[Karra L]

I have an 11 year old Lhasa that I believe is suffering from food allergies. She was on Eukenuba Adult dry food until a year ago when she had pancreatitis. She spent the weekend at the vet, and came home with Science Diet Low Fat GI Restore. We use the dry formula. She has terrible allergies, and seems to always have a yeasty ear infection. We have taken her the vet more times than I can count, and he said she has environmental allergies ( we live in Florida), and pretty much told me to try Benedryl. We took her to a specialist and had a consult, the treatment and testing was going to be over 6,000.
Lately, her mouth area has become swollen and red and has the smell of yeast as well. She has crusty material in her beard that is coming from her swollen mouth area. She is always scratching and licking her paws.
My gut is telling me that she has a food allergy. I want to switch her food, but am scared since she has had pancreatitis a year ago, and we almost lost her.
If anyone has any suggestions, I would appreciate it! Thank you in advance!!

[Jennifer L]

I have a six year old golden retriever that constantly has brown smelly wax oozing in his ears and scratches all the time. I hate that he is so uncomfortable…currently I am feeding him a salmon & sweet potato dry food by Eathborn called Coastal Catch. Looking to change his diet as I am afraid he has now developed a fish allergy and the starch in the sweet potatoes is feeding the yeast. Please help my baby!!

[Heather L]

Dog Obseed, i was feeding him dry kibble ( Fromm family) before and after his tooth extrations. its been 2 yrs since that and hes done great with it.
thanks Dog Foodie i will try that Honest Kitchen. i am headed to the pet store tomorrow to get some new food. i bought the Fresh pet (both log and soft chunks) he just puts his nose up.. UGG.. LOL.. thank goodness i have two other hungery little buggers becaue none of my food attemts are going in the garbage. at the end of all of this im going to have 3 picky eaters. lol lol…

[Heather L]

Thank you all for your suggestions.
Prior to this ordeal he was eating dry food with a bit of warm water. Unfortunatly at his last teeth cleaning 2 yrs ago he had to have a bunch of extrations that ended him with 5 teeth left. He totally adapted well to that and has had no isues with eating pretty much anything. This past week i have been giving him a special food from the vet that is high in nutrients via syringe and stage 2 baby food (no onion or garlic). I am finding that now that he is attempting to eat the chicken, it is best if its cut in longer strips. He seems to be able to get it in his mouth easier. I thought little boiled meat balls would be good but they seem to just roll out. I am also still doing food by the syringe due to me not feeling hes getting enough with just chicken. I know its going to take time for him to adapt. As of right now my husband and i are just excited he has come this far with all of this. Hes one strong PUP!! To answer your question Dori were thinking he may have had a seisure that cut off the blood supply due to his jaw clamping down on that area. The line that was on his tongue from good tissue to bad was identical to his upper jaw gum line. He has had seisures in the past but never enough for the vet to put him on meds. They are far and few between. He may have had one when we were not home and we didnt even relize. We do have two other dogs another mini poodle and bichon frise so to say if a Pee accident occured which is a sign of a seisure we wouldnt have known it came from our oldest. 🙁
Thank you all again for your help and comments

[Dog_Obsessed]

I am so sorry you had to go through this! Wet food will probably be easier to eat then dry food, so you could look around at some 4 and 5 star wet options and chose one to start with. I agree with DogFoodie about the baby food, just make sure that it does not contain onion or large amounts of garlic.

[Philip W]

We were feeding our dogs Natural Balance Grain Free chicken and sweet potato and they did not have an issue. We were concerned about the quality of the food and after much research on this site, we switched to Merrick dry Grain Free chicken & sweet potato and mix a little of the Merrick moist as well. We switched gradually over almost 3 weeks. We have noticed that are dogs now have loose stool and some diarrhea and I am beginning to think the Merrick might just be too rich for them. Has anybody’s dogs experienced this with Merrick?

[Peggy]

I will definitely go light on the PB. Thanks everyone!

I did a bit more digging on Pure Balance Salmon & Pea formula dry food, which is the flavor my dogs have really taken to. Below is an image I found on its Walmart page.

(sorry, it’s a bit difficult to read)

[Peggy]

D_O good memory! Depending on what scale I put him on he was either 28 or 30 lbs. So he’s lost either 2 or 4 lbs. Ha.

But that’s not because of my dog food expertise as we all well know! I found his tennis balls in the snow outside, threw them in the dryer (sounded like a thunder storm) and started throwing them up the stairs so he could run up. His favorite form of play.

Progress!

