[Susan]

Hi Dewper,
if you live America then there’s a cream similiar to the Sudocrem sold at supermarket but I can’t remember the name, a lady posted it on the “Dog, issues, allergies and other information support” f/b group, it has the same ingredients, (I think) as the Sudocrem has.
I live Australia & the Sudocrem is sold supermarkets & chemist in the baby section with the coconut oil & aloe & cucumber baby wipes are, I’ve read people who live America buy Sudocrem from Amazon or read ingredient list & look for a baby cream sold at supermarket with similiar ingredients…..
When your boy wasnt licking his paws real bad was he eating the same food he’s eating now or a different food? it’s so hard to work out allergies cause dogs normally will have both food & envrionment alergies, I was thinking is he may be a compulsive licker?? my Patch was when I first rescued him, paw licking sets off their endorphins, especially when they lick & lick themselves to sleep…my Patch all of a sudden dissappears & I find him in my room or the spare room licking his paw, then there’s the big wet patch on the bed aaaaaarrrrhhhhh it’s always just one of his paws he’s licking not both paws, he has white paws, I have a quick look at his paw & paw will be red up & sometimes in between his toes, so if he’s due for his weekly bath in a couple of days I bath him earlier & I bath him in the Malaseb shampoo also sold on Amazon & you leave the shampoo on his paws 5-10 mins if you can, the Malaseb is excellent for Allergies, itchy skin & yeasty skin….after his bath his paws look heaps better & aren’t itchy no more, so something in the Malaseb reduces the reddness & itch, then that night I apply the Hydrocortisone cream in between the tows & everywhere that’s red by morning all reddness is all gone, when I get a bit lazy I dont keep up with his daily routine applying creams his red paws happens….
It’s Winter in Australia & this is the worst Winter Patch has had so far, he normally does real well thru the colder Winter months as long as I’m not feeding him any ingredients he’s sensitive too, but this Winter has been heaps warmer & plants are flowering so I’d say the pollen count is higher…. another thing check what the Omega 3 % is in the kibble your feeding him some kibbles arent balanced properly & are higher in Omega 6 & real low in Omega 3, the omega 3% should be around 1/2 of what the omega 6% is…..as soon as you open your bag of kibble all the oils start to go rancid from the air/oxygen, so your omega 3% becomes less, they say a kibble only last about 2 weeks once you’ve opened it google ” How long does a kibble stay fresh once it’s opened”
The best thing to do is add a few small sardines to his diet a day, start buying the tin Sardines in spring water or olive oil, Aldi’s sell cheap good sardines & salmon in spring water, just add a few sardines or spoons of the salmon to 1 of his meals or give as a treat, I make salmon cakes just boil some potato or sweet potatoes & cool then mix with the drained tin of salmon or start giving him a fish capsule if he has sensitive stomach/bowel then get the Krill Oil capsules they’re suppose to be better for senstive stomach, my boy can’t have fish/salmon oil it gives him acid reflux, he does better when he eats foods high in Omega 3, almonds are excellent I give about 3 Almonds some days but make sure he chews them or they will come back out whole, I don’t know but a lady said her dog got into the bag of almonds & it wasnt nice, I bite 1/2 an almond & give the other 1/2 of the almond to patch & say chew, even have a look at the K-9 Natural Green Lipped Mussels freeze dried treats Chewy sell them & other brands as well, I give my cat & Patch a couple mussels a day as treats… You just need to keep in a daily routine, 1 lady from f/b group I mentioned above said she has a water tray near the front door & her dog walks thru it to wash off any allergens on his paws but I’d rather put him in a empty bath, wet his paws & wash & leave soaking in the Malaseb shampoo this works really well then rinse & dry. another thing in the beginning after I applied cream if you know he’s going to lay down to sleep & lick, then I put on a baby socks or a cut up elastic bandage with the bandage tape around the top, this stops the paw licking & gets him out of the compulsive licking.. this is what I had to do with Patch in the beginning..
When your boy is licking his paw do you look at the paw to see if it’s red, swollon etc ?

[anonymous]

Zignature, wet or dry, presoak the dry food and add water.
However, at age 16, the ailments you describe are most likely age related.
Food can only do so much, some seniors need a bathroom break about every 2 hours for optimal results. Minimum, every 4 hours.
Feed 3 or 4 or 5 small meals per day with water added, rather than 2 meals per day. Always have fresh water available. Don’t expect the dog to hold his urine all day, that’s how bladder stones develop.
Talk to your vet about prescription meds for the arthritis pain, care and comfort.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Dewper-

I add meal mixers to all of my dogs’ meals. In the morning, they always get canned food mixed in. For their afternoon meals, I usually add some fresh ingredients such as an egg, tripe, commercial raw, lean meat and veggie leftovers, or sardines.

Here is a link to a site that has some good recommendations as well:
http://www.dogaware.com/diet/freshfoods.html

Here is another one to a down load that has great ideas as well as a chart on how much to add: https://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=DN330EBK

I think it’s a great idea to add a little something to their dry boring kibble! A word of warning, however, is that he/she will start to expect it and you will get the stink eye if you don’t add anything! 🙂

[a c]

My 14 weeks puppy has been on Orijen puppy kibbles since I got him when he was 6 weeks old. I have been slowly adding Horizon Amicus puppy kibbles for the past week. I am now using 3/4 Orijen puppy and 1/4 Horizon Amicus puppy kibbles pre soaked in the water overnight. No problems. 4 stools a day. Toosie roll like.

Horizon Amicus puppy dry food is actually one of the puppy dry food recommend by the website. I like to get him off Orijen puppy food if possible because all the things that I read about Orijen lately. It’s also very rich. I have tried to add Freshspot as toper, but it didn’t go so well.

I noticed even with homemade food. You have to add it slowly. I gave them some cooked ground turkey with broccoli. They have soft stool for a few days. I now use it as a toper.

As for my 10 years old, she has pancreatitis history. Our vet put her on Purina One Smartblend Healthy management kibbles. I have been adding a little Natural Receipe wet food and I also pre soaked the kibbles. The ingredients on Purina One is terrible, but what choice do I have? I must keep fat level low so she won’t have another pancreatitis.

[Dewper]

For anyone who mixes in whole foods with dry food, what foods do you mix in? I would like to begin adding some natural foods into my two dogs’ meals, so any suggestions of beneficial, safe foods for dogs would be great!

[P S]

I have been feeding Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream dry dog food for almost eight years. I have been seeing and am very concerned about complaints regarding very sick dogs from the food. In particular, these complaints on Consumer Affairs. ANYONE here have any problems and has there been a recall? Has DogFoodAdvisor reconsidered their almost 5 star rating for Taste of the Wild?

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/taste-of-the-wild.html

[Maureen A M]

July 29, 2017

Tylee’s Human-Grade Dog Food. I buy it from the manufacturer (Chewy. com) and it comes smothered in dry ice and all the squares of styrofoam (line feral cat houses with this stuff. I actually tasted a piece of mango in the food, it is fresh. Will be interested in what the Editor has to say about this.

[Nikki P]

We have been feeding our German Shepherds Valens dog food for over 2 years. Our vets cannot believe how beautiful their coats are, they shine and have no dry skin. We feed them the Pasture and the Fisher brand which they love both types. We have never had an issue with this dog food. It is pricey ($101.00 taxes in Can.) for a bag. With the kibble you can see pieces of freeze dried meat/fish mixed in. Their site has a feeding chart for active and inactive dogs in case you are worried about feeding them too much or not enough. We highly recommend this dog food and give it 5 stars.

[Susan]

Hi Tyla
it’s best to contact the raw or dehydrated pet food companies you’re interested in feeding & ask them which formula is recommended for a large breed growing puppy?? especially while she is growing or keep her on a large breed puppy formula then once she is fully grown start introducing raw & freeze dry to her diet… Here’s a fat, protein, fiber converter, so you know the fat & protein % when it’s converted to dry matter, 15%-fat, 15%-Protein is around 48% when converted, if it were a dry kibble. http://www.k-9kraving.com/resources/calculator.php
Have you joined any Raw Feeding face book groups, K-9Kitchen Monica Segal,
K-9 Nutrition- Lew Olson & Dr Karen Becker is bringing out her new book that will have special diets…

[suztzu]

Has anyone out there feed Weruva Caloric Harmony dry food, I have fed the canned but I am looking at the dry ? Any info would be helpful

[Orlando T]

Recently while searching for a quality puppy food I encountered on the Editors Choice page Merrick Lil’ Plates Grain Free (Dry) as a recommended puppy food. The food appears to be more of a small breed than a a puppy food but I’m no expert. I started feeding this food to my puppy but a week ago before realizing that Merrick’s does not actually list it as a puppy food. Please verify list accuracy and advise.

/best-dog-foods/best-puppy-foods/best-dry-puppy-foods-5-star/

Thank you,

[Susan]

Hi Lindsay,
make sure you read the fat % on a wet tin foods, the fat in raw & wet tin foods hasn’t been converted to dry matter fat(kibble) here’s a calculator conversion link to help you work out the fat% protein & fiber %, higher fat can cause pancreatitis, weight gain etc. roughly 5%min-fat in a wet tin food is around 20%min-25%max fat % when converted to dry matter, so stick with wet tin foods 5% & under for fat…. http://www.k-9kraving.com/resources/calculator.php

I like smaller size kibbles, have a look at “Canidae” pure formula’s, they are grain free have limited ingredients & have single meat proteins, look at the Pure Wild, Pure Land formula’s, they both only have 7 ingredients & smell really good, no bad fishy smell… Canidae kibbles are easy to digest & soften within 20mins when soaked in warm water…
I would soak about 1/2 cup kibble in warm water for 15-20mins before your going to feed him, but make sure the kibble is soft all the way thru, so 20mins soaking should be long enough if it’s a Canidae kibble, Canidae kibbles are high in Kcals per cup, a 50lb-75lb dog that is exercise only need’s 2-3 cups a day, not much exercise 1-1 1/2 cups a day, the Canidae Pure Wild Boar is 454Kcals per cup, the Pure Land is 474Kcals per cup….

