[enryh]

Where I live the only option of Grain Free is Farmina N&D.

I read somewhere that Grain Free foods have high level of fats and proteins.

As a food for a senior dog should have low level of proteins and high level of fibers, the indicated food of Farmina is not Grain Free… What’s the point?

Is there any Grain Free with low level of proteins and high level of fibers indicated for seniors dogs or dogs with some disease?

I’m writing from Brazil.
Thanks a lot
Henry

P.S. Where do I suggest a food to be reviewed? Here we have the Biofresh food (http://ww2.hercosulalimentos.com.br/biofresh/pt/conceito) and I’d like to know what specialists think about it.

[Shasta220]

It definitely sounds like she’s on the pudgy side 😉 Maybe looking up pictures/info on Rat Terriers, so you can get a good idea on what she should look like. Be sure to keep up the good work on getting her active…another way that might help stimulate her might be to not put her food in a bowl. Instead, put it in brain-teasing toys or have her do tricks to earn it. 🙂

[boobear27]

I checked to feel her ribs and I can feel them but not so much. From the top view she kinda has some extra meat around the hip area like doggy love handles and from the side view she has a curve, but her tummy hangs a little.She’s kinda barrel shaped. Rat terriers are strong muscular shaped dogs and they suppose to be very active, These dogs are used for hunting as well.

[Shasta220]

Ah yes, those puppy eyes are difficult to resist! (I take advantage of them w my Kelpie/Aussie. I pour the kibble into his bowl, then he has to sit down and look at me w that adorable face…then I give him the okay, and he is allowed to eat, LOL!) Just keep reminding yourself that she’ll be happier in the long run 😉 I’m not sure what her “healthy” weight would be. If you can easily feel her ribs, see her tummy tuck up from the side-view, and see a fairly slim waist right above the hips (top view), then the weight is perfect. 🙂 also remember, when her weight is down where you want it – I don’t advise feeding more. Keep feeding the same minimal amount to help keep those pudgies away!

[boobear27]

Thanks! @ Shasta220..I just gave her dinner and I reduced the amount I usually give her. When I placed her bowl down she gave me that look like hey what gives! Haha I must resist those cute puppy eyes she gives me to trick me into giving her more food. She’s adorable, but her health is more important to me:) Right now she’s sitting at 23 lbs not too overweight so I’m trying to get her to shed at least 3 or 4 pounds at least.

[Shasta220]

Wellness is a good brand…I wouldn’t really worry much about looking for a food intended just for seniors, unless she is really needing some extra joint support/etc. It doesn’t really sound like she is.

First off, please don’t go by what the food bag feeding guidelines say…they are ALWAYS way too much! Not a single one of my dogs has EVER eaten the amount the bag requires… Usually my dogs are completely fine w eating about HALF of what the bag says, no lie. (One of our older dogs started gaining a little when she was eating half of what the bag said…we cut back even a little more, and her energy/weight is back to 100% normal.) I’d definitely start reducing the amount of food… It’s still good to do 2 meals though. Maybe start with a normal breakfast, then cutting her dinner in half. After a week or two, try cutting both breakfast and dinner in half, then see how her weight is doing.
Also be sure to not hand out too many treats, or you’re just encouraging the weight to stay on. My dogs get treats all the time, but I just break off teeny tiny pieces – they can’t tell the difference between a big treat or a little one, it’s still something that tastes good.

Best wishes! Hopefully you can get her weight down at least a little 🙂 I’ve never really had to deal w overweight dogs yet, as I always make sure to simply prevent it from happening. I’m sure an owner as great as you will have no problem though ;D

[Shasta220]

I totally feel you. Our lab gets almost the same problem. Her condition is called Otitis (basically inflammation/infections caused by environment and/or food). It was always manageable…we had to wash her ears weekly, and just deal with her horrible odor. I always figured it was due to her cheap-quality food (poor girl, she had Dog Chow, Pedigree, and even store-brand foods!)… So I finally saved up and bought a bag of NutriSource senior, hoping it’d help. What did it do? It made EVERYTHING worse! She would gnaw at herself so much…about 50% of her skin would be raw bald spots that she chewed at. I tried hot-spot spray, but obviously it didn’t work at all.

