[cindy q]

I have a very picky standard poodle that is 10 mos old. I have tried numerous food that she would eat for a few days and then not eat and some she wouldn’t eat at all. All quality food like Orijen, Honest Kitchen (this one she wouldn’t eat at all) Now Fresh. I started feeding Primal freeze dried and she loves it! It is expensive, what can I add in to cut the cost?

[Lisa C]

Hi sue…
I have put off commenting because I feel so defeated. Chewy still vomited on the NV raw, but I may have not given enough to him to test if it really worked. He only had a small bags worth. I don’t know how long he has to be on something to see if it really works. Lately he has been on a canned Nutro “limited ingredient” for a week and still vomits on it, but it’s to tide him over until we can get him into a 2nd vet (money is limited right now unfortunately) but we are planning to go within the next 1-2 weeks. All his poos have been normal, luckily. We tried Honest Kitchen Veal, the really expensive $60 box and he wouldn’t even go near it. Our original vet wants him back on RX, but I don’t see the point if it never helped. These are some results from his last bloodwork:

“the lipase, one of the two pancreatic enzymes, is slightly elevated so recommend feeding the prescription intestinal diet as already planned to help control any pancreatic inflammation that may occur with feeding other fat sources”

[InkedMarie]

I also adopted a toothless dog. She eats Canidae Pure Sea. I’d look for the fat in canned to be around 4-6%. Also look still dehydrated foods such as The Honest Kitchen and Grandma Lucy’s.

[DogFoodie]

Ensuring that you’re feeding a balanced homemade raw diet is critical. The commercial frozen that you’re feeding is balanced already.

Here are a couple of links that I’d suggest you take a look at to help you decide whether or not you want to pursue homemade raw:

http://dogaware.com/diet/homemade.html

/forums/topic/menus/

You could always consider some of the pre-mixes such as See Spot Live Longer or one of The Honest Kitchen’s base mixes. With a pre-mix as a base, you simply add your own fresh meat and in some cases, oil also.

Here’s some more conversation about using pre-mixes: /forums/topic/vitaminmineral-pre-mixes/

[Liz W]

Hi Cindi… yes, you are correct… in VERY good hands!

Hi USA Dog Treats! Thanks again for the great advice.

Update:
Tried ordering the probiotic you recommended but shipping adds $10 to the cost so I’m going to print off the label and take it to my local health food shops and see if I can’t find similar for around $20, if I have no luck, I will then order from their on line site. Thanks for the recommendation.

As for the K9 Choice foods I will be receiving a print out of the nutritional values but from what I recall, they were all decent. I’m leaning to the ones that are a bit lower in fat. I found another raw source made here in Manitoba which may be a bit more in line with what I’m looking for and also a little less $… haven’t finished my trials on that yet.

I am worried that the Honest Kitchen combined with the Kibble was the tipping factor in him bloating. Can’t be sure but I don’t want to risk that again. I may have to wait until I get to the USA to find the Pre Mix (Steve Brown’s) that you referred to. I can’t find anything like that here in our Pet Stores in Manitoba. I will keep digging to see if I can find something similar. Traveling and trying to feed exclusively raw is going to be a major challenge both in terms of cost and finding it when I need it. Actually I’m finding feeding a 110lb dog raw exclusively is going to be a real challenge to the dog food budget… oh well. We may have to put off getting him a little buddy for a while anyway while we “recover” from all the expenses of this experience.

I haven’t been to the grocery store yet but sardines are on the top of the list to start adding for the boy. Haven’t returned to the capsules yet… adding back to “normal” very slowly.

I must say he is “crazy” about the green tripe!!! First thing he dives for in his bowl and since I’ve been feeding exclusively raw he is excited at every meal. Maybe he is just feeling a lot better but it is sure nice to see him snapping his jaws in excited anticipation of his meals! 🙂

Again,
Thanks for answering my plea for help… I was feeling very alone as a mommy of a GDV recovering dog and trying to feed raw. There is not a lot of info or advice out there under this subject.
Wishing you the very best from myself and Big Lou! 🙂

[Debra J H]

Thanks for that clarification. I may now just use the Stella & Chewy’s Freeze Dried for travel as I am now seeing concerns about the Honest Kitchen meeting AAFCO standards. I hope they will address those as I think they have good thing in many respects. I have had some issues with Stella & Chewy’s distributor in our area getting old batches into stores that have caused us undue problems. And calls to Stelly & Chewy’s were answered by a very rude woman who did not give a flip. And she seems to be the only person you get.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 4 months ago by Debra J H.

[Debra J H]

Thanks Dori. I am looking at the Honest Kitchen website and it looks like the changes have already been made except for the Keen Turkey. You can get several proteins without any grains and the others with grain seem to have oats, but not alfalfa. I am impressed with their sourcing of ingredients though and they were one of the few who answered tons of questions several of us had. I am glad that Nature’s Variety has found a different source of rabbit besides China. Hope they keep that up. We are currently feeding Stella & Chewy’s raw, but looking to just add some Honest Kitchen now and then and use that for travel.

