[Aspen A]

Lovx3, I am with Steve’s Real Food, a raw pet food company. The Atwater figures are not particularly helpful, and you will always want to compare dog foods using a dry matter comparison. The reason for this is that as different products contain different moisture levels, it can skew the results. Usually pet food companies will use the at water comparison because they want their numbers to look better, so you need to ask them for the dry matter comparison. It sounds like Naturella is doing a great job, and I can give a second opinion in favor of much of what she/he said. I would also recommend that you consider going to a raw diet, as it is much more in line with how your dog is genetically designed to process food. Adding water and mixing with canned is a great start, and definitely better on your dog’s intestines and ability to digest kibble than just giving straight dry, but raw is best!

[Aspen A]

Lovemypuppy, I am with Steve’s Real Food, a raw pet food company (for full disclosure). Well done on switching your pup to raw, it is so much healthier for him than even the highest-end kibble. Any dry product is not going to compare in health benefits and easy digestion compared to raw. It is always good to rotate the food – we don’t expect our children to eat one thing every day for their entire life, but if you only feed a kid ice cream and cherrioos their stomachs are going to have a hard time eating apples and spinach. I hope your pup is doing well!

[Aspen A]

Hi, Carol, I am with Steve’s Real Food (a raw pet food company, so you have full disclosure). I just looked up the Miracle Dog food, but I am not seeing enough specifics about which grains and minerals are in it to speak to whether they are the best fit for your pet. If you are worried about the nutrition balance you may want to go to a frozen raw food, there are some great ones out there (Steve’s included) that do the math and nutrition for you, including the fat content, etc. Pork and beef are going to be higher in fat, if you are wanting low fat sticking to chicken and turkey is going to be best. What is wrong with your dog’s pancrease? Is it pancreatitis? Natural Dog Health Remedies.com (no affiliation) recommends Milk Thistle, Yarrow Root, Echinacea, dandelion, and probiotics, if that helps. I would not recommend switching them to dry food. It is so much harder on the stomach, and harder to digest, it makes them more thirsty, etc. If you are looking to improve their diet I would definitely recommend going to a more raw diet rather than a dry diet, that is just a step back, in my opinion.

[Adam H]

Hello everyone, I have great news and horrible news all of which are absolutely true without a doubt and promise if anyone wants to question me then go on go on and leave me alone period!

1. I don’t work for dynovite
2. I’ve spent thousands at numerous vets (I refuse to call them anything other then that die please)!
A.steriod shots and antibiotics…….
Money please
B.we have to do a biopsy…….el mula
C.we need to wait 45 days off the steroids in
Order to have a successful blood screen for
allergies……buy these products to help
Including eat plugs…….give me money
Oh the tests aren’t very accurate we have to take our time and find out by feeding the dog 120 dollar bags of food and adding proteins.
More money please.
3. All white pit mix with blue eyes.
A. Only kills three children per week but if your and angry middle
Aged………he takes no prisoners.
4. Added dynovite to a good dry food and some raw food with it and three months later presto. All hair back and licking and itching gone.

I really think vets know about the nutritional deficiencies in dog food and exploit this to there advantage and stab them with needles.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Adam H. Reason: Spellcheck

[Keith F]

Hi, I have a cocker spaniel who’s about 3 years old and he’s had a ton of stomach issues and is a very picky eater. Our Vet recently had us only feed him rabbit based wet/dry food which really seems to be working. We were using Royal Canin from the vet but I got mixed reviews from a few pet shop owners about that brand so I recently changed over to Nature’s Variety Instinct Grain-Free Rabbit Meal Formula Dry Dog Food which he seems to like but I need suggestions on a wet food now. I looked into the Nature’s Variety Instinct wet version but it’s very pricey and I was hoping not to spend $4.50 a can unless I really have to. I’ve been trying to do research to find a good nutitional mix that might cost a little less and Evangers Game Meats Rabbit came up. I’ve never heard much about them before and I was hoping someone could tell me from a nutitional standpoint if this is a good food to mix with the dry food I already have if there’s any other suggestions out there. Worst case I can stick with the Royal Canin wet rabbit food but I’d figured I’d ask since I’m new to this site. Thanks – Keith

[Christine U]

I just read the fat on his RC dry and it said 7.5 and his wet 3.5%. I think he’d eat all wet. I always thought all wet was too much overload for his gut, but since fat is half, maybe it would be better.

All his issues have only affected upper GI. All his burping and gulping episodes never included diarrhea. I do hear his tummy rumble and he does have the occasional toot. The vet wanted to do an endoscopy as the next step but I didn’t. I wasn’t sure I wanted to put him through another procedure and if it would actually tell us anything. It seems to be controllable with food so I wanted to try that. (I have IBS and have been through too many procedures all for nothing). The food change to Royal Canin cut his symptoms by 75% or more so I know we’re on the right track. Plus a gal at the vets has a dog with super sensitive stomach. She told me all the stuff her dog tested for, procedures….eek! And it told her nothing….her dog just has a sensitive stomach. I know all dogs are different but Chewie has been through hell more than once so I try to be careful with him and avoid unnecessary stuff.

I’ve tried a couple different probiotics and like you said, did not agree with him.

[Susan]

Oh, I forgot to mention the fat% in wet food seems lower but when converted to dry matter (Kibble) its high for example 4% fat in wet tin food is around 22% fat when converted, if it was a kibble, that’s why I have to cook, if you live America you have lower fat% in wet food, then I have in Australia.. your best to get 2% fat & under for wet tin food, the Wellness Complete Health Senior has the lowest at 3% fat in the wet, or the “Wellness Petite Entrees Mini Filets” only the ones in gravy are 2% fat..

Have you have a Endoscope & Biopsies done for the Helicobacter? I found with the Helicobacter all the ant acid don’t work…. Zantac worked the best for Patch also, Zantac doesn’t affect the bowel, where Losec affects the bowel & gave Patch bad wind pain & sloppy greenie/black poos…..another thing I’ve just read on Dr Karen Becker site about fiber & prebiotics don’t use kibbles with Prebiotics Beet Pulp, FOS, a lot of vet diets use Beet Pulp & FOS & MOS… for a healthy dog with a healthy Gut, prebiotics are good but for a dog with GI problems Prebiotics can make things worse, another reason Patch was taken off kibble…The link has been put up on the Face Book group…

There’s a group on Face Book called “Dogs with Inflammatory Bowel Disorder” a few dogs on that site have bad acid reflux & stomach problems, the group was called, “Dogs with Stomach & Bowel problems” but the name was changed about 3 months ago..

[Susan]

Hi Christine, the Gulping is Acid Reflux, my boy started getting this when on the Royal Canine HP that’s when all Patches problems started, 2013, fast forward 2 years, Patch had Endoscope & Biopsies done December 2014 & he has Helicobacter, IBD, they get real bad acid reflux, burping, heartburn, he was put on triple therapy Metronidazole, Amoxicillin & Zantac cause he cant take Losec but they are normally use Losec, he was on this 3 weeks, as soon as the triple therapy stopped within 1 week Patch was gulping & swallowing again, at night early hours of morning is worse, I’ve been giving 3ml Mylanta this really heaps…Patch was put on another triple therapy Metronidazole, Clarithromycin & Zantac, the Clarithromycin made him so ill, I had to stop all meds, that was last week, I have also stopped any kibbles, no more kibble, I have been buying turkey breast mince 99% fat free about 1 kilo =(2.2 pounds) I add 1 egg & mix thru mince & then I make about 4 long meatloaf & with the left over turkey breast mince I make real little turkey balls as treats, I put on baking tray & bake, I boil a heap of butternut pumkin & freeze 20g squares, I section the turkey when cooked & freeze, to 1 cup of cooked turkey after I’ve mashed all up, I add about 1 heap spoon boiled pumkin….pumkin soothes the GI tract…… Patch is on this diet for 6 weeks to let everything rest after the strong antibiotics made him ill….