I don’t remember what exactly the vet ended up giving us… A couple different pills, some ear treatment, and then a shampoo. Now Cassy is a brand new dog, and she’s off of NutriSource for GOOD (I was so disappointed to have such a high-rated food react so poorly with her. I honestly have no idea what the ingredients in it were that made her irritated…especially considering she did /better/ on the cheap stuff!).

Anyway…that’s my story of a similar pooch… I’d definitely agree w the others to talk to your vet about a blood test to see if it’s an internal problem. Try to list ingredients of all her foods…maybe conduct an experiment: try to get her off /all/ grains and chicken, then if she improves, try to bring either chicken or some grains back into her diet. It might help you see if she reacts to specific ingredients.

Once you’ve found the problem and gotten proper treatment for it, I’d advise some skin-and-coat supplements (if you’re on a budget, you can buy bags of flax and grind it. Excellent source of Omegas) to help out her fur when it tries coming back in.

I’m really sorry your poor pooch has to go through this. It’s really no fun for ANYONE :/

[boobear27]

Thank you for the suggestions:) I don’t think she’s having any joint/Arthritis problems.She doesn’t seem to be in any pain and she runs, jumps, and moves around just like a normal healthy dog. I think maybe it’s the extra weight that causing her couch potato behavior. Maybe she’s eating more calories than she’s burning off. I thought now that she’s getting older maybe the food that I feed her might be too much for her. She also had problems with her anal sacs so we make sure we express them once or twice a month. Our vet suggested that she might need more fiber in her diet and to try sprinkling some metamucil on her food.

[InkedMarie]

I have read that grainfree is best for dogs with arthritis, which your senior aged dog probably has. (Grains are inflammatory). That being said, Wellness Core reduced fat is a good, grainfree food that I used for an obese dog we adopted.

Good luck!

[Mom2Cavs]

If your Rat Terrier is not all that active, i.e. couch potato like my Cavs, then I would definitely cut back on the food. Wellness is a brand I like a lot, myself. I don’t feed their kibble right now (due to its size and chicken in most), but I use their canned food almost everyday and also use their treats. Anyway, I have 3 small dogs. Two Cavaliers and one Mixed Breed. Lucy, my Mixed Breed, has always been 24-25 lbs., no deviation in all of her 12.5 years. She gets 1/3 c. of kibble in the a.m. and 1/3 c. in the p.m. She is not active….chases squirrels at times lol, but that’s about it. She does get about 1-2 tblsp. canned food added to the kibble at each meal. I use to give more treats than I do now, but recently have been giving either a Wellness Lamb grain free biscuit or Wellness Pure Reward treat in the morning and at night before bed. If they get anything else during the day it’s just their kibble (which they think is a treat lol)…maybe 3-4 pieces of it. So, long story short hahahaha……I would definitely cut down on your dog’s food. Btw, my Cavs weigh 17 lbs. and 19 lbs. and they each get 1/4 c. kibble a.m. and 1/4 c. p.m. with 1-2 tblsps. canned added. They are definitely couch potatoes, except when they’re doing their Therapy Dog work.

I also wanted to add that my dogs are 6 yrs., 8 yrs., 12 yrs. and have never eaten a senior food. They usually get an all-life-stage food. I am using Fromm 4Star Salmon a la Veg and Mulligan Stew right now.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 3 months ago by Mom2Cavs.

[Scruffy312052]

Hello Tobacco haters of America. My guess is that I am forty to fifty years your senior. I understand your skepticism. I’ve walked paths you have yet to encounter. Do the math. ½ of an ounce of plug tobacco split between 30 servings. The odds of my pack craving a quality “Cuban” after their feeding is rather slim.

Secondly, are you willing to do some research? Round worms, hook worms, flat worms and tape worms DO NOT fare well when Nicotine is introduced into their hosts’ diet. As a matter of fact, they die while the pet fare’s well.

I did not suggest to anyone to entertain my remedy without FIRST consulting their Vet. Bark elsewhere my friends: you’ve treed no coon here.

Scruffy.

[theBCnut]

My almost 12 year old JRT is eating All Life Stages food and I wouldn’t switch to senior food ever. I’m not saying Wellness is this way, because I think they are one of the better senior foods, but most senior foods cut back on protein just when dogs start not absorbing all the protein from their food so may actually need more high quality protein in their diet than they did when they were younger.

