[Pitlove]

If these are your choices for food the first and most important thing you are going to need to do is read up on proper calcium levels for a large breed dog like the one you are getting and you are going to need to call each company for each food and make sure that any of them meet the calcium needs of a large breed dog, as what is listed on the bag is often a minimum amount of calcium meaning they can add much much more than what is listed on the bag. make sure to ask for the as fed amount. i would not even begin to worry about anything else until you know whether or not those needs are met. making sure that from 8 weeks to 8 months old, you meet the proper calcium levels for a large breed dog is vital in preventing skeletal disorders like pano, OCD and hip dysplasia later on in life and also as early as 10 months of age.

Here is a link to a thread made by Hound Dog Mom who has owned large/giant breed dogs for many many years of her life, discussing the nutritional needs of large/giant breed dogs

/forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/

• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by Pitlove.

[Anonymous]

Hello
I am soon to be a weimaraner owner. Like every owner I with for my puppy to eat very best I plan to cook dog food when I can, but i need also dry food from time to time. Reviews on this site are very helpful but there is not many european brands. For reviewed food my choice is Acana Large breed. But there is few more brands for which I wish to hear opinion from experts. I listed links only to puppy food.

Cibau – Recomended by breader
(http://www.farmina.com/?q=en/node/100)

Brit – Recomended by breader and vet
(http://www.brit-petfood.com/products/dogs3/premium8/dry7/junior-l1111/)

Sams field – My choice because it contains 65% of meat and 30% cheaper than Acana
(http://www.samsfield.com/junior-large)

Looks promising and affordable:
Nutrivet – 80% meat grain free (http://www.new-instinct.com/dog-food/nutrivet/instinct/growth-nutrients)

Optima nova – 65% of meat (http://www.optimanova.eu/en/products/view/puppy-large-chicken-rice)

mac’s soft – 65% meat herman only (http://www.macs-tiernahrung.de/Macs-Soft/Huenchen/MACs_Soft_Puppy/MACs-Soft-Puppy-Huhn-15kg)

Simpsons – 80% of meat (http://www.simpsonspremium.com/puppy-dog-food?product_id=95)

Lower quality brands :
Meradog – (http://www.meradog.com/en/products/high-premium-puppy/sort-overview/junior2.html)

Josera – (http://www.josera-dog.com/premium/junior/)

[Carrie K]

I wrote before about an issue with my shepherd mix having with frequent UTIs, and I just brought her back to the vet after seeing yet more blood in her urine. They did an x-ray and found that she has four large stones in her bladder, and the vet said she had to have a prescription food (Hills, of course, which I’ve always blasted against) to dissolve them. If it will help her get better and not be in pain anymore, I suppose I’d be willing to feed it for a VERY short time. However, the vet also mentioned that she’d “have to be on a prescription diet for the rest of her life,” which I can only take to mean that they’re hoping to continue selling this crap to us for the foreseeable future.

My question is this: is there a resource where I can get a second opinion on this sort of thing (all vets in my area carry Hills, and I have a suspicion they’d all give us the same answer)? I read the ingredients/feeding instructions, and from what I can see, this food is going to starve her of everything she needs to thrive. The first four ingredients are water, corn starch, egg product, and chicken fat, for goodness sake! It also has an AAFCO statement that it’s only intended for intermittent or supplemental feeding. So what now??

[Pitlove]

agreed i’d love to see more than just two protein sources from them. here’s hoping they come out with more.

Also I just realized the Duck has chicken in it, so people definitely need to make sure they still read the label if their dog can not have chicken. I also wish NV would stop using Tapioca and do sweet potatoe or something else as a binder.

[Dori]

Jennifer have you called Dr. Dodd’s office or the number on your Nutri-Scan test and spoken to them about these results? Explaining to them that you are questioning the results? Perhaps they can re do the test free of charge.

I believe Nutri-Scan has the popularity that it does because of Dr. Dodd’s reputation. She has done fabulous research in regard to the thyroid. I had my allergy girl do the Nutri-Scan test a while back and outside of everything I already knew I really did not get any new information with the exception that it showed her to be sensitive/intolerant of white fish. Funny thing is it’s one of the few foods that Katie does really really well on. Just saying. I follow Dr. Dodd’s work because one of my other dogs is treated for hypothyroidism for many years. I’m not saying the test results for your dog are inaccurate, I’m just saying that there can be some issues with the test.

I figured out all of Katies food issues through a very long time of trial and error and a process of elimination of ingredients not necessarily having to do with the main protein in the food. Her biggest is that she cannot deal with any fowl whatsoever regardless of where it is on the ingredient list. Initially I thought it was just chicken. Turned out is was anything having feathers. Good Luck!

• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by Dori.

[Pitlove]

Sorry to repost, but I never got an answer and I’m still really curious if anyone has info about this. I posted this one page ago

Hey guys,
was reading through the front few pages for some help with a question about pano. i kind of got most of my answer but i guess i still have some questions..heres the story
i work at petco as some of you know already and i had a customer today whos 5 mo lab has already been diagnoised with pano. her vet recommended a senior dog food that was low in protein because she explained that high protein can cause over growth in large breed puppies. i thought that sounded weird but i really didnt want to completely be rude and go against her vet (since im in a professional setting) but i did mention to her what i know from Hound Dog Mom about calcium levels etc. i read through some of the articles HDM posted and saw that the protein theory was debunked but some vets still hold on to that. why is that? lack of education about recent research or what? SHOULD a dog that already HAS pano be on low protein? or is that not true either? i guess i’m wondering if the low protein diet her vet recommended was because the dog already has pano and its no longer a matter of preventing it

[crazy4cats]

Hi Kirsten-
Sorry about the troubles with your pup. I also have experienced a blockage due to struvite crystals with one of my cats. It was terrifying and expensive! They gave him only a 50% chance of surviving due to bladder damage. I have probably read 50 to 60 articles regarding this issue since. The most important thing is like the others have said, add as much moisture as possible. I read on another thread where you said your dog wouldn’t eat the Hill’s C/D canned. Right after my cats blockage, I fed him a variety of Rx canned that included, Hills Iams, Purina and Royal Canin. Your doc will need to give you a prescription for these, if you want to give them a try. Pet Smart carries a lot of Rx food as well as chewy.com. He also got a little Royal Canin S/O kibble. I have gradually transitioned off the Rx canned over a 6 month period to just regular canned food, but still feed the prescription kibble. He gets about 75% canned food now and forever! I also read that frequent small meals help to keep their pH level more balanced. So, I now feed three times per day instead of two. He also is now on an anti-anxiety meds and is wearing a calming collar to help keep his stress level down.
Sometimes these flare ups can be brought on from stress due to changes in routine, new family members, etc. . We made too many changes in our household too quickly for him to handle. It’s been about 7 months and he’s doing much better so far.
So, in my opinion, try out the other prescription canned foods until you get the crystals under control and then transition to as much regular canned, fresh or dehydrated food as possible. Regular bathroom breaks, smaller meals more frequently and keep the stress levels down. There are also supplements that help with Ph level as LM mentioned. Good luck!

• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by crazy4cats.

[J S]

Update on our 2 dogs with struvite crystals. The girl with the recurring UTIs and previous-to-being-adopted-stone-surgery is getting more water with her food and getting out to pee more often. Trying to be calmer on our walks so that she can pee as often as she wants/needs to (every five feet if there are good smells around!). She hasn’t exhibited the crawl-peeing of an infection the last two days and has never exhibited pain when peeing. As soon as the crawl-peeing showed up I added 500 mg of vit c to each meal and she’s already getting a scoop of Cranberry Relief in the morning and a scoop of Wysong Biotic Ph with dinner, and eating the Royal Canin S/O with a little wet food. I’m also using Colloidal Silver (10 drops each meal for 2 days, then 6 drops, until 2 days after symptoms ended. Her pH this morning was 6.75. I’ve used Vit C and colloidal silver on myself when I was told I had a UTI. I really dislike using antibiotics unless extremely necessary. Here’s a website on C.S. by a holistic vet: http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blogspot.com/2013/08/colloidal-silver-diy-treatment-for-dogs.html . Our boy dog shows no signs of a UTI and his ph on regular diet is 5.75. Next time we run out of food I’m going to switch from All Stages Canidae to their grain-free version to see if that will help with our girl. If anyone has found a difference using distilled water please let me know. I know our country water is a little on the hard side so that would be the next best thing to try. We’d also started giving her a glucosamine/MSM pill which I see includes other minerals which may have contributed to her last crystal-forming. She sure felt like a puppy on that even with signs of an infection, but obviously we’re still learning! I’m thinking her recurrent infections are because of her psyche as well as nearly touching the ground when she pees, and she’s also part husky and loves to dig in the dirt, which flies right back through her hind legs.

[Tonia N]

I have my reader updated, I am not able to ‘print’ the list off so I can take it to the store… The print icon is grayed out… I am wanting to know if there is a way I can print it off to a hard copy.

[Kirsten W]

After reading everyone’s stories and gaining some advice, I thought I would share Luna’s story. Luna is a 2yr 10month old cavachon, in January she was taken for emergency surgery for bladder stones. One was stuck in her urethra and she was rushed to a specialist after 4 days of not being able to go for a wee after her op, they were constantly having to drain her bladder poor thing. Since then she has had 2 UTI’s and it seems like she is constantly on antibiotics, today she is going back for treatment of another possible UTI. We were advised to out her on Hills c/d food which she hates and I don’t blame her! So we have switched her back to her pate which has high moisture levels and the hills biscuit. Her last urine sample showed she still had crystals and the vets don’t seem to know how to get rid of these, after reading everyone’s comments on this page, I am going to ask my vet today about cranberry capsules and vitamin C. I will do anything for her to not have these stones again as one was the size of a large peanut and she is only a small dog. They removed over 25 total and we know she had passed 3. It was the worst time of my life seeing her in so much pain, to the point where she nipped me when I touched her Fter she tried to wee and rolled on her back in pain. So glad I have insurance on her as the operation and days following would have cost £7000 each round of urine tests and antibiotics is costing me £80 every 4-6 weeks.
Is there anything else people can suggest? She has water put in her food plus water all, day and constant access to the garden.
Thank you

[Susan]

If you read the test your dog can have rice duck lamb & don’t forget the Nutri-Scan Salvia test, test for JUST 20 foods only so there’s probably other foods like Tapioca etc that your dog can eat …. your dog can eat the “California Natural” Lamb & Rice that has just 4 ingredients Lamb, white rice, brown rice & sunflower oil.. or the best thing I would do is feed raw diet that way you are in control of all the ingredients…….
Your dog has just proven LM WRONG she always goes on on that your dog cant have food intolerances chances are your dog has environment allergies, see a Dermatologist for environment testing & waste $2000 then what, how do stop all the pollens in the air, all grass on ground, you cant the Nutri-Scan test has proven LM her wrong.. Dogs do have Food Intolerances..
Jean Dodds has the only & best IgA & IgM salvia testing around….

[Pitlove]

Hi Tonia- Marie did actually point you in a good direction if you are interested in feeding raw/homemade. Hound Dog Mom who is the one who made the thread focusing on large/giant breed puppies does in fact feed a raw homemade diet and talks about it in that thread. It is however a very long thread but a good and helpful thread. Unfortunetly large breed puppies have certain diet requirements until 8mo’s of age that help prevent many diabilitating skeletal diseases, that can end up costing thousands of dollars in vet bills.

Hound Dog Mom has a list of foods that have the proper calcium levels for large/giant breed puppies, some are grain-free and others are grain-inclusive. I would start there and figure out what your budget IS and then compare a few that she has on her list and see if any are budget friendly enough. They are all 4 to 5 star in quality so if you are looking for something 3 stars or lower to save money A) that list won’t be too helpful and B) the food may not have the correct calcium levels a large breed puppy needs.

[Pitlove]

Linda- Rotties! i love them. we also have a Rottweiler along with our Pitbull a chocolate lab and an English springer spaniel. Sam, our Rottweiler (technically he is my boyfriends parents dog, so I dont get to control what he eats unfortunetly but i still think of him as my dog since I give him the most attention as hes the outside dog) is 2 probably almost 3 years old now. The bf’s parents have had all the dogs on Purina ONE lamb and rice since forever. The family dog has always been Rottweilers and unfortunely all but maybe one passed away at around 8 years old. Cancer, e-coli poisoning, you name it its happened to our Rottweilers. If it were up to me and I got to choose his food I would feed him the way I feed my Pitbull who is also prone to the problems that large breed dogs have as he is 66lbs at a year old. I do what is called a rotational diet with my dog. I certainly have him on Orijen’s Adult Dog and after that bag is through i’ve got EVO lined up next for him to try. I also feed him wet food. Now that your Rottie is far past the point where you have to worry about the calcium levels not being too high or too low to prevent rapid growth thus causing many different skeletal related disorders, you can kinda give him a nice variety of foods. If you are on a budget as someone who is retired and need to stick with kibbles, definitely go for the 5 star rated ones. I know a lot of people on here have issues with Taste of the Wild. I BELIEVE its manufacture by Diamond which has a long recall history and a terrible reputation. You want to make sure that the kibble is as species appropriate as you can get if you, like myself, can’t feed a raw diet, which would be the healthiest way for any dog to eat. Species appropriate for ANY dog of any breed being high in animal protein, at least 30% or more, moderate in fats, and low in carbs. Foods that I like and have and will use in my rotation for my pitbull are Orijen (all of them), Wellness CORE, Nature’s Variety, Merrick (GF only), EVO, Grandma Mae’s GF. I’m still working on my list but that is what I have so far.

As for raw, if it is something you are interested in, PLEASE make sure you do A LOT of research before feeding raw because it is possible to make your dog very unhealthy by not feeding a COMPLETE and BALANCED raw diet.

