Hello Spencer’s Mom,
If you believe that your dog has a food allergy (for instance chicken), it will not make a difference if that chicken is moist, dry, freeze dried, raw or raised in rolling meadows by nuns. It’s still chicken.
The fact that you have changed the protein multiple times muddles the waters as to what he is actually allergic to, if in fact, it is the food.
You need to place him on a food elimination trial with a novel protein and a novel carbohydrate. No treats, table food or trash can diving for the next 8 to 10 weeks. If you see an improvement, then add one additional food item and wait and see if there is an allergic reaction. If he’s rolling good, then add another food element. When you see that he reacts, remove the suspected food and see if he improves. If you really want to prove it, give him that last food and watch for a reaction and that will give you your answer. And I’ll bet it’s not grain that is the issue.
After going through the food elimination trial and there is no improvement, it’s obviously not the food and you should take him to the vet because NO ONE including a veterinarian can make a diagnosis of your pet without a physical examination and a history. In fact, you should take him now if he is that miserable.
Best of luck to you and your dog.
I’ve heard some dogs like chunks and sometimes lightly frozen so it has some texture to it. You can also start with some ground raw instead of whole meat and bone.
I finally figured out one huge cause of my dog’s allergies…RAWHIDE! If your dog is scratching like mad and you are giving them rawhide, please try stopping that and seeing if it helps. I finally figured out that is what caused her rash. She had not had a rawhide for a long time and I gave her one and after a day, she broke out in a rash again. I never once dreamed rawhide would cause a rash and itching and her hair to start falling out! Now I’m wondering if it’s beef or something used to treat the rawhide. I guess the next thing to try is a beef neck bone. She needs something to clean her teeth.
AH I feel so dumb the glandular is the one that was linked to me a while back in this conversation. I found it again and I guess I picked right LOL. Aye aye aye I’m such a basket case it’s not even real o_O
Hello all!
So I decided to create a separate topic here on the supplements forum specifically to ask for suggestions for a cheap human multi with no calcium that would be safe/acceptable for dogs. I’m working on getting my Louie on a 100% raw diet but HDM pointed out that the recipe I have will be deficient in certain vitamins (d and e) and minerals (manganese) so I’d like to supplement with a multi. Here’s what I plan on feeding:
Morning:
1/2 cup whole grind (rotating between protain sources)
1/2 cup XKALIBER green tripe grind (greentripe.com)
Alternating between Dr. Harvey’s and Daily Greens super food supplements
Swanson’s glandular supplement
Omega-3 source (salmon oil, whole sardines, etc.)
No-calcium multi
Possibly organic virgin coconut oil if it doesn’t throw everything off
Evenings:
RMB’s
I don’t know that this is adequate but, it’s what I’ve got so far š
We bought our pup some chicken leg quarters to make the big jump to raw. I was hoping he would take right to it, but unfortunately he is very resistant to the idea. I guess that’s what happens when you’ve been fed science diet since you were a puppy! I really really want him to get this, does anyone know of any ways to convince him to eat the raw meat? If I cut off small chunks and make it seem like a treat, he sometimes takes it and is very excited. Otherwise, he licks and might half heartedly gnaw on the leg quarter before losing interest and finding something else to do. So far, I’ve tried searing the outside and that got his attention for a few minutes but he again left it. What can I do??
The Primal website also shows in a video that u can thaw the portion by putting the bag in a big bowl filled with cool water for about 30 mins, so I might try that. It’ll be her first one so she’ll be a little hesitant at first. I hope she enjoys it. š I love the videos of Gertie eating her meaty bones, maybe I’ll post a pic. Thanks for your help.
I think this is what I’m going to feed for now…I may try making homemade raw for them again in the future…just need to figure out all the nutrients (I have the NRC numbers) and sometimes it just makes my head hurt. So, Hound Dog Mom…do I need to supplement at all do you think?
Sun: 2.5 cups Acana Pacifica 11 oz Pork
Mon: 2.5 cups Acana Pacifica 12 oz Pollock
Tues: 35 oz Turkey thigh, 1 apple, 3 oz green beans, the ‘balanced recipe’ also includes some lentils, sweet potatoes, rice or barley and green peas
Wed: Premade Raw
Thurs: 35 oz Turkey thigh and the veggie mix again
Fri: Big Dog Natural dehydrated – the tripe mixture
Sat: 2.5 cups Acana Pacifica 11 oz Beef
Also per week 9 eggs, 3 cans sardines, 3 oz canned salmon, 1.5 oz liver, 2.6 oz heart, 4.6 oz kidney and 400 iu of vit e.