[Peggy]

This is wonderful! Thanks Naturella. I didn’t think about putting water in the dry food. The only dry food I ever did that with was many many years ago when Gravy Train was the thing to feed your pooches.
I tried to get my dogs to eat apple slices and baby carrot sticks to no avail. But they’ll eat cooked carrots, broccoli, cauliflower mixed in their food. And they’ll eat peanut butter and pumpkin. I’m going to try a lot of these. Thanks again.

[Naturella]

@Dog_Obsessed, yes, I am! 🙂 LoL, I’ve been lurking for a while, lol, getting out of my winter break hiatus slowly.

@Peggy, you’re very welcome. 🙂 I agree with DO, Blue Buffalo is by far not the greatest out there so it’s even better that your pups don’t eat it anymore, BUT my personal experience with it, albeit short (like 5 months) was good. Wilderness Puppy was the second food we fed to Bruno after getting him and he did lovely on it, his coat became shinier, and this is when I became very interested in researching dog foods. So far the roommate’s dog seems fine on it too, and a couple of friends have fed it for a while with no problems. Given the huge variety of dry foods I want to try for Bruno, I may never get to come back to it, lol, and I’m okay with that.
As for LB, great job on the 1lb down! I’d say maybe, if you want to, give her 3/4 cup of dry per feeding plus the 1/2 can of wet food. You can also add some water and stir well so that the canned coats the kibble evenly and more water is always good. This way she will be at 2 cups dry calorie-wise, and see how that goes for her and if she keeps losing weight. Or, you can keep her at the amounts you stated and see if she’s losing like that. 🙂

[Naturella]

Oh, and Peggy, you could do the same for LadyBug as well! My roommate’s dog used to be on Science Diet for a long time, and was about 65-70 lbs or so and she is a lab-mix maybe, or a Carolina Dog (American Dingo) mix. He put her on Nulo and reduced her food intake from 3 cups to either 1.5 or 2 cups of dry/day (he doesn’t add anything to it, except for a couple Yummy Chummies fish-based treats/day). Now she is on Blue Buffalo Wilderness Red Meat something, and she’s looking great! Much better than when she was on the SD. Nulo and BB Wilderness and both better formulas than SD and though the calories were reduced some, she was getting better nutrition. She’s lost some weight, coat looks better, and she overall looks healthier. So, better food in the right amounts does miracles. I believe it! 🙂

[Naturella]

Hello, Peggy! Let me jump in just really quick and say that I also have a small terrier mix named Bruno. We think he is a Jack Russell-Rat Terrier, but who knows… He was found in some bushes near a house, so we sometimes say he’s a Bush Terrier, lol.

Anyway, Bruno is now getting close to 2 years old and at 14.5 lbs as of September. The vet said this is a good weight for him, perhaps up to 15 lbs would be fine, but not much more. In the summer we were both very active and he ate 3/4 cup of dry plus about 1/4 cup of watery (soupy) THK and other various mixers per day. I feed him souped-up dry at all times. The foods he was having in the summer (and now) are all above 400 kcal/cup. Because we were exercising basically twice a day, he ate about a full cup calorie-wise. He burned a lot though.

Now in winter, we are not so active (though we should be, shame on me, shame, shame, shame…) and he is down to 1/2 cup 400-something kcal dry plus the additives at the same amounts. His figure hasn’t changed, I watch for his tummy to stay tucked, and for me to be able to feel his ribs easily. However, in late Fall, I had to figure out that I was supposed to reduce his food because I started noticing his waist getting less visible from above. So I reduced the food some. He did act like he wasn’t getting enough food, but by keeping feeding times as regular as possible, he was never truly starved, he got the nutrition he needed. For me, the hardest was when he would lick his empty food bowl over and over hoping food would magically appear. I would then take his food dish away until dinner time. But now that’s how he sometimes reminds me it’s dinner time, if I slip up and forget to give it on time, lol. I find it adorable.

But for Tebow, I would definitely suggest that you reduce to at most 1/2 cup dry and 1/2 tub wet, split between two feedings. Feed like that for 2 weeks and see how it goes. Don’t cave. It is for his own good, and he will live a longer and happier life with you. Also, for treats, you can give some celery bits – they are almost negative calories. Cucumbers are good too as they are mostly water. This way you won’t have to feel bad taking more kibble away if you give any real treats. Don’t overdo the celery and cucumber either though, lol. And when the weather permits, do the walks. They will also help. Eventually Tebow may get to a point to physically require 3/4 cup or even 1 cup of dry calorie-wise (as Dori said, based on activity level, etc.), but not now.