You need a real low fat diet as fat makes acid reflux worse, high protein kibbles normally have high fat, also limited ingredient diets are best, if you can, feed a wet diet, as kibble is too over processed & makes things worse with acid reflux & gulping.. Your dog is small, you could cook & freeze like I’m doing, boil a heap of potatoes & freeze sections for the day & buy some fresh white fish & freeze after cooked. I use to use tin tuna & spring water then I tried tin salmon but the fat was too high in the salmon…so far turkey breast has been the best…

“Wellness Simple” limited ingredient has Grainfree Salmon & Potatoes or Turkey & Potatoes in wet & dry, the fat is min-12% here’s their link to have a look, just scroll right down to the bottom for the Simple range, I use to feed the Duck & Oatmeal & the Lamb & Oatmeal as Patch cant eat potatoes & these flavours had the lowest fat, min-11% & min-12% fat but that’s min fat-11%, so u add another 1 & 1/2 more for max fat%…
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/recipes.aspx?pet=dog&ft=1#Complete

[Christine U]

Hi everyone,
I seriously need advice.
I’ve been to regular vets and holistic vets.
I have a 4 year old Parsons Terrier/Shitz Tsu mix with bad GI issues. He’s had so many tests and it seems to be food related. We’ve tried so many foods and right now he’s on Royal Canin White Fish and Potato both wet and dry. He still has the occasional ‘gulping’ type issue but no diarrhea or vomiting.
Recently I found Grandma Z’s grain free fish and potato and he loves that and the ingredients seem to be a bit better than Royal Canin.
Here’s my issue. First…I’m ALWAYS open to finding the best food I can for him but we are getting ready to RV full time. My concern is finding his food on the road. Every vet has to order it and it can take 1-2 weeks. I plan to carry a lot with us, but I know there are so many new grain free foods out there. Maybe there’s one I haven’t heard of.
Any tips, advice, recommendations?
Thanks so much!
Christine

[Carol B]

Hi I am hoping someone can help me out. We have been feeding our dachshunds Dr. Harvey’s Canine “Miracle” dog food for several years. We only rotate between chicken and beef, so in the am they get beef, at night it’s chicken. We cook the meat ahead of time, package it in bags and freeze it. We also add the Health & Shine with the am feeding and used to add the Golden Years, but we have a range of 3 yrs to 15 yrs. now. We have one Senior that is having issues with his pancreas now. I have spoken with Dr. Harvey on more than one occasion to find out if “when you add your own protein” the mix is balanced and has all the minerals needed. I have yet to get a straight answer. I am reluctant to switch their food, but I also want to make sure they are eating a balanced diet. We are considering changing them to a dry food. Many years ago we used Honest Kitchen, it just became too expensive with 4 dogs. I welcome any comments or anyone who has experience with Dr. Harvey’s that might help us decide what to do to help keep our senior’s healthy. We were told we need a low-fat, but if we add the protein, how do you know what “low-fat” is?

[Naturella]

@Oleanderz, we have the same dog puzzle at home! Bruno loves it! 😀 And she is just adorable. She’s not huge, but probably still can be classified as a “large breed”? Idk… Sorry. We got just a small guy, and the roommate’s dog is about 55-60 lbs, but she doesn’t look too big either. I think the medium bags of each food should be lasting her about a month, no? How long does each of the large EB bags last her? Also, on sportdogfood.com all of the GF Victor bags come only in 30-lb bags, just FYI. But it’s still a great food, and even if all the other bags you feed are mediums, it’s fine if the Victor are the large ones.

Anyway, as for the tripling the toppers – I highly recommend buying this e-book: http://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=DN330EBK – it is just under $3.00 but very informative about adding fresh toppers (such as eggs, canned sardines, raw or cooked meat) and in what proportions based on the dog’s weight. You won’t necessarily have to triple the toppers just because she weighs 3 times more than Bruno – maybe double them, the book will tell you, particularly about the eggs and sardines. But, for example, Bruno used to eat 1/2 of what Casey (our roommate’s dog) eats, and she ate 2 cups of food/day, at 55-60 lbs. He ate 1 cup ever since we got him at under 10 lbs or so,
and a little pup. When I began introducing toppers, I put him on 3/4 cups of dry/day, and then added toppers and treats, and that was when we were exercising very vigorously in the summer. I think then he was getting a bit more than 1 cup dry calorie-wise, but he was burning it off and his body needed the extra boost. Now he’s at 1/2 cup dry with toppers (we’re not getting as much exercise :/ ), so calorie-wise he’s still at around 3/4-1 cup per day, and then the occasional treat. I watch more his body condition than weight, and speaking of, here is a good link for that too: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&ved=0CDMQFjAH&url=http%3A%2F%2Fresearch.unc.edu%2Ffiles%2F2012%2F11%2FCCM3_032387.pdf&ei=M5jjVJCwLYOuggSfnoSwAw&usg=AFQjCNHtVxv9oSG6wDJy-eYgbHFmyKag_Q&sig2=T1KHIfunn_GiCqOKGXYcfg&bvm=bv.85970519,d.eXY 4-5 is ideal, so that’s what we strive to keep Bruno at. That’s what I should strive for myself, lol!

And lol! Well, whatever works for you, your fam, and Luci! LoL. And good, glad we’ll be having you around! 🙂

[Naturella]

@Oleanderz, Lucille looks so cute in your pic! 🙂 But the link you posted says I don’t have permission to view it or something…

Yes, I would probably have her stay overnight. She won’t hate you, I promise. And yeah, I would say she is about medium… I think large breeds are the ones 50+ lbs when adults.

And awwh, you’re welcome! I hope it helps! I really tried to make it as diverse and balanced at possible. I would say that for a start, 4 brands are fine to rotate between. By the time you finish the suggested schedule, you can decide whether to repeat it or add more to the mix. I personally always add more, cause there are so many foods I want to try on Bruno, but many of the pros here stick to just a few brands and rotate between them and the flavors. I think 4 brands is a good start.

If Luci doesn’t have a grain allergy, it won’t hurt her to have grains again. It is only 2 formulas with grains anyway, and if you notice her reacting to them, just keep alternating between the Kinesis and RPM GFs.

Eggs: dogs’ digestive tracts are much shorter than ours, so the probability of them getting salmonella is much lower. They were meant to eat raw food. If it bugs you though, you can totally lightly or fully cook the whole egg and give it to her. You can use coconut or olive oil to cook it in, or no oil if you’re poaching it. It is, in fact, recommended that you lightly cook the egg white, and not cook the yolk at all, because there is an enzyme (I believe) in the egg white that could mess with the dog’s body properly absorbing the biotin in the yolk. If you cook the yolk, some of the biotin goes away too, is my understanding. So cook the egg white lightly. BTW, for Luci, I would probably give her 2 eggs together when I do give eggs, and a whole 3.5-oz can of sardines if I were to give her any. She is 3 times Bruno’s size after all. 🙂

Now, for food storage and rotation. As long as you keep it in a dark, cool, dry place, as long as you use it up by the BEST BY date, you should be fine. I personally have a bit of a stocking-up (NOT hoarding… Not yet, hopefully not ever!) problem with dog food because of amazing deals, so I basically stocked up enough food to last Bru till the end of this year. Luckily, I will be able to use it by or close to the BEST BY dates. But for the future, I would probably still get 3-4 months’ worth at a time, depending on deals, because in case a food doesn’t work out for him and I have to scrap it, I don’t want him to be foodless till I order or buy the next bag. So, what you can do, is stock up with say, the first line of medium-sized bags of EB, Dr Tim’s, Nulo, and Victor (medium-sized should be good, just so you see how she’s taking it) and start going through them and when you get to the Nulo, order the next line. This way you will always have about 4-5 bags at a time in case something goes wrong. Plus, at all times there will be an EB there if she can’t or won’t eat any of the other foods. But I hope she likes them!