[Dori]

Nature’s Variety sources their rabbit from France. I spoke to someone there (can’t remember his name). Told me it was a very arduous process but that all their rabbit is sourced from France.

As far as The Honest Kitchen is concerned, you’ll get a lot of mixed opinions on the food. I used to feed it but because one of my dogs has an issue with alfalfa which is presently in all their formulas I stopped using it. The latest news is that they are removing alfalfa from all of their formulas. They go into production end of this month and should be available for purchase in stores (THK) without the alfalfa and also from their website probably some time in late August after all alfalfa inclusive products have been sold.

[Debra J H]

New here and very interesting reading all over the place. Looking at several posts. What about Honest Kitchen? I just ordered some because of their transparency and pledge to quality. They have had one voluntary recall though. But looking at various websites, they seem to be first class.

Second, has Nature’s Variety changed again about where it gets it rabbit? We stopped feeding that 3 years ago when we learned the rabbit was sourced from China. I see that your 2014 list says it comes from France.

[USA]

Hi Liz and Mr Lou!

You have very good instincts and Mr Lou is lucky to have you! And of course you are lucky to have Mr Lou!

The frozen green tripe is an excellent source of digestive enzymes and should eliminate the need for adding digestive enzymes to Mr Lou’s diet. Because he received an antibiotic shot which kills the good as well as the bad bacteria I would add probiotics to help replenish his gut. I use this one from Vitacost and it looks like they deliver to Canada.

http://www.vitacost.com/vitacost-probiotic-15-35-35-billion-cfu-60-vegetarian-capsules-9

Start slowly. Half a capsule every other day added to his largest meal. If everything is Okay after 6 days you can go to 1 capsule a day sprinkled on his food. After a month you can reduce it to 1 capsule every other day if you’d like.

k9choicefoods looks like a good food. I couldn’t find the numbers for Protein and Fat but I like the way they raise their animals and their quality seems outstanding.

I would stay away from kibble for multiple reasons. It is a super processed food that is as far away from raw as you can get. The quality will NEVER come close to the raw food you are feeding Mr Lou and feeding a whole food in it’s natural form without any alterations or processing is the absolute best in my opinion.

The Honest Kitchen uses quality ingredients but their foods are too heavy in carbs for my liking. And with any food that has it’s moisture removed who knows exactly how long it takes to re-hydrate it 100% or if it is even possible to re-hydrate it 100%. I just wouldn’t take the chance if I were you. But if you do use a dry food use very little and re-hydrate at least for 24 hours.

The water you understand so just keep up the GOOD WORK and keep drinking while eating or after exercise to a bare minimum. There is mixed evidence on raised feeders but I tend to agree that if you use raised bowls it will allow more gulping or air so I don’t recommend them.

Sardines contain the fish oil you are looking for in a whole food form which is always better than a supplement. Mr Lou is a big boy so after starting really slow a 3 oz tin (packed in water) once or twice a week should be good. If Mr Lou doesn’t like sardines then 2 fish oil capsules daily should be fine.

For supplementing plain raw meat I would use Steve Brown’s dinner mix and not a dehydrated food like Preference by The Honest Kitchen (carbs and re-hydration again)

Here’s to a healthy and happy life for both Mr Lou and you (it rhymes)!!!!!!!

[Liz W]