Another note (sorry for the novel here). I also kind of take care food-wise of the dog of the family I babysit for and that poor Shitzu-Maltese mix was being severely overfed, I mean, they would just put kibble in the bowl all the way up and let her eat however much she wanted. She thankfully doesn’t eat till she throws up but had no limits on food intake, and looked like she could lose some weight herself. I don’t know how much she weighs, but she looks to be about Bruno’s size, and her tummy was pudgy and sagging, and her ribs were there, but harder to feel. So I put her on 1/2 cup of dry (400-something kcal/cup), and a teaspoon of coconut oil/day, with warm water, and she’s been doing great, looking like she’s on her way to being fitter. I am happy and grateful that the family trusts me to do this for their dog and it makes me happy to have switched her to better food and to be working on her health.

So it does work, do not worry about starving your dog. We are also always here to help with any questions you may have! Keep us posted on Tebow’s progress! 🙂

[Peggy]

I think I hijacked another thread, so moving my inquiries back to my thread.

My husband is of the opinion that we should feed Tebow (the JRT) healthy cooked food with the dry, rather than canned food. He says it is less expensive.

Comparing what we spend on can food to what we spend on fresh ground turkey and chicken, and canned salmon – I can see his point. He says add carrots, sweet potatoes, broccoli, and they got it made.

Men!

[Dog_Obsessed]

I have been told the same thing numerous times, but dry food helping teeth is actually a myth. Here are two DFA articles on that: /choosing-dog-food/canned-or-dry-dog-food/

/choosing-dog-food/dry-dog-food-cleaner-teeth/

[Peggy]

Thank you for that advice Dori.
The Jack Russell terrier site that I am a member of says this:

“Feed your Jack Russell Terrier a diet that is at least 50 percent dry kibble. The crunchy texture of this type of food will reduce buildup of plaque and tartar on the teeth. Buildup of plaque and tartar can cause dental problems for small breeds like the Jack Russell. Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations about how much to feed your dog daily, based on your pet’s weight or desired weight. Divide the daily ration into at least two meals; three is even better for your pet. This is because the Jack Russell’s small stomach can only hold so much food at once. Dividing the daily ration into two or three meals per day allows for proper digestion of the food.”

[Dori]

Not in my opinion. Wet food is much healthier (depending on the quality, of course) for dogs than dry food. I would rather see you go all wet than all dry. Or half and half. You could also feed all dry in the a.m. and all wet in the p.m. or vice versa but I would never council anyone to feed only dry.

[Peggy]

BTW, out of curiosity, is there ever a time when you should feed your dog ONLY dry food and leave the wet out?

[Peggy]

I do not know where my head was/is. And I can’t find the calorie count for the Salmon & Pea dry food which is what they eat.
I’ll keep digging.

[Mike Sagman]

Copper is an essential mineral for dogs, cats, humans — and all living things, for that matter.

So, you’ll almost always find some form of copper on a dog food label. That’s because in order to legally claim the product is “complete and balanced” for nutritional adequacy, a dog food must contain sufficient copper to meet AAFCO nutrient profiles.

According to the official 2015 AAFCO publication, a dog food must contain at least 7.5 mg of copper per each kilogram of dog food (on a dry matter basis, of course).

However, any mineral (even sodium) can be toxic in excessive amounts. The maximum for copper as published by AAFCO is currently 250 mg.

Because some compounds of copper have such poor bioavailability for dogs, AAFCO does not permit its oxide form (like copper oxide, cupric oxide, etc.) to be used to meet the association’s official nutrient profiles.

So, manufacturers must use copper sulfate or a chelated form of the mineral such as copper proteinate (or copper complexed with an amino acid or polysaccharide).

The personal interest (lay) article mentioned by Susan Thixton that was published in The Battle Creek (Michigan) Enquirer appears to base its warnings on a hypothesis proposed by one well-meaning veterinarian.

And his “theory” is certainly worthy of further investigation.

However, until a scientific study that addresses the specific topic of copper sulfate toxicity in dogs can be referenced, I would suggest to those concerned to avoid the hysteria about these recent claims.

Please read this pet food industry article about copper sulfate written by a respected animal nutritionist, Dr. Greg Aldrich of Kansas State University for a more enlightening and scientific explanation.

Hope this helps.

[Dori]

Hi Peggy. Just read your post on how much your dogs ate this morning. I don’t know how much Ladybug,your Lab/Shep, mix weighs but I will state that’s a heck of a lot of food for Tebow, your JRT, ( if he’s suppose to weigh 20 lbs.). You’re giving him way more than 1/2 cup per meal if you are also adding a tub of food even if it is small. Is it possible that you’re not taking into account the amount of calories in the tub (wet) food your adding to their meals? You mentioned that you will start giving him 3/4 cup daily but you don’t mention anything about reducing the wet food also? Foods with gravy have a lot of basically wasted calories. I’m glad you’re adding wet foods as they are much better for your dog than dry, I’m just saying that you have to take all the calories that you feed into account for the entire day (that includes any treats you’re giving them) and divide all calories into two meals.

