[dakcmumm]

Thank you all for your inputs. I am the mommy of 2 mini dachshunds. My Sophie is 12 years old and Louis (rescued in April of this year) is 8. I have been feeding Sophie Lotus grain free kibble turkey and fish and Louis Merrick canned food. Louis has no teeth left due to neglect prior to his adoption. Louis has very bad odor everytime I kiss him and he sheds like crazy. Also his eyes always have some kind of discharge. Even though Sophie’s health is OK, I still think that she is not at her best. Sophie licks her paws a lot and needs to loose a few pounds. Anyway, after I read Dr. Martin Goldstein’s and Dr. Pirtcain’s books I cried so much and decided to switch my babies to raw food. I have been looking for supplements and was tempted to order Dinovite. But I stopped after I read your reviews on this forum.
Thank you again for extending yourself and post your experiences with the product so that other people can learn from you. I am so desperate now to what supplement I should try. I know there is no perfect of anything. But I want to educate myself as much as possible and find a good enough supplement that I want to try on my babies. I will give them a fast starting tomorrow before switch them over to raw food diet.
I am a new member to this forum. I will talk to all of you again soon.

[Akari_32]

Good luck with your question, Bri! This something I’ve been wanting to try, but I simply don’t the money. My cat loves raw beef hearts, and any part of the chicken. I gave him a bit of thigh with a small bone the other night and he loved it! Wish there was something like See Spot Live Longer for cats. If there was, he’d be eating raw every day!

Any of you guys see the PetSmart Black Friday ad?? Friskies is going to be on sale for 39 cents a can!!!! I’ll be all over that, and I hope other foods are on sale, too. I hate to give him all Friskies, or even mostly Friskies, but it’s better than nothing with money as tight as it during the holidays, and I pick the best three of the recipes with the least carbs (Special Diet Beef and Chicken, Special Diet Turkey and Giblets, and Senior Diet Lamb and Rice). I actually don’t mind using the Special Diet because I am really paranoid about UTIs and all that bladder crap lol Gives me some peace of mind, though I have no idea if it actually works or not. So far this is the only store I’ll be hitting, unless I decide to go PetCo or Pet Supermarket. I don’t need any human things, other than the new Pokemon games coming on this friday, but someone can get me that for Christmas lol

[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!

[aquariangt]

I’ll second/third/fifth what everyone said about keeping up with a rotation. Get one bag of what the breeder fed (hopefully they send you home with some) and once that’s close to gone, start mixing a new food in. With a puppy it’s pretty easy to get them on a rotational diet and be able to switch as often as you want. I switch after every bag, so approximately 3 weeks. Make sure you are switching up protein sources to keep a variety as well. I have a few brands that are always in rotation, and then I try to try something new every 5-6 bags as well

for toppers-since it’s a topper I give them a different one every day. I keep a variety of canned, dehydrated, and commercial raw to throw on top there. The fun thing about that is you can really get a big variety going-I keep a box of honest kitchen, a bag of sojos, and usually some frozen pucks of nature’s variety around. Then I just raid the store for whatever toppers seem fun at the time. I like Simply Nourish, Weruva, Tiki, Fromm, Earthborn-many others as well, but those are the brands most often in the house.

[arwyru24]

It’s always really bothered me that it would even possibly be worth it to ship chickens halfway across the world and then sent back. It’s crazy and super shady. I also do not buy anything jerky regardless of the brand. Before I was better educated I bought my last dog jerky treats ..blue buffalo brand and also happy hips. He lived to be 15 when he died and I don’t think he suffered any ill effects but it’s hard to say He got epithelial lymphoma at about 14 and the tumor was removed but who can really say what causes some of the cancers. It really hurt his quality of life in his final year. He didn’t tolerate chemo well and developed pancreatitis as a result and it was just a hard last year. I don’t make my own food or feed raw but I try to do all that I can to feed healthy foods and not take undue risks but I am always questioning myself. I have a vet I trust implicitly now but unfortunately didn’t find him until the dog was 13 and cat was 15. He would have saved both of those animals a lot of pain and suffering. The dog had two surgeries to remove crystals the second time he was 12 and was blocked completely. The other vets just had him on c/d dry his whole life. This was the first vet to tell us water is very important and took him off the rx food and had us feed high quality canned with lots of water added in. They don’t push science diet there they give a list of brands they suggest which are all good choices (taste of the wild is the only one I can think of that’s debatable) It’s such a shame that it’s so hard to know who and what to trust to take good care of our pets. I agree with BC nut completely. … this shouldn’t be so hard.

[Bobby dog]

Did the Vet mention anything about adding more fiber to your kitty’s diet?

I rotate (constantly due to finicky kitties) commercial raw, canned, and some dry. Not sure of bone content, but I feed NV Instinct frozen, Stella and Chewy’s freeze dried, and Primal freeze dried with no issues. None of my cats will eat the same food two days in a row.

[theBCnut]

First, please don’t settle on one food. Go over to the review side and do a search for the article on rotational feeding.

For the first couple weeks, feed him exactly the way the breeder was feeding him. That way, the only big stressor on your pup will be the adjustment to his new living arrangements. After he has fully adjusted, then start transitioning to the new food. I would only add one new food at a time, so if there is any issue, you know what is causing it. Transition slowly, but know that if you do go with a rotational diet, soon you won’t have to transition at all to switch to a new food.

Yes, use canned foods, and dehydrated, and freeze dried, and if you can handle it, even raw.

The benefits of using canned are in the moisture content and the meat content. Canned is closer to a natural diet. However, be aware that some canned food companies under report their fat level by a huge amount and dogs that are at risk for pancreatitis can become deathly ill from eating some of these foods, so read the review before buying canned, and pay attention to what is said about the fat level down in explanation. If you are only using it as a topper, it probably won’t matter, but if you ever have a reason to feed a whole meal of the canned you are using, it is something to be aware of.

