Hi Brenda. I’m not sure if you would feed commercial raw, but Vital Essentials Raw and also Natures Variety Instinct Raw are both great. I have three toy dogs, a Maltese that will be 15 years old in September and weighs around 7.5 lbs, and a 4 1/2 year old Maltipoo (has tons of allergies/intolerances to foods and also environmental allergies) and weighs 6 lbs. and I also have a 4 1/2 year old Yorkipoo that weighs 5 lbs.. They all do really well on both these foods including Katie, my allergy girl. Both brands make the raw food in what would be sort of a kibble like size (bites) so you can just scoop the amount you want into the bowl, wait about 10 minutes and feed. The patties are more cost efficient but you, as I, aren’t concerned about the cost. For me it’s because my dogs are so small (they eat 1/4 cup twice a day) that the cost is not prohibitive. I’m assuming that would be the same for you. Anyway, hope I’ve helped. I don’t feed any kibble because it’s just too difficult to find anything that Katie can tolerate. She came to be at 9 weeks old with food issues and I have not found any kibble that she can deal with so I gave up. Dori
I have been battling bad cases of diarrhea in my border collie pup since we got her. We’ve tried every quality food from TOW, BB, Wellness, and Acana. Nothing seemed to work. After ruling out food allergies, Maci was diagnosed with fiber responsive diarrhea and prescribed Royal Canin Gastro. Well….EVERYTHING cleared up and for the first time, our dog (now 11 months old) is having regular potty – no fountain anymore! However, I am not a fan of the ingredients! Has anyone tried anything else that is easily digestible, low fat, and high fiber that isn’t junk? I run her in agility and I’d love to have a quality dog food in her system that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg for chicken bi-product. Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated! Thanks!
With the Elimination diet you must only give the 1 food for at least 2 weeks, my vet said 1 month, but I saw Patches reaction within 2-3 days after giving sweet potatoes, you cannot give any ather foods, nothing else, no treats, no oils nothing, then if ur dog isnt scratching or has diarrhea then you add another food like rice or I added pumkin, its very hard & takes time, Ive stopped at the Chicken, pumkin, boiled egg, bannana, But if u can afford the Holistic Select this is an excellent kibble the Anchovy, Sardine & Salmon, meal for scratching & itchy skin, its the best seller at our Pet Barn with the itchy dogs, I cant use that flavour as my boy has Pancreatitis so Ive got Patch on the Senior, Holistic Select cause the fat is low 10%..then when his itch clears up, Holistic Select has Duck Meal, Lamb & Rice meal & Chicken & rice they also have a grainfree turkey & lentils. you can rotate feeds so when 1 bag has finished buy him a new flavour & see how he goes the Duck kibble is just duck as the protein so is the lamb meal so if ur dog does have any food allergies but its rare for dogs to have food allergis only 5% of dogs, but stay away from the high carbs potatoe, sweet potato, rice is OK its a low Gi carb its a good carb.. it gets complacated, so Ive been just sticking with the Holistic Select & Patches Vet Pescription kibble as he has a few health problems & he’s been doing good with his skin, stomach & bowels, I dont want to push it…Good-Luck hope Chance is looking beautiful & shinning in a month, you watch his fur after being on a good premium food..he’ll shine…
Hi, what foods do you feed Chance, I put Patch on an elimination diet about 2 months ago cause of his itchy skin & red sore paws inbetween his toes & itchy ears… Patch has seasonal allergies around Summer & Autumn at his worst, when I started doing Patches elimination diet he was doing good then as soon as I added sweet potato with his boiled chicken breast 2 days later his ears started to itch & I had to use his Dermotic ear drops, excellent product clears his ears up straight away, so I stopped the sweet potato & he stop ripping at his ears.. Ive read you need to choose foods with low Gi carbs for itchy skin problems helps to keep the sugar levels constant…stay away from kibbles with potatos, sweet potatos, peas found in a few grain free kibbles…Have you tried a good fish based kibble…Holistic Select has Anchovy Sardines & Salmon meal, this kibble helped my friend Staffy, he had terrible red itchy skin when he was 9months old, she tried vet pescription diet kibble, then she tried the Wellness complete health the whitefish with sweet potato recipe & it didnt help, then she tried the Holistic Select Anchovy,Sardines & Salmon meal & now Bronson has beautiful itch free skin, she also mixes a couple of tin sardines in spring water with his kibble..but not all dogs are the same, you can only try & see if you see any change… look for a low carb diet with fish as the protein & see if things improve…
Not sure what his allergies are to, but NutriSource Super Performance is extremely high calorie (529 per cup, I want to say?). It is chicken and grain based, though. NutriSource also makes grain free foods that have various protein sources, that are also high calorie (just not quite as high).
When I needed to get weight on my 11 year old lab mix, I used Wellness CORE puppy with really great results.
I was told my American Bulldog had food allergies, and I tried a million different kinds of foods. It turned out he has some food allergies but worse skin allergies. We bathe him every so often (once a month or so) in Dr. Bronner’s and while the soap is on, we rub in Neem Oil and while Neem oil is stinky, it completely clears up his skin allergies. In a day or less after a breakout and a bath, his fur is super soft and all the redness goes away.
My 9 year old American Bulldog has a inoperable tumor and has been on prednisone for the past year. His appetite is extreme. We have been feeding him FreshPet Select for about a year now. He also gets a lot of snacks. He is still losing weight and rather than increase the FreshPet which is expensive, we would like to give him a high calorie dry food in addition to the FreshPet to keep his weight up.
