[DogFoodie]

Hi Peggy,

I can’t recall if I mentioned this before or not, but a few of my favorite dry “weight loss” foods that don’t compromise protein or quality, healthy fats are Wellness Core Reduced Fat (dry and canned), Orijen Senior and Go! Senior.

I recall talking about canned foods also so forgive me if you had said you were only looking for canned foods. I didn’t go back and read this thread from the beginning.

[Andy B]

Orijen Tundra Formula has peas listed as 17th ingredient.

[Andy B]

Thanks for your help. I called Darwins. They make a raw diet. They told me I can use everything they have except the duck, due to it having sweet potato. I’m learning a lot about dog nutrition after countless hours on the computer. I’d love to feed both my bostons a raw diet but it’s very expensive so I would need to use a 50/50 mix of raw and a good quality kibble. However my dog is extremely allergic to certain foods. I had a blood test done due to him having three seizures. I was feeding him at the time “natural balance” sweet potato and fish formula which had peas also in it. His treats were old mother hubbard peanut. That’s when he started having seizures at night. I had the vet do the allergy test and he’s exGood! I’m glad I did test. I wonder with everything we were feeding him if he was going in aniphilctic shock ( sorry don’t know spell) peas listed as the fourth or fifth ingredient. It seems I can’t find a kibble without peas, & Orijen is the only one having it toward the middle of there ingredients.

[DogFoodie]

Go! Senior has 394 kcals per cup. It has several protein sources, but none are red meat. Orijen Senior has 445 kcals per cup and has several protein sources also, but no red meat.

You could try Abady granular for your hard keeper. It has about 800 kcals per cup. It’s not reviewed here, but several regular posters (myself included) having used it with success.

I’ll keep thinking.

[karren w]

Hi I live in the UK and am having a nightmare getting food for my dog she is an american bull dog she is 9 months old she carnt have chicken /wheat /potato’s/sweet potato’s /rice / or she get yeast ears .and her whole body is itchy. She is on orijen six fish at the moment as its got the lowest carbs in dry food you can bye in the UK .we are giving that for 2 meals and 1 meal of just meat .we are also giving her coconut oil and fish oil to try and help her . at the moment we are doing a bit better her ears are all good but she is dead itchy. Dos anyone no any other foods in the UK we can try .

[anne a]

A retail bargain store here in NE “ocean state job lots” is selling label removed premium canned dog food -Salmon & Mackerel. It is 12 cans for $5.99 & is packaged in a cardboard CANIDAE tray – not to expire until 5/15, grain free, same ingredients as the “pure sea “canidae I use sometimes w/dry food Orijen. That being said ,it is manufactured by Performance Pet Products from Mitchell,So.Dakota. We bought & donated this food to our local rescue without problems. I contacted the store to find out why the labels are removed & they just said it was an “odd lot”. I know Canidae in the past has had a couple of recalls r/t manufactured w/Diamond foods. Does anyone have any info about this? Thank you for your time.Anne

[Cheryl Pepper Millie Sophie]

I have a similar question I have a 5month old female mini schnauzer-I have been feeding her 3x a day -Horizon Legacy Puppy, Orijen Puppy, Amicus Puppy, 1/3 cup am & pm ,noon time 1/4 c w/ lightly cooked carrots & 1tsp coconut flakes.
I have recently cut out the noon kibble & substituted the orijen freeze dried tundra patty-just 1.
My question next month she will turn 6 months-is that when I stop the noon feeding?
She is ALWAYS HUNGRY-SHE WOULD EAT 24/7 -It has been a very long time since I had a puppy and am very afraid of giving her a diet that has a high fat content due to the breeds problems with a high fat diet.
i also forgot to mention that with her kibble she either gets just under an ounce of grass fed beef or chicken lightly cooked. Her weight has almost doubled since I got her at 13 weeks.
No worms etc to account for her very voracious appetite. Or are all puppies constantly wanting to eat???
I have an 11 y.o. female mini schnauzer that has recently had to change from Amicus senior to the honest Kitchen “Kindly” due to her bad digestive issues.
I guess I am just very worried that little Millie will have the same issues as my angel pepper if I don’t get this diet correct from the start.
Thank you very much for any insight and help.
fonly,
Cheryl, Pepper & Millie-Belle

[DogFoodie]

Hi Peggy,

Has Tebow had a check-up recently? What does his stool look like?

I’d be concerned about the solid, distended abdomen and labored breathing. I would probably err on the side of caution and get him checked out to rule out any potential health issues. Labored breathing isn’t to be taken lightly.

I’m not a fan of Blue Buffalo, so I’d look for a new food to switch him to anyway. I would choose a different canned food also. Are you by chance amember at Costco? Nature’s Domain Turkey & Pea Stew is $18.99 for 24 cans – great quality product, too. Was he eating higher protein and fewer carbs before, by chance? Yes, I’d also feed him two smaller meals and likely reduce his portion size. Are you making sure he’s not eating the other dog’s food? If you’re wanting a weight loss food for him, a few of my favorites are Go! Senior, Orijen Senior and Wellness Core Reduced Fat.

