[pfeiner]

So I have been feeding Primal to my two Labs. The pup, who is 7 months old, is not your typical Lab eater. He eat somewhat gingerly and does not scarf down his food. He is a healthy, active, 7 month old puppy. Lately, he has decided he does not like his Primal. I give him an assortment of proteins and he eats twice a day. He will eat it if I offer it to him by hand – I don’t want to create a monster here 🙂 Was thinking of trying him on Darwin – Any suggestions. BTY – I do add a few pumps of Salmon Oil to their food as well as a sprinkle of Missing Link. Thanks!!

[pfeiner]

So I have been feeding Primal to my two Labs. The pup, who is 7 months old, is not your typical Lab eater. He eat somewhat gingerly and does not scarf down his food. He is a healthy, active, 7 month old puppy. Lately, he has decided he does not like his Primal. I give him an assortment of proteins and he eats twice a day. He will eat it if I offer it to him by hand – I don’t want to create a monster here 🙂 Was thinking of trying him on Darwin – Any suggestions. BTY – I do add a few pumps of Salmon Oil to their food as well as a sprinkle of Missing Link. Thanks!!

[Valerie N]

So glad the list is now up Dr. Mike. I too would like to see Darwin’s and Nature’s Logic on the list. But more than anything, I’d really like to know if there is a reason they shouldn’t be on the list.

[Dori]

Love seeing so many people nominating Darwin’s food. Love the food, company, customer service has always been available to answer any and all questions and never make me feel like I’m asking too many questions and they can’t wait to get off the phone like so many other companies. Nice group of people, and, yes, seems to also be totally honest and above board.

[Cathy M]

I would also like to nominate Darwin’s. It appears to be a quality product.

[Kenneth N]

I also would like to nominate Darwins….Quality, Service, and Availability of staff to answer questions. And oh yes, HONESTY!

[Dori]

Hi butchboy. I too would think that Darwin’s would meet the readily available criteria as it is available on line and also auto shipped so you’re never without it. Maybe it will make the list eventually as the continue to update and add foods.

[butchroy]

I too would like to nominate Darwin’s, it is available right to your door, so that would make easily available. Thank you!

[theBCnut]

Yikes!! I screwed that up. I wasn’t talking about Darwin’s at all in that second paragraph. I was saying that in the Editor’s Choice FAQs it says that renewal will be automatic each year if you don’t specifically cancel your membership. I didn’t see that mentioned anywhere before I signed up. It doesn’t matter, except that I never would have known if I hadn’t read the FAQs and I like knowing things like that before I sign up for things.

[Dori]

You are very special theBCnut. You just didn’t check in early enough. 14.99, 19.99 I still think it’s a huge bargain. I’d pay twice as much. There is so much that goes into all they do here. I honestly was expecting to have the yearly be more expensive. Uh Oh! Mike, this is not for your ears.

Patty, what is EC in relationship to Darwin. A lot of these initials I’m always have to look up. You guys are all so much younger than I and up on all the initials. I told try to figure them out then I get tired and ask. Silly me. I should just ask to begin with.

[theBCnut]

Hi Dori
I know Darwin’s is autoship. I was talking about signing up for EC, but I sure didn’t make that clear, did I.

[theBCnut]

Darwin’s doesn’t meet the widely available requirement.

Did anyone read that their subscription would be automatically renewed unless they cancelled it? It’s in the FAQs, but I certainly didn’t see that before I signed up.

[Dori]

Hi Bunker. Yes, I too was surprised that Answers Detailed didn’t make the list. Here in Georgia you can find it in a number of places and anyone who carries their goat milk can order the food.

The real shocker for me was that Darwin’s is not on the list. I thought surely it would be. Huh?

So, Mike, I guess I’m going to take this opportunity to nominate both Answers Detailed and Darwin’s.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 8 months ago by Dori.

[Dori]

On the question of why didn’t Weruva made the cut, I don’t know, maybe it’s because they can no longer say that their cans do not contain bha?

I’m thrilled that THK and Primal are on Dr. Mike’s list. Primal is my most favorite of the commercial raws. I wasn’t surprised to see Ziwipeak on it. It’s always gotten good reviews everywhere especially their canned food that is bha free. I looked into it once because I thought it would be nice to have something different on hand other than THK as a change from their raw diets but it is incredibly expensive. One of my dogs can’t have THK because of the alfalfa.

