star foods –

Here’s C L P first 13 x 5 star dry dog foods that tested very well, if you cant find the dry food site C L P I’m talking about.
Thats if you want to continue feeding a dog food..

* Buckley Liberty Freeze-Dried Beef Recipe Dry Dog Food
* Buckley Grain Free Liberty With Lamb Dry Dog Food
* Buckley Liberty Freeze-Dried Chicken Recipe Dry Dog Food
* Buckley Liberty Grain Free with Chicken Dry Dog Food
* Canisource Grand Cru All Life Stages Turkey Formula Dehydrated Raw Dry Dog Food
* CaniSource Grand Cru All Life Stages Pork and Lamb Formula Dehydrated Raw Dry Dog Food
* CaniSource Grand Cru All Life Stages Red Meat Formula Dehydrated Raw Dry Dog Food
* BIXBI Rawbble Freeze-Dried Dry Dog Food Duck Recipe
* BIXBI Rawbble Freeze-Dried Dry Dog Food Chicken Recipe
* BIXBI Rawbble Freeze-Dried Dry Dog Food Salmon & Chicken Recipe
* BIXBI Rawbble Dry Dog Food Lamb Recipe
* I and Love and You Grain Free Naked Essentials With Lamb + Bison Dry Dog Foo
* I and Love and You Grain Free Naked Essentials With Chicken + Duck Dry Dog Food

[joanne l]

If you don’t like science diet ask your vet about Royal Canine. Also cook some chicken breast for her. Boil it and cut it up and store it in a container and give her some with the dry food. That is good quality protein. Like others have said Rx diet is best because with this condition you need to be careful. But I feel fresh cooked chicken is best to give with the dry food. Since the vet said she needs more protein. If you do give her fresh chicken cut a little back on the dry food. Also, tell your vet what you are doing so they know. Best of luck to you. I hope she will be okay. Oh one more thing when you boil the chicken put a carrot in there and boil together and mash the carrot into the chicken, It can store in the refrigerator for 4 days. Fresh is always best.

[Susan]

Hi Morgan,

are you on facebook?? join this group, post a post & ask people your question, you’ll probably get a better response..
“Dog Allergies, Issues and Other Information Support Group”
https://www.facebook.com/groups/240043826044760/

Also follow “Rodney Habib” Diet plays a big part in keeping your sick dog healthy..
https://www.facebook.com/rodneyhabib

I dont know how your going to go with low fat diet?? as you need fat (Omega fats)for allergies..

My boy cant have high fat diet, causes Acid reflux, he’s OK up to 13% max fat, I feed 13% max -fat & he does well…
Allergies can be confusing, sometimes we think its an ingredient or protein causing the dogs itchy skin, ears & paws etc, 80% of the time its from environment allergens..
Normally if a dog has food sensitivities they will also have environment allergies aswell..
Routine-Baths are the best to do with allergies, you wash off the Allergens off paws, skin etc, bath weekly or twice a week in the Spring & Summer.. I also use baby wipes & I wipe him down after we have gone for walks or he’s been out the back yard in Spring & Summer months when trees & plants are flowering.

My boy hs IBD Food sensitivities & seasonal environment allergies, fat has to be around 13%max as he suffers bad acid reflux,
I feed him “Wellness Simple” Wellness Core” Canidae Pure Wild Boar”

Why do you want to stay away from white potatoes??
Yeasty, smelly, itchy skin isnt caused by starchy carbs, a dog will only react to potatoes if he is sensitivite to potato, which is rare I’ve been told by a vet nutritionist, vet diets use Potato cause it’s a low allergen..

Have a look at First Mate, Chicken & Blueberries its Grain, Gluten & Pea Free, Single Meat Protein, Limited Ingredient Formula, Available in Small Bites

Limited Ingredient Chicken Meal with Blueberries Formula

I would look into feeding tin salmon in spring water + sweet potato,
just make sure you read sodium/salt % get the lowest %,
feed foods that are high in omega fatty acids, this way the skin is kept healthy & diet is low in hard fats…. Sardines can be very rich but are VERY healthy..
This is what I try to do with Patch, he eats 5 small meals a day, cause of his IBD, he eats his dry kibble 7am, 9am, 5pm & 7pm then for lunch -12pm he gets his wet healthy meal Salmon & Sweet potato, Frontier Pets – dehydrated free range raw made Australia, freeze dried green lipped Mussels, Almond 3 almonds a day for dogs , Follow Rodney, he is always posting healthy foods. I try to rotate as many healthy foods into his diet over 7 days..

If I were you i’d try & stay away from kibbles, pet foods are VERY high in toxins contamnates & heavy metals, you dont want to put more stress on his liver if you can..
Google heavy metals toxinz & contaminates in pet foods.. Chicken & Turkey are the cleanest meats in pet foods..
Good Luck

[Patricia A]

Yes..they do have feeding trials. They can’t put for All Life Stages on their label without feeding trials. Unfortunately feeding trials are also flawed.
How do you reconcile that feeding trials are the best way, imperfect as they are, to determine if a food is nutritionally sound, with the fact that hardly anyone (or their foods) does AAFCO feeding trials? My favorite dog food companies (aka the ones I learned about through your yearly reviews, like Merrick) don’t seem to have any AAFCO feeding trials under their belt.

I’m not trying to question your knowledge or recommendations (because I love both), more just hoping I’m not the only one out there thinking about this stuff so much.

Thanks for your question! I’ve discussed feeding trials in a lot of different articles over the years, and I’m happy there are others “thinking about this stuff” as avidly as I am.

It’s true that in the article you mentioned in your note, I said that the “nutrient levels” method for establishing the nutritional adequacy of a food was flawed:

“Feeding trials are considered by most veterinary nutrition experts [emphasis added] to be the ‘gold standard’ for proving nutritional adequacy claims – superior to the ‘nutrient levels’ method of proof. That’s because it’s quite possible for a laboratory analysis to confirm that a food contains the amounts of various nutrients judged to be necessary for maintaining a dog, but for the product, in practice, to fail at that very job.

This is possible because not all nutrients may be in a digestible (‘bioavailable’) form. Most nutritionists agree that feeding trials offer the most reliable confirmation of a food’s ability to deliver nutrients in a form that will benefit the target species.”

However, as I’ve mentioned in many of my other articles on commercial diets, the feeding trial method of establishing nutritional adequacy is flawed, too.

The above-referenced article didn’t assert that feeding trials are the best way to prove the nutritional adequacy of a food. Its purpose was to clarify what feeding trials are, and describe conditions for dogs used in the studies.

In that article, I did call feeding trials “important” – and I still think they are. It absolutely is important to know whether a food that may well be fed to a dog every day for years on end is, in actuality, capable of sustaining dogs over time, without causing gross deficits leading to illness, weight loss, or abnormal blood chemistry.

I’m not going to go so far as to regard them as requisite, however, because they aren’t perfect. For one thing, they really aren’t long enough. Just because a diet can sustain a dog in a laboratory environment for about six months without causing illness or abnormal blood values doesn’t mean it will perform the same way for dogs who may lead a much more active and stressful life, and for years on end.

Also, as I explained in my 2007 dry food review (/issues/10_2/features/Dry-Dog-Food-Review_15897-1.html), foods that acquire the right to use a nutritional adequacy claim based on feeding trials need not be formulated to meet the other standard for nutritional adequacy: the “nutrient levels” criteria. Here is an excerpt from the 2007 article – but I’m going to boldface and correct a big mistake I made there:

“Foods that pass feeding trials are not required to contain minimum or maximum levels of any particular nutrients. Therefore, it’s possible for a food to sustain dogs long enough to ‘pass’ the trial, but fail to demonstrate an ability (in real-world, long-term use) to promote optimum health. As one example, mineral excesses may take a year or more to cause noticeable health problems, but a food that claims to provide complete and balanced nutrition for adult dogs (a ‘maintenance’ claim) may have passed only a 26-week test.

“There is also an AAFCO feeding trial (at least 13 weeks long) for products intended for dogs during gestation and lactation and another that tests puppy diets (10 weeks). To earn the right to claim nutritional adequacy for dogs of ‘all life stages,’ a food must undergo all three trials sequentially, for a total of 49 (or more) weeks. [Actually, to earn the ‘all life stages’ claim, the food must pass the ‘gestation and lactation’ and then the ‘growth’ (puppy) trials, sequentially, for a total of about 23 weeks. The ‘maintenance’ trial is not actually included.] If it passes, its label can state, ‘Animal feeding tests using AAFCO procedures substantiate that (name of product) provides complete and balanced nutrition for all life stages.’

“Many experts regard the ‘all life stages’ feeding trial as the best proof we have of a food’s ability to perform. But again: Even a year-long [nope, only six-month!] feeding trial may fail to reveal faults that can cause serious health problems if fed as a sole diet for a long period.”

However, as I said in the 2007 article, the “nutrient levels” claim is flawed, too:

“Foods that meet the ‘AAFCO nutritional profiles’ qualification can lack palatability and/or digestibility. If dogs don’t like the smell or taste of the food, they won’t eat enough of it to gain its nutritional benefits. Also, the nutrients contained in a product may not be present in a form that the dog can digest. The AAFCO nutrient profiles themselves contain a problem: Not many lay people are aware that the profiles allow for a wide range of values. Far from being some sort of industry ‘standard,’ or offering suggestions for optimum nutrition, they actually offer only broad guidance.”

The fact is, both methods that a company can use to “prove” the nutritional adequacy of a product are flawed. Here’s an excerpt from a 2012 article I wrote about the research conducted by pet food companies (/issues/15_6/features/Pet-Food-Company-Research_20546-1.html):

“Many people consider AAFCO feeding trials as the ‘gold standard’ for confirming the nutritional adequacy of a canine or feline diet. However, because the products that met the ‘feeding trial’ test of nutritional adequacy do not have to meet the ‘nutrient levels’ criteria, there is the possibility that these products may contain excessive, deficient, or unbalanced nutrient levels that may contribute to the development of health problems if fed as a sole diet for periods that are in excess of the testing period. An ideal test would encompass both a feeding trial and meeting the AAFCO nutrient profiles, but no such standard currently exists [emphasis added].”

Veterinarians are taught in vet school (with texts underwritten by pet food companies) that only foods qualified by feeding trials should be fed, ever. And the vast majority of veterinarians believe this. Maybe it’s because of all the blood tests a dog in a feeding trial is subjected to . . . But six months! It’s not enough to base a lifetime of feeding on, in my opinion.

That’s why I don’t say in our pet food reviews that one ought to use the type of nutritional adequacy claim as a selection criteria. I do think, however, that this information is worth knowing –that dog owners should always keep in mind which test was used to prove the adequacy of their dogs’ food as they monitor their dogs’ health and condition closely. If it’s a “feeding trial” product – ask the maker (or better yet, look for yourself) to find out if it DOES meet the “nutrient levels” standards, or do some nutrient values deviate from the AAFCO Canine Nutrient Profiles? If it’s a “nutrient levels” product, ask the maker what sort of informal feeding trials they use, how long the diet is fed to its test dogs, and what sort of tools are used to monitor or evaluate the dogs used in the trials. Some companies use their employees’ dogs or the dogs in a shelter close to the company headquarters as informal test dogs, but don’t follow up with any sort of health tests. These informal tests really only give the company information about the palatability and digestibility of the product; they don’t address long-term health consequences. But then, neither do the AAFCO-protocol feeding trials, unless you consider six months to be “long term.”

• This reply was modified 6 years, 11 months ago by Patricia A.

[anonymous]

The food your veterinarian recommended is a prescription food and appears to be the best option for your dog.
I notice that it comes in canned, maybe she would do better with soft food.
https://www.hillspet.com/dog-food/ha-puppy-dry

Lot’s of misinformation out there. I would continue work closely with your vet for the best possible outcome.
Science based information here: http://skeptvet.com/Blog/category/nutrition/

[joanne l]

You make a good point, however since these recent cases were seen in dogs with the grain free diets and the FDA is on this we have to wait and see. If people want to avoid all “fillers” than you can’t feed dry dog food. Which in some cases that is not feasible for some people. These cases were found in a University Hospital so we have to trust what they are observing. Since their observation was found in dogs being feed grain free we have to trust what they are seeing. We can assume a lot of things but observation is key.
Now I do agree that you need to feed a high quality food that you trust, without cheap ingredients, I feel a good wholesome grain in diet with a trusted brand is fine. With their findings I think I would still prefer grain in for now. On the other hand you can choose a brand that has grain in and grain out and rotate so the dog is not getting grain free all the time. What I do believe is that dogs should not consume legumes on a daily basis because of the Phytic acid that legumes contain. Plus they are so far out of a canines diet!! More far out than grains.
Furthermore, some of the dogs that were feed grain free and had DCM, when they switched their diet back to grain in their results improved. And those results were from the University Hospital. So I would suggest not to be ignorant to what they are finding, they are doing their best to help these dogs. Again we have to wait and see before we assume anything. To me when the FDA gets involved it is a sign of concern.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 11 months ago by joanne l.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 11 months ago by joanne l.