[Carolyn G]

Does anyone know of a brand of high quality, high star-rating dry kibble that is poultry and grain free, but, most importantly, a weight loss food?

[Peggy]

Bah I didn’t even think to look for the calories on the Walmart site. Thank you very much!

On the bags, it says to feed him 1 cup per day, and 2 – 2 1/2 cups for LadyBug.
So I will reduce him to 3/4 cup total of dry. I hesitate to reduce the can food any.
A couple of times last week, in place of the can food, I broiled some ground turkey and added cooked broccoli and carrots. Added that to the dry food and they both ate that up. Another night I did Turkey and scrambled eggs. WOW they had gas that night. I had to run them out of the bedroom and close the door. Whewee! 😛

I’m sure it will help tremendously when this SNOW goes away so I can resume our daily walks!

[Dog_Obsessed]

Don’t feel bad. It’s easy to make that mistake. I think you stated at one point the Tebow’s ideal weight was around 20 pounds. According to the Dog Food Calculator, for weight loss he requires about 366 calories per day. According to the Walmart Q and A, Pure Balance Chicken and Rice has 336 calories per cup. I can’t find the calories in the stews, does it say on the package? Depending on how many calories he’s getting from wet food, you could try feeding him a little less than one cup dry per day. Adjust the food if he is gaining or not losing weight. Also, remember to subtract food if he gets a lot of treats. Good luck!

[Peggy]

This morning my Jrt (Tebow) got a 1/4 cup of Pure Balance Salmon & Peas dry food, a 1/4 cup of Chicken & Brown Rice recipe dry (total 1/2 cup dry), and a small tub of Chicken & Veggies w/ gravy stew.

My Lab/Shephard (LadyBug) got 1/2 cup of Salmon & Peas dry, 1/2 cup of Chicken & Brown Rice dry (total 1 cup dry), and a can of Chicken (not stew).

Tebow ate all of his, as usual.
LadyBug ate everything but the chicken dry food. She just doesn’t like it, so she picks through and leaves that behind. ha.

[Dog_Obsessed]

What about copper proteinate? Is that similar? It’s in the Nulo dry food I have been giving Lily.

[Jamie H]

Greetings giant breed owners,

My current Dane is 10.5 years old and looks and acts like he’ll be around for a few more. He’s happy and and alert and active for his age. My buddy eats “Paleo” right along with me. Mostly Protein, (often red Pacific wild salmon–we live in Alaska) mixed with quality rice or root vegetables drizzled in olive oil and baked, carrots and celery (his fav) for snacks. He was boarded for a while when I couldn’t keep him and his caregiver gave him about 1/4 of fish oil in his dry food and and plenty of rawhide to keep him busy. When I got him back he was panting a lot and I assumed a heaet condition. X-ray showed a slightly enlarged heart. I did some research and discovered dry food is lacking in Taurine, L-Carnitine and Acytel L-Carnitine, among other critical amino acids and nutritional components. I started supplementing with the three amino acids, and adding squirts of liquid B-complex. His panting decreased and his eyes became focused and alert and his energy level increased. I abandoned my conventions on the focus of food “brands” and the idea of consistency. How boring. What do animals in the wild eat for dinner? Who cares? Its what ever gets them to the next meal! Variety and fluctuation is normal in the wild, and in fact stimulating for an animal. I mix table scraps with dry food. Dinner always taste different, what a pleasure for an animal whose sense of is also a form of communication! some days he doesnt get the dry food at all. Just after I started the supplemts I decided to feed him raw. I bought grass fed buffalo and he got 1/4 to 1/3 pound, give or take, twice a day. I’d recomend not using any grain fed meat for the reason it is sometimes 10x higher in the inflammatory Omega-6’s which is why we humans should avoid grain fed beef like the plague as well. Grass fed free range livestock has the balance of O-6’s to O-3’s that our paleo brethren grew up on and adapted to. But the most IMPORTANT thing one can do is treat your large breed friends as if they were your own grade school aged children. Get outside with them. Play with them outside like your own child. They DO have vocabulary you know. Just because they don’t show it in reciprocal speech doesnt mean they wouldn’t love to hear you talk to them about your activities. Label things when you are on walks. My buddy loves clover. When I get ready to drive him to a nearby trail i always ask if he wants to go smell “clover” or do you want to drink some water from the “stream”, excitement and anticipation dripping from my words. I don’t always know his choice but I always to to keep things varied. Satiate your large dogs with human interaction and variety. You’ll get more out of your companions than any top brand food can make a difference.