As for the keeping track – make sure your family doesn’t feel like Big Brother is watching, lol. It is mostly important for feeding to keep track of times, amounts, and toppers, etc., as well as making sure no treats are given till she learns to eat her food quickly when put down. It shouldn’t take her too long. After that, still make sure she’s not getting too many treats to make her skip her next meal. And that’s about it. Exercising with a dog can be fun, so I’m sure someone will do something with daily, it doesn’t have to be super tracked, but you can do it if you want. I probably will track everything one day when we have kids and another dog though, lol! But that’s still far in the future.

One last thing that I’m sure you probably know, but I will just throw out there – all the foods in Luci’s future rotation, including EB, are pretty calorie-dense (Especially Dr. Tim’s Momentum). So keep track of how much she is being fed also, because she may just be one of those dogs that can self-regulate and between possibly too much food and too many treats, she is skipping meals. Use the bag feeding guidelines as a guideline only, not as a rule, and just adjust accordingly. She should have a waist when looked at from above, and her ribs should be easily-felt.

I am happy if I have been able to help with anything. Please do stay around in the forums, keep us posted, and let us know if you have any more questions! 🙂

[lovemypuppy]

The raw food that my pup eats is 31.25% fat, after converting to dry matter basis.

The catfish beams are around 4%, so not high in fat by any stretch of the imagination. Honestly, I don’t think either of the techs were familiar with Beams and just assumed fish skin = high fat.

I read that raw food needs to be no more than 60 calories per ounce, otherwise the fat content is too high. Our nuggets are 48 calories per ounce, but 31.25% fat seems kind of high. Hmmm. Always something more to learn or understand!

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by lovemypuppy.

[lovemypuppy]

Thanks everyone for all the good information!

First let me say, I’m in my late 30’s and this is the first dog I’ve owned, lived with, or cared for. Not trying to use that as an excuse, it is what it is, but I’m definitely having a steep learning curve, and unfortunately it’s at the expense of my pup 🙁

I don’t know she has a food allergy or any type of allergy, but given her breed (Boston Terrier), finickiness, weight loss, red eyes, tear stains, brittle and dry fur, dry itchy skin, missing fur on her hind legs and behind her ears, and a few small scabs from scratching, I felt like it made sense to try to switch to raw with minimal ingredients in hopes of improving her overall health and identifying any potential allergens.

Unfortunately, I didn’t come to this conclusion until after giving her WAY TOO MANY different types of animal proteins (kibble, wet, freeze dried, toppers, etc.) while trying to find a food (and training treat) she’d settle on. I’m sure it didn’t help that she also went through quite a few different foods with the breeder when she was having a hard time weaning.

At this point, I’m not sure it would be possible for me to pinpoint a specific food that might be causing her skin and fur issues. The animal proteins she’s had the most of are chicken, beef, and turkey. Also, most of her symptoms were present before I started switching her food around and giving her novel animal proteins. So, if I had to take a guess, I would say she is having a hard time with turkey, chicken, and maybe lentils (they gave her horrid gas, anyway).

At this point, she’s been on the commercial raw for about a week and I’m seeing dramatic improvement. She still has tear stains, but I imagine that will take time (to grow out) and diligence on my end (wiping her face). She has gained weight and filled out, her coat is not nearly as dry (even shiny towards her back/spine) and her skin flaking and itchiness has lessened.

Given her overall improvement, I’m not inclined to switch her food yet again, especially if I can just stick with this for 10 weeks and see where she is at then (and if need be do more of a true elimination diet). I will stop the catfish skins (bummer) and try to find some type of low fat duck chew. I have sweet potato chews but she doesn’t really like them … they seem to crumble up and are more crunchy than chewy. Maybe if that’s her only choice though, she’ll learn to enjoy them 🙂

@DogFoodie, have you looked at Nordic Naturals Pet Collection? They use pharmaceutical grade, molecularly distilled fish oil, using sardine and anchovy oil or cod liver oil. Their pet line is pretty much the same as their human line with the exception of tocopherols as the preservative rather than rosemary extract. Just a thought.

If you read all of this, you rock! Sorry it’s so long and again thanks to all for offering your valuable insight!

[Mark C]

I have been feeding the venison formula to my dogs for about a year now. This last batch I purchased was different in color and smell. It went from a pleasing smelling food to a nasty odorous mix of what I call chemical smells.

Nature’s Logic was contacted and this is what I was told: A couple months ago, in order to continue to make our food to our high standards, we moved from a plant in Texas to CJ Food in Pawnee City, Nebraska. The new plant is making everything to our specifications, and as a matter of fact, our specs have improved due to better sourcing of our ingredients.

When we come out with new bags in February and March, we will show that the calories have gone up per cup and the weight of a cup is slightly higher from 3.8 oz to 4 oz.

What this probably will mean to you is a need to feed less food. A bit too much food can cause some gas and lose stool for some pets.

When we do launch our food in the new bags, we will also make a couple very small changes. One is going from beef meal in our venison to some lamb meal which we use to do. This will enable us to export our venison diet to Canada and many other foreign country into which we cannot with the beef in the diet.

I hope you will try to cut back about ¼ on the amount you feed. If you do this I believe everything will work like it has in the past.

Has anyone else had an experience with this food? Can they replace the bags AFTER the food content changes? It seems to me the nutrition information on the current bags are wrong or misleading.

[Naturella]

Cheryl, I literally laughed out loud with true sincerity! 😀 Thank you so much for the kind words! I am not amazing, lol, but I do try to stay organized. However, I can be flexible too – I would skip a food in a heartbeat if it smells funny, Bruno doesn’t eat it, or it makes him sick. I’ve done it too, with Nature’s Variety Instinct Rabbit. It just did not work out. Oh well.

Also, 2 of his weekly meals, chosen at random, are just plain kibble eaten from a puzzle toy of some sort, just for entertainment and brain stimulation. Or fed during a training session. I use kibble as treats, and I use samples of various other foods than his main food at the time being to add variety, so sometimes the dry meals are all “treats” (different kibble), some “treats”, some normal food, or all normal food. On Tuesdays I will be trying to use a fish-based kibble as his meal (I used to do it on Saturdays, when he got Sardines anyway, but too much fish in one day is probably not as good as some fish twice/week), so Tuesdays he will be getting a fish-based kibble from my samples stash.

Dori, hoarding some THK and Orijen (for us kibble-feeders) may not be too bad of an idea. Especially today as we are supposed to be iced-in in GA. I hope we are and I hope schools and Universities are closed tomorrow. I want a day off mid-week-ish. So rebellious! LoL! 😀

***EDIT*** – Oh, and Cheryl – wouldn’t it be nice if they could just tell us what they want to eat on a particular meal from the closet/fridge/freezer? It would be soo much easier on us! 🙂 But, they can’t… So they just get what they can, and we just try to make it as healthy, yummy, and diversified as possible. 🙂

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Naturella.

[pugmomsandy]

Just looking at those numbers for Beams, it doesn’t appear to be a high fat item. You can also compare it to the Primal recipe you are currently feeding. How does Beams compare to that? In general, “puppy” recipes are higher in fat. Even Purina’s Focus Small Breed Puppy dry recipe has a minimum of 20% fat, and Purina is a large company that has veterinarians and nutritionists on staff. It would be interesting to know what food your vet would have recommended for your puppy to see how much fat is in that! I know that Beams are just a treat, but fat in food and treats are the same to me.