[Cotons mom]

My two Cotons eat grass like it is going out of style. They race out of the door into the yard and start looking for their favorite type of grass. Is there something missing in their diet? I feed raw using food only from the EC list along with rotation of the food. They get probiotics daily. Any suggestions would be great, I want to do the best that I can for these bundles of joy. Thanks so much.

[Kristin C]

Susan-so sorry for your guy. Have you thought about trying an elimination diet? Novelty proteins (rabbit, duck, quail, etc.) plus veggies, to see what bothers him? We live in the U.S. and our dogs get sneezy and eye boogery too, usually environmental. We feed mostly raw, little kibble and freeze dried, so they don’t get used to any one thing.

[Hanna S]

I think I have found something that works for my dog for colitis. He is a small 7lb poodle and he is 10 y.o. Its been now 4 months and no flare ups! I started feeding him raw diet made by primal foods. I usually get him the chicken. I started mixing licorice root extract with the food for a week. Then I stopped that so that he wouldn’t get it excessively, only long enough to help his gut to heal. I have been adding raw goat milk by answers and green mush by healthforce nutritional since the day I switched him to raw. It seems go be working wonders. I’m not sure if it’s the combination of things but I’m so happy to see him feeling good again!

*I want to add that the raw goat milk by answers is full of antibiotics and the green mush has all kinds of wonderful herbs as well as digestive enzymes.*

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

[Tanya W]

I am new and have been scouring the forum for info, but not really finding much.
My dog has numerous food allergies found by elimation diets as our vet will sedate him for testing as last time his kidneys shut down. Also with Kidney issues we have to be careful of his diet to try to keep the stress on his kidneys at a minimum.
So far we have found he is alleric to anything with feathers including eggs and chicken fat, pork, peas and alfalfa, possibly beef not sure yet on this one are in the process of testing and more than likely having issues with other grains and such.
I have him on raw diet now in hopes this will help, but becoming limited for proteins available as I cannot feed the above.
So I am looking for a grain free kibble that does not contain any of the above to try and with a limited ingredient.
Please feel free to point me to other threads with the info I am looking for.

Thanks,
T

[Merry G]

PS.
I just read the report from this Doc Bovee for about the 5th time. It sounds like the idea for reduced protein diets was developed in the 40s but it really has no basis in scientific fact. It even appears that a low protein diet is worse for renal failure. We picked up some Science Diet kd last week.
I fed my Boxer some of it trying to ease her into new food and she’s not been feeling well for the last couple of days. She won’t eat but drinks water and then goes and eats grass and throws up. She also seems to spend an inordinate amount of time cleaning her
“girlie area” especially at night.
I’m calling the Vet on Mon and hoping to get her in the same day.
I know that nausea and vomiting are supposed to be signs of more advanced kidney failure but it seems to me that in the so called “early stages” these symptoms shouldn’t be occurring just yet and perhaps there’s something else going on her making her sick. Sigh….and that’s probably just me grasping at straws and trying to maintain hopefulness that my Sage hasn’t moved so quickly into the advanced stages of renal failure.
She was only diagnosed this past month.
I live in the desert and I don’t feel that the vets we’ve been to over the years have been all that great. They seem to care more about cows and horses than house pets. We’ve gone to all 4 of the vets available and their competency has alot to be desired but we’re hoping this guy is the best of the worst.
Ok, thanks again to you all who have taken the time to read my ramblings and responded. We dog folks are sniffalicious top shelf!

[DogFoodie]

No worries about not going raw! It’s not for everyone for various reasons. You can always added canned food as toppers.

Here’s a link to a great download (it’ll cost you $2.95): http://www.seespotlivelonger.com/home/sll/page_41_1. It’s written by Steve Brown, one of the authorities on raw feeding, and will show you how incredibly simple it is to add fresh whole foods to your dog’s diet. Simple, fresh foods like fresh cage free eggs, pureed dark leafy greens and sardines are amazing additions to a diet of kibble. So easy!

Fromm is a great choice! Other budget friendly foods that I really like are Dr. Tim’s, Victor, Horizon and Earthborn Holistics.

[Susan]

Hi Amy, Im just reading Lew Olsons PhD, Raw & Natural Nutrition for dogs again, its a good book to have lying around, it has easy home cooked & raw recipes in the book she says this about Epilepsy: While the connection between grains & seizures is still being researched a number of studies suggest that feeding carbohydrates can increase the risks of seizure activity, either by making blood sugar level fluctuations more extreme or by causing allergic reactions due to gluten intolerance. The best defense is a fresh-food diet with low to mediun levels of fats, high levels of animal protein & few carbohydrates….

Supplements: Fish Oil, Vitamin E & digestive enzymes are all good supplements for dogs suffering from Epilepsy. Additionally adding a quality B complex vitamin has proven to fight seizures in both humans & animals. DMG made from a derivative of glycine has also shown promising results in slowing down or stopping seizure activity. For dogs the liquid form given by dropper in the gum line appears to work the best..
If you don’t mind making a few cooked meals she has 4 different Low-Fat Low Glycemic Diets for Epilepsy & what Supplements to add..

[Amy H]

I am adopting an epileptic lab mix rescue pup, 10 months old, and I am told about 60 lbs. I have looked over these forums and printed out a few articles from the Mercola site to bring to my first vet appt with him. Once he is settled in our home I will begin transitioning him to a higher protein, lower carb, grain free diet. The first bag I bought for that is EB Holistic Primitive Naturals. He is on KBr already, as he had multiple grand mal seizures after poison ingestion, but he has been seizure free for several months. I am looking for advice from others who have dealt with this – what worked for you, and what didn’t? I am not up to a raw diet, but herbals and supplements would be manageable within budgetary reason. I wonder whether a rotation diet is still advisable, since I need to worry about affecting his KBr blood levels with varying salt content in different foods. Most labels I’ve checked don’t list sodium content. I read through about 55 pages of the large & giant breed puppy food forum, and think he is old enough that I at least don’t need to worry about calcium content. Any words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!