You could add some of her regular food to it, but I really don’t think it would be necessary as long as she’s getting at least once balanced meal a day. The only think I would look out for is constipation from too much bone – if this does happen just give her a handful of hearts/gizzards or boneless chicken when you feed her a chicken back. It’s perfectly fine to feed partially frozen – I give my dogs partially frozen RMB’s all the time because I often forget to take them out of the freezer far enough in advance.
I do plan on feeding them intermittently, but don’t want it to be unbalanced. Should I add some of her food (canned and/or kibble) or HK Embark to make it a meal? I’ve had it thawing over night but its still partially frozen, can I feed it like that or should I feed it tomorrow?
I also need to watch the fat content…I think that’s why Summer didn’t do so well with her inflammation when I was feeding based off of body weight. So, I know pork tenderloin and sirloin, fish (which I will cook) and some cuts of beef are leaner…I will have to use those. No just buying whatever is the cheapest. I’ll have to check out those pre-mixes – I did try one of THK’s about a year ago…Summer didn’t like it at all. And the person I worked with to balance the diets is a stickler for getting the correct amount of minerals/vitamins…so in that person’s eyes any other type of protein will throw the whole diet off kilter. I really don’t agree with that whole way of thinking either. Thanks!!
It’s great that you’re considering adding some variety – eating only one protein source isn’t healthy. I don’t see why you couldn’t just rotate the protein in your “balanced” recipe? Ideally you should be feeding an even mix of poultry and red meat. If you’re worried about balance you could also purchase a pre-mix (i.e. See Spot Live Longer Dinner Mix, The Honest Kitchen’s Preference, Urban Wolf, etc.) and just add your meat of choice. I haven’t used OC Raw or Big Dog Naturals (I believe Sandy has?), I did try Darwin’s once. I wouldn’t use Darwin’s again because their customer service was horrible (the food was good though) – but many of the regulars here use it and really like it.
As long as she’s getting a balanced food at the other meal I think it would be fine to feed a larger RMB (such as a chicken back) as an entire meal a few days per week. Just see if it makes her constipated, chicken backs are basically all bone with some skin (very little meat) so the high bone content could make her constipated. I don’t typically give my dogs just an RMB as a meal because the calcium to phosphorus ratio would be too high. So, for example, if I were feeding a chicken back I’d give a chicken back + 1/4 lb. gizzards + 1 egg. But if you’re just feeding RMB’s intermittently making a meal of it shouldn’t pose an issue.
I agree with Sandy. Unfortunately, the ingredients in greenies are really really bad – giving your dog a greenie would be about the equivalent of giving your kid a candy bar. š
I give my dogs raw meaty bones daily (turkey necks, chicken backs, pork necks, etc.) and natural chews (bully sticks, pig ears, dried tracheas, etc.) for dental health. I also brush their teeth. Most “dental chews” on the market are full of unhealthy ingredients.
Thank you both! I have been trying the past couple days. The day before I started I gave him about 1/4 of a pound of lean ground beef just to get him excited and he gobbled it up so I was hopeful. I bought chicken leg quarters for him to start with and natures balance limited ingredient venison and sweet potato food just to supplement with while I was getting the hang of feeding raw. My problem now is, he won’t eat. He hasn’t eaten in a day and a half, I tried a chicken leg quarter and he licked it and half heartedly gnawed on it for a couple minutes, then left it alone. I tried keeping him interested but figured he just wasn’t hungry, because he seemed to like the taste by the way he was licking it. But he also hasn’t touched any of his kibble, though I think he likes it, because if I offer a piece as a treat he is very excited! I guess he is fasting himself because I left the kibble out all this time and it’s untouched. But it worries me. He’s a year old, is this normal? Should I try the raw chicken again? I was thinking of keeping ALL food away from him until he was actually hungry, then offering the leg quarter to him, but that’s hard to do when you live with your mother in law, and her dogs eat beneful, or when your toddler sneaks bites of pizza to your pup.