[Bridget A]

My Cairn was recently diagnosed with small kidney and bladder stones. We are going to try dissolving them by special diet. Vet recommended Hill’s Prescription Diet Canned food. Can you recommend another nutritionally comparably BRAND and also, a dry food that is grain and white potato free that is low in carbs?

[Gina D]

I have an 11 year pit/boxer mix named Kia. Before I list all her health problems, please don’t assume I should put her down; she is happy, plays ball, chases the cats and is obviously still enjoying life. The second she seems sick(er) I will put her down.

She has Cushing’s Disease, she was diagnosed probably about 4 years ago. She has been on trilostane and is doing fantastic. Her tests always come back normal for what she has health wise.

She was diagnosed with Diabetes about 2 years ago. We switched her food to Science Diet WD, a low protein diet. I took her sugar and gave her insulin twice a day.

About 3 months ago she was diagnosed with cancer, either a fibrosarcoma or osteosarcoma. From all the research I did, I decided the surgery would be too hard on her, especially with the type of surgery.

Okay, so now that you know most of her history, my vet wants to change her diet. I think her thinking is let’s treat what is (probably) bothering her most and to get some weight on her, rather than give her the low fat stuff.

My problem is finding food for her. I have always given her dry, vet wants to change to wet. Prescription diet makes nd for cancer,but it is $3 a can. I have no problem mixing it with something, but for a 75lb dog, it is just too pricey.

Vet said high protein, high fat, low carbs wet food. I think I may have to mix a good dry in because of $$$. Vet also suggested puppy food but it high in carbs. I am really frustrated trying to find a happy medium of nutrition and a high/medium quality wet/dry food.

Sorry for the book. You all know how our 4 legged friends are family! Any suggestions would be highly appreciated!

[CaneCorso15]

Yes, the food was pretty decent and a local company that I did not mind supporting. The new formula however, is something i’m not willing to feed my dog. Looks to me like they replaced the more expensive Protien sources with cheap alternatives. What gets me more is, they just posted on their Facebook page a link to dogfoodadviser showing they are one of the best dry dog food. But, when you compare ingredients, that doesn’t seem the case anymore.

[CaneCorso15]

Can someone please help me with how significant the formula change is for my current dog food. The food is Beaverdam Eli’s Choice Dry Dog food. The company is still advertising their 4.5 rating from dogfoodadviser but as a costumer, I feel like I was shafted when the unannounced changes took place.

OLD Formula:
Beef meal, Sweet potato, Chicken meal, peas, Chicken fat,pork meal, Alfalfa meal, Dried Egg product, Flax seed, Potassium Chloride, Dried Kelp, natural chicken flavor, Alfalfa nutrient concentrate, Montmorillonite, salt, vegetable&fruit pomace, pumpkin seed, blueberries, apple, spinach, and a long list of other ingredients.
New Formula:
Chicken Meal, Peas-Ground, Chicken Fat, Pea Starch, Pork Meal, Lentils, Pea Protien, Montmorillonite Clay, Sweet Potato, Alfalfa, Flax, Egg, salt, zucchini, carrot, papaya, blueberry, choline, vitamin a supplement, niacin supplement, D-calcium pantothenate, thiamon monoitrate, biotin, riboflavin supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folive acid, minerals, and a long list of other ingredients.

Thanks for your help.

• This topic was modified 11 years, 2 months ago by CaneCorso15. Reason: typos

[Bobby dog]

I think you are off to a very nice start for your best hairy friend! My dog loves Freshpet. My dog and cats also do great on Wellness products, canned and dry. Remember, when feeding kibble with a topper to reduce the kibble to avoid over feeding.

Freshpet has several lines and each line has a kibble shaped food, Freshpet Select, Vital, or Nature’s Fresh. In each line the kibble shaped food is packaged in a plastic bag. Here’s a link to a page featuring each line. Just choose a line and look for food packaged in a bag:
http://freshpet.com/our-foods/our-brands/

The Freshpet Select line also has a shredded chicken food that is packaged in a plastic bag:
http://freshpet.com/products/freshpet-select-fresh-kitchen-home-cooked-chicken-recipe/

Freshpet has a store locator on their site to help you find a retailer. It looks like Petsmart carries the Vital line of foods; grocery stores and Wal-Mart carry Freshpet as well.