My dog doesn’t really like fish either but loves Bison, lamb, kangaroo & pork, he can’t eat Chicken or fish, change meat protein to 1 novel protein, Lamb, Bison, Pork, Kangaroo see how he goes.. Pure Land is on page 2, Pure Wild is on page 3 scroll down read ingredients & see kibble size, you need a small size kibble so when the kibble swells it isn’t real big don’t over soak & leave kibble soaking in the water for too long, no over night soaking the kibble it will swell & become too big & fill with water 20mins just softens the kibble & make sure it’s not hard in the middle, just squeeze a few kibbles to make sure they’re all soft all the way thru, so he doesn’t catch on to what you’re doing these dogs are very smart, lol
I just remember what I did with my boy when his IBD was real bad, I soaked the kibbles till soft then I fully drained out all of the water they were soaking in, I cuffed my hand in the bowl & pushed hand against kibble in bowl & squeezed out the water in the soft kibbles, then I put the soft kibbles thru a blender & this broke the soft kibbles all up, then you can mix thru the wet tin food, does he like treats?? when you first get the bag of kibble put about 1 cup kibble in a air tight container & give a few kibbles to him as treats so he gets to likes them…

Sometimes when food has cause pain or some type of health problem, the dog becomes fussy cause the food has caused some discomfort, gas, wind pain, diarrhea, acid reflux, vomiting etc so now he see’s kibble as bad……or he’s a very smart dog & knows how kibble is made, LOL
https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products

[Susan]

Hi Jude,
once a dog has had Pancreatitis then he’ll need to be feed a lower fat diet, so he doesn’t have another Pancreatitis flare, stay under 15%-fat for raw wet diet, have you tried raw kangaroo?? Cats & dogs love Kangaroo it has a strong beefy taste & it’s very lean in fat & very healthy, you can get this brand in America, its called “Gourmet Game, Marco Meats, Kangaroo mince, here’s the link, scroll down to the bottom & it’s in the middle, Gourmet Game Marco meats is the only company in Australia that makes the human grade kangaroo & export all over the world… http://gourmetgame.com.au/products/kangaroo/

You’re better off making his raw diet, instead of buying a pet food pre-made raw unless it’s a small business that makes human grade raw for dogs, but they normally add grounded bones, my dogs Naturopath said no to the grounded bone for Patch he has IBD & Pancreatitis & she also said NO to the Pre-made raw dog food she said you don’t know what your getting & the fat % is way too high for his health problems….. are you adding anything else to his beef? you can add 1 crushed egg shell a day for calcium, give him a Krill Oil capsule for his Omega 3 fatty acids & in a few weeks try adding some broccoli, carrot, celery & apple, peel & de-seed fruit & vegetables cut up then put thru a blender stop just before it’s a pulp, you add 1-2 spoons of the veggie/fruit mix to 1 cup of beef meat or I froze 1-2 spoons of the veggie mix separate in ice cube tray & cover with cling wrap & thawed when I needed the fruit/veggie mix, I also froze the meat in sections separate, this way you’ll see if he eats his beef with some added pulped veggies/fruit mix.. or just added the grounded egg shell & give 1 krill oil capsule 3 times a week & see how he goes, don’t start adding too much to his diet at once, if something causes diarrhea or vomiting you won’t know what caused what….

Join this face book group “Canine Pancreatitis Support Group” Lisa who runs the group feeds her Pancreatitis dog a raw balanced diet, she may be able to help you add certain foods to balance his diet a bit better, you can buy “Balance It” they have Nutritionist vet as well & free recipes for some health problems but if the dog has too many health problems it doesn’t give any free recipes you have to contact Balance It vet nutritionist. https://secure.balanceit.com/

Even if you buy the pre-made raw dog food it has too many different ingredients & your dog will smell all the different smells & probably wont eat the pre made raw food, I don’t like the smell it didn’t smell like real raw, my cat wouldn’t touch the pre-made raw, I bought the Rabbit first then took it back & tried the Kangaroo she still would not touch it, now I just buy her the Aldis cat fresh raw mince, it’s Kangaroo mince & chicken liver & she loves it & it smells like proper raw meat should smell, I do live Australia & by-product kangaroo is in a few of our cheaper brand pet foods & she also eats her air dried raw “Ziwi Peak” air dried raw & dry kibble + I give the Green Lipped Mussel treats, try the K-9 Natural Green Lipped Mussels, mussels have what he needs for his joints, eyes, brain, skin & coat, Green Lipped Mussel is lean in fat & give about 2 freeze dried mussels as a daily treat, this way he’s trying different foods as a treat..so its special when given as a treat.

[Tyla M]

New question ….does anyone do homemade food or dehydrated raw or a mix of stuff? I’m starting to think I don’t want to do all dry kibble.

[lindsay h]

Hi guys, I have tried what feels like everything with my dog and I can only get him to eat wet food…while I don’t have a problem feeding him wet I contacted Blue Buffalo (one of the only foods he will touch) and they recommend mixing dry in to make sure he is getting enough nutrients but not a calorie overload…basically i called because their site recommended 1 – 1.5 cans per 10 pounds of body weight which sounded insane because he is 70 pounds and 1 can has 413 kcals. SO long story short are there any dry foods you all could recommend I could sneak in (he typically finds the dry and spits it out) that your picky eater loves …Please no chicken based foods as he has an allergy…..also we have tried 6 fish, nutrisource seafood select and an acacna fish based….no luck. I would so appreciate your help to make sure my baby is getting enough nutrients without having to throw so many cans of food at him a day. THANK YOU!!

[Susan]

Hi teagsmom,
why not feed wet tin food or cooked soft meals, even if its just 1 meal wet food then the other meal a kibble….. kibble is very hard to chew, the only kibble I know is small & very easy to digest & goes soft all the way thru when water is added is the “Canidae” Pure Meadow Senior but it’s Chicken, Chicken Meal Turkey Meal, Sweet potatoes…here’s Canidae’s site look at all their formula’s, there’s also their Pure Wild Boar, Pure Land, Pure Sea, Pure Sky all have no chicken, all Canidaes kibbles are very small & very easy to digest… https.www.canidae.com/dog-food/products
if you do feed a wet tin food, read the fat % & stay under 5%-fat, wet & raw pet foods aren’t converted to dry matter fat & protein, so 5%min fat is around 20%-25% max – fat if it were a kibble…

[Susan]

Hi Ginger,
Sorry its a long post but it’s hard to explain everything in 1-2 paragraphs hopefully some of this information will help your girls itchy skin…
Your girl sounds like my boy who will be 9 yrs old in November, he suffers with IBD, Pancreatitis, environment skin allergies & food sensitivities causing itchy smelly skin,paws, ears, gas & diarrhea, we thought he had diabetes a few months ago cause he was drinking & drinking water but blood test were all fine thank-god, I couldn’t handle another health problem, I feel so sorry for sick animals. 🙁
I wouldn’t try the Cytopoint injections with your dog yet, has your vet explained how Cytopoint works? My vet looked into the Cytopoint injections, she explained once you’ve given the injection it stays in the dogs system up to 6-8 weeks, so if it makes them ill there’s nothing that can be done to reverse any side effects cause Patch reacts to certain medications & it’s a newer drug we don’t have any real research results yet, after a couple of years vets will know more how dogs react that have certain health problems like our dogs have, when the dog is younger & heathier yes I think CADI is the best thing for itchy dogs better the Apoquel, now Apoquel has been out over a few years vets see all the side effects so in a few years when vets have used Cytopoint, they’ll know & can report any bad side effects if there are any?…

My vet said Apopuel doesn’t help when a dog has itchy skin from secondary Malassezia (Yeast) Dermatitis, Apoquel cannot resolve inflammation or treat yeast, she said Apoquel
has helped a few of her dog patients that have IBD but I was to scared to try Apoquel with Patch cause one of the side effects with Apoquel is nausea & vomiting, my vet did have a few dogs that become very sick while taking the Apoquel, so I changed his diet, bathed him weekly to wash off any allergens on his paws & body to relieve his itchy skin paws & I use creams. As they get older the allergies get worse..