Basically, I need help with ideas on how to get him interested in the chicken leg! I really want to do this raw diet, but right now I’m feeling a little let down. I know it’s made to taste good to them, but I wish he would at least eat the natural balance over beneful or science diet!
I’m going to be feeding Mila her first RMB (chicken back) tomorrow. Exciting!! Question, how much of her food should I feed her, is the chicken back 20% of her daily intake? Thanks.
One of the regular posters on DFA had posted something about using pumpkin seed oil for their dogs as a supplement.
I’m trying to remember who uses it…..
I’ve been looking into using it….and found a company that makes both camelina and pumpkin seed oil.
I want to try them out…..if anyone has used these please let me know what brand/company you use.
Thanks….Dawn aka PugsonRaw
Hello, just need some opinions. I have 2 Saint Bernards – Summer and Norton (both 4 yrs old) I was doing homemade raw for both – for about 5 months. Summer didn’t do so good on it, Norton did ok, but not the best either. I decided to work with someone to balance out their diets which they have been doing great on for the last few months. My issue is that the main meat is Turkey and I want to change proteins. So, I was thinking do to my balanced diet 3-4 days of the week and then use a pre-made raw the other days to switch up the meats. I was thinking of using OC Raw Dog, Darwins and there is a dehydrated food Big Dog Naturals that sounds halfway decent…Thoughts anyone? Thanks!!
I don’t see manganese in this vitamin, so if I were to use it (assuming it’s safe and adequate), should I maybe continue to add the flax seed?
What multivitamin would you recommend, HDM? I found this one: http://www.swansonvitamins.com/natures-answer-multiple-vitamins-8-fl-oz-liquid and I like that it’s liquid and that it has no calcium. And I also found this glandular supplement: https://www.swansonvitamins.com/natural-sources-raw-multiple-60-caps
Is there anything store bought that you personally recommend for supplementation? Especially a multi?
I agree with Sandy – active dogs should have high fat/high protein foods that are calorie-dense. Just because he’s a “police K9” wouldn’t make his dietary needs significantly different than another other highly active dog. I have two extremely active bloodhounds and they eat a grain-free raw diet with protein levels ranging from 45% – 55% and fat levels ranging from 30% – 40%. We keep carbohydrate levels low. Inked Marie had a great suggestion with Dr. Tim’s (I’d recommend the Momentum formula which is 35/25). The NutriSource Super Performance mentioned by Sandy is another good option. Some other dry performance foods I’d recommend checking out: Native Performance Level 4 (35/25), Pro Pac High Performance (30/20), Artemis Pro Power (30/20), Victor Hi Pro Plus (30/20), Redpaw X-Series Perform 3 (32/20), RedPaw Poweredge 38K (38/25) and Abady Maintenance and Stress (32/29).
Hi everyone, I have a 2 1/2 year old, male Yorkie. We had the pleasure of becoming his pet parents a little over a year ago. We are having issues with food allergies. He gnaws/licks his feet, so much at times their raw, he’s constantly scratching. No sneezing. When we first got him he was eating Purina moist & meaty/beef & cheese. We wanted to switch him to a little healthier product and to a kibble thinking a kibble version was better for his teeth. Since then, he has had issues. Funny he wasn’t having allergy issues on the Purina. We’ve tried Nutro, Blue Buffalo, Natural Balance LID, Taste of The Wild High Prairie, even a prescription dog food from the Vet, (which made him vomit several times in just 2 weeks) and many more I can’t remember at the moment. Of those brands we’ve tried Chicken, Turkey, Duck, Salmon, Venison – which we have him on at the moment even Venison jerky treats. We’ve tried grain free, limited ingredient, etc. The Salmon made him vomit, may have been too rich for him. I’ve researched and researched, some posts I’ve read said California Natural was great for dogs with food allergies, but I’ve seen they have had several recalls lately. Little scared to try that one yet. We are at our wits end!! Hate to see our baby suffering. We are wondering now is it the meat protein (since we’ve tried so many different proteins) he’s having issues with or could it be the “dry” formula in it’s self. We left him with his Aunt for a week and she feed him Fresh Pet Select, CHICKEN. She said he didn’t scratch or gnaw any that week. So are we on to something, or just barking up the wrong tree (pun intended)??? Could there be some difference between the dry and wet formula that would cause food allergies??
