[Shawna]

If you cut back on the amount of food fed at each meal does she still have the vomitting? My 7 pound Shih Tzu mix would be OBESE on 1/2 cup of food per day. However I know a dogs metabolism, and therefore amounts needed, can be very different. One half cup may be the right amount for your girl.. If it is not the amount being fed I’d have her checked for thyroid or other issues that cause weight gain.

As far as Wellness Reduced Fat, I think it’s a good food. The only thing that would be better is one higher in protein still with moderate amounts of fat. If you’re feeding higher calorie or carb heavy treats it might be worth trying small pieces of boiled chicken too.

[theBCnut]

I have a dehydrator and use it a LOT for any type of meat. I also bake bite size meatballs.

[Toxed2loss]

Hi Betsy,
I have had a puppy in the house for the last 3 Christmases, I do the tree with non breakable ornaments on the bottom. I also work with the dog, reinforcing the “leave it” command with lots of praise and treats for successful experiences. In just a few minutes, I’ve had all my pups looking at me as if to say “see me leaving that alone? Do I get a treat?” I make sure to reinforce it a lot for a few days. By the third day, no problem. I should say, I do have a very stable stand, not one of those flimsy ones with the three legs. 🙂 Though we’ve never had an incident. The other thing is, I don’t put mine up for a month either. Just a couple of weeks. And of course, I don’t leave the dogs loose in the house on their own, since I’m always here. 🙂

[Anonymous]

By far the biggest reason for diabetic treatment difficulty or failure are treats between meals, can’t emphasize that enough. So, if you must do the treats ONCE the dog is regulated, that is after the sugar levels are stable, the recc for freeze dried meat or vegetables might be a good option. When you start the treats monitor the urine sugar and make sure it stays stable. But, don’t do treats until you have the dog regulated, which might be just a few weeks.

[soho]

The ingredients in greenies canine dental chews are:

INGREDIENTS: Gelatin, wheat protein isolate, glycerin, pea protein, water, potato protein, sodium caseinate, natural poultry flavor, lecithin, minerals (dicalcium phosphate, potassium chloride, magnesium amino acid chelate, calcium carbonate, zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, manganese sulfate, potassium iodide), vitamins (dl-alpha tocopherol acetate [source of vitamin E], L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate [source of vitamin C], vitamin B12 supplement, d-calcium pantothenate [vitamin B5], niacin supplement, vitamin A supplement, riboflavin supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, biotin, pyridoxine hydrochloride [vitamin B6], thiamine mononitrate [vitamin B1], folic acid), dried tomato, apple pomace, vegetable oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), ground flaxseed, dried sweet potato, cranberry fiber, dried cultured skim milk, choline chloride, taurine, decaffeinated green tea extract, carotene, chlorophyll (sodium copper chlorophyllin)

This is a treat that I definitely would not feed any dog or cat. I just started making jerky treats for dogs and cats. Here are the ingredients of the chicken variety:

Boneless skinless chicken breast.
Salt or molasses or honey depending on the variety.

That’s it. This is the kind of treat I think is species appropriate for a carnivore such as a dog or cat.

[Hound Dog Mom]

Weird I just posted on another topic (treats) and did have the edit option. I don’t on this topic or other topics I’ve posted on though.

[Hound Dog Mom]

Hi Marie,

My dogs generally get 1-2 grain-free biscuits or freeze-dried raw treats per day. Right now I have Nature’s Variety Instinct biscuits, I also frequently use Darford Zero-G and the grain-free Cloudstar Buddy Biscuits (I’ve ordered the Sojo’s grain-free biscuits before but they’re way too small for my dogs). For freeze-dried I have the Wysong Dream treats right now, I also use the Nature’s Variety Instinct and Stella & Chewy’s freeze-dried raw medallions.

After their evening walk every day they get a “kongsicle” – they each have a large kong that I layer with a 4 or 5 star grain-free kibble and the canned Fruitables Pumpkin or Sweet Potato supplement and freeze it. I use whatever kibbles I can get samples of or buy trial-sized bags of. Right now I’m using Orijen and Petcurean. It keeps them out of my hair while I make dinner lol

For training treats I use ZiwiPeak food (I buy the 8 oz. trial sized packages).

Every night before bed they get a dried trachea, bully stick or pig ear.

The only day they don’t get treats is Sunday (they fast on Sundays).

[InkedMarie]

Since I have a dog with allergy type issues, I’m pretty picky on treats. I use mostly Buddy Biscuits, SoJos duck and cherry and The Honest Kitchen ones.
What does everyone else use?