I was surprised though that Answers did not make the list. Also Darwin’s didn’t make the list. That kind of shocked me as I was sure it would be.

I’m so thrilled that the Editor’s Choice is up and running. Truly excited.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 8 months ago by Dori.

[Dori]

The vets have just been taking your money. To me it sounds as though this is entirely a food issue as well as the touch of arthritis. A fabulous commercial raw diet is Darwin’s. It can only be purchased on line on their site. If you ever think about adding a commercial raw you can try them. They are an auto delivery service also first time buyers get a great deal. Anyway you can check out their site and see what you think. A lot of us swear by them. And yes, commercial raw is more expensive than kibble BUT, you save so much in vet bills it’s not even funny. Since on raw my dogs only go to the vet for their yearly physical. That’s it. Before that I was with Katie at one vet or specialist constantly. Expensive, time consuming and lots of used up gas. I hate the fact that they put your dog on steroids. They cause so much damage, the steroids as well as some vets. I’ve never known of any dog or person (myself included) that was ever made allergy free with the injections. Please check the ingredients in the Natural Balance. If she’s itching on this food than I would change it. It’s obviously got ingredients that she can’t tolerate.

[Dori]

Hi Lea J. I feel like this is my mantra but I will say it again. I have a 4 1/2 year old Maltipoo, Katie, has had severe food allergies and intolerances as well as environmental allergies since we got her at 9 weeks of age. I’ve tried any and all suggestions out there. Went through a ton of food, most of which to no avail. What finally worked for her is commercial raw foods. I like Primal Pronto the best. I also rotate her foods with Darwins, and Answers raw. I’ve tried Stella and Chewy’s raw and Nature’s Variety Instinct Raw which I didn’t like at all. Anyway, I have three small dogs that I feed 1/4 cup twice a day. I do add and/or feed sardines (canned in water, not oil), coconut oil, probiodics, digestive enzymes, fresh fruits and veggies. Their treats consist of fresh fruits or veggies. I don’t use store bought treats. To many issues with Katies allergies. My 14 1/2 year old Maltese has arthritis in her right hip and also two degenerated discs mid spine. I rotate supplements as well as their foods. I haven’t found any particular joint supplement that has worked miracles. I have just ordered Sprintime’s Joint Health and Fresh Factor. Some people have been reporting that they are having good luck with these. Anyway, I think I’ve digressed here from my mantra which is: Grain, Soy, Poultry (in all forms), White Potato and Rice Free food as well as anything else you think your dog may be allergic or intolerant to. Your allergy list really doesn’t seem to be that bad though I wouldn’t doubt that she has more problems than just the ones you named. Full disclosure, I don’t believe that food allergy testing for dogs can be trusted. My dogs allergist/dermatologist as well as their traditional vets all would not do the testing. They said the tests are inaccurate, misleading and cost a lot of money. When vets tell you they won’t take your money, you know they are being accurate. To this date there are no known food allergy testing on animals that are accurate. As far as kibble goes, I can’t really recommend any because I’m not comfortable in my knowledge of their ingredients anymore. I figured out most of Katie’s food allergies by her reactions to the foods I was feeding and then comparing ingredients with other foods trying to figure out what was bothering her. She has many many issues. She just recently became allergic or intolerant to alfalfa. Allergic or intolerant to me is all the same. All I’m sure of is that either way, she can’t eat it so I don’t care whether some people say that it’s not really an allergy, it’s an intolerance. It’s all trial and error really and constantly researching ingredients. What works for my dogs may not work for others but eliminating the obvious typical allergens is a good place to start. It’s an incredibly long road in helping our allergy prone dogs but the work is well worth it for them. Exhausting on us. Oh, Spring is finally here in Atlanta where we live so for the last two days I’ve been giving her Benadryl twice a day. I hate having to do that but there is nothing I can personally do about environmental outdoor allergies. Trust me, if there was a way I would have found it by now. This is the first time I have ever had a dog with allergies and I’ll just say it keeps me on me on my toes with all things food related for her. Katie’s how I came across this site a couple of years ago and I, she and my other dogs have benefited immensely. Good Luck. If you need any clarification on anything I’ve said or any more questions please ask.