If you’re wanting to get away from Purina, Nutrisource has a Performance 30/20 and Super Performance 32/21 formulas. Your active dog can use a diet high in protein and fat. Of course a good raw meaty bone (RMB) would be great for him too.
In addition to what sandy said, make sure the dog drinks enough & has ample opportunity to urinate. Feed raw, canned or dehydrated; if she needs to feed kibble, add canned & warm water to it.
If she just had crystals, she doesn’t necessarily need an Rx food. Crystals in general are not a problem, just undesired. Crystals become a problem when the pug gets a UTI. In a nutshell, the UTI promotes stone formation. If the pug has a healthy urinary tract, then UTI’s/stones should not be a problem. I would recommend visiting pugvillage.com. A community for pug lovers/owners. I’m over there too.
My pugs go see a holistic vet. They have some struvites but we feed a high protein kibble and raw food and also vinegar, d-mannose/cranberry and some vitamin c.
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+2114&aid=400
I should also add, both dogs, especially the younger dog, are sensitive to diets super high in fat. They seem to do fine on moderately high fat diets, but not extremely high fat diets.
I have two Jack Russell Terriers. One is 14+, the other is 8. Both have always had fairly sensitive digestive systems. They had been on evo red meat, then switched to Orijen red about 6 months ago. They did fairly well on this. In addition they always got some veggies, plain yogurt, and cooked organic chicken breast mixed in. About a month ago my older dog got sick with some kind of intestinal issue and has since been refusing his food. We have tried all kinds of wet food products, canned pumpkin, etc… some he likes for a day, then refuses the next day. We have been to the vet multiple times, and everything has come back normal. He consistently likes treats though, but I try not to allow him to have many. He also will sometimes eat wet food off a spoon or my finger, just not in a bowl. He started seeing an acupuncturist who gave us some samples of darwin’s natural selections beef and veggie. She recommended poaching it lightly first for him. I also read on the darwin website they recommend doing this for picky eaters or older dogs. He LOVED it, and has since eaten consistently for two days in a row without any vomiting or diarrhea episodes. This is huge for him. I tried mixing the darwin’s in with some of his kibble. He picks all the darwin’s out, and leaves the kibble, making it a little difficult to transition. Our other dog happily eats it all. My question, is poaching the food first recommended only during the transition phase? Or is this recommended for all older/picky dogs? Wouldn’t this take away all the benefits of a raw diet? I am only lightly poaching it, so like to think there is still some benefit. Also, because he is picking out and refusing the orijen (kibble), but eating the darwin’s, will this completely shock his system? I would appreciate any advice or tips anyone has about switching their sensitive, older, picky dog to a raw food diet. I love my older guy, and seeing him refuse food breaks my heart. Thanks in advance!
My dogs love the rabbit heads (and whole prey rabbits) from Hare Today. Brains and eyeballs are a great source of taurine and DHA. š
Rabbit heads are excellent to feed your dogs. There are nutrients in brains and eyeballs that aren’t found anywhere else in the body in an amount that could possibly help. Yes, they would be considered an RMB. An RMB is a bone that is consumable and has meat attached. That is pretty much any bone that isn’t large animal weight bearing. So a cow leg isn’t an RMB, but a cow rib can be for a large dog. But it isn’t for a small dog if the dog can’t consume it. Small goat legs are RMBs for 1 of my dogs, but not the other 2.
Absolutely! You can even feed the whole rabbit!
are raw rabbit heads considered a rmb and also are they good to feed to my dogs
Hi glavoie –
You can give up to 1/2 tsp. per 10 lbs. of coconut oil – I’ll give my girls (around 70 lbs.) up to a tablespoon a day. I’d recommend starting with 1/4 tsp. per 10 lbs. and working up.
Probiotics generally come in powder filled capsules or powder. If you get capsules just open the capsule and mix it into the food. If you’re using a supplement designed for pets there will be dosing instructions on the container. If using a human supplement go by the general guideline of 1/4 the recommended human dose for dogs up to 25 lbs.; 1/2 the recommended human dosage for dogs 25 – 50 lbs.; 3/4 the recommended human dosage for dogs 75 – 100 lbs.; recommended human dosage for dogs over 100 lbs. You don’t have to stress too much about getting the dosage exact as probiotics won’t be harmful if you accidentally give too much. I don’t give my dogs supplemental probiotics – they get 1/4 C. organic whole milk kefir daily and raw green tripe three days per week, both are naturally rich in probiotics.