He should be about 120 lbs. He’s lower than that now, probably closed to 105 to 110. The last time we tried to give him Blue Buffalo he got really bad gas. He also has a lot of skin allergies. Do you have any suggestions on a dry food that would be good?
My dog has very bad allergies to poultry and fish also has pancreas issues so she needs food that is lower in protein and fat. 24% protein or lower 12% fat or lower. Any help would be much appreciated.
I will not do raw food.
So I had my dog Cinnamon allergy tested. In addition to being allergic to pretty much every kind of grass out there and every kind of tree and dust, she’s also pretty allergic to green peas, eggs, sweet potato, and peanuts. She’s been eating Blue Freedom Grain Free but there’s something in it that she’s allergic to (can’t remember what it is off the top off my head which ingredient it is) so I need to switch her to something else. Honestly, I am overwhelmed trying to find the right food for her–I want something that’s of comparable (or better) quality, but it seems like every time I find something that doesn’t have one thing in it, it has something else in it. Anyone know of any place that has a table of ingredients in various dog foods that I could reference? Or just know off the top of their head? 😉
Thank you so much!
My 4 year old Papillon, Bandit, has had recurrent problems with crystals (struvite) in his urine for the past nearly two years and had to have surgery to remove bladder stones a year ago. The two or three times a culture has been done the crystals that have been found were not bacterial based although I do think he’s had some urinary infections at times as well, he’s been on several rounds of antibiotics over this time frame. Anyway, after the surgery a few months later x rays showed small stones again beginning to form so I started him on Solid Gold’s berry blend twice a day over his Wellness CORE Oceanfish food. After about 6 weeks we did another x ray and the stones appeared to be dissolved so I thought the problem was solved. Recent urinalysis have shown he again has crystals in his urine however… though again not bacterial in nature according to the culture. Because of this my vet said it might be time to try the Science Diet C/D food….she knows I’ve been reluctant to do this and she was reluctant as well. In addition to my loathing of all things Science Diet Bandit also has a long list of food allergies (corn, chicken, eggs, rice, and wheat) of which two are in this food (chicken and corn). There has been a very short list of foods I’ve found that do not have these things in them, and I have worked hard for four years to get his allergies under control. I just didn’t feel like I had any choice but to try this, I can’t put him through surgery for stones repeatedly…my question is does anyone know of any better quality foods that are alternatives to Science Diet’s C/D for this problem? I can’t be the only one who has a dog with allergies that this is an issue for but I haven’t had much luck with my research thus far… There’s got to be some combination of nutrition levels I need to look for that C/D has that helps this specific issue…
Thanks in advance for any help anyone can give me!
Hi Leslie
Would you consider making your Jack a homemade diet? If he has no food allergies or intolerances a homemade diet using chicken, beef, turkey, fish, pork and other meats would be beneficial for your pup. You would use lean meats, 10% fat or less. Lightly cook the meats. Add about 20% non-starchy pureed veggies and fruits. Occasionally add some organs and sardines.
Supplement with Omega 3 oils, digestive enzymes, probiotics and a vitamin mineral mix like Steve Brown’s See Spot Live Longer Dinner Mixes and you have the basics of an economical, highly nutritious, species appropriate low carb diet that would help your precious pup do the best he can!! Turmeric is an excellent supplement for dogs with cancer. Slight adjustments to the diet with fiber would depend on the needs of your dog.
This is not that hard to learn and there are plenty of people here to help you along the way! I wish you and your pup the BEST!!!
Its just that you say that when ur dog was 5months he was diagnosed with Dermodectic mange now he’s 1yr old, it should be all cleared up by now, unless the treatmant didnt work properly.. Big Dog Rescue rescues Dogs from pounds that have Mange & within 3 weeks you see a big improvement with their skin, you could send a msg to Mina at Big Dog Rescue on F/B & ask her what treatment she uses for the pound dogs that have had mange.. I know she just feeds them Royal Canin kibble as it gets donated to big dog rescue by R/C, so food doesnt seem to make a difference with mange as its mites that are living on the dogs body..
