[Pitlove]

Fromm is a great food, but it is not LID. They do however have a few fished based foods.

http://frommfamily.com/products/four-star/dog/dry/#salmon-a-la-veg

http://frommfamily.com/products/four-star/dog/dry/#salmon-tunalini

http://frommfamily.com/products/four-star/dog/dry/#whitefish-and-potato

http://frommfamily.com/products/gold/dog/dry/#gold-coast-weight-management

[Chuck]

I couldn’t find a search function on this site that worked to see if this topic had been answered.

Basically I have been feeding my Brittany Darwin’s for almost her whole life (she is 2.5), however the cost has gone up astronomically since I first started using them and I know they changed their formula not too long ago and the fat content went up.

She currently gets a Darwin pack in the morning and a pack a night with a little Orijen dry mixed into the night feeding. She has consistently maintained a weight of about 34.

Aside from making the food myself (my wife would rather not) what is the best company that I can switch to for food? I was never really impressed with Bravo or Primal, but it has been years. Also saw this Big Dog Natural company, if anyone has any ideas I would appreciate it.

[Dana G]

I’m happy to have found this forum because I have a big challenge I could use some help with. I have a 9 yr. old Havanese who recently had a Calcium Oxalate stone removed. She also has Gallbladder Sludge and must have a very low fat diet. The challenge is finding a low oxalate food that is also very low in fat. The vet wants to put her on Royal Canin Urinary SO Moderate Calorie Dry. It meets the criteria BUT it contains a lot of corn which my dog doesn’t tolerate.

So I’ve been on an exhaustive search for a commercial food that can work for her. The only possibility I’ve found is Earthborn Holistic Weight Control. It is low enough in fat, but the issue is whether it is low enough in oxalate. The concern is the fifth ingredient, Tomato Pomace, which is high oxalate. I called Earthborn to find out what percentage of the total ingredients tomato pomace is. The gentleman said he thought 5% but to be sure, he would ask the nutritionist to call me. After waiting a week I called again only to be told the man I spoke with had just retired, and no one knew anything about them having a nutritionist. The customer service rep said there was only one person who MIGHT be able to help me so I left a message for him. It’s been a week and no call. Since their website claims to be endorsed by Dog Food Advisor, I’m hoping someone on this forum knows something about this company. So my first question is, any ideas on how to get ingredient/nutrient info from Earthborn?

Second question — The only ingredient in this food with significant oxalate content is the tomato pomace. If I assume that the pomace is in fact 5% of total ingredients, does that make this food low oxalate? I’m just not sure if a small % of a very high oxalate ingredient equals a low oxalate food.

I know this is some pretty specific info I’m looking for so I will appreciate any thoughts/advice I receive. I’m out of ideas. If I can’t make this food work, I’ll have to do home cooked.

Thanks.

[Stephen K]

Try the Acana large breed puppy food (Dry). It is working very well with our 10 week old Labrador Retriever.
The breeder had him on Purina’s Pro Plan Puppy and we did not like the ingredients in it, the transition went very well, no soft stools!

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Stephen K.

[Joe S]

Anyone out there feed this dry kibble? We just had a store open near us and seen this GF food!

[Debbie I]

I just switched to this food from royal canin because i could not afford the $94 a bag , NOW i just heard Purina bought Merrick, I will NOT support purina at all !!! Can you please recommend another fish limited ingredient diet dry dog food ?? i am soooo upset over this, she was doing so well with this food – ugh !! How is Natures receipe brand ?? is that related to purina at all ??? Thanks so much

[Kim D]

Any suggestions, ideas will be much appreciated!
Fostering dog for 2 weeks, he was on food from rescue Diamond Naturals, I didn’t like amount and way poop looked and he was extremely thin, but no itchies. Also he came from a mostly concrete environment to country life…aka lots of grass.
I switched to Earthborn Holistic (because I had no idea the WHOLE other premium dog food market even existed before 2 weeks ago)
He started chewing at his paws, then legs, then all over itchy.
Now hots spots on legs from chewing, massive hair loss (which I know for AKitas happens 2x/year).
Diarrhea last Friday – Sunday. Fed only rice water, rice and chicken…still itchy.
Back on Earthborn and started Vitahound introduction.
Being a rescue, I am sure his prior food was not the best quality. BUT he did NOT have these sores. Could it actually be seasonal allergies that would take 2 weeks to show up or is it change in food?
I would love any recommendations for a dry kibble that could help with skin problems and help him gain healthy weight. I just feel like there is still way too much information to digest!!!! Thank you in advance!

[Cheryl N]

The company that makes Pure Balanced dry dog food called me. They said all the ingredients are from USA, except, they get their “vitamin Pack” from China. that did not make me too happy.

[InkedMarie]

I wouldn’t feed that food. Maybe the vet wants him on it but you, as the owner, makes the choice. I would NOT feed a dry food. A dog with crystals needs moisture. It’s best that you feed a wet food (canned, raw etc) but if you must feed dry, add canned & water.

