[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, 11 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, 11 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, 11 months ago by Jennifer Y.
• This topic was modified 10 years, 11 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!

[Dori]

I just went back onto their site and looked over the foods again. I agree with you that the only one that I could see feeding is the puppy formula. But, as I mentioned, I’m uncomfortable not knowing about antibiotics and hormones. For my husband and myself I try to buy organic as often as I can and always make sure that there are no hormones or antibiotics as best I can. Another issue that I have with their other formulas is that I don’t like that they have more than one protein. If a food says it’s beef, I’d like not to see chicken. Same with their other formulas. I think the puppy is the only one that is one protein source. One of my dogs is highly intolerant of all things fowl.

As far as the AAFCO statement, I really don’t pay much attention to it. That they have slapped that statement on so many foods that are so not AAFCO equivalent is appalling. So how can you believe any of it. There’s no one guarding the hen house. I’m a commercial raw feeder and all the companies that I feed are only ones that use human grade ingredients. Now, of course, I don’t know that to be a fact because I’m not an eye witness in their manufacturing facilities but I’m doing my best to take care of the girls as best I can. I’ve attempted to do my due diligence. If I remember correctly AAFCO figures were done for kibble, possibly canned too. I’ve read somewhere that they are suppose to be coming out this year with their new figures a bit more in line with the EU guidelines. They’re still not talking commercial raw foods into account so it’s not going to affect me or my dogs one way or the other. I would possibly be more concerned about the AAFCO statements on dog foods if I fed highly processed dry foods or if I only fed my dogs one food and never rotated. That could lead to a problem which is why we are always trying to get people to understand that they should research and implement rotational feeding. The FDA is their own little story unto itself in my eyes. The way they recommend or abolish products has no merit in my eyes whatsoever.

[losul]

Basically I think if they are putting an AAFCO label of nutritional completeness on their foods, i doubt they should be doing so. On the other hand, for me, AAFCO guidelines hold much less relevance for well rounded quality whole, foods, and really become much more relevant the more heavily processed foods. kibbles, etc. I don’t like to many excessive and uneccessary added vitamins/minerals to raw diet.

I’ve not seen guaranteed analysis of their products. The analysis they show is a bit confusing, especially the way they have broken certain items down.

I think I can assume that fat means total fat, carbs mean total carbs, it wasn’t at first plain to me from their analysis. But the total calories still don’t quite reconcile?

Going by what i can here’s the best I come up with on the puppy blend. I hope this comes out looking like a spreadsheet, never has for me before on the review side anyway 🙁

Analysis % %Dry Matter Approximate % calories from?:
——————————————————————————————————-protein 14.02 46.6
fat 7.58 25.2 about 51% ?
carbs 6.57 21.8
water 69.92
ash/other 1.91 6.3
——————————————————————————————————-
100 99.9

Going by those figures, the fat doesn’t look out of line, particularly since the product has added coconut oil and salmon oil, already. I might give consideration feeding the puppy blend (to my adult) on a supplemental basis. I’d be interested in how the veggies, particulary the kale, are processed to make more digestible., and if the mung and adzuki beans are cooked in addition to, or simply just sprouted.

Edit: yeah it didn’t come out looking like a spreadsheet, at all. I’ll have to try doing something about that later.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by losul.

[C4D]

agt, I forgot to mention that my little girl made it all the way through Canine Good Citizen! We’ve had her since she was about 8 months, and had no training except she appeared house broken when we got her. So it’s a happy ending!

Sam, she should be able to work out for you, but your trainer will be the best to judge. Do you always bring really good treats with you? It doesn’t always work because I have a current dog that shuts down completely when extremely stressed, but is not aggressive. He would not respond to treats in a really stressful situation. So, again after working with a trainer I slowly desensitized him by starting below his threshold, always carrying treats and slowly working up. There are still things we need to work on, but we have come a very long way.

When you find your dog in that type of situation, probably the best thing to do is walk her away and focus on something else. Sometimes even throwing a treat to the floor and letting her “find it” can refocus her energy. But again, you might need to work with a trainer who is familiar with reactive dogs. A good thing to do is really focus on her body language. Sometimes it is very subtle and/or very quick. Every dog has different thresholds. I don’t know how familiar you are with stress signals in dogs, but here’s a link:
http://www.liamjperkfoundation.org/stress.html

There are many of these on the internet. You do need to learn to read your dog. Then you will see the triggers more quickly.