[DogFoodie]

Well, not proud to say that lately I’ve been feeding about 95% kibble and the remaining 5% is dehydrated or raw. I still have a load of Darwin’s in the freezer, so they still get a weekly meal of raw. I continue to feed an occasional bit of Dr. Harvey’s Oracle mixed in with the kibble and water.

I’ve been trying so hard to find kibbles that work for Sam with his intolerance issues, that I’ve been feeding straight kibble to see how he responds without adding anything to it. For various reasons, I cannot do raw full-time, and I choose to continue to use kibble as a base. So, there are frequently meals that he eats just kibble to which I’ve added water. Right now, I am basically down to two kibbles that Sam can eat… big sigh… He can eat Canine Caviar (either lamb or chicken with pearl millet) and Mulligan Stew (lamb only). Even things that he used to do well on aren’t working for him anymore so I’ve had to scratch Horizon Legacy and Nature’s Logic from his rotation.

[theBCnut]

The only raw I know of that isn’t expensive is homemade.

Have you looked at Darwin’s?

[InkedMarie]

Toothless Gemma is on all canned (Canidae Pure)
Boone is on all ground meat from Hare Today.
Ginger is stuck eating all I had for Boone: THK or Darwin’s for breakfast kibble (NL venison
Right now) with canned (Weruva, hound & Gatos mostly)

[Dori]

I happen to think that The Honest Kitchen is a fabulous food. It’s not a raw diet. It’s dehydrated. You add water to it and let it rehydrate. It’s the only non raw food I feed my dogs. The Honest Kitchen is one of only two pet foods that can legally say they are 100% USDA human grade food, mostly organic fruits and veggies made in a human food plant. They other is Weruva canned foods. Weruva can no longer guarantee that their cans have no BHA so I don’t use them, besides the bha they also contain carrageen (sp?). I always keep The Honest Kitchen on hand in case I have forgotten to defrost raw. Typically I keep Zeal on hand. One of my dogs is allergic to ingredients in their other formulas. Another of their formulas that is good is Preference. All it’s missing is the protein so you an add any protein you want. It’s also good for a change for them to lower their fat intake. Raw has a high fat content. Darwin’s (a home delivered only raw food) has the lowest fat content that I am aware of. I rotate everything with my dogs. Food, supplements, oils, etc. Whatever ingredient they may be missing or low on one product I’m hoping they’ll get from the next. Also I feel it gives them a healthier gut and immune system.

[neezerfan]

Fingers crossed, I’ll have him next weekend. I don’t know what he’s eating now, but I will continue it for at least a week. My current dog is on Darwin’s and a mix of 5 star canned. He can eat anything. Now that I’ll have 2 dogs, I’ll have to economize a bit and want to add in some kibble to stretch the dog food dollar. My goal is to get the new dog to have a healthy gut so I can rotate his diet, too. I plan on starting him right away on the Mercola probiotics. I will have their pet digestive enzymes, too. When should I start with that? Anything else I should give him? From his pictures, he has a lot of red staining on his beard. If he’s currently on a really crappy food, what’s a good food to transition to? Thanks for any advise.

[Dori]

I feed commercial raw as well as home cooked raw. I feed both Primal Pronto Beef, and Lamb. They make other proteins but one of my girls has allergies to all things poultry so those are the two I stick to. I also feed Darwins. Darwins is less expensive and also less in fat content. I have three toy dogs. One is a 14 1/2 year old Maltese, 4 1/2 year old Maltipoo and 4 year old Yorkipoo. I have to admit that they are all chow hounds and have never met a meal they don’t inhale and certainly haven’t turned down. They have done equally as well with Primal as they have with Darwin’s. I feed a rotational diet so both Darwins and Primal as well as other commercial raws are in my freezer. Primal Prontos are geared to be able to scoop and serve. It is raw but little bits (somewhat like the size of kibble) and defrosts very quickly on the kitchen counter in their bowls which is really very convenient when I’ve forgotten to take some other raw from the freezer. Doesn’t happen often but it does happen.