I’d have another skin scraping & see if the mites are still there….or maybe ur dog has another problem with his skin, I feed Patch vet prescription diet Eukanuba Intestinal cause he has Pancreatitis & IBD & that has corn in it & his skin cleared up when he was put on the Eukanuba Intestinal..weird I know corn is suppost to bad, I have also started a elimination diet 2 months ago & realised that sweet potatos & potato made him itch, then vet said that Patch has seasonal allergies from pollens grasses etc… & was put on an Anthistimine & hydrocortisone cream, I just use my cortisone cream, as soon as I see him starting to scratch, I put the cream on where he’s scratching if he hasnt had a bath within 7 days he has his bath & I have to leave his shampoo on for 10mins then rinse… its time consuming but in the end it all pays off when he’s itch free…not keeping me up at night licking & scratching…
Did you have a skin scrapping to see if it was mites or yeast infection, it should of went away if it was mites & treated properly be now, my friends white staffy was real bad, real red skin & hairless in the end, she was put on vet prescription diets that didnt help, in the end she was put on Holistic Select Adult health Anchovys Sardines & salmon meal this helped her & she looks beautiful know…Holistic Select have a grainfree puppy Anchovys Sardines & salmon meal but it has potatoes in it…. they have just released a new grainfree called ‘Deboned Turkey & Lentils recipe’ that has NO Potatoes..Its worth a try or the Adult Health Anchovys Sardines & salmon meal.. you have to also treat the outside..I bath Patch every 5-7 days with Medicated Malaseb shampoo & I use a hyrocortisone cream as I dont like medications.. The best is an elimination diet that way u’ll know what makes him scratch, he may not have food allergies, he may suffer from eviornment allergies, or flea allergies, have you googled ‘Atopic dematitis in dogs’..also keep a diary, write when he’s real itchy, what foods he was eating at the time & over the years u’ll start to see a pattern, patch has seasonal allergies worst summer & the end of summer Autumn..also he may need an Anthisimine Patch was put on Iramine 8mg tablets theyre a dog anthisimine not human..maybe find a new vet, I see one vet for Patches skin then the other vet for Patches tummy & bowel they are both in the same surgury but sometimes some vets specialise more in certain areas, well thats what Ive found, Sue’s better with Patches skin & Johnathan is excellent when it comes to Gastro & stomach problems..Give the Holistic Select a try http://www.holisticselect.com
ab1028. I’m wondering what food your feeding your miniature poodle. In my case I have three tiny toy dogs. Until I switched their food to a grain free, poultry free their ears were always matted. Typically the mats around and behind the ears is because they scratch their ears a lot when their ears are bothering them. I didn’t put it together for quite some time. It wasn’t until I was doing elimination diet because one of my girls has lots of allergies/intolerances to foods, and environment that the first thing I did was remove all poultry including any type of foul. Then I switched to grain free. After a while was when it dawned on me that because she was not scratching her ears anymore she no longer had the matted ears.
I guess I should actually answer your question on the hair detanglers. I’ve always had long haired dogs (I’m 65 so there have been quite a lot of them) and the detangled never ever worked for any of the mats. I tried a lot of different brands, followed the directions, etc.
They do make detangling combs and such and they seem to work pretty well. I comb all my dogs out probably every other day or so and none of them have mats behind the ears. My Maltese will occasionally have a mat somewhere on her body but that’s because I keep her hair long (show coat) and at 15 years old she still playing and running hard with the other two.
Leah12345. I don’t use the leave in conditioners. I’m not a fan of them. The dogs seem to attract more dirt for some reason. I bath my girls every 7 to 9 days and professionally groomed probably around every 6 weeks. Some times less. Depends on how my health is doing.
I have an American Bulldog who has many food allergies. Does anyone know of a good venison based dry dog food? Venison is one of the few meats he can eat that does not make him sick. Thank you.
I’m also looking for a free of synthetic vitamins and minerals, grain free/good for sensitive dogs to allergies, and i can make it into a rotational dry kibble diet(cans are too expensive to feed to large dogs and i dont have the fridge space for a raw/home made diet). I recently heard of different studies (done with humans, not dogs so it might/not apply) where the researchers compared the health of people who took synthetic vitamins from pills and those that took their vitamins from their diet(vegetables, fruits, meats ect.). They found that those that took synthetic vitamins had higher occurrences of cancer than those who ate their naturally occurring vitamins in foods. Here are two sources where you can get this info from: http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/selenium-vitamin-e-supplements-increase-decrease-prostate-cancer-risk-201402287059 , http://www.cancer.org/healthy/eathealthygetactive/acsguidelinesonnutritionphysicalactivityforcancerprevention/acs-guidelines-on-nutrition-and-physical-activity-for-cancer-prevention-diet-cancer-questions
“Can nutritional supplements lower cancer risk?
There is strong evidence that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and other plant-based foods may reduce the risk of cancer. But there is no proof at this time that supplements can reduce cancer risk. Some high-dose supplements may actually increase cancer risk.”
so please help me find one >.< for my very special adopted senor furbabies.
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This reply was modified 11 years, 7 months ago by
Gloraidy R.
Hi Robert,
First, how awesome you adopted them together! They must be thrilled to have stayed together.
I have to say, I agree with Marie and Sandy. I’m not a fan of Natural Balance. For those who need it as a last resort due to intolerance allergy issues, it’s a different matter. The product is owned by Dell Monte. They’ve been know to have some QC issues; for example, some limited ingredient product have been found to have proteins other than those listed. Not good if you’re feeding a dog with food allergies.
Since you’re not aware of any intolerance issues, you have lots of great choices. In addition to those Sandy mentioned, I’d also add that Canine Caviar has tiny kibble. And, Wellness, is a great product, made in-house at WellPet, and they have lots of both grain inclusive and grain free options for toy and small breed dogs.
Thanks for your great tips! I’ve checked into Darwin’s and a afew others but as much as I like Brewer, I don’t know if his monthly food bill should exceed the monthly payment on a new Lexus. That being said, I’d still like the best for him and feel I could do raw from my kitchen and fill in with Nutrisca or Orijen( for vitamins, minerals and probiotics) but in some of the “expert research” I’ve found they say feeding both is not beneficial. Something about time in digestion being different. Sometimes all of this information is overwhelming..I grew up with farm dogs and fed them whatever; they lived long and don’t remember them ever being sick. Are all of these health issues, with our canine friends, recent? Both of my last 2 dogs have had very sensitive digestive systems and allergies.
My dog recently had another bout of vomiting/diarrhea (both at the same time this time) so I decided to take the plunge and have her tested for allergies. Her results came back and her food choices are super limited, as she tested borderline to potatoes, beets, and peas (among the more common beef, wheat, etc). Thankfully, the only protein she was definitely allergic to was pork.