Thank you Cyndi for “bumping me up” as you can see if you follow this thread “USA Dog Treats” has given me some very good suggestions and validated what I’ve already been trying to do.
Thanks so much for the suggestions USA Dog Treats! I didn’t realize that even after I hydrate the Honest Kitchen and Kibble well, they could still swell more or cause bloating. Thought that by hydrating the HK the day before and keeping it in the fridge it would be fine. Something obviously was NOT fine and I too have wondered if I didn’t soak the kibble long enough or what. I don’t want to make the same mistake again.
I started back on the three meals a day NO Kibble and NO HK for now… I may have to adjust the amounts as he has some catching up to do but I don’t want to increase the amounts too fast. I think an ideal finishing weight to keep him a bit leaner would be between 110 and 114. That is what I’m going to shoot for. I am presently feeding him about 12 -13 oz morning and supper and a lunch of about 8-10oz. I will adjust the amounts as slowly as I see if he begins to put on weight.
I just introduced frozen fresh green tripe to each meal… so far only about an ounce or two in any one meal. He loves it and I was told it’s extremely easy to digest and will provide all needed enzymes to his stomach. Do you agree?
I haven’t introduced probiotics at this stage as I’m not sure what to try or when… don’t want to make too many changes too quick but he just came off of an antibiotic 12 injection. I’m not sure if that’s as hard on the stomach as taking it orally but I’m sure there is some adjusting that is going on in his whole system. What do you think of using Acidophilus & Bifidus that I keep on hand in the fridge for myself as a probiotic for him?
The meat source I have found here in Canada that I like, is called K9 Choice (www.k9choicefoods.com) They sell in bulk 40lbs which is a bit more affordable for some of what I feed but what I like most is that the balance is right (approx 80/10/10) fat % is also very good and the animals are all raised on their own farm land and are grazing, free roaming and living long lives before they are humanly slaughter in a very non-stress producing, fast, humane way… away from the other animals. I like it that all the animals get to be the way nature intended, not crammed into feedlots/pen or horrible conditions. Although they are not listed as “human” consumption, I have talked to the owner and he said he believes his meat products are far more “healthy” for man or dogs than what is being sold in grocery stores due to the condition and treatment of their animals and the way they are “processed”. I would really like to believe him.
I will look into Steve Browns pre-mix when we travel in the States. I’ve never seen it here in Canada but I will check the website and see if they deliver here. I know Honest Kitchen also makes a premix (same hydrating issue I guess) but they did tell me to rehydrate and then refrigerate and it would not swell in the stomach. It would work for me to just take the pre-mix when I travel and then just add hamburger or what ever kind of ground meat I could get. Something I didn’t think of, so thank you so much for that tip. If I do the premix and ground meat, or on sale roasts!… how much sardines would you feed a 110lb dog? I used to add sardines and then stopped and substituted fish oil tabs that I was taking but couldn’t tolerate. (lousy fishy taste after)
I have never exercised before or after eating… my dogs always have rest periods of an hour or more before or after even if we are only taking a gentle stroll.
Another thing I do think you are right about… he drank too much water after his meal the night he bloated. I am now a fanatic to remove all but a cup of water because he likes to kind of rinse his mouth after he eats. Then I put out about a 2 cup bowl and freshen it up in between meals. I do believe this was another contributing factor to that horrible event.
Yes, the vet did attach the stomach to the rib wall and explained that it should never flip and twist again. He did say bloat however was still a possibility. He also had his spleen ripped away so it had to be removed which I guess is another bad thing that doesn’t always happen. My poor boy.
I did give him a big HUG from you… you are a saint to take the time to help me and encourage me. All I want is for this boy to have a few more good years with us.
Thanks so much for all your help… much appreciated.
Liz and Mr. Lou!

[Liz W]

I have fed my dog, 9 yr.old GSD, 117lbs a diet of raw (various pre-made brands as well as prey style from local butcher) and a small amount of Honest Kitchen (no grain) mixed with about 1 cup grain free kibble split into two meals, raw in morning and kibble mix in evening for several years. I started looking into diet when I first adopted him from the shelter as he had Perianal Fistulas as well as skin issues (prob allergy based). The PF’s have been in remission for about 4 years now and the skin issues improve every year.
Three weeks ago he bloated and required GDV surgery. I fear it was the dinner, kibble base that was a contributing factor so I’m paranoid about going back to that. Although I’ve always been very careful regarding feeding, no exercise around feeding, limited water at feeding time etc to prevent bloat… it still happened. He has lost 14lbs after this surgery so I need to start getting some weight back on him.
Now we are post surgery and trying to find a diet I feel comfortable with. We travel a fair amount ( 6 months) and I had no luck finding fresh meat on the road (can’t hunt down local butchers as we need to stay to the large freeways due to the size of our RV). I can’t seem to find meat that doesn’t contain salt. (Walmart and similar is the main shopping place when we travel, just off the hwy that we can fit in the parking lot.) Thus I can only fill our small freezer from home with some pre-made raw patties (compact for transporting) and have to carry dehydrated, canned or kibble to have enough food with us until I can replenish the raw meat portion.
I am trying to keep him on mostly raw pre-made right now. I have just tried to go from 3 feedings of about 10 -12 oz to two feedings of 15-16oz. I added a small amount of kibble 1/3 cup to his dinner portion for the last 4 days and he did fine. Last night I feed a bit larger amount of kibble 2/3cup (mixed with HK) and he slept well but seemed off this morning and tried to vomit. (nothing came up)
I just fed him a 10 oz meal of raw only and plan to stay with 3 small meals and see if that helps.
I give him a raw meaty rib bone once a week but have not started that yet as I’m not sure if that would be too hard on him stomach. Not sure about when I can start that at all.
Does anyone have any experience with feeding a GSD raw POST GDV surgery? Any suggestions to bring my boy back to health and avoid another bloat episode would be greatly appreciated. I’m also wondering about starting him on some probiotics or enzymes but read mixed opinions on the need for them when feeding raw.
Any ideas?
Thank you,
Liz

[Naturella]

Hey, all!

Well, Photobucket seems to hate me tonight so I will have to just write out the picture of Bruno’s 2014-2015 Menu, all gotten through coupons!

Starting Point – Mid-July, 2014.