They are finding Cytopoint works better then Apoquel for environment allergies & itchy skin, CADI blocks the receptors completely, where Apoquel blocks the reaction from the allergens receptors, there’s a good face book group to join “Dog issues, allergies and other information support group” with really good information about CADI & Apoquel.. a lady called Petra that runs the group can explain things better…

I would be changing her diet first, when my Patch was eating the Hills I/d wet & dry formula’s & other foods that had the ingredients he was sensitive too he got his red paws, smelly yeasty itchy skin & that’s only cause he’s a sensitive to the chicken, oats, barley tapioca, corn gluten meal in the I/d vet diet & other foods he was eating, once I remove these allergens he is OK thru the cooler Winter months then when Summer comes he gets his environment allergies so I bath more, I use hydrocortisone 1% cream to relieve the itch & feed treats that are high in omega 3 fatty acid like K-9 Natural freeze dried Green Lipped Mussels, ask your vet can your try the Royal Canine HP wet tin food the fat is 2.5% you’ll have to email or ring Royal Canine & ask them what is the max fat % when converted to dry mater?? it’s probably around 7-8% fat when converted to dry matter (Kibble fat), Hills have already converted all their wet tin foods on their internet site, I wish other pet food companies did the same cause people don’t no this & read 5%-fat on a wet tin foods or raw foods & think the fat % is low when 5% fat is around 20% fat when converted to dry matter, the Australian R/C HP is 3.5% in the wet tin food, when converted it was 13% fat, it has the omega 3 oils & everything needed for skin problems, or I’d say look at the R/C selected proteins formula’s PR-Rabbit & Potato or PD-Duck & Potato or PV-Venison & Potato but the R/C in the wet tin wet tin foods the fat is too high for Pancreatitis 4-5% when converted to dry matter is around 15-20% fat but the dry R/C select proteins kibbles are lower in fat at 10%max but your feed wet tin..

Have you joined the “Canine Pancreatitis Support ” Face Book group,
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1435920120029740/
join & look in their “Files” there’s 2 links “Low Fat Food” click on the first link & scroll down, all the low fat wet tin foods come up, on your right there’s the converted fat %, it’s been converted to dry matter fat % also read the ingredients in the Hills Wet tin food she is eating at the moment, try & avoid those some of those ingredients if you can, she is probably sensitive to a few ingredients in the I/d wet tin formula’s, that’s why I recommended the Royal Canine vet diet HP wet tin it’s a Hypoallergenic formula, your dog shouldn’t react & itch to any of the ingredients but Patch got acid reflux from the fish oil & his poos were soft but he always does softer poos when he eats wet tin foods, that’s why I feed 5 small meals a day 2 meals are cooked meal or a wet tin food & the other 3 meals are a kibble & his poos stay firm…
“Canidae” makes a really good small easy to digest grain free kibble, that’s low in fat 10.80%max called Canidae,Pure Meadow Senior grain free page 3 & Canidae Life Stages Platinum less active has grains page 4, https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products….
It can take anywhere from 1 day up to 6 weeks for a dog to react to an ingredient & start scratching get yeasty smell paws. ears, skin gas & sloppy poos….Patch only reacts 15-20mins after he eats chicken he starts itching & scratching, gets red paws but with some ingredients in a kibble he takes about 5-14 days to start reacting with smelly yeasty skin paws & ears, carrots cause itchy smell ears.
Look for proteins like Rabbit, Venison, Pork, Duck & kangaroo in wet grain free tin foods, kangaroo is a lean novel protein & your dog probably hasn’t eaten much of the Kangaroo before. Can your girl eat a kibble even if you only feed 1 of her meals kibble then the rest of her meals wet tin food.

[Melissa C]

Go to fromm’s website and you can get a buy one get one free coupon for their dry food.

[a c]

Susan,

Thank you for your reply. He is a 12 weeks old miniature schnauzer. He has no problem with Orijen puppy kibble. His stool is like toosie roll, solid but soft. 5 times a day. He is also getting Freshpet select chicken and turkey roll and little vegetable as topper. I just want to rotate him with some other quality puppy food.

Both Holistic Select g/f puppy kibble and Eagle Pack kibble have Carbs at 47-48% in dry matter. Wellness Core puppy has Protein at 40% in dry matter. I am looking for kibbles that’s not too much on one component.

Besides Freshpet select roll, I have not introduced any raw or can diet for him. I know most of the raw diet have pretty high fat. I have learned my lesson from my senior dog with pancreatitis history.

[Susan]

Hi ac,
can he handle the high protein at 36% min, if poos are sloppy then maybe reduce the fat % again, email Horizon ask for the max fat%, there’s also “Wellness Core” puppy & Wellness Core Small Breed for when he’s older, both Wellness formula’s have a bit less fat at 18% min normally it’s an extra 1-2 % extra for fat & protein, it depends on the brand, you’ll have to email Wellness to get the max fat %, Wellness also has their Wellness Complete grain free small breed formula’s the fat & protein is under 30% for dogs that can’t handle higher fat & protein,
Wellpet make Wellness, Holistic Select & Eagle Pack, Holistic Select has a small breed formula but I think it has healthy grains, it’s good to rotate kibbles, Wellness are pretty good they email back & answer all questions, another thing if you feed wet tin or raw food the fat % is higher then it says on the tin or raw packet, it needs to be converted to dry matter (Kibble), so when you see say 5%min fat on a wet tin or raw packet is around 20-26%max fat after being converted to dry matter, a lot of people don’t know this until their dog ends up with Pancreatitis or diarrhea…. I always feed wet tin foods that are around 2-4% fat…
What small breed do you have??
Here’s the Wellness link https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/natural-dog-food
Wellness have toppers, their TruFood freeze dried raw you add water, I think the fat has already been converted to dry matter fat%, you’d have to ask Wellness, it’s best to rotate between a few different brands with different proteins so your dog gets use to eating everything, rotating also strengthens their immune system….

[pugmomsandy]

Precise Lamb and Rice

http://precisepet.com/dog-formulas/precise/dry/lamb-meal-and-rice-sensicare/

Pulsar Chicken

http://horizonpetfood.com/index.php/pulsar/

[Patti M]

To all the parents having babies suffering from gulping. tongue smacking, vomitting, acid, upset esophagus, stomach & intestinal issues. Health food stores, definitely (GNC) sells
1. “George’s Pure Aloe Juice. It naturally neutralizes acids & heals all in its path.
2. “MANUKA HONEY” Is now
being used by veterinarians, giving
internally & using topically to kill all bad bacteria naturally, no resistance.
3. Virgin Coconut oil added to Small meals spaced, giving GF Performance, Limited Venison can, & pure pumpkin or sweet potato in between meals as a treat. Eventually you can Gradually add GF Performance Limitted dry also back into
their diet.
Good Luck to all, hoping these tips will be helpful.
God Bless.

[Allison L]

This food is amazing ..its a clean food with ingredients all sourced from Iceland and Italy ..what is has done for my 2 German Shepherds was a god send ..they were getting constant cysts and dry skin and their coat was dull and coarse ..they were on Taste of The Wild all their lives .
I will never change their diet from Legend Skin Formula ever ..

[Susan]

Hi Courtney,
I didn’t know that Canidae still use other pet food facilities to make & pack their kibbles, I wonder if the Canidae ingredients & kibbles that are made at the Diamond facility are getting tested like the Diamond pet foods are tested? watch this video http://www.tasteofthewild.com.au/quality-composition/food-safety/
it shows a Diamond plant, I don’t know which one it is, you’d have to email & ask Diamond where are their new facilities, there wouldn’t be too many pet food companies with state of the art facilities like Diamond has, Hills, Purina & Royal Canine probably have these big facilities but I don’t know if they have the latest technology, I like how the Diamond ingredients are tested before being cooked & after the batches are made they’re tested as well before leaving the facility & the water they use to make their pet foods is purified, so Diamond are making sure they won’t have any more problems with their pet foods, I prefer Canidae being made at a Diamond plant but I wonder which plant the Australian Canidae & Under The Sun formula’s are coming from? I’ll have to email Canidae & ask..
Canidae must be getting too many orders now & they can’t keep up with the demand.. I know in Australia people & pet shop owners started whinging cause Canidae kibbles were selling out very quickly, then you have to wait for another shipment to come, Canidae come the beginning of the new month, I contacted Canidae America & asked them what’s happening, Canidae said it’s the people in Australia that import Canidae they aren’t ordering enough for the demand in Australia, then Pet Shop owners started to stock the TOTW formula’s as well so people can change between the 2 brands if one has run out.. this is when Australian pet food manufactures heard about the demand for Canidae Pure formula’s & started to make Australian made high quality grain free dry kibble but the fat & protein is way too high for my boy & the lower fat & lower protein Australian made formula’s he didn’t do well on with his IBD..
My boy does best on Canidae formulas that are lower in fat-15% & protein-25% & I feed “Taste Of the Wild” Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb formula, TOTW seems to be the best for his IBD…

Don’t put all your eggs in 1 basket, find another brand that has around the same Kcals per cup as the Canidae has but has a different protein that she’s eating at the moment…Has she ever eaten a Kangaroo formula? Kangaroo is very healthy, lean & a clean meat, I saw a brand called “Wild Calling” Kangaroo formula.. Wild Calling seems to have the most Kangaroo in their Kangaroo formula, they use Kangaroo Meal, the other Kangaroo formula’s just had Kangaroo, no Kangaroo meal….