[Debbie B]

I got my babies Orijen food today, the kibble isn’t too big & it’s much softer than the other dog food brands that I’ve used. I started her out on Wellness as a puppy, they changed their kibble size & she actually got choked on it. I then put her on Blue Buffalo, she then got crystals in her urine (of course I cannot say it was the food that caused it), for the past 2 years she has been on Hi-Tek which is a 5 star food but the last bag I bought, she ate it twice & got sick & would not touch it again. Thankfully I had purchased two bags & I opened the other bag that had a different lot# & exp. date & she started eating it again. But that’s when I decided to try Orijen. Of course it’s going to take a week to get her completely on the Orijen. But I gave her 4 kibbles & she loved it. I also bought her a bag of their treats, gave her one of those & she loved it too. They aren’t really hard either. I’m surprised at how soft the food & treats are to be a dry food. No way could I break a kibble of the other dry foods but I got a Orijen kibble & put it between two fingers & pushed with my thumb & it broke, which surprised me! I did that because when she ate the kibble I didn’t hear her crunching it & didn’t know if she was just swallowing it whole. We’ll see how it goes………

[adi g]

Thank you guys. I have found a review of Natural Balance Vegetarian dray food
/dog-food-reviews/natural-balance-vegetarian-dog-food-dry/
Although it was given only 2 stars, i’m gonna give it a chance and hopefully soon the editor will discover the benefits of vegetarian/ vegan food for some dogs and give us a fair review of the options out there 🙂

[Gary L]

Hello

I just got my puppy Chihuahua from my breeder he’s 11 weeks old.
So far he will eat some Royal Canine Starter Mousse that the breeder has been giving to him and he also seems to like boiled Chicken. When I give him dry kibbles of Royal Canine or Fromm he wouldn’t touch them at all.

He doesn’t seem to be very attracted by food, he only eats it when he “has” to. Should I be worried? I ordered some Wellness CORE puppy as I really wanna move him away from Royal Canine. How long do you think I should keep him on Canned and when should I start moving him to kibbles?

He weights 1lb now and is estimated to be 3lbs once adult.

THANKS A LOT!

[Debbie B]

Thank you both for this info. I’ll give it a try since I ordered it. She usually eats her dry food so fast, she sometimes gets choked on the larger kibble. I may try soaking it in warm water if it’s to big. That keeps her from gobbling it down too fast and then drinking water to the point that the food “blows” up in her tummy and makes her sick!

[Kimberly W]

Hi all,

I have a puppy-mill Boston Terrier female named Lexie. I got her at 1 year old and she was in bad shape – demodex mange being one of the issues. We got rid of the mange, but she itches almost constantly still ….. especially mid-back and butt. Her tail has a spot where she’s rubbed all the hair off and now it’s like a callous there. I’ve tried all different proteins (even ground raw venison!) and grain-free foods, allergic injections, prednisone ….. even trying an immuno-therapy serum for common Florida allergens. She’s currently on Apoquel at $2 per DAY ….. it does help, but she still itches. I liked the idea of the Dinovite supplement + the raw diet they promote and switched her over VERY slowly. My first box of Dinovite lasted over 60 days. Lexie has a very touchy tummy and I didn’t want her to get sick. She seemed to do okay with the supplement and the diet, but we noticed that only the Apoquel made her scratch less. And by no means did the scratching stop ….. :/

So, into the 2nd box of Dinovite, Lexie started spitting up after eating. This had happened all along, but just once in awhile – now she was doing it after almost every meal. And it wasn’t RIGHT AFTER she ate, it was hours afterwards. Like we were sleeping at 3am and she’d vomit in the bed with us. And it was always GREEN. Like she was just spitting up just the Dinovite. We weaned her back onto the white fish based kibble she’d been on (that we were sure didn’t make her sick) and just put the Dinovite in that – thinking we’d eliminate the chance that it was the raw food. She STILL would vomit only green stuff.

I’m at my wits end here. I hate thinking she’s miserable. We have really tried a ton of stuff, but I think something in the Dinovite is making her sick. I’m wondering if all the time she was on the raw diet, it was moving the toxins from the crappy food she was fed (before I got her) OUT of her body and then, the grain (sorghum) in the Dinovite finally made her sick????

I wish I could post a picture – she looks SO good – hair is all grown in from where the demodex had her bald, so glossy she shines in the sun ….. everyone comments on how beautiful she is ….. but she itches. Almost all the time. Doesn’t lick her paws and her skin doesn’t smell at all, her ears are pretty pink inside ….. no yeast that I can see manifesting itself on her body anywhere. When I scratch her back where you can obviously tell it itches the MOST, there is some dandruff that comes out. She has no fleas and I’ve washed her with DermaBenss shampoo – as suggested by my vet – for the flaking skin ….. but when that didn’t work, I used a soap-free emu oil shampoo that’s FOR DRY SKIN and that didn’t help either.

This is what a meal looks like for Lexie:

1/2 cup of white fish based kibble – NO GRAINS (no corn, wheat or soy)
3 pumps of Yummy Chummies salmon oil
baked sweet potato or canned pumpkin
2 capsules of food enzymes (opened and sprinkled on the food)
Drs. Foster and Smith adult vitamin
vitamin E capsule – 400IU
***Also, before bed, I’m giving Lexie 2 capsules of bifidophilus, to help repopulate the good bacteria in her intestines.***
***We only use one kind of treats – Yummy Chummies Grain Free treats made with 95% salmon + potato and pea flour.***

The food we are using scores a 3.5 star on the food advisory list and I’m willing to buy her a 5 star food, but am not sure that food is her only issue. Does anyone have ANY suggestions for me? I’d be very grateful for any ideas that I haven’t already explored. Another supplement? A different shampoo? Anything I haven’t thought of or don’t know how to look for? I’ve even wondered if the itching is just a HABIT and maybe she doesn’t know how to stop ….. :/

Thanks for any thoughts!!!!