[Ana C]

One of my dog had an episode of pancreatitis almost two years ago. Yellow mucus stool probably means irrigate GI and too much fat.

Since then, I learned how to read the labels closely. You have to calculate fat content in dry matters in order to be to be accurate. DFA also did some calculations for you. You can do a search on DFA and you will get a list of recommend low fat dog food. My dog has been on Annamaet Lean and I am still looking for another brand to rotate.

If you have time, mix in some boil chicken and fresh vegetables to the kibbles. Fresh whole food are the best. I also keep a few Hills science diet prescription can food on hand as go-to food.

[Susan]

Hi Hill,
the best diet for cats is a raw diet. Cats & dogs have short digestive tracts, made to digest a raw diet quickly…Cats who are feed a dry kibble normally end up with kidney problems…

You can buy Pre-made raw in freezer section or my cat loves Air Dried & Freeze Dried raw, I add water to the freeze dried balls & she loves it, once a week she gets 1/2 a raw chicken wing to help clean her teeth…
If your cats are feed a dry kibble & wet can food then the Freeze Dried or air Dried raw would be the best as some cats refuse to eat raw meat if brought up on a dry kibble, they will love eating the freeze dried raw or air dried raw, it’s similiar to kibble but freeze & air dried raw isnt over cooked at high temps or over processed like a dry kibble is…

Look at “Ziwi Peak” email Ziwi Peak & ask for Air Dried samples & if they have the raw wet can food samples aswell??
My cat inhales “Ziwi Peak”.
https://www.ziwipets.com/catalog/ziwi-peak-cat-nutrition

* Stella & Chewy
https://www.stellaandchewys.com/cat-food/freeze-dried-raw-dinners

“Raw feeding advice and support” face book group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/451782265003776/

[Susan]

Hi Lynne,
My boy has IBD I feed him,
“Wellness Simple Turkey & Potato” formula, there’s a “Wellness Simple Salmon & Potato formula”.

Look at
* – Wellness Simple – https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/natural-dog-food/product-catalog/simple-limited-ingredient-salmon-potato-recipe

* – Canidae Pure Wild Boar- https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products/canidae-grain-free-pure-wild-dry-formula

My boy does really well on the “Canidae Pure Boar” dry kibble aswell, it’s pork, a lean white meat, Pork is really good for dogs who suffer with food sensitivities, dog foods dont normally have pork in them, as its not a cheap meat, they mainly add Chicken meat, chicken is a cheaper meat, chicken is also a cleaner meat, so chicken is used more in dog foods, Pork is worth a try she probably hasnt eaten pork before so chances she wont react..

It’s not always the meat protein the dog is reacting too, meat doesn’t have fiber they normally are reacting to the protein in the grain, veggies, lentils, legumes etc another ingredients in the dog food..

Best to do a food elimination diet this way you’ll know 100% what your girl is sensitive too..

My boy gets BAD wind & sloppy Mr Whippy poo when he eats Barley, Tapioca, Corn Gluten Meal, Lentils, its not the meats…
Just make sure when you do get a new kibble, slowly introduce over 10 to 14 days, at first my boy has wind when I introduce a new kibble but after 1-2 weeks it goe away…

You need to check the Kcals per cup when a dog needs to lose weight they always recommend feeding under 350kcals per cup kibble, what were the Kcals per cup she was eating when she lost weight? Also what meds is she taking, this could be why she is losing weight??
Wellness Simple is over 400 kcals per cup same as the Canidae Pure Boar it’s over 400Kcals per cup, always read the feeding amounts all kibbles variey some kibble formula’s you dont need to feed as much….

I was watching Ellen today, she feeds her dogs “Gentle Giants” dog food..

* Here’s Natural Gentle Giants World Class Canine Nutrition Salmon Feast Dog Food – 18lbs
Salmon Feast – https://shop.gentlegiantsdogfood.com/natural-gentle-giants-world-class-canine-nutrition-salmon-feast-dog-food—18lbs-p3.aspx

* Here’s Natural Gentle Giant wet can 90% Salmon wet food, the fat is only 1% fat, so when you convert the wet can food fat that’s only 4-5%-fat.. thats pretty good for a wet can food they’re normally very high in fat unless you buy a vet diet low fat wet can formula..
https://shop.gentlegiantsdogfood.com/natural-gentle-giants-world-class-canine-nutrition-canned-dog-food—90-salmon—case-of-12-cans-p10.aspx

Just be careful if you feed a wet can food, the fat%, protein%, fiber% hasn’t been converted to dry matter (Kibble) yet, so if a wet can says fat-5%min, when you convert 5%min fat that’s around 20%min to 26%max fat%…

Good Luck with your girl, it gets scary when they get sick especially when they get Bloat..

[Patricia A]

When I tried to edit my subscription it said they are revamping and adding features. Suggested putting my email address to be notified when it’s back to resubscribe.
Funny about Acana and Orijen. My dogs were on Fromm for years. My pet supply store had brands arranged that most expensive were all in one aisle. Fromm was known as a superior kibble. Never had a recall at that time. Orijan and Acana had a reputation of the best of the best kibble you can feed, Tried it once with no success . Just didn’t eat it. There also is a lawsuit . Testing showed Champion kibble having higher levels of BPA in their kibble. Less then canned food but a chemical not associated with dry pet foods.

[Susan]

Hi Margie,
Did you try the Hills I/d Low Fat Rice, Vegetable, Chicken Stew, wet small can food?? the ingredients are OK & are easy digestable ingredients…. the dry Hills I/d Low Fat kibble wasnt the best…
There’s also “Royal Canine Low Fat Intestinal” Wet Can no chicken, its pork & smells pretty good but the omega oils are very high, my boy gets acid reflux from vet diet wet can foods.
https://www.hillspet.com.au/dog-food/pd-id-low-fat-canine-rice-vegetable-and-chicken-stew-canned

I feed Wellness Simple Turkey & Potato to my boy who has IBD, Wellness is a pretty good brand, Patch normally reacts to dry foods after he eats same food for 2-3 months, he hasnt reacted to Wellness Core Large Breed or Wellness Simple Turkey,
also “Canidae Pure Meadow Senior” is very good, has everything for aging dogs, its 10.80% max fat…
There’s “Artemis Fresh Mix” Weight Management/Senior its 6%- fat, 3-4% fiber but it has grains, my boy was doing sloppy Mr whippy poos on Artemis, I’m pretty sure he cant eat barley, it causes sloppy yellow poos…
There’s also “Annamaet Lean” kibble alot of dogs who have Pancreatitis do well on Annamaet Lean…
Have you joined “Canine Pancreatitis Support group” look in their “Files” Pancreas Low Fat dog foods pdf.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1435920120029740/

[ofek l]

Hi Im sorry for using this forum but I don’t know how to start a new topic on my own.
I’ve got this amazing 11 years old dog
His a mixed dog- Canaanite and Golden Retriever.
We had him since he was 2 moths old, and he was always healthy, extremely energetic dog.
A few years ago he got very sick, mainly expressed in losing weight really fast ang being numb and down. He’s a large dog that by the vet should weight 30 kg when he’s healthy, and by this time he wieghtened 15 kg in his most severe condition.
After several exams we found out he had Addisons’ disease, and he starded to recive a hormonalic treatment , so thank god now he’s stable, back being really energetic and happy dog, and he got he’s appetite back.
But since the drastic slimming he’s not gaining enough weight and currently is 23 kg which is still very skinny for he’s size. He get a lot of meat and dry food.
I want to change he’s food but i realy need advice for wich tipe of food is the best for his condition and for how long to give him a different food?

[Susan]

Hi
Yeast Dermatitis-
food sensitivies only cause Yeasty smelly skin ears & paws when your dog is sensitive to certain ingredients.. So best to do elimination diet, my rissoles below is how I did 1 of Patches elimination diets.
You start with a meat protein she hasnt eaten before or not often & 1 carb.
I use Sweet Potatoes & Potato.. My boy is good with Potato for his IBD.

also Sweet Potato is better then rice, boil rice ferments in the stomach, boiled Sweet potato is excellent for senstive stomach & bowel.
I peel the sweet potato cut up into small pieces about the size of a spoon boil cool then put in those sandwich zip lock plastic bags & freeze then as you need a few sweet potato pieces take them out of freezer & thaw in 15mins & add to rissoles or add with turkey what ever meat you are feding etc or just give 1 piece of sweet potato as a treat..

Follow “Judy Morgan DVM” on her Facebook page..

* Here’s Judy Morgan Pup Loaf, she has a few rescipes.

* Here’s Judys feding a pup with Pancreatitis
https://www.drjudymorgan.com/feeding-pets-with-pancreatitis/

I changed the Pup Loaf around a bit & I make my Rissole Balls in oven so fat drains out & boil Sweet Potato for my boy who has IBD..

I buy 1kg =2lbs of lean pork mince or lean 5 star lean beef mince I rotate between the 2 meats also can try Turkey lean mince aswell.
I add 1 whisked egg, 1 teaspoon chopped parsley, some chopped up broccoli heads about 1/3 to 1/2 a cup, I peel & grate 1 carrot, then I mix all together & make into 1/2 a cup for size you can make smaller size rissole balls if you want & put them all on a foiled lined baking tray & bake in oven for 15mins.
then take the rissoles out of oven & drain any water/fat, turn over all the Rissole balls & cook till ready, about another 15mins, do not over cook meat as it goes like leather & be tuff…Cool then I freeze them in sections.
Baking in oven reduces fat & you can drain…
I also peel & boil Sweet Potato Pieces boil cool & freeze. Sweet Potato freezes very well & thaws good. Take out the day before what you need & put in fridge for next day..then I add 1 rissole cut it up or put in a blender & add 1/3 cup sweet potatoes & mix all together also add 2 spoons of tin salmon in olive oil or spring water drain the water or olive oil put in container. Make sure you read the salt % get lower salt %
you can feed Salmon & Sweet Potato as a small meal but not as a perment meal as you need to balance diet, unless you’re doing an elimination diet, my vet said its OK to not balance meal 1-2 months..
Or add 1 krill oil capsule to the 1 breakfast meal.. Krill Oil Capsules are good for people who have sensitive stomachs & dont do too well on Fish Oil capsules..

I add “NAS Digestavite Plus Powder” 1/4 teaspoon to 1 of the meal a day to balance the diet.. just make sure diet is balanced over the week..
Look at “Balance It”
You can also add 1 crushed dry egg shell a day to 1 of the meals for calcium also add Glucosamine & Chondroiton tablet daily..
you’ll have to google dose for your size dog..

[Susan]

Hi Justin,
Feed a large Breed Puppy formula as they are formulated for growing large breed puppies bones, you dont want their bones growing too quickly..

“Dog Food Advisor” has a section on Large Breed Puppies..
whats best to feed, a good read.. /best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/

I like “Wellness” dog foods
https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/natural-dog-food/product-catalog/core-puppy-large-breed-puppy

& “Canidae” dog foods.
https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products/canidae-all-life-stages-large-breed-turkey-meal-brown-rice-dry-formula

Wellness has been around over 100yrs so I’d say they’d know what they are doing when it comes to dogs & cats..
Make sure you add fresh meaty bone & fresh ingredients aswell to his meal so he gets a variety of foods & use to eating a few different foods….. this is when dogs end up with food sensitivities cause when they were pups they only ate the 1 dry food & never had a variety of foods, this strengthens their immune system (Stomach) & gets them use to different ingredients….

[Fanette R]

Hello,

My dog has been diagnosed from IBD for over a year now, and from Pancreatitis for almost 2 years. His diet has been manageable before his IBD but since his IBD I have been trying different kind of food, and even though he is doing so much better than he was a year ago, I know that his current diet isn’t perfect still.

I’ve tried homemade food, my vet and holistic vet are all about raw and homecooked food, but with Furby’s situation and after trying a several time, that this isn’t working for him at the moment. He cannot have too much carbs, because of his pancreatitis current situation, or too much starched veggies, and he needs low fat meats or fish. So basically, he would need a green veggie / low fat meat diet, which would result in so much quantity for him to eat each day so he can have enough calories out of it. We’ve tried, and tried again, giving him 7-8 meals a day to see if this would help, but it doesn’t. His stomach cannot take that amount of food for now.
So, even my vets that are pro raw and homecooked diet, told me that we should look into dog food at the moment, and maybe try to go back to homecooked or even raw later on.
So first of all, please don’t message me to say that yes, he needs a homecooked or raw diet, because trust me I’ve tried everything, for months.

I’m in France so I don’t have the same products as people who are based in the US, so I made a lot of researches to find food that seems pretty good quality, and that are low fat, grain-free and with only a tiny bit, or not at all, starches.
Now, I’m wondering if I can write the composition and info right so you guys tell me your thoughts about it ?

Brand : Terra Cannis
Dry food :
Canireo is the first dry food in the specialist retail trade made from 100% certified food-grade ingredients, based on pure fresh meat, with 64% muscle meat and grain-free. This unique quality distinguishes it from all other dry pet foods.