[Susan]

Hi Heather,
it’s best to email the pet food companies & the Vet diet companies when you need any information about their formula’s they will ring or email you back with crude fiber % soluble fiber % insoluble fiber % & dietary fiber % in their formula’s, a good pet food company like TOTW their a Vet Nutritionists will ring or email you back but I didn’t read anywhere that your dog needs more soluble fiber in his diet, it will depend on your dog like your vet has told you, it’s trial & error, if it was my dog, I’d be trying the wet tin vet diet first, all vet diets are money back guaranteed & you just bring back any un opened tins or the rest of the kibble back if poo’s don’t firm up within 2-5 days & the vet changes over to another vet diet till you find one that works, you don’t have to pay to see the vet again the vet nurse normally goes in & speaks with the vet then the vet either comes out to speak with you or the vet nurse recommends another vet diet for you to try… try the Hills Canine I/d Chicken & Vegetable Stew wet tin food first & use the Hills I/d Digestive Care kibble as treats only give 1/4 a cup kibble thru the day & see how his poos go next 2 days if they are OK then increase the I/D kibble.. that’s how I started with new kibbles with my boy years ago when I rescued him.
My boy did the best on the Hills D/D Venison & Potatoes vet diet, it has 1 single intact meat protein with limited ingredients, improves digestion & stool quality, it’s soy protein free, gluten & grain free, the protein % is low-18% the Hills I/d Digestive Care replaces nutrients your dog has lost & has B vitamins & electrolytes your dog needs at the moment…. my boy gets bad overgrowth bacteria in the gut & small bowel, vomiting, nausea & pain… I tried the Hills I/d Digestive care kibble, he seem to be doing really well the first 5-6 days, it did what it says on the front of the kibble bag “it will firm stools within 3 days” BUT after 6 days my boy started to react to the poor ingredients & started doing yellow sloppy poo’s, all the fermentable grains made his bad bacteria breed & take over his stomach & bowel again, I took the Hills I/d bag of kibble back & got a refund, I bought a bag of the “Taste Of the Wild” Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb what was recommended to me on a EPI group & IBD dogs face book groups & my boy has been doing firm perfect poos now for over 1 yr, a lot of dogs with EPI, S.I.B.O, IBD, Diarrhea do really well on the TOTW formula, there’s also a wet tin in the Sierra Mountain, I don’t know if it’s the probiotics or the purified water they use but something in the TOTW formula helps dogs that have Intestinal stress, I know a lot of people don’t like Diamond & knock Diamond but every new batch of TOTW gets tested after being packed in the kibble bags & tins before it leaves the plant, my boy has never gotten diarrhea or sick while he’s been on the TOTW Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb formula…
Please make sure the course of antibiotics your dog is taking is for 14-21 days give the antibiotics every 12 hours with a meal do not stop the course till it’s finished….

Zignature is best for dog with food intolerances/sensitivities to certain ingredients, I’ve never seen Zignature on any of the IBD or EPI groups I belong too being feed for intestinal problems, Zignature is very pea heavy, chick pea heavy these ingredients can cause bad wind & gas in the bowel… go back to your vets office & ask the vet nurse to try at wet tin & dry Vet Diet before you try the Zignature, then once your dog has been on a vet diet for 6-9 months & the bowel has healed then maybe start slowly introducing a single low protein, limited ingredient formula & make sure you give a probiotic after he has finishes the antibiotics or give probiotic 3 hours before or after giving the antibiotics or give Kefir… you need to take baby steps with dogs who have intestinal problems.

[Susan]

Heather
if you need fiber % it’s best to email the pet food companies & the Vet diet companies & they will email you the crude fiber %, the soluble fiber % the insoluble fiber %, the dietary fiber% & in their foods, but I have never read anywhere that your dog needs more soluble fiber in his diet, it will depend on your dog like your vet has told you, it’s trial & error, if it was my dog, I’d be trying the wet tin vet diet first, all vet diets are money back guaranteed & you just bring back any un opened tins or the rest of the kibble back if poo’s don’t firm up within 2-5 days & the vet changes over to another vet diet till you find one that works, you don’t have to pay to see the vet again the vet nurse normally goes in & speaks with the vet then the vet either comes out to speak with you or the vet nurse recommends another vet diet for you to try… try the Hills Canine I/d Chicken & Vegetable Stew wet tin food first & use the Hills I/d Digestive Care kibble as treats only give 1/4 a cup kibble thru the day & see how his poos go next 2 days if they are OK then increase the I/D kibble.. that’s how I started with new kibbles with my boy years ago when I rescued him.
My boy did the best on the Hills D/D Venison & Potatoes vet diet, it has 1 single intact meat protein with limited ingredients, improves digestion & stool quality, it’s soy protein free, gluten & grain free, the protein % is low-18% the Hills I/d Digestive Care replaces nutrients your dog has lost & has B vitamins & electrolytes your dog needs at the moment…. my boy gets bad overgrowth bacteria in the gut & small bowel, vomiting, nausea & pain… I tried the Hills I/d Digestive care kibble, he seem to be doing really well the first 5-6 days, it did what it says on the front of the kibble bag “it will firm stools within 3 days” BUT after 6 days my boy started to react to the poor ingredients & started doing yellow sloppy poo’s, all the fermentable grains made his bad bacteria breed & take over his stomach & bowel again, I took the Hills I/d bag of kibble back & got a refund, I bought a bag of the “Taste Of the Wild” Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb what was recommended to me on a EPI group & IBD dogs face book groups & my boy has been doing firm perfect poos now for over 1 yr, a lot of dogs with EPI, S.I.B.O, IBD, Diarrhea do really well on the TOTW formula, there’s also a wet tin in the Sierra Mountain, I don’t know if it’s the probiotics or the purified water they use but something in the TOTW formula helps dogs that have Intestinal stress, I know a lot of people don’t like Diamond & knock Diamond but every new batch of TOTW gets tested after being packed in the kibble bags & tins before it leaves the plant, my boy has never gotten diarrhea or sick while he’s been on the TOTW Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb formula…
Please make sure the course of antibiotics your dog is taking is for 14-21 days give the antibiotics every 12 hours with a meal do not stop the course till it’s finished….

Zignature is best for dog with food intolerances/sensitivities to certain ingredients, I’ve never seen Zignature on any of the IBD or EPI groups I belong too being feed for intestinal problems, Zignature is very pea heavy, chick pea heavy these ingredients can cause bad wind & gas in the bowel… go back to your vets office & ask the vet nurse to try at wet tin & dry Vet Diet before you try the Zignature, then once your dog has been on a vet diet for 6-9 months & the bowel has healed then maybe start slowly introducing a single low protein, limited ingredient formula & make sure you give a probiotic after he has finishes the antibiotics or give probiotic 3 hours before or after giving the antibiotics or give Kefir… you need to take baby steps with dogs who have intestinal problems.

[Susan]

Hi Christine,
The wet tin Hills C/d formula has OK ingredients so maybe feed the Hills C/d wet tin formula & cook & freeze the other meals….
Here’s the “Balance It” site https://www.secure.balanceit.com. you add the Balance it powder to balance cook meals..
click on “Get Started Click here” & click on your dogs health problems & homemade recipes will come up..
Have you looked for wet & dry foods that are low in Phosphorus? that’s what I’d be doing & asking people what brands are they feeding…read what the phosphorus % is in the vet & dry formula’s your feeding, if you have the money get a vet nutritionist to make a diet for your girl it shouldn’t be that expensive & join “K-9 Kitchen” on Face Book, its Monica Segal’s site she often post & helps people with their pets health problem…

[Susan]

Hi LISA P,
this post is long, it’s too hard explaining everything in just 1-2 paragraph post, start feeding a diet that has just 1 protein & limited ingredients, less ingredients are best while you work out what foods are causing the bad gas & bloating, sounds like your boy might have IBS or IBD being 7 yrs old it’s probably IBD, you need to see a vet that specializes in IBD, the only true way to diagnosed IBD is biopsies either thru Endoscope or cut him open, I will not let Patches knife happy vet cut my Patch open, 2014 vet did Endoscope thru the throat
& biopsies, if the pyloric sphincter flap from the stomach to the small bowel is open they can go thru into the small bowel & get a biopsies as well, you need the biopsies cause Patches stomach looked excellent then the biopsies results came back he has Helicobacter-Pylori & IBD but I don’t know what type of IBD the results said he need further investigation, even if I knew what type of IBD I asked my vet, would you do anything different in medications? she said no we’ll just have a name of the type of IBD he has…
Patch was getting the rumbling & grumbling bowel noises early hours of a morning when I first rescued him, we found out he has food intolerances to certain foods, this is what your boy probably has too food sensitivities, most vet diets for Intestinal stress have the foods Patch can’t eat, I have found kibbles & cooked meals that have sweet potato, egg, potato & a little bit of peas work the best for Intestinal stress, stay away from fermentable carbohydrates, ingredients that ferment in the stomach & bowel like rice, barley, oats, beet pulp, soybeans, legumes, no ingredients that are hard to digest like Chick Peas, lentils they can cause wind/gas…
The Ziwi Peak he ate was it the wet or air dry Ziwi Peak cause Ziwi Peak have changed their formula’s & have added chickpeas to the wet tin formula’s.

The vet would have prescribed your boy Metronidazole, was he better while taking the Metronidazole?? sometimes dogs are kept on a low dose of Metronidazole it stops the bad bacteria from taking over stomach bowel & has anti inflammatory properties that helps with any inflammation of the stomach & bowel, Patches vet writes out a repeat script of the Metronidazole I can take to a chemist & take out & when I noticed Patch doing smelly farts, whinging & wanting me to rub stomach & Pancreas area & or starts doing sloppy poos for 2 days straight & start him on the Metronidazole for 10-14 days straight away before he has a IBD flare & gets real bad….