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Kimberly W.

[Melissa S]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the information. I’m going to see what I can do about the food situation. I’ll be getting special shampoo and ear stuff to bathe and clean her with. My other dog is just fine outside. She does seem to only have the skin problems in the summer.

Just to let you know, both of our dogs have plenty of shade, two houses (with heaters in the winter), two large kiddie pools that we refill every day, a mist system, water bowls, and we usually wet down the yard for them. There is grass, dirt, cement, or carpet (or they can lie down in their house). so they have plenty to choose from. It’s not my ideal environment, but our living situation will most likely change soon (this is my parents house and they’ll be renting it to us within the next few months). So, we’ll be able to bring the dogs into the house.

I didn’t know there were dermatologists for dogs. I wonder if I can just go see one instead of a vet? They might know more than a vet would maybe?

We feed both wet and dry food, so I’ll be switching to a better kibble and wet food for now (or just supplement the dry with a homemade recipe of wet). Once my partner and I are making better money, we can look into much better food options. This site is pretty overwhelming and I’m terrified of screwing anything up if I go and try to make my own food.

ps. How should I talk to my fiance? I tried talking to him yesterday about it and he has this thing – He respects his uncle and looks up to him a lot and Purina Dog Chow is the only thing his uncle has ever fed his dogs. His dogs never had any problems on the stuff (as far as I know) and neither has my fiance’s dog. But, I’ve always known it was low quality food. I guess since I buy the food, I’ll just buy what I want! lol. 🙂

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Melissa S.

[Pitlove]

Honestly and this is just MY opinion, but I don’t feel there is a huge difference between grain free and grain inclusive. Any type of carbohydrate in a dry kibble is extra ingredients that are only there to bind the food together. AAFCO does not even recognize carbohydrates as a required nutrient for dogs because they can thrive without them. There is only one dry kibble on the market that is close to what a dog would intake carbohydrate wise if it were wild and that is Wysong Epigen 90, as it reads 4% carbs on a dry matter basis.

It really becomes a matter of personal preference. I usually end up feeding grain free because like aquariangt said, grain free foods have a tendency to be higher in protein. However, if you don’t see a whole meat or meat meal within the first three ingredients, you can almost bet your money the protein is coming mainly from plant sources. So do not be deceived by a high protein % if the foods ingredient panel reads something like this for the first few ingredients; Chicken, Peas, Sweet Potatoe, Pea Flour. You have Chicken listed first and thats great, but chicken is 80% water and that moisture is cooked out of the chicken when it becomes extrued into dog kibble. So that means the majority of the food is actually the next 3 ingredients. I’ve seen a lot of grain-free kibbles like this. Even one of my favorite companies- Fromm- is guilty of this.

[Pitlove]

Hi Aimee-

Thanks for your response. The vet we were seeing vaguely suggested an elimination diet for my boy because she believes he has not only environmental allergies, but food “allergies” as well (her words). However, she made no effort to explain how to do an elimination diet to me. She told me to pick one food (I’ve been rotating) and feed it for 3 months. Thats all she said. I should have asked more questions, but she quickly moved on to another subject. Nevertheless he has an appointment with a new vet today for a sore on his neck and I’m going to have her look at the bumps he has and the dry flakey patches where his hair is falling out.

[Sharen R]

Thanks so much Gina for writing me. Nemo doesnt eat any fatty foods..see when we got him, we were told that he is genetically prone to being obese, with Nemo, if you put an entire can of wet food in front of him he would eat the whole thing. He’s not a dog that you can leave food in the bowl and he will get it when its time to eat, he will just eat it all right there..the Wet food that he is on is ID, its for dogs with sensitive stomachs so that is what he eats..he used to be able to eat a while back a tiny piece of steak or a small amount of bread but no more, he will have nothing but wet food from now on, no dry food, maybe the dry food irritates his stomach not sure, he would be on it for three weeks(A mix of dry and wet food) and then the problem would start again so we just leave him on wet food, as long as he feels good and is hungry throughout the day and feeling good that is what matters. We also take him for a walk everyday(Today we couldnt were too busy) but the Vet said that walking is good for the body and good for the pancreas so we have been doing that everyday, he poops normally, just want him to be healthy and happy and eat his food everyday so his pancreas can heal and he can go back to eating what he used to(Three times per day)

[Joy M]

Hello to all and Thank you in advance for all your help
I have been feeding my dog Lilly a 5 1/2 year old rescue pit a lightly cooked meal with dry for going on 2 years now with no problems but for nearly a year have been trying and trying to go totally raw But she will not touch it I have done my research and tried to wait it out She now just stopped eating raw meaty bones now she just buries it under the sofa or wherever but she never goes back to get them before I went back to raw she loved them So my question is am i hurting her by lightly cooking all the food She is very healthy now by the way When we first got her she was very sickly Horrible rashes ,Diarrhea ,bad joint issues Etc Most of that is gone now
I just am so confused She has had all her vaccinations before i got her and since then I was forced to get Rabies and talked into Lyme because we go camping in the deep woods But she has had none in two years

[Sue V]

Try one of the dog foods with lower fiber. Mine can’t tolerate more than 3% fiber content. I like Taste of the Wild grain free lamb formula dry(330 kcal/cup) and Wellness Chicken Stew (wet).