Also to help with the transitions to the food, you can add probiotics to their diet, like canned pumpkin and kefir. I also use a supplement thats premade in a power form made by a very great company called The Honest Kitchen. They use human grade ingredients and make their food in a human grade factory. Its called Perfect Form. Probiotics help build healthy flora(bacteria) in your dogs gut to make transitioning to a new food pain free for you and your dog. Just like with humans dogs should be able to eat a different food or protein every meal if not every couple months without digestive upset. Dogs whos stomachs are already sick and lacking those bacteria that make their gut strong due to being fed the same food day in and day out are the ones who get loose stool and vomitting when you switch their food. Instantly the owner blames the food and switches them back and never switches the food again under the claim that their dog has whats commonly called a “sensitive stomach”.

The joint supplements are a great idea. Glucosamine is a great supplement for joint and hip problems. Cancer, I feel, and I think others do too can have a lot to do with a poor diet. A lot of poor grade dogs foods do contain ingredients that are carcinogenic even for humans and without variety in their diet they are being fed those toxins for years and eventually is catches up with them. The rotational diet helps prevent that and the build up of allergies as well. If your Rottie is already allergic to a protein source like chicken, you are going to want to be very careful with the food you choose as many have chicken meal or chicken fat hidden in the list of ingredients. Its all about reading ingredients but more importantly HOW to read the ingredients and the GA, which is why this website is so helpful. But like many here including Dr. Mike will tell you, its a jumping off point. Once you find a good food, you want to look further into the company that makes it, the co-packers, the recall history etc and make sure that you’re not being fooled into thinking its a good food based on the ingredients. Also knowing where the company sources from is important, what with all the problems we have been having with China lately. Avoid China. Thailand on the other hand is ok.

I really hope that I’ve helped a little and that others will contribute or correct me if I’m wrong about any of my points. I love Rotties so I’m glad to be able to give you some direction with his health!

• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by Pitlove.
• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by Pitlove.

[InkedMarie]

I personally think a grainfree food would be a good choice. You have a large breed dog that will probably get some arthritis in coming years; grains can be inflammatory. There are a couple good foods that are low grain: Nature’s Logic only has millet and Farmina low grain is obviously low in grains.

Some foods I like are Farmina, Annamaet, Dr Tim’s, Natures Logic….

I’ve read that people think a raw diet is best for cancer dogs; I do feed raw but not because of that.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Jamie F:
I can understand a busy life with family obligations! Making sure your dogs are eating properly can certainly add to the already stressful routine of taking care of your family. However, I also hope you re-consider eliminating canned foods. Here is a post with information about the benefits of canned foods:
/choosing-dog-food/canned-or-dry-dog-food/

It’s possible the canned food does not agree with them or maybe you are over-feeding a little. When you add canned or fresh foods reduce the amount of kibble to compensate for the added calories. You could even alternate between fresh foods and canned. If you still decide to eliminate the canned I suggest you continue to add boiled chicken or other dog appropriate meat to their diet. Fresh foods are a healthy addition to a kibble based diet. To keep your dogs’ diet balanced when feeding unbalanced foods, such as boiled chicken, be sure to keep the amount to no more than 10% of their daily caloric intake. Here’s info on adding fresh foods to a kibble diet:
http://dogaware.com/diet/freshfoods.html
You can find info on food calories here:
http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/

As pitlove has already mentioned, consider feeding a rotational diet for variety. Look for several kibbles with different protein and carb sources. Check out the four and five star rated foods on DFA. If you buy from pet stores take the lists with you to help narrow down your choices.
/dog-food-reviews/dry/4-star/
/dog-food-reviews/dry/5-star/
Here’s some info on rotational feeding:
/frequently-asked-questions/diet-rotation-for-dogs/

L M’s suggestion for soaking the kibble and adding broth would be another option if you decide to stop feeding canned.

The Honest Kitchen Perfect Form is a supplement that contains ingredients to help with digestive upsets and firm loose stools, however it’s not a probiotic. Canned plain pumpkin helps with both loose stools or constipation.
3.2 oz Perfect Form Herbal Digestive Supplement
http://www.petmd.com/dog/slideshows/nutrition/3-health-benefits-pumpkin-dogs

Probiotics contain helpful live bacteria that may help with digestion. Adding a probiotic to their diet may also help with their gas and with transitioning to new foods. You could try something as simple as plain yogurt that contains live cultures or plain kefir; be sure they contain no artificial sweeteners. Here’s some info on feeding yogurt & kefir:
http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blogspot.com/2012/05/foods-rich-in-probiotics-beneficial-for.html
Here’s some info on probiotics:
http://www.dogaware.com/articles/suppsdigestive.html#probiotics

I have used yogurt, kefir, and Swanson’s Ultra Soil Based Organisms when my dog had skin and fur issues in the past. He is doing well now so I don’t supplement with any at this time. I currently feed Actipet Ultra Probiotic to my cat for his skin and digestion issues. It has helped him a great deal. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[Linda K]

Hi Jake’s Mom, Pitlove and InkedMarie. Thanks for your responses.

Pitlove, thanks so much for your follow-up questions. I have a Rotweiller who is 3.5 yrs old. I am very upset with myself for feeding him Purina Puppy Chow until he was a year old and feel I did not given him the best chance in his formative year to be as healthy as he could be over the course of his lifetime. But he seems to be healthy so far with just a few normal problems….allergies, gas, etc.

The things I am concerned about are bloat (one of the girls from his litter died from it), hip dysplasia, which I know is common to many large breeds, and in particular, I am concerned about cancer. I recently researched brands to change him off of Science Diet, which I moved him to after Purina, but it turns out that Science Diet is not very good either. I read some reviews about Taste of the Wild High Prairie Formula which gets 5 stars from DogFoodAdvisor. I also read some reviews for this brand and within the first 5 or 6, two of the people were Rotweiller owners and they both said it was excellent. One said that his Rotweillers usually die fairly early due to cancer, but this food has kept his new ones healthy. It really scared me because I did not realize that Rotties were genetically predisposed to certain types of cancer. So I got it immediately…..but I wanted to see if there might be anything even better since I apparently have not given him the benefits of great nourishment up to this point. I want to make up for lost time, and I will spare no expense (even though I am retired). So far, he seems to be doing well on the new food but has loose stools. I am doing it very gradually. I am also giving him a supplement for hips and joints that was recommended by his vet.

So, I guess in a nutshell, I wrote because I wanted to be sure I am doing all I can for him and have made a good choice this time.

Sorry this is so long. Thanks!

[Pitlove]

Hey guys,
was reading through the front few pages for some help with a question about pano. i kind of got most of my answer but i guess i still have some questions..heres the story

i work at petco as some of you know already and i had a customer today whos 5 mo lab has already been diagnoised with pano. her vet recommended a senior dog food that was low in protein because she explained that high protein can cause over growth in large breed puppies. i thought that sounded weird but i really didnt want to completely be rude and go against her vet (since im in a professional setting) but i did mention to her what i know from Hound Dog Mom about calcium levels etc. i read through some of the articles HDM posted and saw that the protein theory was debunked but some vets still hold on to that. why is that? lack of education about recent research or what? SHOULD a dog that already HAS pano be on low protein? or is that not true either? i guess i’m wondering if the low protein diet her vet recommended was because the dog already has pano and its no longer a matter of preventing it

[jakes mom]

I know what you mean! The trial has 10#, 4 each of chix and turkey and 2# duck. I just read an old post here tho. Said something about not using grinds for cats because bacteria will eat taurine? Hope somebody can comment on that! I’m not sure how this will go. Dustin likes freezedried Primal and fresh meat and Julie likes fresh, the others not really interested at all. Nobody will eat the frozen. Might end up cancelling after this trial or maybe just changing the auto ship to a longer interval if I’m only going feed to one or 2 instead of all of them. Would be better for them and save me from lugging so many cans home!