[Amber M]

She still has all of her allergy problems on this kibble and has on other kibble also. She has had allergies since she was around 1.5 years old. Pills don’t help much and are not healthy.

For the raw diets I have been looking at BarfWorld, Natures Variety, and have just looked into Vital Essentials. I am leaning more towards raw because it is a healthier option than freeze dried or dehydrated. I am still unsure of raw and what brand to feed. I am definitely not ready to make my own diet. I am liking the Natures Variety raw more than BarfWorld and I have not looked into Vital Essentials much yet. What do you think of these brands?

[Susan]

Hi Amber, can you do home cooked or raw as it would be the best as you will know exactly what she is eating & can start an elimination diet.. also with the raw or home made cooked meals you can see what foods are causing these problems with the elimination diet……or if you get a freeze dried or dehydrated diets, get ones that has limited ingredients, so there’s less chance of food intolarances….I found my boy can’t have Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, peas, wheat or boiled rice so far…..has she stopped her sratching on the Back to basic kibble?? if you can, get her off the dry kibble its over processedm its only good for us humans, as it is quick & easy……

[Amber M]

I have a 4 year old lab that has allergies (scratching jaw, itchy body, sore/irritated paws that she chews, licks, and bites) and I have been looking at alternative diets to kibble. From researching and speaking with many dog food companies, I have found that even high quality kibble is not the best option for dogs.

I have looked into freeze dried diets, dehydrated diets, raw diets, and spoke with many different companies for each type of diet. I am still very unsure of what to do and would like to get input from people other than the dog food companies.

I have mainly been looking at Sojos, Grandma Lucys, The Honest Kitchen, BarfWorld, Vital Essentials, and Nature’s Variety. I am currently feeding Back to Basics dog food, which is a dry kibble. I am planning on giving a probiotic and fish oil, but cannot decide what to feed. Or if I should just keep her on dry kibble.

[Bobby dog]

You are very welcome!

Not sure if the fish you bought is cooked or not, but do not feed raw salmon or trout to the dogs because they may contain bacteria that causes death in dogs. Good idea to puree it if you are uncertain about the bones, better safe than sorry.

You will really find that PDF useful. On top of it being packed with great info, it’s an easy read and written so that you can reference info easily. Your questions about food and portions should be answered in there. I don’t feed the ABC diet in one day, I feed all the extras throughout the week as toppers. Please ask if you can’t find what you are looking for; someone here should be able to help.

It does sound like a yeasty skin issue. Dandruff is much better than open sores so the Malesab must have helped. How do you stand budget wise with purchasing more shampoo? I found another budget friendly option for shampoo if you are interested.

My dog had a bad yeast infection last year. It took 8 months of consistent care and tweaking his diet to rid him of it. Changing his diet was integral in the healing process. If at all possible getting them off Ol’ Roy will be the most help. I know it’s not up to you, but if your uncle could at least switch to a food without chemicals, dyes, and meat & bone meal it would be a step in the right direction. With the added fresh foods you are improving their diets regardless, however by eliminating the chemicals etc. I believe you would see their health continue to improve. You might have a fighting chance to prove your point because more than likely some of the issues the dog had a few months ago will show up again after a few weeks back on Ol’ Roy.

I was feeding Bobby a canned food along the lines of Ol’ Roy that contained chemical preservatives and dyes, the kibble I fed was not bad. He had a skin infection so I took him to the Vet. During the visit my Vet discussed the importance of a healthy diet and suggested I stop feeding that canned food and choose another. When I eliminated it from his diet I saw an improvement in his skin within two weeks. That gave me the incentive to find out what else I could do for him.

I can’t answer your questions about enzymes, I don’t use them. Having no teeth would not necessarily be a reason to add enzymes. There was a very interesting conversation on the review side about using enzymes and whether or not they even survive the stomach. This did not pertain to enzymes used for pancreatic issues. Maybe someone else will be able to answer your questions.

I love the results I get from probiotics; wish I started using them long ago. I feed my cat kefir 3x/wk and my dog daily. I upped Bobby’s dose of probiotics when he had a yeasty skin relapse a month ago. When I feel he’s back on track I probably will feed it every other day. I think your choice of probiotics is a good one. Even though I am feeding kefir, it is more out of convenience for me since Bobby and the cats are doing well and like it. Kefir is very affordable, but I think your choice is more economical in the long run and you get more strains of probiotics. Write back with the weights of the dogs who will be getting them, I have info on dosage for human probiotics.

Canned food is much easier for dogs to digest since it is not as processed as dry food. There are several budget friendly canned foods out there. Depending on if they have teeth pulled mixing kibble with canned is an option too. At this point I am guessing it depends on what your Uncle decides to feed them. At the very least, you can add enough water to kibble prior to feeding them to make it a canned consistency if necessary.

I am not sure about specific exercises for arthritis & hip dysplasia. Keeping arthritic animals slim and fit is extremely important. The fish you are adding to their food is really good for arthritic pets! Try searching the forum for this topic and hopefully someone with experience on this subject will stop by.

[Bobby dog]

I am glad you stopped by with an update! It sounds like you are doing everything within your means to help these dogs. Other than a change in diet and seeking medical attention for their teeth, I still recommend probiotics if it is feasible. I listed some suggestions for them in my previous post.

Were the dogs able to transition to Pure Balance without any digestive upsets?

Does she have yeasty skin or just itchy from allergies?

What is the can size of the sardines you are feeding? About how many cans/week are you feeding each dog?

Healthy teeth and gums are very important for all of us; when they are unhealthy it can lead to other diseases. I would certainly address the situation in my dog. The only suggestion I have are for the owners to seek medical care ASAP. Do they have trouble eating kibble? Are the dogs given anything to chew?