[C4D]

Michael Saull, are you a behaviorist or a trainer? I think not as you are not even aware that fear aggression is probably the most common behavior seen by trainers and behaviorists when people are seeking help with their dogs. Your posts are wrong and dangerous if people read them and try this. Nat Geo’s Dog Whisperer has made a whole lot of people watching the show think they’re dog trainers.

I’ve have/had fearful and fear aggressive dogs. Of course, I have/had very balanced dogs too, but the fear aggressive one taught me the most about dogs. It took a very long time to socialize and counter condition the fear aggressive one to where he was a wonderful dog that people loved. When he passed on a few years ago, many people posted on how much they would miss him and that he was one of the best, most character filled dogs they every met. We took him through so much training and a behaviorist that I now have 2 personal friends that are trainers and behaviorists (and I’m not talking the Petsmart kind of trainers). We also knew the very few triggers we couldn’t counter condition that would set him off, but they were Vet related.

The best way to deal with dogs that are fearful and have some aggression issues are desensitization and counter conditioning. Here’s just a quick link to ASPCA on this topic:
https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/desensitization-and-counterconditioning
Sam Koch, I don’t know what kind of service dog you were going to use Honey for, but I would seriously consider consulting with a very good trainer. The service dog trainer may work. I can’t say exactly, but she was probably reacting to the girls raincoat as it was foreign to her. The problem is you are still in the “honeymoon” period of rescue. She may get better or worse. It’s hard to say. Some dogs are just fearful and will react when pressed. I have a Lab we got in a kill shelter that had tapeworms, her ears and forehead and cigarette burns in them, has a damaged trachea that the kill shelter thought was bordatella, and yet she is the most confident, easy going dog you would ever know. Everyone loves her. My fear aggressive dog (a lab mix) was an 8 week old puppy that had never been abused, beaten, etc. that so many rescuers think is the problem with the dogs that are fearful. He came to the rescue from a normal family. Just as in people, all dogs are different. Good luck with it. Keep us posted!

• This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by C4D.
• This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by C4D.

[Judy D]

About a week ago my little dogs suddenly started drinking a lot of water. At the time, I wondered why. They weren’t sick but, shortly thereafter, they did get sick with stomach problems and very watery diarrhea. I stopped feeding them for a period of 18 hrs. Then I slowly put them on boiled chicken and potatoes until they were better. Last night I resumed feeding them their usual BB canned dog food. We went for a walk and my schnauzer had watery diarrhea again. During the night my little toy poodle got sick also. Both dogs are now so sick again. It is so pitiful to see them suffering like this and I suspect something is wrong with BB. I will never buy it again. For three years they had been eating it without any problems and it is supposed to be the best. However, I have read many threads today on internet and found that since Dec 2014 more and more pet owners are experiencing the same gastrointestinal problems and switched their pets off BB which resolved the health issues. I also noted that there are a multitude of lawsuits against BB stating that their ingredients are no longer as pure as they used to be and contain grains now although BB is contentious about this they did finally admit to this. Apparently, they buy from various manufacturers and haven’t maintained a high quality by testing those suppliers’ ingredients. I am shocked. Now this info is based on various plaintiffs’ documents. In addition, there are rumors that they also import from China. However, to be fair this is heresay until I can verify. In addition, I happen to talk to a friend in AZ (I am in NYC) who mentioned that his little dog was in the hospital with bleeding gastroenteritis. Guess what dog food little Maggie was? You got it, BB!!
Once I get my dogs recover this time, I will not go back to BB. NEVER EVER!!!

[aquariangt]

February 1st is not enough time to know what this dog is going to react to. I have one who isn’t friendly (not aggressive, but definitely gives back off signals) that are very subtle. Hopefully the service dog trainer has experience with that kind of dog. I do agree with L M. Did you work with the service dog trainer to pick a dog? That helps. Keep very close eyes on her when you are out and about, and watch for some of those dog signals and what is causing them. Please keep in mind-a tail in the air isn’t always good, there is so much more to it than that. Watch her tongue, watch her lips. Everything she does, and take note so you can share with your trainer.

A Class of people, that’s generally low key, even though it’s crowded. A store like petco isn’t. And children have a very different energy for dogs to read

[Eliseo M]

Hello everyone. My English bulldog puppy, Tyson, is now 8.5 Weeks old. We got him on 29 March. They gave us Royal Canin. I read up on Royal Canin and also found this site which led me to purchase Blue Buffalo Chicken and Brown Rice Recipe for puppies. This is kept in stock on base (I am stationed at USAG Yongsan, South Korea).