My question is, should I follow the food recommendations given to me or can I fudge a little with the peas/potatoes/beets? The options given to me were AvoDerm, Pinnacle, and California Naturals, along with prescription diets. I would probably go with the Pinnacle if I had to, but I really don’t want to go with any of them. The other choice I have is Honest Kitchen Thrive, but I was really hoping to get a kibble for cost/convenience.
Any suggestions? Any other foods that don’t include peas/potatoes/beets that other people are feeding? I could also live with a mix of the HK and Pinnacle, using the kibble as treats or something I suppose.
My Cassy is on Diamond Naturals currently. She’s gone through horrible allergies before, and is itch-free now that I’ve finally been able to get rid of corn/wheat/soy.
She still has really bad dandruff – no itching, just flakes. It’s sometimes off and on, too. I’ve given her coconut and fish oil (sardine/anchovy), but it didn’t really seem to help.
So I finally found some GF food (Pure Balance salmon) for about $1/lb, and I’m trying it to see if she is possibly slightly reactive to all grains (or maybe chicken, for that matter. Doubt the chicken tho as she’s been on lamb formula w same results).
My question is how long would it take (estimated) for her flaky skin to go away if it /is/ a grain allergy?
Hi Betsy, this is kind of related to your food energetics topic as well.
I had noticed once that Liesl was stretching out on the wood floor, like REALLY stretching, and sticking her face under the ottoman, only going outside when she had to, and always staying in the shade… etc (not too a scary alarming rate, just more than she should have been) and that was on a lamb rotation. She also felt warmer than usual-and nothing really wrong with her according to the vet.
I did some research and found some articles about the yin/yang foods with warming and cooling. The next bag I picked up after reading this was duck based-one I normally use anyway (Fromms game bird) and that seemed to reduce the problem. This was last summer. I tried Lamb again in the winter, and the issue was drastically better. So while I don’t know a ton about the Chinese healing properties and such, this one seemed to make sense. So while I don’t know if everything about that is true-with some of the allergies and whatnot- the lamb warming definitely seemed to make a difference with her, but not with Willoughby or Dani. I am not sure why it seemed to have a different effect on Liesl, but for the next few months, I’ll be avoiding lamb foods
Venison falls under the same category, but I haven’t tested a venison based food, and am reluctant to until winter again.
I don’t use those types of dental chews but I hope anyone reading, who uses them, pays attention to ingredients, if you have a dog with sensitivities/allergies. I know people who only look at their dogs food; have to pay attention to everything that goes in their mouths.
How do you know its food allergies?? You sure they dont have Enviornment allergies, My boy gets itchy red paws & itchy skin & he has enviornment allergies, only 1-5% of dogs will have true food allergies, Im reading a book at the moment & its rare for dogs to have food allergies, Dr Rob Zammit writes, the number of dogs that really have a food allergy is fewer than the number of dogs diagnosed with the condition, far too often, if a dog has a non-seasonal propensity to scratch it is diagnosed as having a food allergy without proper testing..the only way you’ll know if its food is you must do an elimination diet, A reasonable elimination diet is cooked rice & lamb, no snacking inbetween meals,.In the case of true food allergy improvement will be seen after 7 days with the dogs skin looking normal by the end of 3 weeks. If ur dogs improve on an elimination diet it could be useful to include additives such as polyunsaturated oil, omega oils & other natural oils found in various herbs, the critical thing is to add only 1 additive at a time. The best starting point is omega oils add this a the recommended dose for aleast 6 weeks , if there’s no deterioration in symtoms then add another additive can be given if the lamb & rice is working then the next additive should be in the form of raw bone, these must be sheep origin, so use mutton flaps, lamb necks or brisketbones from sheep again no other additives must be given for another 6 weeks. You may want to pick another meat, but only use the raw meaty bones from that animal….also bathing should be done weekly with a good oatmeal base shampoo too keep the oils in the skin, if ur using all those product they are not working maybe its a time for a change with products, I use Malaseb medicated shampoo & I saw an improvement within 3 weeks, skin started growing back also Blackmores has a excellent dog range called Paw (Pure Animal wellbeing) I also uses the Paw Nutriderm replenishing conditioner this can be left on the skin moisturising the skin weekly… The basis of the diet could become a good quality super premium dry food as long as the ingredients are similar to those used during the elimnation diet…
I’d love to hear from others who subscribe to Traditional Chinese Veterinarian Medicine (TCVM) theories, in particular, Food Energetics.
Has anyone used either a warming or cooling food, or a food to transform phlegm or drain dampness with success?
I’d love to hear your story!
Here’s a great article from Dogs Naturally Magazine:
http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/allergies-food-energetics/
And, a great Food Energetics chart from Herbsmith:
http://www.herbsmithinc.com/Home/Education/foodcharts/default.asp
I am looking for a 5 star (or as close to) quality Grain Free and Potato Free dog food in both kibble and wet dog food for my 12 year old JRT @ 13 lbs, 11 year old CHI @ 6 lbs. and 9 year old Yorkie @ 7 lbs. – They all have terrible itchy and dry skin, licking paws and pink irritated belly skin – Where my pups are concerned no price is to high for their well being. I know I am over the top and love them like my children ( crazy dog lady here!)
They currently eat Artemis Small Breed Adult Dog food. Two of the 3 are on benedryl with every meal – Will not give them the predisone, only helps when they are on it.
