[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 :/

[Jujubeez]

Zymox is currently what we’re using for ears and shampoo. I have the enzymatic shampoo and triple enzyme ear wash and gel drops with added pain relieve (some numbing agent, I believe).

I will definitely look into the websites you suggested, though.

It seems with age, if we get off his routine for even a week, or the kids give him a sandwich crust the effects are immediate and severe, you know? There is just no give and take anymore. Hopefully, with a new food and some heavier duty supplements he’ll be back on track!

I am interested in the ACV and borax another member suggested as a wipe. It kind of makes sense; ACV neutralises PH and Borax dries out oily skin. Poor guy is off the charts with both issues.

THanks for all the input!

[Shasta220]

Shasta is about 6y.o. He never used to smell bad (other than an average “doggie” scent, of course!)… But the past few months, he’s had a constant odor. Bathing helps a little (I usually use Dawn mixed with some organic rosemary-mint shampoo, then follow w a conditioner so his fur doesn’t get flaky), but even if I let the shampoo sit for 5-10min, I can smell faint amounts of the foul smell. I also doubt it’s anything to do with his food, he was on dog chow back when he didn’t stink at all…now he’s on Diamond naturals and still stinks.

Are there any supplements that help with odor? We tried Brewers yeast, Fish oil, and raw eggs. None helped any.

I also can’t afford much to be honest, I already have 3 dogs, cats, a cow, a pony, chickens, and ducks to feed…not much wiggle room in the budget.

[Jujubeez]

I am up at 4am with my (non champion, rescued from a craphole as a puppy) 11 year old pitty, Nemo. I was just about to write your same post! My guy is on Blue Basics and seems to be the worst he’s ever been. He was shaking his head and crying from frustration as well. I noticed his skin is shedding thick, pasty scaled. Almost like wax. That’s new, especially on his back. I’ve given him some Benadryl and leftover ativan (from the vet!!! He was mauled over the summer and his recovery was so bad he couldn’t lay on his side to sleep 🙁 )

I am here, now trolling your post looking for some new ideas.

I’ve been off my game with two sick human kids but normally I do:

Greek Yogurt
Powdered probiotics (the kind kept in the fridge) added to the yogurt
And FISH OIL FISH OIL FISH OIL!!! I just buy caplets and he eats them like treats. You can also add it liquid style to some boiled eggs or yogurt.

Yeast is triggered when the dogs natural bacteria is thrown off, leaving no “fighter” bacteria to kill off excessive fungi. This is typical after antibiotics, induction to an allergen or sometimes just a weather change and climate. Either way, you need to get that good bacteria back in your baby to regulate the yeast.

I KNOW I need to get his routine back in order but this food is just worth its weight in crap for what it costs. Other, similar minded brands sell products of a higher overall quality.

Anyway, if anyone knows how to instantly SOOTHE the rash and scaling/ear junk while the new diet/supplements take effect, let me know! I can;t stand to see him suffer while we wait for his gut to catch up to his body 🙁

Good luck with your baby and I hope maybe one of my tricks helps!!!

[Scruffy312052]

Keep reading on the personal dog food creations. They are all over the web. I was paying an average of 247 per week (over 12K per year) for dry dog food with dismal results. I now spend just under 165.00 per week and I am developing ideas for diets and beneficial supplements to lower that cost even more. My goal is to reduce my intial cost by 65 to 70% while maintaining a healthy lifestyle and diet for my pack. The info is out there. Just keep reading. If you have a favorite Vet, It’s best to keep them in the loop.

Scruffy

[Scruffy312052]

I can’t address the type of food for large breed any more than I can for miniature breeds but I can tell you what I started doing about a year and a half ago.

I have 30 dogs. Most are American Eskimos and Long haired Dachshunds however, due to a couple of segregation errors on our part we also have several Cold Franks added to our mix. While the AKC refuses to recognize this cross as a specific breed we love them just as much as our Blue Bloods.

To address your query: I was a very strong proponent of Dry food. I’ve tried many and varied brands with a minimum rating of 3 stars. Over the years several of our pets had been plagued with a myriad of health problems: Bad Breath, loose stool, fur falling out, fleas, parasites etc… etc… before I researched K-9 Dietary needs. I started with consulting the three of our most trusted vets in our area as well as several trips to the University Of Georgia College Of Veterinary Medicine.

Oddly enough, their knowledge on the subject was nothing more than suggesting a variety of name brand foods and supplements. It was, quite frankly, a costly “hit or miss” solution with little or no improvement to the health of our pack.

I educated myself by reading hundreds of articles and forums such as this (Rudy’s). As a result, I concocted and changed their diet to a home remedy.

In less than four months there was a marked improvement. Coccidian protozoa; gone. Their breath was no longer foul smelling. No more signs of any type of worms wiggling in their stool. Their fur started growing back soft and fluffy and much to our relief, there are few if any fleas. As a bonus I cut our rather large K-9 pantry expense by 33%. I did, however, add an extra 30 minutes to my time while preparing their meal (mind you, I am feeding thirty).

NOTE: Should you consider my solution it is strongly advised that you consult your Vet First. Two of the ingredients I use may be challenged by some (but not all) authorities. *These two are: “Plug Chewing Tobacco and Garlic.”

Here is my Remedy: In a crock pot I cook 3 pounds of chicken backs and necks and one pound of chicken liver for a minimum of 8 hours on Auto. This causes the bones to break down to become malleable and easily digested. Thirty minutes before serving add 2.5 pounds of frozen or fresh mixed vegetables (make sure there is no or little corn) i.e. peas, lima beans, carrots, green beans and stir.