Hank and Dewey had their first chicken feet the other day. It was fun to watch them crunch them up. It was especially funny to see the toes dangling out of Dewey’s mouth….kind of creepy. They thoroughly enjoyed them tho…and I look forward to the next farmers market where I can get them some more.
My DH says he has to go with me now when I go shopping so he can make sure that someone buys food for us, too. I am always coming home with meat or sardines, or something…and it is always for the dogs. ( I may need an intervention)
Hi Ceara,
I think Patty answered your questions better than I could have. I didn’t have too much of a problem with my Bailey choking. Even when she got down to a piece the size that I thought was too big for her to swallow, and she tried to swallow it, she made sure to chew it a few more times and then swallowed it. I don’t think you have to worry too much about your dog choking. The bones in chicken crunch right up and once they get the hang of using their teeth the way they were meant to, they’ll have no problems. Oh, and, like Patty said, when I started, I did remove the skin from the chicken. Even now, sometimes I’ll take most of the skin off.
They say to fast for one meal before starting on raw. I feed Bailey twice a day, so, when I started, I fed her dinner one day, skipped breakfast the next morning and then started her on raw for dinner. As you may have read early on I had a few concerns, but I feel silly about all the concerns I had. Your dog’s gut just has to get used to eating & digesting food that it was meant to have. You may see pieces of bone in his poop some, that’s normal, and he may even throw up some. Don’t give up, just hang in there. You’ll be doing the very best for your dog feed him a species appropriate diet and he’ll thank you for it! š
Hi Ceara
Some dogs do need all the tricks to start on raw and some just get it. If your dog is a scarfer then you may have to hold on to the chunk of food or attach it to something until he gets the hand of it. How big was yous dog? Sometimes giving them pieces that are too big to eat does the trick. Mine started well with chicken and turket necks. They are a big chunk of food but the bones are smaller. Usually when starting raw they don’t suggest starting with high fat meats because the sudden increase in fats alone can cause stomach upset. In fact to start with they even take the skin off of turkey and chicken.
Cyndi, thank you so much for this post. You asked a lot of the same questions I needed answered, and I was freaking out over the idea of feeding raw being so challenging. But it seems like you have gotten the hang of it pretty well! So I hope you don’t mind if I add in a few questions.
My pup Troy is a pretty good sized guy, 52 pounds. He just gobbles down his kibble so I’m worried about starting him off on chicken legs/wings/etc. I don’t want him to choke on the bones. How did you prevent that from happening when you first started with your pup? Or should I just start with bigger pieces of rmb?
Also, last night I was making some pork ribs so I thought I would let him try a bit raw to see how he would do. The silly dog scoffed at it, wanted nothing to do with it! I kept trying and he refused to eat it. Did this happen with you? It makes me feel like raw feeding will be an even bigger challenge than I thought. I finally got him to eat it after I lightly cooked it (no cooked bones, of course), but that’s not exactly raw haha! Do I just have to fast him and introduce raw food when he’s hungry? I’m so unsure about everything!
Hi Ceara. You are in the right place, for starters. I have been feeding my dog raw for a little over two months now. I did a TON of research online and eventually, thank god, found this site. This forum section and the wonderful people on here, have been a HUGE help. Here is a link to the thread I started before I began feeding raw, while I was still in the research/question stage:
/forums/topic/help-with-starting-my-dog-on-a-raw-diet/
It WAS overwhelming, I do know that. Read thru that thread and maybe that will help. I asked alot of questions, so maybe some of that will help you…
I can’t help on the canned food topic, I’m not that knowledgeable, but I guess if you just go to the review section and look under some of the 4 and 5 star wet foods, that would be a good place to start. Also Kudos to you for not listening to your boyfriend about Beneful! That wouldn’t have been any better than the Science Diet.
Good Luck! š
Hi all, my name is Ceara and I’m new to the forum.
We just adopted a beautiful year old husky/labrador mix from ACS, poor thing was going to be put to sleep so we just had to pick him up and bring him home. He is wonderful with our 18 month old son, and I imagine he’s going to be very active once he heals from his surgery, he was neutered 5 days ago.