We absolutely do not use meat-, bone-, fish- or feather flour. The flours typically used for dry food are usually made of “category 3 material” (waste material that is not approved for human consumption) and are in no way comparable with food-grade ingredients in terms of quality. Another aspect that makes Canireo stand out is that it is made exclusively with fresh meat – 64% fresh muscle meat and 1% fresh liver. Furthermore, it is not cold pressed or extruded, but naturally baked until crisp. All the aspects that we have this far considered critical for dry food are thus optimised.

The result is a natural, crispy baked dry food of uncompromising quality. The 100% food-grade ingredients, the exclusive use of fresh meat, the high muscle meat content of 64%, and the valuable coconut flour make Canireo unique. Not using grains, and instead using plenty of healthy vegetables, fruit, and herbs, as well as all-natural nutritional supplements, make Canireo a natural dry food that is truly appropriate for the species.
Link to the product : https://www.terracanis.co.uk/canireo-trockenfutter-wild.html

Product : Canireo dry food, game
Composition
Fresh venison muscle meat (64%), potato flakes* (15%), coconut flour (5%), apple* (2%), brewer’s yeast*, parsnip* (1.67%), carrots* (1.52%), courgette* (1.44%), celery* (1.2%), fresh venison liver (1%), powdered eggshell (1%), pumpkin* (0.8%), linseed, apricots* (0.5%), fenugreek (0.4%), parsley root* (0.4%), rapeseed flour, mineral earth, spinach (0.16%), seaweed*, dandelion* (0.1%), rose hip* (0.1%), chamomile* (0.1%), rosemary*, thyme*
*dried

Analytic Constituents
Protein: 29.4%, fat content: 12.5%, crude fibre: 2.8%, crude ash: 5.1%, moisture: 3.7%
MJ/kg: 15.5

2nd Product : Canireo dry food, chicken
Composition
Fresh chicken muscle meat (64%), potato flakes* (15%), coconut flour (5%), apricots* (2%), carrots* (1.5%), courgette* (1.4%), celery* (1.2%), fresh poultry liver (1%), brewer’s yeast (1%), linseeds (1%), apple* (0.9%), pumpkin* (0.8%), parsnip* (0.8%), powdered eggshell (0.7%), beetroot* (0.5%), mineral earth (0.5%), parsley root* (0.4%), fenugreek (0.4 %), rapeseed flour (0.4%), dandelion* (0.3%), rose hip* (0.3%), chamomile* (0.2%), chokeberries* (0.2%), spinach (0.2%), seaweed* (0.1%), rosemary* (0.1%), thyme* (0.1%)
*dried

Analytic Constituents
Protein: 29.2%, fat content: 12%, crude fibre: 2.4%, crude ash: 4.9%, moisture: 4.7%
MJ/kg: 15.4
Link to the product : https://www.terracanis.co.uk/canireo-trockenfutter-huhn.html
————————————————————

2nd Brand : Herzens Hund
Product : Organic Sheep meat & Organic Zucchini (wet food)
This complete feed for dogs “Bio Sheep meat & Bio Zucchinic” consists only of natural organic ingredients. It is consistently produced without binding substance, without synthetic vitamins, flavour intensifiers and without any kind of additives. In such a way, fruits and vegetables used in are not contaminated with pesticides and the meat comes from a species-appropriate attitude.

Apricot consist of beta-carotin, which turns into Vitamin A in organism. Vitamin A is an important nutritive substance for eyes. Apricots are rich in fiber, which stimulate bowels work and improve toxins removing.
INGREDIENTS
Organic sheep (72%)Organic zucchini (17%)Organic buckwheat (4%)Organic salad (3%)Organic apple (2%)Organic linseed oil (1%)Organic apricot (1%)
ADDITIVES
Phosphorus (1271 mg/kg)Calcium (169 mg/kg)
ANALYTICAL CONSTITUENTS
Moisture : 84.3%, Crude protein : 7.4%, Crude fiber : 1.3%, Crude ash : 0.8%
Crude fat 0.7%

2nd Product : Horse meat & Organic Pumpkin
INGREDIENTS
Horse (70%)Organic amaranth (16%)Organic pumpkin (13%)Organic evening primrose oil (1%)
ADDITIVES
Phosphorus (1443 mg/kg)Calcium (786 mg/kg)
ANALYTICAL CONSTITUENTS
Moisture : 73.3%, Crude protein7.5%, Crude fat : 2.4%, Crude fiber : 1.1%
Crude ash 1%

—————————————-

Herrmann’s Dog Food :
Product : Venison with Apple & Amaranth
Composition: 50 % deer (60 % muscle meat, 25 % heart, 10 % lung, 5 % liver), courgette*, 8 % apple*, 6 % amaranth*, linseed oil*, eggshell powder* – *organic – 50 % from organic ingredients
Analytical Constituents : moisture: 76.36 %, crude protein: 12.1 %, crude fat: 4.0 %, crude fiber: 1.0 %, crude ash: 1.2 %

2nd Product : Venison with Sweet Potato
Composition:
50% vension (60% muscle meat, 25% heart, 10% lung and 5% liver), 25% sweet potato*
fruits* (berry-mix), linseed oil* *-organic – 50% from organic
Analytical Constituents : crude protein 8,40% crude fat 2,80% crude fiber 1,60% crude ash 1,30% moisture 78,90%

3rd Product : Venison with pumpkin, quinoa and cranberry
Composition:
50% deer (60% muscle meat, 25% heart, 10% lung and 5% liver), 12% pumpkin*, 8% quinoa*, fruits* (berry-mix), eggshell powder*, *-organic, 50% organic
Analytical Constituents :
Moisture : 77.77%, Crude protein : 12.46%, Crude fat : 2.8%, Crude fiber : 1.03%
Crude ash : 0.87%, Calcium : 0.03%, Phosphorus : 0.03%

———————————————–

My holistic vet looked at all of them and the one that seems the best to her was the one from Herrmann’s : Venaison, Apple & Amaranth.
But after being back home from my appointment I got quite confused and I wanted to talk to you guys about it. She said that the other ones weren’t good enough especially because the amount of protein wasn’t high enough. She told me that to her it should be at least 10% of protein on the wet matter basis for wet food. But if I calculate correctly dry matter basis, a product like the one from Herzens Hund (Sheep & Zucchino), has 7.4% of crude protein on a wet matter basis but has around 47% of protein on dry matter basis (if I do the calculation right), which should be a good amount right ?
So I’m quite confused about that;

She doesn’t know those brands so it’s tricky for her. I wanted to try the brand that she does know, which is an amazing local company that does amazing products, but their fat content for their wet food are around 6,4% on wet matter basis, and I made the calculation from the moisture and it’s about 27% of fat on dry matter basis which seems way too much for my dog. But my vet said that in those formulas there were no starch, no grain, so nothing that usually irritate my dog’s pancreas. So in this case the fat content could be higher and find for Furby. Which kind of make sense, maybe the reason why it has to be so low fat usually for dogs with pancreatitis is because most of those products are full of starch. But I still wanted to talk to you guys about it before making any changes.

Have a great day and so sorry about that huge message!
Fanette

[Susan]

Hi Bernice.

“Bilious Vomiting Syndrome in Dogs, aka “Hunger Pukes”

How did your Dr. Hans Gelens diagnose Freddy with bilious vomiting syndrome?
Did Freedy have Biopsies thru a Endoscope?

You wrote
“lip-smacking, drooling, yawning, licking are classic signs of nausea in dogs”

Lip Smacking, licking paws, blankets, floors, grinding teeth, yarning-(stress), swollowing gulping are classic signs of “acid reflux”, my vet said she see’s at least 1-2 dogs a week who are suffering with acid reflux, it’s more common then we think with dogs,
this is why Freddy has been put on Omeprazole (Prilosec) an acid blocker, it’s a PPI (Proton Pump Inhibitor)… Why didn’t the vet put him on a lower class of acid reducer drugs histamine-2 (H2) blockers either Zantac (Rantidine) or Pepcid (Famotidine) instead of a PPI??

A diet change would be good idea once Freddy is doing well again & is stable.
He was eating Royal Canin Gastro Low-Fat which seemed to keep his symptoms to a once or twice a year event. “Until this year”. Diet may have contributed to his Bilious Vomiting Syndrome??
Look at eating fresh whole foods, a lean balanced diet, not over processed dry kibble/wet can dog food. Look at feeding diet that’s low in carbs, low fiber especially with Pancreatitis NO sugar in diet, stay away from foods that bring on acid reflux..

You can NOT just stop taken a PPI once you have been taken it more then 14-20 days, a PPI must be slowly reduced & a lower class of drugs called histamine-2 (H2) blockers either Zantac (Rantidine) or Pepcid (Famotidine) are given for 2-3 weeks after the PPI has been stopped but first reduced & give PPI every 2nd day then when you’ve stopped then you give either Zantac or Pepcid 30mins before a meal…
Zantac & Pepcid work differently they dont work like a PPI works (Omeprazole or Pantoprazole)… A PPI is better but you have to work out do you want Freddy on a PPI now for the rest of his life??. if you have tried Zantac & Pepcid & they didn’t work then yes give PPI & diet change, vet diets are very high in Omega oils which is a good thing BUT some dogs who have Pancreactitis, IBD can’t handle high fish Oil, Coconut Oil etc & can get acid reflux my boy is one of those dogs, when eats a vet diet he get his bad acid reflux & yeasty itchy skin due to food sensitivities, I didnt know Fish/Salmon Oils & Coconut Oils could cause acid reflux until I seen Dr Judy Morgan talking about her 18yr old Cavalier charles, he has Pancreatitis & every month he kept having a Pancreas flare so she stoped adding all his supplements & slowly added them back weekly 1 at a time & it was the fish oil causing his monthly pancreas flare….
Follow Dr Judy Morgan DVM on her f/b page also look at her “Videos” she has a really good “Pancreatitis Diet” you make in a Crock pot & add The Honest Kitchen Base
https://www.facebook.com/JudyMorganDVM/

My Patch has been on Omeprazole 2 yrs then he went down hill again this time last year he’s 10yrs old, he had another Endoscope & Biospy done in January 2018 to see why he’s got really his bad acid reflux again & he was already taken a PPI so he shouldnt be getting really bad acid reflux but he was, I did diet change but he didnt get better, so we did Endoscope + Biopsies the vet said as he was looking thru camera his wind pipe was inflammed & red, so was his Esophagus, he has lower esophageal sphincter (LES) his flap doesnt close properly & his acid wash back up his esophagus into throat mouth then went down into his wind pipe, por thing this would be very painful… He also suffers with Helicobacter living in his stomach walls, staying on a PPI like Omeprazole or Pantopazole is suppose to help stop the Helicobacter living & thriving in the stomach wall, I wonder if this is what Freedy has?? if after 6months -12months & Freedy goes down hill again try a diet change a lean cooked diet & ask vet can he please do an Endoscope + Biopsies, the Biopsies are a must as they will give vet some answers & the only way to know if the Helicobacter has taken over his stomach, all dogs have Helicobacter but when their immune system is compromised the Helicobacter takes too much bad bacteria, making you feel very unwell, stomach pain, nausea, bad acid reflux & feeling hungry all the time & weight loss..
I asked Patches vet can I PLEASE change his PPI from 20mg Omeprazole to 20mg Pantoprazole, I also take Pantoprazole it seems to work better for people who have GERDS & suffer with bad reflux…
PPI are best given of a morning not night unless he’s taking a PPI twice a day, I wouldnt recommend taking a PPI twice a day for a dog, best to start off on a lower dose, 1 x 20mg tablet take of a morning as soon as he gets up I give Patch his 20mg Pantoprazole tablet & I have a 20ml syringe water so I know the tablet has gone down his throat, you can NOT chew PPI tablets, they are specially coated tablets so they digest past the stomach so dont let Freddy chew his Omeprazole if you can this is why best not to give with food as they chew food, just open his mouth & put tablet on back of his tongue & put down throat, then put the syringe side of his mouth back teeth & slowley squirt water so he swollows tablet & make sure he doesnt spit tablet back out, my Patch was sptting back out after I walked away & I was finding his tablet, cheecky bugger…

My boy has IBD he eats 5 smaller meals a day he eats –
First meal after he has taken his PPI around 6.30-7am then another small meal around 9am, Lunch- 12pm a cooked meal or freezed dried raw dehydrated meal about 1/3 a cup, 5pm-Dinner meal is bigger under 1 cup & 7.30pm small 1/4 a cup & last meal for the night wee & then he goes to bed & I wake him for 2 wee breaks & he gets a Quick-Eze 1/2 a Rapid Chew after his last wee around 10.30-11pm & I always offer him water when Patch wakes up on my bed, he is very weird about drinking water when he has his acid reflux, so Im always offering him fresh water to wash down any acid…
I’ve been freezing Bone Broth in ice cube trays & take out 1-2 ice cubes to thaw & Patch drinks it & loves the Bone Broth, I think The Honest kitchen has a Bone Broth you can buy, there’d be a few places taht have teh Bone Broth.