[jella]

Dear LT, Champion did get back with me right away about the alfalfa percentage. It is a very small amount 3 %. So I agree with you about they are probably careful (hopefully) about cleaning it out if it has been sprayed with pesticides. They have been really helpful and answered all the emails. The KiwiPeak company hasn’t even bothered to answer a question I wrote days ago. So I am going to try the 6 fish formula that the company rep suggested to try first. It was a lot cheaper than the freeze dried and my dog probably eats like your dog. I will try to look see what they suggest for his weight. Just ordered it from Chewy.com. So thank you for copying everything for me and getting right back to me so fast. I hope they ship fast, he is getting used to these fried hamburgers and special foods given to him each night. LOL Oh the vet said he wasn’t allergic to virgin coconut oil so maybe I can supplement this with his dry food. At least 1 Tbl. spoon full for his hair to grow back. I read where Virgin Coconut oil kills viruses, bacteria, and fungus infections in humans I am assuming it works the same way for dogs.

[Pitlove]

somebodysme- see a doctor about a chill pill. I have fed BB and my dog didnt have side effects either. however he stopped eating it one day. i think you missed the point where i mentioned how BB is very overpriced and they have been dishonest for a year about what is in their food. me and many other people do not like giving money to a company who can’t even be honest about what is in their bags. it’s not my “expert advice” its my opinion. and i’m not alone in the feeling. plently of people on this site and in this thread dont feed BB anymore.

c4c (who I respect on here) and you might have given your dogs popcorn in the past but its not one of the human foods i choose to share with my dog. again my opinion. and it’s also my opinion that im not surprised he got an upset stomach with all the butter on popcorn. not saying its dangerous for them to eat just saying i can see how their stomach could get upset from it. no reason for the temper tantrum.

[Dori]

I give all three dogs Sentinel Spectrum once every 30 days. Hannah gets Denamarin every single day 1 – 1 1/2 hours before dinner every single day. I don’t give milk thistle separate for either of the other two. I’ve been giving all three (and other dogs I’ve had in my 66 years) heart worm medication all their lives every 30 days. I got a little negligent at one point over the winter and then I read losul’s HW with Turbo and decided to get back to their routine. Milk thistle I think is contraindicated, I THINK, from what I’ve read….maybe Shawna????, don’t remember….for a few days after because maybe it intensifies the HW?????? Don’t really remember. It was so long ago. Maybe it had something to do with milk thistle and vaccinations???? Wish I remembered so I could give you a clearer picture. My routine for my girls is Sentinel every 30 days regardless. Hannah gets Denamarin which contains milk thistle every single day. Katie and Lola never get milk thistle or Denamarin as I’ve read research that I shouldn’t give them liver support or kidney support if it’s not necessary. Anyway, this is my routine with my girls and all is going well here. I use a lot of holistic and homeopathic things in my home but I don’t experiment with the dogs. My routine has worked for them and losul’s experience with Turbo honestly scared the crap out of me. My girls are way too small to deal with HW treatments. I know a lot of people are against HW preventative, that’s not me. Vets in my area still use the arsenic cure for HW. I can’t imagine putting teeny tiny dogs through arsenic poisoning in hopes it kills the heart worms and doesn’t suffocate the dogs while the “cure” is happening. I’ve been using Sentinel Spectrum since it’s introduction a while back and no adverse reactions with any of the girls. Living in the South (Georgia) we have a lot to deal with. Fleas, ticks, worms, what have you.

[zcRiley]

I had the exact same problem. My sensitive pups were born into Orijen and all of a sudden in year two, appetite loss, scratching, and liquid diarrhea. My vet wasn’t helpful, tried to push pills & Science Diet.

I didn’t think I’d find a comparable kibble if I subtracted poultry, potato, egg, high glycemic fillers, you name it. Also, there’s too much weight loss with limited ingredient formulas. But I found it, thanks to this site.

Try Zignature Zssentials. It’s a 5 star formula under the 4 star brand Zignature. Looks & smells very close to Orijen Adult. Read the ingredients & see what it DOESN’T contain. I did a cold turkey change, had award winning stools within 48 hours.

I now change the topper per meal with good stuff like ZiwiPeak dry dehydrated & Weruva soft canned varieties (looks & smells like human grade). They now look & act like different dogs, I swear.

[Lisa H]

We just adopted a 7 week old mini dachshund puppy. She is our second mini dachshund. We lost our 13 year old mini doxie this past December to pancreatitis. We were heartbroken and finally decided we were ready to love another. So we are a little nervous and maybe a little overprotective right now. The breeder sent her home with a bag of Purina Dry Puppy Chow and a can of Retriever brand canned puppy food. We knew we wanted to switch her to a higher quality dry puppy food. The sales clerk at PetSmart recommended Royal Canin Dry Puppy food for Dachshunds. I see on here it is only rated 3 stars. She is still so tiny and only eating a very little amount at a time. We are transitioning her from the Purina to the Royal Canin by mixing a little of the new with the old, a little more each feeding. She is not drinking water yet out of a bowl so we are soaking her dry food in water to soften it and to get water in her. I just want to feed her the best we can. Should I switch to a 5 star rated food and should we stick with the a breed specific food? She is the runt of the litter and a still a little wobbly on her feet. The breeder said to keep food available to her at all times right now which we are doing. We try to get her to eat every time she wakes up from a nap and she does most of the time eat a little each time. Any recommendations or advice would be appreciated.

[aquariangt]

There is nothing necessarily breed specific needed here. You do need to feed a large breed appropriate food, and in Canine Nutrition, there is a giant thread with tons of information about it. Read the links in the first 3-4 pages, skip to page 35/36 and get Hound Dog Mom’s most recent document on large breed accepted foods

[Dori]

Dog Obsessed. I have also read, heard, and been told that anal glands should not be expressed on a regular basis and, in fact, if you take your dogs to groomers the groomers should be told not to express their anal glands. You can find many many articles from learned doctors on the subject. They should also not be removed unless, of course, in cases of tumors or cancer. I’m sure that’s not Lily’s problems or your vet would already be aware of it.

I’ve tried to read thoroughly the posts here on this never and if I missed it I’m sorry for asking but….did you mention anywhere what the consistency is of Lily’s poops? In almost every case that is the reason for anal issues and scooting. Either their poops are not hard enough to push through and squeeze out the scent through the anal glands along with the poop or the scooting is due to a diet intolerance/sensitivity or allergy and their butt is itchy and they scoot to scratch or lick it because it’s itchy or burning in feel to them.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by Dori.