[janus69]

We should also consider that if recall is grounds not to buy a brand then we would prob be out of luck all together and unable to buy any. Here is the recall list of brands having been recalled:

ALPO
Americas Choice, Preferred Pet
Authority
Award
Best Choice
Big Bet
Big Red
Bloom
Blue Buffalo (RICE GLUTEN)
Bruiser
Cadillac
Canine Caviar Pet Foods (RICE GLUTEN)
Champion Breed Lg Biscuit
Champion Breed Peanut Butter Biscuits
Co-Op Gold
Companion
Companion’s Best Multi-Flavor Biscuit
Compliments
Costco/Kirkland Signature (RICE GLUTEN)
Demoulas Market Basket
Diamond Pet Food
Diamond Pet Food (RICE GLUTEN)
Doctors Foster & Smith
Doctors Foster & Smith (RICE GLUTEN)
Dollar General
Eukanuba Can Dog Chunks in Gravy
Eukanuba Pouch Dog Bites in Gravy
Food Lion
Giant Companion
Gravy Train
Grreat Choice
Hannaford
Happy Tails
Harmony Farms (RICE GLUTEN)
Harmony Farms Treats (RICE GLUTEN)
Health Diet Gourmet Cuisine
Hill Country Fare
Hy Vee
Hy-Vee
Iams Can Chunky Formula
Iams Can Small Bites Formula
Iams Dog Select Bites
Jerky Treats Beef Flavored Dog Snacks
La Griffe
Laura Lynn
Loving Meals
Master Choice
Meijer’s Main Choice
Mighty Dog
Mixables
Mulligan Stew Pet Food (RICE GLUTEN)
Natural Balance (RICE GLUTEN)
Natural Life
Natural Way
Nu Pet
Nutriplan
Nutro
Nutro – Ultra
Nutro Max
Nutro Natural Choice
Nuture
Ol’ Roy
Ol’ Roy 4-Flavor Lg Biscuits
Ol’ Roy Canada
Ol’ Roy Peanut Butter Biscuits
Ol’ Roy Puppy
Ol’Roy US
Paws
Perfect Pals Large Biscuits
Performatrin Ultra
Pet Essentials
Pet Life
Pet Pride / Good n Meaty
Presidents Choice
Price Chopper
Priority Canada
Priority US
Publix
Roche Brothers
Royal Canin (RICE GLUTEN)
Royal Canin Veterinary Diet (RICE GLUTEN)
Save-A-Lot Choice Morsels
Schnuck’s
Schnucks
Shep
Shep Dog
Shop Rite
SmartPak (RICE GLUTEN)
Springfield Prize
Sprout
Stater Brothers
Stater Brothers Large Biscuits
Stop & Shop Companion
Tops Companion
Triumph
Truly
Weis Total Pet
Western Family Canada
Western Family US
White Rose
Winn Dixie
Your Pet

[Shawna]

Many people did have an issue with Greenies and like Aimee said, they were reformulated. I can’t fault them for dogs choking as 2 have mine have choked multiple times and it wasn’t due to Greenies. And one of mine is a long time raw bone eater but if someone in the house drops a piece of food several of the dogs will snatch and swallow.. And a few times the food item has been too big to go down..

I found the below — take from it what you will 🙂

From Veterinarynews.DVM360
“During a Feb. 22 teleconference with media, Joe Roetheli, Greenies founder and chief executive officer, says the company financially compensated or reimbursed veterinary expenses for no more than 20 fatalities allegedly tied to the bone-shaped dog treats.” http://veterinarynews.dvm360.com/dvm/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=322331

LATimes
“KANSAS CITY, MO. — The maker of Greenies, one of the nation’s best-selling dog treats, settled a class-action lawsuit by pet owners who claimed the teeth-cleaning product injured or killed their dogs.” http://articles.latimes.com/2007/sep/18/business/fi-dogs18

Setteling a lawsuit could simply mean that they didn’t want the negative publicity a trial would bring but the reformulation makes me believe there WAS a problem.

Comsumer Affairs
“The dental chews were reformulated to be “more highly soluble and thus safer, yet effective as a daily preventive of oral disease,” the company said in a November 2007 statement.”

“A division of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has denied that it is investigating NUTRO Products Inc., whose pet foods are the subject of more than 700 complaints from consumers who say their dogs and cats became ill and, in some cases, died after eating NUTRO products.” http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/05/nutro_greenies.html

[Hound Dog Mom]

Hi Sophia –

Are you talking about real bones or dental chews?

As far as real bones, most are quite high in fat due to the marrow. I’d stick with turkey necks, chicken necks or duck necks (raw) with the skin removed. You may be able to find some lean beef neck bones, my butcher carries them sometimes.

If you’re referring to chew type treats, bully sticks are pretty low fat. If your dog likes antlers, they’re very long lasting and since most dogs actually can’t “eat” them you wouldn’t have to worry about fat content. Himalayan chews are low fat and long lasting as well.