[Laura M]

I find that a canned food can put weight on fast and there are many grain free, good products to choose from. I mix canned and my dry which is Orijen adult and have a skinny boy that is hard to keep weight on and that does the trick. I also supplement with chicken or hamburger, etc. and that gets him interested in his bowl of food! Not sure if you have an issue with your dogs not wanting to eat or just hard to keep weight on. Be careful when transitioning, you can upset everything if you go too fast. Good luck!

[Kristin C]

Based upon the price point I’m pretty sure Sojos is dehydrated. I use freeze dried Orijen, have used Stewarts, Stella and Chewy’s and they are completely different products from Sojos (and THK). I would love to hear from someone whose dog has digested Sojos well.

[zhiba]

Ever since my dog’s allergies became a big factor in his life, we’ve switched to freeze dried and limited ingredient treats (as well as food).

We get treats from Orijen Singles, Stella and Chewy’s Carnivore Crunch, Sojos Simply, Etta Says, Whole Life, PureBites, and Vital Essentials.

Recently I discovered the VE cat food on Chewy. It makes for excellent training treats! They are smaller nibblets than the dog food, with a few additions that I like. Comparison –

Turkey Nibblets (dog)
Ground turkey with bone, turkey heart, turkey liver, herring oil (natural source of vitamin D), mixed tocopherols (natural antioxidant), d-alpha tocopherol (natural vitamin E)

Turkey Nibblets (cat)
Ground turkey with bone; turkey heart; turkey liver; boneless skinless turkey breast; raw organic goat’s milk; raw organic apple cider vinegar; herring oil; mixed tocopherol; d-alpha tocopherol

[Nelson P]

Hi everyone,
It’s the first time I post on this thread but have been learning a lot from reading it (specially from HDM). So, first of all thanks! Now, hopefully you guys don’t mind if I ask for a little more help. I have a 3 months old Golden Retriever. I have been feeding him Royal Canin Golden Retriever Junior (recommended by the vet.) but as you all know, it’s not the best choice. I want to do better. Unfortunately I don’t have the time or money to feed him a proper raw meal. Not now, maybe in the future (who knows). Good Canned is also very expensive (maybe I can add it as a topper sometimes). So I have to stick with kibble. Would like to choose from HDM list but I live in Europe (Portugal) and we don’t have those brands here (stores or online) and buy it from a international online store would also be too expensive for the shipping. I had to look for other brands and try to stick with the guidelines I learn here. As sad as it may look I couldn’t find too many brands to choose from (there are plenty but not that good). Basically I found 2 options: Orijen/Acana large breed puppy (I know it’s borderline with the calcium levels) or Naturea. Naturea is a portuguese brand but they produce there food in a UK factory tucked into a rural area (as they stated in their website). They have the same Biologically Appropriate concept that Champions have. It’s possible none of you ever heard about this brand (I too didn’t know them until yesterday). I don’t know if I can post the website here for you guys to help me analyse their food so I’ll copy/past their Technical Information:

Composition:
Chicken (includes Fresh Deboned Chicken and Chicken Meal), Sweet Potato, Egg Powder,
Chicken Fat, Potato Protein, Lucerne, Linseed, Chicken Gravy, Salmon Oil, Minerals,
Vitamins, Glucosamine, Methylsulfonylmethane, Chondroitin Sulphate, Apple, Carrot,
Tomato, Spinach, Psyllium, Rosehips, Camomile, Burdock Root, Peppermint, Marigold,
Seaweed, Cranberry, Dandelion, Fructooligosaccharides, Aniseed, Fenugreek, Yucca
Schidigera Extract, Thyme, Marjoram, Oregano, Parsley, Sage.

Animal Ingredients (63%):
Chicken Meal (low ash) 31.17%
Fresh Deboned Chicken 13.85%
Egg Powder 8.22%
Chicken Fat 7.36%
Chicken Gravy 1.73%
Salmon Oil 0.86%

Typical Analysis:
Crude Protein 32%
Crude Fat 21%
Crude Fibre 3%
Moisture 8.5%
Carbohydrates 27.5%
Crude Ash 8%
Metabolisable Energy 387 kCal/100g
Calcium 1.21%
Phosphorus 1.04%

Coat, cardio & Joints:
Linoleic Acid (Omega 6) 3.09%
Linolenic Acid (Omega 3) 1.07%
Glucosamine 889 mg/kg
Chondroitin 625 mg/kg
Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) 889 mg/kg

Other Vitamins, Amnio Acids & Minerals:
Vitamin A 25730 IU/kg
Vitamin D3 1730 IU/kg
Vitamin E (as alpha-tocopherol acetate) 231 IU/kg
Vitamin B1 10 mg/kg
Vitamin B2 23 mg/kg
Vitamin B6 10 mg/kg
Vitamin B12 127 mcg/kg
Biotin 323 mcg/kg
Folic acid 1.73 mg/kg
Niacin 35 mg/kg
Choline Chloride 240 mg/kg
Pantothenate 20 mg/kg
Potassium 1.04%
Sodium 0.36%
Chloride 0.63%
Magnesium 0.1%
Zinc (as zinc sulphate monohydrate) 285 mg/kg
Zinc (as chelate of amino acids hydrate) 342 mg/kg
Copper (as cupric sulphate monohydrate) 41 mg/kg
Copper (as cupric chelate of amino acids hydrate) 51 mg/kg
Manganese (as manganous sulphate monohydrate) 112 mg/kg
Iron (as ferrous sulphate monohydrate) 309 mg/kg
Iron (as ferrous chelate of amino acids hydrate) 21 mg/kg
Iodine (as calcium iodate anhydrous) 1.58 mg/kg
Selenium (as sodium selenite) 0.51 mg/kg