[Karen L]

I have been feeding my 10 year old Golden Retriever Blue Buffalo for many years and she has done very well on it. She is currently on the BB Wilderness Chicken Receipt Healthy Weight formula (both the dry AND the canned). However, recently I have been hearing so many terrible reviews about the food- poor ingredients, mislabeling- and in particular this summer, mostly July 2015, there have been horror stories about dogs (including other dogs who have been eating BB for years) becoming violently ill immediately upon opening a new bag of BB. It is as if the manufacturing or recipes have suddenly changed. I don’t know if I should immediately switch to a new food and am worried about opening the new bag which I just bought a week ago and is sitting in the closet. Suggestions? Thoughts? Are these stories true??

[Sarah N]

My boyfriend and I have a one year old french bulldog boston terrier mix. We bought blue buffalo puppy food (lamb and oatmeal, and chicken and brown rice) for her because we thought it would provide her with the best health benefits. We fed her this from September (when we got her) up until a few days ago. About a month ago she started throwing up almost everyday. We thought it was the Nylabone, but once that was taken away the vomit continued. It got to the point where none of the food was even digesting and coming up in the vomit with clear mucus. Then things got really bad. She had constipation, then diarrhea, followed by excessive drooling (like a waterfall), started shaking, and kept trying to vomit. We took her to the vet immediately the vet insisted it was the food we were giving her. The vet said her entire body was affected- especially her major organs. We put her on a beef, quinoa, and veggie diet. Her vomiting completely stopped and her bowels are regulated again. Feeding her this diet is extremely expensive and we want to get her on a dry dog food diet again (or at least partly for one meal a day). What do we buy? We already thought we bought the best and have no idea where to turn now. Any advice would be great. We just want our little girl to be healthy and active.

• This topic was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Sarah N.

[Jennifer R]

I have a 1 year old blue nose “Bo” and same issues, I have tried changing foods, benedryl, Zertec, and nothing worked. There is a new drug on the market that works WONDERS called Apoquel but there is production issues with it being new th vet frequently runs out and my dog has to suffer all over again. Fish oil helps as far as what I have read in many different forums. But if you can get the Apoqeul your dog will be like a whole new dog, no bumps, no itching, and back to normal. I am praying they will straighten it out soon, he had been off it for only a month and old symptoms are right back again :(. Good luck everyone!

[Susan]

Hi, it sounds like you have to change her kibble, the fat is very high 20%min so max fat would be about 22-23% fat, she may not be able to handle the higher fat now she’s getting older…I looked at the ingredients in the Performance & there’s fish meal & dry egg maybe one of these ingredients she has become sensitive too, my boy got real bad diarrhea on the Eukanuba FP Fish & Potato, I blamed the potatoes it could of been their fish….

My boy has IBD & the only kibble that worked for him at the time was vet diet “Eukanuba Intestinal” fiber is only 1.7% & fat is 10%, the Eukanuba Intestinal is a low residue kibble so it breaks down pretty easy, so less work on the stomach & bowel….Eukanuba Intestinal has dried chicken & turkey & less fiber…… the Iams Intestinal Plus low residue has chicken by-products meal & fish meal & higher fiber, I wouldn’t try the Iams its made North America, where Eukanuba Intestinal is made Switzerland..

Sometimes when a dog eats the same kibble for years they can have an intolerance to an ingredient in that kibble…. if you don’t want to try the Eukanuba Intestinal, I would look for a limited ingredient, lower fat kibble, I always recommend the “California Natural Lamb & Rice” cause it has just 4 ingredients or there’s “California Natural Chicken & Rice” with 5 ingredients, if she does good on the Lamb & Rice then also buy the Chicken & Rice & rotate both kibbles so she’s having Chicken & also Lamb in her diet… here’s their link http://www.californianaturalpet.com/products still feed the cooked chicken & rice for breakfast or dinner & feed the kibble for the other meal, so she is having variety in her diet, not just the same food…I was cooking once a fortnight & then freezing the meals…

[Nate D]

J S, look into trying Zignature. Try the Kangaroo formula if you can get it. It’s low calorie, lower protein, grain free, potato free, chicken free, gluten free, the mineral levels aren’t high, its limited ingredient so not a lot of high alkaline vegetables, etc..
I add 250 mg of Solid Gold Berry Balance once a day to the food (vet said to give my dog 250 mg’s of cranberry so I use the berry balance) and float the food with distilled water. I also add a tablespoon of wet food.
The canned Zignature is much more expensive then the dry which is why I just use it as a topper and more moisture.
Any of the Zignature’s are worth a try, but the Kangaroo is working great for mine. Might be worth trying and see how your dog makes out.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Nate D.
• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Nate D.

[aaron s]

I first read the Diamond Naturals Lamb meal and rice dry dog food review, it was rated 4 stars while the Beef meal and rice only rated 2.5 stars.

Now the Lamb meal and rice review has disappeared and is replaced by the Beef meal and rice reviews which now rates it at 4 stars and the Lamb and rice rates 3.5 stars.

I’m confused, the ingredients have not changed to my knowledge, why would one go waaay up and the other go down? Why did the Lamb meal and rice review disappear and replaced by the beef meal and rice??