Over the last 2 weeks his stool has been more pudding diarrhea than solid. Thankfully it hasn’t been uncontrolled (he almost always poops on a pad). It also isn’t “brown water”. He has had no vomiting. He drinks a normal amount of water. He is still active and playful and is putting on weight.

We played with his amount of food and now he gets more solid stools (still has a pudding diarrhea towards the end of the day). However, we noticed he began tearing a lot, to the point he is getting small stains. He also recently began scratching at his ears.

Today we had his 3rd round of vaccinations. The vet looked at his ears, face and eyes. She also looked at his paw pads (between toes). She said he may have a small allergy to the food.

We bought Royal Cannin Hypoallergenic food at the vet office. There is nothing on base and our options at the time were limited.

How do we best go about figuring out this food allergy?

How long should I feed him the hypoallergenic food?

Also, once I am ready to switch back to a puppy food I was thinking of going with Wellness CORE Natural Grain Free Dry Dog Food for Puppies. My thinking is this is a 5 star food and is also grain free which he may be having an issue with.

Any and all advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance 🙂

[Dori]

I would suggest Standard Process Whole Body Supplement. If you diffuse essential oils in your home I would suggest Transition and also Calm-Away. For the oils I would suggest you go to AnimalEO.info and check them out. You can also order Standard Process products through that site. This is Melissa Shelton DVM’s site. I use a H2EO diffuser. You can read about the different essential oils on her site and if you go to her site oilyvet.com you can check out the different Standard Process supplements and see if any of them are worth while for your dog. I think the two I mentioned would be worthwhile for your dog but there may be others.

I’m also a commercial raw rotational feeder to my three dogs. I don’t feed anything processed.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by Dori.

[Karma]

Thank you, Aimee and Zolicylus and Pugmom. We’re going through a major life transition right now so unfortunately even thinking about home cooking isn’t feasible. I just know Royal Canin and Science Diet are foods I don’t want him on long term. He has his next appointment at the end of the month and hopefully it’s better news.

We’ve had the Wellness LID Salmon in our rotation previously so it’s good to know there’s a food I already know he likes as an option.

Unfortunately, NutriSource GF Seafood has chicken fat in it so that’s out.

Of course, I get the dog with issues but life wouldn’t be as fun without a challenge right?

Again, thank you all. I truly appreciate the pointers on where to start and having options.

[Dori]

L M. Marie, Myself, Labs, and quite a few others have been counseling, advising, and pleading her to get Ginger’s dental done since the first week she got her. That is well over a year ago. I’d also like to remind you and others on this thread that she has repeatedly asked for advice. We have repeatedly given her the advice she asked for. No, no one has to take anyone’s advice even if you’ve asked for said advice. Then stop asking for the same advice on the same issue over and over and over again if you know you’re not going to do anything anyway. Have you read all 15 pages of this forum thread? If not and when you have a moment, you might want to read it from the beginning. I think that you and others may think that we are being too hard on Akari and need to take it easy on her. It is inhumane to allow anyone, anything to suffer as long as the poor dog has suffered due to the condition of Ginger’s teeth.

We all have had old dogs at some time or another and we all dread the exams. I for one have had my Maltese, Hannah, all her life. She was 15 years old last September. She has two types of cancer (bladder and lung), she’s been hypothyroid almost half her life. She has two degenerated discs mid spine. All these issues I’ve been treating medically, holistically, with SP supplements, homeopathically, with the aid of not only her own vet but with counsel from holistic/homeopathic vets and specialists for her conditions. Also I have often asked for advice here on DFA. It’s a wonderful place filled with loving, caring, compassionate people and when we see and hear these stories we have to speak up and point out what we know is wrong and is abusive behavior. Hannah is not suffering in the least. She’s eating, drinking, peeing, and pooping. Playing with her two “sisters” all the time. Barks at everyone passing the property. She long ago decided that she was our watch dog and door bell all rolled into one. Each and every time I have to take her to any of her vets, my heart is in my throat. I all but break into a sweat. But that does not stop me from getting her to her doctors appointment. And when the day comes that my husband and I feel that she is suffering we will do what is best for Hannah, not for ourselves. We will let her go because to do otherwise would be selfish to the maximum on our part. We have had to make that decision in the past and you never ever get over it. It stays with you forever. All my dogs have been like my children. My own “human” child died 8 years ago last August. Let me tell you that the pain and longing is not much different than losing a furry member of your family. You miss them, you think you hear them, you think they’re just sleeping in their bed, or laying on the sofa with the t.v. on. You think you hear their dog tags jingling. I still have each and every dog collar and all dog tags and all ashes from each and every dog I’ve ever had including a yellow naped Amazon parrot I had about 30 years ago. In the end the decision should be about what is best for them, not for ourselves. Of course we don’t want them to be sick and/or die, but what needs to be done for “furry family members” that we brought into our homes to care for and protect means from beginning to end it is about them! Not us! Again, if I sound harsh on the subject of the decisions that Akari has chosen in her care of Ginger it is because it pains me that Ginger is still (a year or so later) in the condition that she is in and has been allowed to be this way since she was brought into her home.