In a blender add two heaping tablespoons of minced garlic, 1/2 ounce of plug tobacco and one cup of broth from the crockpot. Blend on high for thirty to sixty seconds or until the tobacco is cut up into pieces that look almost granular. Add this to the crock pot and stir several times. Turn the crock pot off and let stand for thirty minutes.

Whatever type of dry food you are using reduce the serving amount by 60% and mix this on a 2 To 1 ratio of crock pot mix to dry food. Considering you have five dogs, freeze the rest of the crock pot mixture in pouches that serve five. Taking into account the size of my kennels, I obviously have no leftovers.

I have been feeding this mixture to my kennels for almost 1 ½ years and my pack has never looked or responded healthier.

* It is argued that tobacco will kill Coccidian protozoa and the Garlic will repel the fleas. I use these two ingredients only twice a month so you will need to reduce the amount to a proper ratio so as not to give your pets too much.

The benefits: less trips to the vet, more active adults, fresher breath, no more de-wormer medicine to buy (which, by the way, is not a healthy substance for your pet) less, if any flea remedies and coats full of luster. If you like, you can also drop to a one star dry food considering it is primarily used as filler.

[Shawna]

Hi Dorenda,

Took a few tries but I was able to log on.. Thanks Patty for the email heads up :)..

Vets often suggest low protein for renal disease when it really isn’t necessary. There are studies even that show dogs that have protein lowered to drastically too early in the disease have increased mortality. There’s some fantastic information on the topic on nutritionist Mary Straus’ website (see quote below). My dog has had kidney disease since birth and has been on high protein raw her whole life (45 to 54%) — she’ll be eight years old the end of June 2014.

“Based on research done in the last ten years (see s a Low Protein Diet Necessary or Desirable?), that the only time it is necessary to feed a low protein diet is when your dog is uremic, which generally means BUN is over 80 mg/dL (equivalent to 28.6 mmol/L), creatinine is over 4.0 mg/dL (equivalent to 354 µmol/L), and the dog is showing symptoms such as vomiting, nausea,inappetence, ulcers and lethargy, which are caused by the build-up of nitrogen in the blood. Even then, feeding low protein will not extend life, but it will help the dog feel better. Subcutaneous fluids can also help at this time (and before).” http://www.dogaware.com/health/kidneydiet.html

If your pup is uremic then consider K/D canned with added toppers to entice eating. Toppers like lightly cooked egg whites or canned green tripe are good options. Both are low in phosphorus but higher in protein. To counter the extra protein you can give probiotics and a certain type of prebiotic to induce “nitrogen trapping”. Nitrogen trapping utilizes the bacteria in the colon to help clean BUN from the blood. I use Garden of Life Primal Defense probiotic (human product) and Fiber 35 Sprinkle Fiber (also human product). If symptoms are bad enough that there is a need to keep protein really low try adding high quality fats — organic butter or ghee, coconut oil etc.

I would avoid kibble at ALL COST!!! Kibble of any kind including K/D.

Vet Dr. Royal created a raw kidney disease diet for Darwins. It can be found on their website – link below. The food is REALLY high in protein so again not an option if your pup is uremic. Here’s some info. The actual diet is on the site as well. Your vet will have to contact them to confirm your pup is a good candidate for the diet. http://www.darwinspet.com/kidney-health/

Mary Straus, link above, has diet recommendations on her site – she does include kibbles but kibbles are dehydrating and can cause issues. The protein in kibbles is also poorer quality than any other form and due to this creates more BUN then other diets with the same amount and kind of protein. Nutritionist Lew Olson also has some recipes on her website http://www.b-naturals.com/newsletter/kidney-diet/

Supplements that might be helpful — the one that I will NEVER run out of with my KD girl is Standard Process Canine Renal Support. Turmeric, food grade activated charcoal and burdock root are some to look at. I’d also recommend giving a digestive enzyme no matter what you feed. Mineral waters higher in calcium while being lower in sodium have demonstrated some benefit. They didn’t identify the brand in the research paper but I believe they may have used Evian. I’ve also read that feeding smaller meals multiple times per day is beneficial.

Hope something here is helpful!! Sure hope you can get your pup feeling better!!!

Shawna

[AT]

New here…We are bringing an 8 week old Labrador puppy home next Saturday and I am trying to narrow in on food options. I have spent the last few days reading every single post in this thread and it has been quite an education – thank you to all of you who spend time here to help educate others!
My questions:
1. Our puppy will be coming home on Purina Pro Plan Focus Puppy Large Breed Formula and I want to transition him to something better as soon as possible. Would a few days after he is home and settled in be too soon to start a transition, provided he is not showing any signs of GI distress?
2. If price/cost is not a constraint, what off the shelf product would you feed a lab puppy? I am not up to a homemade diet at this point (might consider this in the future, but don’t trust myself to get up to speed in one week and to get it right during this crucial growth period). Most of the discussions I’ve read here involve rotating quality dry foods (with added toppers/supplements). Would this be the best way to start since our puppy will be coming home on a dry food?
It has also been stated that raw, canned or reconstituted is even better. I can see the raw recommendations in the document linked to several times throughout this thread. What do you consider to be the best of these brands? Would transitioning directly to raw be ok for our puppy; or should we go first to canned, then to raw?
Can anyone offer recommendations for the “best of the best” of canned foods for a large breed puppy? I figure I can call companies to calculate exact calcium/kcal, but could anyone offer the best brands/formulas to start my efforts? The fives stars listed in the library are:
By Nature 95% Meat (Canned)
Castor and Pollux Natural Ultramix (Canned)
Dogswell Dog Food (Canned)
EVO Dog Food (Canned)
Fromm Gold Nutritionals (Canned)
Go! Fit and Free (Canned)
Great Life Essentials (Canned)
Kirkland Cuts in Gravy (Canned)
Life’s Abundance (Canned)
Merrick Dog Food (Canned)
Merrick Grain Free Dog Food (Canned)
Nature’s Variety Instinct (Canned)
Pet-Tao Dog Food (Canned)
Pure Balance Dog Food (Canned)
Tiki Dog Food (Canned)
Wellness Core Dog Food (Canned)
Wellness Stews (Canned)
Weruva Kobe (Canned)
Weruva Kurobuta (Canned)
ZiwiPeak Daily Dog Cuisine (Canned)

Thank you so much for any advice!
AT

• This reply was modified 12 years, 2 months ago by AT.