If I were you, I would cut her food back a bit more and work at making her more active. Carrying the extra weight is probably part of why she doesn’t feel like doing much. Her joints are probably starting to hurt. Maybe use some of her food to start doing some trick training or something else that would get her moving.

[boobear27]

When is it time to switch a dog to senior food? I’m having a weight problem with my dog. My Rat Terrier Pepper is about 9 years old and about 23 lbs. She’s starting to show her age now with the gray muzzle like she just ate a dozen powdered donuts:) She’s less active nowadays all she wants to do is relax on her bed or the couch, we tried to get her to run and play and she would for a little while then lose interest and go back to her bed,we also take her for walks and to the dog park to get some exercise. I’m guessing her metabolism and energy has slowed down as she’s getting older. She had lump removal surgery a couple months ago which turned out to be non cancerous, After the surgery the vet told us that Pepper is pretty healthy but she could afford to lose a few pounds which we already knew of course. We feed Pepper Wellness supermix dry food for small breed adults and gave her the feeding requirement it said on the bag which was 1.5 a day and we split it into two meals, and our vet suggested we feed her less than what the requirement says. I tried out the dog food calculator and it said to feed about one cup a day so we’ve been giving her that requirement for a couple of months and she still hasn’t lost any weight. I don’t know whether to feed her even less than what I’m giving now or switch to senior dog food. She does drink alot of water which is a good thing.

[theBCnut]

Well Joe
My story is that I was a vet tech. I worked for 14 years. I quit when I had my first child so I could raise my children myself. Sounds terribly sinister, doesn’t it.

You used Consumer Affairs website as proof that another food should not be fed, Joe. So why is it good enough proof when it backs up your claims, but not when it disagrees with you? Personally, I haven’t even read the site, I don’t think it constitutes proof of anything, but apparently you do. Then there are all the people that have come here over the past few months, that have complained about BB products. Finally, as I said, I worked for vets for 14 years, so as you may imagine, I have made friends of the vets I worked for, and the only food they have ever warned me away from was BB, because they had clients pets that developed vomitting and diarrhea on the food to the point that they were severely dehydrated.

And no, your not seeing a BB commercial does absolutely nothing to shoot down my statement about their advertising.

BTW, I’m sorry you can’t do anything about your gas, but most of us can, if we look for solutions.

So why did you feel a need to try to attack me, Joe? Does everybody have to like your food? If we aren’t all entitled to an opinion then I’m sorry, but you aren’t either. Grow up.

[InkedMarie]

GRamoin: it’s fine to switch, I would just go very slowly, over a week. I would also use a probiotic. As far as foods, it’s been said that grains aggravate joints so I’d suggest a grainfree food. Some easier on the wallet ones are dr Tim’s, Earthborn, hi Tek…..more expensive are Acana, Orijen, Natures Variety Instinct.

Good luck!

[Alisonb]

I have three senior cats and will be adopting a rescue dog shortly. I am wondering if anyone has suggestions on how to keep the dog away from the cat food and the cats away from the dog food. The cat food is in a continuous feeder as they eat through out the day. I cannot put a gate up as the cats cant jump like they used to. I will not be home during the day to stop the dog from trying to eat the cat food. If anyone has suggestions I am open to anything. I would prefer not to purchase the magnetic device gate.

[joet]

TO *NATA**FROM JOET

1ST-just make the food is at least a 4 star food–from this site–
2-make sure it does not come from the west coast–
im sure **PATTY VAUGHN**can tell you why,she seems to be an expert on everything here-EXCEPT 1 THING PATTY–

her comments on blue buffalo–
you would think she works for a rival company or worked for them and got FIRED.
i live in new york—so you know patty–i have never seen a blue commercial–ever—so there goes your advertizing thing–

2-as far as *gas*–dogs get gas from many many things-cant be helped –as we also do–
3-but–vomit-diar—–give us the names of all the people you personally know that feed blue and have had this problem—-you cant -can you—

teddybear has been on blue for 7 years now—–yellow lab-pure bread—perfect health—-
my drummers little dog–5 years–no problem–
my sister-in-laws lab–7 years—no problem—–

so PATTY VAUGHN—
WHATS YOUR STORY—IM SURE WE ALL WOULD LIKE TO KNOW–SIGNED**JOE~T**

[GRamoin]

I am trying to learn more about proper dog foods for my just turned 11 year old female yellow lab. She is about 70 lbs in really good shape and only has some joint stiffness occasionally showing. I have fed her IAM’s dry dog food forever.