I’m proud of all of us who have spoken up. So many people in this life will turn a blind eye because they don’t want to get involved. That’s not me and neither is it the posters that have seen something wrong happening and we do get involved. When I see abusive behavior in any form in my day to day life I am one of those that do speak up. I’m not so afraid that I’m going to pretend that I don’t see or hear what’s going on. It’s one of the problems that society has right now. People don’t want to get involved, they don’t want to upset the apple cart. I don’t care if the apple cart topples over so long as I have been instrumental in getting someone to open their eyes and see what they’ve done.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by Dori.
• This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by Dori.
• This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by Dori.

[Anonymous]

Okay, let’s take it easy on Akari. Many well educated, intelligent people don’t understand the importance of dental care for their pets.

All we can do is try to educate and be supportive. I have an old guy myself that I need to take in for an exam soon. Not looking forward to it, but it is what it is.

I like to think that because I am an RN, I can take care of most things myself. But even I know that pain and infection are not “do it yourself” projects.

PS: Akari if you are reading this, consider putting the cost of the surgery on a credit card (if it is within your means) or start a Go Fund Me account, just some ideas, call around, there are organizations that may be able to help you.

[theBCnut]

She means can you copy and paste the web address for their website?

And yes, a brand that is good, but not readily available in the US, may not make it on DFA. Also, Dr. Mike has a backlog of foods he is adding as he can. If you would like to see a review for a particular food, there is a “contact us” spot to click on on the bottom of the page.

[Dori]

Wow, Akari. I’ve never seen a dog’s tooth in that bad a shape. You weren’t exaggerating when you said Ginger’s teeth were in bad shape. She has got to be in pain with the condition that her teeth are in. If the dental is not going to be done, which by the way I definitely think should be done, they you’re probably better off not putting water in her food so that she’s forced to chew and maybe lose the worst of the teeth. Just make sure she’s drinking plenty of water of it’s going to screw up her kidney’s. Also so that you know, even though she will lose the most offending teeth, that isn’t going to do anything for any disease that she has under the gums that will eventually get into her blood system if it hasn’t already.

As for the Denamarin, as you know Hannah had very high liver levels though not as high as Ginger’s were/are. Hannah’s is due to the tumor in her bladder and the mass on one of the lobes of a lung. Because of her age I have been told not only by her vet but also by two of her specialist vets that Hannah will be on the Denamarin for the rest of her life. I give her one whole tablet (specialists and her vets recommendations) 1 1/2 hours before her dinner every single day. I have been doing this for a year now and her liver levels are now in the normal range. We tried dropping it to 1/2 tablet per day but her liver levels started to rise again. I have forgotten to mention to you all along that Hannah is on the chewable version. The tablet is scored and I just break it in half for her and she chews them both up. She loves the taste. That might also be another way for Ginger to loose bad molars.

When the vet got her blood work back I thought he didn’t want to due the dental because of her liver and kidney levels? But now he feels it’s okay even though he hasn’t done blood work again? I don’t understand? Look, I’m no vet that’s for sure but I’m seriously thinking that her liver levels and perhaps kidney, are due to the constant infections coming from her mouth. I also think it’s doing tremendous harm to have her on antibiotics as often as the vet has. He’s just treating symptoms which vets seem to like to do. He’s not really treating what’s wrong with her. Antibiotics are horrible for the organs and the gut and every other part of your internal body. I think your mom has gotten so attached to Ginger that she’s afraid to lose her. Can Ginger die through surgery? Yes. But so can anyone going under anaesthesia (sp?). At some point as guardians of animals we have to realize that the quality of their lives counts more than our not wanting to let go. Honestly, I’m thrilled to hear that Ginger is doing better and also that she lost that horrible molar. Are you giving her 1/4 teaspoon of coconut oil a day? If not, you should be. Ginger has probably been so snappish when anywhere near her mouth because she’s been in so much pain for so long. You know how painful it is yourself when you have a tooth ache. One of the worst pains. Toothaches, back aches and child birth are by far the worst pains ever. I’d rather give birth again than deal with tooth aches.