[brit]

I use eggshells for calcium if I am cooking the meat or using raw meat without bones. We use organic eggs for ourselves and our pets so I collect at least 6 eggshells, rinse the shells with cool water and leave to dry overnight. I put them in my little Braun coffee grinder (also handy for grinding dry herbs etc) and grind them to a powdery consistency. Use approx 1/2tsp per lb of meat. If I give chicken necks that morning (usually give them at least twice a week)I don’t worry about calcium that evening I buy Wholistic Pet Canine Complete and use on the food (I use half the dose that they suggest) as a supplement plus some herbs that I grind and add. During the winter I give a tsp of Carlsons Cod Liver Oil (unflavored) a couple times a week (its low in A and D which is good as some is way to high). I make all my own dog food but often cook and also often feed raw (usually Primal raw). So if I am buying something like Primal I don’t need to add calcium because it has bone ground in. Usually breakfast is cooked sweet potato/plain goat yogurt/raw egg yolk although often I buy canned Alaskan salmon, rinse it and use a small amount. Then evening meal is either the Primal with crushed raw veggies (I put them through my Greenstar Juicer which has a gadget that allows them to come through whole but crushed) or cooked meat with the veggies. If I have a dog that needs to gain weight I throw in some organic oat flakes while meat is cooking.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by brit.
• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by brit.

[Kate F]

Thanks for all the great questions and it’s wonderful to hear about all the dogs doing well on our food! Here are some initial responses to some of the questions but I also encourage you to give us a call so we can get more in-depth answers for you: 866-437-9729

@Dog_Obsessed:
For a more active dog, we recommend increasing the ratio of meat to the dry mix. This provides more calories from the protein and fat, and less of the fruits and veggies, which offer less calories per gram. The guidelines are offered as a place to start and we strongly believe that each and every dog is an individual. So, we recommend that you start with these amounts and then adjust in time to suit your dog’s individual dog’s needs.

You may increase the ratio of meat to base mix by as much as 2:1, two parts meat to 1 part dry mix. You may also increase the total amount of both meat and base mix as needed, as long as you feed within our recommended ratios, which will keep the nutrients in balance. The minimum is 1:1, maximum 2:1 (meat:base mix). If fed within our recommended ratios, you may create a meal that meets AAFCO guidelines.

If Lily needs more than what is recommended, please feel free to increase her daily portion to suit her calorie needs.

@cheryl-pepper-millie-belle:
It may be helpful to know that the stool created from a diet of colorful whole foods will naturally be more colorful, too! It will not look the same as a the stool created by a homogenous dry kibble or a mostly meat raw diet. A whole food diet allows the GI system to efficiently absorb the nutrients the body needs and move the rest on out, including the insoluble fiber in fresh fruits and veggies. Your dog’s overall body condition and health will determine if he/she is getting the nutrients they need.

While most dogs with a healthy and balanced digestive tract are easily able to digest and assimilate the nutrients from our dehydrated whole foods, some may need a little help. If the GI tract has been compromised in any way due to a variety of chronic ailments, courses of antibiotics, medications, stress, etc., the addition of digestive enzymes and probiotics can help a dog regain balance and the overall strength of the GI system.

For Pepper, it may help to blend the mix using a food processor or blender prior to feeding to break the larger pieces down a bit. I’ve heard a few customer doing this for their very sensitive pups and it works great! We’re happy to hear that Pepper is doing well with the food!

Hope this helps! -Kate, THK

[Dori]

Hi Kimberly. The dog in my avatar is my 15 1/2 year old Maltese named Hannah. I also have a 5 1/2 year old Yorkipoo named Lola. My girl with all the issues (she also has environmental allergies) is a 5 1/2 year old Maltipoo. Her name is Katie. She was the runt of the littler and the tiniest dog I had ever seen. She was due to be put down and so we brought her into our family at the age of 9 weeks. She had food intolerance issues right from when we got her. She also had to have knee surgery for a level 4 – 5 luxating patella at under a year old. We could no longer adjust her leg (knee) manually so surgery was the only course of action left for us. She also had to have her four front top teeth removed because her lower canines were growing straight out the bottom (not to the sides where they should be) so the top teeth were interfering with the lower canines. It’s been one thing after another with our poor sweet Katie but for all that, I will say that she has been the most loving, sweet, affectionate little dog we have ever had. With the exception of a Tibetan Terrier that I had a number of years ago all the dogs in my life and now with my husband have been toy dogs with hair. I’m allergic to animals so fur is a no go in my home.

I will mention that other than seasonal allergies that Katie still has to deal with she has remains allergy free as it concerns diet since making all the changes. She was a complete mess before. Yeasty smelly ears, scratching 24/7, horrendous breath, gas to knock you out of the house let along the room, red rimmed eyes, her eyes were always full of goop and awful tear stains. Oh I could go on and on. She was at the vet all the time. I also was taking her to an allergist. Of course she also had her orthopedic surgeon and then there was her oral surgeon. She was on Atopica back then which is a horrendous prescription allergy medication that really does a number on their organs. She was also supplemented with Benadryl. None of that actually helped by the way. So I got serious about figuring out what to do and came across this site on the web and that was the beginning for all three of my dogs nutritional health. I cannot remember when the last time Katie had to have an antihistamine. It’s been years.

[Kimberly C]

The most recent diets/supplements I’ve had him on are PetDiets.com and BalanceIt, both recommended by my vets. One of my vets suggested taking him off chicken to see if he was allergic. I took him off the white chicken for a while and it seemed to help some, and when we put him back on the white meat he seemed to itch more. I’ve also tried the “Honest Kitchen”, numerous premium canned foods, dry dog foods (which he absolutely hates) and have use some recipes from Dr. Pitcairn’s book (except I lightly cooked the meat) and Janie Knetzer’s book, “Home Cooking For Sick Dogs”. Some of the vitamin/mineral supplements I used with these have been “Vitalmix” which I bought from Purely Pets, and Drs. Foster and Smith multivitamin. The list goes on and on, but these are the main ones.

[Gloria K]

Lyndel, sounds like you’ve got it pretty well down pat. Thanks so much for the explanation. I do agree with you that most Vets are not trained in dog nutrition as most of them advocate dry dog food and often have them for sale in their offices.
They range from Iams, to Science Diet to Purina etc. and I have the same feeling you do that maybe they are connected to the companies of the products they’re selling as most GPs are.

[Gloria K]

Lendel, sounds like you’ve got it pretty well down pat. Thanks so much for the explanation. I do agree with you that most Vets are not trained in dog nutrition as most of them advocate dry dog food and often have them for sale in their offices.
They range from Iams, to Science Diet to Purina etc. and I have the same feeling you do that maybe they are connected to the companies of the products they’re selling as most GPs are.

[Lyndel M]

Hi Gloria,

Yes, there is certainly a lot of confusion amongst the raw and the cooked dog food camps. I have been reading heaps about it. Those in the raw food camp put forward for the raw food diet. I shall do my best to summarise a few of the key points that are important to me. First, they say that the dog’s metabolism has changed very little from the wolves, the original wild dogs. They suggest that when we provide our dogs with the right proportions of meats, organ meats, vegetables, fruit matter and bones, they’re digestive systems have the best chance of exacting the nutrients they need for shiny coats, healthier skin and teeth, stronger bones, and decreased chances of modern-day ailments and diseases that dogs in the wild rarely if ever have. Some of these ailments include itching, skin irritations, including dryness, fleas, hip dysplasia and arthritis.

In the other camp, there is some criticism of the raw diet saying that giving a dog only food i.e., meats risks feeding contaminated food, that people don’t take enough care in raw food preparation, that dogs today have evolved to adjust to modern (cooked, commercial) food and that dogs are at moderate – high risk of injuries from bone which become lodged in the throat or gut.

I am definitely against using any commercial dog foods. There are some great you-tube documentaries disclosing the shocking truth about the poor quality of nutrition of kibble and canned dog foods and the associated illnesses. In addition, that most Vets receive very little real knowledge of nutrition in their veterinarian studies and are just as influenced by the unregulated marketing and commercial dog food producers as GPs are by drug companies.

Regardless, Jean Hofve & Celeste Yarnall “Paleo Dog” is one book that has been recommended provide excellent information for providing your dog with all of the information needed to provide our dogs with all of the nutrients required and how to do so, if we want to go down the raw food pathway. Also there is the BARF raw foods that you can purchase and other online info about this pathway. And there are heaps of recipes for cooking our dogs food as well. Andi Brown “The Whole Pet Diet: 8 wks to great health for dogs and cats”, which is also excellent for going down the cooked food pathway. They both recommend certain supplements and they both provide enough evidence to suggest that just like for humans, if we give our pets fresh wholesome, organic foods (either raw or cooked) we will be doing our beloved pets a great service.