1. Earthborn Holistic (EBH) Primitive Natural (Grain-Free, Chicken) – 14 lbs – 3 mths – till mid-Oct, 2014 – got for $20 with Petland coupon for $10 off $25+.
2. Back to Basics (B2B) Open Range (Grain-Free, Red Meat) + 3 samples of Victor Joint Health (Grain-Free, Beef) + 3 samples of Victor High Pro (Grain Free, Beef) – 5 lbs – 1.5 mths – till end of Nov, 2014 – got for $13 with manufacturer coupon for $7 off.
3. Holistic Health Extension (HHE) Lamb and Brown Rice (Grain-Inclusive, Lamb) – 4 lbs – 1 mth – till end of Dec, 2014 – got for FREE with Petland coupon for a free small bag of that brand.
4. Dogswell LiveFree Salmon (Grain-Free, Salmon/Fish) – 4 lbs – 1 mth – till end of Jan, 2015 – got for $4 on Petflow sale.
5. HHE Allergix (Grain-Free, Chicken) – 4 lbs – 1 mth – till end of Feb, 2015 – got for FREE with Petland coupon for a free small bag of that brand.
6. EBH Great Plains Feast (Grain-Free, Buffalo+Lamb) – 14 lbs – 3 mths – till end of May, 2015 – got for $20 with Petland coupon for $10 off $25+.
7. Wysong Nurture with Quail (Grain-Free, Quail) – 5 lbs – 1 mth – till end of June, 2015 – got for $5 on Petflow sale.
8. Nature’s Variety Instinct (NVI) Rabbit+Raw Bites (Grain-Free, Rabbit) + 1.5 lbs of Victor Ultra Pro (Grain-Free, Chicken) – 6.5 lbs – 1.5 mths – till mid-July, 2015 – NVI for FREE with manufacturer one-time coupon; Victor Ultra Pro is from samples and 1lb from a friend – all FREE.

PLUS: The Honest Kitchen (THK) Force (Grain-Free, Chicken); Keen (Grain-Inclusive, Turkey), Love (Grain-Free, Beef), and Embark (Grain-Free, Turkey) as toppers – 2-lb boxes of each for $4 each on sale from Petflow – should last till mid-July, 2015 too BECAUSE one box makes 6-8 lbs of wet food and dilute it lots so I will say that THK’s 8 lbs of dehydrated food will make 32 lbs of wet food. That’s $16 ($20 with shipping) for 32 lbs of food!

Total food weight: Kibble – 56.5 lbs. THK – 32 lbs. Total – 88.5lbs.
Total spending (with $5 shipping from Petflow for the THK): $82.00.

This makes all the foods an average of $0.93/lb. I’m quite happy with it cause for less than $100, it is all pretty good foods, and Bruno is set for a YEAR. 🙂

Not to mention the multitude of free samples he has that we use as treats and the $60 box from Best Bully Sticks that is full of dehydrated goods that should last him quite a while too, maybe a year if I’m lucky. So yeah. $142. Great local stores that give coupons and free samples. Great friends and good manufacturer deals – I think $142 for a year’s worth of food, chews, and treats for a small dog is pretty good. 🙂

Good luck to all with your couponing endeavors! 🙂

[aquariangt]

oi, that’s a tough one. First I would check the dog food ingredients thread started by inked marie that is the potato free one (also grain free) but from there you’re going to need to find one that is PEA free, which isn’t super easy.

What about the honest kitchen? Zeal, the fish based on is good for you it looks like, however, I no longer see it on their website so hopefully someone else may know if its discontinued

[loopoo]

Trying to find a food without a soy based vitamin, like pulling teeth. Unfortunately Natures logic has alfalfa( dogs are allergic to that… anyone know any other brands? stinks as I phoned a few raw food suppliers that had a balanced mix, even Darwin, their vitamins are soy sourced( so far Honest Kitchen is the only soy free one i know, but had hoped to add another to the mix….

[Holly C]

Sophie was fine except for the vomiting- happy, playful and always willing to eat anything in front of her. I cooked for her at the time – Her food mix was made by a local vet and very similar to the Honest Kitchen mix where you add your own meat. She was 2 and I never changed her diet at that time. For the past 4- 5 years she’s been on Royal Canin SO because she started having urinary issues and stones. Like I said, she’s 14 which is ancient for a Frenchie, but she’s doing well.

[InkedMarie]

I’ve never fed it but I like The Honest Kitchen & Grandma Lucys for dehydrated.

[Paula D]

Just started using Just Food for Dogs…it requires a little more “cooking” than some of the others (steaming veggies), but my girls really like it. They rejected HOnest Kitchen after meal 2, but like the Grandma Lucy’s and the “see spot.”

Good luck.

[Marietta B]

You could try a premix and add your own protein. You can add cooked or raw. I have used Dr. Harvey’s veg to bowl, Honest Kitchen, Healthy Dogma and U-Stew.

[RescueDaneMom]

I am using See Spot Live Longer and Urban Wolf right now. I like both and will continue to use both. My Dane gets bored quickly with food flavors so I have to rotate a lot. The Honest Kitchen Preference has too much sweet potato in it for him, he gets yeasty from it. He didn’t like the Grandma Lucy’s Pureformance at all, guessing it’s the chickpeas.

Edit: Sandy, the Carnivore Raw looks like a good option for me. I like that they make a version you can add when grinding bone. It looks like it will go a long way too. 1 jar makes 40lbs worth of raw with bone. Thanks for sharing about Carnivore Raw. I will definitely be looking into it more.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by RescueDaneMom.