Sorry for the long text. I need to decide on a food sooner than later to start the transition. In the future I would like to rotate different brands (If I can find good ones), and add toppers as suggested here. But for now I really have to decide. Origin, Naturea or other world available brand? Can you help me? So afraid to make the wrong choice. Any other advice on dog/puppy health would be great 🙂

P.S. As for the toppers, besides eggs, tinned sardines, plain yogurt, kefir, cottage cheese, and veggies what can I add without throwing off the balance?

[Laura M]

I have always gone by the rule I was taught that you should never mix brands of dog food because you are messing with the guaranteed analysis of each brand and perhaps giving too much of one thing or another. I use Orijen now (adult) and have used Fromm in the past but that gave me some GI upset in my dogs even though it is a superior food. I would not recommend mixing brands – just my two cents. Good luck with your puppy!

[William S]

I have 3 dogs my most recent is a great pyrenees puppy. I use Orijen Large Breed Puppy As I really the the food and the company. The cost is quite high and I am looking to mix it 50/50 with Fromms Holistic Gold Large Breed Puppy food which will bring my cost per pound to $2.06 per lb vs. $2.65.
Is this acceptable? I will have a food that is 32% protein and 34.5 calorie weight basis.

[L P]

I have always wanted to raw feed but don’t have the time or resources to do it myself. However lately a frozen raw food brand has been available here in Spain, it is the only one, and I want to feed it to my dog and my cat (who currently eat Orijen kibble).

I need opinion on if this food is appropriate and complete for my pets: I would be adding taurin powder for my cat, as well as completing with raw bones from time to time.

Here is a link to the catalogue (see pages 3 and 4 for food pictures): http://www.dietayum.com/img/cms/catalogo-dieta-yum.pdf

Since it is in spanish, here is a translation of all their menus (I have asked, and the grinded meat includes bones and organs, and all the meat is human grade):

Chicken & cow menu: 60% chicken, 19% cow, 9.9% carrot, 5% beet, 5% turnip, 1% olive oil, 0.001% garlic.

Beef menu: 79% beef, 9.9% carrot, 5% beet, 5% turnip, 1% egg shells, 1% salmon oil, 0.001% garlic.

Salmon menu: 20% salmon, 59% cow, 8.9% carrot, 5% beet, 5% turnip, 1% egg shells, 1% salmon oil, 0.001% garlic.

Turkey menu: 60% turkey, 20% lamb tripe, 9.5% pumpkin, 9.4% apple, 1% olive oil, 0.001% garlic.

Lamb menu: 19% lamb, 60% chicken, 9.9% carrot, 5% beet, 5% turnip, 1% olive oil, 0.001% garlic.

Puppy menu: 40% chicken, 20% green tripe, 15% cow, 5% salmon, 5% beet, 5% carrot, 3.9% sardines, 3% turnip, 1% egg shells, 1% seaweed (spirulina), 1% olive oil, 0.001% garlic.

Thanks in advance for your opinion and help!

[Dog_Obsessed]

Yeah, it’s a local chain. And by “local” I mean the entire state. I LOVE the store because they carefully select what they carry, the employees are awesome, and they have a return-with-no-questions-asked policy.

From their product search on their website it appears that they used to carry Orijen. They probably stopped because they weren’t getting enough sales due to the high price.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 4 months ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Thanks for clearing that up. My local pet store doesn’t carry some high-quality brands like Orijen and Victor, though they do carry many other high-quality brands. They also don’t carry low quality brands such as Purina and Science Diet.

[Lynn J]

Here is a question I have been pondering….. assuming you have two 5 star dog foods, made by companies on the Editor’s Choice list AND your dog does very well on both, and you have no other concerns…. Would you choose a food that gets it protein from meat based sources over one that the protein is plant based? For example, Orijen or GO! Fit and Free vs Fromm or Annamet, etc?

[oepth]

So I’m getting a puppy in a week (mini aussie – yay!) and I definitely want to feed a raw diet. I’m close to My Pet Carnivore so getting the meat / triple / grinds isn’t an issue. I also want to feed morning kibble – mostly because I want her to work for her food using food puzzle toys. She’ll be about 25 lbs as an adult so that will mean she’ll get about 12 ounces of food a day. (3% of 25 lbs)

Can someone recommend me a menu? Here’s what I have:
Morning
– Orijen Puppy Kibble (4 ounces)

Lunch
– Chicken neck (4 ounces) OR

Dinner (rotate amongst these options or so)
– Green tripe (starting with grinded version and then moving on to the real thing) 2 ounces + whole grind chicken 2 ounces OR
– Beef liver 1 ounce + whole grind chicken 2 ounces + chicken gizzard 1 ounce OR
– Whole ground duck 2 ounces + Beef gullet 1 ounce + Green tripe 1 ounce + 1 ounce vege puree

Does this menu sound ok? More liver/offals? What kind? Also I’m adding Salmon Oil (Grizzly brand) and Solid Gold Sea Meal Powder.