Have you looked at cooking his meals or I feed kibble for some of his meals & cooked meals for the other meals, Patch eats 5 smaller meals a day this has helped heaps when his stomach & Pancreas isn’t working properly its easier to digest smaller meals then to digest 2 bigger meals….Patch was the same pain in the Pancreas stomach area blood test say Pancreas was OK even ultra scan said the pancreas looks good, so his vet said it’s his IBD & I put him back on the Metronidazole again & it seems to help him & I feed his TOTW Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb kibble & don’t give anything else cause I know the TOTW kibble is very easy to digest…

Have a look at “Canidae” Pure Meadow Senior the fat is low at 10.8% max, I’ve emailed Canidae to find out the max fat %, the protein is 28%, it has limited ingredients, but cause it has chicken Patch gets his red paws then starts getting itchy cause he’s sensitive to chicken but he did really well when on the Canidae just wish they didn’t use the chicken & I feed “Taste Of the Wild” Sierra Mountain, Roasted Lamb kibble it just has 1 protein Lamb & has limited ingredients, sweet potatoes, egg, potato & peas & I was feeding the Hills I/d Chicken & Vegetable Stew but then I realized the new formula has beet pulp & Patch didn’t really want to eat it no more, he had his red, I was taken out the rice & carrots, he can’t eat boiled rice it irritates his bowel causing sloppy poo’s….
I have found when Patch gets a rumbling grumbling bowel I give him 1 teaspoon – 5ml of liquid Mylanta that I keep in the fridge, when the Mylanta is cold it soothes the throat & stomach & it stops the gas rumbling thru the bowel also dry toast only use white bread the toast helps relieve the grumbling bowel & Patch finally goes to sleep, but since I’ve worked out what foods he’s sensitive too he hasn’t had his rumbling bowel…
Your best to do a cooked elimination diet, add 1 new ingredient every 6 weeks & see does he react to that ingredient & get bad wind pain & bloat up, it can take 1 day to 6 weeks to react to an ingredient in a kibble or wet tin cooked food or feed a vet diet like the Hills D/D Venison & Potatoes as long as you know your boy is OK with venison & potato, the D/D has just potato & venison, it has no beet pulp, no peas, no soy protein, it’s grain free, gluten free & high in omega 3 fatty acids what’s needed for the stomach & bowel to heal, Patch does OK when he eats the D/D Venison formula, I rotate between the TOTW Lamb breakfast & the D/D Venison for lunch then TOTW for his 2 dinners, When a dog eats the same diet for years & years then sometimes they start to react to 1 or 2 ingredients this is why I always tell people to rotate between different brand kibbles with different proteins & add cooked fresh ingredients to your dogs diet…Vet diets are good to get the dog stable then you start to work out a new diet for your dog……
Is he doing real well on the Vet diet he’s eating at the moment which formula is it?? Patch hasn’t done well on any of the Hills I/d vet diets, he did Ok on the I/d Digestive Care kibble & the I’d Chicken & vegetable stew wet tin but after 1 week eating the I/d kibble his poos when sloppy & he started getting gas & bad farts then he started to itch, the Hills D/D Venison + potato is the first vet diet he’s doing OK on & it helps with his skin allergies no red paws & also helps with his IBD, it’s also lower in protein-19% the fat is 16% its does cause some acid reflux sometimes so I feed the TOTW for all the other meals for that day & only a small meal of the D/D venison for lunch he really likes it….

Here’s “Balance It” site, https://secure.balanceit.com/ there are recipes on this site & then you add the Balance it powder to balance the meals also have you tried giving a probiotic? Purina Forti Floria is suppose to be a good dog probiotic & when it was tested it had live bacteria & made it on the best 10 dogs probiotic list, I give Patch some of my Yakult probiotic drink, also only change or add 1 thing at a time in a week in his diet so if he gets pain, gas bloating diarrhea you know what caused the problem if you start a few things at once & he reacts you wont know what caused what….

Your boy is only 7 yrs old, he’ll bounce back, start to read the signs & rub his stomach & bowel area & help push out any of the wind he might have my boy is very vocal & tells me straight away when something is wrong, his vet said she has never seen a dog that can understand everything we are saying & talks back…. Hopefully in 1 yr you’ll have his diet all worked out & know what he can & can’t eat & he’ll be doing real well once you work out his diet also be careful with treats, Canidae make healthy biscuit treats limited ingredients, the Canidae Pure Meadow Senior kibble is on page 3 ….just remember when introducing any new formula’s do it very slowly over 12-15 days so he doesn’t get any gas wind pain…
https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products

[Susan]

Hi Natalie,
I think no matter how many different foods you try your going to need a course of Metronidazole (Flagyl)….also I think poor Charlie needs to see a different vet, not the vet he’s been seeing in the past that said he’s healthy, did this vet test Charlie for giardia, he may have a parasite living in the bowel, vet should of tested 2 separate poos to see if he has Giardia or he may have Small Bowel Intestinal Overgrowth (S.B.I.O) sloppy poos will be baby yellow in colour, SIBO needs Metronidazole for 28 days sometimes vet only gives a 14 day course of the Metro & don’t give enough of the Metro & the SIBO comes back again in a few months or Charlie may have food sensitivities but if he has gotten better while eating the same food & you haven’t change his food & he gets diarrhea again then it’s not the food, you can try & try different foods but you need to get to the root of the problem & do tests if after doing test & vet has no answers then ask to test for EPI… also he may need weekly vitamin B-12 injections he may be low in vitamin B-12 this can cause problems with the digestive system…
The Hills I/d Digestive Care has electrolytes & B vitamins to help him get better + give the Metronidazole, the Metronidazole is an antibiotic & has anti inflammatory properties that heal the bowel, some dogs & cats have to take a low dose & stay on the Metronidazole long term I prefer to give the Metronidazole on & off, Patch starts having side effects & starts acting paranoid & scared of his own shadow…..
The foods you have tried have they been a single novel protein, limited ingredient, low protein, low fat, low Kcal per cup kibble or wet tin food?? “Taste Of the Wild” Sierra Mountain, Roasted Lamb is really good for dogs with Intestinal stress or “Natural Balance” limited ingredient Sweet Potato Bison kibble these kibbles don’t have any chickpeas or lentils & are not real high in protein or fat, but a vet diet will be the best to start off with & let his stomach & bowel rest & heal, Patch stayed on Eukanuba Intestinal low residue vet diet for 9-12months while his bowel healed then I started introducing a new kibble that was low fat, low protein with limited ingredients introducing slowly over 15-30 days then if poos went sloppy I’d put him straight back onto the vet diet, my vet writes me out a repeat script of Metronidazole 200mg x 21 tablets that I can get from a chemist this works out cheaper when Patch starts doing sloppy poos, I wait 2 days & if poos don’t get firm again & are still sloppy, if poo is yellow it’s the small bowel if real dark brown/black cow pattie poo’s it’s the large Bowel, he gets put straight on the Metronidazole for 14 days every 12 hours with a meal before he gets worse & has a IBD flare then it’s not as easy to fix his sloppy poo’s they can go for months…. boiled rice irritates Patches bowel & gives him sloppy poo’s, took the vet a while to click that the cooked rice in a vet diet wet tin food was causing Patches poo’s to stay real sloppy…. best to cook a lean meat + boiled potato is better then boiled rice..
or can you ask a vet can he put him straight on the Metronidazole (Flagyl) a 21 day course & get a bag of the Hills I/d Digestive Care dry vet diet & see if diarrhea stops & he does firm poos & stay on the Hills I/d Digestive Care vet diet over 6 months, it might work out a bit cheaper without any test, around $100 that’s what first vet did with my Patch put him on Royal Canine Intestinal low fat vet diet & a course of Metronidazole & Electrolytes the problem was Patch has bad bacteria in the stomach & bowel + food intolerances.
When you say he puts his bum in the air this could be Pancreatitis pain or whatever he has eaten is causing wind/gas pain in the bowel… Keep a diary & write everything down, meds he’s taken, foods he ate & what happened…. I also live in a unit & I have Patch in a routine, we go on 3 daily walks for poo’s same time everyday 7.30am, 10am & 5pm & in between Patch goes down stairs & does his wee’s in the common garden area….it’s hard but you’ll work it out in the end..

[Susan]

Hi Linda,
is Hagen a small breed? I looked up the Hills t/d Dental Health, it’s low in protein 17.2% & fat is 16.7% & is very high in crude fiber at 10.4%, the high fiber might be making him poo more, his normally diet probably isn’t as high in fiber, I stay around 4-5%max for crude fiber, Hagen normal diet is probably higher protein diet with higher Kcals per cup then the Hills vet diet is…..or he may need to be on the Metronidazole a bit longer, 21 day course is normally the best when they have had a bout of diarrhea & a bit older… has Hagens poo’s stayed firm since stopping the Metronidazole?
I’d still be giving him a probiotic, you can give kefir instead, I give Patch the Human “Yakult” probiotic drinks, I have 1 everyday & Patch gets some as well..
Your vet should have put your boy on the Hills I/d Digestive Care dry kibble, the dry I/d Digestive formula is high in electrolytes & vitamin B, has ingredients that are suppose to improve digestion & should make Hagen’s poos smaller & less pooing times, I found the Hills I/d Digestive Care Chicken & Vegetable stew was the better out of all the I/d formula’s, there’s a few different I/d formula’s, the normal I/d Digestive Care wet tin loaf formula made Patches IBD worse, some of these vet diets don’t work for some dogs Gi problems, the Vet diets never seem to help Patches IBD, his skin problems became worse…make sure you write down the vet formula’s Hagen was put on so you remember next time if vet prescribes them again….that’s why I asked is Hagen a small breed with teeth problems for his vet to put him on the Hills T/d formula??