Given I have been a passionate advocate of healthy, unprocessed foods for more 40years, I certainly want to extend this to my pet. People on this post have just been concerned that I was being cruel to our new puppy for placing his food into chewtoys. However, I made the mistake of saying that we would be putting all of his daily foods into chewtoys, whereas that won’t be the case. But I will definitely using chewtoys together with crate training, self-soothing, stimulation and entertainment as I mentioned in my previous post. I am definitely not an expert, but a concerned pet owner who has done lots and lots of reading in order to do the best by our new puppy in terms of nutrition and training. All the best!! :0)

[Akari_32]

Bobby Dog, why didn’t I think of that?? I’m always signing up for promotional emails LOL I’ll have to go register lol

So I thought I’d update you guys on a cat litter I bought. Thank god I didn’t pay much for it ($2 for both jugs, I believe) because I HATE it! It’s Cats Pride Light and Fresh. It smells like a box of dryer sheets, and it’s dusty as crap. Not to mention it does nothing to cover up poop smells, so not my whole room smells like flowery cat poop, and just scooped the box two nights ago (I usually scoop it every 1-2 days, but I’m just too tired to deal with it, plus it’s in the 30’s tonight and I don’t want to drag a bag of cat mess out to the garbage can lol). It also does not clump well at all, despite the labels “strong clumping” claims. I do not recommend this cat litter at all. The other Cats Pride litters are fine, but this Light and Fresh is just worthless. I’m glad I only got two jugs of it. I suppose this is the reason I use Tidy Cats LOL

Oh! And I’ve used Soulistic, and the cat seemed ok it with. It’s a weird, shredded food, packed in hard, congealed oils. It’s suprisingly solid, and took a fair amount of stabbing with a spoon to soften it up.

[aquariangt]

@Bobbydog – I’ve fed cat’s in the kitchen. I THINK it was chunky (Shinku hated it of course) but it ma have been shredded, definitely not pate

Shawn A-
Petco has Soulistic which is made by Weruva

Check out BFF also made by weruva, though it all contains tuna. my cat doesn’t eat anything, and she really likes the BFF so I just use it with non fish dry food

I also like Earthborns cans, they come in cases of 24 instead of 12, but the price is good.

Simply Nourish is well priced for what it is, but my cat won’t eat any of them, but they have both pate and shredded, and some casseroles that she pecked at so she may get it again sometime.

Wellness isn’t bad and is often on sale, can get that at PetSmart, PetCo, and most boutiques and online.

I mostly use Tiki and Earthborn, though Tiki can get pricey. Precise isn’t too bad and I use a few of theirs from time to time.

[shawn a]

the dry food

[Dori]

Hi Oleanderz. If you are going to wait to have her spayed until the summer when you are home from college then you can start to transition her to a different and better food right away. Just do it slowly as all transitions should be done with a dog that is not accustomed to rotation feeding.

As to fruits. Many of us routinely feed our dogs fruits (small pieces depending on the size of your dog). Bananas are perfectly fine. I think what Naturella was trying to tell you is that certain fruits and veggies should never been given to a dog such as grapes, raisins, onions. If you are given your dog a fruit make sure not to give any seeds or pits. They can be toxic. For feeding apples, remember no seeds and no peel. Apples are some of the most heavily sprayed fruits of all with pesticides trying to keep worms at bay and then all the wax that is applied to make them look pretty for the consumer so it is always best to peel them. We shouldn’t be eating the peels ourself unless purchasing organic apples from your local farm market. I give my dogs apples, bananas, blueberries, carrots, cucumbers, peaches, pears, all types of melons, broccoli, the list goes on and on. You can google what fruits and vegetables are safe to give your dogs. Or in reverse you can google what fruits and veggies should not be given to your dog.

I don’t think that weight loss or gain is going to become an issue once she’s spayed. I’ve never had that occur with any dog I’ve had spayed or neutered and all my dogs have been spayed or neutered.

If your dog drinks a lot of water or at least a normal amount of water that you don’t also have to add water to a wet food. If feeding just dry food than it is always a good idea to add a little warm water to the kibble. Helps break down the kibble sooner thereby with digestion and helping the kibble to break down and move through the system sooner and the more water a dog drinks the healthier their kidneys will be also. Most dogs don’t really drink as much water as they should especially with a dry food. The longer a food sits in their system the more possibility there is for bacteria buildup which is why it’s always advised to make sure a dog always has free access to water. The only exception to that I find is when you have a puppy and you are trying to potty train but that’s a completely different method for another day.

Another thing if I haven’t mentioned it somewhere along the way is what you say is your dog’s “strange” eating habits. The correct way to feed a dog is to put his/her bowl of food down and leave it there for 20 minutes then pick it up regardless of how much she has eaten. Even if she didn’t eat any of it, pick it up. At her next meal time, not when you think she’s hungry, but at her regularly scheduled p.m. meal, put her food bowl down and again, leave it for 20 minutes. Same routine. Pick it up regardless of what she ate or didn’t it. You may have to initially stay with her in the room while she eats so that she doesn’t decide to follow you around. Once she’s retrained you won’t have to do that. Keep doing this for both her meals every single day. In a few days all dogs figure out that when food appears they must eat it because it’s going to disappear. I’ve never known a single dog that didn’t learn that. Leaving her food down all day for her to pick at it has led to her “strange” eating habits. You just have to teach her that when food is given she is to eat it and if she doesn’t she will have to wait until the next meal time. While you are retraining her you MUST NOT give her any treats during the day and in between meals or she won’t be hungry to eat her food. It’s okay if you give her a little treat later in the evening after her meals have been eaten but while training with the correct way to feed and eat she cannot be given any treats. She’s probably getting so many “treats” that she’s not really all that hungry when food comes along or she prefers her treats and knows she doesn’t really have to eat the food because treats will be coming her way.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Dori.

[Naturella]

Welcome to DFA! It can be overwhelming, yes, but sometimes the best way to learn is just by trying some of the different ideas people post that appeal to you, see how it works with your dogs, and tweak the thing or choose something else.

I just posted the below info for someone else, lol, but it is altered to fit your questions. I am not a professional or anything, I can just tell you what I think and do:

I think that no single dog food is perfect, and different foods have varying amounts of protein, carbs, and fat, but Victor is a high-quality food and all the flavors within it seem pretty good to me. If you want, you can also rotate both within a brand (basically switch up the Victor flavors), or rotate the Victor brand with other good foods, like Dr. Tim’s, Earthborn Holistic, and Annamaet, among others – this will offer your dogs a variety in the formulas, tastes, vitamins, etc. The kibble sizes in most of these foods are pretty viable for a Chihuahua to handle, but I am not sure about Dr. Tim’s – the kibbles may be a bit big for a 4-lb dog.

If you choose to rotate brands, give it at least 10-14 days, adding a little bit of new food to the old at a time, and watching the stool – if stool is good for 2 days or so, add more new food, take more old food out, and so on. If stool is not good, back down the amount of new food, up the old food. When they get used to rotating, you can switch brands with every big bag (what I do, but with small bags, lol). For now, you can switch to a brand, then exhaust most of the flavors within the brand just so they don’t have too many changes at once, then go to another brand. Also, you can add canned plain pumpkin to aid their digestion in the process, or a supplement called Perfect Form by The Honest Kitchen (THK). I swear up and down by it – anytime my Bruno has an upset tummy, it tightens him back up in a snap! But don’t overuse the Perfect Form – use it only as needed, and the amounts to feed are on the package, as well as on THK’s website. Which leads me to…

… if feeding Perfect Form with kibble, you will need to add some water to it. It will look like a greenish soup of kibble, lol. But, with that said, extra moisture added to dry kibble is always good for the dog. You can add plain lukewarm water, yoghurt/kefir, coconut oil and water, or canned food (and water). Any mix of kibble and canned is fine as long as the dog’s tummy is ok with it and as long as you adjust the amount you add and remove the appropriate amount of kibble so that the caloric intake stays about the same. So introduce the canned slowly, and not while transitioning between brands. You can also add dehydrated/freeze-dried/air-dried foods and water to kibble as toppers too, canned sardines (no salt added, in water only), fresh vegetables and meats, some fruits, and the above suggestions. Make sure you add NO onions or any grape products (grapes, raisins), some mushrooms.