Thanks for any feedback!
Cheryl

[Lynn J]

I am in the same boat. I was feeding a rotation of Orijen and Acana foods, but despite the fact my dogs were doing great on them, it’s really beyond my budget to keep it up. I’ve added Wellness Core to my rotation, both the original and the ocean. Wellness Core is still a 5 star food and the company seems to be reputable. For a cost comparison using Chewy.com, Acana Grasslands (15 lb) is 45.99 or $3.066/lb. Wellness Core original (12 lb) is $25.95 or $2.16/lb. My dogs are doing very well with this in their rotation.

[Kristin C]

Michael H – I am currently using Orijen Freeze Dried Adult. I use it along with the Adult kibble a few meals per week but I feed mostly homemade raw. Have not had any issues and am considering rotating to Orijen Regional, but it has even more proteins. I looked at BDN too but something about their process did not sit right with me, just a gut feeling really. I order from Reel Raw and my dogs love it. You just have to plan according to their delivery schedule and have the freezer space. I have tried Stewart’s Freeze Dried but one of my dog’s doesn’t tolerate it so I always end up back to making my own raw. Good thing we got a turkey neck, liver and gizzards from our dinner today. We fried the heart and some of the liver for our stuffing:)

[Dori]

Hi Michael H. I’ve never fed any Orijen food because all of their foods contain way too many different proteins and one of my dogs has a ton of food issues. All three of my girls used to have yeast issues until I switched them to raw and mostly commercial raw foods. I feed a rotational diet and do include freeze dried and dehydrated in rotation. BDN air dried is also in rotation and none of my girls have ever had an issue with it. I rotate with their beef, tripe and fish, no poultry in our house ever because of high allergy with Katie. As for freeze dried foods that I like and my dogs do very very well on are Primal Freeze Dried, Vital Essentials Freeze Dried and Nature’s Variety Instinct Freeze Dried. I know that Stella and Chewy’s is popular but I’m less than thrilled with it so I no longer have it in rotation.

The only kibble I use at times in rotation is Nature’s Logic Sardine Formula. It is grain free with the exception of millet which is a pseudo grain. My one dog with all the allergies, sensitivities and intolerances to food, environment and pretty much life in general and was always the one with the most amount of yeast problems does really really well on this food. It is an expensive kibble but I note that you are feeding Orijen which is pretty high up there also.

I would suggest that you find a few foods (as many as you can find anyway) and rotate through the proteins that do not bother your dogs and also rotate same way with different brands and their acceptable proteins. I’ve been feeding this way for almost three years now so my dogs are at the point that I rotate with each and every meal. I have found that allergy girl Katie can tolerate a lot more ingredients if only exposed to it sporadically than she could before. No more yeast, gas, bad breath, scratching, doggy smell, loose stools, diarrhea, constipation, etc. etc. No more of all the things that comes along with a dog that has food issues. It took me years to get to a point that I could feed multiple foods. Trial and error. To this day I’m always adding and detracting foods in rotation.

Best of luck to you and hope your dog is on the mend. Sorry about the high fever. That is really scary.

Is it possible that she got into something in the yard or on a walk that you don’t remember? Some treat or food that some “kind hearted” person thought he’d like? Some “kind hearted” people used to cause many issues with Katie. I now watch everyone like a hawk. Everywhere we would go, even the vet, wanted to give her a treat. No Way!!!

[DogFoodie]

I know how upsetting it can be. I’ve been there myself with one of my dogs. It’s extremely frustrating. I didn’t start having any luck until I started keeping a written record of advertising he ate. After a while, I started figuring out what his food intolerance issues and once I stopped exposing him to any of those ingredients, the yeast was gone and has stayed away ever since.

That said, you could be dealing with both or either food or environmental issues. Have you ever tried wiping his belly, or those areas affected by yeast with a diluted solution of white vinegar?

As far as good is concerned, I wondered if you had ever tried a limited ingredient diet. I had great luck with Nature’s Variety LID. But, there are certainly other brands to try. I picked that one because Ilike the brand, and its fish free. My dog can’t have any fish or fish oil. Maybe that could help you figure some things out. I would pick something fish free, that your guy has not regularly eaten and a single starch. One thing that frustrated me about Orijen is that it contains so many potential problem ingredients. All of those fruits, veggies and botanicals could also be contributing to your guys yeast issues.

I know now of this addresses the fever he’s having and I certainly hope he’s feeling better. 105 is scary.