I’m a little more skeptical about these reviews now cause they are not dated, nor is there any explanation how one goes from 2.5 to 4 and the other goes from 4 to 3.5.

[C4D]

No problem, BD! I love pet expos! Free samples and lot’s of info. 🙂

I have used a few of the Canidae pure formulas recently and my dog’s like it, of course they are labs 😉 and no issues.

I double checked on Canidae’s website. It states on all of the pure formulas that it’s made in Brownsville, Texas. I don’t see that claim on the grain inclusive formulas, so I’m not sure where it’s made. I included a link for the wild boar, but it’s on all of the formulas at the end of the description, right before the specs (G/A, etc). I see there are several new formulas, all slightly limited ingredient and a couple of protein specific, which is what I try to feed. I’m not sure if they’re really new or the stores around me don’t carry the whole line. The wild boar is only pork. I know there has been some controversy over wild boar & I have no idea where they source it, but with the possible exception of the alfalfa, it looks like it’s a possibility for allergy/food intolerance dogs.

http://www.canidae.com/products/2015/canidae-grain-free-pure-wild-dry-formula-dog-food/

[Susan]

Hi, after Patch finished his triple therapy antibiotics Metronidazole, Amoxicillin & Zantac last December for his Helicobacter-Pylori 2-3 days after stopping his meds, I saw a tape worm on his black bum, I looked & thought is that a tape worm then the next afternoon the same another tapeworm, they look like rice but cause it was Christmas eve the vet was closed that sells his Milbemax all wormer, Patch can’t take any other all-wormers they make him ill, vomiting & pooing blood, I rung the 24 hr vets & they didn’t have the Milbemax they had another all-wormer, so I had to wait till the holidays were over to worm him…I told his vet at the time & he said, yes he often see’s tapeworms in dogs after they have been on antibiotics but he didn’t say why, he just said tapeworms won’t hurt him, I’d prefer no worms…. so the next time he had too take the Metronidazole again, I wormed him first then started the Metronidazole the next day & when he was finished taking the Metronidazole, I kept looking at his bum after he’d poo to see if I could see any more tape worms & I couldn’t….the thing is Patch doesn’t have fleas, the fleas don’t stay on him & jump back off him, the cat did have fleas at the time & Patch doesn’t kill wild prey mice, rats, rabbits, etc…

There’s several species of Tapeworms Dipylidium Caninum from fleas & Teania & Echinococcus species from mice, rats, rabbits, squirrels, deer & sheep…you have to wash all bedding everything he sleeps on.. Does Doc eat wild prey?

I was giving Patch probiotics Protexin Soluble but it was expensive $60 for 1 month, so I found another dog probiotic Vetafarm at the pet shop with the same ingredients for $20 but I don’t think the Vetafarm was as good as the Protexin & I stopped giving probiotics to him then about 3 months ago I saw a Animal Naturopath cause I wanted to put Patch on a raw diet & she sent out human live probiotic capsules that were dairy & gluten free, I had to open the capsule & put only half a capsule on the raw meal, Patches itchy smelly skin & red paws all went away within 3 days of being on the raw diet, the only problem he was regurgitating the raw, water was coming up into his mouth about 3 hours after eating the raw & he hadn’t drank any water after breakfast & he was swallowing & swallowing it, this water came out of his mouth one day while we were shopping & went all down my shopping bag, that’s when I seen it was water & a few little bits of blended veggies thru the water, I think the enzymes were breaking down the raw meat too quickly, so I had to stop the raw cause he was getting acid reflux & a sore throat but I was shattered & so was Patch, he loved his raw Kangaroo, so I started to cook extra lean beef mince & the same, he was regurgitating the cooked meal as well….. the thing is he doesn’t regurgitate wet tin food if its chunky or soaked kibble put thru a blender, so I started looking for wet tin foods but I couldn’t find a low fat, low fiber wet tin food in the Pet Shops, Wellness has their Core grain free reduced fat but the fiber is 3%, so that will be too high when converted to dry matter, so I tried the Hills & Royal Canine low fat vet diets but they all have boiled rice & boiled rice goes thru Patch (diarrhea) the corn or something in the vet wet diets was making him itch & smell again, so about 2 weeks ago I went to the Supermarket & I started to read all the ingredients, fat & fiber in all the wet tin foods & I bought a 700g tin of Purina Supercoat Homestyle casserole Lamb Veggies & Pasta, the Purina seemed to have the best ingredients fish oil, vitamins & minerals, the fat was 4%, fiber-1%max, I also bought another brand that was duck the smaller foiled wet tin food, it had only 2% fat, we tried the duck first at night his last feed he loved it but poo wasn’t as good as they are now on the Lamb Casserole…. I would need 10-12 small foil tins of the duck a day & it works out too expensive to feed…
I also started him on the Royal Canine Intestinal low fat kibble about 2 weeks before, cause when I went to buy his regular Hypoallergenic, gluten, dairy, sugar & potato free kibble “Salmon & Sardines with brown rice & green veggies” it had a Gold sticker saying “New Improved Omega 3,6, & 9 formula” so I looked & all the ingredients were still the same, so I bought the bag of kibble but the new kibbles were smaller & black & felt real greasy, even when I soaked the kibble in water, I could feel the greasiness & Patch was getting his real bad acid reflux again, so I stopped the Meals For Mutts kibble & I gave the R/C low fat Kibble ago… but he has spewed up the R/C Low Fat kibble a few times that’s then I thought I’ll give the wet tin food a go again, I’m feeding the Purina Lamb Casserole for breakfast, for lunch & dinner the R/C low fat kibble & the Purina Lamb Casserole for his last small dinner & he doing the best poos ever.. so today I’m going to just try feeding the Purina Casserole all day & see how he goes & see if he start to get his yeasty smell again, I take out the beans & wholemeal pasta & throw it away & I’ve been adding a little bit of boiled sweet potatos & some boiled chicken, I have a freezer full of cooked foods for him that he regurgitates when feed by themselves, so I’m going to add them with the Lamb casserole tin food & see how he goes… I really think the kibble is causing all his problems with Helicobacter, S.I.B.O, acid reflux & nausea..