I hope Freedy recovery continues, but if he has a set back then look into diet change, there’s healthier alternatives for these sick dogs & cats, after seeing sooo many dogs get better on a healthier diet, I really think once dog is stable & has been doing really well start looking into changing dogs diet, fresh lean meats, fresh veggies & fruits, Kefir given or a probiotic best to give on empty stomach or inbetween meals when Hydrochloric acids in stomach are low, make sure diet is balanced properly, there’s a few good foods that are dehydrated & aren’t over processed & over cooked till all ingredients are all brown or black.

[Susan]

Hi Deborah,

What are you feeding your fussiest 2.5 y/o Traditional yorkie & what are you feding your
new 5 month old Beiwer terrier..

Have you looked at changing both their foods so they can eat the same food??
Look at “all life stages” dehydrated Raw food…

“CaniSource Grand Cru All Life Stages Dehydrated Raw” Dry Dog Food.

“Buckley Liberty Freeze-Dried Dry Dog Food”

“BIXBI” Rawbble Dry Dog Food

“Canidae” Grain Free PURE Ancestral Raw Coated Dry Dog Food

“Ziwi Peak” air Dried Raw

“Canidae” Grain Free PURE Petite® Small Breed Raw Coated Dry Formula with Real Salmon for Adults
and
“Canidae” Grain Free PURE Petite® Small Breed Raw Coated Dry Formula with Real Salmon for Puppies has 1% more fat, both formula’s have identical Ingredients & Guaranteed Analysis….

https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products/canidae-grain-free-pure-petite-raw-coated-dry-formula-with-real-salmon
The puppy formula’s is higher in fat so probably more appealing..

Look for new foods they both can eat & rotate their foods so they dont eat the same food 24/7 & get bored…..
Fresh is best..

[Susan]

Hi Ana,

No wet can isnt safer then kibble…
Look at Dehydrated Raw instead of dry kibble & wet can foods, Dehydrated Raw isnt raw, raw like you think when you read the word raw, Dehydrated raw is more like frozen hard raw but it isnt, but its dry like dry kibble but hasnt been over processed & cooked & cooked like kibble…
My boy who has IBD he does really well on an Australian made “Frontier Pets” Free Range Dehydrated Raw balls, I just add a little warm water he loves it for lunch, start feeding 1 of your dog meal a dehydrated raw food & let them decide which is best…
Offer the kibble in a bowl & in another bowl some dehydrated raw..
I think dehydrated is best if you want to feed something like kibble..
Honest Kitchen would be better then buying the wet can foods in pet shops & super markets, alot of wet can foods aren’t balanced properly, well the cat wet can foods aren’t & they’re made by the big 3 pet food companies..
Here’s the proof.
A study was done in Australia by “Sydney University junk pet-food research investigated”

8 out of the 20 pet foods that were tested 8 did not meet nutritional standards, the University will not release names now cause Hills + Royal Canine donates heaps of money to the University & the researchers got a bit scared they wont get funds…..

When you cook for yourself & your family you know what your eating & have watched it cook, when you go & get take away or eat in resturant you dont know if some dropped the food on the floor or they just went to toilet never washed hands, or had a smoke etc this is the same when we feed our pets kibble & wet can foods but worse…
Wet can & Dry Kibble are the lowest of quality when it comes to pet foods, they’re quick & easy, then you start getting the better pet foods Air Dired, Dehydrated Raw they also make wet can foods that are good aswell..

These brands are good..
The bottom 3 brands have come 1st, 2nd, 3rd, when tested for Toxins, Heavy Metals & Contaminates…
The 2 top Brands weren’t tested probably cause they’re made in New Zealand.

“Ziwi Peak” – wet can & Air Dried Raw,
send Ziwi Peak email ask for some samples, just say you have fussy dogs.

“K-9 Natural” – wet can raw & freeze dried & frozen raw in freezer & treats.
K-9 Natural Green Lipped Mussels are really good + Healthy to give as a treat daily.

“Buckley Liberty” Freeze-Dried Dry Dog Food

“CaniSource Grand Cru” All Life Stages Dehydrated Raw Dry Dog Food

“BIXBI” Rawbble Freeze-Dried Dry Dog Food

[aimee]

Spy car,
Again with the grandstanding and no citations. You made the statement you should provide the citation. When something in published in a peer reviewed journal the reader isn’t told to use Google to find article to support what they are saying. You are the author of your statements and you need to provide the citations. Besides I need to know I’m reading what you are reading.

After the field trials go checkout all those obese crippled greyhounds eating a 42% energy from carb diet 😉

“These studies concluded that a dry food based diet, which contained 42% of the energy from carbohydrates, 33% from fat and 24% from protein, provided the best dietary
balance to optimise speed and performance over a standard 500 metre race distance. However, greyhounds on this diet were slightly heavier in body weight compared to greyhounds fed a diet containing higher protein and fat, with a lower content of carbohydrate. This difference in body weight was attributed to a greater muscle bulk in greyhounds fed on the medium protein diet.9”.

Interesting stuff!

replace the word dot with a (.)

http://www.greyhound-data dot com/dir/806/Feeding_a_Racing_Greyhound.pdf

[Susan]

Hi,
How many pounds should Minnie be when she is fully grown, what breed is she??
My boy is an English Staffordshire Bull Terrier he is 18kgs = 40lbs, I only feed him around 2 & 1/2 cups when its his “Wellness Core” Large Breed Adult formula – 346Kcals per cup kibble a day + cooked lunch + 1-2 Freeze dried Mussels or when he eats “Canidae Pure Wild” 454Kcals per cup I feed 1 & 1/2 cups kibble a day + cooked lunch or “Canidae Pure Meadow” – 409Kcals per cup, he gets around 1 & 1/2 – 2 cups kibble a day + something different for lunch + Green Lipped Mussels 1-2 a day.

Read the Kcals per cupthe kibble formula you’re feeding it’s probably on bag of kibble or online on the 4Health site or email 4Health for any information & work out how many Kcals a day she should be eating & add cooked food on top, I know Patch should be eating around 1000Kcals a day but I feed a bit under now cause he’s a senior & yes add fresh ingredents to her kibble or separate as a meal, this will help put on weight..
kibble swells up in the stomach makes you feel fuller so best to feed 3-4 smaller meals a day 7am, 12pm, 5pm 8pm so if you have a large breed dog best to feed a large breed kibble, they are formulated for large breed puppy or Adult large dog intestinal tract, (Bloat)
My dog has IBD & does really well on a large breed kibble, the Kcals are lower 346kcals, the higher the Kcals the more dense is the kibble & they dont need to eat as much kibble…

So maybe look for a higher Kcal per cup kibble? “Canidae” is higher in Kcals over 400Kcals so she only needs about 3-4 cups a day depending on formula?.
https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products

The “Canidae All Life Stages Multi-protein” Formula is 468Kcals per cup your dog would only need 2-4 cups a day when a Puppy then when she’s a Adult she’s needs less around 2 cups per day depending on her breed??
https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products/canidae-all-life-stages-dry-formula/

Cook – boiled potato or boil sweet potato pieces cool then freeze Sweet Potato freezes really well & thaws good & quickly or I put in micro wave 15sec to thaw, today for lunch I feed Patch 2 pieces of Sweet Potato mixed/mashed with cooked 2 scrambled eggs, I cooked egg in a non stick frying pan, I buy tin Salmon in spring water drain the water & add sweet potato, I feed 4-5 smaller meals a day you can buy a kibble machine that lets out the kibble amount you want thru the day, I give 1/2 a cup at certain times thru the day…
Raw meaty bone would be excellent & gives her something to do all day chewing on a meaty bone from a butcher…
Here’s 2 different Canine Calculator links it gives you a ruff idea how much dry kibble you should be feeding..

https://petsci.co.uk/canine-calorie-calculator/ or

http://www.german-shepherd-lore.com/dog-food-calculator.html

[Daryl F]

I have tried lots of different dog food and have made my own many times over the years. A friend of mine saw the video from Dr. Marty’s website and recommended I try some of the food. On the website it became very confusing and as I went through the ordering process I decided to back out and start over because of my confusion. What I did not realize is that once you put something in your shopping cart (even if you do not check out) at Dr. Marty’s website, you are charged for it (even if you think you put it back). I received emails verifying my orders but no amounts were posted. Then I received my C.C. bill, Holy Molely (not what I really said). Oh my, did I feel completely ripped off, at half price (according to the website) I was charged $26.95 a pound for this stuff! I mean who can afford this? I have three mid-size dogs and two are now thirteen and I had hoped the food would help with their health as they get older, but shoot I’ll go broke buying this sawdust (that just floats on the water it is suppose to be soaking in) as their regular food. They do love it and even Moses my 7 year old cat likes it. I called and gave the poor lady in customer service a terrible tongue lashing on what a rip off the company is and how totally cheated I felt, she was very nice and I felt bad because I am certain she has to listen to a lot of people calling that got tricked into buying some of Dr. Marty’s overpriced dog food. I can understand that freeze drying is expensive but $54.00 a pound? Come on Dr. Marty stop ripping people off, there is no reason to charge the amount of money you do and if you would please start using an honest approach with your website ordering system, and stop tricking people into buying your doggone dog food. Even though I do not know you personally, I will tell anyone and everyone how much I hated feeling cheated by you, your website, your company and your dog food. Every time (hear your name) or I open the remaining bags I have I will be thinking about my feelings of the unfair business practices that mislead me into my purchases of such expensive products. I think your system stinks but that is just my opinion after unknowingly being charged over $1,000.00 by your company. I pray that you are doing something good with all the money you must be receiving from the many customers who are simply looking for a healthy alternative for their best friends, you should be ashamed. I believe an honest person/company would be upfront and honest with their clients, just think how nice it would be to work for an honest and transparent company’s customer service?

Sincerely,
Mr. D

[Susan]

Hi Ana,

I think your talking about Wellness “FISH” formula’s being high in Toxins, not all off the Wellness formula’s are high in Toxins & Contaminates…
There’s a “few” Brands that have FISH formulas that are also “VERY” high in Toxins, Contaminates & Heavy Metals, the Annamaet Lean has Herring fish meal in it, so chances are it will also be higher in Toxin & Contaminates then one of Annamaet other formula’s, also Annamaet Lean is very high in legumes, best not to feed no more then 20% Legumes when feeding a dry kibble….

There’s a heap of different “Fish” brands that have or are on the high toxin list it doesn’t mean all their formula’s are bad…
Earthborn Holistic, Fromm, TOTW, Purina Sensitive Stomach Salmon, Acana, Orijen, Racheal Ray, Halo, Diamond, Nutro, Natures Variety, Nulo, American Journey,Go, Open farm, Ol’ Roy, Kibbles N Bits the list goes on & on..

If your dogs can be feed home made raw or home cooked balanced diets this would be heaps better then feeding these dry processed kibbles or try & feed less dry kibble & more healthy ingredients, eggs, tin salmon, boiled sweet potatoes & fresh blended or cooked veggies etc there’s a really good video in the “Life With Dogs & Cats” group I’ve posted link below, feeding dogs fresh raw blended or cooked Veggies, vegetable fibers are more healthy for gut, the Video is called “Dont forget to feed your Veggies” & has Dr Jean Dobbs on the Video, really good information..
also reducing some of your dog dry kibble & replacing with healthy Green & Orange veggies will help lose some weight..lower your dogs carbs the Annamaet Lean formula has 50% carbs..

If you feed a dry kibble then it’s best to rotate between a few different brands that agree with your dogs, so if 1 of the dry foods you’re feeding is high in heavy metals, or not balanced properly, or is high in Legumes, your dog isn’t just eating this 1 brand of dry dog food 24/7, year after year…
I stick with feeding dry dog foods that are grain free & have white meats, Turkey, Pork & Chicken, these meats seem to be cleaner then fish, thats if the pet companies have a good suppliers….
Mycotoxins are poisonous chemical compounds produced by certain fungi found in grains,
so it’s not just the meats that have toxins, heavy metals, so when I see a brand that is Turkey or Chicken formula high on the toxin list & it has grains, I think Mycotoxins & Roundup
could be the reason why this chicken or turkey formula is high on the Toxin & Contaminates list… http://www.fao.org/wairdocs/x5008e/x5008e01.htm

DFA doesn’t believe in these testing & blocks the name of company & any links to this company that does the studies. I think its good this company is testing 299 most popular dog/cat foods & treats, its making these pet food companies clean up their act, keeps them on their toes.
DFA writes about it this company on the Orijen Review section. /dog-food-reviews/orijen-dog-food-usa/

We have just had another recall in Australia “Black Hawk” Salmon formula made by NZ Masterpet food company have admitted they change Fish suppliers, (probably went with a cheaper fish suplier) then all these poor dogs became very unwell, “Advance” Dermcare was using Tuna & a heap of dogs died Nov-2017 to March-2018 the surviving dogs all have Mega Eosphagus & little quality of life..