[Michael H]

To DogFoodie:

For kibble he’s on Orijen 6-Fish, as that is the main one he can have without the presence of an allergenic ingredient, and does fine, so unless it’s some very strange fish BDN uses, he tolerates it fine. Bassets are prone to yeast as it is-for him, it’s always on the undercarriage, where he lies on it all day with no air circulation. I wanted to move onto freeze dried foods as I haven’t come across a canned food that I like, and all kibbles have too high of carbs, and I want to keep his down as much as possible. I can’t afford raw for all meals for both dogs, so trying to do 1 meal of raw, 1 of another food a day. Ordered BDN and reel raw on the same day, BDN came in 2 days, still waiting until 12/5 for my raw stuff, so I tried the 2/day of BDN to see how they do on it. They love it and my other dog is doing great, I just don’t know why this happened, pretty upset.

[Michael H]

My 2 dogs like BDN too, however we just got back from a $400 emergency vet visit from our 8yo Basset having a “fever of unknown origin”. The only change he has had has been with this food over the last week (tripe and fish). His fever is getting better, but it got up to 105, which is scary. I’m really hoping it’s coincidental, as it’s been very hard to find food he’s not allergic to. I put in an order to reel raw but it won’t arrive until 12/5. He does OK on Orijen kibble, but still has yeast issues with it. Our other dog is doing fine on BDN, the only thing being she seems to still be hungry after even giving a little more of the recommended feeding amount, but she is younger and more active-our hound sleeps at least 14 hours a day, so we keep him as trim as possible.

I for some reason thought BDN was freeze dried too, not this 24 hour 100d air dried process…that screams unsafe to me. I know for people you have to follow the “Danger Zone” rules of 40-140d F.

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/shared/PDF/Danger_Zone.pdf

Considering trying the freeze dried Orijen instead if this caused the issue-anyone like their freeze dried foods?

[evan v]

Some of these brands I have not seen locally. I do have a few more stores I would like to check out.

I got a sample bag of Nutrisource small/med puppy. He seemed to like it the most. But is that’s just for puppies isn’t it?

As for the rotational diet. One store really close to me sells Fromm. I like all the different choices?

Just about every store carries Wellness. They have a few small breed/smaller kibble which is pretty cool.

The high protein dry foods seem to be higher priced. EVO,Acana & Orijen just to name a few are freakin expensive and have over 40% protein. A few other people I talked to all said the higher protein diets are better suited for active dogs. Which does make sense. I just won’t worry about protein levels. I’d say most good dry dog food has 27%-33% anyway.

I read Dr Mike Sagman’s story. It’s inspiring. I understand how he rates the food in all. Regardless of knowledge this website is GREAT! It’s easy to just look up food and compare one another. =)

[neezerfan]

Are you talking about eye staining? My Havanese had eye staining as a youngster. I switched him to canned food and used Angels Eyes. It worked very well. Since then I’ve tried kibble on 2 separate occasions, good quality, Orijen and Farmina, and both times the eye staining came back. So, Angels Eyes to get rid of it and good quality canned or raw to keep it away.

[pollypontifing]

I prefer a kibble – it’s easier, and I add fresh meats & veggies from our table. They are bathed every ten days or so.
We are using Annamaet (for our 3 fat bitches), and Orijen for the 2 younger ones. They go outside and forage, so that contributes to new discoloration, but several look like racoons. In the past, someone recommended a brand using tapiocca as a filler ingredient; not much help.
I bleach w/ a gruel of lemon & baking soda applied w/ cotton balls,allowed to dry and then rinsed off – used over four days it will whiten But I am hoping for a miracle diet to do the job
and keep the faces whiter.
Any advice?

[Alexis H]

I know that you have reviewed Orijen Dog Foods, however I would love to see you evaluate Orijen’s new product in the United States, Orijen Tundra Dry Food (It contains different meats). Thank you

[Marta J]

Wellness Core, Orijen and Now Fresh are all 5 star… perhaps good idea to rotate those ones and transition him every few months?

[Marta J]

Hi All, New to the forum and I’m so glad I found it. We are getting a Westie Puppy in a few weeks and I’d like to transition him to a better quality dog food. The breeder we are getting the puppy from is feeding him a lower quality food (I can’t remember the exact name but it’s one of the big box companies). I’ve read enough to know that I won’t be feeding him Blue Buffalo (seeing some negative reviews).
Any opinions on Orijen or Now Fresh brands?
I’ve read that there are some positive reviews for Wellness core small breed.
I’d like to stick with grain free & price isn’t an issue. I’m in Canada and I’m sure I have access to same brands as the US.
Thank you 🙂

[Melissaandcrew]

No snow yet in my part of NY but the cold is nasty for the dogs. They go out, run around a bit then want in..15mins tops. Just cut back on amounts. My crew just finished a bag of Orijen senior and the new bag in their bin is Acana. These days they get dry perhaps once a week, and the rest raw depending on the dog.

[Lori]

So, here we are again with winter time! I had to stop bringing my guys to the dog park a week ago and now they’re pretty sedentary again. Does anyone feed their more sedentary dogs Orijen or some of the higher protein foods? Wondering if I should go down on the protein again. They recently finished a 15-pound bag of Orijen Adult, which was the first time I fed that. They both liked it, but pretty pricey. I also gave them a try at Dr. Tim’s All Life Stage Kinesis, but wondering if the grain-free might be a better choice.

Thanks!