I found out he was being fed science diet his whole life at the shelter! Yuck! And when we brought him home, my boyfriend thought beneful was a better option because it had vegetables on the bag, and pretty sure that food is even worse! What I’m getting at is, this little guy is family now and I want him to be as healthy and happy as possible here.
I want him to eat completely raw if possible, but we are on a bit of a budget so I may just do mostly raw and then a good quality canned and dry food to make sure he is eating enough. I have no idea where to start, and my google search came up with mostly useless information. What kind of foods would I feed him, how would I start him on a raw diet? He’s 52 lbs so about how much should he eat? Any information you have for me would help a lot!
Where would I get the raw trachea?
Thanks!
Thank you, HDM!
All was very helpful – I really appreciate your feedback on the dog foods, and also, the calculations for figuring the grams per 1000Kcal. I couldn’t get my head around it, but now I’m back, thanks to your detailed lesson. : ). I’ll keep reading. So many very interesting and helpful posts. I’m sure I’ll be back with other questions, too, particularly regarding the raw food diet. I was feeding my 4 big dogs a raw diet before Charlotte was bred. Also giving them a daily vitamin supplement tablet (which was most likely not the best form of those vitamins and minerals…and maybe I didn’t even need it) I have a lot to learn about it, but I’m thinking that what they were getting was WAY better than the processed foods available. I stopped at the time of pregnancy due to lack of confidence for what gestating pups should get, as well as the lack of time to prepare it. My dogs ate as well as we did at that time. I had fun shopping for bargains – only buying proteins I could find for less than $1/lb. I was surprised at how often those were available so I could stock up : ). But that is another topic and another forum… so finding the best kibble I can is very important to me for my guy and gals.
Thanks, again-
DE won’t help in this case. With an allergy to storage mites, it doesn’t matter whether the mites are dead or alive, just like if you’re allergic to chicken.
You are best off ordering a food direct from the company, then when you get it divide it into containers and put it in the freezer. Grain free will have substantially less mites, but if it is made somewhere where they also make grain inclusive foods, it’s no kind of guarantee. Storage mites can crawl from pallet to pallet and they can be on the equipment. Look for brands that are in heavy plastic or foil bags. Don’t overlook treats, they are a huge source of storage mites.
I agree with Patty, organs can be damaged if the dog gets too close to starvation so it’s very important to get the dog to the vet.
If you find out the dog is okay…
A good recipe for formula:
-1 1/4 C. Full Fat Goat’s Milk
-1 Raw Egg Yolk
-1 C. Full Fat Plan Yogurt
-1/2 tsp. Corn Syrup
You could also look into a high calorie nutrition paste sold for debilitated animals.
If you can get the pup onto dog food I’d look into something like Abady granular – VERY high calorie.
Good luck!
If you have raw skin alcohol isn’t good, but it is drying if moisture is the bigger issue. Toxed would definitely say to not use the alcohol. And I have used it without alcohol, just vinegar, and had OK results, but my dog had prick ears and moisture was not much of an issue. So you kind of have to decide whether it is worth it. Does the skin look inflamed or normal? If the skin isn’t red then you have a very mild early caught problem or another problem all together. The cleaner you have is fine. What I’m suggesting is after you clean the ear you make sure it is dried out and reacidified, so that nothing re establishes itself in there.
Hi EHubbman –
Trachea is great. I gave raw tracheas to Mabel all the time when she was little – great for teething.
http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/hagelult/368-mabel.jpg
I have just come into possession of a great dane puppy that is approximately 10 weeks old and has been starved almost to death. I have been giving it baby food and pedialight and it has begun to eat a little wet and dry pet food. It also ate some cooked chicken. I need to know now..what I need to feed this puppy to start getting it healthy. I am going to research it on my own but I have the puppy now and need advice now. It is sleeping a lot too.. is that normal. We are in a very remote area and will be getting it to the vet as soon as we can. It seems to be healthy.. hair and skin look good. Eyes look good and is eliminating ..although runny. I assume that is from being fed now. It is not diarrhea.. as it is controlled on the puppies part. Goes when it needs to not all the time.. I think it was taken away from mom too soon and someone threw it outside in a back yard with dry food and was not watching to see if it was eating..which it must not have been. It was brought to me as I have brought animals back from the brink many times…but never one so young and this breed. Please.. just give me specific info on what to feed it now.. brands of food, or raw… liver… milk.. evap milk, or goats milk.. thank you..