The Hills Metabolic & Mobility dry & wet formula would have been another good vet diet for Hagen to eat being 11 & 1/2 yrs old, the Hills Metabolic & Mobility dry & wet tin food is higher in protein & has better ingredients then the Hills T/d Dental Health formula.

Have you looked at the Canidae Pure Meadow Senior, the protein is around 28% & fat is 10.80%max, Canidae Pure formula’s are excellent for dogs with Gi problems, the Pure Meadow Senior is on page 3….
https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products

If you Hagen keeps having Intestinal stress on & off then the “Taste Of The Wild” Sierra Mountain, Roasted Lamb formula is excellent for Gi problems, it has only 1 protein Lamb & has limited ingredients sweet potatoes, egg & potato, it has the matching wet tin food as well, Patch does excellent size poo’s & poo’s on time everyday when eating the TOTW & Canidae formula’s….

[Christine C]

My dog has a history of getting crystals in her urine and our vet has always just given us antibiotics. She is currently on the the hills C/D urinary dry + canned food and this has helped her urine problem; however, the cost has been a big burden. I was shocked to see the ingredients in it and wouldn’t making homemade obviously be healthier? I would like to start making my own dog food, but I’m not sure if this would be the best option. I do not want to rely on the vet because they obviously would go against it and are money hungry. I have been reading other forums and many dog owners seem to feed their pets cranberry supplements? What are your thoughts on this and getting off of the prescription diet? Also how do I get my dog to drink more water?

[Linda C]

Hi everyone, so let me give you as short a background as I can….

Hagen is an 11 1/2 year old dog who has been generally healthy until he was diagnosed with a massive brain tumor in 08/16. He had 3 grand mal seizures in a 12 hour period which led to the scan which discovered the tumor. He was only given a few weeks to live, we opted for surgery, and it was successful. He does however have resulting left side neurological deficiencies and is on medication for the rest of his life. He is generally happy and healthy all things considered and isn’t in pain or anything like that.

He has generally always eaten Merrick Grain Free dry food, with occasional mixed-in items such as cooked chicken. A couple of weeks ago he had 4-5 days of diarrhea, it would get better, then start up again… he stopped eating and literally ate *nothing* for 3 1/2 days. He actually lost 20% of his body weight in about 7 days. He wouldn’t even drink water and we had to feed him and give him water with a syringe.

The morning that we took him to the vet he actually ate a few bites of food and drank water on his own and so we felt like he was already on the road to recovery. The vet prescribed metronidazole and FortiFlora… and recommended Science Diet Oral Care DRY food and Hill’s Prescription Diet i/d digestive care WET food. She basically said they tasted really good and would entice him to start eating again, which they did… I started giving him the dry food mixed with a spoon or so of the wet food and the FortiFlora (once a day) and he started eating again the same day….

So it has now been about 10 days, the problem is, he is eating like a beast… I tried feeding him the same quantity of this new food as I fed the Merrick and he acts like he is dying from hunger and begs for more, he paces and paws and starts whining etc… also he has started pushing the other dogs away from their food and taking it, so now I’ve had to start feeding him separately. You know how if you have a dog who loves cat food and they accidently get at the cat food and they start gobbling it down like their life depended on it because they know you are going to catch them? THAT is how he is eating.

Also, his poop is a LOT more… like, he’s eating more, but I feel like he is pooping a LOT more than what he is eating, I don’t even know if thats possible. Also, its like he is pooping all day long. Where he used to go usually twice a day like clockwork, now he goes every time he goes out. Which would be fine except………

He is now eating his poop. He never did this before. He acts like its super candy. I always pick it up, but sometimes I like to let them run around in the yard while I’m cooking etc (I can watch them from the window which overlooks the yard) so sometimes I can’t get there fast enough…

I discontinued the FortiFlora several days ago, also discontinued the metronidazole several days ago… I also stopped giving him the wet food, and now he is ONLY having the Science Diet Oral Care DRY food… I did some research on it and honestly it looks like a pretty crappy dog food… I’m not comfortable feeding him that long term… Again, he never had this crazy appetite before, and he never ate his poop before…

So, what I’m wondering is, is this related to the quality of the dry food? His poop used to be small and compact and more solid, this poop is huge and moist and just a lot more volume (sorry LOL)….

I’m going to switch him back to the Merrick Grain Free and I’m HOPING this will put things back to normal again………… Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[Christine C]

My dog has a history of getting urinary infections/crystals found in her urine. She is on the Hills C/D urinary dry and canned food but we want to get her off of it because of the cost and she does not enjoy her food. Is it safe to do this as long as shes getting the proper nutrients? I am also thinking of starting to feed her cranberry supplements

[Christine C]

My dog has a history of getting crystals in her urine and our vet has always just given us antibiotics. We feed her the hills C/D urinary dry + canned food and this has helped her urine problem but we want to get her off of it. This has been a huge burden on our family due to the expensive cost and I really want to start making my own dog food because it really seems to be the most healthy. I do not want to rely on the vet because they seem to just want to make money off of us. I have been reading other forums and many dog owners seem to feed their pets cranberry supplements? What are your thoughts on this and getting off of the prescription diet? Thank you!!

• This topic was modified 8 years, 8 months ago by Christine C.

[Susan]

Hi Steve,
the only way to know how these animals died & how the pet food is being made is buy free range organic ethically farmed meat & veggies & make your own pet meals….
If you lived in Australia we have a new ethically farmed pet food called “Frontier Pets”, the pigs, chickens & beef all run free & are feed a healthy diet, they live a pretty good life…Here’s “Frontier Pet Food” web page https://frontierpets.com.au/pages/our-purpose
There must be a few companies like our Frontier pets but in America… send Frontier Pets a email the lady will email you back & answer all your questions, ask does she know of another pet food company like her Frontier Pets but in America or Canada, she has just started & would of done a heap of research, so she may have come across another ethically farmed pet food company in America….

There’s “Ziwi Peak” an New Zealand pet food company who make high quality pet foods your dogs will love their air dried pet food & their wet tin foods, https://www.ziwipets.com/
there’s also “K-9 Natural” another NZ made pet food you add water I buy their Green Lipped Mussels. https://www.k9natural.co.nz/
Ziwi Peak & K-9 Naturals are both sold in America.
There’s “Honest Kitchen” you can use their base formula’s & add your own organic meat or buy the HK formula’s where you just add water….
There’s “Just Food For Dogs” they make pet food for dogs with certain health problems they may make an small breed all life stages formula, send them an email.. https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/vet-support-diets

Do you realise when you read the fat% & protein% on wet raw foods it hasn’t been converted to dry matter basis (kibble) yet, here’s a calculator, save this link so you can convert & know how high the fat % is in wet tin, raw food your feeding…. 5% min-fat when converted to dry matter is around 20-25%max-fat. http://www.k-9kraving.com/resources/calculator.php

Once you have found a few pet foods introduce them & make sure you rotate between 2-3 different brands so your dogs are getting a variety of different pet foods so if one of these pet foods isn’t balanced properly or has toxins etc your dogs aren’t eating the same pet food 24/7 here’s “Clean Label Project” site, this is the first year CLP has tested pet foods for toxin’s, CLP tested the most popular pet foods for lead, arsenic, pesticides, mercury, cadmium, BPA you can see which wet pet foods made the good list & the worst list…..click on “Product Ratings” up the top..
I and Love and You, Dog for Dog, Wellness, SmallBatch Pets & Stella & Chewy got 5 stars in the wet tin foods section…the fish formula’s seem to be worse & turkey & chicken formula’s rate the best. http://www.cleanlabelproject.org/product-ratings/pet-food/

[Caroline C]

Looks like Chewy.com has finally decided to drop ACANA and Orijen foods. Thank goodness. My dog is in kidney failure due to ACANA’s Wild Atlantic dry kibble. Their fish based dog foods should all be recalled. I contacted Chewy.com in early June imploring them to do testing on their own of a specific lot, 3002505-62212. This is an email I received this morning from Chewy.com. The spin on it indicates that Champion Pet Foods is actually the one pulling the food from Chewy.com. Either way, it is a good thing for pets. ACANA and Orijen is poisoning our pets.
————————————————————————————————————————-

I’m sorry to let you know that Champion Pet Foods, makers of Orijen and ACANA, will no longer be available at Chewy and will only be available while supplies last. Champion has decided to limit their distribution and will no longer service Chewy customers.
I am very disappointed by Champion’s decision to end their retail partnership with us because it greatly impacts you, our customer. Their business decision to limit distribution was clearly not in the best interest of customers like you, who have come to rely on Chewy to feed your furry family.
When I founded our company my mission was simple, deliver the highest quality products at the best prices and provide an unmatched customer experience. We have always put our customers and their pets at the center of everything we do. That’s why we have the most knowledgeable customer service representatives in the industry dedicated to providing best-in-class customer service and adding personal touches to online shopping with handwritten cards and hand-painted portraits of your pets.
It’s particularly upsetting that despite all of my company’s efforts and personal relationships throughout the years, Champion has decided that they will no longer service our customers.
I urge all customers who are affected by this to personally contact Champion directly to let them know you rely on the convenience of delivery and value the personalized service you receive from Chewy. Unfortunately, for many of you this decision will result in your inability to get these products in a convenient way. Please encourage Champion not to put their corporate interests above the interests of their customers and their pets.
Call
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[Susan]

Hi Christie,
I understand your frustration, this is why I always stick with the same vet that I like the best, this way the vet gets to know your dog & forms a bond, stick with the vet that listened to you & goes out of their way to help with diets & orders in other vet diet brands if needed…..
Normally the dog is put on antibiotics 14 days & put on a vet diet either the Royal Canine S/O Urinary or the Hills C/d Multicare dry & wet for just 6 weeks, feed no other foods or treats in this time, the crystals normally dissolve & go away by the 6 week period & then the vet does another Ultra scan to confirm that the crystals have all dissolved, that’s what happened with my boy… The Hills C/D Multicare wet & dry formula has the best ingredients when you look at all the vet diets…..after the crystals have dissolved there’s the Hills W/d wet tin Vet Diet, it’s low in fat & low protein, excellent for keeping off the weight & promotes healthy Urinary tract health.. but it does have grains, just keep it in mind….Hills have been improving most of their vet diets & regular pet foods, probably cause sales dropped so they hoped on the better ingredient wagon….