[pugmomsandy]

I’m sure Darwin’s is a great product and several people here use it. But with 2 large dogs you might check into feeding prey model for some meals such as feeding a whole chicken (including the feet and gizzards, liver and neck). Not every single meal is required to be complete and balanced. 20% or less can be unbalanced. There is a large raw forum at dogforums dot com and it has a very big “raw feeding pictures thread”. Also check out preymodelraw dot com. I also use a recipe book, “Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats” which is easy to follow and comes with a recipe to make a vitamin mix. You’d save a lot of money by buying bulk or family packs of ground beef or chicken and even bone-in pork chops. And they go on sale when it’s their sell-by dates. I also find whole raw sardines at the ethnic grocery store for $1.19/lb on sale. This is one meal for my dog and he only needs one sardine which is around 3 oz. the sardines come in various sizes. Another option is buying your own meat and using a premix.

[pfeiner]

Hi All –
I have been feeding Primal to my two Labs for a while now. When I read the menus on the advisor, I have to admit I get somewhat overwhelmed. I am looking for alternatives to Primal only because it is so expensive. I have heard that Darwin’s is a good product and less expensive than Darwin – any thoughts?

Am I correct in that if I choose to make my own, I can purchase a mix such as the one HDM suggests – “See Spot Live Longer Dinner Mix” and just add my organic foul or beef? Some of the posts suggest adding fish oil in addition to the mix. Do you all agree? Should I be adding anything else?

Thanks in advance for your help –

[pfeiner]

A friend just mentioned Darwin’s Raw diet. I have been successfully feeding Primal for a while now however Darwin’s is significantly less expensive and with two Lab’s. costs add up quickly. Anyone have any feedback re:- Darwin etc.
Thanks loads!

[SpanielMom]

My favorite raws are Stella & chewy’s & primal, they both have good veggies in it. The nice thing about primal is that they have the 1 oz nuggets and their “pronto” forms that make using it as a topper really easy. I know I’ve heard people on here saying they like Darwin’s raw but I’ve never personally tried it because it’s not readily available in my area. And yeah, try giving stuff like carrots or freeze dried liver/lung as treats, they are nutritious and low calorie!

[DogFoodie]

Hi Jeff,

I would also rotate proteins for a wider variety of amino acids.

I believe that the one thing that James from Darwin’s encourages with regular rotational feeding of a variety of their products is adding a sardine to your dogs food every other day. Tinned sardines are fine and they’re the best source of Omega 3’s which are generally lacking in most diets.

You might also consider getting some of Darwin’s raw green tripe with your next order. Raw green tripe is full of amino acids, digestive enzymes and lots of nutrients. Darwin’s sells it in one pound packages and you can easily add it to a meal or serve as a meal.

[InkedMarie]

Hi Jeff,
It’s best to feed a variety of proteins, even in raw. So, next order, get a mixture. As for supplements, I don’t think you have to add much, I’d suggest salmon oil & eggs a couple time a week. Some give digestive enzymes & probiotics which aren’t necessary but sure can’t hurt. Darwin’s has good customer service, give them a call!

[Jeff33]

I just wanted to say how much I appreciated all the valuable information that everyone has posted on this site. I am a new dog owner..my baby Tioga (English springer spaniel) turns one in a week. I found this site by researching the best type of dog foods available for him. I recently purchased some Orijen red because I thought that was the best food. I’ve since realized that I was wrong and I would like to feed him a raw diet because it’s the healthiest option. I don’t want to make my own raw meals. I’m going with Darwin’s. Here are my questions:

1. Can I feed him Darwin’s (chicken) everyday, without rotating? I thought rotating was only for canned and kibble due to the toxins.

2. Do I need to add anything else to his diet? I know I need to add some bones for his teeth and there are already enzymes in the meat so I don’t need to add that. What about probiotics?

I guess what I’m asking is what is the most basic diet, I was worried that just feeding him Darwin’s isn’t enough, I don’t want him to miss out on any necessary vitamins, minerals etc. due to my lack of knowledge.

Thanks for your help,
Jeff

[treizi]

So once again, I’m on the hunt for some new food. Koda’s an almost 10 year old Papillon with some random tummy issues that we haven’t been able to pin down. The vet has mentioned early pancreatitis possibilities as well as stomach acid issues. Symptoms are random and vary but basically will alter from diarrhea, stomach bloat and/or gurgling and bile spit up.
Since full blown pancreatitis isn’t a concern (yet), I’m not willing to go on a prescription diet since it might not even be an issue, but I’m hoping to find a good alternative that is just healthier all around. Koda has been eating the grain free duck from Lotus and while he seems to do OK on it, he doesn’t love it and tends to free feed.