Join this new facebook group
“Life with Dogs and Cats” – Health, Training & Research
https://www.facebook.com/groups/lifewithdogsandcats/?ref=direct

It’s run by Dr Karen Becker, Susan Garrett & Rodney Habib & a few other people, group started about 3 weeks ago & already it has 5700 people, there’s a couple excellent video to watch, also on Planet Paws f/b page & Rodney Habib f/b page..
One video is about the latest UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine’s latest study: on Limited Ingredient/Allergy Diets, so Karen Becker & Rodney bought a few popular LID dog foods & had ingredients tested & “Natural Balance” Bison formula was “not” Bison meat, it was Beef, Horse, Pork, Goat, Lamb ot had every red meat in it….
Video is called “False Hope of Limited Ingredient & Allergy Diet” – video..

[Rebecca S]

We rescued a pair of shih tzus that spent their first six months of life never leaving a metal cage on a dog meat farm in South Korea. The farm was closed and the dogs adopted out across the world. We live in Virginia.

They likely received no nutrition in their first six months. I’d like to find a food to help make up for that deficit.

They were squashed in a small metal cage with many other dogs, so they have larger spread out paws to stand on the wire and obvious joint issues, e.g. bowed legs. I’d like to get them the best nutrition for joint health possible.

They are now a little over a year old. The vet put them on Hills J/D, which isn’t rated here, so I don’t know if it is a better option than other foods for joints, e.g. the Happy Hips chicken and oats dry dog food.

I would greatly appreciate any experience anyone has with a similar situation. THANKS.

[Susan]

Hi Lisa,
you want the meat protein to be a meal, not just the single meat “Lamb”, you want to feed more “meat proteins” less plant proteins….
When ingredient list are written they’re raw not cooked, so after you cook the salmon it shrinks 70% is water & is no longer 1st ingredient no more, its about 4th ingredient & the next ingredient is first ingredient so you probably have a carb as first ingredient instead of a meat, you want a dry kibble that has at least 2-3 meat proteins as 1st, 2nd & 3rd ingredient then the carb eg, Pork, then Pork Meal, Bison Meal then the carb, sweet potato, rice, peas, etc..or Lamb, Lamb Meal, brown rice, oats, peas

Patch has IBD & finally he is doing really well & its cause he is finally eating more meat & less carbs…I rotate his foods & he’s eating Wellness Core Large Breed Adult formula, Large Breed formula’s are made for a large Breed bowel, this is when he started to do really well cause he was eating more meat less carbs. 70% meat proteins & 30% carbs…
When you have a sensitive dog you want more meat in their diet, dogs have a short digestive tract its made to digest raw meat, meat is easier to digest then a heap of carbs… Your dog can react to carbs aswell meat proteins..
When you just feed 1 meat protein year after year & do not rotate & change meat proteins this is when the dog can start to react to the single meat protein he’s been eating year after year..this is why its best to change & rotate your dogs food so this doesnt happen…
Find 2-3 brands with a different meat proteins your dog can eat & does well on & change dry food proteins with the Seasons, I use to feed Whitefish/Salmon in the hotter months – Spring & Summer then Lamb & Pork in the cooler months – Winter.

Here’s “Wellness Complete Health Adult Whitefish & Sweet Potato dry,
it has “Whitefish” first ingredient & its not a meal what you’re looking for.
When you see a fish you want the fish name, not a fish meal, you do not know what type of fish it is with fish meal?? it should say Sardines, Salmon meal, or Salmon, Sardine meal, Whitefish, Menhaden fish meal,

Here’s the ingredients, there’s NO chicken..
Whitefish, Ground Barley, Peas, Menhaden Fish Meal, Oatmeal, Sweet Potatoes, Canola Oil, Tomato Pomace, Ground Flaxseed, Natural Fish Flavor, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Taurine, Zinc Proteinate, Mixed Tocopherols Added to Preserve Freshness, Zinc Sulfate, Calcium.
https://www.chewy.com/wellness-complete-health-adult/dp/34375

Wellness is a good dog food & have been around over 100yrs… this formula will agree with your dog….if you like another brand of dry food put it on your list so you have about 2-3 different dry food you can introduce over 10 days & then rotate them every 3-4 months..

Here’s DFA explaining Meat & Meal Meals, in the review section on a dry chicken & menhaden fish meal dog food..

The first ingredient in this dog food is chicken. Although it is a quality item, raw chicken contains up to 73% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.
After processing, this item would probably account for a smaller part of the total content of the finished product.
The second ingredient is menhaden fish “meal”. Because it is considered a meat concentrate, fish meal contains almost 300% more protein than fresh fish itself.

Give the “Natural Balance Lamb Meal & Rice Large Breed” a go & see how he goes, then have a few other dry foods on your list so you can try later on so you know if you can’t get the food he’s eating or something happens you know he can also eat another dry food that has a different meat protein & is OK & has no diarrhea….

[Lisa A]

Hi Crazy4cats,

Thanks for the info. I will ask the vet about ProPlan Sensitive Stomach Salmon recipe, she typically likes a single source protein and this has fish meal too, not sure how she will feel about it. I do like that the first ingredient is Salmon and not some type of meal. She suggested we go to L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets® Lamb Meal & Brown Rice Large Breed Bites® Dry Dog Formula but others have told me lamb is a low taurine food and I also don’t like that the first ingredient is lamb meal. I’ve spent days reading ingredient list and because he is allergic to chicken and we need a single source protein I’m going crazy. Just want the very best for our pup he is 3 and hope he lives a long life.

[Susan]

Hi Lisa,

Have you looked at “Victor” Select Protein formula’s
there’s Lamb Meal & Brown Rice, Beef Meal & Brown Rice, Ocean Fish Formula with Salmon Brown Rice.
https://victorpetfood.com/products

“Triumph” Simply Six Lamb Meal, Brown Rice & Pea Recipe Dry Dog Food
https://www.chewy.com/triumph-simply-six-limited-ingredient/dp/127978

You know your dog best, so go with what you feel will work best for your dog..

[Susan]

Hi Laurence,

join this f/b group,
“Dogs with Inflammatory Bowel Disease IBD – Raw Feeding & Holistic Support”
https://www.facebook.com/groups/292537937935806/

I know the group says Raw Feeding but there’s alot of people in group that feed dry kibble, vet diet kibble/wet tin, cooked meals, raw meals etc, look out for one of the Moderators named Anu, I wont post last name, she is a wealth of information, really good help, it’s worth copying & posting your post then posting in the IBD Holistic f/b group once you’ve joined ask how to firm poo up naturally…

I know potatoes & sweet potato firms up poos for dogs who have IBD & EPI, have you tried a different dry kibble?? one thats lower in carbs & higher protein that has sweet potatoes or potato??…
also have you tried Slippery Elm Paste given 15-20min before he eats? you buy slippery elm powder, add 1/2 teaspoon in a cup slowly add boiling water & stir till you have made slurry & you can pulled up 5ml into a syringe when it has cooled down, I cover cup with cling wrap & put the rest slippery Elm slurry in fridge for the next time you need to use again, then you boil the jug & add a little boiled water & stir till it’s a slurry again & pulls up into the syringe..then I throw away if any Slippery Elm paste is left & start again..

Have you tried reducing the Metronidazole to 1 tablet morning & 1 tablet with Dinner, then get him down to 1 Metronidazole at Dinner time?? ask vet?
also have you tried Tylan Powder?
It is a macrolide antibiotic. Tylosin is used in veterinary medicine to treat bacterial infections…
Tylan can replace Metronidazole as Tylan is similiar to Metronidazole (Flagyl)…
Tylan powder will firm up poo within 1 day but cause its a lose powder you MUST put in empty capsules & put down his throat then he eats his dinner, tylan tastes awful & some dogs end up refusing to eat meal if you sprinkle Tylan powder on their food, so best to put in capsule & put back of tongue, push down their throat then quickly feed, its worth a try you might be able to stop giving immodiums twice a day & the Metronidazole, baby steps.
They have proven a dog taking a high Tylan dose can take 1/2 the Tylan dose once a day & poos stayed the same….
ask your vet about Tylan Powder, years ago you could by online or over the counter in the US, I dont know about now, I think I read you can still buy without script if its for chickens I think you might still be able to buy online best to ask in the IBD f/b group people might know more or if you join the EPI Dog group on f/b
https://www.facebook.com/groups/38663535025/
alot of the EPI dogs take Tylan powder & are doing firm poos now, dont be scared to reduce dose if you do start your dog it wont make any differance..
I tried 1/8th teaspoon Tylan powder in capsule given once a day with Breakfast, within 1 day Patches poos were firm..
Go on U-tube it shows how to make the shoe box to hold up the empty open capsules so you can put 1/8th or whatever the Tylan dose is for your size dog into 1/2 empty capsule….

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3084160/

I hope you find something to partley firm up poos, you mighten it might be the ways poos stay with SBS, I know whats it like when Patch does a mountain of diarrhea out the front of someones yard on his walks, I know when he’s going to do sloppy diarrhea, he wont go poo & he holds it in & walks & walks till he can find a bush to hid his sloppy poos, the silly old bugger, he must of gotten into trouble when he was younger, he’s a rescue I got age 4yrs old, I’ve tried telling him it’s OK Patch, your a good boy & we can go home now after walking & walking to find a good bushto poo under & hide it, he will NOT do sloppy/diarrhea poo in his own yard, one vet said he’s a very private dog, lol…

[Laurence T]

Hello everyone,

I also just joined this forum to discuss about SBS.

My dog got an 80% small intestines resection due to a huge mass that was englobing all of his small intestines. They thought it was cancer but it wasn’t. Still to this day they haven’t found out what it was but he is still followed every two months by the Vetenarity University in internal medecine.

He got operated in February 2018 and he is still here today with us. Fingers crossed that the masses do not come back as they did even after the surgery was done. A cocktail of antibiotics made them regress and “dissapear” for now. But they are lurking in my dreams and I am always worried.

Anyhow, when Logan got really sick they told us:
– He has only a few days to survive
– That he was going to die of an agressive form of cancer
– That he wouldn’t survive the surgery
– They think he either suffered from Bartonella (tick born disease) or an auto immune disease so got treated for both. He is still on the auto-immune disease treatment at the moment.

He went down from 72 pounds to 59 pounds after surgery and is now back at 75 pounds.

Here is what he is taking to help his SBS:
– 2 immodiums (one in the morning one at night)
– 1 1/2 of metronidazole in the morning and 1 1/2 at night
– 1/2 of teva gabapantin in the morning and 1/2 at night (mild painkiller as we noticed that when he was eating he was getting crampy)
– 1 fortiflora in the morning mixed with his food.
– 1 B12 shot, once every two weeks.
– 1/4 prednisone every morning (treatment for auto-immune disease).

We used to cook for him, the the diarrhea was so back he wouldnt digest the food. We used to found pieces of food undigested in the food. The vets told us it is better he eats dry pebbles as the proteins are already “cut” to be absorbed faster into the system. Which ended up being true for us. As soon as we switched him to pebbles he started gaining weight and his diarrhea improved.

He is eating Royal Canin High Energy Gastro. And so far it is the best we found for him, ismall meals 3 to 4 times a day.

He does still have a lot of diarrhea. It’s been 10 months since his surgery and it’s still watery. Sometimes a little like mustard, but he poops about 6 times a day and we get up once or twice per night for him to go poop.

I really want to help him with his pooping. Sometimes I wonder if we did the right decision and I am wondering if his diarrhea is making him suffer? I need to find a way to harden his stools. I don’t want to lose complete hope. At least so that he poops less a day than that.

He drinks a lot of water being on predinose (cortizoid) so that shouldnt help too much but if I don’t give him water he sleeps with his head in his bowl.

Did someone found a trick or a way to tamper down the pooping / diarrhea ?

Thank you so much.

Laurence

[Susan]

Hi Erin,

Have you tried dry foods that have Potatoes or Sweet Potatoes??
Potato is easy to digest & smooth on the stomach & bowel
Look at
“Wellness Simple” Turkey & Potato formula or the Salmon & Potato or their Simple Duck Meal & Oats or Lamb Meal & Oats formula’s??

Blood, Salvia & Fur testing is a waste of money, they can give false Positives.
Best is to do either a raw or cooked elimination food diet & add 1 new ingredient every 6 weeks & see how she goes..
Patch did really well on the raw elimination diet, he didn’t do well on the cooked elimination diet but I think it was cause I used Oats for the carb, he doesnt do well on grains.. I didnt know about boil Potatoes & Boil Sweet Potatoes being really good for IBD, IBS & Pancreatitis back then…
Boiled Sweet Potato pieces freeze very well after they’re thawed is just like the sweet potates are cooked, White Potatoes don’t freeze too well you have to boil them fresh as needed….