2 Questions for someone to please assist if possible :
– Is it beneficial or OK to change now after using IAM’s so long ?

– What would be a great food recommendation if changing now is ok, & what is rotation strategy for and what would the rotation products recommendation be ?

Thanks so much for any input !!

[Shasta220]

I found Paramount at our liquidation store as well (it was 5$ for only 4lb though). It was the grain free variety… The grain-full stuff is garbage. Even the GF isn’t the greatest quality, but hey! Impossible to beat the price! I doubt I’ll get it anytime soon again (mainly b/c the store probably doesn’t have it anymore. It also was starting to make my senior lab smell bad again. She’s suffered with skin problems and awful odor her whole life).

I emailed this website about doing a review on it. (I’m super curious too what rating they’ll give it). They said it’s on their to-do list, so who knows how long it’ll be until they can fit in th review for it…

[theBCnut]

Have you tried probiotics? Canned pure pumpkin? I have seen this in a few older dogs, but I don’t know why other than age has affected their ability to digest and absorb their food. I knew someone who had good luck with a very small dose of Immodium every day, but I wouldn’t try it without talking to the vet first about what to watch out for.

[Shasta220]

Thanks for the help, guys! We have one super picky eater (like I say, the cats have always been on super cheap food)… He only eats Cat Chow so far, but it’s pretty much garbage. So far, a really affordable dry food (that’s also quality) is Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover’s Soul. I also wonder if I could find Diamond Naturals for cats (some people HATE the dog food for it, others love it. All of my dogs are on it and they’re doing great).

I’m planning on finding some quality canned food for my older kitty (I really want to try Evo 95% chicken and turkey). I’m not sure if the other one would eat it, he’s refused other organic canned foods, haha. I’m not worried about him though, because he nibbles on some of our cat’s raw food (just to clarify. We have 3. Maddy is a senior…she just eats the dry and maybe canned. Panda ONLY eats dry…then Millie is too sophisticated for cat food, she eats only raw…)

[heiditron]

Hello, there! I have an old man with what seems to be a very picky digestive system. Woody is a 15 1/2 year old shepherd mix (Belgian/German/who knows) who has, in the last four months, developed some crazy sensitivities. Up until his problems started showing up, he was on TOTW salmon and sweet potato dry food, and had been doing great with it for years (I could never rotate proteins because he can’t do any kind of bird, egg, or red meat kibble/canned food.)

Very suddenly, that changed, and now after a huge bout of trial and error, I’ve found that he can only do canned salmon and sweet potato food (dry with what appears to be the exact same list of ingredients gives him soft/runny poo). And even on the canned, he can only form a solid stool if he gets a sprinkle of tylan over it. He also farts a great deal more than he ever used to, and I hear his stomach rumble constantly. And, man, that canned food is not cheap. I try any other canned protein and the tylan doesn’t even work, so I figure fish is still prettymuch the only thing he can eat.

Hs anybody been through something similar? If so, what is this?! His bloodwork is great, his kidneys are great, liver, fecal, x rays, urine, you name it all look great. I tried adding enzyms to his food and even THAT gave him mushy stool. My goal here would be to feed him something without the aid of an antibiotic, but I seem to be running out of options.

Thanks!
Heidi

[OlRedHair]

Thank you so much, Patty!

[theBCnut]

I don’t think that it will prove to be too rich, if she has not had digestive problems in the past. Just switch slowly so you don’t shock her system. I don’t use that particular Earthborn, because I have a dog with a chicken intolerance/hypersensitivity, but I really like Earthborn and use Great Plains Feast regularly and I have a bag of Coastal Catch to try soon.

[OlRedHair]

I did research on the site, and like the sound of Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural. Do you think it would be an appropriate food for an 11 1/2 year old senior Golden? Or is it too rich? It is 38% protein and 5 star. Also the company has never had a recall.
Thanks so much!

We just saw the Vet. He is concerned and ordered blood and an ultrasound. He did not feel any masses and her physical exam was normal.

[OlRedHair]

Thanks so much, Patty!

[theBCnut]

Slowly work up to 1 tablespoon, 2 tablespoons at absolute most. They don’t have issues so much with fats and carbs, so that might explain the obesity you see, not to mention that neutered older dogs also may have a slower metabolism. I think most people tend to love their dogs to death by overfeeding.