[Shihtzumom20]

Hi ScottsMomma! Thanks for rescuing a dog, he will be thanking you to! Seeing as you mentioned raw I would say that would be a great way to go! Raw should really help with any allergies and you can really customize the meal plan, anything that doesnt seem to sit well with him, you can simply move on to another protein. My shih tzu loves raw, its amazing how he took to it, and I am sure your terrier will love it too. While you are researching how to balance, Hound Dog Mom is the best for explaining that!, you can start with a pre-made raw or do a pre-mix in which you add your own meat to it. There is a great section for pre-made raw dog food here to help you choose the best, but I think a lot of people use Primal and Stella & Chewys I would to if I could get it! I have used Nature`s Variety and think its ok, Dawson loves it and he does well on it, but I like making my own then you know exactly what you put into it. But when I get busy I still use it.
For pre-mixes I know of a few, Urban Wolf, Honest Kitchen The Preference, Grandma Lucys makes one, Sojos I believe makes one, and one I think its called Steves Real Food, or something like that. I havent used them as Dawson doesnt really do so well on high potatoes, and urban wolf is the only one I can find here.
Check out the raw dog food forum, lots and lots of great help and questions that have already been answered. Here is a link /forums/forum/raw-dog-food-forum/
Oh and for the skin and dandruff, You can use coconut oil and a fish oil, I like to use krill oil, Here is an article from the whole dog journal on dosage:
http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/15_9/features/Fish-Oil-Supplements-For-Dogs_20600-1.html
But now I five Dawson sardines instead of the krill oil, its cheaper and a whole food source he loves sardines!
And then coconut oil is half a teaspoon per ten pounds. I give Dawson his sardine requirements once weekly, so thursday, and then coconut oil every day, but you can do it however works best. I believe some people do every other day.
I hope this helps some! It is overwhelming when you first start, but its so much better for your dog than any kibble or canned food. I know more people with more knowledge than me will chime in!

[Shihtzumom20]

Hi Everyone!
I have been working on a new menu for Dawson, trying to get more bones and more balance into his diet. So here it goes!
Am- 1 ounce Ziwipeak air dried lamb cuisine

Pm- Monday, Wednesday, Saturday Nights
– 2 oz pork ribs.
– .5 oz tripe patty. I have had no luck finding tripe here… so it may be canned 🙁 But I may be able to get some soon as the calves are getting butchered this month.

Pm- Thursday Night
-He would get 2 oz boneless meat patty (beef, pork, poultry whatever is on sale, could also be meat chunks,preferably organic.)
-Sardine, quarter of a tin.
-a cage free egg, no shell

Pm- Tuesday, Friday, Sunday Nights
– 2.5 oz boneless meat patty.
Note: 1.75 oz of liver and other organ blended into all patties for the week.

Supplements:
• 1/8 tsp pre/probiotics, daily
• 400 IU vitamin e capsule, weekly
• Sprouted Chia/Flax meal for manganese may use oysters occasionally, Thursday pm meal
• ¼ tsp cod liver oil once during the week, ½ cup organic keifir (mixed in with patties), and one cage free egg per pound of meat for vitamin D requirements, sardines will finish his vitamin D requirements
• ½ tsp coconut oil, daily
• Raw Glandular supplement, every other day
• ½ tsp homemade green super food supplement, daily

In the patties I would add pureed veggies and fruit but I didnt really count it on my calculations, it would be about a tsp per day… All kinds of veggies and fruit nothing particular, or toxic, lol!

My only question is, is the bone balancing the calcium in the boneless meat, or do I have to supplement additional calcium. And anything too little, too excessive, I gauged this at a weight of about 15 lbs.

I also have another with two meals of pork ribs and also two meals of chicken thighs. But it`s kinda is the same.

I was also thinking of getting this cookbook, especially if this recipe isnt balanced, lol!
http://www.completeandbalanced.com/
Its available in Canada at Dawsons vet, Here is a sample recipe:
http://www.completeandbalanced.com/samplerecipepage.html
Some recipes can be fed raw. Any thoughts, or concerns.

[DogFoodie]

Both Nature’s Logic and Mulligan Stew are regulars in my rotation and I use them with great results.

I’ve also recently done some research on supplements in search of one that has added Taurine for my Cavalier and found that Nature’s Logic has a great whole food vitamin / mineral supplement called All Food Fortifier, which has no synthetic ingredients.

[LindaW]

Hi, all. I’ve just recently learned through initially “Dogs Naturally” magazine and then numerous other sources about the dangers and shortcomings of synthetic vitamins and minerals in almost all commercially prepared dog food whether dry or canned. The stuff is derived from toxic materials and since it is so much less expensive than whole food sources, they use them.
There is only one commercial food, Nature’s Logic, that I know of. I had wanted to try Brothers Complete, but they have synthetic also (sodium selenite, etc.). Sometimes my very discerning golden ret. pup doesn’t want her raw or home cooked fare and she will eat a little kibble or canned. Very difficult puppy to feed. So, let’s help spread the word about the synthetics. It is just as important as not feeding Beneful or Ol Roy. Even human vitamins has it unless it is “whole food” supplements. The articles state that quite a few problems that dogs have can be linked back to these artifical supps.