[FreeholdHound]

The CarnivoreRaw is something I keep wanting to look into for mixing with bone in grinds, but I keep forgetting (DOH!). Harry gets all sorts of excited when I give him the GL Goat recipe. Honest Kitchen brings back the all too common sweet potato problem 🙁

[pugmomsandy]

So far I’ve only used CarnivoreRaw from Young Again Pet Food. It’s a powder so there’s no chunks at all. They have a product with calcium and without (for people who grind meat with bones like me).

I’ve used regular Grandma Lucy’s, not the premix, and preferred the texture of it compared to Honest Kitchen.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by pugmomsandy.

[Zach M]

HDM, yesterday The Honest Kitchen launched some new lines. 2 more base mixes, and Hacylon, or something like that.

[theBCnut]

The Honest Kitchen Zeal is a low fat, high protein food.

[DogFoodie]

While generally not super budget friendly, The Honest Kitchen, is committed to the humane treatment of the animal proteins used in their products.

[Nancy C]

Oops I realize I am veering away from TOW…. but I AM actually moving toward RAW as well, just got Dr. Becker’s book and have watched her videos, been on field trip to local pet stores to SEE the foods. Here I can get NV Instinct, PRIMAL if necessary but they are out of sight $$. I have located a few drug free livestock suppliers here where I could get my meat, so I think I’m moving along in my education. We go back and forth to the coast a good bit. (I’m in NC) and we take our dogs — pack up all our food (have a little cottage on a quiet little island ) — so it will be difficult doing raw, driving 4 hours to then get on a ferry. NOPE. I need to find something EASY (more portable) that I can rotate on and off of as necessary. Had thought about The Honest Kitchen also but then read those reviews on DFA at Honest Kitchen Review, with the pictures of the large veggies in the food. There was a strange poster there. The discussion veered AWAY from THK to the identity of the multiple “poser” – Poster….. Consequently my search continues for a few easy but highly healthy, high quality (protein, fat, carbs all within a healthy range) food. I REALLY appreciate your comments as well as the more advanced people at DFA. Thank you!!

[crazy4cats]

Hi Joey-
In addition to switching to one of the above mentioned foods, I would add digestive enzymes or some plain canned pumpkin. I know that it makes a big difference in my dog’s stools. There are many available. Right now, I’m using Honest Kitchen’s Perfect Form. Good luck!

[aquariangt]

Unless they aren’t being truthful, Wellpet severed all ties with Diamond. A food can be rated 4-5 stars regardless of manufacturer, as DFA rates based on paper alone. The Editor’s Choice and forums are where we get other tidbits of information

A few of my favorites: Simply Nourish Source, Earthborn Small Breed or the Grain Free (don’t love the the other grain inclusives outside of small breed), Fromm 4Star Grain Free, Acana Regionals-I’ve used others but those 4 are most often in rotation. Fromm’s is pretty easy on the stomach. You may try supplementing with some canned or raw to help get the pickier one to eat. You also may try out a dehydrated food-I like Honest Kitchen and Sojos, and one of the two of them will surely be available at your smaller pet stores

If you’re looking for a weight loss food-Wellness Core Healthy Weight has been praised on here, as has Annamaet Lean. I’ve never used either

[crazy4cats]

Bobby dog-
Again, thanks. And to whoever asked, YES, I’ve used Fresh Pet. I really ( I mean my dogs, lol!) like it! But truth of the matter, I did taste it. It was not yummy to me. I just have a lot of canned and Honest Kitchen on hand to use up, otherwise I’d stick in my topper rotation. Never tried it with the cats, however. I should though. It’s just so frustrating when they turn their noses up. I always have to make sure the thyroid girl gets enough food.
So, I think my Buhner dog will be fine. They thought there might be something in his throat. But the X-Ray showed a lot of inflammation, but nothing stuck. He probably chewed up or ate something he shouldn’t have and scratched him all up. His teeth and gums were fine. They gave him an anti inflammatory shot. He was so good with the vet! Except he did express his anal glands on the wall when they were getting the X-ray! Oops! I hand fed him some canned tonight and he started eating a little. Hopefully whatever it was came out one end or the other already. My 19 year old son is out of school now and doesn’t keep a great eye on the dogs during the day thanks for asking!

[RescueDaneMom]

Hey Zach,

First, it’s going to depend on the size of the dog you are feeding. I have a 150lb Great Dane that eats 3 lbs per day which is about 90 lbs per month.

I used to feed 50% commercial raw and 50% The Honest Kitchen and my food bill was upwards of $300 per month.

I just started making homemade raw. I’m using Steve Brown’s recipes from Unlocking the Canine Ancestral Diet. The chicken recipe uses half chicken necks and half boneless, skinless thighs with heart and liver. The chicken recipe cost me less than $2/lb to make, closer to $1.50. The beef recipe cost a bit more because beef is expensive. I think it averaged out to be around $3-3.50/lb. This is significantly cheaper than commercial raw which I was paying anywhere from $4.50 to $6.00/lb for. When you need to feed 3lbs per day the savings add up.