I give them the Coco Therapy coconut chips, fruit and veggie crunch treats. At dinner in their food they get cosequin plus MSM, as well as brewers yeast and garlic tablets, Dr. Mercola krill oil. In their Poland Springs water (have never had tap water, as I live in NYC) I put 1 tsp.of Bragg Organic/unfiltered apple cider vinegar.
I bathe them monthlywith Dr. Mercola Peppermint Shampooand also use the same conditioner, both are recommeded by Dr. Mercola for skin problems. I have even tried no conditioner at all and only using 1/2 water and 1/2 Bragg Apple Cider Vinegar with no rinsing. This all started about 18 months ago.
Please. . . . any help or information would be greatly appreciated !!!! Thank you all . . .
Frank-
I think most of the 4 and 5 star foods are dye free. Also, there is a video that was posted today on allergies on the review side of this site under off topic discussions. It’s pretty informative. It talks a little about ear infections you might want to check it out. It’s posted by USA Dog Treats.
Chronic ear problems can be the manifestation of food allergies. Wheat, corn and soy are the top allergens in dog foods. Dogs that are fed a grain-free diet will show immediate relief when grains are removed, if food sensitivity is the problem.
Hey! I am looking for a little help. I recently had my 4 year old Boston Terrier allergy tested. I just got the results back and am having a very difficult time finding an appropriate food for her so I’m hoping others can help!
Her list of food allergies include
-chicken
-turkey
-peas
-carrots
-eggs
-barley
-tomato
-rice
-soybean
-corn
-white potato
Does anyone here know of any foods that don’t include these ingredients? I am having no luck with any of our local pet stores. It has been suggested I try a raw diet for her but I am hoping to avoid this! I work 12 hour shift work and have to take her to a “sitter” while I work so a dry food would be best.
My vet suggested “Iams Veterinary Diet Skin and Coat Plus KO”. I haven’t heard many positive reviews on Iams or this food so I am unsure.
I have just transitioned her to Nature’s Variety Instinct Lamb Meal. This one is free of all her allergens with the exception of peas. Peas are the third ingredient on the list. I had no idea she was allergic to peas and I had never noticed a reaction to them before. I would really like to keep her on a 4-5 star food.
Thank you in advance for any help!!
You said that ur dogs itch none stop, you must start with an elimination diet, I started one about 1 month ago as my boy has Pancreatitis & enviornment allergies we dont know if he has food allergies that’s why I’d say the vet suggested an elimination diet, The vet said the first month just feed boil chicken but I knew my boy could eat boil chicken so I added cooked pumkin, then when I saw he wasnt scratching or rubbing his tummy on my beautiful white rug the next week I added sweet potato within 2 days Patch was rubbing on my carpet so I stopped the sweet potato & know he cant have sweet potato or a kibble with sweet potato…. then I added pasta another NO it made him itch then I read dogs with skin problems like yeast & bacteria shouldnt eat carbohydrates, potatos, sweet potatos etc, then I added half a boiled egg & he’s been good, Im thinking of adding broccoli next.. Im reading Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs by Lew Olson PhD she has help me understand alot of things & this group its a easy book to read & very easy recipes, she explains what foods aren’t good & what foods are good for certain illness, like Skin problems & what causes ur dog to itch, Pancreatitis Diabetes, Gastro problems, feeding senior dogs, getting a pup onto raw etc, she has cooked recipes & what supplements to add.. in the elimination diet you cannot give any treats nothing, just that one food for 2 weeks then 2 foods so on.. you must cook all vegetables so they are fully cooked, she even suggest to pulped vegetables as dogs digestive system weren’t meant to eat vegies, here’s one of her recipes for Skin allergies a Low Glycemic regular fats Diet..this is for a 50 pound dog to be divide into two or more smaller meals per day.
8 ounces 1 cup regular fat ground beef
2 ounces 1/4 cup beef liver or kidney
2 eggs scrambled or boiled
4 ounces 1/2 cup steamed or boiled broccoli
4 ounces 1/2 cup cooked yellow crookneck squash
4 ounces 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt
Serve meat cooked or raw combined with cooked vegetables eggs & yogurt if serving meat cooked wait until meat & eggs have cooled before stirring in the yogurt…..
What I do is I cook once a fornight & freeze everything except the egg then put in fridge the night before to thaw for next day…
I just noticed your Mastiff is a year and a half – he should be about full-grown, but I have heard that large and giant breed dogs take longer to mature than small-medium breeds, so I would certainly advise you to make sure the food is at least an All Life Stages food (which all of the ones I recommended (except NutriSource – not sure about that one) are). At least for a little while longer – just to make sure he is getting appropriate nutrients if he is still growing and altogether too.
Also, as far as kibble size is concerned (in case your Chiwinnie(s) need small kibble), all of the foods I mentioned are with a manageable kibble, especially Victor – theirs is pretty small – and then Earthborn and NutriSource (I have fed a couple samples of it) were about the same size, a bit bigger than Victor, and Dr. Tim’s was the “biggest”, but my then-about 10-lb terrier mix had no problems with it. So the Chiwinnie(s) should be ok with either one of these foods if you choose to feed one of them. Plus, rotation is always good, so you can well go through them all – allergies permitting, of course! 🙂
Pick a food that’s high in calories to keep feeding amounts (and usually costs, too!) down. My 130 pound rott mix only eats about 3.5 cups (less than half of what most foods say he should eat).