[Mom2Cavs]

I have ordered from all kinds of different sites and haven’t had really any problems with any of them. Recently, I placed an order with Chewy’s. It came in the allotted time frame and the box was perfectly fine. But, when I opened it, it was missing some of the items even though the packing list listed everything I ordered. I immediately called their customer service and they were very nice. In addition to mailing out the missing items, they also gave me a credit for them! What good customer service. I will order from them in the future because they have some of the Vetri Science supplements I use that I can’t get anywhere else, but I do hope they check the order to the packing slip better next time.

[Kcatlady]

Thanks for replying InkedMarie. I have not added anything else yet such as Omega-3 capsules or any additional oils. I honestly wanted to give the new dog food a chance to see exactly what would change on the food alone. I will certainly try supplements in the future if his skin doesn’t clear up by the change.

I have used Canidae dog food in the past which seemed to do well for a good overall healthy coat and skin but it’s not readily available to me any more since we moved.

I will look into those brands that you suggested for sure. I’m not sure if I need to go limited ingredient yet from a sensitivity/allergy standpoint or just to take out all the nasties from his food that are doing him no good and possibly weakening his ability to fight the skin issues on his own.

[FreeholdHound]

I’ve often used that for meds with past dogs. My current one will take anything wrapped in peanut butter, but for daily supplements it’s easier to throw it in the food bowl (for me). Pulverizing w/a spoon has been working. 🙂

[GoldenGirl]

Let me start off by saying that I’m going to school for veterinary technology and am working at a holistic pet store at the same time and I’ve received more training in nutrition at my job then in school haha now I would deffinatly stay faaaaar away from Hills and Eukanuba, Blue isn’t the best food but its leaps and bounds better then the other two. Most of the Hills and Eukanuba formulas fist 4 ingredients are corn, wheat, by-product meal, and meat meal. Meaning their grain based food and have very little fresh meat (which should ALWAYS be the first ingredient). Personally I’m on a big Merrick kick right now, their a smaller family owned brand that is really great about locally sourcing their ingredients, balancing everything, and adding in extra supplements. If you have any question feel free to ask!

[GoldenGirl]

Basically the only differences between puppy and adult kibble is puppy is higher in protein, calories, & fat. (the levels of supplements in kibble are so minimal that that’s really not a concern) If you’re dogs are doing well on puppy food you don’t absolutely need to change to adult, but puppy food can often times cause weight gain. If you switch to an adult kibble you may be able to feed a little bit more too, which I’m sure hungry 2 year olds wont complain abou!t 🙂

[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.

[theBCnut]

I’m pretty sure I know that none of the OTC joint foods even have close to a therapeutic dose of joint supplements and all the prescription ones I know of are junk.

Jefferspet dot com may be another place to look for different options.

I give my old lady turkey necks and chicken necks, because they have a lot of cartilage and connective tissue in them.

[FreeholdHound]

I’m sure some of the more knowledgable posters will reply but in the meantime go over to the “Dog Supplements” topic on the forum menu. There are several discussions there on what you’re looking for. I just started using Liquid Health’s K9 Glucosomine which was reccomended at my local feed store. My Greyhound doesn’t like pills & nothing agrees w/ him, so far so good with this stuff. I also use sardine & anchovy oil since salmon oil makes things ugly with him.

[Mom2Cavs]

Thanks, Pattyvaughn! I hope it works, too! It can’t hurt, though. I wonder if the bladder mass that could not be easily surgically removed due to its location caused her to have this cancer appear? Who knows….everything I’ve read says vets don’t know what causes it. I misspoke earlier, it’s called Cutaneous Epitheliotropic T-cell Lymphoma (CETL). Certainly a shocker for us. She seems to be taking it in stride atm thank goodness. I’m not changing her diet except to add supplements. She’s always had such a beautiful coat and it’s sad to see it looking like it does. She doesn’t seem sick at all and I’m dreading that time, although these dogs don’t die a natural death from this disease. It’s usually a matter of the owner deciding to put down due to the skin lesions becoming so prevalent and the comfort and quality of life for the dog.

Btw, I’m sorry for hijacking this thread…..

• This reply was modified 12 years, 3 months ago by Mom2Cavs.

[DogFoodie]

Hi Jan,

I did see that Lucy has been diagnosed with a rare type of skin cancer. I was trying to post on your Facebook page from my new Kindle, but I’m having a heck of a time trying to use that keyboard. I’m so, so sorry to hear about Lucy’s diagnosis.

I have recently been researching supplements quite a bit the last few days and came across Dr. Harvey’s E-Mune support: http://www.drharveys.com/products/show/15-emune-boost-for-dogs; and Nature’s Logic All Food Fortifier: http://www.natureslogic.com/products/cat-products/canine-and-feline-all-food-fortifier-supplement-3/. I picked up some for my dogs for general well-being, but wondered if either, especially the Dr. Harvey’s product, might be beneficial for Lucy right now.

I know this must be very hard for you. You and Lucy are in my prayers.

[Mom2Cavs]

Since I’ve taken Laverne (all 3 dogs) off poultry she’s been doing 100% better. Since I last posted here in August we’ve gone through different dry foods (can’t even remember what all), but currently they’re eating Fromm Salmon a la Veg. It does have some chicken cartilage in it and grains (which don’t seem to be a problem). I’ve been using only canned foods without poultry, as well. I’ve used Wellness a lot, especially their 95% and stews. I have on hand some Simply Nourish Fish & Potato, Weruva Cirque de la Mer, Fromm 4Star Pork and some others that I’ve fed. Also, I’ve noticed that when a food has a lot of peas Laverne has issues, too. I also have been adding in probiotics/enzymes. They get 2 treats a day. One in the morning, Wellness Lamb grain free biscuit, and one during the day, Wellness Pure Rewards Beef. Lucy, who you may have heard has CETL (skin cancer) gets some other supplements. Anal glands and itching have been gone since I’ve changed to this regimen. It might not work for all dogs, but has been good for mine. 🙂

• This reply was modified 12 years, 3 months ago by Mom2Cavs.