[Shelly A]

OK so everyone says check this thead or that thread, some say trust then vet. others say trust the breeder…… then you read up on all the different dog foods that are out there and discover all the recalls and melamine etc found in certain foods. Some vets say if “the food is AAFCO approved then great”… yet the internet indicates that AAFCO does NOT police any dog food that is manufactured in the states, instead it says “AAFCO doesn’t test, approve, certify or regulate pet foods. Its stated goals are to provide protection for consumers, safeguard the health of animals and humans, and provide “a level playing field of orderly commerce for the animal feed industry.” So one of my last vets push to buy Royal Canin and the breeder is using a cheep brand fromm Peavey mart and is insisting on no more than 22% protien and no more than 10% fat…..Doesn’t a dog than big growing that fast with thbat much muscle require more protien than that? God who do I believe? I just want to feed my puppy to help him stay healthy and grow well and at a safe rate but none of this is helping there seems to be too many camps and it is turning into a crap shoot!
Frustrated and at a loss.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Hi Joyce,
There is already a topic about homemade dog treats that can be found here: /forums/topic/has-anyone-made-homemade-dog-treats/

[Ashley M]

Hello,

I have a six month old lab puppy who seems to have food allergy or food intolerance. We started him on Nature’s Balance Large Breed Puppy and he would get awful tummy aches to the point of curling up on the floor and crying in pain for extended periods of time.

After several trips to the vet along with x-rays, blood tests, and an ultrasound trying to figure out what was wrong and being told repeatedly by the vet that it was not food intolerance or allergy I asked her to please recommend a starter food that they would give a dog who does have food intolerance. She went ahead and prescribed Hills Science Diet Branch I/D. Its been two months and Jaxon (my puppy) hasn’t had any of those awful tummy aches since.

That said, Jaxon is still not on the right food in my opinion. I feel in the long run Science Diet is a poor brand of food (the ingredients don’t strike me as high quality) and the ID formula isn’t right for a large breed puppy. I am terrified to transition him to anything else though and don’t know where to begin. My vet of course recommended Science Diet or Royal Canine Large Breed puppy. After thoroughly reading about both recommendations on this website I definitely do not want to feed Jaxon either of those. Can anyone give me a recommendation of other foods to research for a puppy who has a sensitive tummy or food allergy even though I have not been able to determine what exact ingredient causes this? Or possibly point me to a website that has more information on how to navigate through feeding a puppy with food issues? Thank you!

[Lauren Y]

Hi,

I know this is an old thread, but I thought I’d post my experience.

I’ve been using Bravecto for 6 months (2 doses). When I was using Advantix II, I would find dozens of flees on my dogs for days after visiting a highly infested area. After I started using Bravecto, I haven’t found a single flea on him that wasn’t dying…even after spending hours in the same infested area. I comb him regularly and have never found a flea on him after leaving an infested area. My dog hasn’t had a single tick since using this medication, but he only picked up one in the previous 2 years so that doesn’t say much.

When I first started using this, my dog had picked up fleas from a friend’s house and the Advantix I had put on a week before wasn’t helping. My vet called the company, which said that Bravecto can be used concurrently with topical medications, so I gave him the Bravecto tablet immediatly. There were no ill effects and the fleas all died. It’s not something I would do regularly, but it’s good to know that it’s safe.

I do have 2 concerns with this product:

1) This product does not repel and requires the flea/tick to bite before killing. This is okay for ticks because it takes ticks 24-48 hours to transmit diseases and Bravecto kills in a few hours. Even better, they’re dead/dying when they drop off so they aren’t a danger to anyone else. However, it seems to make fleas sort of dizzy and easy to catch before they die. That means my dog is more likely to lick them up, and thus get worms.

2) Bravecto is hard to get from a vet’s office. My vet likes the product but says there just isn’t enough demand for him to stock it. This means I have to get it from online distrubuters, and that makes me really nervous. It’s a new enough product that I HOPE there aren’t a lot of counterfeiters out there, but you can never be sure.

Anyway, I hope this helps people decide if they want to use this product. I’d highly recommend it. It seems as safe as the topicals and works better. Of course, if you can get away with not using any chemicals, I’d do that, but it’s not an option for me.