The highest calorie foods I can think of off the top of my head are the NutriSource foods. Super Performance is 529 a cup, I think, and others are all in the mid to high 400’s per cup. They are decently priced too . Around here, the 30 pound bags go for about $50-60 for the grain free.
I would find a protein source they’ve never had before and start there when pin-pointing allergies. Bison is becoming a popular choice these days, as are beef and salmon. Finding allergies does suck. I’ve got one that I’ve decided is allergic to pollen after a year a half of having him on every protein and carbohydrate mix I can find.
Hi!
I have an English Mastiff that is a year and a half and a rescued Chiweenie that is about 5. I want to feed them the best food that I can but I get so limited with certain protein levels and of course the cost! My mastiff eats a lot! We first fed Kirkland nature domain but I believe they had allergies to that. Switched to Canidae Pure but it is so expensive for the amount I need. Considering Nutro Ultra. I add Tripett to all their kibble.
Does anyone out there have a similar experience or suggestion?? Thank you!
Food allergy tests are expensive and give both false negative and false positive responses, so they really are not better than doing your own food trial.
Hi Aquarianqt
I don’t know. What I do know is that every dog I know of who had food intolerances was fed the same thing long term. That doesn’t mean that feeding everything only short term will prevent allergies though.
Actually, Micah was only 8 weeks old when I got him and was already showing symptoms, but he had several different issues that likely contributed to his food issues.
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This reply was modified 11 years, 8 months ago by
theBCnut.
Dogs can have bad allergies to the proteins as well as grains and sometimes even potatoes. If you are worried about your dog having allergies to something just ask your vet for a food allergy test for your dog and that will tell you if he has any allergies at all.
My boy has Chronic Pancreatitis & IBD & Allergies, Ive been doing alot of reading about Pancreatitis. Ive read that kibble isnt good as the Pancreas has to work harder digesting kibble putting more strain on the Pancreas, have you thought of cooking.. I’ve been boiling chicken breast & pumkin & an egg, I freeze the chicken breast in meals sizes & I freeze the little bits of pumkin, I take out the night before & put in the fridge for breakfast, I boil a egg every second day cause I only give him half boiled egg at breakfast, I shread the chicken & mash the pumkin & mash the egg all together so its all mushed up, easier to digest, also make sure any vegetables or grains are well cooked to make them easier to digest. I then warm in micro wave.. At night I give his kibble only..this has helped the chicken pumkin & egg his pain has gone that he was having under his right rib cage, he’s not coming over to me no more for me to rub his side like when I just had him on kibble.. I’d say that she’s having pain then not wanting to eat. maybe try a low fat can food if u don’t want to cook but I havent found a can food that is low enough in fat, thats why I cook..Ive read that Diabetes & pancreatitis are closely linked, Dogs with Diabetes are often prone to Pancreatitis & vice versa..here’s some Low-Glycemic vegetables you can cook with chicken breast or lean low fat ground beef broccoli or cauliflower, cabbage, summer squashes zucchini, dark leafy greens mustard greens & spinach.. I mite try adding some zucchini, I dont know about spinach I always was told if ur constipated eat spinach…Im reading a book called “Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs” by Lew Olson PhD.. it has easy recipes for Pancreatits, diabetes, bladder, liver, heart, cancer etc, she explains what not to feed when ill..also what vitamins to add, excellent read.. the book cost about $11 online..
Can anyone suggest a low protein food that I don’t have to get from my vet? Right now my yorkie is on a Purina low protein prescription and his allergies are back. Previously he was eating Instinct with Raw bits. But since his diagnosis he can’t have a high protein diet. So now that seems to leave me with all these grain foods which upsets his allergies again. The food he is on now is 12% protein. Any suggestions?
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This topic was modified 11 years, 8 months ago by
Tracy O. Reason: wrong forum
Marie, its just his paws, & when the vet looked at Patch, just up his back legs he has hive like lumps.. Cause Ive only had Patch just over 1 year, last year, Sue the vet told me, Patch has Canine Atopy Dermatitis & the longer u have him, we’ll start to see a pattern form, she said, he’ll be worst either the begining of spring or summer, but in Patches case he seems to have his allergies the end of summer, she looked on her computer & went back to this time last year & guesss what, last March I was at the vets seeing another vet Johnathon about his feet & skin but they got better quicker then this time…Johnaton like to give drugs steroids & antibiotics, so I changed to see another vet Sue, she seemed to listen to me & not give drugs..she’s more into natural cures….I said to the vet, could it be food, she went thru what patch is eating & the only new thing in Patches diet is the Butternut Pumkin, Chicken he ate last year, egg he ate last yr, nothing happened, banana & biscuits he ate last year.