[InkedMarie]

Caroline: I have used bug off garlic for years; it works great for me!

[Melissaandcrew]

Thanks! I started them yesterday and will report how they seem to be doing.

[RescueDaneMom]

I’m currently using the Joint Health powder for dogs. So far so good. I don’t see any miraculous improvement with Max’s arthritis but I know it’s helping some as his joints don’t pop all the time like they do when a supplement is clearly not working. I’m going to try Cortaflex next.

Marie- how did the Bug Off Garlic work for you? I was thinking about trying it.

-Caroline

[Mom2Cavs]

I’ve used the regular joint health chews and the advanced joint chews when they came out. With Desi, my now deceased Shih-Poo who had both rear luxating patellas that were bad, I used the regular joint health and they kept him surgery free all his life. Of course, I did curtail his jumping a little. Once Lucy apparently pulled a muscle in her leg (or something?) and I immediately started giving her the advanced chews. She was better in no time! I love Springtime supplements and have used them for many years for my dogs.

[Melissaandcrew]

Thanks Marie..I am hoping these work as well as the horse products I used in the past.

[InkedMarie]

Sorry, all I’ve used is the Bug Off Garlic.

[theBCnut]

Wow! Yogi is already almost 1 y.o.?

Angel will be 12 on 2/24 and has just recently started jumping less, so I’ll be thinking about if she needs something more soon. Gideon will be 3 on 2/13 and Micah will be 2 on 3/3. I have a couple 13 year old cats that are starting to show their age too, but I don’t think I can get anything extra into these two.

[Melissaandcrew]

Thanks Patty : ) I can’t believe another year has come and gone-Yogi will be 1 yr old on the 4th and another will be turning 15 on the 3rd. Since I have so much of the longevity, everyone over 10 will be getting some, lol.

[theBCnut]

I’ve used loads of Springtime on my horses and dogs, just not those, so I’m only bumping this up to the top.

[Melissaandcrew]

I have used springtime products in the past for my(then) older horses with wonderful results. One of my 15 plus year olds is starting to show arthritis/mobility issues so I placed an order with them that I just received today. Just curious-has any one tried the Longevity or the Advanced Joint and Hip chewables? Since they have a sale going on, I bought two bottles of the human joint product(for me and hubby) got 1 free, and bought two bottles of the Longevity powder, and received one free. Then, they threw in another bottle of the Longevity for free as well as the Advanced Joint and hip. Just started Murphy on it today, but wondering if any one had any specific experiences with these particular products?

[pugmomsandy]

What supplements in particular?

[mellowmutt]

I got Amiga at 8 weeks old, back on June 1st. Her breeder recommended Nutro LBP Lamb & Rice, so that’s what I fed her at first. I wasn’t happy with her gas or her stools, so I did some research and decided to mix Orijen LBP and NV Prairie LBP with the Nutro. Did some more research and discovered that I was feeding her way too much calcium. So I added two other foods to the mix in mid-July, NV Instinct Rabbit and CC Open Sky, had to set up a spreadsheet to keep CA, CA:K, calories & protein in order. I did the calculations based on the max-CA values, not averages or the tested values of a specific batch, to be on the safe side.

Ran out of this mix a month ago, at 8 months apparently she can regulate her CA herself, so I quit worrying about it. Now I have her on a mix of Orijen Regional Red, NV Instinct Rabbit, and NV Prairie Venison & Barley. It seems reasonable to me to feed her a red-meat diet in winter, and switch to a fish-and-fowl diet come summer (ancestral-wolf feeding pattern). In a few months the mix will be Orijen Six Fish, NV Instinct Rabbit LID, and NV Prairie Duck & Oatmeal. Both supplemented with the occasional topper of Orijen Tundra freeze-dried. LID Rabbit doesn’t have turkey, which is in the Duck & Oatmeal formula, so Turkey’s on the menu all year, too. Protein content of these blends is 33%.

The Prairie kibble’s mixed in to lower my cost from $3/lb to $2.75/lb, which adds up with a large breed. Rabbit is in the mix year-round, because I read some research (I’ll post the links if I find them again) about how wild/feral canines/felines primarily eat bunnies. The missing “meat group” in the prepared foods is rodent, so I’ll also occasionally feed raw beaver meat as a topper. I’d like to add a third brand into the mix instead of the Prairie, unfortunately I haven’t found anything that doesn’t have either the “wrong” grains or is loaded with potato (a no-no for malamutes as white potato is known to trigger bloat in this breed), or is too expensive to serve the purpose.

I set up another spreadsheet for amino acids and did yet more research; I believe she’s getting the full spectrum in sufficient quantities from all the different protein sources (also gets Orijen Tundra freeze-dried treats, used these to teach her to swim ‘cuz they float without getting soggy) such that she doesn’t need the glucosamine/chondroitin/taurine supplements typically found in large-breed-specific formulas — her body ought to be able to produce as much of these as she needs provided the proper building blocks (amino acids & cartilage). Her stools, on the “winter blend” anyway, are firm and dry, and not too voluminous or frequent and she seems to be thriving; my Vet is pleased with her physical condition and says her growth rate is right on target.