[Pitlove]

bdog- i completely understand what you mean. i dont think any of the regulars here or even people like me who havent been on this forum for too long, but visit it everyday would assume that you are telling any of us that how you feed is the only way to feed. i came to this thread to look for some budget but healthy options for canned food for my cat and its been very helpful! the point of this thread has been well maintained

[Pitlove]

Bdog- Thanks for the list and the email notice from Purina. I would feel completely comfortable with a lot of these foods if they didn’t contain meat and poultry by-products. Everytime I see those words I literally can’t get past it and can’t bring myself to buy it. But then there is always that problem of money. Feeding an all canned diet to my cat and doing canned and kibble for my dog and trying to give them good quality food is killing my wallet. She has a much better stomach than my dog does, but I still don’t know how to get past the by-products. How have your cats medical history been eating those foods? I know that Dr.Pierson says by-products aren’t all bad because a cat WOULD eat them in the wild, and it does make me feel a little better reading that email from Purina, but do you think they legally HAVE to be honest about that to a random consumer?

[Allison M]

I know this is kind of an old topic but my beagle does this as well. She was diagnosed with Bilious Vomiting Syndrome. She will start gulping and frantically licking the carpet along the walls to eat dust and fur. Sometimes she starts eating the carpet. If I stop her from doing this or if she can’t find any dust to eat she will start pulling her own fur out and eating it off of her body, then she will vomit. I feed her 4 meals a day and she also gets Pepcid. If I see her start gulping I will feed her a small handful of her kibble and this almost immediately fixes the problem. It sounds like many of the dogs on this forum are suffering from the same Bilious Vomiting Syndrome that my dog Rosie has. You guys can read about it here: http://www.furrycritter.com/health/dogs/Bilious_vomiting_syndrome.htm
This page also has very helpful info on Bilious Vomiting Syndrome, be sure to click view full answer: http://www.justanswer.com/dog-health/33nu4-dog-will-not-stop-licking-carpet-started-today.html
They key is many small snacks throughout the day! Hope this helps!

[Bobby dog]

Hey everybody!!!
Just popping in real quick, good to hear from everybody!!!

pitlove:
You’re welcome!

I am sooooo jealous of you, what’s it like not to have a finicky cat? I heard there were such creatures, but I began thinking it was just urban legend!!

The cats I have had throughout the years ate whatever I got at the grocery store or discount grocery outlet and it was mostly dry food. A few developed health problems that I feel a bad diet helped exacerbate. If I ever get another kitten or cat they will be started out right with wet food. Hopefully no dry, but I do understand the convenience factor. I have had allot of family emergencies over the past few years so I don’t know if I could rule out dry completely.

I will stop back later with my grocery store food list and others I have either tried or currently feed. I have to proof read the list to make sure I have it updated.

Jakes mom:
Yes, the outdoors are calling!!! Unfortunately, this year my garden will be scaled way back due to a family member with health issues. I am not sure what time I will have to devote to the garden and I don’t want to plant a bunch of stuff only to have it over grow with weeds. Bobby has been at my side most of the time for yard work. He does get bored easily and slips away to hang out on the porch. I am sure I will catch him peeing in the garden at some point or finding a bunny nest! lol

My hyper-t kitty had the best wellness check-up he’s ever had a few months ago. My Vet was thrilled with his weight and the condition of his coat! He does eat the best out of all of them though, he’s the only one that will eat most anything.

weezerweeks:
I’ll check out my list and see if any brands I feed or have tried come in larger cans. I get that whole budget thing.

C4C:
Didn’t know WEF made cat food. I’ll have to check out the pet store I go to that sells it. I will always try a new food, you never know what they will eat.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Weezerweeks!
I’m so glad all the kitties made it. That is quite an accomplishment. Are they free to come and go or are they enclosed? I’ve seen Wellness in large cans, but it is quite a bit more expensive. And, actually 4Health may also. It is a budget food, but only sold at Tractor Supply.

Hi pitlove-
Thanks for checking out the cat thread! We needed some new input! I also use Friskies in my rotation due to having 4 kitty mouths, two large dogs and some humans thrown in there too. I like BDog, have a senior kitty that has a thyroid issue and has to eat or would have a serious health condition. She loves Friskies, Fancy Feast and Sheba. I also feed Nutro Max, Wellness and Halo canned foods as well at the current time. You never know when they decide they don’t like something, however. I try to use coupons whenever possible.

[Anonymous]

“it says that regular expression of the anal glands can make problems worse because they will then will fill up faster. Has anyone else heard of this”?

I don’t believe this is true, years ago when I did not know how to routinely express my dogs anal glands, I was at the vets office several times a year for treatment.
Once I learned how to do it myself, I never needed the vets expertise for these issues again. The trick is to catch it before it builds up, just a quick squirt here and there.
Once they are dragging their behind on the floor, you already have an impaction, once it becomes infected the vet has to take care of it and antibiotics may be indicated.

As far as what treatments the dermatologist has to offer, that would depend on his findings after testing and examination.
For example if the dog has environmental allergies and immunotherapy was recommended, this is the most natural way to go, the shots (also available sublingual) are not medication.

My dog is doing so well after 2 years, she may be able to be tapered off….she will see her specialist next week, we only go once a year.

PS: Not all dogs have these anal gland issues, tends to be more common with small breeds….out of about 7 dogs 2 of mine had this problem, but I think I have avoided potential problems by routine expression on vulnerable dogs.
Of course, check with your vet first, the easiest time to do it is when you are giving the dog a bath.

[Dori]

Darwin’s is reviewed. Check on the review side under raw foods. If you are looking to see Darwin’s on the Editor’s Choice list, I doubt very highly that it will ever show up there because Darwin’s is not readily available to all. It has to be ordered from their web site on an auto delivery service and not everyone can afford the delivery fees which are not outrageous for a raw frozen food but when added to the cost of the food it’s a bit high for most. But anyway, Darwin’s cannot be bought in stores.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 7 months ago by Dori.

[Bobby dog]

Labs:
4 Health is a decent food for cats, however mine don’t care for the brand. My one senior female will eat the GF Whitefish and Chicken dinner occasionally, but I really don’t like feeding a fish based food wet or dry too often. If I do, I prefer smaller species because they are likely to contain less contaminates. Wellness and Tiki cat have recipes that use either sardines or menhaden that I prefer.

pitlove:
This is a long thread and you would have to have the time to read through our trials and tribulations of transitioning our cats to a more species appropriate diet. The regular posters on this thread have written about spending several years trying to transition to other foods. We mostly have dry food addicts; not a healthy form of food for kitties. My cats grew up eating grocery store foods and like what they like. They are 7, 10, 12, and two are 17 years old. It is very dangerous, even life threatening, for cats to go on hunger strikes. I for one am not willing to risk my cats life if it comes down to a hunger strike. So rather than dwelling on the negatives of Purina I keep my cats eating consistently for good health and keep searching for other foods to try. As far as Purina products go I have a list of a few recipes from different lines I feed that IMO have the least offensive ingredients for my cats. Some have little or no fish, none have glutens, most have no added colors, some no grains, all are under 11% carbs for UT health, and probably other things I have forgotten about. Since wet foods make up a majority of their diet any food I feed must be 12% DMB carbs or under for their UT health.