I would join the “Canine Kidney Disease Support” Facebook group & ask people what did they feed their dogs after the crystals were dissolved, to prevent them re occurring, you can make appointment with a nutritionist, she can make a special diet for your mums dog that she can cook….
There’s Dave’s Restricted Low Protein & Low Phosphorus grain free wet tin diet food, I don’t know if this formula will dissolved the crystals or it’s for dogs that need a lower protein phosphorus diet to prevent crystals coming back & ok to feed after the crystals have all dissolved, you’ll have to email Dave’s Pet Food & ask, that’s what I do, I email whoever makes the pet food & ask 100 questions… you can also email Hills & Royal Canine & a Vet Nutritionist will ring you back & give advise, you could ask what foods can be added to the vet diet to encourage your mums dog eat the vet diet….
Just make sure when your mums dog is weeing, wee is coming out, you don’t want a blockage… http://davespetfood.com/product/%ef%bb%bfrestricted-diet-protein-phosphorus-chicken-dinner-dogs-13-oz-can/

[Susan]

Hi Christie,
I understand your frustration, this is why I always stick with the same vet that I like the best, this way the vet gets to know your dog & forms a bond, stick with the vet that listened to you & goes out of their way to help with diets & orders in other vet diet brands if needed…..
Normally the dog is put on antibiotics 14 days & put on a vet diet either the Royal Canine S/O Urinary or the Hills C/d Multicare dry & wet for just 6 weeks, feed no other foods or treats in this time, the crystals normally dissolve & go away by the 6 week period & then the vet does another Ultra scan to confirm that the crystals have all dissolved, that’s what happened with my boy… The Hills C/D Multicare wet & dry formula has the best ingredients when you look at all the vet diets…..after the crystals have dissolved there’s the Hills W/d wet tin Vet Diet, it’s low in fat & low protein, excellent for keeping off the weight & promotes healthy Urinary tract health.. but it does have grains, just keep it in mind….Hills have been improving most of their vet diets & regular pet foods, probably cause sales dropped so they hoped on the better ingredient wagon….

I would join the “Canine Kidney Disease Support” Facebook group & ask people what did they feed their dogs after the crystals were dissolved, to prevent them re occurring, you can make appointment with a nutritionist, she can make a special diet for your mums dog….
There’s Dave’s Restricted Low Protein & Low Phosphorus grain free wet tin diet food, I don’t know if this formula will dissolved the crystals or it’s for dogs that need a lower protein phosphorus diet to prevent crystals coming back & ok to feed after the crystals have all dissolved, you’ll have to email Dave’s Pet Food & ask, that’s what I do, I email whoever makes the pet food & ask 100 questions… you can also email Hills & Royal Canine & a Vet Nutritionist will ring you back & give advise, you could ask what foods can be added to the vet diet to encourage your mums dog eat the vet diet….
Just make sure when your mums dog is weeing, wee is coming out, you don’t want a blockage… http://davespetfood.com/product/%ef%bb%bfrestricted-diet-protein-phosphorus-chicken-dinner-dogs-13-oz-can/

[pitlove]

Hi Michael-

The protein % on raw or fresh cooked foods is not converted to dry matter. Once converted the 12% protein is much much higher.

Here is a good article on here about how to convert to dry matter and what it means

/choosing-dog-food/dry-matter-basis/

[Susan]

Hi Michael,
These home made raw diets are the rage in Australia, the smaller pet shops have their own home made raw diets, where the bigger Pet food companies sell the commercial raw diets like Barf & Big Dog.. I’d stay away from the bigger raw companies the meat is lower grade…. is the Farmer Dog diet a cooked or raw diet?? wet tin & raw diets have not been converted to dry matter (Kibble) ….. Email the pet food companies & ask what is the fat % & protein % after being converted to dry matter, the protein is going to be around 40% & more being 12%-raw…. Just be careful with higher fat as dogs get older especially if your dog is prone to Pancreatitis….My boy is 8yrs old with IBD/Pancreatitis & I stay around 15% & under for fat when eating a kibble & it’s hard finding a pre made raw diet around 3-4% raw fat = 12-15%dry, unless I make it myself, it depends on the brand, Kangaroo & turkey formula’s are around 3-4%-fat raw, converted to dry matter (Kibble) that’s around 11-16%-fat…. your dog may be OK with fat around 5%-raw = 20-25% converted to dry matter, look what the fat % is in the dry kibble he eats, it’s probably around 12-15% in fat, so now you need a raw diet where the fat says 3-4% & then slowly increase to a higher fat %, first see if he’s OK eating the new raw diet, I started feeding my boy freshly home made raw for breakfast & I was still feeding him his kibble for dinner, the kibble keeps them feeling fuller longer & when they start eating a raw diet they get hungry quicker, your boy may lose a little weight when he starts the raw diet, but that’s a good thing, then you just increase the raw if he losses too much weight, your going to have a healthier dog being feed raw…..
It’s best to join a few raw feeding face book groups like “K9 Nutrition” – Lew Olson’s group & “K9 Kitchen” – Monica Segal’s group they have fresh home made raw & cooked diets & you’ll learn how balance & make your own home made diets with fresh human grade ingredients also follow Rodney Habib…

[Christie]

Ok sorry for the delay in responding. My mother’s dog had her follow up appointment with the vet on Wednesday.

To answer some of the questions: yes, the vet put her on prescribed antibiotics. However, the vet she saw this time around was a different person than the one two weeks ago. This vet said that the dog should have been put on antibiotics for two weeks instead of one week than the other vet prescribed. He also said that the other vet should have given the prescription food at the same time as the antibiotics to help dissolve the struvite crystals, while the antibiotics worked against the infection. So that was strike two.

He prescribed another week’s worth of antibiotics and gave my mother a week’s worth of Hills canned S/D food.

The dog won’t touch it. My mother asked if she could mix it with some of her old food (Fromm’s Weight management dry) or with plain boiled chicken and the vet said no.

So the dog hasn’t eaten and she vomited up her meds yesterday (probably because of the empty stomach). So I did some research online and apparently Hills S/D is nasty and not well liked/tolerated by dogs. The ingredients are horrible: Water, Corn Starch, Chicken Fat, Pork Liver, Sugar, Egg Product, Powdered Cellulose, Iodized Salt… and the texture is nasty (white chunks that my mother had to add water to just to break it up some (what kind of canned food has a consistency like that?) So my research led to a few forums where people were able to get their dogs to eat Royal Canin SO formula (which is basically the same. The ingredients are slightly better: water, chicken liver, corn grits, pork by-product, chicken, chicknen by-product…).

My mother called up the vet today and asked about changing the food to Royal Canin. He said that their food is terrible. He said that he would allow her to return the unopened Hills cans and wants to try Hills C/D formula. But I’ve read plenty of reviews from people who have the same issue with their dogs not wanting to touch that one either.

I read over the urinalysis taken two weeks ago ans the dog’s pH was high at 7.5 and the protein level was high. WBC and RBC were both high, but that was due to the infection and blood in the urine. It showed 11-20 struvite crystals.

The vet thinks that since it’s the first time that this has happened (she’s two years old) that the crystals could have been attributed to diet rather than genetics. She was on Fromm’s Weight Management dry formula because she’s about 5-10 pounds overweight. Prior to that, she was eating Purina One dry.

The vet seems fixated on using Hills (which is what they sell at their office), and if the dogs eats it, fine. It can help dissolve any remaining crystals. But it doesn’t look like its a complete, well balanced food and not meant to be used for long periods of time.

My vet used to sell Hills for the longest time before changing to Royal Canin.

I don’t think either is very good quality.

Are there any diet (low protein), grain free canned foods that are tolerable? Or supplements to help lower her urine pH?

[Susan]

Hi Jude,
You may need to see vet & get an X Ray, so the vet can see what’s happening, there’s an monthly injection the vet can give to bring relief….I don’t know the name..
Also apply a heat pack for 20mins, this will bring relief to your dog….