Petsmart:
http://www.petsmart.com/gsi/webstore/WFS/PETNA-PETUS-Site/en_US/-/USD/ViewStandardCatalog-Browse;pgid=bRZky3Uq7YZSRpWB6nh5Lmz30000nes-oeFm?CategoryName=800687&CategoryDomainName=PETNA-36&_t=pfm%3Dsearch%26SearchTerm%3Dfreshpet

[Mark S]

I’m interesting with Taste of the Wild Dry Dog Food on amazon, I’ve read many reviews, but I still not satisfied with it.
Anyone can give me more reviews?
I saw it here http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000W5SLB8/
and also need an advice
thanks

[pugmomsandy]

Yes, Raw Meaty Bone (RMB) is actually raw meat and bones. My personal dogs are raw fed (ground to whole prey) and eat dehydrated foods and my fosters eat kibble, canned and dehydrated foods. I’ve used Amicus, Back to Basics, and currently use Muenster Grain Free and Pro Pac Ultimates Grain Free and Nutrisouce Grain Free regularly and all the dogs’ stools have been solid, even with the addition of canned foods. How much are you feeding of EVO BTW? Also, you might find a Rotational Diet beneficial. My dogs always have solid stool no matter what I’m feeding since I change regularly.

http://urbanpawsmagazine.com/archives/59

For a dry, shelf stable dehydrated raw product, check out Stella and Chewy’s, Primal, Nature’s Variety, and Vital Essentials.

Here’s the raw feeding pictures topic:

/forums/topic/pictures-of-dogs-eating-raw-raw-meals/

[Cheryl Pepper Millie Sophie]

Robert,
I would also like to add a dry food that you can order online & have it delivered right to your door.
The name of the company is Horizon Pet Food Co. they are located in Canada
you will want to look at the “AMICUS” line small breed Kibble, good co..
I think Dori mentioned Orijen also small kibble size -a bit higher in fat than Amicus (i don’t know if that is a concern or not) both excellent companies.
Websites: k9cuisine.com
petflow.com
I know k9cuisine sells the 5 lb bags-i prefer smaller bags since my girls don’t eat that much-I also ALWAYS top it with lightly cooked meats (i boil) -I forgot to add these are all grain-free kibbles, I don’t know if you want a grain inclusive kibble or not.
I have to agree with Susan a little plain pumpkin is excellent for the tummy or a bit of a cooked sweet potato just maybe 2 tsps. to coax him to check out what’s inside the bowl!
Good luck, i know how you feel I had a Samoyed Nicholas who never left my side when I was sick- He was the best! I wish I knew then, what I have learned now , I didn’t do enough for him, there wasn’t a site like this with such wonderful, knowledgable people to help.

[Bobby dog]

Have you had a dental exam for your dog? Kind of sounds like he might have trouble with harder foods.

Hard food does not keep teeth clean and wet food does not harm teeth. Wet food is a healthy addition to a kibble diet. Brushing his teeth several times a week is one of the best ways to care for his teeth.
Here’s some info on feeding canned foods and dental care.
/choosing-dog-food/canned-or-dry-dog-food/
/choosing-dog-food/dry-dog-food-cleaner-teeth/

[Robert B]

The reason is sometimes, Louie just doesn’t want to eat. Isn’t best for him to not to eat wet
food with dry food because of decay of the teeth? He is very picky eater when it comes to dry food, he will not even it a HARD dog treat….I just don’t know.
Now, every time I make his food, I start to stress because I don’t know if he is going to eat the food and if he doesn’t eat….I feel sorry for him.

Robert

[Jill T]

Hi, I have a Bischon and I believe she is allergic to poulty, she scratched quite a bit and she has dried brown tears below her eyes. The vet wants to charge me over $300 for allergy testing, which I don’t have. Do you suggest any brand of dry dog food that will help alleviate her symptoms? Thank you!

[JJ H]

Is there an all life stage dry dog food designed for large breeds, with larger nugget sizes? Should I be feeding my 12 month old great pyrenees/anatolian shepherd large breed puppy food since technically he is still a pup? Just rescued him. When actually being fed, he was fed a crappy dog food that at least had perfectly sized nuggets.

[Dori]

Please read review on Blue Buffalo and google complaints about Blue Buffalo. Maybe your do is trying to tell you something. As to any suggestions for a dry food I’m sorry that I can’t be of any help there. I feel commercial raw foods to my three toy dogs as well as organic fruits and veggies. I know that quite a few posters seem to like Victor’s Grain Free, Nature’s Logic, Annaemaet (?), Brothers Complete, Nature’s Variety Instinct, Acana, Orijen. Those are just a few that I have read dry food feeders compliment. I’m sure there are others but I don’t know. What you can also do is switch to a dry food (for economic reasons I would suppose) and use a canned or freeze dried food as a topper. Your dog would get better nutrients than merely feeding a dry food. There are many other things that you could add to a dry food to make it more palatable and nutritious.