[OlRedHair]

Thank you so much, Patty. I didn’t realize that about seniors having difficulty digesting food. I see so many obese older dogs. But Molly is still very active. I will definitely research some better quality foods for her.

It’s funny, I had just bought her some coconut oil. How much should I give her per day? Just now I gave her a heaping teaspoon, and she loved it.

[theBCnut]

Seniors can start to have issues digesting food and may actually need more food to get the same number of calories. If she checks out OK, you can start adding some coconut oil for calories. She may need to be moved to a better quality of food, because it is mainly protein absorption that suffers and then they need to be getting high quality proteins.

[OlRedHair]

I have an 11 1/2 year old Golden Retriever. She is active and has a great appetite. But she is slowly losing weight on the same amount of food she has been fed for years. Also her coat is looking dull.

Do you address any of these issues? Or could you give me some suggestions? All her lab work and exam were fine at the Vet two months ago. But that was before these symptoms. I am taking her in to be checked tomorrow.

My Vet is an excellent surgeon, but does not know much about nutrition. So I thought I would ask the source I trust the most.

Thank you so much!

Nora

[RescueDaneMom]

nata78sha-

I was looking up other bargain high quality foods for another thread and have more options for you. Annamaet Ultra (32% protein) is $70 for a 40lb bag ($1.75/pound). Dr. Tim’s Pursuit (30% protein) is $66 for a 44lb bag ($1.50/lb).

[RescueDaneMom]

To use your example, the brand overall has a 4 star rating meaning the varieties listed rate 4 stars unless otherwise noted. Some varieties can rate higher or lower than others depending on their ingredients. The ones in the list without a rating next to them are 4 stars, the others rate as noted next to their name in the list. I hope that helps you make sense of things.

[Tulmaster]

Hi, new here and hope I reached an appropriate page for comment. First I am searching for the best dry food to give Odin, my 7 yr old Lab/Rot. I have been feeding him Blue Buffalo for years. So to cut to the chase, I was reviewing the Stars, 5 and 4 and noticed when I got to some, and I will use BB as an example, it said in the 4 star category, there were 17 different food that were offered. Of those on the list there were 4 or 5 that did not display a stars rating, and the rest were rated from as low as 2 and as high as 4.5. I tried to find a rating method explanation, but could not so, what do they mean? Did some not meet the 4 star rating and if so why? If they are all 4 star, then why the difference. If they are not 4 star then why are they listed under the 4 star link? All to confusing for me.

[RescueDaneMom]

crazy mom-

The general consensus is that puppies can start regulating calcium uptake at 10 months. Your Danes are both over 10 months so you don’t have to feed one of the foods on HDM’s list. The most important thing is that it is “All Life Stages”. Most of the “large breed,” “giant breed,” “senior” labels are just marketing and there is no real benefit to feeding those foods over a regular ALS food.

Victor is a good food. Most of their varieties are 4 and 5 stars. /dog-food-reviews/victor-dog-food/
The Victor Select Professional formula looks good, it’s rated 4 stars. The Hi Pro Plus is 5 stars. You would be ok feeding any of their varieties but I’d stay away from the Multi-Pro Maintenance and the Beef Meal and Brown Rice, both are 3.5 stars.

If you can, it is better to rotate different brands of foods rather than different formulas within the same brand. Any deficiencies or abundances in certain vitamins or minerals will likely be present in all formulas within a brand. If you can rotate different brands, you are more likely to cover all your bases because different brands have different vitamin/mineral profiles. Do you know what other brands your feed store carries? I could help you sort out some of the better ones to choose from if you like.

Edit- regarding transitioning, you may have to do it slowly at first. The more you change the food the easier transition will become. I changed foods after every bag and my Dane could switch cold turkey from bag to bag after awhile. That’s something you’ll need to watch your dogs for. If their stools start becoming loose then you might be transitioning too fast and need to slow it back down.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by RescueDaneMom.

[theBCnut]

Victor is an excellent idea! There are a couple others that I wish I could bring to mind. But that leaves plenty of room for others to comment.