Ive started walking a new route on our morning walks a month ago & there’s alot of grasses, weeds & wandering dew, Patch loves to poo in bushes, I’d say that’s why his paws havn’t gotten better cause we go there every morning…Once you see a vet, she starts to clear lots of things up…things that I never thought of.. I just kept thinking its the food, also only 1 ear kept getting itchy so when he’s walking he must of brush up against a bush, then we’d walk home, I give him his breaky 1/2 to hour he’d start his licking paws & I asumued its what I just feed him…The ointment she prescribe that’s for humans ‘Mometasone Furote ointent’ is excellent, it has clear all his paws this morning they are all clear again…Im going to order on-line that Dermoscent Essential 6 spot-on as I hate giving any animal any drugs I have Auto Immune disease & I know steroids & other drugs can make u fell real yuk worst somtimes, so if I can I’ll always try to not give a drug to any animal unless its really really needed…I dont like these dog Antihistamine, it makes Patch very sleepy & I even halved the 8mg Iramine tablet last night, I gave him the other half his morning & he’s asleep now, normally he’s in the sun waiting at the door to go for our walk to the shops, oh well as long as he’s not going mad licking his paws…
I am trying to find a grain-free food that both of my Papillons, 6 months and 3 yrs, will eat and maintain a good weight. One of my cats has grain allergies so all food must be grain-free. I have been switching from Orijen/Acana to Blue Wilderness to Wellness Core, trying to find a happy solution. The pup ate puppy formula until the last bag (last week which I mixed with the wilderness adult) at six months does she still need puppy food? It seems that the higher protein/fat content is more palatable for them, except the Core, they both ate around it. I have read the non-GMO list and found that the Orijen/Acana is one of the foods listed there. It is the food I used for my first Pap and the pup until recently, should I stick with it? my cats both eat Orijen/Acana too. Is switching between the different formulas in the Orijen/Acana line enough or should it be different brands of food? Thanks for your in-put.
How did you find out so fast it’s environmental and not food allergies?
Just come back from the vets & ur right Shasta its allergies from outside not food allergies, the vet gave him Antihistamine called Iramine 8mg for dogs as she found that the human Antihistamine dont work as good as the dog Antihistamines.. there’s a new spot on by Blackmores called Dermoscent Essential 6 spot on, u apply one pipette weekly for 8 weeks then after 8 weeks u apply every 2nd week..It bio-diffuses through the skin & is stored in the sebaceous glands then it progressively released from the sebaceous gland then distributed along the body & absorbed into the skin, This regulates trans-epidermal water loss to optimise skin hydration & maintain the cutaneous ecosyestem balance, it reduces odour & reduces dry scaly skin..she said that she see another staffy like Patch but he’s worst & she put him on goats meat with broccoli..she also prescribed a stronger hydrcortisone cream called Mometasone Furoate ointment, so hopefully Patch will get better & a new holistic vet has just joined the practise so I’ll see her next time & a Animal Dermatoligist will be coming in 2months that does the allergy patch test, I mite look into that & see what he’s allergic too…
I just found out the results of my dog’s allergies today….
She is allergic to rice, corn, barley, tomatos, carrots and potatoes.
I will obviously have to change her food… It will be tricky to find a good food with none of these ingredients.
I feed her actually with Fromm family Grain free salmon tunalini. It’s a very good food, but it contains potatos, tomatos and carrots.
Any idea on what i could give her now knowing her allergies…?
Thanks,
Annie
Wow! Ok. So he’s on a very bland diet. What exactly is very bland diet exactly? Maybe if we all get our heads together and see the ingredients of the bland diet we can try to figure this out together. At this point he may be food and environmental intolerant. It’s spring time and the pollen is crazy here in Georgia so Katie is just a mess. She now takes more antihistamines than I do and that’s saying something. I’ve got to do some research as to what other antihistamines are ok to give dogs. Hey! Are you giving Patch any antihistamines. Katie takes 25 mg. Benadryl (dye free) 3 times a day. Doesn’t make her the least bit sleepy, does help a little with allergies but not enough. This is a really bad allergy season and it’s just really begun here in Atlanta.
Sue, you really have to cut out all ingredients that I and others have posted. Your dog is obviously has food intolerances and actually they sound more like out right allergies. It really really sounds like allergies and not something else.
Again, try just carrot sticks as a treat for two or three days and see if it makes a difference. Also every time you walk your dog, before bringing him in the house, rinse his feet off incase it’s something his allergic to outside. You can keep a small kitty litter box with some fresh water in it. Rinse his paws (all four) and dry his feet with a clean towel. Don’t forget to change the water once or twice a day. That will help eliminate any issue he may be having from outside walks. What you’ll be attempting to do with the carrot sticks and the rinsing of his feet is an illumination test. It will help narrow some things down.
Allergy testing is sketchy at best. Human allergy testing is not totally perfected, canine testing is very inaccurate. You can have it done two or three different times and will arrive at different results. The only reliable way to know what your dog may have issues with is illumination. It’s really the only thing that works. Dogs can have reactions to multiple ingredients so you have to just do illumination.
Also, please do not put sugar in your treats. Very very bad thing to do. Dogs just love to it. They will eat pretty much everything and anything. Sugar is bad for the systems and horrendously bad for their teeth especially when there is no need to include sugar.
Shasta 220. Good catch on Sue including sugar in the treats, I missed that when I was looking over the ingredient list.
A number of dogs have issues with corn, soy (that’s a big one for allergies), yeast, of course, wheat is a biggie too. Sounds like there are a number of ingredients that could cause allergies. Also some dogs cannot eat eggs. Have you thought of given them fresh organic carrots, string beans, blueberries, etc. for treats. Try that for a while and see how it goes. One of my girls has many many food intolerances and allergies so all treats here are fresh organic fruits and veggies. They love them and no allergy issues for Katie. I always have sort of fruits and veggies in the house so I give them what I’ve got. Sometimes a piece of apple, sometimes banana, whatever is in the house. If I’m eating a piece of fruit I’ll give them some too. My girls are very small..5 lbs, 6 lbs. and 7.3 lbs. so remember go according to size.
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This reply was modified 11 years, 8 months ago by
Dori.