Lori in MN Winter Wonderland 🙂

[Pluto.the.St.Bernard]

Hi, all this information is so helpful, but just a tad overwhelming for me (so many opinions). I am curious about your opinion on a few things, I have a male st. benard pupp just about 20wks, been feeding him Natures Variety Instinct Dry($$$), and honestly looking to switch to something with less of a price tag, but without loosing quality as I want him in the best shape inside/out. His weight is good, looking/feeling healthy. I noticed the other saint owner was inquiring about Wellness Core Puppy, I am also curious about this brand of food –>> “Orijen product line includes six dry dog foods, five claimed to meet AAFCO nutrient profiles for all life stages and one (Senior) for adult maintenance”. Noticed it wasn’t on your list of approved large/giant breed foods, would you recommend (I’ve read pretty good things)? One last question what toppings would you suggest if not homemade food recipe ?
Hope none of this confuses you, thanks.

[Michael H]

Tried some heart with the cat, warmed it in a 100d water bath (I have a sous vide controller I use with a crock pot), she ate about an ounce, so maybe there’s hope. From a feeding calculator it says she may need 6-8oz raw food a day, but I’m assuming the heart is very rich.

Still a little confused on all the portions of the ‘meaty meats’, rmb, and organs, especially if I feed the 1 meal of it. I see that the ratio is 80 meat/10 bone/10 organs (half liver), thought I’m unsure how ‘meaty’ the rmb needs to be, or if it’s more so just about the bone calcium to match phosphorous, and the potential teeth cleaning. From the calculators I’ve found, seems my dogs (both averaging 43lb, somehow) @ 2% would be nearly 100oz of raw food a week, if fed only raw. So, 80oz meat, 10oz bone, 5oz liver, 5 oz other organs, roughly, and half those amounts if I feed FD for dinner.

To get the correct oz of bone, am I supposed to guess how much of the rmb is bone vs meat? Or do I just weigh the rmb pieces and feed 10oz a week of them? For example, a chicken thigh seems to be more meat to bone than eating a chicken wing. (I’m probably looking way too hard into this :-).

So far for the freeze dried meals I’m liking either Big Dog Natural, K9 Natural (New Zealand stuff), or maybe Orijen, since Bernie has done better on their kibble…though gassy. I’m not all convinced the extra stuff in Orijen justifies the price-“chicory root, dandelion root, summer savory, peppermint leaf*, ginger root*”. Looks like a lot of marketing fluff. BDN looks good from the fermented veggies and tripe, though the cod liver oil is a concern…I’ve taken that myself and OD’d on Vitamin A, corner of my mouth cracked open, so painful. Not sure what other FD foods may be good. Suggestions?

Thanks for all the help!

PS Thanks for mentioning Hare Today and MPC. I’ll keep MPC in mind for next month-they have a stop pretty close to me, but I’m past the day to order until next month it seems, drat! HT’s shipping seems a little much, so I’ll need to crunch some numbers. That’s the worst part, pricing everything out to see what’s the best deal.

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

[Michael H]

Hi everyone!

We have 2 dogs:

Bernie, 9y M allergic-to-life Basset Hound
Zuli, 3y F Lab Mix

and our cat:
Sophie, 8y F Mackeral Tabby, borderline diabetic

Due to both Bernie and Sophie’s above issues, it seems like my best option at this point would be to try raw feeding. The dogs both enjoy the occasional chicken wing or turkey neck, but I have not yet tried feeding it as a whole diet. The cat, who was originally an outdoor stray who did hunt for her sustenance, does accept things like turkey and pepperoni, but for most of her life has been on dry food…which is probably why she had the October diagnosis for diabetes. She is near impossible to catch (the yearly vet visit can take us anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour to capture her-we’ve blocked off hiding spaces as we find them over the years, though once she actually broke INTO the wall to hide) and has a lack of scruff, and at this point I’m really fearing the ability to be able to administer insulin consistently. So, it seems that a diet change may be my only help with this. For Bernie, I can control what goes into the food, and avoid his allergens altogether.

I work from home, so cooking and preparing isn’t a big deal. I handle raw meat for my own consumption so that doesn’t bother me, and I’m very versed in the realm of preventing cross contamination.

My access to pastured/organic items is limited to either very far drives or possible home delivery (have to order a LOT at a time to make the shipping be affordable). For the delivery [ReelRaw] they do have a lot of variety, which is nice, but seems the most expensive option that I’ve come across ($300/mo for all pets, around 50lb of items, still cheaper than whole foods). I do have a butcher shop somewhat nearby, but the only organs they carry or process is beef heart, and the variety of RMB’s I can get aren’t much, as well as they do not carry any pastured/organic meats.

Upon my research, I’m finding a lot of conflicting information. It seems that on one side everyone is pro supplements to add to the meals, which I’m hesitant to do so, as I’m of the perspective to not take any synthetic or multivitamins myself since I feel I’m literally peeing the money away, and rather get what I need from whole foods. I know dogs cant digest fruit/veg well, as anytime I’ve given a piece I find it the next day pretty much intact in their waste. We do own a masticating juicer, so that is an option. I’ve come across some freeze dried foods (Big Dog Natural) that say they ferment the veg to make them bioavailable, which is interesting, though I’m unsure if it’s still too high-carb for Bernie. It could all be a bunch of hogwash as well. I do agree with adding omega 3/sardines at meal time, as I feel that the fats are too delicate for any processing procedure.