For my 15-lb terrier mix I feed 1/4 cup of dry kibble twice/day, each time with some different topper from the ones mentioned above. I use coconut oil (twice/week), raw egg (once/week), The Honest Kitchen dehydrated foods (4 recipes, each one once/week), Big Dog Natural air-dried food (once/week), yoghurt/kefir (twice/week), 1/2 of a 3.5-oz can of sardines (once/week), 1/2 of a small can of dog food (right now either Weruva or Wellness, twice/week, no kibble at said meal), and a raw meaty bone once/week. All toppers minus the egg, sardines, can of dog food and the RMB I give a teaspoon of. And I add warm water to the mix in all meals. The dehydrated/air-dried foods kind of require it, lol. Bruno loves his “soups” (that’s what kibble and water and toppers look like) and he is slim, but muscular – his body condition is great, his coat is great, and he loves meal time.

So you can implement some, all, or none of the suggestions, or tweak them to fit your dogs’ needs. Good luck, keep us posted, and let us know if you have any more questions. 🙂

[Naturella]

Oleanderz, thank you for the kind words! You are such an eager-to-learn doggie mommy, it is awesome! 🙂

Ok, let me first say that I completely second Dori’s suggestion to NOT start rotating foods before she is well recovered from the surgery and back to normal, stool included. Sometimes stress, or the pain meds, can affect the stool, so if you had just started introducing a new brand of food, you wouldn’t know what’s causing the stool change.

But, after she has fully recovered from her surgery, you can start introducing and transitioning her to a new food of your choice. I think that no single dog food is perfect, and they do have varying amounts of protein, carbs, and fat, but all 4 brands are high-quality foods and will offer her a variety in the formulas, tastes, vitamins, etc. Like Dori said, if she’s gaining weight, feed her less, exercise her more; if she’s losing weight, feed her more, and still exercise her – she will be gaining muscle mass, which is healthy.

Now, for the rotation – it really depends on how her tummy’s taking it. Give it at least 10-14 days, adding a little bit of new food to the old at a time, and watching the stool – if stool is good for 2 days or so, add more new food, take more old food out, and so on. If stool is not good, back down the amount of new food, up the old food. When she gets used to rotating, you can switch brands with every big bag (what I do, but with small bags, lol). For now, you can switch to a brand, then exhaust most of the flavors within the brand just so she doesn’t have too many changes at once, then go to another brand. Also, you can add canned plain pumpkin to aid her digestion in the process, or a supplement called Perfect Form from The Honest Kitchen (THK). I swear up and down by it – anytime my Bruno has an upset tummy, it tightens him back up in a snap! But don’t overuse the Perfect Form – use it only as needed, and the amounts to feed are on the package, as well as on THK’s website. Which leads me to…

… if feeding Perfect Form with kibble, you will need to add some water to it. It will look like a greenish soup of kibble, lol. But, with that said, extra moisture added to dry kibble is always good for the dog. You can add plain lukewarm water, yoghurt/kefir, coconut oil and water, or canned food (and water). Any mix of kibble and canned is fine as long as the dog’s tummy is ok with it. So introduce the canned slowly, and not while transitioning between brands. You can also add dehydrated/freeze-dried/air-dried foods and water to kibble as toppers too, canned sardines (no salt added, in water only), fresh vegetables and meats, some fruits, and the above suggestions. Make sure you add NO onions or any grape products (grapes, raisins), some mushrooms.

Finally, where to find Victor dog food: sportdogfood.com Victor GF and Farmina N&D GF are the best options, but Farmina is on the pricy side. Victor is pretty affordable.

Oh, and for the boxes – hope she gets some flying discs in her BarkBox or whatever other boxes she gets! 🙂

Ok, sorry for the novel… Good luck, keep us posted, and let us know if you have any more questions! 🙂

[l0vx3]

So I’ve been reading Dog Food Advisor for awhile now and reading peoples’ comments and suggestions, but there are just too many options for me. I have two dogs: a 2 year old 60 pound pitbull and a 7 month old 4 pound chihuahua.

I’ve been feeding them Victor Dog Food. It’s sold right by my house and it’s a great price for the quality. I have SOO many questions I’d love to ask. But I’ll try to keep it to a minimum lol.

For my two dogs, which Victor foods specifically would be best for each of them? I do not show, breed, or exercise either of them intensely. The chihuahua obviously has more energy than the pitbull, but the pitbull has amazing stamina.

Could someone who knows a lot about each compare and contrast each of them or the best ones? I’m confused about “atwater figures” so is one better than the other in terms of protein/fat/carb ratios? I’m not even sure how much of each a dog is supposed to have?

Also, after comparing and choosing the best ones, should I rotate some of them? Is water added to dry kibble? Is there any best way to feed dry kibble? Should it be mixed with canned food? If so, how much? AHHhh please just tell me as much as you can haha. Thank you!

[Dori]

No point of the bowl being raised is that while she is wearing the cone her tongue has to be able to reach the food and the water. So the food and water bowl (like in the picture on the site you posted above) would need to be able to fit under the cone when her head is bent down to eat and drink. If the bowls in their stand are wider than then outside diameter of the cone she won’t be able to reach the bowls. She does not need to be spoon fed. You just have to make sure that she cannot reach her stitches.

A lot of people on this site feed wet (canned) and dry (kibble) mixed together in the same meal.

[Oleanderz]

Dori- Okay, I see your point with the issues with digestion before surgery, I’ll stick with Earthborn then. The way she eats is very strage though. When her food is put down, she doesn’t go to it and finish it off at an even pace. She maybe takes a couple bites of the dry food and then moves onto whatever I’m doing. She’s moreso into treats and wet food. Would it be okay to replace her dry food with the wet food or even mix the wet food and the dry food together if she struggles with weight loss? I don’t want anything to be too heavy for her to eat.
She already eats from a raised bowl (I wanted to avoid back problems- is this ok? http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B004BUFY8I/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2UDNPGKURPVSY ), or do you mean she has to eat on like a raised flat surface so her tongue can get it? That would be so sad to see that. She has a drinkwell zen too should I just put her water in the bowl next to her food? That would be so sad to see that. I could probably ask my brothers to spoon feed her? I wish I’d be able to moniter her at all times. Oh okay I was typing as I read, my next break from school isn’t for another month and my brothers have school for eight hours and my mom has work for ten. So, she is unfortunately not monitored all of the time. The two days I get coming home on the weekends is nothing compared to her ten days of recovery. So that’s a good idea. That’ll give me enough time to make preparations. Thank you so much Dori!

[Rachael D]

I just switched My dog and cats to a grain free diet. My cat was having grand mal seizures. after thousands of dollars at the vet just to be right back where we started I decided to try this approach after much research. I have them on Orijen brand dry food “six fish” flavor and supplement with fish oil or coconut oil a few times a week. So far so good!