I really recommend Steve Brown’s download, “See Spot Live Longer the ABC Way.” It will help you with what you are trying to achieve for these dogs economically. More importantly, it is specific as to the quantities/types of fresh foods to feed and keeping the diet balanced; it would also benefit your dog regardless of the quality of kibble he currently eats!
http://www.seespotlivelonger.com/home/sll/page_41/see_spot_live_longer_the_abc_way___electronic_down.html

Here’s a DFA thread about adding toppers:
/forums/topic/toppersadded-nutrition/

Too many raw egg whites can interfere with the absorption of biotin; egg whites contain avidin which binds with biotin preventing dogs from absorbing it. Lightly cooking some of the eggs you feed or just the whites can remedy this. Dogs the size of Labs should probably be fed about 4 – 5 eggs per week depending on their body condition and weight. Check out this thread for some suggestions from theBCnut on feeding eggs:
/forums/topic/how-many-eggs-shell-or-no-shell/

Other canned fish you can feed is mackerel or wild pink Alaskan salmon; avoid tuna due to possible contaminates. Be sure to feed only fish packed in water with no salt added.

You can try foot baths & rinses. Below are links to several different baths & rinses that would help with skin and coat issues. If you decide to try the povidone iodine solution foot bath or rinse, since the dogs go outside, rinse with clean water afterwards because it makes the skin sensitive to the sun:
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/10/25/dog-foot-bath.aspx
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/05/03/eating-these-foods-can-make-your-dog-itch-like-crazy.aspx
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2009/12/16/thirty-seconds-to-relieve-your-pets-itchy-paws.aspx
http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/15_01/features/Pet-Uses-Of-Apple-Cider-Vinegar_20435-1.html?pg=3

Ol’ Roy is definitely not my choice for a healthy food, but it sounds like it’s your uncle’s. Keep encouraging him to rotate and hopefully feed a better food. Other places to look for affordable dog food are whole sale clubs, hardware, large animal feed, and garden supply stores.

If your uncle will not invest in better food, maybe you can try to research some kibbles that are in the same price range that don’t contain as many undesirable ingredients, chemicals, and dyes. One brand that comes to mind is PMI Nutrition; they make three grades of dog food. I often read comments from people on hunting dog forums recommending their Red Flannel line, their lowest grade of food. I don’t recommend this food, but perhaps it (or another similar food) could be considered the lesser of two evils.

Here is PMI’s website with a store locator:
http://www.pminutrition.com/main.html

DFA review:
/dog-food-reviews/red-flannel-dog-food/

[Kerry W]

My Dog has just been diagnosed with this also…Lab-pointer cross, full of life, 5yrs and now vomiting and diarrhea bouts for 3 weeks. Have been on all the medications, not steroids – yet.

We tried Eukanuba veterinary diet, worked for a couple of days, then relapse. Then, tried Royal Canin hypoallergenic kibble and cans – same again. WOrked for a couple of days, then relapsed. Now not sure what to try 🙁 Maybe potatoes and something else. We tried raw chicken first, but she doesn’t tolerate that. Nor cooked chicken. Then tried raw beef, comes straight back up 🙁

Perhaps we will try and fine the royal canine venison and potato option

[Akari_32]

I’ve got a dog almost exactly like yours. We finally out him By Nature 95% canned food (around $20 a case on PetFlow) and he cleared considerably. Then I put him on a raw diet with See Spot Live Longer pre mix (the lowest carb pre mix I could find, and thankfully the cheapest!), and he’s gotten even better. He still, however, chews his feet from the grass, but there’s just no stopping that. He’s finally got hair grown back in all over body after chew himself bald from his ribs back, and he’s less red, other than his feet and tummy where the grass touches him.

[Michael H]

Hi everyone! Not sure if this is the right forum section to post this, but I’m in dire need of some help.

We have an almost 9 year old rescued Basset Hound, who we have been struggling to manage yeast and chronic inflamed skin since we’ve had him this past year. The vet has him on persistent hydroxyzine and prednisone, of which I try to give the least effective dose, as especially prednisone I’m not that comfortable using due to the side effects.

Upon shelling out for an allergy test (environmental and diet [Spectrum Groups Spot Report]), we’ve found out he’s positive for 19 things and borderline for another 7 out of a total of 91 tested items.

His symptoms are always the worst in the spring/summer, as one of the main allergens is grass, which as far as I know I can’t do much about. I’ve replanted our yard to grass that he’s supposedly not allergic to, but anything that blows our way from a neighboring yard cancels that out.

There are a lot of dietary items as well, and finding a food for him has been a nightmare. I’ve considered cooking food for him, but unsure what’s considered “balanced”, and raw feeding makes me a bit nervous as I’ve heard that grocery-grade meats can possibly be tainted since they are meant to be cooked until a safe temperature, and I don’t want to hurt him. Any outlet in our area that sells organic/free range/etc. isn’t very accessible or is very expensive.

The list of foods he tested positive for are:

Venison
Eggs
Lamb
Wheat
Rice
Oats
Potato
Carrots

Borderline Foods:
Dairy (Milk)

Low-scoring/Negative:
Beef
Rabbit
Poultry Mix
Pork
Soy
Corn
Beet
Flax
Barley
Brewers Yeast
Kelp
Alfalfa
Fish Mix
Green Pea
Duck

So, I have to avoid conventional grains. Due to his yeast issues/dermatitus, I’m also assuming that the lowest starch/low glycemic food would be in his best interest. The main issue I’m running into is that most grain free foods use potatoes, eggs, or carrots, which he’s also allergic to.

On one had it seems that wet food may be the way to go, but as he’s older, his teeth aren’t the best. They are all still intact, but he doesn’t really gnaw on anything at all (can’t really with his droops, they are probably easy to chomp down on and would hurt) to clean them, and brushing hasn’t seemed to do a whole lot, so I’m fearing that wet food may make it worse. I’ve bought knuckle bones for him and our other dog, but he only eats the tasty stuff on the outside and his sister gets the hand-me-down since she will actually gnaw and grind it down. Her teeth are excellent in regards to tartar.