I’m looking in to raw/wet but confused about the fat content conversions with raw in particular. Since he’s getting a bit older and has these stomach issues, I’m searching for something that is lower in fat. I’ve considered Honest Kitchen’s Preference and was thinking about adding raw but everything seems to be extremely high in fat content. The ones I’ve seen that are lower is Darwin’s and OC, both which I have access to in this area, but I’m not sure if these are even considered way to high for my older boy.

The alternative would be for us to boil Costco chicken and add that to the preference, but I do like the idea of having the ready made patties and being able to alternate between proteins. We often travel to our families place so not having to make a separate meal for the dog would be nice too.

Would I just need to contact the companies and ask what the true fat content is? I saw the mathematical conversion on another part of the site, but it seems like I need to know the moisture content of the food and I’m not sure where to find that.

[theBCnut]

It would depend on the commercial raw that I was feeding. I use Darwin’s and their fat levels are not as outrageous as some, so I give coconut oil with it.

I use enzymes every day, every meal for one of my dogs, only with kibble for one, and not at all for the third. If I’m feeding green tripe I don’t give probiotics at all. Otherwise, I give my dog with issues every day, and the other 2 get them one other time a week.

I use index cards too, and figuring out how I wanted them organized was the tough part. I now have notes on commercial raw, homemade, supplements, Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, kibbles, and probably other categories that I just can’t remember right now.

I also keep a file on my computer of the different foods that I’ve tried for Micah and their ingredient lists with the ingredients color coded for how he does on them. That’s how I was recently able to tell that it was tomato pomace that set him off when I tried a new food on him that I thought had only OK ingredients in it.

[theBCnut]

WOW, Sharon!! Way to go! Baby steps are fine and that conference sounds amazing.

When I started feeding raw, I started with what made it easiest for me, which at that time was DinOvite. That gave me time to do research even more and get comfortable with balancing diets. I now use commercial balanced raw(Darwin’s), commercial grinds that I balance(Hare Today and My Pet Carnivore), premixes(Dr Harvey’s Veg to Bowl, See Spot Live Longer Dinner Mix), and homemade balances raw. This way I get convenience the days of the week that I need it, a really great selection of different proteins, RMBs a couple times a week, and all the other features I was looking for in a raw diet.

[theBCnut]

Hi Martin
Cod Liver Oil once a week is OK, but not every day. You should be adding some kind of animal sourced or algae sourced omega 3 oil to Darwin’s unless you are feeding one meal a week of oily fish. Since you are talking about 50% of your dogs food being homemade, you need to make sure you balance it too. If you are feeding less than 20% unbalanced you don’t have to worry about it.

[martinkopf]

Hello,
I feed my dogs Darwin’s in the morning and a home cooked meal in the evening (recipes from “Feed your best friend better”). I am wondering if I need to add supplements to the home cooked meal, and if so what do you recommend? I did just order some cod liver oil and “Animal Essentials Natural Seaweed Calcium” will these be all I need along with the variety of home cooked recipes and the Darwin’s RAW?

[theBCnut]

Feeding both at the same time is just fine for the large majority of dogs. Kibble and canned are digested at different rates too, but no one ever says you shouldn’t put canned food in the kibble because they digest at different rates. A healthy dog can handle changing from raw to kibble to dehydrated to canned with no transition. The fact that most dogs can’t change without transition is because our feeding practices have made their gut unhealthy. Many of us feed our dogs something completely different at every meal.

Some sites realize that feeding raw 100% is more than most people can do so promote feeding raw one meal, kibble the next, to get the benefits of raw. Darwin’s is one of them.

[Shawna]

Hi Dorenda,

Took a few tries but I was able to log on.. Thanks Patty for the email heads up :)..

Vets often suggest low protein for renal disease when it really isn’t necessary. There are studies even that show dogs that have protein lowered to drastically too early in the disease have increased mortality. There’s some fantastic information on the topic on nutritionist Mary Straus’ website (see quote below). My dog has had kidney disease since birth and has been on high protein raw her whole life (45 to 54%) — she’ll be eight years old the end of June 2014.