Here’s Wellness Simple formula link
I’m feeding the Wellness Simple Turkey & Potato formula at the moment to my IBD boy, I was feeding the “Wellness Core” Large Breed adult g/f but it wasn’t on special last week so I got a big bag of the Wellness Simple it was $40 cheaper & Patch loves it, so I’ll rotate between the 2 foods + I have a bag of “Canidae Pure Meadow” his poos are excellent on..
https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/natural-dog-food/product-catalog/simple-limited-ingredient-turkey-potato-recipe

Also have you looked at “Earthborn Holistic Venture” formula’s some formula’s have more fiber then other formula’s, so make sure you read the fiber %,
Does she do better on a lower fiber % or higher fiber % diet??
Buy food from a pet shop so you can take back if it doesn’t agree with her, just say she wont eat, Pet foods are a Guaranteed for Palability money back or exchange..
https://www.earthbornholisticpetfood.com/dog-food-formulas

[Susan]

Hi Cathy,

Contact a animal nutritionist to formulate home made raw or home cooked “balance meals”, home cooking is more work then raw, raw is easier & healthier, this way you’re killing 2 birds with 1 stone…

If you still want to feed a dry food then have a look at “Farmina”
https://www.farmina.com/us/eshop-d-Dog-food.html
In the beginning when this DCM low Taurine all started they were saying feed “Farmina” it’s a good dog food to feed for DCM theer have been no DCM cases….

Or rotate between a few dry foods, as soon as the kibble bag has around 1/4 left then buy another brand & start introducing old kibble with new kibble, Gryff will enjoy the change, I know my boy does & Gryff is getting the best from all the dry kibbles & isnt staying on same brand causing health problems, this is what I’ve been doing for years now with my nilly 10yr old Staffy…

[Susan]

Hi Sandra,
you in the UK?
CHANGE food
these are the ingredients
“Wainwright’s Salmon & potato puppy”

Composition: Salmon Fish Meal (26%), Potato Starch (21%), Barley (14%), Red Sourghum (13%), Rapseed Oil (7%), Whole Linseed (5%), Potato Protein (5%), Beet Pulp (4%), Alfalfa (2%), Dicalphosphorus (1.5%), Minerals, Seaweed (0.4%), Chicory (0.05%), Extract of Yucca Schidigera (0.02%), Marigold Meal (0.005%), Rosemary Oil Extract

1 or 2 of these ingredient isnt agreeing with him.
My boy can not eat Barley he farts, bad wind & sloppy poos..

A dog should fart but my vet said it “shouldn’t smell” & clear a room, this means he’s making bad gasses, methane combine with hydrogen sulfide makes the fart smell bad….
Vet made me change Patches food, he said look for a kibble that has Potato or Sweet Potato, then finally I found a few different brands of dry foods that agreed with him & I rotate them… best to rotate his foods so his immune system builds up & he gets use to different ingredients, once you find a few different brands that agree with him then rotate these dry dog foods, what I do when the kibble bag has only 1/4 of the kibble left I start adding the new food with the old kibble, more old formula & less new formula untill he’s on 1/2 old & 1/2 new, then I feed that for 3-5 days then I add more new kibble less old kibble…

Look for another puppy food that has NO Potato Starch, Barley, Red Sourghum, Rapeseed oil & “No Salmon or Fish Meal” Fish dog foods are VERY high in Heavy Metals, Toxins & Contamines so I would avoid all fish wet & dry dog foods……

Look for a puppy formula that has either Lamb, Duck, Chicken, Turkey, Venison with Sweet Potato, Brown Rice, Oats, Potato, Vegetables, Fruit, healthy ingredients…
Picture all the ingredients on a plate

I’ve been looking thru the UK ingredients in dog foods & most brands are adding fish, this is telling me the UK pet food companies are getting very cheap byproduct fish ingredients, heads, guts, tails etc so I’d try & avoid dog foods that have fish ingredients if you can, if the fish is further down the ingredient list then OK but no fish meal/ocean meal in the first 5-6 ingredients…

Chicken & Turkey are cleaner meats when used in dog foods..
If you want to feed fish then buy & add tin Salmon in spring water, Sardines in spring water added 1-2 spoon to 1 of his daily meals, add healthy fresh ingredients to his meal once you find a dry food that agrees with him.

With Probiotics they are best given on empty stomach, so either first thing of a morning when he wakes up then feed 1 hour later or give probiotic drink inbetween meals when stomach acids are low,
if you’re using a probiotic powder then add 10ml-15ml cool water in a bowl with probiotic & swirl around to dissolve the probiotic powder & then let him drink the probiotic drink, my boy use to love his probiotic drink at 10am, I’d give it as a treat..
He needs his food change then he wont need to take the probiotic, something isnt agreeing with him..
Make sure you keep a diary & write everything down you have tried & first 10 ingredients as Frenchies are known for Food sensitivities & Skin Allergies…
Just remember the vet isn’t a vet nutritionist….

Barking Head & Forthglade dog food looks really good, take back the Wainwright’s Salmon & potato puppy food you’re feeding now, tell pet shop or online pet store Wainwright’s Salmon isnt agreeing with your pup & now he wont eat it, dog foods are normally guaranteed for palability, money back or exchange & they will exchange for another food Look for new food with not too many ingredients, you can add your own healthy fresh ingredients..

Have a look at
* Barking Heads- https://barkingheads.co.uk/collections/dog-food

* Forthglade – https://forthglade.com/shop-dog/dry-dog-food/turkey-brown-rice-cold-pressed-natural-dry-dog-food

* Simpsons – https://www.simpsonspremium.com/dogs/puppy

* Eden – https://edenpetfoods.com/products/dog-food/eden-80-20-dried-food/eden-80-20-country-cuisine.html

* Millies Wolfheart – https://www.millieswolfheart.co.uk/

[Cara P]

Hi Karen and Stephanie

I just joined this forum so I could join in on the conversation. Firstly I hope that both Abby and Maui are still doing well. I have a 3 1/2 year post mesenteric torsion greatdane. His name is Luca, he is now 5 years old and weighs about 102 lbs.
Over the course of these 3 1/2 years we have tried many foods ( commercial, homemade, dry, canned, raw etc) medicines, and treatments and he has been followed by veterinarian nutritionists, holistic veterinarians, veterinary school veterinarians etc.
I am not going to lie having a short bowel dog is challenging some days more than others
But your dog can live a fairly normal life and I would do anything for him. If either of you are interested in swapping stories of what you have tried, what works, what doesn’t etc
Email me. I don’t think there are many of us ( short bowel dog post mesenteric torsion)owners out there but I do believe we can learn from each other and this will help us give our special dog the best quality of life.

[HoundMusic]

“So, I am curious what it is the the Purina food that works for your dogs reproductively. I was under the impression that grain the kibble could be a source of estrogen that is counter-productive. (Excuse the play on wirds). I would change kibble in a heart beat if that solved the problem. ”

Grain has absolutely nothing to do with the production of estrogen. Soy will produce estrogen like compounds in the body, but quite honestly, if you want a bitch to come into heat, her estrogen levels had better be high. And I personally don’t mind soy, especially for older or spayed bitches, because it keeps their hormones at a more balanced level, since the old gals produce less naturally as they age.

As for ingredients, I honestly could not pinpoint any one in any of the Purina products I’ve tried over the years that “does the trick”, as it were. I’ve used their dry foods from Pro Plan to Alpo, with protein levels ranging from 18-30%, and, like clockwork, bitches who are late to their cycle will come in heat anywhere from within a week to several weeks later, regardless of the brand. Although higher protein, fat and kcals in combination tend to speed this process along.

I do, however, have a theory that there are dog foods which, in my personal experience, seem to cause hormonal issues such as depression of thyroid function, and low carb diets, be they dry, canned or raw, are often a major culprit in irregular cycles. In fact, when I want to speed a bitch out of heat, raw for a day or two will do the trick nicely. Any Purina (dry) product I’ve tried seems to have the opposite effect – in that of balancing the hormone levels, or causing a surge where they previously had been low.

Also, diets that are higher in simple or complex carbohydrates are pure nourishment for the thyroid gland, which has its own functions but is also like a master control for the production of other hormones. And the thyroid is a glutton for sweets. I don’t consider it a breeding food, but when I’ve used Kibbles N Bits, I get the exact same results – instant heat cycles and bitches that stay in full blown heat for a good 10 days.

Anyway, I only recommended Purina ONE because when I was actively breeding, I got the best results with it for brood bitches in particular. I even had a dog with cervical cancer who hadn’t come into heat in almost 2 years, come in after a few days of eating ONE. So, for good or ill, it works like a charm in bringing bitches in season, and the 26/16 ratio seems to be ideal for both pre and post breeding maintenance.

[Susan]

Hi Jennifer,

great what you’re doing….has she been wormed? If she’s coming thru rescue they may have wormed her already?? this would be the first thing I’d be doing, make sure you give all wormer with her Dinner (a meal), Dinner is best time to give tablet then she goes to sleep..
puppies should be wormed at 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 weeks of age, and then every 4months for life with an all-wormer” or you can have poo tested for worms by vet…

I would avoid these new flea/tick chews – “Nexgard & Bravecto” as they are Neurotoxins, attack the fleas nervous systems also causing side effects to the poor dog.
Do your research first…especially if she is malnourished..

Frontline Plus Spot On & Frontline Spray is the only flea/tick product that only penetrates the first 2 layers of the dogs skin & doesnt go into their blood, so less side effect for the dog…

I’d say her mum was also very malnourished, she’ll be right you’ve adopted her at a good age & the rescue people know the age of these rescue dogs that’s their job..
if rescue has said she’s 4months old, then she is 4months old..
I rescued a 18mth old Boxer she was a skeleton, it took a while for her to gain some weight, we had to feed 3-4 smaller meals a day, she had NO health problems except arthritis when she was older…

Look for a large breed puppy formula, then after she is fully grown start rotating her foods so she isnt eating the same brand of dry food…
start feeding raw meaty bones as a treat…

also make sure you start puppy classes & socialize her
The first 2 years are very important for socializing a puppy..
I’d join a GSP f/b group….

[Susan]

@ Atlas
You make up your own mind up whats best for Atlas.. you have enough advice from DFA posters….
all I know is when I kept mentioning the low taurine in dogs after they ate these newer grain free food brands when I asked Australian vets, Patches American vet, our Australian Dog Food Advisor (Pet Food Reviews- Australia) he would NOT post the FDA link, I asked him why are you not warning people about feeding these high legumes g/f diets on his f/b site, when I spoke with pet food companies, I spoke with Hills vet nutritionist & R/C vet nutritionist whoever I could discuss taurine being blocked & get some answers, some people told me, there is NOT enough proof, some people wanted me to show a link with evidence that Legume & Potatoes are blocking the taurine & causing heart problems, I couldnt find any research as it hasnt been done yet, all I found was 1 vet an older vet, said do not feed no more then 20% legumes in a dog diet…
This is when I thought to myself hey I’m the only Nut that seems to think there’s a problem here & if Patches both vets are telling me to continue feeding him his Grain Free Wellness Core Large Breed food that has Potatoes in it then I’m listening to them, they’d know more then me, it wasnt one person I’ve had these disscussions with..

Just remember Atlas has Intestinal problems but Atlas probably isn’t as bad as Patch yet, Patch was a rescue who I rescued on his 4th birthday, the damage was already done with Patch, I thought I could fix Patches IBD but it was too late for him he was probably feed a diet that keep making his poos sloppy/diarrhea….

Atlas may not do great on a grain diet unless you can find a dry food that has grains & potatoes or sweet potatoes further down the ingredient list maybe that will work for Atlas?..
I tried this with Patch, “Canidae All Life Stages Platinum” formula & Patch was doing BIG sloppy yellow cow patties, I tried Purina Pro Plan OptiDerma formula, it helped his itchy skin but made IBD worse…. Canidae & Purina both refunded money or offered to give a voucher…

When you do find a cheaper medium priced dry food that agrees with Atlas then you’ll have another dry food you can rotate with..
Try to not irritate Atlas bowel, you do not want your dog diagnosed with IBD when he’s around 4yrs old…. IBD isnt a nice disease, once the damage is done there’s no going back..
Thickening of the bowel, the cause – the dog continues doing sloppy poos & owner continues to feed food that is irritating the stomach/bowel..
You can not reverse thickening of the bowel with a probiotic, pumkin or other supplements..
Atlas is young & hopefully his bowel has healed & he still has a healthy bowel, i’d feed him dry foods he has done best on…& see a good vet yearly….

[Susan]

Hi Lyndsey,

How did you work out your do is sensitive too wheat, barley, soy, corn, dried egg, venison, rabbit, salmon, dairy/milk?
The only way to work out food sensitivities is to do a food elimination diet, blood, salvia & fur testing test can give false positives….Waste of money..

Best Testing for Environment allergies is the “Intradermal Skin test” ask your Dermatologist about Intradermal Skin Testing & can you start Immunotherapy injections, is often the best treatment plan for environment allergies & baths weekly or twice a week baths to wash off allergens on skin & paws…
* Probiotics to strengthen immune system & diet high in Omega 3 will also help, especially if you’re cooking meals start adding foods that are high in Omega 3, Flaxseed, Sunflower oil, Linseed Oil, Chia Seeds, Nuts- I was giving my boy 3 Almonds a day as a treat, i’d bite 1 almond in 1/2 & give Patch the other 1/2 of the Almond..he has a beautiful shiney coat…

If you’re cooking then start doing a food trial, start with 1 meat protein & you know your boy can eat sweet potato so add sweet potato as the carb & now every 6 weeks add 1 new ingredient & see does your boy react…
My boy reacts within 20mins of eating an ingredient (Chicken) his back paw goes red hot & swollen & he start licking & licking back paw, then as the days pass he gets yeasty smelly skin, paws & very itchy, but Chicken doesnt upset his Intestinal tract he has IBD, Carrots make his ears itchy & yeasty he starts shaking his head/ears…
It can take up to 6 weeks for a dog to react to certain ingredients..
Elimination diet is slow but you will know 100% what he can & cant eat..