From the test it looks like he can have peas, lentils, or chickpeas as a binder, but again I’m unsure of how much starch content may be in the resulting food. I’m finding sweet potato in a lot of the foods as well, but it wasn’t tested for, and I’m unsure of how related they may be.

So far I’ve tried Taste of the Wild Wetlands & Pacific Stream (which we feed to our other dog), but they didn’t do a whole lot for him-both contain either sweet potatoes, potato, or egg. Our other dog doesn’t seem to have any issues thus far at 3 years, thank goodness, and hopefully it stays that way.

The best looking food I’ve come across is Orijen 6 fish, but it’s very expensive. It doesn’t start listing carb sources until the 12th ingredient, but I can’t really tell if that’s a good or bad thing-chickpeas, red lentils, green lentils, and green peas all have protein as well, and they seem to count that towards the protein % for the food, so their ingredient %’s could be just as high as if it were listed as the second ingredient, like I find in a lot of other, cheaper foods.

If we can get any help with this, it would be much appreciated. Thank you for your time!

Mike & Beth

[InkedMarie]

My Gemma is my toothless senior sheltie. A few months ago, she started with was three bouts of giardia. Ended up on meds & I chose to put her on canned Rx food. Three different times, I tried to add back a couple spoonfuls of her old food: Canidae Pure Sea. It didn’t go well, lots of diarrhea.
I tried her on ground raw, again (we tried when we first adopted her) but it’s not going well. I can’t get hood stools from her. They’re either hard & she has trouble expelling it or its diarrhea. My raw guru who helps me agrees that raw just isn’t for her. So, I just ordered two small bags of Farmina small bites but I want to add some canned to it. With no teeth & a tongue that goes in all directions while eating, I’m not sure she’ll be able to pick up Kibbles without canned.
I’m looking for high quality pate, smushy types of canned. They don’t have to be complete diets because they’re just add in’s. Canned isn’t cheap so I’d rather not buy an assortment to try.

Please tell me what you’ve used for smushy types of canned and thanks.

[theBCnut]

The avidin in egg white binds with biotin so the body can’t use all of what is in the diet, so I only give raw eggs a couple times a week. The rest of the time I give lightly cooked eggs. Feed the shell if you are feeding a meal that is light in calcium. Don’t feed the shell if the meal is heavy in calcium.

[Cyndi]

Here are a couple articles for you: One article says feed the whole egg, shell and all, the other says not to feed the shell. Personally, I feed the shell and all. I give my dog a fresh, cage free chicken or duck eggs a couple times a week and that’s all…

http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/feeding-your-dog-raw-eggs-good-or-bad/

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/14_5/features/Improving-Your-Dogs-Diet_20260-1.html

[Kristin C]

Best food choice would be anything with low starch (including rice and potato, sweet potato). Maybe add some coconut oil into whatever diet you chose. We feed our dogs mostly raw so kibble recommendation is not our thing, but we feed Orijen once or twice per week as needed, which is low grain.

[theBCnut]

Some legumes have more phytates than others, but of course, we don’t get to pick which ones are in kibble. I personally don’t mind some legumes, but I don’t like kibble to have so much that I’m wondering where the protein in the food is really coming from. Some dogs can’t handle foods with a lot of legumes. Since I feed a rotational diet and half raw, I don’t worry about the legumes in kibble unless my food reaction dog has issues with the food. But if I was feeding straight kibble, that would definitely be a consideration for me, especially if I noticed my dogs having lots of gas.

[Lord F]

Hi!
I am definitely a raw lover. Unfortunately I have 2 large dogs and 1 puppy that we expect to be large-ish as well! (which is an Aussie mix, so cute!) So as you can imagine, raw is expensive for us. We switched to half raw, half kibble, and it works amazingly!
We do raw for breakfast and kibble in the evening. We do splurge on Orijen for their kibble, but they are doing so great on it.
Another thing, I’ve recently decided to switch to store bought meat instead of raw sold in pet stores. Buying the pet food raw, you’re paying anywhere between $7-$13 per pound! Or you can go to a butcher or grocery store and get meat for $2-$5 per pound. They like it more anyway! Plus, you’re paying for the added vitamin/minerals or veggies that they don’t need, they’re getting a balanced diet with regular raw meat plus kibble.
As for Honest Kitchen, I love them too. I buy a big box of Preference and put 1/3 cup with their raw every other morning. It lasts forever and they like it, surprisingly. One of my dogs HATES vegetables/fruits, but she eats this, so lucky me!
Good luck with your puppy!

[Akari_32]

Sojos does have a pre-mix, but I don’t know what it’s called. THKs pre-mix that I can remember the name of is Preference. They also have two new ones that should be out by now, as well. Didn’t catch the fact that you had actual recipes down in your previous post!

Grandma Lucy’s is also extremely low in calories and has large portions. Some of these pre-mixes you’re looking at require that dogs about the size of ours (in the 10lb range) to eat something like 1 lb of food. I feed 5 oz to Bentley, and even that sometimes looks like a lot, but I couldn’t imagine giving him a whole pound. His belly already gets round after his 5 oz, he’d probably explode with much more lol Thats why I chose SSLL– its measured in tablespoons, not cups. If you decide to go the pre-mix route, just look at how much you’d be feeding, and judge it with canned food. That will already give a good idea of how much your be offering. If you think it may seem like too much, you may want to pick something else.

I’ve never used Dr Harvey’s, nor could I find any directions online on how to make it when i was looking for a pre-mix, so can’t say anything on that. Some dogs may not like the chuncks of veggies (I think Sojo’s is similar? Can’t remember), so that’s more of a does-the-dog-like-it thing.