“Based on research done in the last ten years (see s a Low Protein Diet Necessary or Desirable?), that the only time it is necessary to feed a low protein diet is when your dog is uremic, which generally means BUN is over 80 mg/dL (equivalent to 28.6 mmol/L), creatinine is over 4.0 mg/dL (equivalent to 354 µmol/L), and the dog is showing symptoms such as vomiting, nausea,inappetence, ulcers and lethargy, which are caused by the build-up of nitrogen in the blood. Even then, feeding low protein will not extend life, but it will help the dog feel better. Subcutaneous fluids can also help at this time (and before).” http://www.dogaware.com/health/kidneydiet.html

If your pup is uremic then consider K/D canned with added toppers to entice eating. Toppers like lightly cooked egg whites or canned green tripe are good options. Both are low in phosphorus but higher in protein. To counter the extra protein you can give probiotics and a certain type of prebiotic to induce “nitrogen trapping”. Nitrogen trapping utilizes the bacteria in the colon to help clean BUN from the blood. I use Garden of Life Primal Defense probiotic (human product) and Fiber 35 Sprinkle Fiber (also human product). If symptoms are bad enough that there is a need to keep protein really low try adding high quality fats — organic butter or ghee, coconut oil etc.

I would avoid kibble at ALL COST!!! Kibble of any kind including K/D.

Vet Dr. Royal created a raw kidney disease diet for Darwins. It can be found on their website – link below. The food is REALLY high in protein so again not an option if your pup is uremic. Here’s some info. The actual diet is on the site as well. Your vet will have to contact them to confirm your pup is a good candidate for the diet. http://www.darwinspet.com/kidney-health/

Mary Straus, link above, has diet recommendations on her site – she does include kibbles but kibbles are dehydrating and can cause issues. The protein in kibbles is also poorer quality than any other form and due to this creates more BUN then other diets with the same amount and kind of protein. Nutritionist Lew Olson also has some recipes on her website http://www.b-naturals.com/newsletter/kidney-diet/

Supplements that might be helpful — the one that I will NEVER run out of with my KD girl is Standard Process Canine Renal Support. Turmeric, food grade activated charcoal and burdock root are some to look at. I’d also recommend giving a digestive enzyme no matter what you feed. Mineral waters higher in calcium while being lower in sodium have demonstrated some benefit. They didn’t identify the brand in the research paper but I believe they may have used Evian. I’ve also read that feeding smaller meals multiple times per day is beneficial.

Hope something here is helpful!! Sure hope you can get your pup feeling better!!!

Shawna

[pugmomsandy]

For the price of the latest low glycemic foods (kibble and canned like LiveFree and Orijen), you might try feeding raw food like Darwins or Instinct, Bravo, etc. You might even ask the vet about incorporating something like the Yeast Starvation Diet which only has meat, eggs, oil and a vitamin. It might be possible (cost-wise) to feed a min pin a freeze dried raw diet if frozen raw is something you don’t want to feed.

http://homemadedogfood.com/yeast-starvation-dog-food-recipe/

[DogFoodie]

My brother-in-law and nephew recently got a couple of deer and you should’ve seen the look on their faces when I asked if they saved the internal organs by chance. My BIL was so disappointed that when he field dressed the deer, he left all the good stuff that Sam and Bella would’ve loved to have eaten. He knew I fed them raw sometimes, but didn’t even think about it.

Also, Cyndi, have you talked to Tracy at Hare Today about ideas she might have for helping you reduce your costs. I know, and am sure you already do as well, that there’s a price break for shipping (ie: 25 pounds); but I also wondered if there might be such as thing as her giving a certain percentage of discount for an order over a certain size ~ like Darwin’s does. It might require less frequent (and more costly orders), but a savings over time.

[neezerfan]

So Riley has a pseudomonas ear infection which apparently can be multidrug resistant and hard to eradicate. Luckily so far it seems to be responding well to our first line of treatment, Baytril oral and Baytril/dex liquid ear stuff. So how did this happen? Vet explained this bacterium is commonly found on the skin and usually presents no problem. Usually when it causes a problem like this it’s due to an underlying allergy. What?? Actually, she did not specifically say food allergy, but when she said “allergy” i heard “food allergy”. So yes I’m jumping the gun a bit.