Since I just started I don’t have a monthly food bill yet but I’m guessing it will be around $200. It should be a cost savings of $100/month for me.

I hope this helps.

[aquariangt]

I’m not super adverse to paying a bit more for brands that aren’t everywhere (read: PetSmart and PetCo, though I have things I buy from there) I use Acana, and Honest Kitchen, for some reason Nature’s Variety and Wellness’ prices just really bother me, haha.

[aquariangt]

arwryu-i am a HUGE advocate of the Kyjen slo bowls! I absolutely love them, and recommend them to all my clients when they have that issue-or even for energy use. It makes a huge difference in energy levels in the evening when they eat out of those for dinner time. Can’t say enough-they’re also really sturdy and can be washed easily.

The other plus: on mornings that I mix honest kitchen or another really soupy mix (mornings they get 1/2 kibble and 1/2 something else) they’ve slowed down eating out of their normal bowls

[aquariangt]

Hi all, update on some food for Shinku:

The wellness pouches are still her favorite, haha. She did eventually eat the sliced wellness cans, so that’s a bonus, I think she will eat them more if that’s what she gets.

I’ve had a booth for a few events the last two weeks, and one bonus for that is we all give each other tons of samples, so I’ve had some new cat foods to try. The BFF pouches from weruva she LOVES (of course, another pouch) the Weruva can-nope, wouldn’t touch. I’ve got some Honest Kitchen Prowl as well, so we shall see if that goes well!

[RescueDaneMom]

Hi Kate,

In theory, the Grandma Lucy’s pre-mix (once meat is added) should be a complete and balanced meal for your dog. You shouldn’t need to worry about other supplements though adding krill oil or fish oil can be beneficial. You can also add kefir, yogurt, or raw goats milk for probiotics.

Primal’s recommendation of feeding 2-3% of body weight is for raw food which is less calorically dense because of the amount of water in raw food. I don’t think the 2% rule carries over to dehydrated food like GL’s. I would feed the amount of food that keeps your dog in the right weight range. Feeding guidelines are just that…guidelines. Some dogs need more or less than what is suggested. It’s going to be trial and error to see what the right amount for your dog is.

I know finding a food your dog will eat has probably been very frustrating but I would keep at it. It’s best to rotate whatever food you are feeding, in this case the pre-mix. I would suggest rotating between different pre-mixes to make sure all of your bases are covered with vitamins/minerals. Some other pre-mixes you could look into include: The Honest Kitchen Preference, Urban Wolf, See Spot Live Longer Dinner Mix, and Sojos (though I’m not a fan of that one). Also, I would limit the amount of tuna you feed as it can have high mercury levels. Canned sardines in water with no added salt would be a good fish to use and it is naturally high in omega 3s. Canned salmon is also good.

I hope this helps.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Anita:
I will sort through your questions and add some links to the over the counter remedies that I used to completely heal Bobby! Remember, all dogs are different. Bobby had no health issues other than flea dermatitis, flea infestation, bad diet (please remember, anything they eat must be quality ingredients, it really makes a difference), and yeasty skin.

It sounds like you already have been to the Vet and there are no other health issues?

Did the Vet give him a steroid shot for the itching?

I really suggest feeding canned with kibble. Moisture is really important for healthy dogs and especially important for dogs that have some health issues. I always feed kibble with canned or fresh meat lightly cooked, or dehydrated, freeze dried or frozen raw for every meal. If you are going to TSC for DE, check out the 4Health canned dog food. It’s 99 cents/can and DFA rated 4.5 stars. I feed 4Health, Pure Balance from Wal-Mart ($1/can for stews and $1.25/can for 95%), and Earth’s Pride ($8.99/6 pack) from BJ’s as my main canned rotation.

4H DFA review:
/dog-food-reviews/4health-dog-food-canned/

4H TSC link:
http://www.tractorsupply.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/SearchDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10051&langId=-1&pageSize=&beginIndex=0&searchSource=Q&sType=SimpleSearch&resultCatEntryType=2&showResultsPage=true&pageView=image&searchType=1002&autoSuggestURL=AutoSuggestView%3FcoreName%3DMC_10001_CatalogEntry_en_US%26serverURL%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252ftsc-prod-lb01.crossview.inc%253a3737%252fsolr%252fMC_10001_CatalogEntry_en_US&searchTerm=4health+wet+dog+food

I was wrong; you can buy 20 lbs of food grade DE for $12.99 at TSC. They carry it in the livestock feed section.
http://www.tractorsupply.com/product__10151_-1_10051_2789

Check out the Activyl site to see what they say about bathing your dog. Most products are waterproof, but you never know. The Vet Tech at my Vet’s office gave me info on it, but I never checked it out after I settled on Sentinel because it already had the flea egg killer in it and I want to use as little chemicals as possible.