Like I said, if you have everything available to do a all raw homemade diet, go for it! Pre-mixes are just an alternative for people who can’t find/afford all the organ meats and supliments, or who decide a completely raw diet is something they can’t manage to balance. The other day when I went shopping to buy some meat to replenish the freezer, I flipped out when I saw fresh kidney in the meat department. You just don’t usually see organs in most places, especially not in a grocery store. Now, if you had a good butcher locally, that might be something different, but I personally don’t.

[Akari_32]

The only issues I had with both of those mixes is how much they need to eat of it. Just seems like too much to me. However, I’d go with THK if you wanted to go with either of those. You won’t find anything as low priced as SSLL, anywhere. It’s just the nature of pre-mixes. There are some that are $80+ a bag! With only two small dogs to feed, price may not be a factor with you, though. Look around, and see if there’s anything you like. The best ones I’ve heard of are SSLL and Urban Wolf, but if you Google “dog raw diet pre-mix” or something to that effect, you may find something you like better. My goal for a pre-mix was low carb and small portions. Not everyone needs something so specific.

I would also like to add that most people order their meats online that do their own homemade raw diets for their pets. You’d be hard pressed to find everything you need locally, and for a good price. However, I’m not sure what websites people like to use for that. I know of haretoday, and that’s it.

[Akari_32]

I think a premix is easiest for most people. Not everyone can afford (or has the knowledge to) properly balance a homemade raw diet. If you can do it, by all means go for it! You’d be doing better than most lol Lots of people just aren’t comfortable tackling something so serious. If done improperly, the consequences are very bad. I know I don’t have the means, finances, or knowledge on how to make a balanced raw diet! Lol

Just curious, but what about shipping do you not want to do? SSLL comes in a box the size of a VHS tape, and fits in the mail box. No signing or anything needed, and it’s only $17. I’ve calulated it, and figured the 1 lb bag will last me about 5 months. It’s the cheapest way I’ve figured out– trust me, I’m a deal hunter 😉

[Lillian N]

thank you for your answer… I see it’s another suggestion for premix. Is it just not possible to do a raw diet without a premix for smaller dogs? That is really unfortunate.

[Lillian N]

I’ve been really trying to do a lot of research on this raw feeding thing but as much information as I’ve been stockpiling the more uneasy I become when it comes to the supplements part of it. Most sample diets I’ve seen are for much larger dogs (40 lbs and up) and my chihuahuas are really small (5 and 7 lb respectively) I think I got most of the other parts down and I’m pretty comfortable feeding them on the raw meats/organs part (no bone, they are gulpers and don’t like to chew thoroughly) so I am feeding them a whole sardine once or twice a wk to help with calcium thought I am not sure if this is sufficient. If anyone else has a small breed can you please provide me with a sample diet of what you are feeding your dogs? I want to make a full switch to raw since they do so well on it and I would prefer not to use mixes or pre-made ones(too expensive..) I was going to simply add a multivitamin and calcium supplement as well as vitamin e to the 1 lb of ground meat and organs +veggie mix I was going to make and feed them for the whole month but I read on dogaware.com that human multivitamins aren’t suitable for small breeds. any help would be much appreciated!

[theBCnut]

Raw goats milk is OK, but only add about 1/4 cup per day. You really want to be careful about unbalancing the diet of something that grows as fast as a Dogue. I would add the goats milk, fish or krill oil, and a little chicken or other lean meat or maybe a lightly cooked egg. If he isn’t having digestive issues, I wouldn’t mess up his diet to fix things that aren’t a problem.

[Lillian N]

thanks for your reply 🙂 I wanted to start incorporating some raw into my dogs diet and so I’m taking baby steps. I found a package of turkey backs at Sprouts today for just $1.45 and I bought it, intending to chop it into chunks for them to have as a treat once a week. I know that people here say turkey backs are fine raw but when I took it out of the package to prep it I was uneasy seeing how many tiny sharp bones are in it. I gave them each a small piece of the softer bone to test and they took a little time crunching it up but I still didn’t feel safe (the chewing was very loud) so I just pulled all the meat off and tossed the bones. Still, I came away with a ziploc full of good meat and (tendons?) chewy parts that at least amounted to a can of dog food which would cost me around that much anyway. The backs also had some organ meat attached. Anyway, if anyone can suggest to me some other easy raw mixes I can give my dogs I would appreciate it. Plus if they are meatballs seeing as that would be the easiest for me to freeze and portion out. I have 5 and 7 lb chihuahuas btw

[Naturella]

Sounds like your boy has quite the good diet so far, Crystal! 🙂 Don’t be afraid to try new recipes (brands) and new flavors within a brand. Plus, adding canned or THK is great for them – adds moisture to a usually dry diet, and helps with its absorption! 🙂

I also feed a rotational diet of about 75-80% kibble – it is great on the budget because it allows me to take advantage of sales, and also great for my dog, who gets a new food with every small bag, and he gets to try different proteins and recipes. I top all kibble meals with additives at breakfast (coconut oil, plain yoghurt/plain kefir, raw egg, canned sardines), and at dinner with THK (I alternate between 4 flavors) or Big Dog Natural tripe, with an RMB once/week. So far so good – Bruno is happy and healthy and even if a food doesn’t sit well with him, I have a backup in the rotation of a food he’s had before and done well on to patch him up until the next new recipe! 🙂

[Susan]

Hi Beth, yes Patch has had an inflamed Pancreas twice now & I now keep him on a lower fat diet, when Ive tried other kibbles that were higher in fat% (13% & higher) the acid reflux comes back & so does his pain, if I go up in protein % in a new kibble, he has his pain under right paw chest area, he seems to do real well on the vet diet, then I think when I start adding new foods or try getting him off his vet prescription diet & try new kibbles or cooked foods he gets his pain again. 1 vet told me its hard diagnosing Pancreatitis sometimes, he’s found sometimes test will come back all OK but the dog will have all the symtoms of Pancreatitis, so he said now he doesnt really bother with alot of tests if they have mild Pancreatitis & just puts the dog on a low fat diet & the dog normally gets better, if the dog doesn’t get better he said, then he’ll tell owners that we need to do some test..
I also think stress is a problem too, the end of May I started to pack as I was moving, there were boxes everywhere, Patch started following me everywhere I went, he wouldnt let me out of his sight, then I didnt move in the end & the begining of June Patch was vomiting everytime he ate for 2 days & had his pain, so I booked Patch in the next day for an ultra scan by another vet, as his regular vet was all booked up for the next 3 days & the scan came back all good, so what his regular vet said about the no testing, he was right… Patch was put back on a very bland diet & the vomiting stopped, so did his pain, so sometimes their pancreas just needs a little rest…..