[Barbara]

naturella sorry i just reread my post that i had posted in the middle of the night when i was in pain and could not sleep…i did not mean to sound like you or anyone else who collects coupons are wasting their time. i just can’t believe that you had to go through that hassle the clerks gave you! i forget that not everyone has big dogs like i have and orders 2 30# bags every 3 weeks! i just find it easier to order on chewy.com where for the last 2 months i have been ordering 30# bags of castor and pollux grain free ultramix duck for only 49.99 and their grain and poultry free ultramix salmon for 47.99. compared to other on-line sites and dog food stores like petco and petsmart these prices are very good because i need to get the large bags and i don’t have to carry 30# bags to my car all the time! i do rotate their dry kibble and have ordered other brands from chewy that have good ratings on dfa and are grain free…i think i have been ordering from chewy now for at least 3 years… i also occasionally drive a ways to a county feed store to get victor dog food especially their grain free joint health which has beef in it so they do get a variety of kibble along with lightly cooked meats and veggies. my 14 yr old border collie/flat coat mix also gets kirkland’s natures domain canned turkey and peas from costco rated 5 star and only 20 dollars for 24 cans! i do realize that coupons are good when you have the time to search for them and need smaller size bags then i do…so do take care and happy coupon hunting and thanks for sharing them with others! 🙂

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Barbara.

[Barbara]

Hi Carol M, i have never had a “newfie” only a mix that the father was newfie and chow and her mother was a golden retriever. Maya was a pup the owners insisted i take 23 yrs ago when i rescued the adults from excaping their back yard because of kids leaving the gate open! and they wandered 2 miles without tags! it took 2 days to find the owners and they had thought someone had stolen them because the female was pregnant and a beauty! Maya was my only puppy since i was younger and she grew up to about 80 lbs and loved to eat! she passed at almost 16 yrs with never a food issue or diarrhea. i rotated mostly dry kibble with some canned dog food, some fresh meat and carrots (raw) and (steamed veggies) broccoli, string beans or butternut squash…yum!

sorry about that long dialogue above but i was reminiscing… i do think you need to check out the list of recommended foods for Large Breed Puppies in the forums and especially read the info hound dog mom provides about large breed puppies. i know that the 3 dogs that run my life now love castor and pollux ultramix! (check out the prices on chewy.com very reasonable.) i have been rotating or mixing both the grain free duck 38% protein and 17% fat with glucosomine and the grain free and poutry free salmon 30% protein, 15% fat and high in omega 3’s (i am a little concerned about the mercury level in the salmon which has been questioned on this site…) neither of these have ever caused diarrhea in my border collie/flat coat ret. mix 14 yrs 50 lbs or my husky/shepherd 12 yrs 80 lbs. My 80 lb lab has a very sensitive stomach and for some reason has not had a problem with these 2 kibbles in the 2-3 months she has eaten them, but as you know any changes in food always needs to be done slowly…7-10 days depending on the dog. you can add some pumpkin puree to help with initial introduction and slight problems. i assume your puppy has been checked out by a vet for any issues that would cause diarrhea …but most vets know nothing about good food recommendations!

[Gloria K]

As you already know I make all of my dogs food and treats I have a problem and hoping someone knows the answer. The first two or three times I made treats I used wheat flour. The biscuits and cookies came out perfect just like regular cookies do. However I noticed my dog developed a very red rash on the inside of his thighs. I wondered if it could have been a wheat allergy so I stopped using wheat and started using coconut and rice flours instead. About a week later the rash went away. Two or three weeks later I gave him a wheat flour cookie just to see what would happen and the rash came back so looks like he may indeed have a wheat allergy.
The biscuits and cookies that I make him now are very dry. I’ve cut back on the amount of rice and coconut flour as someone suggested using 1/4 to 1/3 cup to the recipe calling for one cup of wheat or whole wheat flour. Has anyone used these flours and if so do you have the same problem with dryness that I have? Is there a solution to this? What am I doing wrong and what can I do to fix it?

[Peggy]

Dori I started to notice the difference in water intake about 5 or 6 weeks ago. Which is about the same time I had to start leaving the furnace on 24/7.

As for the food, I have noticed that they do not seem as thirsty when I feed them the PB wet food from the tub. The beef dinner has noticeably less gravy and the first ingredient is beef. The lamb is a pate’ with no gravy at all. I’ve all but stopped feeding them the stews because they don’t like the gravy at all. The last stew they ate was maybe 3 days ago.

Something I noticed tonight: I fed them their kibble with canned salmon and added canned carrots, warmed & diced. They seem perfectly comfortable now. No licking their lips at all.

I do notice Tebow licking his paws a lot. But I attribute that to the dry air. My feet are dry and itchy too. I’ve been through 2 bottles of lotion so far this winter. ugh.

[Dori]

Peggy I’m wondering if your dogs are thirstier because of the addition of PB wet (stews and gravies). First ingredient for their wet foods is a broth. I’m wondering if they have too much salt in their broth and then eventually on their ingredient list you will see that they have added “salt” again. There may simply be too much salt in their diet which is why they are drinking more. I have no personal knowledge as to whether their broths contain salt or not but I did notice that broth is listed first.

I disagree that the reason your dogs are drinking more water is because you are feeding your dogs a diet containing too much protein. I personally feed my three dogs foods with really high protein levels and would not feed foods with proteins as low as you do and my dogs are not any thirstier. I do however monitor any sodium that may be in their diets.

Are they as thirsty if you were to only feed them the dry food? I’m not suggesting you do, I’m just wondering when you started to notice the difference in their water intake.

Sorry, I meant to mention that their wet foods I believe also contain kelp which is salty tasting also.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Dori.

[lovemypuppy]

Let me start by just saying, I’m a total dog novice. I grew up with cats and now in my mid 30’s have adopted my first puppy.

I have a 10 week old boston terrier. Her weight is OK, but she is on the small side with not a weight to spare. She’s pretty finicky. I really wanted her to like Amicus puppy small breed but she continues to turn her nose up to it, even when adding to it (pumpkin, yogurt, wet food, etc.)

I would like to try her on Acana puppy small breed (despite it not being grain free) but can’t seem to get it in the US due to regulations of some sort re: milk thistle ingredient. Anyone know a way around this? Or maybe when they open up production in the US it will be available w/out milk thistle?

(side note, is the US production site thought to be no good because the pet food regulations in that state are too lax? I remember reading a downside, but can’t remember where or what the details were).

My pup is currently eating Acana Lamb and Apple whole prey diet and really enjoys it. The kibble is big but she gobbles it down. Is All life stages OK? Seems like it is for puppies, but may be too many calories for a mature dog?

Is rotating kibble OK for a puppy? I know their digestive system is immature and more sensitive, but so far, we’ve made sudden switches and she has handled it just fine. I would prefer to not get her stuck on one food … just not sure if that’s something that should wait until she is past her puppyhood.

I would like to stay grain free if possible as her coat is already dry and dull. That said, she also has (smelly) gas, so I’m a little leery of lentils … but it seems like avoiding potatoes might help with yeast? she does have tear stains … waiting on probitiocs to arrive.

How much truth is there with ying/yang, cool vs heating foods? She is definitely a hot dog (not the kind you eat) so I’m thinking I will try her on Acana Duck and Pear whole prey and see if I notice a difference.

I’m hoping for some recommendations of kibble for a finicky puppy, preferably grain free with a moderate protein %? I don’t like natural flavors (there can be some pretty nasty stuff hidden there) or canola oil.

I realize there is no perfect kibble and even then it really depends on the specific dog. Just feeling a little overwhelmed and hoping some of you who have been doing this longer or have a similar dog, might have some input.

TIA!

[cdubau]

Just got a puppy from the pound. Vet says its not mange and believes its was either the outside environment she was in or the food (probably human scraps) that caused her skin to be irritated. She is on benedryl and that has helped the redness but she still itches and cries when itching. She scratches her front elbows a lot, chews her back paws a lot. Her stomach is dried out and scaley as well as her front elbows.

I considered coconut oil topically to help soothe the dry/scaley stuff?

[Ronald]

OK thanks for replying Melissa, I also heard a lot about Diamond, so it’s out..

I did go to Wal-Mart and got some dry and wet Pro Balance. Abby loves it..