A really good food is
* “Ziwi Peak” wet can or air dried
https://www.ziwipets.com/catalog/ziwi-peak-dog-nutrition

also look at Aldis” new “Pure Being” formula’s, grain free & grain formula’s
/dog-food-reviews/shep-dog-food/

* “Wellness Core” formula’s – https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/natural-dog-food/core

* “Canidae Pure Wild” & “Pure Meadow” if your boy is a senior – https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products

I’d stay away from Zignature, Zignature is one of the dry foods that is VERY high in legumes & dogs are not absorbing Taurine causing heart problems, DCM…..
Make sure the dry food you’re feeding doesn’t have a heap of legumes in the first 6 ingredients & Zignature does…. there shouldnt be no more then 20% Legumes in a dogs diet..
The dry dog foods list is in this group below, we are NOT allowed to post the Taurine list as it has peoples private info…
Here’s the f/b group join “Taurine-Deficient Dilated Cardiomyopathy” group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1952593284998859/
then look in their “Files” click on 2nd link
“2018-10-05 COPY of Diet and Taurine TABLE”…. & you will see cases mark in Yellow & then Orange = DCM or CHF w/o low Taurine; diet related,
Zignature Kangaroo formula has 3 cases & i’d say the first young GSH has passed away by now as he was diagnosed 2017 & given only 6-8months to live 🙁

Join this facebook group for Skin allergies,
“Dog Allergies, Issues and Other Information Support Group”
https://www.facebook.com/groups/240043826044760/
a Dermatologist Karen Helton Rhodes, DVM, DACVD from Canine Skin Solutions “Healthyskin4dogs”
frequents this group, there’s heaps of help & really good advice..

Weekly baths are the best to do, baths wash off any allergens on skin & paws & relieve itchy red skin, I also use Huggie Cucumber & Aloe baby wipes, I wipe my boy down when he comes back inside & I use “Sudocrem” cream on his paws & around his mouth when skin is red & inbetween toes are red, Sudocrem is an anti-bacterial, ant-fungal healing cream, also works as a barrier & protects the skin & paws, excellent for skin problems… sold on Amazon

[Susan]

Hi Debi,

Yes if you think she has acid reflux start her ASAP before she gets stomach ulcers or inflammed esophagus, we did Endoscope & Biospsies January 2018 my poor boy ended up with a red inflammed esophagus & his wind pipe was red where the acid went back down into his wind pipe from bad acid reflux… 🙁

My boy was taking Omeprazole 20mg, best to take of a morning before or after food it doesn’t matter cause Omeprazole is an PPI an acid blocker, not a acid reducer like pepcid or Zantac is, you will see a BIG difference, it takes about 12-24hours to starting working in beginning, also liquid Mylanta 4-5ml will help stop the gulping & swollowing, put in a syringe, I use Quickeze 1/2 a chew aswell some days for Patch when I see he’s swolling hard or he grinds his teeth some the taste, I worry his esophagus will become inflammed again, you girl will start to improve as weeks pass if her throat/esophagus is sore..

After Patch took Omeprazole for 2 yrs Patch he went down hill again he has IBD, mainly stomach & small bowel & he gets bad Helicobacter spirals, I think this is why the Omeprazole didnt work aswell anymore + his Sphincter flap from stomach to esophagus doesn’t close properly now, I suffer with GORDS & have Barrets Esophagus & my sphincter flap doesn’t close either & my Gastrologist put me on Pantoprazole he said Pantoprazole works better for some people, when they have GORD & some people do better on Omeprazole, so Dr changed my PPI to Pantoprazole & yes a big improvement with my burping & acid, so I did the same with Patch, Patches IBD vet wanted him to stay on 20mg Omperazole & he said all PPI are all the same, then I explained to him what my Gastrologist Dr had told me how different brand PPI’s can work differently for some people & then Patches vet said OK then, we’ll try 20mg Pantoprazole (Somac), we can buy Pantoprazole from chemist but its cheaper getting a script from a Dr take to chemist..

Patches specialist vet said we’ll give Patch 1 month & see if there’s any improvement & I also changed his dry food from “Nutro Natural”, Choice Lamb & Rice it was very high in Carbs & Patch wasnt real keen to eat it somedays, I changed his food too “Wellness Core” Large Breed dry kibble, Patch isnt a large breed dog but the “Wellness Core” has all the ingredients that agree with Patch & it’s low in Kcals-340Kcals, you need under 360Kcals if she’s eating a dry kibble, low fat around 13%max & Patch does well on high protein 30-34% & carbs around 30% & under..
When the protein & fat is low in a dry kibble the carbs are high & high carbs can make acid reflux worse, if your girl can eat a cooked meal, then make her boiled sweet potato & cook a lean white meat like turkey breast or chicken breast or lean pork, & green veggies, my boy can NOT eat wet can foods, this is when he went down hill, the fat in wet can food is higher then in a dry kibble 5%min fat in a wet can food when converted to dry matter (kibble) is around 20%min fat to 26%max fat, so be careful if she is eating a wet can food…as dogs ages their digestion slows down like us..
I also fed 4 smaller meals a day.

What is your girl eating.

[Susan]

Hi Atlas,
Sorry another long post I keep thinking of stuff to write lol,
It’s good you have FINALLY found a dry food that’s working for your Lab, the Natural Balance Potato & Duck formula is low fiber 3%max & the N/B fish formula is 5%max fiber, both formula’s have “NO peas” & both formula’s have “NO probiotics”, both have VERY Limited Ingredients, just 1 single meat protein & potatoes or sweet potatoes as the carb…
Make sure you look for LID, fiber under 5% & it has to have Potatoes or sweet potatoes, not too many ingredients..

Go onto the Natural Balance LID site & look at the Duck formula & Fish formula ingredients that your dog does well on, then try & find a cheaper food with similar ingredients, write down the foods you have tried & he did sloppy poos & obsessively licking his butt, rubbing bum on ground & licking bum can also be from food sensitivities, my boy does it when he’s sensitive to an ingredient in a dry grain kibble…

If you want to give your dog probiotics, your better off buying a probiotic powder or Kefir, add 10-15ml water to the probiotic powder in a small bowl swirl & mix probiotic powder then let your dog drink it as a treat, best to give probiotic inbetween meals on an empty stomach when stomach acids are low not with food, the probiotic works better, give same time every day..

Did you ever try
“4Health”Sensitive stomach” formula, sold Tractor Supply, it is Potato & Egg, No Peas, the fiber is low 3%max & has similar ingredients to the Natural Balance Potato & Duck & the Sweet potato & fish formula’s, if its cheaper maybe you can add with the N/B formula to make the N/B kibble last longer.. also adding fresh ingredients, left overs after you have cooked, feed some to dog & dont add 1 cup of kibble, feed 1/2 cooked food say Potato & a meat & 1/2 his N/B kibble he does well on..
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/4health-special-care-sensitive-stomach-formula-for-adult-dogs-25-lb-bag?cm_vc=-10011

I feed “Wellness Core” Large Breed, its Chicken, Turkey, Potato & Peas I buy when on special or has 25% off the online pet food shops always send out emails with 25%-30% off.
I have just finished feeding “Nutra Gold” Turkey & Sweet Potato formula & it had Garbanzo beans, Patch normally farts when he eats Garbanzo beans but not with this Nutra Gold grain free formula, Patches poos were smaller & firmer then when he eats the Wellness Core formula & the Nutra Gold is cheaper then the Wellness Core. Here’s teh Whitefish & Sweet Potato formula, I’d give it a go just buy a small bag.
https://nutragold.com/products/dogs/whitefish-sweet-potato/

Also about the Bravecto chews, can you sell them singley to someone who uses Bravecto, I’d ring the the place your bought the Bravecto chews from or ring/email Bravecto company & I’d say my dog became very unwell & vomited bits of teh chew back up after he ate the Bravecto chew & you “do not” want to use the rest of the 5 x Bravecto chews again as you’re very worried your dog will become unwell again & die & you just bought a 6 pack & have only used 1 chew & I just want a refund….
also thru the Winter months do not give any Bravecto chews, I remember reading 1 dog that became very ill having seizure had his blood tested 9 months later he still had the Bravecto nerve drug in his system, so if you can not get a refund then just give 1 x Bravecto chew in Spring before the flea season starts & that 1 Bravecto chew should last thru Spring/Summer/Autumn months, Bravecto might give you a refund they’d get alot of complaints..
Do you live in a high flea/tick area? I do not use any toxins on Patch he reacts to everything….

[Susan]

The best thing you can do is report to FDA…
The packaging contains IMPORTANT information often needed to identify the variety of pet food, the manufacturing plant, and the production date.
https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/ReportaProblem/ucm182403.htm

Then email the pet food company, then take back food for a refund & keep a few dry kibbles just in case you need for testing & do not buy that brand again…
Google, Heavy Metals Contamnates in dog foods, a site called CLP should come up, they do studies on 299 popular dog foods every 3 months….

[Susan]

Hi Brenda,

IBD is an awful disease, has your dog had Endoscope & Biopsies
done on Stomach & Small Bowel?? Biopsies will tell vet whats wrong?? my boy has Helicobacter Spirals + Gastritis

What medications does your dog take? is he on an acid reducer or acid blocker like Omperazole 20mg?
His rumbling grumbling noises is gasses running thru his bowel, it can be painful, my boy wakes up around 4-6am with these loud noises happening but not as much theses days since I worked out what foods he is sensitive too & NO boiled Rice it can irritate the bowel, sweet potato or potato is best to add instead of boiled rice, I make 1 piece of white bread toast & make the toast very brown nilly burnt then I cut toast into pieces or if you have Charcol tablet or charcol dog biscuit works good & stops the rumbling noises.. work out what ingredient is causing gasses & bad wind?? also Ive used liquid Mylanta 1 teaspoon/5ml stops the gasses rumbling thru bowel.. Ive read some pet owners use Degas, but find out WHY?? this is happening, re do diet, elimination diet, 1 new meat & 1 new carb.

My boy has IBD mainly stomach & small bowel, when he eats a wet diet he doesnt do well, it seems to ferment in his stomach, then he burps & food comes back up & then he gets bad acid reflux 🙁 I feed 5 small meals a day & at lunch he gets a small wet meal only.
The only food he seems to do best on is a dry kibble that has Sweet Potato & Potato that is either Pork, or Lamb or Turkey & Chicken, the dry kibble must digest quicker & move onto small bowel instead of sitting in his stomach.

Here’s a really good face book group you can join heaps of help & answers…
“Dogs with Inflammatory Bowel Disease IBD – Raw Feeding & Holistic Support” Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/292537937935806/

[Susan]

Hi,
Rotate & feed Nature’s Logic– NutriSource – Instinct see which brands your dog does best on & change every 3 months so your dog isn’t just eating 1 brand 24/7 just incase the dry food is high in heavy metal, toxins & contaminates & not balanced properly etc.

I would be looking at Freeze dried foods instead, these brands below got 5 stars & came 1st, 2nd & 3rd when tested for heavy metals & contaminates, you’ll have a healthier dog..

* Buckley Liberty Freeze-Dried formula’s

* CaniSource Grand Cru All Life Stages formula’s

* BIXBI Rawbble Freeze-Dried formula’s
Freeze dried would be a better choice then dry processed kibbles..

[Susan]

Hi Heytsu,

Change vets ASAP sounds like you have a vet that doesn’t know what she is doing??, some vets are awful, same happened with me with my Boxer years ago, now I have a rescue Staffy named Patch who has IBD we had to see 3 vets before we found a really good vet that wasnt into just feeding these vet diets, vet diets don’t agree with some dogs…. Vet should of prescribe “Metronidazole” antibiotic for stomach & bowel taken twice a day every 12 hours with a meal… for 14-21 days

Alot of dogs who have IBS/IBD symptoms do very well on a grainfree dry food that has limited ingredients & have Sweet Potato & Potato & only has 1 meat protein, what country do you live?
I live Australia & we get the Royal Canine Sensitivity Control & so does Europe/UK
My Patch did really bad on all the Hills & Royal Canine vet diets, the only vet diet that worked was the Eukanuba Intestinal Low Residue dry kibble, take vet diet food back & get a refund & see another vet, go on a day your vet isnt there & say I do not want to see her again, thats what I did when Patches vet wouldnt listen & change him form the Royal Canine Hypoallergenic vet diet, it only has 1% fiber this could be the problem, something is wrong with your dog..
I did Endoscope & 2 x Biopsies you need to do biopsies so vet can see whats wrong, Ultra Scan is NO good, its a waste of money as it still doesn’t give vet any real answers, Ultra Scan is good if dog has a blockage, the biopsies are the best to do..