Then there’s all the premixes available with vitamins, minerals, kale, sweet potatoes, etc. (Urban Wolf, THK, SSLL Dinner Mix). It’s hard to find a premix without one of Bernie’s proposed allergens in it, and to be honest I’d rather keep the carb count for him down as much as possible, as Bassets are already yeast factories, and Sophie needs as little carb as possible-I don’t think I’ve come across mixes for cats anyways. What dog eats kale in the wild anyways? I have a hard time getting it down myself…lol.

On the other side, I’ve come across a few companies that don’t use added vitamins/minerals (Answers, ReelRaw), stating it’s complete/balanced as is, or with Answers, their own products they (conveniently) suggest to add, which is goat’s milk yogurt, or buy their combination product with veg, clay, cultured things, etc. Bernie is borderline allergic to cow dairy, so I’m unsure if he can even have that anyways. I’ve tried kefir with him before, but the yeast didn’t get any better, and would occasionally have putrid gas as well.

Bernie is currently on Orijen, which he does seem more energetic and less itchy, however the gas has been atrocious, and even though he’s not been really red and itchy on it, still is having a yeast issue (underarms, ears, back of legs). This is a dog that sleeps 14 hours a day on those areas, so not much air is circulating. The gas has gotten better by feeding him less of it, but it can still clear a room. I think it’s due to the lentils/chickpeas-while he’s not allergic to them, doesn’t mean he can digest them well.

So to end my novella for how, I’ll boil it down to some questions:

-Do you feel that the supplements are needed if I use the cheaper conventional meat from the butcher? Or would possibly they be getting enough if I splurge for the pastured meats/organs/rmb? It’s doubtful I can afford both the pastured and supplements.

-Do you feel premixes are worth it, and would make the conventional meat balanced? (again, may not be able to do both pastured + mixes)

-How important do you feel variety in meats is? If I shop locally, I only really have access to beef, chicken, and pork, which I myself am even tired of, haha. Most any recreational or RMB’s I can find in the area are meant for soups and have very little meat left on them. With delivery I can get many more options, but I pay out the wazoo for it.

-Would maybe just doing the freeze dried route be the best idea? Between the issues above and our cat, I’m also leaning towards this route. I’ve also heard that cats don’t dig cool meat very much, and as its the winter now I don’t want Sophie to lose any weight form refusing food. The 2 dogs will eat anything so I’m not worried there. I know I have to avoid giving Sophie all ground meat due to taurine loss. My wife also would rather rip off her eyebrows than touch raw meat, so if it comes a time when I cannot feed them, I’d have to have an alternative on hand anyways.

Thanks for any input!

[Jess L]

We feed raw, fresh food. We also feed dry in the evenings and wanted a reliable, high quality dry food. I have long researched and looked for a reliable dry food and now have found it. It is Orijens, grain-free and whole prey. They are family owned from Alberta, Canada, but sold select retailers in the US. You can go to their website and see where it is available, near you. Good luck.

[Karen J]

Okay, so she’s not getting a lot of treats because I’m so busy I haven’t been training her much. She only gets the supplements once a day.

But, what small kibble, grain free options do you think might be worth a try? You sound very much against BB, they are tiny bites and grain free. But she’s not eating them all of a sudden.

Now I’ve heard dogs do self fast. I’ve tried Orijen dry no go and too big and Merrick wet, wouldn’t touch it.

I haven’t found any pee puddles lately, that’s the good news 🙂

[iggymom]

I’ve been researching dog foods for about two weeks now and I just can’t decide on what I think is best for him. He’s 4 months and about 7 pounds, and IG’s typically need a high protein high fat diet but I can’t help but be cautionary of very high protein foods (Orijen?) because he’s so tiny. I’ve been looking at Canine Caviar, Acana, Orijen, the Petcurean Now!/Go! line, etc…. Thoughts?

Please help! 🙂

[DogFoodie]

I also like Wellness Core Reduced Fat.

Two other brands I really like are Orijen Senior and Go! Senior. My Cavalier gains weight very easily and she just finished a small bag of the Go! Senior. She looks great and is super shiny right now. The food worked great for her. I’ll continue using it in her rotation.

[Kristin C]

Jumping in too. I feed raw (w/ SSLL dinner mix) and Orijen kibble and Orijen freeze dried for convenience. Have tried other brands but I don’t love the ingredients or processing, and one of my dog’s seem sensitive to many of them.

[Kristin C]

Hi Julie-I feed my dogs Orijen Adult 2x per week. One of my dogs was overweight on a Blue Buffalo kibble, but since switching her to raw and Orijen she has lost almost 10% of her prior weight. I agree with BC that the amount on the bag is a suggestion. If you can feel your dog’s ribs that’s good so adjust accordingly. Can you provide more activity to lose weight? I found that helped with my dog, but our second pup helps with the activity.