The majority of his diet is Darwin’s chicken, turkey and duck. I rotate with 5 star canned foods, all grain free and give him 2-3 home prepared meals per week. Usually it’s beef, lamb and venison with the non-Darwin’s meals. Sometimes cooked, sometimes raw. I supplement with krill oil, coconut oil (human grade) and Spirugreen from Mercola.

He’s 2 1/2 years old, otherwise perfectly healthy. He has not had any vaccines since the core ones and we do titers.

What am I missing? I will admit to being obsessed with his health. Am I overreacting? BTW, his other ear is perfectly healthy.

[bizquik]

We just got the diagnosis of Crohn’s Disease for my 3yr old Standard Poodle. We’ve tried raw (Darwin’s Zoologic Turkey), multiple high-end dog foods (Sojos, Acana, etc), and I’ve cooked him turkey/rice. So far nothing has worked. The vet wants to put him on high dose of Prednisone. I’m a bit worried about the long term consequences of steroids. Can anyone suggest a food — either homemade or “commercial” that has worked for them? I feel like I’m running out of options.

[kms]

I made a vet appt for this coming wed – will have a fecal sent out. Also, I started Perfect Form last night. He ate it right up – no issue with taste. So far, he has had 3 stools – all 3 softer/runnier than normal. But he has only had 2 doses, so it’s prob too soon to tell. As far as pumpkin, I’ll stop that today.

I like everything I’ve read about Honest Kitchen products and would be willing to try. Also have been reading about Primal, Darwin and NV frozen and freeze-dried raw. My biggest fear is that things could get worse at a critical time in his development. I’d also have to face both my vet and breeder – who aren’t really in favor of my direction so far (in terms of going to a kibble rotation diet and also for heading toward raw down the road). But I’ll keep reading and taking baby steps. Another reason why I’m so thankful for this forum.

The NVI Rabbit uses chicken fat as a preservative and it’s 4th on the ingredient list. So NVI Rabbit is not 100% chicken-free, but it’s fat instead of meat. I don’t know if that changes anything. In other words, can I still rule out “chicken intolerance” – or could that small amount of chicken fat still cause a chicken intolerance? I really hope his system just needs more time to heal, as Pattyvaughn sugggested. It’s just that I’ve never had a dog who didn’t have worms or diarrrhea at some point – and it has always been remedied quickly. So I keep worrying that it’s something more serious.

I’ve read on threads where people go back to grain-inclusive and the stools get better. Why is that? I thought grains were not good for a dog. The reason I went grain-free is because I thought it would be healthier and the food would be less likely to trigger an allergy.

• This reply was modified 12 years ago by kms.

[shilodakotamom]

I have never had a problem with Chewy’s. I have always gotten exemplary service, last week I didn’t review my order before I hit send, and ordered the wrong thing. Luckily they man the phones 24 hours a day, I called got a real person, explained what happened what I needed and didn’t need. They added an item, took an item off, and wow with a $4.95 flat shipping charge it arrived in 3 days! I also have a good relationship with Darwin’s, they let me change my auto ship dates as often as I need no questions asked.

[siscodepug]

Finally got all the blood results back. The Vet said he has low B12 and high folate which is indicative of an inflammatory bacterial over growth in the intestines. The Vet prescribed flagyl as an antibiotic and suggested trying a different food. The Vet accounts the bacterial over growth with a food allergy and since I’ve tried various kibbles and canned foods over the year, I’ve now decided to go raw. On Sunday, I picked up a bag of Primal raw venison and I also ordered a trial sample of Darwin’s raw duck food. The lady at the store explained that the transition should be done slowly so I’m feeding him a cube in the morning and one at night mixed with some rice and sweet potato. So far he seems to enjoy it but this morning he threw up (is this part of the adjustment?) but was very content to eat it up. I read that some dogs go through a detox period, so I hope it’s just that. I’ll keep you posted on his progress and if the raw food doesn’t work out I may have try home cooked meals. Thanks for replying.

PS – I have a Vet appointment today and I plan to ask about the giardia and coccidia test.