Do NOT give any boil any rice as boiled rice can irritates the bowel more sometimes, its very old school boiled rice, now vets recommend boiled potato or sweet potato its more gentle on their stomach & bowel, especially when the bowel is already inflammed, boil some peeled cut up potato & add a lean cooked white meat, like turkey breast, chicken breast or lean pork… feed 3-4 times a day…
Resting the bowel for 24 hours is good to do, Patch had to rest his stomach & bowel for 48hrs you must give electroytes in water every hour in a 20ml syringe if the dog isnt eating long for a long period of time, look for vet that specializes in IBD & is supportive & more into holistic ways & not into pushing vet diets as they can make things worse… rest stomach & bowel 24hrs then restart food some boiled potato or sweet potato & turkey breast 1/2 & 1/2, feed 4 small meals..no treats nothing just the boiled sweet potato or potato & a lean white meat..

Join this facebook group, “Dogs with Inflammatory Bowel Disease IBD – Raw Feeding & Holistic Support” You’ll get heaps of help..You dont have to fed raw diet to join group…
https://www.facebook.com/groups/292537937935806/

When you say Surgery, what type of surgery did your dog have & how old is he??

[heytsu l]

Hi,

My dog has been having loose stool issue for a few months now. He has been on Orijen since he was a puppy, which was fine but after his surgery and switch to the adult formula things have not got back to normal. I’ve tried feeing him a raw diet but he kept regurgitating and then refused to touch anything raw all together, switched back to dry food this time Belcando lamb and rice formula ,which improved the situation a bit but the stool still wasn’t great. After that I’ve been feeding him Terra Canis grain free cans ,which he loved and things were similar as on the lamb & rice dry food; I still had to clean his butt multiple times a week because of soft or runny stool.

The vet suggested Royal Canin Sensitivity Control, which made things better the first week or so but after that things kept getting worse. His stool went back to loose and he kept licking the floor ,which he has never done before. They tested his stool for parasites and it came out clear. Now the vet told me to feed him Royal Canin Hypoallergenic formula for six weeks exclusively. And then if that doesn’t work, we will look further.

He has been on this formula only two days and he has woken me up at five in the morning both days, desperate to potty with full blown diarrhea. He also shakes his head, and scratches his ear a lot. He has been farting all evening yesterday. The smell was horrendous. Could he just be adapting to the new food or is it already showing that this is not the right type of food for him? I’m a little lost as far as what the best thing to do is right now. I want to listen to my vet but it’s been going on for so long with little to no testing done that I’m starting to get a little impatient. How long before I can safely say the food is making things worse/ or at least not helping? What can I request from the vet other than a blood test (she didn’t want to do it until we try this food)?

[Susan]

Hi Linda,

Was your girl eating the Zignature dry food when her liver test came back high??
Sometimes when a kibble is very high in toxins, heavy metals & contaminates this can cause high liver results, Fish is one of the worse proteins to feed in an dog food…
The cleanest meats used in dog foods are Chicken & Turkey.
I’d stop feeding her the Zignature & try another dry food a different “brand” …
When “Eagle Pack” Giant/Large breed Adult dry was tested for toxins & heavy metals it came back 5 stars really good results, same with “Canidae” dry formula’s…
if you google you will find this site that does studies on 299 best selling dog foods that are tested & are high in heavy metals & contaminates.

[joanne l]

Sure it does not disagreeing with you there. But grain free boosts it up more so, b/c legumes have a much higher protein content. So in a nut Schell of course meat is better, however dog food companies need to put some binders in it weather beneficial or not. So if I had to choose between grain free or grain in I would choose the grain in, that is the best of the worst. Also supplementing with some fresh meat with dry food is beneficial as well. Not all people can afford a all meat diet, including myself, so I give him some fresh meat along with his dry food. Even so corn meal is not the best, however I did see better results with it.

• This reply was modified 7 years, 2 months ago by joanne l.

[Susan]

Hi Jill,
I had a Boxer Angie she had Mast Cell Tumors diagnosed age 8yrs old, she wasnt her happy self, no more she was sleeping more, didn’t want to go on her daily walks or come in the car shopping, her poos became black, vomiting blood, so I took her to see the RSPCA vet where I adopted her from 6yrs before, the vet asked me has she eaten breakfast this morning, I said no Ang eats breakfast at 11am, the vet said I want to remove these lumps ASAP now they don’t look good, I said but I seen another vet where I live about 1 yr ago, the vet said not the vet on Darby st, please say no, I said yes, we always walk past to go to the beach & one day I seen her out the front with another vet who was visiting from America, I stopped & I showed them both her wierd looking lump on the back of her leg, they BOTH said its nothing, its just an old lady wort, its nothing to worry about, this RSPCA vet just shook her head & said if these lumps were removed 1 yr year ago the cancer wouldn’t be as this advanced….Angie had a few Mast Cell tumors 1 on back of her leg & other lumps & bumps all were removed she looked a Quit, full of patches everywhere, 1/2 of her nipples were removed, when I came to take her home that afternoon, the vet said we have removed more then we thought, she wasnt allowed to come home & had to stay the night the poor thing….
She had another operation as some of the Mast Cell Tumors came back within 3months of removing, my mum said, let her go Susan, I said but she looks good, the little bit of weight she had lost made her her perfect weight 30kg, then she was cancer free BUT she didn’t get better, so the RSPCA vet said you can do Endoscope to see if she has Ulcers from the Mast Cell Tumors as the Mast Cell sets off histimines that attacks the stomach..So I was reffered to another vet that had the Endoscope Camera, it became the vet practice where I go now & take my Staffy Patch who has IBD…
My Angie never got better it was all down hill, I wish I listened to the first vet from the RSPCA when he said, I can put her to sleep on the back seat of your car, I thought to myself, Im not putting my Angie to sleep on my back seat of my car… I was thinking what will I do without my Angie, I cant put her to sleep its all too quick, the same vet did say to me, you have to be strong Susan, Angie sounds like she has been there for you 6 years now? so its your turn now to help her…. I couldn’t put her to sleep, my daughter couldnt PTS either, so I wasted another few thousand dollars doing Endoscope, she had no ulcers & the stupid vet didnt do any biospies, so the Endoscope was pointless but I didnt know all this back then 2009 now I do….
Angie was put on ant acid meds Zantac & Carafate, other medications Valium, Pain meds that made her feel very sick, nausea, vomit, I dont think she could take the Prednisone she took something else similiar, I cant remember the name its started with S she was also put on Hills Z/D dry food in the end & this caused extream stomach pain & she refused to eat it, I told the new vet & he said, Oh she’s just spoilt she’ll eat it, I have found male vets are heartless when it comes to a sick dog, I prefer lady vets & lady vet nurses..
We had had another sleepless 1/2 of the night again up 12am-3am, Angie crying with her pain, so I ended up ringing a mobil vet 8.30am Saturday morning, the mobil vet came 9am & he said gee are you sure she is sick, she started running around all excited we had a visitor, the vet said, she’s in really good condition, then I showed him Angies vet folder, all her tests, her operations, all the meds we had tried & they didnt help etc then he gave her a valium injection, then I talked to Angie for 20mins told her we are going for a walk to the beach I’ll see you at the beach Ang & the vet put her to sleep, he said she’ll have green dreams now…Finally she was painfree… I couldnt fix my Angie, she never had a sick day in her life until she turned 8yrs old, she could eat anything, she was a beautiful dog, a real lady … 🙁

The Nature’s Logic canned rabbit food you’re feeding is 7%min fat, when you convert that to dry matter (Kibble) this is around 35-40%max fat, this would be too high in fat for Nilla, you’re better off cooking & making her a bland diet with lean white meats like Turkey breast, lean Pork, I know you said No pork but the Natures Logic wet can rabbit food has Pork liver in it, she’ll probably do really well on pork, alot of IBD dogs do very well eating sweet Potato, white Potato, Gluten Free Pasta, I know she needs to have some fat in her diet to gain some weight, but is Nilla still on Predisone & the ant acid blocker Losec? if not put her back on the Losec 20mg given every morning, also you cannot just stop the Prilosec once its been taken for 3-4 weeks it must be slowley reduced as all the hydrochloric acid come rushing back into stomach all at once until the stomach acid go back to normal..Taking an acid blocker might make her want to eat again or reduce the fat in her diet with cooked lean meals & see does she get her appetite back again?? My IBD boy takes Pantoprazole 20mg now its an ant acid blocker, he did take Losec for 2 years then it didn’t seem to work…..
If you still want to feed wet can food look at either a low fat vet diet Royal Canine HP or Royal Canine Intestinal Low Fat or Hills I/d Low Fat Stew can food, as these wet can foods are under 8% in fat so they’re 1.7%-2%max fat is written on the canof food, so when converted to Dry Mater (DM) they’re 7-8% in fat & wont cause as bad acid reflux…
No wet can foods or premade raw food, fat % protein % fiber % is converted yet…
or look at “Walk About”
http://walkaboutpetproducts.com/dog-food/
“Walk About” has Rabbit, Kangaroo, Boar, Quail, Duck, the fat is 2%min & isn’t converted, the moisture is 82% so when you convert the fat it will be higher, when you see 78% Moisture this is better, the fat will be a bit lower…. I converted the fat in the Walk About Rabbit formula & it’s around 11.11%min fat, same with the Walk About kangaroo formula, The Walk About wet can foods are heaps lower in fat then the Nature Logic Rabbit formula.. It’s best to email Walk About or other dog food companies who sell wet can foods you want to try & ask them can you have the fat convertion to dry matter please.
eg- when you see 5%min fat, 78% moisture on a wet can of dog food, this 5%min fat when converted will be around 20%min fat to 26% max fat…

Here’s a Dog Food Guaranteed Analysis Calculator link, save it…

Dog Food Calculators

If you can cook, cook & freeze small meals, I make rissoles balls, I buy 1kg = 2lbs of lean 5 star Beef or Pork mince low fat, I whisk 1 egg, add to the beef mince some freshly chopped parsley & add about 1 teaspoon parsley, then I chop a few small brocolli heads & grate 1 small peeled carrot, mix all together & make either 1/4 cup size rissole balls or 1/2 a cup size rissole balls & put on a foil lined baking tray & bake for 15mins take out drain any water/fat turn over the rissole balls then bake for another 15mins till ready do not over cook as you’ll have leather rissoles, you can eat these rissoles with some mashed potatoes, I also boil 1 peeled cut up sweet potato then boil then cool & freeze those sweet potato in a sandwich clip lock bags & make sure the sweet potato pieces aren’t touching each other if they do touch then when frozen just wack on kicthen bench while still in sandwich bag & they should separate, you can add 1/2 cup size rissole ball & about 1/3 cup boiled sweet potato then I put 1 rissole ball & the sweet potato pieces in a blender & blend your dog will really like the rissoles, you can make turkey breast mince into rissoles & add some boiled Sweet Potato, theyre really nice, also scrambled egg make Nilla 1 scambled egg, what ever your eating as long as its not hot chillie, curry etc she can eats some & feed about 4-5 small meals a day get her back into a rountine & ask vet about ant acid medication..I use Quick eze chews as well for my IBD boy he comes & tells me & looks at the draw that has his meds in it…
The Canine Nutritionist will help but be careful with omega oils as these can cause acid reflux & then Nilla may not want to eat again so be fully intune with Nilla so you know whats wrong, also with the Walk About wet can foods you can boil some potato & add 1/2 wet can food & 1/3 boiled Potato this the potato should firm up her poos..

I hope you find answers & fix Nilla up but if you look into Nilla eyes & they have lost their spark, put her to sleep…its the best thing you can do for Nilla…

[Susan]

Hi Harry,

Listen to your brother, a raw diet is the best diet you can feed a dog or a cat..
Dogs & cats have a short digestive tract, it’s made to digest a raw diet, their intestinal tract was not made to digest a high carb, high fiber dry dog food…

Over time watch & you’ll see the difference in both your dogs as they age if your dog continues eating a dry diet, your brothers dog will have a shinner coat, more energy, less pooh, he’ll be leaner & not over weight & look healthier…

Your pup is a large breed dog, his bones are still growing till he’s 18-24months, might be better to feed him his balance “Large breed puppy” dry food until he’s 18months, still give him raw meaty bones as a treat, unless you contact a animal nutritionist who can formulate a raw diet for a growing pup…
Sky Car knows heaps about raw feeding, he can give some advice…

Are you on facebook join a few Canine Raw feeding groups,
also follow “Rodney Habib” & his “Planet Paws” page look at his Video’s https://www.facebook.com/pg/PlanetPaws.ca/videos/?ref=page_internal
Also Follow “Steve Brown” when you follow Rodney you will get to know everyone.

Have you seen all the Toxins Contaminates & Heavy Metals in dry pet foods?
Google Toxins in dogs foods, a site will come up they test the most popular dry wet treats