For treats, stay away from carbs or anything sugary, it will only feed the yeast. I have never fed them, but posters here recommend The Honest Kitchen Beams. I haven’t fed treats from the pet store recently and find many have carbs and starches so I just make very, very small meatballs for Bobby (I freeze them) using 2 lbs of ground beef, an egg or two, fresh garlic, tumeric, and I add fresh basil, cilantro, or parsley if I have it. I also throw in any veggies I have, but if you decided to make something like this I would leave the veggies out for now. You can also slice meat as thin as you can and place the slices in the oven on the lowest temp and cook until they are like a jerky consistency.

It is not unusual for them to try and lick off the coco oil if they like it. It is a wonderful product and is good to feed and apply to skin irritations due to its antiseptic properties. Just try to supervise your pups so it can soak in, it really will make them more comfortable and the fleas don’t like the oil.

Probiotics is an important step to get their immune systems back on track too! Probiotics has helped my cat tremendously. I use plain Kefir or plain greek yogurt right now for him. He has grown hair in places that I thought would never come back! That is another story. I think you will see a tremendous improvement within a week of using probiotics with their coats and skin.

Everything that I used on Bobby you will find at Wal-Mart, drug stores, health food stores, on-line, or pet stores very easily. I will post tomorrow what I used to help Bobby and hopefully something or several things can help your guys as well.

[RescueDaneMom]

Case,

I experience an evolution of my dog food feeding habits as well. I started off feeding premium kibbles. Then I started adding canned and dehydrates as toppers as well as some freeze-dried here and there. Then I tried commercial raw and used it as a topper too. The more I educated myself, I decided to ditch kibble completely. I fed 50% dehydrated and 50% commercial raw for about 6 months. My food bill was about $200/month for my Great Dane. He got tired of the dehydrated and I couldn’t afford 100% commercial raw so I decided to do 50% kibble. He was pooping twice as much and not a regular schedule, plus it stunk to high heaven compared to when he was eating the dehydrated/raw. Now I am working toward 100% homemade raw. I bought myself a grinder a few weeks ago. I made a little over 20 pounds of raw this weekend and he’s eating his dehydrated food again since he hasn’t had it for awhile.

Long story short is that what is best depends on your dog. Mine does SO much better on dehydrated and raw then he does on kibble. He was always overweight on kibble before I switched. Now he is nice and lean. I prefer the Pureformance line of GL’s over the artisan. I would suggest trying that one first. It should be easier for your dog to transition to because it has chickpeas in it which I imagine are similar on a digestion basis to the lentils in Orijen. My dog would eat the Artisan but didn’t really care for it. He refused to eat the Pureformance. He eats The Honest Kitchen.

I hope this helps.

[Dori]

All my dogs (three toy breeds) are fed commercial raw diets as of about 1 1/2 years ago. I rotate brands as well as proteins. I can now rotate them from meal to meal without a slow transition but that took quite a while to accomplish. Their guts are now at the point that changing from protein to protein doesn’t bother them in the least. My favorite of the commercial raw brands are Primal Pronto (although any of their complete “Formulas” are great), Natures Variety Instinct Raw, Answers Detailed Raw (a bit hard to find), Darwin’s Natural Selection (that’s an auto delivery food only from their web site or by phone), Vital Essentials Raw. These are the brands that my dogs have thrived on. Some of the others are pretty popular also such as Stella & Chewy’s, etc. my dogs haven’t faired as well on the other brands. Since being on raw they no longer has goopy stuff coming from their eyes, tear stains are gone, no more yeasty ears, their skin and coats are healthy and very very shiny. Oh, also no more gas, gurgling tummies, no more smelly poops. You’ll find that their poops are much much smaller and firm enough to easily pick up and dispose of. Their bodies utilize more of the nutrition in raw than they do on kibble. Added benefit of raw is that they are grain free. Dogs don’t have a necessity for grains, white potatoes, corn, soy, etc. One of my girls is allergic to all things poultry (anything with feathers) so I avoid all of those.

Many people start their puppies right on raw after a couple of weeks being home. Usually when you bring a puppy home it’s best to keep them on their same food for a couple of weeks that they were eating at the breeder. Theory being that they are stressed enough going home with a stranger to a new environment with no familiar scents, missing litter mates, etc. But then you do a slow transition as if you were transitioning from kibble to kibble. Initially you may find that the puppy has some diarrhea but that will pass. What I did was purchase a product from The Honest Kitchen called Perfect Form and while I was transitioning them to raw (good for transitioning any foods really until they get healthy enough to transition without issues) I would add the recommended dose to each of their meals. Gets rid of the diarrhea almost instantaneously. At least that’s been my experience with the product. I no longer feed dehydrated foods because to me they’re not strictly raw. Not crazy about freeze dried either.

Commercial raw is more expensive than kibble but you’ve already been feeding ZiwiPeaks which is an expensive dog food already so it shouldn’t be too shocking. I believe raw is much healthier therefore you save a ton of money at the vet which makes up for the more expensive diet.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by Dori.