I hope this bumps up your question and kibble feeders will see and respond. 🙂

[Carol M]

My Aussie has epilepsy. Some recommend grain free, rosemary extract free. what is a good dry food that meets these requirements?

[Robert B]

Hi, I have a serious problem with my pet not eating. He is an 11 pound silky terrier, name Louie and he is my best hairy friend I have in my life. He said alone my side when I was sick….unconditional love. But, he is a very, very picky eater. I feed him the best……Blue Buffalo dry food mix with hot chicken or some other flavor meet. It’s driving me crazy that I have to heat up some meat and mix it with his dry food. I have been doing it for 6 years now and I’m starting to get all stress out.
I know it’s my fault and I take all the blame. I was looking at some other dry dog companies that sell small kibbles with FLAVOR. But the problem that I’m finding the dog food isn’t really that good for him, they have by-products and other ingredients that’s not good. I really need help on this one and I do appreciate all the help I can get.
My main goal is to get him of the wet mix food and put him on just dry food, that
has flavor, small kibbles and great dog food.

Again, thank you for your help and will check back for your replies.

Bobbart

[Sarah W]

Katy,
The vet assumes it’s a food allergy because that is usually what it is. I feed them Merrick canned and dry and they both have Mike’s 5*’s. I can try a different meat because it is chicken which can usually be a culprit in food allergies. I’m going to try the Wellness turkey or duck. I give Sammy fish oil the vet suggested and he get’s it with breakfast. I have organic certified coconut oil in the house. I’ve never heard of giving that.

[Sarah W]

My vet said it’s not processed with other meat and dog foods. Is that a good choice for my 2 small dogs with allergies? I’m not happy giving my dogs Royal Canin or Science Diet prescription wet and dry food.

[Olayemi P]

Hi all,
I have a three year old Pomeranian, a pretty big guy at about 17lbs (no overweight just larger than the average Pom) I changed his food about a year or more ago to Evo dry when he appeared to have a skin condition where he was chewing on his paws etc. The results were almost immediate which was great! His poops have become much looser though, even if I feed him a little at a time and I’m concluding that the Evo is just too rich for him. What other choices do I have? I can’t keep wiping my dog’s fuzzy backside off, it’s driving me nuts!!! ;O)

[Susan]

Hi, another thing to do is lower the fat% in diet, I found this helps heaps & a low fat dry biscuit at night, I feed 1/2 a thick Rice cake biscuit around 9-10pm…
My new vet said do not use Losec for more then 4-6 weeks, he said Zantac (Ranitidine) or Pepcid (Famotidine) are better to use for stomach reflux as they don’t affect the bowel in anyway like the Losec does also Losec takes 24 hours to start to work, its not quick relief drug like Zantac or Pepcid….Losec is more long term that you must take daily 1 hour before food best taken in the morning & its a newer drug & we don’t really know the side effects on dogs yet, they’re finding it causes osteoarthritis in humans when taken for long periods….also when stopping Losec you can not just stop the drug you need to wean off slowly & use another ant acid medications like Zantac or Pepcid if needed…
My dog reacted to the Losec he did black/green poos after 5 days on Losec, he had a dry mouth & seemed to have more pain after eating cause there was not enough acid in the stomach to digest his food…

[Patrick S]

I don’t worry about my Saint no liking her food or skipping a meal. Frankly, I think over weight is the biggest health problem for large breeds. A dog will not starve because he doesn’t like the dry food. I think I’m going to try the Pure Balance from Wal Mart. I get Cosequine DS from BJs when they have a coupon. I get the Milk Bone chewies the same way. I have recently started the omega 3 and discussed using people capsules with the vet. When I use up my current supply I will order from Puritans Pride or somewhere. Omega 3 has definetly helped with her itchy skin.
You can put a drizzle of gravy or broth on the food. I would get low or no salt. I make broth for her when we have scraps or giblets.
I once had a trainer tell me that you should train dogs to eat at specific times by picking up food after 10 minutes. Never followed this, but if she doesn’t eat her breakfast until late in the day, I short her supper.