Retha thanks for the response.. I did use Pedigree for years and even recommend it to others, no more though..At the top of the page check out the Reviews.. on types of foods..

If there is a Wal-Mart close to you go the pet section and give Pro Balance a try, you can buy small bags. Salmon and peas seems like a good start..This food is all grain free.

My first dog Eddie was a Pedigree dog, who got sick and ended up having two shots a day for diabetes, this never stops.. He ended up passing away because he was just too sick. Been three years now and I still see him walking with me..even though he’s not..

Ron..

[Ronald]

Thanks jakes mom for replying.. Abby took to this food like a duck takes to water..

Abby was a rescue dog, when I got her she was around 6 or 7 years old, was abandon by her owners in an apartment.. They just moved and left her behind..

But getting back to the food, I was wondering if maybe she was fed this food with her previous owner..As soon as the wife put a bowl of salmon and peas dry mix down, she ate like she had missed it all these years..

She has had no problems with the switch at all..

I did notice the difference in her bowel movements though, with the new food an easier bowel movement and much more than normal, sometimes when we are out walking she’ll go sometime twice within minutes..

I was in the dog store today looking at the different brands of dry food, what are your thoughts on Natural and Diamond..

Ron..

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Ronald.

[Cheryl Pepper Millie Sophie]

naturella,
I am chiming in here with a couple of thoughts-with kibble once it’s opened i put them in my refrigerator. I have pyrex bowls that I use to put kibble in say for 2-3 days-the bags are quickly taken out and put rt. back in.

As for the probiotics I used the perfect Form when I was transitioning Pepper on the HK food, once I saw she was ok with it -i stopped, like everyone else said I want it to work when i need it. I also purchased the Pro-Bloom can’t tell you how that 1 works haven’t used it yet.
The only probiotics i used were the Mercola and honestly I just am not pleased with them.
I think just like for us a good probiotic MUST be under refrigeration and never quite understood why once they were opened (I did anyway) it was not recommended to be refrigerated.
Also, I just feel probiotics should not have to be used every day. But, again, that is a personal choice. If and when i need a probiotic, I am going to try what C4C uses-I think the mercola for the price is a thumbs down.

You might consider butting the food in airtight containers-I use the kind for bird food-I keep their unopened food in them in my laundry room.

Dori,
Again is so right , Pepper and Millie are researched much more than I would ever go through the trouble for myself-I need a TENS unit for my tennis elbow-I swear every time I go on Amazon to look for a unit- I wind up buying more stuff for my babies -sad but so-so true

[Naturella]

Dori,

Yeah, I guess I was just thinking of adding more probiotics to his diet, but as noted, I’m not really sure he needs them. I will consider all suggestions on good brands though, including what C4C suggested. I have decided to not use PF regularly, and use it as needed only.

As for the food under the sink – thank you for your concern and suggestions! I do know that they should be in cool dark places, but it appeared that the coolest/darkest place would be the cabinets under the sink. The plumbing (pipes) is insulated with some plastic covers so the pipes themselves are only bare toward the top of the cabinet where they connect with the sink above. It is pretty dry in there from what I’ve seen and felt (no leaks or steam/moisture that I’ve seen), and it is cool for sure because when we have freeze warnings they tell us to open those cabinets so that the air in there is not too cold and the pipes don’t freeze up. BUT, with that said, I would consider putting the foods somewhere else, like the closet maybe. The pantry is not an option and neither are any of the kitchen cabinets. So that leaves us with the closet, as dark and cool as it gets in there. So thank you for bringing this to my attention! 🙂

[Peggy]

Ok so I called my vet about this and here’s what he told me –

Too much protein will make your dog thirsty because the kidneys have to work harder to process higher protein levels.

He asked how much protein is in both of their kibbles and I told him that the Salmon & Pea is 27% and the Bison & Peas is 30%. He said if I’m going to put both recipes in the meal, I need to decrease the salmon/pea recipe by however much Bison I add. And if I’m adding fresh meat, to decrease the dry food by 2 tbsp each, because that is more protein. He also advised adding plenty of veggies, and a tbsp of warm water to their food.

Any thoughts on this?

[Peggy]

Naturella, they do seem to go through this every once in a while, no matter what brand of food they’ve been on. It gets frustrating.

This morning they had the usual amt of PB Salmon & Peas grain-free kibble, (plus I added a few pieces of the Bison & Peas grain free kibble), 1/2 c of PB canned Chicken stew for Lady, and a little less than 1/4 c of PB Chicken stew for Tebow, a few pieces of broiled fresh chicken for each, and a tsp of THK PF for Lady and 1/2 tsp for Tebow, as per directions.
Lady ate most of her food! What she did not eat was the pieces of Bison kibble. ugh! Tebow did the same exact thing.

Something I am seeing lately is increased thirst for both. I’ve assumed that with it being winter and the furnace going non-stop it could be just the dry air. I know I drink more in the winter, as does my son. But I wake up in the night hearing them licking their lips like someone does who has a dry mouth. This is every night. I limit their access to water at night because Tebow has “accidents” on the livingroom carpet at night. I do know that during the day, they are drinking more water than usual. But then, so do I.

Any thoughts?

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Peggy.

[Naturella]

Peggy, this is odd… Do you think they are self-regulating somehow and have been getting enough calories? I have heard/read that if a dog truly is hungry, they will eat when they get to that point of true hunger… Or, they are sick, but I hope that’s not it. How have they been eating today, if at all?

As for us, Bruno and Snowy (this weekend I am dog-sitting the dog of the family I babysit for) had 1/4 cup of Acana Pacifica dry with 1/2 3.5oz can of sardines in water, and 1/2 tsp THK Perfect Form each. Bruno’s stool has been good, just a tad softer since we switched to Wysong Nurture with Quail, so I have been giving him PF this week to firm him back up. So far so good, he’s almost back to normal. On Saturdays he always has a fish-based kibble with his sardines, and these days it is Acana Pacifica. Next up I have a small bag of GO! Sensitivity and Shine Salmon.

Dinner today will be 1/4 cup of Wysong each, with 1 tsp each of Sojo’s Turkey, and 1/2 tsp each of PF.

Tomorrow’s breakfast will be 1/4 cup Wysong again with 1 tsp of Sojo’s Beef, 1/2 tsp PF. Dinner tomorrow will be dried duck feet! 🙂

Right now Snowy is on Wellness CORE Puppy, but she’s had Wysong before and did well on it, and she is so good about switching foods up now, so she is fine with the variety. I have a lot of dog food at my house so I don’t mind feeding an extra pup for a few days. 🙂

• This reply was modified 11 years, 1 month ago by Naturella.

[Naturella]

D_O, you’re welcome. Idk if this truly does help, but I have heard of freezing dry kibble to prolong freshness, so I am refrigerating the dehydrated food for the same reason, hope it works out. BCnut, that’s kind of what I thought too. I will just stick with using herbal/natural supplements as needed and not just give them to give them. 🙂

Sometimes I need to remind myself of the golden rule: “Don’t fix it if it ain’t broken”. 🙂

[Naturella]

D_O, I also have some of the ProBloom too, I could use that, you’re right. I mean, Bruno’s stool is pretty good, I was just wondering if there’s anything I could do better…

Ok, so what I did in the end of last year, I packed sandwich bags with each of the THK foods and I keep those under the sink for the daily use, with the rest of Bruno’s dry foods (except some of the dry are in the freezer). I think a sandwich bag the way I packed it would last approximately 1.5-2 months each. Then, the rest of the THK are in labeled sandwich bags in the fridge. IDK if this helps, I am really hoping so, but I am not TOO worried… If his stool changes in a way that I can determine that the THK is causing it, I will stop it, but so far so good, he’s doing well. If I am to add anything to the mix itself, I could just take all the fridge THKs out, leave them out unopened overnight to “thaw”, and then mix them up (one kind of THK with a pack or 2 of either PF or PB), and then repack in sandwich bags and throw them back in the fridge or freezer.