[RescueDaneMom]

Nutrisource is a good food. I think Victor would be good too. It is rated 4 or 5 starts and is reasonably priced. It can be found at some feed stores or online at sites like Petflow.com or Chewy.com. I would feed the Victor Select Hi Pro Plus (30% Protein). You can get it on Amazon- $55 for 40 pounds: http://www.amazon.com/Victor-Dog-Food-Formula-40-Pound/dp/B00CJLP4EA
I also like all of their grain-free formulas and would recommend any of them.

[nata78sha]

I also added glucosamine to his diet. The only health issue he has is minor arthritis. Thank you for your response. I’ll look into that

[theBCnut]

BB has great advertising, that is not the same thing as being a great food. There have been a lot of people having vomitting and diarrhea issues with BB lately.

I think you are right about the protein versus carbs thing. Seniors have less ability to absorb the protein in their diet and can need as much as 50% more, not less. There are specific medical problems that may need the protein reduced, but your vet would be talking to you about diets specific to kidney or liver disease if that was a factor.

You may just need a good ALS food with a joint supplement added. No food has enough joint supplementation to actually have a therapeutic dose.

Maybe look at NutriSource.

[nata78sha]

Hello. I am new here. I have a St Bernard mix (98 pounds) that will be 9 years old in the fall. I also have a 5 year old miniature schnauzer. Our dogs have been on the grain free natures domain from Costco for years (at the advice of our old vet). The vet here wants my Saint on senior food. He suggested canned food, cooked human food (and buy vitamins if I cook his food) and then dry food or mixing canned with dry food . But he suggested Science diet and said he did not like Blue Buffalo … so that has me questioning him. I know BB had a recall but I had always seen high rating for it. I could have also sworn that he said a low protein diet.. I would think it would be the opposite- less carbs.. but I am not a vet. Does the Saint need to be on a senior food , is there an all stages food that both dogs can be on? Also the schnauzer is very active, the Saint..not so much. Price does matter.. I can not afford to pay $50+ for 30 pounds of dog food when I go through 6 cups a day (current food).

[Cocker_mom]

Hi, InkedMarie! Since about April I’ve been feeding both my dogs the Iams Healthy Naturals Adult Lamb Meal and Rice dog food. They’ve both responded well to it, and it was included on the list of (literally, hundreds–at least one thousand) dog foods the allergy testing company gave me. Basically, it’s an average kibble, but it’s easily accessible in my area. Prior to that, I had my allergy prone cocker on Nature’s Recipe Grain-Free Easy to Digest Chicken, Sweet Potato, and Pumpkin dog food and my older cocker on Blue Buffalo Senior Turkey (both are considered limited ingredient foods). (I’d highly recommend both those foods; it was just a 20+ mile drive one-way every time I needed dog food.)

To put things in context, I got my allergy prone cocker in September, 2012. I was visiting the vet pretty much every two weeks and he was constantly on keto, benadryl, special shampoo for the elephant hide, and various ear medications. The shampoo improved the elephant hide somewhat, but he was still having problems with ears and itching/licking in general. Once I got him on the Nature’s Recipe, he slowly started improving (I was beginning to think we had a definite winner!), but then spring hit and his skin, eyes, ears just drove him crazy with itching, so he really didn’t enjoy a substantial change in his condition. I did the food allergy test first just because I wanted to eliminate as many of the most likely causes as possible before considering something like an allergy panel/allergy shots. After getting the results, I rid the house of any foods, treats, etc. he was allergic to and made the decision to put both dogs on the same food with my vet’s approval. There was a little adjusting of portions for my older cocker, and she definitely liked the Blue Buffalo much better (it has oats, and I didn’t want to risk my allergy prone dog getting a morsel of it), but she’s doing really well on it.

The warm months were a nightmare for the little guy. The exposed skin and the yeast and the elephant hide cleared up completely with the food adjustment but the ears were the worst I’d seen yet–literally Velveeta cheese at the worst, and medicines weren’t providing much relief. More bi-weekly vet visits, and I even participated in some trial drugs when everything else failed. Thank goodness for the first hard frost. It’s winter now, and his ears have cleared up, so I am pretty confident now the food issues have been ruled out. We’ve both gotten a much needed break from the ear agony. He looks far and away better than ever and the constant itching/licking isn’t going on now that it’s winter. That’s what convinced me to do the outdoor panel before his 2nd spring with me. The tests aren’t terribly invasive or expensive–they use only a small blood sample. I couldn’t imagine having a chronic yeast infection! I’m hoping the allergy shots will prep him for the spring allergens.