[Kristin C]

Becky- I have one dog who is pretty sensitive, and one who is pretty solid. However, I have noticed they both seem itchy when their food has sweet potato in it. When I omit the sweet potato they don’t seem to itch. Also, I give them each a can of sardines per week. They eat a variety of homemade raw proteins, plus Orijen kibble and freeze dried.

[Hater and Molly’s Mom]

When i tried to switch Molly to Orijen she did the same exact thing. She was eating a whole lot of grass, more than usual, and throwing up white looking liquid too. She did the same thing with Acana. As soon as i took her off both of those foods it all stopped. I had to take those two out of the rotation.

[Lord F]

I just barely made the switch to raw for two of my dogs, we feed them raw in the morning and kibble in the early evening. For my 4 month old puppy, he gets half of his food raw, so his full morning meal. We expect him to get 35lbs. For our senior, we starting off by feeding him 1/4 raw per day, so he gets the same portion as the puppy, with a cup of kibble added. He’s 100lbs! I just started this a week ago! I just went out and bought their meat for this week. I’m so new to making it completely balanced and that’s why I’m starting with half kibble, until I get this down. Here’s what they got last week each:
Friday/Sunday/Tuesday/Thursday/Friday AM:
5.7 oz Boneless, skinless chicken breast
1.3 oz beef kidney
Saturday/Monday/Wednesday AM:
5.7 oz pork stew meat (boneless)
1.3 oz beef kidney
1 egg
They got turkey necks and cow feet throughout the week as well. This week I switched to a different menu:
Saturday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday:
1 pork rib
1.3 oz pork liver
2 oz beef heart
2 oz turkey gizzards
Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday:
1.3 oz pork liver
3 oz turkey gizzard
2.7 oz beef heart
1 tbs canned salmon
In the PM they get either Acana or Orijen, we switch between the two every night. I now give them an egg once a week, they get turkey and pork necks throughout the week. I’m gonna stop by a Whole Foods tomorrow to get whole raw sardine and feed them this twice a week in addition to the regular meal and omit the canned salmon. I know it’s really basic, but I just wanted to know what I can do to make it more varied and more balanced. I’d like to start now for when I switch them off kibble. My senior also gets probiotics in capsule form to help with his digestion, he gets gas easily. What can I add to his food instead of giving him 4 capsules a day? THANKS!

[Julie H]

I so appreciate all of the responses to my post. Great comments and suggestions. I decided to call Chewy.com and also discuss it with them this morning. They are so impressive! Last week I had placed my first order with them when I ordered more Orijen Adult dogfood. I explained to them the concerns I have and asked if I could exchange the Orijen Adult dogfood that I had just received for Orijen Senior dogfood. To my surprise they told me they would credit my account and I could place a separate order for what I wanted. They suggested I donate the Orijen Adult food to a local dog shelter! Wow was I impressed! They now have a customer for life. What a great company.
I was measuring her food but just need to cut back on the amount. I love the suggestion of using warm water to make a broth to pump up the volume, etc. Can’t wait to implement these changes and hopefully see her lose weight
Thank you all for comments! I am new to dogadvisor and am thankful for finding others who love their dogs like I do.

[pugmomsandy]

Also take into account the possibility she gained some muscle mass on a higher protein food. My dogs are heavier than others of the same size or larger. My 22 lb pug looks like an 18 lb foster. My personal dogs gained weight on an increased protein diet. Another thing, the NB Ultra foods only have 350-400 calories per cup versus 478 per cup of Orijen so if you’re feeding the same amount of Orijen as you were with NB, then you’re feeding more calories. Look up “Body Condition Score” and see where she fits on the scale.

[DogFoodie]

I second the Nut!

Are you feeding controlled portions? It looks like Orijen has about 478 kcals per cup. Using the calculator on the review side, if she was a bit heavy at 82 pounds, you’d feed her just under 2.21 cups of Orijen daily, assuming she got no other treats at all. Does that sound at all close to what she was getting?

Some foods that I think are great quality (quality proteins) and lower fat are Wellness Core Reduced Fat, Go! Senior and Orijen Senior. Maybe one of those foods would work for her.

[Julie H]

I have a 7 year old Lab that loves food and never seems to be satisfied; thus, she struggles with her weight. She has weighed around 82 pounds until I recently switched her from Natural Balance Ultra to Orijen Adult because I felt it had much better ingredients. Since switching 2 months ago, she has gone from 82 pounds to 90 pounds. Yikes! I would like to see her lose weight.
Does the high Protein content in Orijen cause weight gain? Anyone have any suggestions for a premium dogwood with the same great ingredients that won’t cause weight gain?
I adore her and want her to live a long healthy life so would appreciate constructive comments and suggestions.

[Jane E]

I am looking for a grain free dry food without lentils/peas or alfalfa. I have senior Boxers with a history of IBS/colitis and one with some reoccurring yeasty skin issues. I would like to have a food that I could feed all 3 if possible (to date I have not accomplished that). I currently raw feed one,another is on Honest Kitchen Zeal with occasional Thrive or Force and the other is on Orijen Senior (and I think that may just be too much of a good thing for her now) her stools are soft. She’s been on this for about a year and is in beautiful condition otherwise.
So I am interested in anyones input. It’ll be greatly appreciated
Jane