A quote from Dr. Pierson, DVM of catinfo.org:
“…I would much rather see a cat eat any canned food versus any dry food – regardless of quality level of the canned or dry food. This includes Friskies, 9-Lives, Fancy Feast, etc., canned options.”

Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition

My cats have transitioned to about 3/4 of their diets being canned foods. Wet foods are the healthiest for cats. My cats have passed all wellness visits (blood work included) over the last several years and the couple that were chubby have lost the extra weight. Paying attention to the recipes regardless of the quality of the brand has made a significant difference in their health.

I feed them a variety of commercial raw, canned, and dry foods. I only have one cat that is not finicky so my dog gets any leftovers from a new food that does not go over well with them. If you would like my list of what I call my cats’ “grocery store foods” just post and I will be happy to share. I also have a list of premium foods wet/dry/commercial raw if you are interested. And, welcome to the Cat Rec thread. The cat lovers on DFA post here about any cat topic!

Here’s my favorite cat sites:

Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition

Home

http://www.naturalcatcareblog.com/
http://www.felinecrf.org/
The last site is for a specific feline health issue; I have found the site helpful in regards to foods to try.

[Pitlove]

As Cesar has pointed out many times a fear based dog doesn’t just charge and attack without warning like a truly aggressive or “red zone” dog would. A dog with pure aggression is not going to wait for you to do something he doesn’t like, he’s just going to attack.

I recently had an experience with a dog that had dug himself under a fence and was stuck on the other side of his fence on 5 inches of a tie-out. When I came up to him to try to help him he was barking at me. Most people would have been terrified thinking the dog was aggressive. To me it was obvious that he wasn’t aggressive, he was simply territorial. However since I really couldn’t help the dog since I can’t just open someones fence and put their dog back in their yard I called animal control and they grabbed him. He did not bite the officer, he did not try to do anything to her at all. In fact he lowered his head when she approached him and let her put the leash lead on him.

I told her when she got here that he didn’t seem aggressive just territorial.

As much as you might think you can’t “read” a dog, you certainly can. Which is why Cesar’s idea of DOG psychology works so well. I personally don’t think I’m the god of training dogs now, but what I have taken away from the show is how to interpert dog’s queues a lot better.

[Kandi S]

I did a search about prenatal vitamins and if men can take one as a daily multivitamin or not. I was surprised to read what types of vitamins a male vs a female human should and shouldn’t take, the differences in their amounts as well as their bad side affects according to gender and the importance of where our vitamins, minerals, etc… are derived from according to our gender. Then it struck me what about a male dog vs a female dog or any pet and should they be given a different intake of vitamins according to their gender? In male humans for example; some levels of vitamins and minerals as well as where they are derived from can cause everything from a higher risk of getting prostrate cancer to heart disease. The same for females that can suffer from weak bones to fetal birth defects if they don’t get enough Calcium or Foliate Acid. I was just wondering if anyone has considered this when reading their pet food labels and if they purchase different foods according to the sexes of their dog’s and other pets? Below is just an example of one of the articles I read about that states when choosing Omega 3’s in a human male diet to make sure it’s derived from fish oil and not flax seed oil because it has been shown to increase the risk of prostate cancer in men. So, if you own a male dog vs a female dog you might want to consider these facts even though this articles facts are according to human diets. Thanks!

Increased Risk of Prostate Cancer:
While most prenatal vitamins include only vitamins and essential minerals, some include omega supplements as well. Omega 3 is derived from flax oil and has been shown to increase the risk of prostate cancer in men. Omega 3 derived from fish oil, on the other hand, has been shown to inhibit prostate cancer, so it is important to determine what type of Omega 3 (if any) is in prenatal vitamins before taking them.
Read more : http://www.ehow.com/about_5042316_prenatal-vitamins-effects-men.html

[J S]

Thought I should register and share our story since I’ve gained so much info from all of your stories. We just found out dog #2 ALSO has struvite crystals and high pH, so I’ve been researching foods. Both dogs have been on Canidae All Stages kibble with water and mix-ins (human leftovers or soup, etc.). Both are 1/2 Saluki and from a great rescue organization in NorCal called Stola. I’m beginning to think this breed is high strung, and if not, their early years of abuse or neglect has probably not helped them be mellow, however, we’ve seen improvements lately even in the one we’ve had for two years now, so that tells us to never give up. Anyway, I was angered by someone’s message whose doctor said there was no alternative to Science Diet. That stuff is cr** and it makes me mad that Vet’s are pushers of that. We have our #1 dog (who did have stone surgery just before we adopted her) on part Royal Canin, which probably isn’t much better. We did it all the time for several weeks but she blimped up because of the chicken fat. We used NaturVet Cranberry Relief for awhile but that didn’t prevent a 2nd UTI a year later, so that’s when we started swimming the kibble in water and going out to pee every four hours as well. Now we have to do the same with #2 dog. There’s no sign of infection, but we want to get the pH lower. Even though Canidae is a good brand I’m looking for other options other than cooking for them, if possible. I’m probably going to be baking dog biscuits in case the Kirkland brand is part of the pH issue. I’ve subscribed to this thread so will be following along. Thank you for all your help.

[wolff]

I don’t know what the problem is, I can access every other thread but the one I started, when I try to read it or anything it keeps asking me to log in, obviously I AM logged in or I wouldn’t be able to even read this premium area I paid for..

crazy4cats wrote:
Hi Wolff-
I agree wich zcRiley, you should stick to a puppy or an all life stages food with the appropriate calcium level for your new large breed pups.

Also, I would have a fecal test done to rule out parasites. Giardia and Coccidia are sometimes hard to detect and regular dewormers do not get rid of either one of these conditions. They both also can cause intermittent loose stools or diarrhea and they are both fairly common in puppies.
Wellness Core is an excellent choice. Good luck

Hi,
Well the thing is I haven’t bought puppy food for many years because much of it is an American advertising gimmick, they create a “need” with consumers where none existed, this is an American phenomenon you don’t (or didn’t) see in Europe. I’ve been in dogs since 1982, used to show, and always had an average of four dogs concurrently. I’ve always fed an adult premium feed for slow steady growth.
But now with Nutrilife I’m not seeing the smaller firm stools I used to even in my two adults, it’s almost as though they suddenly changed the formula to more filler or a different supplier.
I have had only one puppy with cocidia many years ago, he got it when I visted “my” breeder and we went to a show together with her dogs and my adult, we put my puppy in one of her kennel runs that had a dirt/gravel floor, when we came back my puppy had excavated holes while we were gone.
Shortly after that he started getting foul smelling bloody diarreah and sure enough it was coccsidia.
My puppies don’t have diarreah as in squirting liquid, and it’s not foul smelling or the like, it’s just soft very poorly formed stool that comes after going once and having a more firm stool, and a few minutes later going again to finish and it’s soft and doesn’t pick up cleanly.
Remember what I said earlier- the Nutrilife bag suggests about 4-3/4 to 5 cups for giant breed puppies, 12 weeks/30# and they are getting 7-1/2 cups and still pretty thin, so to me it’s more of a loose stool from eating too much feed along with possibly a formula change. They clearly are not doing well on this brand.