Hildie, when I first rescued Patch he was doing poos that looked like a condom over his poos, he also had blood in his poos sometimes & I’d wipe his bum with wet wipes & there would be be light red blood on the wet wipes, it was not everyday but his jelly mucus poos were about every 2 weeks, then one weekend I was up all weekend with sloppy poos then diarrhea then he just pooed a heap of liquid blood & I rushed him to vet, in the end he was diagnosed with Colitis/IBD & put on vet diet a low residue kibble that Ive been trying to stop feeding but everytime I try a new kibble it just doesnt work for Patch, so we go back to the vet diet…if he didnt suffer from the skin problems it would be easier, 1 new kibble will be excellent his poos are perfect then his starts scratching, gets red paws & has itchy ears which Ive found potatoes & sweet potatos & wheat was causing.. so now its back to the drawing board, I’m starting to understand why some owners are feeding cooked horse meat now, its probably the only thing that has help their dogs skin problems & their poos problems at the same time…Im finding he does good on fish, (tuna or salmon) & a bit of pumkin but that doesn’t fill him up he loses too much weight..I need to find foods that fill him up, some people with dogs with IBD & skin problems are feeding Quinoa, Ive read that quinoa to be very healthy & is gluten free..

[theBCnut]

Adjust the amount of food according to your dog’s body condition. Keep your pup on the thin, lean side at least until full grown.

One warning, diet and OVER exercise are both big contributors to hip dysplasia, so be careful about the amount of exercise your pup gets. It’s better to wear them out with mental work than physical work.

I rotate after every bag, which is weekly, with my dogs’ kibble. I feed half raw and I rotate that every day.

[Lillian N]

Sounds good. I wanted to try incorporating some raw meat into my dogs diet as well.

[Hildie V]

Mine used to be the same as a puppy and it wasn’t until I switched her to NRG dehydrated that she became normal.

Kibble is hard for them to break down. By the time it reaches you it has been handled a lot, cooked at high temperatures, and totally altered from it’s natural state.

I would suggest feeding homecooked food, raw, or dehydrated where all you do is add water and soak to fluff it back up

I bet you if you tried this, and added a spoon of pumpkin, you would see huge improvements. When switching to any new food do it gradually. Start off small and over about a month slowly increase until the diet is completely switched over to the new one a month later.

[Hildie V]

Hi Susan they do sound alike 🙂

She does best on food I make myself. Also, NRG raw dehydrated, but unfortunately she’s developed a wheat allergy in these wheat germ in NRG so I can’t use anymore.

I’m going to try a ground turkey, beef liver, beef heart, broccoli, zucchini, carrots, and potato next. I supplement with eggshell calcium because I don’t feed her bones. I also give Simon oil, vitamin E, digestive enzymes, probiotic, and a multivitamin and mineral specifically designed for dogs by a holistic vet.

I would suppose just as in humans certain things trigger acid reflux but it can be different in every person and also in every dog. I suppose there’s also an underlying reason why acid reflex is there to start with which is what I really want to get to the bottom of. That is, assuming she actually does have acid reflux and this isn’t something to do with something else because no one seems to know 🙂

I think finding foods that work for the dog is specific to each dog and it’s trial and error. Kibble can be a lot harder for them to break down than fresh food. Fresh food is highly digestible, and usually easier to digest. I would not touch a vet prescribed food with a 10 foot pole… But that’s not saying it doesn’t work for some people and their dogs, is just disgusting to me 🙂

If you want to make your own homemade food but are scared that you might not do it right you can buy a cookbook called Hillary’s Complete and Balanced and you can buy her supplements to go with it and then follow her recipes for homemade food. Her cookbook is only available through veterinarian offices in Canada and off her website in the USA. My girl did great on her venison and potato limited ingredient diet for five months until I couldn’t find the venison anymore at an affordable price :-). That is when I switched her to NRG…

Nothing I have done is a fix for sure, my dog is still having problems, and I like reading about what other people do to try and help myself as well 🙂

[Akari_32]

Heya, Bobby Dog! I’m Happy be off that stupid boat. There’s nothing to do on the ship if you don’t drink, and I can’t even stand the smell of alcohol. I sat in the room most of the time and read the first book and half of the Harry Potter series, and played a good 1/4-1/3 of Pokemon X (one more gym and the league to go!). In three days…. LOL Night before last I did eat an entire pizza by myself, though. That was quite the accomplishment XD Wasn’t bad for frozen cruise pizza :p

They closed down for good. They bought the practice from a terrible vet, and filed a law suit against them and everything. They were actually doing pretty good, but all the legal crap from the other vet dragged them down. Plus he wasn’t a very good business manager and bought equipment they didn’t need and stuff. All in good intention, but you can’t do that when just starting out, and under a bad name already, at that! He did a great job with his clients, though and most of them will follow him wherever he goes. I probably will if I ever figure out where he’s going next and he’s close enough! I really did like him. He’s very nice and cares so much about his patients and their owners. Turns out, the crappy vet is coming back. I will tell everyone I know not to go to that place! I did not like the reviews I read about him on line. Not a single good word has been said about that guy!