With soluble & insoluble fibers you need to work out how Doc goes, if you have ever tried the Hills Z/d kibble, Hills I/d Gastro or the Hills W/d all these kibbles have more insoluble fiber, the Hills Z/d was making Patch do 1 big cow paddy poo in the morning, his poo was just slop & he started to smell real bad with yeast on the Hills Z/d kibble probably the Corn Starch, so Patch doesn’t do well on insoluble fiber, he does better poos on soluble fiber but soluble fiber sits in the stomach longer, where insoluble fiber passes the stomach into the small bowel, so I don’t know is that a good thing for S.I.B.O probably not…

If you can try & get Doc on wet food or raw is the best, a lean protein, like Rabbit, Chicken, Turkey, Kangaroo these are all low in fat… I never added any bone in the begining, the Naturopath said no bone or organ meat yet cause of his IBD… maybe give him his kibble for dinner & try the wet tin or raw for breakfast but I never mixed the 2 together Raw & kibble or wet tin & kibble…. I thought it will just sit in his stomach & something will happen, it always does with him lol… another thing try 1 new thing at a time so if anything happens you will know what is causing what..

[Dean W]

My don has small bumps on his back he is 18 mo. old and seems healthy otherwise…. Friends tell me they are “Heat” bumps??? I am just wondering if they might be related to the food??? I feed him a good quality grain free dry kibble,,so ????
My friends feed Hill,s Science diet and have the same problem.??????

[Ezequiel B]

Hi,

I’m sure this has been asked. I searched but only found “best puppy wet food” and the puppy foods on the editors list are all dry.

I have a 4 month old German Shepard and we’ve been feeding her Wellness Core Grain Free Puppy Formula (Wet) but it’s getting harder to find at Petco and petsmart, not sure why.

Can someone suggest alternatives?

Thanks!

[Susan]

Hi, yes they say that EPI dogs can have a high fat diet, what I’m noticing on the F/B EPI group, a lot of dogs are suffering from Acid reflux & need ant acid meds, high fat diets are no good if your dog suffers with acid reflux or if you dog doesn’t suffer with acid reflux they can get acid reflux from eating a high fat diet kibble or wet tin foods..
I wouldn’t go too low with the fat, I stick around 8%-12% max fat cause of Patch skin problems.. also sardines in spring water are good to add as a topper on their kibble for their skin….
When your dog was eating Taste Of Wild did he start his scratching & itchiness or when he was on a vet diet did he get his S.B.I.O?
You need to start limiting certain carbohydrates like, Lactose, Fructose, Resistant Starches like potato, peas, lentils, beans, legumes, banana etc you need a diet where the carbs don’t ferment in the gut & bowel causing the S.I.B.O…
Patch has had SIBO twice now & both times his skin & paws were yeasty & smelly as well….I keep a dairy but I didn’t write what foods he was eating at the time, so now I’m writing what he is eating so if it happens again I’ll know what kibbles & foods to avoid. I’ve stopped giving a little bit of banana as a treat in the morning..

The Honest Kitchen Zeal is suppose to be really good, its low in carbs, low in fat, gluten free high protein, but I think its expensive to feed a big dog, I feed 2 different meals wet tin for breakfast, kibble for lunch & dinner & a late small feed of wet tin food that I feed for breakfast..Patch can’t eat 2 large meals a day he gets pain either stomach or pancreas pain, so I divide all the meals into 4 smaller meals..

With wet tin foods the fat % is different to the fat % in kibbles..it isn’t lower in wet tin foods….. if the wet tin says 5% fat when converted to dry matter (Kibble) 5% fat is around 22% fat, so I feed wet tin foods where the fat is 3% & under so that’s around 7-12% fat when converted to dry matter (kibble).

This link is for humans with S.I.B.O it explains about foods that ferment & are no good..

SIBO Diets and Digestive Health – It’s about Fermentable Carbohydrates

I have found kibbles with just rice seem to be better then the grain free high starch kibbles… Here’s California Natural Lamb & Rice limited ingredients it has just 4 ingredients & the crude fiber is 2.5% or there’s their Chicken & Rice with 5 ingredients & the fiber % is the same as the Lamb & Rice, a few people I know have dogs with IBD & feed their dogs on the California Natural limited ingredient chicken or lamb kibble….
you will need to email California natural & find out what the soluble & insoluble fiber % is in the Lamb & rice or chicken & rice…
http://www.californianaturalpet.com/products/1181

[crazy4cats]

Hi All-

Big news! I made another litter box! Lol! I used an 18 gallon tote this time. It’s smaller than the first one I made. But, it fits right under a standing storage shelving unit I have in the laundry room. This way the dogs cannot get into it. I filled it with litter and left it thinking I need to get some litter from another box to make sure they could smell it. I came back with the “used” litter and the darn box had already been initiated! Six boxes for four cats. What have I done?