[Andi G]

I’m looking forward to the catfoodadvisor.com too! So many sites seems to contradict each other about what foods are good. I guess it’s all just opinion but I value the opinions on DFA because they seem well-researched and don’t seem to be just trying to snub store-brands or push the expensive stuff for no reason except to be snobby.
I used to feed my cats Purina One SmartBlend for Sensitive Systems. It proved better for them than regular Purina for indoor cats but then I had to go and read all about cat foods and now I’m always stressing over whether I’m feeding them good enough or not. So, currently, my cats eat Nature’s Variety Instinct Raw Boost Grain-Free Duck & Turkey Meal Formula Dry Cat Food twice a day and a spoonful of the Nature’s Variety Instinct Beef Canned food twice a day. They are loving it but still fat as ever! haha

[RescueDaneMom]

Hi Andi,

Some very good budget friendly dry food brands are Dr. Tim’s and Victor. Chewy.com has Dr. Tims. You can get Victor on Amazon. Both brands have large bags 40-44 lbs for $50-65. Plus, they will last you longer because they are high quality and you will feed less of them. To stretch out the canned food, try adding other tasty things to his kibble like eggs, canned fish (sardines or salmon), plain yogurt or kefir, or healthy bits of your leftovers (veggies or meat if not seasoned to heavily.

I hope this helps. I know how expensive it is to feed big dogs. I have a 150lb Great Dane.

[Andi G]

I too am having a hard time deciding on what foods to try next for my giant dog (a mastiff/lab mix) who also happens to be picky eater. It’s so not fair, the neighbor’s dog comes over from time to time and eats up my dog’s rejected food like it’s the best thing ever (HAHA). Affording quality dog food in such large quantities is definitely a challenge that I didn’t think would be quite so challenging when we first got him. 🙂
I’d love to buy him the best of the best no matter the cost, but that’s not possible 🙁
I’ve been giving him Cosequin DS (double-strength) Plus tablets that I find on Amazon for $19 for 60 tablets or $35 for 132 tablets. I give him 2 a day in his food. It seems to make a difference in his stiffness. I ran out of them for a few weeks and couldn’t afford to get more and I can tell he is moving slower and looking like an old man trying to get up from laying down. He’s 6 yrs old.
I used to feed him Purina Pro Plan dry food until the day I became informed on DFA and so now I’m trying to find something I can afford and still be in the 4 or 5 star range. I’ve been giving him Authority Grain-Free dry food and canned food for a few months. He likes the canned food okay but he will leave the dry food in his bowl all day and then give up and eat it eventually when he finds out I’m not giving him anything else. I want so bad to give him food that he enjoys and looks forward to eating but switching around foods is stressful (on him and me) and expensive 🙁
I gave him Blue Buffalo Life Protection Chicken and Brown Rice dry food this past month. He seems to like that a little bit better but still not “loving” it. I’m looking around to try different canned foods to supplement but gosh, they are expensive! Authority is often on sale for $1 a can. Everything else is close to $2 a can or more.
Just now I was checking out Whole Earth Farms canned food on Chewy.com. They are rated 5 stars on DFA and are $1.69 per can on chewy. They look tasty but I’m sure that’s just good marketing! ha I might try it though. If he won’t eat it, it looks good enough that I could make a meal out of it. HAHA just kidding

[Ivchister]

Cheryl,

Q: What do you mean gastro sensitive?
A: She vommits immediately when she eats something she can’t digest, for eg. raw meat, any kind of fruit or when my mother gave her some inappropriate food. She ate grain free food with salmon but was stressed out when we were moving and had very bad gastritis that culminated by blood in vommit. We gave her Hills i/d after which she had a bad case of skin allergy so we tried with z/d and it worked for a while..
Q: Does she eat a grain free diet?
A: Not now..
Q: Is she sensitive to certain proteins& or grains that you are aware of?
A: I’m not sure because she first reacted badly while eating grain free food (with fish).
Q: Did your vet culture the ear discharge to see what it was exactly(yeast, fungal, some other infection)?
A: The vet said that there is no inflammation or otitis just a lot of dark brown ear discharge. But A LOT, like there is mud in her ears. I clean it with Otifree fluid.
Q: Do you think the ear discharge is diet related?
A: Yes, it might be related..
Q: Have you changed foods recently and this happened?
A: It is happening for a while now.. It started before the horrible gastritis period and I can’t connect it with anything else but food. We moved, the aparment is clean and new.
Q: Have you been feeding the same food(s)? I know lots of questions
A: No, because of the gastritis episode and the allergie reaction..
Q: Does the food have to be dry? If so, have you ever tried soaking the kibble in warm water before feeding? softer foods might be easier on the stomach.
A: Yes I have and there is no difference because she just doesn’ drink water if I soak it. She normally chews the dry food and drinks some water, she’s not only swallowing..

• This reply was modified 11 years, 2 months ago by Ivchister.