[Cheryl H]

Hi Crazy4cats. I just read some of the posts you referred me to regarding food rotations and I now have another question. During Winston’s recent illness my vet stated that since he is 7-1/2 years old, he should eat a diet lower in protein. She also recommended “senior” dog foods, specifically Science diet.9 Before he got sick I had already purchased a bag of Fromms 4 Star Grain Free Lamb and Lentils and fed him a small amount to start a transition process away from the Blue Buffalo. Although I’ve read there is controversy over her assertion regarding lowering protein levels for older dogs, I decided to try Wellness Simple rather than Fromm’s because of the lower protein content and because he is still under her care. I am going to mix Wellness Simple canned with Wellness Simple dry. I am considering a Fromm’s rotation, but the Fromm’s canned that I hoped to try is hard to find locally and I’d like to try a couple of test cans before committing to the rotation. Should the same brand and formula of the dog food be used when feeding a canned/dry mix?

Did I mention I’m obsessed?

[Cheryl H]

Does anyone have a recommendation for how to determine a good ratio of canned to dry food? During one of my dog’s regular exams, three years ago, he had struvite crystals and was put on a Hills prescription diet. Once the tests reflected the crystals were no longer a problem, I switched to a Blue Buffalo dry formula. Since then there have been no struvite problems. However, due to some problems with bad bags(?) of BB and some potential food allergies I am switching him to Wellness Simple Turkey and Potato. I have read that canned food may help prevent urinary problems due to higher water content, however I would like to try a combination of canned and dry food. Wellness provides guidelines for a canned/dry mix, but they’re confusing. We’ve adjusted the recommended daily amounts of the foods we’ve been feeding him to avoid unacceptable weight gain. I assume we’ll need to do that for Wellness as well.

[Anonymous]

If he has struvite crystals in his urine, even though they have not formed stones, they are as sharp as glass and can irritate and inflame the bladder. Struvite is usually caused by infection, hence the antibiotic treatment.
Read through the posts in this thread and see what applies to your situation.

If you are not happy with the way things are going with the traditional veterinarians, consider consulting a homeopath…. http://theavh.org/

Distance is not an issue, many of them do phone consults.

PS: I would not stop any antibiotic treatment that has been started without talking to the prescribing veterinarian first.
Maybe he can explain the different opinions, and his rationale for treatment. Ask him for a diagnosis. Struvite or calcium oxalate? Ask him if there is a genetic component.
Another option, if you want to stay with the traditional veterinarians, ask for a referral to a specialist…

[Robin S]

Needing any advice. My 5 month old male lab is on 4th round of antibiotics for UTI with crystals.(I think). The reason I say this is that after 3 rounds of Clavamox and Science Diet c/d with symptoms reappearing, he is now on Baytril and Science Diet s/d for 2 weeks. He had an xray which showed no stones in the bladder but has crystals in urine, according to the first vet. I have $700 in medical costs with this vet as of today for this UTI. So, I thought I would get a second opinion as I am lucky enough to have 2 veterinarians in my small town. The second vet did a direct draw of urine from the bladder (we had been doing just a catch while he urinated with the other U/A’s) The second vet could not do a culture as I had just started the Baytril so would have to wait until he is off of it for 5 days before she could do a culture. She did ultrasound him and found everything was looking good. She did say his bladder was large and not irritated ( I guess bladders shrink up a bit with UTI’s?). She also did blood work which looked good. She did not find crystals and does not feel that he has a UTI. Now doesn’t that just boggle the mind? My puppy had only had 2 doses of the Baytril and about a can and a half of the s/d so she didn’t feel that things could have been cured that fast. The thing that just slays me is whenever he is not on antibiotics, he turns into a peeing machine, with no bladder control, clear urine, it doesn’t color a paper towel. The longer he is off antibiotics the worse it gets. A previously good puppy where housetraining is concerned suddenly lowers his head starts to walk and pees a streak all the way to the door and out! So if he doesn’t have a UTI (remember one vet says he does have a UTI) what condition would respond to antibiotics that is not a UTI and make the symptoms stop? The second vet said I had two options, I could either finish out the other vets prescription of Baytril and Science Diet s/d and wait 5 days and come in and she will direct draw urine and retest and culture it then if need be, or I could stop the Baytril and wait 5 days and do the direct draw and retest and culture. I am baffled by two very differenct diagnosis. I decided for now to go ahead and do the first vets prescription as I have the Baytril and the s/d and the second vet set it wouldn’t hurt anything to try it. I am aware, however, that Baytril is not recommended for young dogs, but the vet said one round would be okay. Anyway, sorry to be so long on this, but as you can read I am at a loss on this. Any insight would be appreciated.