The Whole Earth Farms canned food is going well. Hopefully, Purina will not change or delete it from their line up. Also surprisingly, all the cats are liking the beef, lamb and venison Wellness Core recipe. I didn’t think they liked any of these flavors, but they’re having it!

Need an update from the other crazy cat peeps!

[Michelle M]

I have a dog that has very sensitive tummy and skin – and it seems that he is allergic to anything with chicken, turkey or quail in it. Any suggestions on a good dry food? We have used raw venison and that was ok but it seemed too rich for him. He is on raw beef/bison mix and he is super itchy again so I don’t think we are on the right path. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

• This topic was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by Michelle M.

[David H]

I have 2 young, healthy basset hounds who love their treats. I am well versed on the best dry and canned dog foods, but could use some suggestions on the top treats when it comes to taste and healthy ingredients.

[Pitlove]

Hi I don’t have greyhounds, though my bosses do. They eat anything and everything. Since one is diabetic, I’m assuming you are looking for a low-carb food? Look into Wysong Epigen 90. On a dry matter basis it is 4% carbs, lowest carb dry food on the market and completely starch free. A vet, Dr. Wysong is the maker of this food, though it’s not a prescription.

[Cheryl N]

Is there any information on “Pure Balance” Lamb and Brown Rice Recipe? I called the number on the bag. they told me the company “Ainsworth” makes it. USA, Pennsylvania. They could not tell me if any ingredients came from Chine. they are suppose to get back to me. But I wanted to know if you have any information on it?
Cheryl

[nietzschex]

Are there any 5-star, grain-free, small-breed adult dog foods on this site? I’m only looking for recipes that have actual ratings attached to them, that are grain-free, and that are specifically for adult small breeds.

For example, Merrick Grain Free Small Breed would not work because even though the Merrick Grain Free Dog Food (Dry) line has 5 stars, the Merrick Grain Free Small Breed recipe itself was not actually rated separately.

It’s important that the recipe is rated separately from the rest of the line because certain recipes are sometimes given a higher or lower rating based upon the site’s estimate of their total meat content and (when appropriate) their fat-to-protein ratios.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[Pitlove]

Wow, really sorry to hear that all that didn’t work out. During the time that I was fighting with my dog for him to eat I tried a lot of ways of preparing his food. First I tried kibble on the bottom of the bowl with some canned on top- that didn’t work. Then I tried using my hands and mixing the kibble and canned together- didn’t work either he hated it. Then I tried feeding the kibble first and his reward for eating the kibble was a little canned- that kinda worked but there were times where he still didn’t eat. So, I thought to myself that maybe he has an issue with the texture that these combinations created so I tried canned on the bottom of the bowl with dry on top- he ate it, no issue at all! I’ve continued to do that for a long time until we stumbled on Nature’s Logic and he was willing to eat it without canned at all! Now he loves food so much that I can use canned food as a topper again and have his dry on the bottom and it saves me money and he eats no issue.

Really glad your husband is willing to let you try homecooked meals though. Thats great. Another thing to look into would be a commercial raw company like Darwin’s, so you don’t have to worry about the food being complete and balanced because it already is. With Darwin’s they do autoshipping, but you can cancel or change the order at any time and they start you off with a starter pack for 14.95$ including the shipping. If you want to go the way of making your own meals, I would highly recommend working with a veterinary nutritionist to come up with meals that would be complete and balanced. It can risk your dogs health if you feed an unbalanced raw/homecooked diet even more so than feeding a low quality kibble.

[Pitlove]

NV was the second food my dog ever ate. He didn’t like it much. But I think that also stemmed from him not wanting to only eat dry food, even as a puppy. You also won’t find Fromm at PetSmart or Petco as they don’t sell to big box stores. If you are ever interested in feeding it you will have to see if a small pet boutique in your area has it or order online.

[Madelon H]

Susan – thanks. I belong to the EPI4DOGS.COM group – they are awesome! Did/does your dog have EPI? I know they say you don’t have to have a low fat diet for EPI anymore – BUT here’s my thinking based on my personal experience. Doc, my GSD, was diagnosed at 3 months old with SIBO but not EPI (pancreas just had not completely atrophied at that time) – they did the cTLI test then and TLI was 16 B12 was 800+ Folate >24 – he had the chronic diarrhea with pale foul smelling cow patties – so he was on metronidazole and put on the Royal Canin Gastro Low Fat Dry Kibble – after 2 1/2 months all was well and I transitioned him to Royal Canin GSD Puppy – he was great – got to 95lbs until March 2015 when he started losing weight – no diarrhea – finally he had lost about 10lbs and despite my telling my vet something was wrong he said he was fine – then he started diarrhea and eating poop – I demanded another cTLI test – positive for EPI and SIBO – TLI < .4; B12 400; Folate >24. He was put on the can RC Gastro – WAY to expensive – once we started enzymes and B12 with Intrinsic Factor I switched him to TOTW Pacific Stream – poops got better but not consistent – then DESPITE being on flea/tick and heartworm meds his entire life he got tapeworms and coccidia (he had coccidia really bad as a pup) – he’s also been very itchy lately. SO my thinking after doing much research is that although they say you don’t need to restrict fat for an EPI dog I’m thinking you may need to restrict fat for SIBO – thoughts? The RC Gastro dry kibble is 5% fat and 3.6% fiber. I’m not opposed to prescription diet food if nothing else will work but I’m $4000 into this disease already and was hoping to find a comparable OTC food that won’t break my bank. I was looking at Natural Balance Limited Ingredient food that has 10% fat – do you think that it’s worth trying? I was also wondering about mixing canned food and kibble food since it appears most can food has less fat than the kibble?
Thanks so much!