So after some looking around, her reverse sneezing probably an allergy thing (she normal sneezes when we go out side, but not inside other than a few little huffs every now and then) or her breathing in random stuff due to her small size. Everyone is having terrible allergies around here right now, and even Bentley on his no-carb raw diet is back to chewing his feet and itching. I’ve been living on sudafed for the last three weeks, even lol Anyways, I guess it’s not something to worry too much about. Still don’t like it, though…

[theBCnut]

I believe the Earthborn recommendation is for adult weight, they often doube that for puppies, but please feed bsaed on your actual dog’s actual body condition since those recommendations are rarely accurate. I would not free feed. Feed about the same amount you were feeding before, and adjust feeding amount as needed. Don’t let her get fat, thin is important while they are still growing.

EArthborn and THK are a great combination. You will definitely have to adjust the amount.

Yes, stay with foods on HDM’s list until she is 10 months old then you can feed her other foods as you want.

Tinned sardines should be one can a week. Pasture raised eggs, either raw or lightly cooked 2 times a week, no shells for her until she is regulating calcium uptake at about 10 months, but then you can occasionally give her the whole egg. Raw green tripe can be given as often as you like, I like to give it at least once a week for the probiotics. It smells pretty strongly, just a warning. Unbalanced additions to her diet should be less than 20% of her diet, but all of those are pretty safe.

[Sam D]

Hi all,

We’re getting an Aussie Shepherd puppy in December. Our breeder is wonderful and responsible and has been feeding her dogs Taste of the Wild for years. She says she loves the brand and her Aussies have done well on this food. She’s not against raw at all but she just doesn’t choose to follow the raw diet.

So here is my question(s) We want to start the puppy out on TOTW kibble and, ideally, make a few meals a week raw (turkey necks, beef, chicken, liver, etc…) We’ve also looked at The Honest Kitchen. We want a lot of variety! We want our dog to be able to tolerate both kibble and raw (just not in the same meal, together)

Can dogs do well having a diet that rotates with kibble too?
Thanks, kindly!

[pugmomsandy]

You would actually need to contact the food companies and ask how much liver is in the diet or ask for a nutrient analysis rather than just assume that a food is high in liver since USA dog food companies aren’t required to list ingredients by percentage. Take Primal Beef Formula raw food for example. It has liver as ingredient number 2, but their analysis shows vitamin A within guidelines at 11765 (minimum 5000, max 250,000).

http://www.primalpetfoods.com/product/detail/c/7/a/c/p/all/z/b/t/a/d/b/id/2

[Cheryl O]

Many of the freeze dried raw diet foods that are ‘enthusiastically recommended’ have a significant amount of liver. I’ve heard that because of the high Vitamin A content of liver, this can be toxic to dogs. I’ve been feeding Stella and Chewy mixed with Wellness grain free. Also been giving Orijen freeze dried treats. Any comments?

[Judy M]

Which do (u all, and Mike) consider to be the most “budget friendly” raw diet (already prepared ready to feed – so that I don’t have to source and grind and mix ingredients myself). I MA currently feeding my 7.5 ur old, 22-lb spaniel mix dog Darwins. naturals, mostly duck, but exploring other options die to q new higher fat ratio formulation combined with an increase in price. what to do the best for my dog’s health and longevity, but keep the budget in mind. I felt the naturals, ( no antibiotics, no added chemicals and or hormones,organic better for her health, which I am ok with spending more for her (tho I can’t really afford to so for myself but dogs live such short lives not want to do the very best for her, but it has to be do-able, convenient enough that I will have time for it and not end up wasting ingredients that Ia don’t have time or energy to psirce ingredients, prepare prepare and, mix and prepare and have enough energy and nough time to prepare it myself and not end up wasting ingredients when. I do t have energy to learn how to and do the work of concocting thr daily ears foe her myself. (Darwins is so easy, just thaw, open and feed. is it worth the extra cost by being that much more healthy for her, or would it be just as healthy to switch to something else. ,( I notice that even Fresh Pet (available at grocery store) has received 4 stars). is premium or gain raw really that much vm open Should I stick with Darwins (given those considerations, even tho they at hey will n exchanging the ingredients formulation,raising the price and at same time adding more fat? should d I not be concerned with the fat increase I. the new formulation. like I said, just want my 7.5 ur old beloved dog to live as long and healthy q life as possible. any advice welcome. thanks for all replies , sorry for any typos. touchscreen learning curve)

[Naturella]

Hey, Korey! What other brands have you tried? Maybe a fish-based food will help, or, you could start adding raw, organic, unrefined, cold-pressed coconut oil or wild salmon oil to his food. Walmart or Costco have affordable coconut oil, but only get the unrefined stuff. It has made a ton of difference for my Bruno

I have also used Earthborn Holistic Coastal Catch with great success. Other affordable brands besides Earthborn Holisitic are Victor, Dr. Tim’s, NutriSource. Rotational feeding is also a plus both for the dog and for the wallet – this way you can take advantage of sales and add variety to Max’s diet. 🙂 If you’re into ordering online, you can use websites such as petflow.com , chewy.com , wag.com , petfooddirect.com . They often have great sales and deals.

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

[theBCnut]

Lucky you!! Dogs need calcium in their diet, that’s what they were talking about with the egg shells. You can either feed consumable raw bones(which are great for teeth) or eggshells with each meal. For bones, they need to be 10-15% of the animal portion of the meal. For eggshells, it’s 2 shells for every pound of meat.

They also need organs. About 10% of the animal portion of their food should be organs. Half of that should be liver and the other half should be other secreting organs. Heart coulnts as muscle, but kidney, spleen, etc. count as organs.

They need a regular source of omega 3s. The salmon should cover that as long as it isn’t too overcooked. Or add an Omega 3 supplement, 100mg of DHA and EPA combined per 10 lbs of body weight daily.

They need vit E and D, zinc and selenium, manganese, and a whole food supplement would be good.

If you want an easier way to do it, they sell premixes for boneless meats. Look for The Honest Kitchen Preference, See Spot Live Longer Dinner Mix, or Dr. Harvey’s Veg to Bowl fine ground.