We’ll see what happens on wellness.

[D D]

My 2 Shelties are not related, and the only thing they have in common is their food (dry, Nature’s Variety Prairie, Duck and Oatmeal). Suspecting a UTI, I had their urine checked. There was no infection, no crystals, but a PH of 9. I switched to their current food because I had this same issue about a year ago on a Potato and Duck LID food. I have read that a diet high in carbohydrates (potatoes? oatmeal? rice? barley?) can cause this, and a high PH can also lead to kidney issues. Does anyone know if there is a relationship between plant based dog foods and urine PH? They are 2-1/2 and 4-1/2, and they are “house dogs” – not much daily activity, so too much protein would not be good. Foods with the higher protein have a lower carbohydrate value, but they really do not need a higher protein food.

[D D]

My 2 Shelties are not related, and the only thing they have in common is their food (dry, Nature’s Variety Prairie, Duck and Oatmeal). Suspecting a UTI, I had their urine checked. There was no infection, no crystals, but a PH of 9. I switched to their current food because I had this same issue about a year ago on a Potato and Duck LID food. I have read that a diet high in carbohydrates (potatoes? oatmeal? rice? barley?) can cause this, and a high PH can also lead to kidney issues. Does anyone know if there is a relationship between plant based dog foods and urine PH? They are 2-1/2 and 4-1/2, and they are “house dogs” – not much daily activity, so too much protein would not be good. Foods with the higher protein have a lower carbohydrate value, but they really do not need a higher protein food.

[Jennifer Y]

I have a 2 year old golden retriever. Since she was 8 weeks old, she’s been eating Orijen or Acana dog food (mainly Orijen). For the past year she was on a rotation between Six Fish and Regional Red.

For as long as I can remember, she’s always been a very itchy pup (mainly her neck and her bum/tail, but she itches all over). She’s never itched to the point where hair loss or rashes have been a problem. She also used to have eye infections every couple weeks, until I correlated her eye infections with her Regional Red rotations. Her only real “symptoms” have been eye infections, hot spots every so often, soft stool (firm to begin with, but ends as soft) and itchiness. She’s been on Orijen Six Fish for the past 6 months. I suspected she had a food intolerance to beef and chicken, which was why I decided to order a Nutriscan kit to see if there were any other ingredients she was intolerant to.

These were her results: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B5_-KpxSZJvmdXhzQUxGSFVFNkk&authuser=0

I received the results today, which really took me by surprise. She has a reaction to every single ingredient they tested for. All 24. I’ve read many positive reviews online about how the Nutriscan test has helped many different dogs, and it seems to be relatively accurate.

I’m currently at a loss for words and not really sure where to go from here. If the test is in fact accurate, I’m not quite sure what I can feed her as I’m unable to find ANY food that does not contain any of the ingredients tested. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for taking your time to read my post!

• This topic was modified 10 years, 8 months ago by Jennifer Y.
• This topic was modified 10 years, 8 months ago by Jennifer Y.

[Roger H]

Just wanted to let everyone know an experience I had, thankfully it turned out well. We were at Costco and I saw a package of Elk Antlers, that came from a company in NJ. I read the box, everything seemed fine. I purchased them for my 4.5 yr old Labrador. She started chewing on one when I got home. About 30 minutes later she had it in pieces. I can’t imagine the strength in those jaws, anyway, I took it from her so she wouldn’t digest any of the pieces. The next day as we were walking she did her business and I was shocked that she had digested a large piece of that antler and thankfully it passed through without getting lodged in her digestive system. I took a picture of her poop and along with a letter faxed it to the company saying there should have been a warning, unlike deer antlers that are solid and don’t shatter. Never got a response but I also called Costco and told them about it. A week or so later we went to Costco and they were gone. I don’t know if they pulled them from the shelf or what happened. Thankfully everything turned out fine.

[Anonymous]

I give my guy tap water, in the beginning I was lugging big jugs of spring water back and forth from the market. That got old, real quick.
Do the best you can, a lot of these conditions have a genetic base anyway.

There is a lot of chemical junk in dog food, so if you can find a simple way to do homemade, he may be better off.
I get my dogs chicken and meat from the reduced price section at the market, sometimes I freeze it. I cook it up and add a little to their kibble.

If you are concerned about his teeth with all the soft food, brush his teeth once a day, if you are not doing so already, it helps.

PS: regarding the broth, homemade, I hope. The canned and packaged stuff has msg, etc.

[karen k]

I will talk with our vet about these tabs, thanks so much for the link. If he does not know how to get them, I can order and get a friend to bring them, lots of expats here going back and forth. I believe I read not to use the special diet food and the supplements at the same time, that way I could try some home made food and the supplements, and track the frequency of the episodes as I have been doing.

[karen k]

I returned home today and my dog is having major pain and wanting to pee constantly, he has not had an episode for a couple of months. Living in Mexico, I do not have access to a lot of different kinds of special prescription dog foods, which is why I was searching for home made http://dogcathomeprepareddiet.com/diet_and_urinary_tract_stone_and.htmld
There are recipes for dealing with the crystals. However, my vet could not confirm that there were stones or crystals. I did read on this forum about science diet to get rid of the crystals, I will see if I can locate it. If not, I fear we might have to go the exploratory surgery route, which I really hate to do. If the episodes are a few months apart, I guess we all can live through it, but more often, I am not so sure.

I also am sure cranberry supplements are not available here, maybe when I return to visit the US I can try and pick some up, or maybe there is a health food store that might have something like that.

[Dori]

losul. I’ll be checking out their facility with my husband one day next week. I’ll report back on this thread.

Like your post very much and I can now also see the benefit of using All Provide (after visit to their facility) as a possible replacement periodically for one of the girls meals a day and the other commercial raws as their other meal.

It would be really nice if AAFCO some day would do a profile on commercial raw dog foods. As I doubt very highly that they’ll be doing that anytime soon, I will continue with my rotational feeding and ignore whether a company is really entitled to use “meets AAFCO guidelines” on their product. It doesn’t pertain to commercial raws in any way that I can see. I’ve been feeding commercial raw foods in rotation for the past 3 1/2 years maybe a little longer and all three girls are doing well. Well, except for Hannah who is 15 years 8 months old and spent the first 12 years of her life eating kibble. Bad mama, I didn’t know any better at the time. All things considered for her age and have a couple of forms of cancer she’s doing pretty damn well. Her doctors are still stunned that she remains asymptomatic to either cancer. Her only real issues pertain to geriatric decline. Hard of hearing, night blindness, a little arthritic, stuff like that, that we, even as humans, come down with.

I’m still not thrilled that Allprovide has no issue with the possible inclusion of antibiotics or hormones in their proteins but as I don’t feed anything feathered it may not apply to my situation.