[Erin T]

I’m looking for peoples thoughts ideas and knowledge regarding lightweight high nutrient dog food for extended hikes.
I have done some research regarding Honest Kitchen.
There is a new food out there called Turbopup. http://www.turbopup.com/products.html
But I’m unsure about it since there isn’t even meat in the bar.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Erin and Star

[crazy4cats]

My dogs’ don’t seem to do very well with peas either. The two dry kibbles that I like so far are Victor grain free and Nature’s Logic. However, neither are considered limited ingredient. Also, have you tried adding any type of digestive enzyme to their food? The Honest Kitchen makes a supplement called Perfect Form that seems to help my dogs. I wish you luck!

[aquariangt]

my mistake, I kinda just assumed honest kitchen was the same as sojos-who does call themselves dehydrated raw, thought maybe it isn’t. It still may help get your dog to eat, Marie. You can get it online, or smaller pet boutique type stores will have some variety of it. Petsmart and Petco both carry nature’s variety, and they have a dehydrated product as well

[cindy q]

The honest kitchen is dehydrated, but its not raw. Marie my standard poodle is very picky but she just started eating Orijen and she finishes all of it.

[aquariangt]

The honest kitchen, sojos, natures variety, etc

[neezerfan]

The Honest Kitchen! http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/human-grade-dog-and-cat-food

[crazy4cats]

Hi Raam-
I too, have had some battles with Giardia. During that time I never knew if they were suffering from a food intolerance or if the Giardia was back. It was very stressful. Luckily, they have been negative for about 9 months. They were also treated several times with panacur and antibiotics. It has taken a long time to get their tummies back to normal. They have always been interested in eating though, thank goodness! I am feeding them Victor grain free with a variety of toppers with good luck. However, I do use various supplements which have also helped soothe their tummies. Much information can be found on dogaware.com with digestive issues. It is a great site. Many of the supplements that I’ve used are made by Vetri Science, Thorne, Animal Essentials and Honest Kitchen. As Sue said, it might be best to start with something bland and work your way back to a better kibble. Good luck!

[cindy q]

Which is best? I thought canned was better than dry but my standard poodle dosen’t seem to like it and she dosen’t like it mixed with dry either. I tried Honest Kitchen and Merrick canned. I am switching her from Merrick grain free to Orijen.

[neezerfan]

I know how you feel. I think most of us are a little paranoid about our dog’s food and that’s why we are here. It does make you wonder if you should stop feeding it. I found this discussion; /dog-food-reviews/honest-kitchen-dog-food/ . Scroll down and read from about 2 weeks ago. There was also a discussion about one of the minerals being possibly too low or maybe reported incorrectly on the package but I can’t find a link to that right now. I still feed it as part of the rotation!

[cindy q]

I purchased from both wag.com and chewy.com. I purchased Honest Kitchen from wag.com and my dog wouldn’t eat it, wag.com paid the shipping to send it back and refunded my money. One of the cans of Merrick that was in a case of 12 opened and spilled out, they sent me a whole new case plus gave me a $15.00 credit for my trouble. They have great customer service.

[kodys mom]

Why was The Honest Kitchen removed from the list? This is pretty important information that should be shared, if a brand is going to be removed from the list. Whatever the reason is, why should we have to go hunt down the answer or wonder what the reason is. It just makes no sense that Mike would not directly answer the question. I read the the forums for close to an hour, I see many people asking but never a direct answer. Maybe I missed it? If anyone can advise, that would be pretty helpful. Thanks.

[RescueDaneMom]

Case-

I have a Great Dane. I agree that it depends on the size of the dog. The most important thing is to NOT feed a food that is only approved for Adult Maintenance by AAFCO to your puppy. I would feed an “All Life Stages” or puppy food (they truly are the same thing) until at least 1 year. If you have a large breed, then 2 years. If you have a giant breed (like a Dane), then 3 years. I also agree with aquariangt about vets. My vet and I butt heads over what I feed my dog. I choose to feed The Honest Kitchen and raw. My vet says that feeding Purina or Iams is just as good and all I’m doing is wasting my money on expensive dog food. I told him that we’ll have to agree to disagree and we don’t speak on the subject anymore.

I hope this is helpful. Just my two cents 🙂

[crazy4cats]

Hi Steve and Corey-
I enjoyed both of your posts because I have had the same puzzlements. And yes, I have also weighed food to see how many cups per bag to compare prices. I have since just decided to go with foods that are around 400 calories per cup and just compare their prices to keep things easier. Also that way everyone knows how much to feed when I rotate to another brand. I have it posted above their food in the garage who gets how much. Lol! I found that with just a little tweaking, the dog food calculator on this site worked pretty well for me. I’ve also found that most companies have the calories listed on their websites or you can email them to get the information. I also add toppers and use less kibble to compensate. A lot of canned foods do list the calories on the can or their websites also. I just use an average of 350 calories per can now. Fresh Pet, Honest kitchen and Northwest Naturals frozen raw nuggets also list their calories on the package, if you want to use any of those as toppers.