Many thanks to this site and all who contribute for helping me navigate the dog-food waters, it’s enough to make one’s head explode, but it’s also nice to have so many quality options in dry kibble. It’s been several years since I’ve had a dog (Amiga’s my 4th), Iams and even Purina just aren’t what they once were so I didn’t even consider those despite two of my dogs living to 15 (Keeshond on Eukanuba and Golden Retriever on Hi-Pro). My last malamute got Iams Lamb & Rice, but was shot (with cause) by a sheep rancher at 3 1/2 back in ’94 so I have no long-term report, there.

What got me to not trust dogfood manufacturers and do this research, leading me here, was how horrific the first month was feeding Amiga just the Nutro. Glossy, semi-soft, mucousy stools (if not diarrhea) and lotsa smelly farts — just like my friends’ dogs being fed Nutro. Enzymes, pre- and pro- biotics didn’t help, de-worming only cleared up the worms. No surprise given the ridiculously-high Zinc content in Nutro formulas, apparently since Mars bought them out — these are symptoms of Zinc toxicity, not poor digestive-tract health; no band-aid for that. Wish I’d figured that out sooner, and the calcium-level thing.

If I had the puppy-food phase to do over again, I wouldn’t touch Nutro with a 10-foot pole. These problems lessened when blended with the other kibbles, and disappeared entirely (OK, occasional fart still, probably the grains) this month after discontinuing the Nutro. I would do the four-kibble mix again, going with just the Rabbit and Duck would be lower calcium, but would also lack the glucosamine/chondroitin/taurine supplements the two LBP kibbles contain, as well as the cartilage and broad spectrum of amino acids which make these supplements unnecessary.

I did rush her to the vet after-hours back in September for bloat, but I didn’t alter her diet because of it. Sometimes she eats stuff that isn’t “on the menu” so to speak, mostly I blame my kitties because they love hunting and killing — just not eating their kills, which they leave for the alley cats. And for Amiga, sometimes she finds these before I do and accounts for occasional fur/feathers in her stools (Amiga’s also killed a mourning dove, robin, grackle, and a magpie). At least they’ve learned not to bring them in the house! I’m following all the best-practice guidelines for avoiding bloat, so hopefully this was a one-time thing, scary for both of us…

[wiscnorthwind]

The three foods I use are Breeder’s Choice Pinnacle, Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets and Timberwolf. Natural Balance has no probiotics. Pinnacle and Timberwolf (previously Timberwolf Organics) use lactobacillus strains.

I am also immune compromised, and give my dogs human grade probiotics…Kyo-dophilus is a good one because is contains both Lactobacillus (predominant in small bowel) and Bifidobacter (predominant in large bowel) strains. I’ve used other brands as well…including Primal Defense for both myself and my dogs. Totalbiotics is brand designed for dogs that does not contain E. Faecium.

Here’s a good resource with people very knowledgeable about K9 GI issues….

http://www.epi4dogs.com/sidsibo.htm … scroll down for a list of probiotics and articles regarding Small Intestinal Bacteria Overgrowth a/k/a Small Intestinal Dysbiosis (imbalance). And a separate page on probiotics… http://www.epi4dogs.com/probioticstrains.htm … be sure to look at the label though because some of those listed do contain E. Faecium.

I’m currently dealing with some pretty severe GI issues in my female GSD after 15 months of high doses of antifungal drugs for a Blastomycosis infection. We saved her life, but her gut is a mess. She has a great deal of inflammation and is extremely intolerant of any food variations (does not even tolerate Purina HA hydrolyzed food), as well as very touchy about any amount of probiotics. I’m using DGL, Slippery Elm, Arabinogalactan with a small pinch of Kyodophilus, NAG, a small amount of 8x Pancreatin and Tylosin as we work towards healing her GI tract. She eats Natural Balance kibble double soaked (soak to absorb water, and then add a bit more water mix in the enzymes and slippery elm, stir an allow to soak some more…sometimes overnight) along with a bit of canned mixed in.

Two ready made supplements that might be helpful are Only Natural Pet GI Support or VetriScience’s Acetylator.

A good resource on supplements is Dr. Messonnier’s book, “The Natural Health Bible for Dogs and Cats”.

While I can tell you that I have had repeated success treating my own dogs’ GI issues. I am not a vet, so I highly recommend that you discuss the use of these supplements with your vet.

Best of luck to you.

[ECSGuy]

We switched our two ECS boys over to raw back in May/June of 2013. Since most all of the Kibble the we had tried was recalled for one thing or another, and we noted changes in the frozen variety of BilJac we had fed for years.

We are now feeding raw and rotating Duck with bone, Venison with bone, Beef, Beef with bone. I also supplement with SoJo dehydrated Vegitables 1 or 2 tablespoons/meal, fish oil for Omega 3-6 and coconut oil for their skin and coat (mornings coconut oil and evenings fish oil).

If you are going to continue to feed a raw or homemade diet, I’d suggest a book by Lew Olsen PhD titled Raw and Natural Nutrition for Dogs; available on Amazon. Lot’s of good information on why to feed dogs raw, why they are able to eat raw and how to supplement (you can over do the supplements if your not careful).

In my opinion, in today’s market, the worst thing to feed your dog or cat is a commercial dog food, kibble, etc. While I’m sure they try, the bottom line is keeping production cost down. I’ve been told that many buy meat meals in bulk, and really don’t know where or how the meats were sourced and or processed. Dealers are buying the meat meals and redistributing them to manufactures.

Hope something here helps, Good luck!

[cbgmom]

Unfortunately, I have yet to hear of any vet who has been able to diagnose this let alone treat it. I have heard of lots of people spending lots of $$ on testing only to show everything as normal. I’m sure there must be some vets out there who may be familiar with this — but I haven’t heard of one yet.

I’m not even sure it is the trachea but it certainly seems to be something in that area and I know many dogs and specific breeds have sensitive tracheas. It isn’t collapsed trachea but I would sort of treat it as such.