[Pukar T]

I took him to the hospital yesterday and the response was same. The doc said that it is a tumor and needs to be operated but it is risky for now he has asked to use cefixime anhydrous for 10 days and think about operating if he has difficulty to poop. He also says there is a risk of spreading if its too late and advises to let him go if we can but he looks very healthy

[Ellen D]

I think I have decided what I would like to do in terms of feeding my puppy. Background: he’s about 25 lbs, labradoodle, 14 weeks, should be around 65 lbs full grown. He is a picky and light eater, so I’ve been trying to do 4 meals per day but he just isn’t that interested in food so now it’s 3 meals.

This is what I’d like to do in my perfect world. Can anyone tell me if this would work or help tweak it?

–AM meal – either homemade or pre-made raw. I have a trusted recipe for homemade when I have the time to make some. Pre-made would either be Darwin’s or Allprovide, depending on which he prefers.
–Lunch – this is where it gets trick. He goes to day care 3 days per week, and they will only feed kibble. They will not mix anything with water, open cans, etc. Has to be non-perishable something. And if he doesn’t eat lunch, he will sometimes vomit, not to mention he is already bordering on underweight. So he needs something. The other 2 days my sister in law serves as our dog walker and can feed him anything I ask her.
–PM meal – I would like this to typically be RMBs, such as chicken backs/necks/wings to begin with and progressing from there. He already gets a raw chicken wing a couple times a week and loves it.

In order to figure out portions, would I just take each meal separately and divide it in 1/3? So give 1/3 of what would be a total day’s worth of food of each the pre-made/homemade, kibble, and RMBs? I would add his supplemental items either at breakfast or dinner – organ meats, probiotics, and sardines/fish oil/yogurt, etc.

I have looked into things like a “better” kibble – ziwipeak was the only thing I could find that seemed to fit the bill. However, their maximum calcium level in their “kibble” is like 2% which is way too high for a largeish breed puppy. Do you think I could get away with giving this at lunch and then having dinner on those days be meat without bones? Does it balance out like that, or is the calcium ratio a per meal type of deal?

[JeffreyT]

Here is Dr. Karen Becker’s overview of environmental allergies…she has other good ones listed on the right side of screen. She highly recommends bathing for environmental allergies. We did her betadine foot soak and it helped stop the paw licking/chewing.

If you don’t already…use only natural, unscented laundry detergent, avoid fabric softener, scented products like room deodorizers, candles, body care, etc., use pure and non-toxic household cleaning and body care products for your family and dogs, avoid all chemicals including flea/tick treatment. For dog shampoo I stick with unscented health food store baby shampoo, and use Mercolas flea and tick spray. BioKleen household cleaners are very pure and effective. I stay away from Meyers…very toxic stuff, even though it’s sold in health food stores.
Carpet and Persian type rugs can hold a lot of allergens…consider steam cleaning but do not let them use the cleaning solution..use only the steam. Best thing is no carpet at all if it is environmental allergies.
I’ve found my dog does better with commercial raw freeze dried and frozen raw than kibble or canned. When I’m in a rush, I use Ziwi Peak or Real Meat Food Company…both air dried using grass fed meat. I think home cooking is also a good option if you can swing it.
Also, a good air purifier helps.
Keep at it and you will find the solution.

[Rachel A]

well, this has definitely given me some things to think about. I did not know that there are dermatologist for dogs. (these are my first dogs, and although I try to research everything, I am still learning).
She has almost all of the symptoms listed above by LM. Head shaking, rubbing face (and stomach) on carpet, constant licking her belly area to the point were it is always red, scratching ears, and recently they have both developed yeast infections in the ears.
When attempting to eliminating all possible environmental causes over the years, we now have a fenced area that receives no chemicals of any kind. Grass is always cut super low. I’ve tried having her belly shaved (as I thought maybe the licking was a result of tiny little knots in her belly fur), not shaving, just clipping the tangles, all to no avail. She’s had her bedding changed to different materials, and no bedding at all. Again nothing. Finally, the vet decided that it was a food allergy. So, we first eliminated grains. Then we started trying different proteins. (By the way, the Coton was fine on the Wellness for small breeds, but has begun to suffer since changing to the allergy formulas) I am now wondering if my Coton can not tolerate the potatoes. I am still at a loss for the Shih-tzu, but she has been suffering since being a pup. In fact, she has a terrible attitude and has a tendency to be a bit of a ‘B”. At first I did not even realize that her belly was irritated and causing her behavior, so we thought it was all a behavioral issue. It wasn’t until her first cut that we discovered the problem. She has always looked very healthy and she has shiny fur, and they have never had fleas. (In my ignorance, I just assumed that she was just grooming like a cat). Now, she is very comfortable and pleasant with me since I know not to touch her stomach.
I just feel so awful that I haven’t been able to solve this problem. I am about to look up the different dog foods and see if I can find a common ingredient other than potatoes. Also, I will be checking out those books that were mentioned above and reading up on similar topics from this site. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[MaggiesDad]

I’m one of the owners of Allprovide, and just wanted to address some of the queries raised about our products!
Firstly, I should state that I am currently away from the office and so do not have all the necessary information to hand regarding percentages, AAFCO guidelines etc. However, should anyone have any specific questions about these (or anything else) please do call us! We are always happy to talk about raw feeding, why we came in to this business and our experiences.
Regarding the mixing of proteins, we do intend to eventually bring out more single protein source foods, but as a new company we felt it best to start with a good all round range of various proteins to ensure that any dog is receiving all it needs from the start. Too many people are put off raw feeding by the fear of not providing enough of everything or supplementation, so one reason we use mixed proteins is to take away this concern. The other reason of course is that we have to meet the AAFCO guidelines for “complete” foods, and as we do not use ground bone we use poultry bone in our beef product to ensure sufficient calcium/phosphorus – and beef bones are extremely hard to grind in any event and can damage our machinery!
We do only use human grade ingredients, and frequently take home for ourselves the chicken we use in the dog food, as well as the vegetables which are restaurant quality. Our meat is all USA raised, and our chickens are hormone free – it is illegal to use hormones in poultry production. The issue of antibiotics is slightly different however. We care for all animals, and the farms we use will only ever give antibiotics to a sick bird, under vet guidance and in strict accordance with regulations. We would not want any animal to suffer illness unnecessarily, and to deprive medical treatment could be seen as inhuman. Any antibiotic is in any event not usually one given to humans, and is out of their system within days so do not make it in to the food chain.
I know someone posted that is something looks too good to be true, it usually is – but please be assured that we doing everything in our power to produce the best food possible for our dogs. We do not cut corners, use only the best ingredients, and are trying to put the convenience back in to raw feeding to encourage more to give it a go. If you read Maggie’s story on our website, you will see that we care passionately about our dogs (I have four, all shapes and sizes) and we want everyone to see the difference raw can make to their dogs!
Anyone is more that welcome to come by the factory (based in Norcross, GA) as we have always had an open door policy – we really do have nothing to hide. You can also buy direct from us there.
If I’ve missed out any concerns, or anyone has more questions please do call us in the office!