Why don’t you buy the human grade Glucosamine & Chondroitin capsules? they are cheaper & work the best for joint inflammation, anything sold as a dog supplement like Sasha Blend etc the price is doubled……

Just be careful when giving any of these joint supplements as they can cause Acid Reflux & upset the stomach….they MUST be taken with a meal…Krill Oil capsules are the best for people & animals that suffer from stomach problems…

Have a look at “Canidae” Pure Meadow Senior dry, it’s excellent for aging dogs, my neighbours dog eats the Canidae Pure Meadow Senior dry Kibble & acts like he’s a young dog again, his owner also feeds tin Sardines in Spring water, he gives him a few sardines as treat daily…. https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products
I give the freeze dried Green Lipped Mussels daily, he gets about 2-3 mussels a day…

[Susan]

Hi Nataya,
I don’t think you’ll get many raw feeders on DFA, a lot feed kibble, there might be the odd poster that may help……are you going to make your own raw diet or buy the pre-made raw diets? homemade is the best this way you know what they are eating where the meat is coming from….
Start doing research & follow people like “Rodney Habib, Dr Karen Becker & Steve Brown, Dr Karen Becker is bringing out another new book with simple easy to make raw meals, her old books have all sold out & people on Amazon are asking ridiculous prices for her old books…. look at Steve Brown book called “Unlocking The Canine Ancestral Diet” your local library can order in books, I borrow books from the library or they order in books I’m interested in then after I have read them & like them I buy the book…
Here’s Rodney Habib’s link, once you follow Rodney you’ll get in the loop…
https://www.facebook.com/rodneyhabib

Join some raw feeding groups on face book, just make sure these diets are balanced properly, vets are normally against raw feeding only because a lot of people don’t balance the diet properly & the vets see all the health problems that can occur from a dog or a cat not eating a proper balanced raw diet, I live Australia & a lot of Australian’s feed raw & dry kibble + raw meaty bones at lease twice a week…. a lot of our Australian made kibbles advise to add raw meat, raw meaty bones with their kibbles….
I went thru an Animal Nutritionist Jacqueline Rudan the maker of Natural Animal Solutions(NAS) products, this is her Maintenance Diet I followed minus any bone or organ meats cause my Staffy Patch has IBD, food intolerances & skin allergies…
http://naturalanimalsolutions.com.au/Shop/2016/03/15/maintenance-dog-diet/
I added her Digestavite plus powder to balance the diet, Patch was very hungry when we first started feeding the raw diet I was feeding 3 smaller raw home made meals a day, Jacqueline said, he has to get use too eating a raw diet after being feed a high carb process kibble, they stay fuller longer when they eat kibble..

Your making the best decision for your dogs health, with the Great Dane pup I would see what the breeder is feeding him & make sure you find an Great Dane breeder that raw feeds her dogs & pups, this breeder will be able to help you with preparing a raw diet
for a large breed pup…. sometimes its better to feed large breed pup a good quality large breed puppy kibble + raw until they’re 1-18mths then put them onto a full raw diet once they have finished growing, you have to be careful with large breed pups that their bones don’t grow too quickly the breeder will explain things a bit better then me….

There’s a lot of raw feeders on Lew Olsons F/B group called “K-9 Nutrition”
or Monica Segal F/B group called “K-9 Kitchen”
Make sure you take before & after photos of your Pit Bulls, you’ll see a big improvement with skin coat & all over health once they’re eating a raw diet…
Good-Luck

[crazy4cats]

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[Susan]

Hi Carla, sounds like Acid Reflux, after eating grass & some food this has pushed the acid back down into the stomach & she has settled, sometimes the poos will look green in color from the excess acid being made…. I have found giving white bread dry toast is good if they wake up thru the night, it normally happens around 3am, if this happens again have some cold liquid Mylanta in the fridge, I don’t know if you have Mylanta in America, give about 5mls, 1 teaspoon, the cold Mylanta soothes the throat & stomach & pushes the acid back down, it’s best to let the dog bring it up & vomit it get rid of it…..
It’s very hard for vets to diagnose cause there’s no real test for this unless your dogs ends up with stomach ulcer then a Endoscope & Biopsies are done, the vet gets a better idea, I found changing diets, till you find a diet that works & rotating between 2 diets works as well I have found, also if you can feed 1 cook lean meal, boiled sweet potatoes are really good with a lean meat also pumkin is good to add to a dogs meal…..

[Susan]

Hi Tammy, Sweetie is nilly the same age my boy, he’s turning 9 in November they both will be turning 63yrs old….I’m going thru something similar at the moment with my boy who has IBD, skin allergies & food intolerances…The Hills & Royal Canine vet diets for Kidney Care & dissolving crystals are too high in fat for my boy & have ingredients that Patch can’t eat, he gets yeasty smelly skin, paws & ears when he eats, chicken, corn starch, wheat, corn gluten meal, barley & carrots…
Are you feeding the wet tin c/d or the dry c/d kibble? I’ve noticed the Wet tin vet diets have better ingredients & may not have the ingredients Sweetie is sensitive too, go on face book there’s 2 groups “Canine Kidney Disease” & Canine Kidney Disease Support group” a few people are feeding “Dave’s” pet food, Restricted diet protein low Phosphorus farmland blend in sauce wet tin, Honest Kitchen Keen, some are feeding raw or cooked diets &
a few people have been recommending Dr Harvey, he’s a Nutritionist that must do special diets for dogs with a few health problems, I haven’t had time to check out his site yet, join the f/b groups & read thru the post, you’ll probably get more info from people going thru the same health problems with their dogs…a lot are feeding the Hills K/D or C/d Multicare wet tin food..
I’m still waiting on test results from sterile urine that was taken the other day, I feel so sorry for my boy, he never seems to get a break, he starts doing really well then we have another health problem…. Good-Luck working out the best diet….. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1422252261408967/

[Susan]

H Barbara, sounds like he has a food intolerance to an ingredient in the Hills Metabolic + Mobility dry vet formula your feeding, my boy is the same the vet diet fixes one health problem his IBD but then my boy gets his red paws & smelly itchy yeasty skin from a few ingredients in the vet formula…. with my boy it’s the chicken, barley, corn gluten meal, corn starch, carrots & whole corn that causes his yeasty smelly skin & ears, some dogs are fine & don’t have food sensitivities to these ingredients…
Just feed the Metabolic + Mobility Vegetable Tuna Stew, it doesn’t have the chicken meal, wheat, or whole corn, but it has the corn starch….The wet tin food vet diets always have better ingredients then the matching dry formula, there’s also a vegetable & beef stew, if you take back the bag of Hills kibble they will give your money back & just feed the Beef & Tuna wet tin foods….see how he goes, now you need a shampoo for his itchy yeasty skin, I use the “Malaseb” medicated shampoo, it can be used daily & relieves the itch & kills any yeast & bacteria on the skin….
A few people say the “Wellness” Core Reduced Fat is pretty good for losing weight, it has the matching wet food as well, Wellness make a few different formulas here’s their link..
There’s even weight management formula’s in their Simple & Complete Health range

For Dogs

[Susan]

H Rebeca, sounds like your dog needs to see a vet & be prescribe medication, has he had a course of Metronidazole (Flagyl) for 21-28 days?? also has he been tested for EPI, S.I.B.O?
You need to slowly introduce a new kibble to a dog especially when they have Intestinal stress, it took me 2 weeks to put Patch on a new kibble….they say 10 days.. The TOTW Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb will probably work but not yet… unless he has an intolerance to Lamb or an ingredient in the TOTW formula…
I think at this stage no matter what he eats he’s going to get worse, until the problem is fixed…..He needs tests or ask vet for a round of the Metronidazole enough for 28 days, some dogs need to stay on a very low dose of the Metronidazole, I’ve been struggling with my boy IBD coming up 5 years now, black poo is blood, it doesn’t mean the food has caused it, it means whatever the health problem is, it’s getting worse cause its not being treated….The TOTW probably will work but he needs medications as well, I would see vet get meds & if a vet diet did work & helped then get more & leave him on that vet diet for a good 6-9months & don’t feed no other kibbles yet, it took my boy 2yrs to get better….TOTW was the only formula that worked but if I had feed the TOTW in the beginning when I first rescued him it probably wouldn’t have worked cause he needed meds & the stomach & bowel had rest to heal… I went from vet diet Eukanuba Intestinal Low Residue kibble & would try a new kibble taking 2-3 weeks to slowly introduce, if it didn’t work then I’d go back to the Vet Diet Eukanuba Intestinal, then finally after 2 yrs of trying a heap of different brands I read about TOTW…. I always had a vet diet as my safety food + the Metronidazole when things got bad now the TOTW is his go to food if he starts having a IBD flare & 10 days on the Metronidazole….if poos look yuk for 2 days straight I quickly start course of Metronidazole, my vet gives me script so I can take to my chemist & get out saves paying to see her just for some Metronidazole…
Your poor boy may need a wet tin vet diet instead of a dry kibble, he sounds like my boy he couldn’t digest any kibble when I first got him & wouldn’t eat a kibble either, sounds like his stomach & Pancreas aren’t working properly… keep us updated..

[anonymous]

The pruritus may be unrelated to the food. It may be caused by environmental allergies, the pollen count is high where I am.
Wipe off his paws with plain water and towel dry when he comes in from outside, especially after walking in grass wet with morning dew.
Bathe once a week in a gentle shampoo such as Sergeant’s fur so fresh puppy.
If it continues, I would go by what your vet suggests.

[Barbara C]

Took him to the vet & he is now on Hills Metabolic + Mobility wet tin food & Hills Metabolic + Mobility dry food. I give him half wet & half dry. He has lost a pound, but Hills must have a lot of grains in the food. He is now scratching & itching constantly. Called the vet but he has not returned my call yet. Has anyone had the same problem with this dog food? Don’t know what other dog food would grain free & help in loosing weight. Any suggestions?