To start, maybe try to strengthen his body with supplements: an anti-inflammatory as well as a cartilage and connective tissue support (with glucosamine and chondroitin). That might be a start?

I don’t know if there would be any long term consequences. You just took his collar off so he needs some time to heal. Hopefully, he hasn’t had any permanent injury but certainly time will tell. I do believe you are on the right track now!

No apologies! I hope he is OK. It is very upsetting to watch… they do seem frantic and scared while they go through it. 🙁

[ECSGuy]

I’ve fed Blue Ridge Beef products to my two English Cockers since June of 2013. I switched to a raw diet because of all the recalls and junk they put in commercial foods. I’ve seen no problem with the products, and my boys are thriving on it. I am also using SoJo dehydrated Veggies, fish oil and coconut oil as supplements.
If I were to recommend one thing, it would be to buy Lew Olsen’s book on Raw and Natural diets for dogs. I’ve was using a vitamin and mineral supplement early on that had far to many minerals that the dogs really did not need.
As far as the charcoal in the food is concerned, my dealer has checked on this. It is a law that any raw meat products sold as pet food must contain some charcoal to differentiate it from human food. Otherwise, due to the lower cost, unscrupulous people would buy it to serve in restaurants.
I’ve seen major changes in my dogs health, including my older male who, even on high quality commercial food, would vomit at least once a week and had diarrhea off and on constantly. That is “all” resolved on a raw diet. My younger fellow runs agility and while he is a high energy dog, he lost his “rather odd” skunky smell that he had on commercial foods and his eyes no longer run constantly.
Also, emailing Steve in North Carolina at Blue Ridge has always gotten me prompt and courteous responses. So not sure what Dog girl is taking about.

[PetClubEmployee]

In my opinion anything with by products you shouldn’t feed. Tht is all the bad stuff. The beaks feathers tails what ever isn’t the clean skin of the animal.
I understand how tryin to save money is a huge issue for everyone when it comes to dog food but if you feed the right food it can help later on in life as well as now by preventing the needs of adding extra supplements as well as your dog would be able to get the items she needs, preventing her from eating her own poop. I would recommend going to a feed store as there prices seems to be way lower than pet stores. Find a dog food as party said. Where the first 1-3 ingredients are a clean meat source whether it the full protein or in a meal state.
Following by a full starch. I prefer sweet potatoes but it’s really not all that important. Grain free foods in my opinion are very beneficial for dogs
That’s just my two cents
Hope all is well

[A.Sandy]

Hi,
Just make sure to monitor the amount of cod liver fed or don’t feed for long periods of time to prevent liver toxicity. And also keep an eye for any changes your pup might have with all these supplements because if you are feeding a complete balanced meal you don’t need to give so many because it actually counter acts(causes deficiencies).

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

[FreeholdHound]

This was posted a a Greyhound forum in regards to BDN (not my post)

My inquiry:
“Thank you. I found the product analysis, but need the nutrient profile, ie how much protein, calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, sodium, potassium, zinc, niacin, folic acid, iodine, pantothenic acid, iodine, riboflavin, thiamine, vitamin A, D & E, etc, etc, etc………………..you get the idea. It’s usually broken down into three different groups: “As Received”, “Dry Matter Basis” “As Served (Hydrated)”.
This analysis is crucial for dogs with kidney or liver disease as an example. I have a dog with kidney disease and it is vital to know the calcium/phosphorous ratio.”

Their reply:
“According to our latest analysis, the ca/ph ratio of the beef is 1.1:1. The Tripe Supreme has a ca/ph ratio of 1.78:1.
The ratio of the chicken is 1.56:1. All the calcium in our products is from natural origin. You can’t compare this with the studies out there based on products where calcium is added as a supplement.
We have our analysis split up in “As received” and “Dry matter”. I really don’t understand the “As Served” part. This all depends how much water is added by the customer. Some dogs like it a bit dryer, some a bit more moist.

We are looking for the highest bio-availability possible. Most artificial supplements that you see used in all kind of different dog foods simply don’t do the job. They are not readily available. This is also the reason we ferment the vegetables. The fermented vegetables make the calcium, vitamins, and the ingredients in general, highly bio-available.
We hear excellent testimonials from our customers on a daily basis. Older dogs that start playing again, dogs that get better muscle tone, long time ear infections that disappear, etc… the list is endless. Dogs that went from one vet to another for years, and get better after being on Big Dog Natural. This keeps us going and tells us that we’re doing the correct thing.

I know what your saying but I raised and owned Mastiffs for over 30 years. We have an old school approach of dog food. Use high quality ingredients and you’re good. I never raised my kids by over analyzing their foods but they were fed well and healthy. I really don’t believe there is a need for deep analysis when the ingredients are top quality. You only need supplements and additives when crap is used. We use the analysis as a guideline to formulate the product, not as a marketing tool. We just want a healthy dog food for healthier dogs.

Hope this help

Carl Van Bael
The Big Dog Natural Team”

[pfegan77]

I just learned that my 3 year old Sheltie is highly allergic to Brewer’s yeast. I’ve been checking all the labels on the Halo food, various nutritional supplements and treats. There are a lot of different yeast products. Do I need to be wary of any type of yeast, not just Brewer’s Yeast? Does Brewer’s Yeast go by any other name(s) which would be listed on the ingredients?

Thanks so much for your help!