I could probably start a whole new thread about cockers and their ears, but I can tell you that having owned two cockers now, my experience with the younger dog has been COMPLETELY different than the older one. Basically, I’ve always exercised preventative care with my older cocker just because cockers are naturally prone to infections with their big floppy ears–cleaning and drying the ears once a week or so, keeping the insides or the ear shaved close, and letting them air out. She’s had maybe 3 or 4 ear infections in her 13 years, and her ears are very clean and healthy. My younger cocker’s ears are a mess–gnarly and misshapen on the inside with a lot of scar tissue particularly on the left ear and there is an ugly polyp on the left ear too. He is truly a special needs dog, and I’m thinking the product of overbreeding (resulting in a very cute but very issue-prone pup).

I know a lot of dogs do well on a food elimination diet, and I believe I truly gave that method a fair shake (the food he was on when he took the food allergy test was actually on the testing company’s approved list–although none of the prior foods I tried were), but my dog’s issues are caused by a variety of allergens that aren’t limited to just food. I spent literally thousands of dollars in vet bills for various treatments that treated only symptoms but not the true problem, and I have no regrets with the allergy tests. I truly believe we’ve reached a turning point. They might not be necessary for every dog, but if your dog is experiencing chronic allergies and a food adjustment isn’t completely alleviating the symptoms, the test is worth it.

[RescueDaneMom]

To give you an idea, I feed my 150lb almost 8 year old male Great Dane about 1700 calories/day and my mom’s 6 year old, 75lb male pit bull about 900 calories/day. Both dogs are very inactive. They lay around the house most of the day and go on a couple short walks. My sister has a 55lb very active, senior, female boxer mix that needs 1000-1100 calories/day. The more active the dog the more calories they’ll need.

[Tambourineman]

It’s OK, I don’t expect any helpful info on this forum. I had pretty much decided to go another route: stay with my EVO senior formula and seek supplements that I can somehow get un my dog. I have found a glucosamine and MSM powder (K-10+) that is to be mixed with water – which he rejected more or less as expected, but then I added some chicken broth to some hot water and added that to the powder/water mix and he drank it. I have ordered some omega oil (Welactin) and I will try that.

So I’ll leave you guys to your turkey necks.

[Tambourineman]

I have a 14 year old lab with bad arthritis. An xray disclosed he also has a lesion on his vertebrae. So he has a lot of trouble getting up and around.

Due to his age we have not opted for surgery for his spine as we think it would be too much for him.

We give him EVO Senior which does have some calcium (2.10%). I regret to say he also gets a strip and a half of bacon which is used to hide the many meds he takes (Gabapentin, 3 tramadol, Rimadyl, and Amantadine) He now rejects pill pockets which he used to gulp like dog treats (we have tried peanut butter, cream cheese, bread, swedish meatballs, turkey hot dogs, a pill popper tool, etc., etc.) Bacon is the only thing that works and at his age not getting his meds would be worse than having some bacon.

Anyway, I am wondering if some more calcium would help with respect to building the bone in his vertebrae back up. As an experiment I ground up some Citrical and put it in his food and unlike when other meds are mixed with food he will eat it. (He no longer chews bones so he does not get any calcium that way.) I’ve read that some add ground up egg shells.

the dog food project says this about calcium: “. . . The correct ratio of calcium to phosphorus and magnesium is very important for a dog’s health and needs to be carefully balanced – this is not something you would want to do without doing your research on the topic!” . . .

“Excess intake of calcium results in growth retardation and severe bone and joint abnormalities. [Presumably this applies to puppies] When feeding a quality pet food, supplementation of calcium *** during growth *** is unnecessary, and potentially very dangerous.
Note: Excess calcium causes decreased phosphorus absorption (and vice versa!). Lack of magnesium in the diet renders calcium useless, because the body needs magnesium to properly absorb calcium. If adequate amounts of all 3 of these minerals are present int he diet, the body can regulate the balance according to its needs.”

Citrical includes 20% magnesium (80 mg) and also Vitamin D

Any thoughts?