What could be causing Patches paws to go real red…When I give Patch a Jazz biscuit, I found about 1/2 to 1 hour 1 of his paws would go real red & he’d lick & lick it as if something real bad was happening to his paw, I’d put a cold washer around the hot paw & then it would go away, so I stopped with the 2 Jazz biscuits at night before bed & decided to make him Gluten free Banana biscuits all I put in the biscuits was gluten free flour, just over 1/2 cup, 1 banana, 1 egg & some water.
Gluten free flour ingredients are …..
Gluten free flour (Maize, Rice) Starch (Maize, Tapioca) Raising agents (450,500) thickner (412, 466) Iodised Salt..
Jazz biscuits ingredients are…..
Wheat flour, Vegetable oil, Sugar, Salt, Malt Extract (from Barley) Raising agents (500, 330) yeast, Emulsifer (322 from soy) Antioxidents (306 from soy 304)
The only 2 ingredients that are the same is the Raising agent 500 & the flour but one was gluten free, so no wheat… I google Raising agent 5oo it said Sodium Caronate known as Sodium Bicarbonate or baking Soda.. does anyone understand food allergies & what would cause this reaction to Patches feet..or could he be allergic to wheat flour but he can eat bread & nothing happens to his paws…
Yes, Im reading a book called ‘Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs’ By Lew Olson, PhD..She recommends a Low-Glycemic diet, high in protein & fat & low Carbohydrates…there are stories through out her book, one is about a dog called Jake a Doberman/Labrador mix, who started to have seizures when he was 3 years old, Jake was whats called a “Cluster” meaning he always had multiple seizures close together, Despite trying everything from conventional medications to acupuncture, his owner Jo was unable to get the seizures under control.. After exhausting all the usual medical avenues, Jo started to look elsewhere for alternative treatments, joining an online Epilepsy group, one of the things recommened by the group was a raw diet. With nothing else left to lose Jo started Jake on a new raw diet, Within five months Jake had gone from having seven seizures every two weeks to one a month, Her vet was astonised at the drastic improvement a raw, fresh food diet had made when all the other treatments failed..There’s more on how she explains how the sugar in carbohydrates can affect epilepsy, hypothyroidism, diabetes, allergies, arthritis, & yeast infections & how a low-glycemic diet is a good defense against all of these conditions.. Dogs dont have a nutritional need for carbohydrates..there’s more to read but too much to write..she has simple recipes in her book for illnesses, its an excellent read, its online for around $10..
So much to learn, crazy4cats, about our guy. And not just about food. We adopted him in November, and he came with “issues”. 🙂
Canadian Walmart does not seem to carry Pure Balance. So, so far, only Kirkland Cuts In Gravy at around $1 can.
As you say, good thing about Labs is they are not finicky eaters. My wife has Arrow chewing kale stems, for goodness sake. As long as we don’t discover allergies or GI problems, we should have a wide open field.
I think when we feel more confident, we will try to transition to homemade food. That will be the next research project. Ha.
Great people here.
The sitter feeds the food I leave with Brutus. But the vet says even sharing a water bowl with another dog that eats a different food can set a dog’s allergies off, and the vet also said that since it seems just to be food allergies, they don’t really recommend drastic steps to track down the actually allergin
I’d agree as well. Rashes are usually allergic reactions to some sort of food. My girl was constantly chewing on herself, to the point of bleeding many times. We found out she had various food allergies, and now she’s doing great.
I have not tried Divovite yet. I have 2 year old Bullmastiff that has been on Taste of the Wild/Bison pretty much since I rescued him (had him on Blue for about a month, the foster had him on a raw diet for a month and I have no idea what he was eating before)…He seems to be having food allergies, but can’t tie it down to one thing that he is allergic to. When he stays at the sitter’s for more than a day, he comes home licking and rashy. The first time it was small red bumps everywhere including his ears, eyes and jowls…The second time it was hot spots and the dry flaky bumps that others have talked about on this thread. Both times the vet prescribed antibiotics. The first time, he got a steroid shot and some eye and ear cream too…the second time I had to go to the vet twice and the second time he prescribed a second antibiotic and a steroid boosted antihistamine…and said that I could give my dog up to 15 Benadryl a day for the rest of his life. I agree with all of you that think that meds for life is ridiculous. I don’t think I want to go raw with his diet either. I am willing to try Dinovite, it isn’t that expensive for a 90 day supply (for my 120lb bully, $1 per day)…
I want to add this though- those concerned about diatamaceous earth need to do more research on it. I’ve used it several times all by itself to kill fleas. Non-food quality is used in pool and hot tub filters, food quality is used by farmers in their livestock foods to help fight intestinal parasites because it is actually crushed shells and corals and it cuts the parasites skin and causes them to dehydrate. Many sites will recommend it all by itself as a treatment to your pet’s coat to fight fleas and you can add it to food by itself for the same reasons farmers use it. I’ve never heard it being referred to as a “binder.” And to the post talking about the ingredients to the solvents and poisons including H2O, RIGHT ON man!!!! People are so worried about “chemicals” they can’t pronounce, but most people would not have any issues eating an egg…well you know eggs are chemicals and if you looked at the chemical make-up of an all natural egg, you wouldn’t be able to pronounce them either (Ovalbumin, Conalbumin, Ovamucoid, Ovomucin, Lysozyme, Avidin, Ovoglobulin, Ovoinhibitor) and that is just for the whites of the eggs….