[sophia]

My dog had a very mild pancreatitis reaction about two months ago. She just had some gas and loose stool, but tests showed elevated pancreas enzymes. Since I have been so careful with her diet, she is on low fat food, she gets boiled chicken or carrots as little treats, and that’s about it. However, the other day someone gave her a rawhide. She loved it and chewed on it for hours, but after I researched how this might affect her I had to take it away (apparently raw hides are no good for any dog, much less one with her history). What I am wondering is if there are any bones safe for dogs with her history? She’s an older girl, so something a little softer (like the softness of a rawhide) would be great. Thanks!

[janus69]

Exactly HDM, although I am guilt of giving the dog the bone from the roast. He won’t eat pigs ears though for some reason. Love bulwinkles, freeze dried liver treats(non-chinese) and sweet potato treats as well as raw carrot, sweet potato, turnup, brocolli stems, tomatoe…

[pugmomsandy]

You can go with a freeze dried or dehydrated meat treats as those won’t have carbs or very little carbs like dehydrated liver, chicken or beef or even fish.

[Hound Dog Mom]

As long as you’re feeding healthy low-glycemic treats I don’t see why your diabetic dog couldn’t have treats once in awhile. Just make sure not to overfeed – you don’t want her to gain weight. I’d imagine feeding treats between meals would actually help stabilize the blood sugar..

[janus69]

You know what Bryan, it is peoples job to post correct info. The whole purpose of this very site is correct info. The info in the forums must strive to be as correct as the review of food or the warnings of recalls or it all is for not.

And Guinessandi, as it states in the link I posted, there is NOT enough info, the examples you posted have no vet statement and in two show the treats were unsupervised. The same can occur with rawhides or nylabones if unsupervised.

[BryanV21]

Dogs love tripe as well, and you can get freeze-dried tripe to give as treats. Not only should it not cause issues due to grains being in it, but tripe is also good for the digestive system.

[MAGGIESMOM]

I just found out that my pug Maggie has diabetes.. i was told by my vet that she needs a shot of insulin twice a day right after eating.. 12 hours apart… does anyone know if they can eat anything inbetween feedings.. I have other dogs and they get healthy treats.. but I dont include maggie .. it kills me not to..

[cyndi]

we recently adopted a dobie mix from the pound. he’s 8 months old, very active because my husband works from home so he gets lots of walks and play time. we’re feeding him blue wilderness puppy food. we give him 2 cups in the morning and 2 cups at night, which is the total amount the label recommends. he also gets treats during the day, usually as rewards while we train him but sometime just because he’s adorable. but – he is a total wildman for about an hour up until meal time, running from one end of the house to the other and over to his bowl in the hopes we’ll cave. am i under-feeding him or is he just a piggy?

[rosamocosa]

my dog a minn pinn throws up when her syomach is empty i was told to gine her smaller meals more often i am doing that and it seems to work but she is gaining weight she went from 7 lbs to 10.6 in 8 months i give her wellness reduced fat i try to stay around 1/2 cup per day and i give her 2 small treats early in the morning to keep her stomach still till i feed her around 7a.m. does anyone have that problem is there a better dog food for this problem i asked my vet and he tried to tell me science diet prescription for sensitive stomachs would be better

[pugmomsandy]

I’m using grain free freeze dried foods as treats. They are small like cookies and can break apart easily to split between dogs if I want to. Currently using the ones from Instinct, Nutrisca and the Carnivore Crunch by Stella & Chewy’s. The Carnivore Crunch is small like regular size marshmallows. I also give Dr Becker Bites (liver treats). For teeth cleaning I just give them a marrow bone, or rib bone or other bone to gnaw on.

[shabbychic01]

We have a cavalier king charles spaniel female pup who is 10 months old. We got her at 4 1/2 months of age. Shortly after we got her, she started having terrible diarrhea episodes, at least once a week. We have tried different foods (all four and five stars), and she’s been seen by the vet and put on different meds, to no avail. I’ve researched chronic diarrhea extensively, and it occurred to me that the cause of this has to be SOMETHING that she ingests regularly. I know dogs can have issues with wheat, corn, soy. Her dog foods have always been wheat and corn and soy free. So it occurred to me that I gave her a daily greenie, and a daily biscuit. The first ingredient in both of these is wheat protein, and wheat flour. So I decided to only give her treats and chews with no wheat. We’re on day 3 of this experiment, and so far so good. I’ll keep you posted. I really hope this is the answer!

[jazzybinks]

Personally I have never and will never feed those treats.

Reason 1: They are made by Nutro, who makes multiple less than well dog food products that I would never feed.

Reason 2: They do not digest.

Reason 3: They cause intenstinal blocking

Reason 4: After 12 hours of giving your dog one they can still choke up large pieces still intact, because they do not digest

Reason 5: Greenies has paid for surgeries for some dogs, but still say their treats are safe.

Reason 6: The ingredients. You might as well let your dog eat flavored plastic.