[Missmillie01]

I have 3 dogs, a 14 yr old shelti, and two 4 lb Maltese mixes. I feed the Shellie Now senior, he does ok ,but poops a lot! The little ones seem to do well on Buffalo grain free, but have terrible eye tearing, could be genetic or from food. Either way all three are chow hounds! They eat fast. I want to add a canned diet to the regimine, but I’m confused, do I add the canned to the kibble? Or is it best to feed dry at one feeding and wet at another?
I have also give the little ones Stella and Chewy freezes dried, I have added that to the kibble. I’m concerned the protein level is to high when I do that. If someone can help me understand all this…..

[RescueDaneMom]

I agree with Patty. I wouldn’t look for a “reduced calorie”, “lite,” or “senior” dog food. They are generally very high in carbs which does not help them lose weight; plus seniors need more protein, not less. My family had an overweight senior rottie on Fromm Reduced Activity Senior Gold. I thought I was doing a good thing. After finding this site and educating myself more, I found out that food was almost 50% carbs! He was always hungry and it wasn’t helping him lose weight. We switched him to high protein, grain free foods and he finally started slimming down. We fed him Horizon Legacy Adult and Acana regionals. My family also has a pit bull (70#) that is a little chunky. He is currently eating Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural and is losing weight. When I had my Great Dane on kibble (he eats raw now), he did really well on Go! Fit and Free Adult by Petcurean.

Best of luck!

[A.Sandy]

Fat= energy But it also means palatability so it makes pets override their limits of food. So try something between 21-25% protein so the fat% is less. Feed according to pet’s energy/activity level, always portion control, and feed according to what she should weigh not based on what she weighs now. cut down on treats and no table scraps for now until she is at the ideal weight. even if the weather is bad try to play with her indoors somehow just to keep her moving a bit. Also try adding some canned pumpkin to fill her up . Soon you might want to switch her to a senior feed if you’d like. good luck

Ana
pet nutrition expert/advisor
@pupcatfacts
pupcatnutrition.com

[lbouch1]

Hello, we moved to Australia 2 years ago and ever since, I have been trying to find a premium dog food that my 2 senior rescues will like. Tried Blackhawk, Canidae and taste of the wild. They were on Orijen but we can’t get that here. Any recommendations out there?

[BlueEyedGirl]

Ok – I am not understanding something here Patty (Math was never my strong suit).

The numbers she gave do not in fact match what is on their website (the data on their website is dated July 29, 2011.)

According to the PDF on their site, Calcium is 374.723 per 100kcal while the Phosphorous is 227.364 per 100 kcal.

With the ratios she provided, I understood that to be 3.34/1000kcal but I see now that I misinterpreted that.

What I am puzzled by is why if the Calcium and Phosphorous ratios play such an integral role in feeding these large breeds, is the Now LBP Dry Kibble formula given five stars on the Dog Food review page on this site?

(from the Petcurean NOW Fresh page Food Summary Review on this site)

Now Fresh – Four Stars
The following is a list of recipes available at the time of this review.

Now Fresh Puppy
Now Fresh Adult
Now Fresh Senior
Now Fresh Large Breed Adult
Now Fresh Large Breed Senior
Now Fresh Small Breed All Ages
Now Fresh Large Breed Puppy (5 stars)

Now Fresh Small Breed All Ages was selected to represent the other products in the line for this review.

[dbentley]

I have a rescue that has CHF and is on Vetmedin, lasix and enalapril. I also give VetriScience supplement Cardio Strength for dogs and cats. I also have a schnauzer with a murmur but she is only on enalapril. I give her the supplement every other day. I’ve been changing foods and doing research but I need a low sodium food for them. I just bought ProPlan sensitive skin/stomach because I read it was low sodium. I mix that with science diet dental because they like that and the schnauzer’s teeth and breath can get kinda funky. I give them a small amount of canned in the evenings and am using nutro natural choice senior but bought a couple cans of science diet mature turkey because it was on one of the lists I read as low sodium. I really don’t have time or equipment to make their food, so I’m just looking for low sodium suggestions. Thank you in advance for reading.

[A.Sandy]

Hi anniearies,
I have a great dane, and I give him joint rescue or joint jerky tr, forget harsh pills! your pup will think this is a treat! they love this stuff and it is extremely effective! and on top of that the crème of le crème, NZYMES!! it prevents cancer and rebuilds muscle tissue and so much more try it I loved it for my dane and recommended to all my customers!

-Ana
pet nutrition expert/advisor
pupcatnutrition.com
@pupcatfacts