Ringworm doesn’t usually look raw, red, or irritated, but it is usually a bit scaly looking and it usually gets bigger with the hair growing back on the inside of the circle. I don’t know if this is an allergy but it sounds too localized to me, so I don’t think so. Does it get weepy like it has drops of serum oozing out of it? Does it get hot? Does it have pustules? Does your local feed store sell Vetericyn?
Hi Marie
What does the gunk look like and what does it smell like? If you think it might be yeast, then the humidity and dampness definitely affects it. The type of yeast that is usually found in ears is not known to be sugar fed like systemic yeast, so not feeding sugars will not necessarily knock it out completely. It helps when you have a dog that is sensitive to grains, because the grain sensitivity causes skin problems, which causes the skin to over produce oil, which feeds this particular yeast. This yeast likes warm moist non acidic environments all of which probably describe Boones ears.
What I would do is make some swimmers ear solution, 1 part vinegar and 1 part rubbing alcohol, and after you clean his ears, fill the ear canal half way with that, insert a cotton ball, gently massage the base of the ear, use the cotton ball to absorb any extra solution then wipe down the rest of the inner flap of the ear, make sure you get inside that little fold of skin along the back edge of the earflap. Repeat this every time you clean his ears, while he is showing signs. Then do it twice weekly and after every swim or bath for another month. Then do it weekly and after swims or baths for another month. Then whenever you do anything that gets his ears wet, bathing, swimming.
The swimmers ear solution acidifies and dries which makes it a hostile environment for a lot of the bacteria that like to grow in ears too. If there is any raw or broken skin in the ear, it stings like the dickens.
I hope this helps.
Hey EHubbman –
Glucosamine and chondroitin are fine for puppies. A dog’s natural diet (raw) would be very rich in glucosamine and chondroitin as cartilage and bones contain high levels. Dogs foods, even those with added glucosamine and chondroitin, don’t contain enough to say so – so I wouldn’t worry about it’s presence in a kibbled dog food.
I have not been able to find any evidence suggesting that supplementing a large breed puppy’s diet with glucosamine can be harmful, however I don’t believe it to be necessary either. My two get lots of RMB’s so I know their diet is rich in glucosamine and chondroitin – I probably won’t add any supplements until they’re seniors. I do, however, typically recommend that large and giant breed dogs eating processed foods receive supplemental glucosamine and chondroitin (or whole foods providing these nutrients) starting between 1 and 2 years of age (when they’re young it can be a low dose, just for maintenance).
This is an excerpt from an article about large and giant breed puppy nutrition written by integrative veterinarian Dr. Susan Wynn:
“There are no studies so far that indicate whether it is effective or harmful to supplement with glucosamine to large breed puppies because of their risk of DOD. In general, I wait until I recognize a risk factor in a dog.”
I’ve been wanting to start my Louie on a raw diet for awhile, he has been on kibble and his stools have always been soft and I just didn’t feel like he was getting the best nutrition possible. I’ve been reading so much on feeding raw and all the benefits and I’m so excited to start it with him. I originally was going to feed commercial frozen raw, I bought a bag of the Primal Venison nuggets, but with his size (58.5lbs) he would go through 3 bags a week of that stuff ($90/week). So I started researching the Raw Prey Model and that seemed more feasible. Ive just started shopping around for everything, but I had a couple of questions I was hoping to run by you guys. I think I may have spent a little too much time creeping on here already, I feel like I already know everyone and their dogs haha. Anyway, I was wondering first how long you freeze your meats when you buy them in the store. I read that for the pork it has to be for at least 2 weeks but what about other meats? Also, in terms of adding the vitamins and supplements is that a necessity or just depends on what you like to feed? Im thinking of including some vegetables to his diet, do they have to be cooked first and pureed? or are raw vegetables allowed. Finally, the addition of vitamins/minerals that some people include in their diets are those something that I should definitely be including because of this type of diet or its just more a personal preference type of thing. Thanks in advance for any answers.
2 months, 1 week ago