[Kristen H]

I want to switch because of the Purina nonsense… any suggestions on a dry food that is similar to Merrick? High protein (I was feeding the Backcountry with the freeze dried raw pieces), meat based, grain free, local ingredients, manufactured by the company (not outsourced to an outside manufacturer), similar price? I feel like this is impossible =(

[InkedMarie]

Some of my favorite dry foods are Annamaet, Dr Tim’s, Farmina & Natures Logic. I’ve never used puppy foods so I can’t help there.

[Cindy S]

We have a 3 y/o male retired racing greyhound who is a fussy eater. He also gets easily bored with the same food, which means I have to switch things up every few weeks. This is a problem b/c I have to transition him off one brand and on to another very slowly due to the breed’s sensitive digestive system and tendency for very loose stools. They typically do best on dry kibble; however, I have tried many (many!) brands and flavors and he won’t eat the dry food unless I add something to it. That “something” right now is the canned Tripett (original formula) by PetKind, which he loves. I do think, though, that the canned foods contribute to his runny BMs. I am wondering if others who have this breed have had success with particular brands of dry and canned foods … ?

[Barbara W]

What size is your goldendoodle ? ZIWIPEAK is very expensive as it is imported from New Zealand. There are many 5 star dry or dehydrated foods on this sight, pick one, and gradually mix more and more into her current food until she is totally switched with no
ill affects. If you mix some milk in , use Goats Milk, not regular milk. I would start with a
chicken based food, just because that’s what she has been used to. If it is a large goldendoodle, you do not want them growing to fast as that can cause hip and joint problems latter.

[Pitlove]

Maria- My dog is not very active because of the summer heat down here in the south and he maintains an ideal weight with foods high in protein (above 30%),moderate to low in fat(low being under 10%, moderate probably being 10-20% just in my opinion) and low in carbs (something 30% or under on a dry matter basis). Also, your dogs will not loose weight without cutting back on how much they are eating as well. You need to feed them based on the weight you want to see them at, not the weight they are. Also, they can not be free-fed.

Leora- Same info applies to you as well. Not sure exactly what your budget is because everyone’s is different.

[Leora H]

I have the same trouble with my Border Collie every since she was spayed. My vet also recommends Hills higher grade dry dog food (except Lamb because it seriously upsets her stomach). And I have an Aussie and an old Cocka-poo (10 years)–They need some grains per my vet–and all this advertising has me totally confused as to what to feed them. Valid suggestions–and budget ideas would be great–

[John M]

looks like you can add this. http://www.chewy.com/dog/annamaet-adult-23-dry-dog-food-40-lb/dp/41940

[Pitlove]

Orijen is an excellent food, that being said, it is not for every dog. I know a few people who’s dogs have severe allergies (they are GSD’s not pitbulls but still) and their dogs can ONLY eat Acana. My pit was the same exact way about food. He was not interested in eating. He would eat for a few weeks then he would walk away from the food and I had to hand feed it to him. When I introduced canned food into his diet, he instantly starting eating again. Now he loves eating so much I can add just 3 spoonfuls of canned food on top of his dry and he eats no problem. I can make 1 can last for 4 meals that way! Whereas before, I was blowing through 2 cans a day.

As I highly recommend keeping him on a high protein food given that for a large breed he is considered a senior and they do have a higher protein requirement.

If your bulldog is not allergic to chicken I would highly recommend looking into the Wysong Epigen 90. It’s the only food on the market that is completely starch free which would help with the gunk build up in the ears which sounds like yeast.

[Jonathan S]

I have two border collies… 9 months and 11 months. They’re very fickle about their protein sources… Both are intolerant of bison and venison, one can handle beef but the other cannot. Both are sensitive to changes in fats in their diet… too much fat causes them some nasty stools, but too little and they get dry and itchy.

I had them on Taste of the Wild for a long time, but they get really twitchy moving from one mix to another. I’m starting them on Acana Sport and Agility this week. I feed them half raw food as well.

Remember with borders that their metabolism tends to run hot due to their need to work and possibly work long past exhaustion. If you normally feed once a day you might want to consider twice a day for the BC.

[Lori J M]

Can anyone suggest a dog food, both canned and dry kibble, that offers a wide variety of flavors? My dogs currently LOVE Merrick and Whole Earth Farms but since Purina bought them, I’m sure I’ll have to switch as I anticipate the quality going down. My dogs are easily bored eating the same thing every day and we all enjoy popping open a new can of stew and finding the hand-stuffed baby carrots or potatoes. It almost looks like stew out of my own crock pot! Who else makes a wholesome food similar to that?