[crazy4cats]

In regards to your question about Northwest Naturals, it is a raw frozen food that comes in different forms. I use the beef nuggets as well as their fruit and veggie nuggets as toppers right now. They sell them at our local feed store along with Primal and Nature’s Variety frozen raw foods. Northwest is the cheapest of the three. I feel that these add fiber as well as antioxidants to their kibble. As I said before I’m not sure which part of my new equation is helping the most as I have switched several times. Again, I’m using Victor G/F kibble along with a little digestive enzymes, Gastriplex, and probiotic chews. I hope to gradually decrease the supplements, but right now I’m so ecstatic about their poops, (I know, weird, huh?) that I’m not going to change too much for a while.
Have you checked out dogaware dot com yet? They have so much information on that site about digestive disorders. I also think that they may have some homemade diet recipes for you as well.
Good luck!

[dwil801]

I have been lurking around this site for a while and I think I am ready to feed my 15 lb Yorkie raw full time. First of all THANKS for all of the valuable infomation that I have gained from this site. I am still a little confused but I am going to give this a shot.
I will be supplementing his diet with Iceland Pure Sardine/Anchovy Oil, Vitamin E, Nature’s Logic Whole Food Supplement, Cod Liver Oil. I will also add eggs, sardines and yogurt occasionally.
I just rec’d an order from http://www.topqualitydogfood.com (local = no shipping $). I ordered:
1. BEEF Healthy Variety Mix: No Bone
HVM: 7% Veggie/Fruit mix, 10% Beef Heart, Liver and Kidney, Organic whole eggs
2. DUCK HVM: Bone content 30%
HVM: 7% organ meat and 7% veggie/fruit mix
3. Chicken HVM Bone content 26%
HVM: 7% Veggie/Fruit Mix, 10% Chicken Livers and Heart
4. Lamb HVM: Bone content 35%
HVM: 7% organ meat and 7% veggie/fruit mix
5. Icelandic Lamb: No organs Bone content roughly 20%
6. 80/20 ground Beef with 20% green tripe and 10% Beef heart and Liver, No Bone
5. Green Tripe
Some of these grinds seem to have high bone content and low in organs. Any idea how to balance the C&P ratios? Should I add any additional supplements?

[losul]

Kms.
I’m really sorry I can’t answer many of your questions and I’m not qualified to give medical advice. I don’t know specifically what your vet prescribed the SMZ TMP for, if it was even for anything specific. It may not be effective against clostridium? I would ask questions of your vet, before carrying on.

c. difficile and c. perfingens are often culprits in humans. I think c. perfingens more often in dogs.

SMZ TMP (usage in humans) http://www.webmd.com/drugs/drug-64007-SMZ-TMP+DS+Oral.aspx?drugid=64007&drugname=SMZ-TMP+DS+Oral

“This medication may rarely cause a severe intestinal condition (Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea) due to a resistant bacteria. This condition may occur while receiving treatment or even weeks to months after treatment has stopped. Do not use anti-diarrhea products or narcotic pain medications if you have the following symptoms because these products may make them worse. Tell your doctor immediately if you develop: persistent diarrhea, abdominal or stomach pain/cramping, or blood/mucus in your stool.”

“Use of this medication for prolonged or repeated periods may result in oral thrush or a new yeast infection (oral or vaginal fungal infection). Contact your doctor if you notice white patches in your mouth, a change in vaginal discharge or other new symptoms.”

About the kaolin (pro-pectin)

Kaolin Interactions

Kaolin pectin may decrease the absorption of drugs that chelate with aluminum salts (eg, digoxin, clindamycin, lincomycin). Until more information is available, avoid taking kaolin with drugs that chelate with aluminum. It may also decrease the absorption of trimethoprim and quinidine.

http://www.drugs.com/npp/kaolin.html

It looks like as long as you separate the doses enough, it may be O.K.

Trimethoprim (Proloprim) interacts with KAOLIN
Kaolin might decrease the absorption and decrease the effectiveness of trimethoprim (Proloprim), an antibiotic. To avoid a potential interaction, separate trimethoprim (Proloprim) and kaolin doses by at least two hours.

http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-44-KAOLIN.aspx?activeIngredientId=44&activeIngredientName=KAOLIN

The questions about the probiotics and enzymes- I don’t know, but me, I would be leery of using the enzymes at least for the time being.

By lightly cooked meat, I meant cooked only enough to kill pathogens that may be present. The rice cooked per package directions should be fine.

[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

[Angeldogs]

I use Superflex, which is a velvet antler supplement. The glucosamine and condrointin are naturally occurring. I also have been taking it myself since 2005. It’s GREAT for senior dogs, skin issues, musculoskeletal issues/injuries, and really helps with the pain from arthritis and hip dysplasia. http://www.natraflex.com

[enny]

I subscribe to an independent supplement testing service called ConsumerLab.com. They mostly test supplements for human consumption but they sometimes test pet vitamins. Recently they tested a dog multivitamin called PetNaturals Daily Best for Dogs. This vitamin failed their test because of too much lead in a daily dose, less vitamin C than claimed and and a smaller than claimed weight per vitamin. I use a different named vitamin called Canine Plus Senior for Dogs but it’s manufactured by the same company. They manufacture under various names. The company is called Vetri Science Laboratories a division of Food Science Corp. I noticed recently that the pill I give my dog has shrunk in size too even though it’s supposed to be the same. When talking to the company rep I’ve always felt they were being evasive to my questions. I’m going to try to get a refund on my vitamins because of the poor test results. Thought you should be aware of the lead problem.

[crazy4cats]

Well, I’m using NW Naturals frozen beef nuggets right now. I believe they have chicken also. My problem is that I keep switching so many things, such as food, supplements and toppers that I’m not sure which is making the most difference. But, with the combo I mentioned above, their poops are always good except after exercise. They are then a little soft, but not runny. I think if you are not opposed to raw, the Nature’s Variety frozen raw medallions would be great, but expensive. They have the clay in them that I believe helps with colitis. Have you checked out the dogaware.com website? They have a lot of information and tips on digestive disorders. Good luck.