[kms]

Hi – I’m new here. I was using DFA to problem-solve and evaluate diets for my 5 mo male Weim (Augie) and ended up on this thread. WOW – what a great source of info! I’ve learned a lot and want to thank HDM and all the others who contributed. Here’s my story and my problem. Any advice would really be appreciated… especially would like input from HDM..…

We brought Augie home at 9 wks and he had soft/runny stool. Vet found roundworms and treated them. After the “all clear”, I thought his stool would get better – but it didn’t. Vet checked his stool again and found very high levels of “Clostridium” and a few other bacteria commonly found in dirt (Augie is a compulsive dirt/mud/rock eater – we’re working on it). Vet put him on Metronidozol and Pro-Pectalin for 20 days (2 rounds) – it did not resolve. Then he put him on SMZ (another antibiotic) and a bland diet for 16 days. During that time, his stool got bright yellow and was still runny all the time. He also stopped gaining weight and lost several lbs (was supposed to be 38-42 lbs, but dropped to 27 lbs). I asked about using a Probiotic and canned pumpkin, but vet didn’t want to introduce anything new to his GI tract. We tested his stool again – and finally all the bacteria levels were normal and no worms. BUT his stool was still soft/runny. He also had developed colitis from the constant diarrhea/soft stool. I started giving him 1 heaping tsp canned pumpkin with each meal and slowly (over 12 days) I transitioned him from Eukanuba Puppy Growth (the breeders kibble) to Orijen Large Breed Puppy. He has now been on 100% Orijen for 11 days and I’m still giving him the pumpkin. His stool has gotten a little better – it’s formed about 75% of the time and soft about 25%. But the last couple days it has had a slick greasy coating on the outside. What does that mean?

Based on what I learned here, I have a new plan (I think). Much of this is new to me (have never used probiotics or enzymes and have never rotated foods). Also, I’m very interested in going raw (commercially made), but I don’t feel confident enough to pull the trigger yet – especially since his bowels have been so messed up for the last 3 months. What do you think of this plan:

1) Get him off Orijen – calcium is too high – did not know that till I saw HDM’s list.
2) Choose 3-4 high protein kibbles from HDM list and plan to rotate at the end of each bag.
3) Make the next food in the rotation a non-chicken, since the Euk and Orijen were both chicken based.
4) Choose a variety of toppers to be used as 20% of each meal. Use a different topper at each meal.
5) Start giving a probiotic and digestive enzymes with every meal
6) Continue 1 heaping tsp canned pumpkin with each meal
7) Learn more about going raw – would like to start with commercially made and go from there. Maybe start by using a commercial raw (THK, Primal, Darwin’s) as the topper? or is that too hard for a dog to digest (mixing raw with non-raw)?

Do I give a Probiotic and Dig Enzymes at each meal indefinitely – or just during transitions from 1 food to the next?
Do I continue the pumpkin indefinitely?
Should I add fish oil and how much?
He’s up to 32.5 lbs, but still can see hips and ribs a little. What can I do to safely get some weight on him?

I really appreciate what I have learned here and look forward to advice. Thanks!

[neezerfan]

You can also add some plain lean meat, cooked vegetables or fruit. I buy frozen berries and defrost a few twice a week to put in Riley’s food. Also when I make salad for the humans I give him the ends of the cucumbers and carrots and the tomato tops. All summer he’s been stealing tomatoes from my garden and eating them. So who said wolves in the wild won’t eat vegetables?

[InkedMarie]

What vaccinations did they get in August? How old are they?

[RescueDaneMom]

I feed Honest Kitchen and Primal raw frozen grinds. I’m looking at trying Darwin’s next. I currently give my dog eggs, cottage cheese, kefir, canned sardines or pink salmon (preferably in water with no salt added), and Tripett canned tripe to help with variety.

[shilodakotamom]

I have been feeding Darwin’s for about 3 months now and my little ones seem healthy, well almost, I will explain more. I want to add something to the raw food to create variety, any ideas, or what do you use. Ok on the almost healthy part, this is not related to the food, but vaccinations I had them get in August. Their immune system broke down, we got fleas. Now we are on probiotics, and dietary enzymes along with the Darwin’s. Much better now flea wise. Just looking for something else to give a little more nutrition, and variety. Thanks

[lukeduke]

Darwins, Instinct and probably Stella as far as raw and to cut down on cost i’ll probably mix it with a can or kibble. Not sure yet. Is kibble really that bad?

[theBCnut]

If you can afford to go all raw, more power to you!! It is still best to find things other than Darwins to rotate to, just so you are making sure he gets a wide variety of micronutrients. You might want to look into a couple of different premixes or making some of your own raw meals.