[Dori]

It may very well have been the topical flea tick meds. that have been known to trigger seizures in dogs. Also, what foods are you feeding your dog. I remember reading that some ingredients have to be avoided in dogs that get seizures. I’m sorry but I don’t recall what they are.

I do agree with Akari that it at minimum requires a call to the vet to let him know how many, how often and how long each seizure is lasting. Please start keeping a log of everything and anything you are feeding your dog. What’s happening in the hours preceding the seizures. Anything new happening in your environment inside and out. Have you changed cleaning products anywhere in the house. Are you burning candles. Are you using air fresheners. Anything new sprayed outside around your property. All this is needed information to determine what is going on. I would want to know all that first before putting him on meds for seizures but, of course, advise your vet of all the above. Write everything down before calling the vet. You made have made some change in his environment that is affecting him. Also, laundry detergent…is it scented??? Did you change laundry detergents or softeners? Anyone of these things could be triggering seizures.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Karen J-
I have been trying to follow your posts because I have some experience with Struvite crystals. You are tough to follow because you have started so many topics regarding the same issue. It is easier when you keep it all on one thread! Anyway, I’m a little confused. Does your dog have urinary crystals? Is she straining to pee or have blood in it. If yes, then you definitely want to at least feed canned. If you are going to feed kibble, I would feed the prescription type that dissolves the crystals. My cat had crystals and ended up having a blocked urinary tract. I was faced with having a very expensive emergency procedure or euthanasia. I opted for the procedure and it cost close to $2,000. Now I have no money for Christmas, but we still have our cat. Before the surgery, I was already feeding him at least half of his diet with canned food. I also have a water fountain that the cats use. Increased water intake is also important. There are several theories on what causes Struvite crystals. They might be different in dogs than cats, but the outcome could be the same. The vet food for crystals has restricted magnesium and phosphorous which affects the ph level of the urine. After learning the hard way and thinking vet food is crap, I have been feeding the prescription food for about a month and his last urinalysis was clear of any crystals or blood. I will continue to feed both canned and dry Rx food for 6 months and then slowly switch back to regular canned, but will always feed the vet kibble. I try to feed as little kibble as possible, but he was a shelter cat addicted to his crunchies when I got him.
So, in conclusion, I really hope that you can avoid the same situation. Good luck!

• This reply was modified 11 years, 4 months ago by crazy4cats.

[evan v]

Thanks Akari32. The $5 coupon worked.

Audrey – I got a few different Nutrisource and BB samples. I tried giving him a few pieces of each and as stated before he seems to like the puppy one the most. I tried giving him the Purevita verison of salmon & turkey but he turned them down quickly. He ate of few pieces of the BB but didn’t finish the small amount I tried to give him. But no doubt Nutrisource looks like are great brand. =)

aquariangt – Yes I noticed the Fromm grain free diets are much higher in protein also. Grain free also should mean loaded with peas or potatoes. I can see why it’s hard to find dry foods without them…

theBCnut – I just read the Dogs and Carbohydrates — A Surprising Secret Revealed on this website! Now I see where you get your info from?

[Akari_32]

The thing with Purina is that that they *like* carbs. They know that dogs (and cats) do not need them, and they know that dogs loose weight better on low carb, high protein diets. But because they are greedy and want all the money they can get, they tout carbs to be valuable energy sources and actually call them “essential carbs.” They know all this stuff, yet they don’t put it into practice. They do have some Pro Plan formulas that look pretty good, and that I’ve used here and there in the past, however. And I like the looks of Beyond for shot term use, and I’ve used those as well, before the recent packaging and marketing changes. I will say, they are getting better, as a brand. They are realizing that consumers are beginning to no longer rely on marketing, but are instead reading labels and researching for themselves what is good and what is not. My hope for this new line is that Purina has continued down that path. Don’t get me wrong, my hopes are aren’t high, but they are there lol

[theBCnut]

High protein does not cause kidney or liver issues. That is a fact. Period. There are a lot of myths that people choose to believe, but that does not make them true.

Yes, Dr Mike Sagman is a dentist. Dentists actually have to know something about nutrition. Dentists also have to have a good education and continue it all their professional careers. The reason this is important is because it means ***They are capable of learning things outside their field of specialty***just like you are. IDK about you, but I have children, and I’m not a certified nutritionist, but I am capable of learning what constitutes a good diet and feeding my kids a good diet, same with my dogs. Keep reading, keep learning all your life, and don’t let anyone try to tell you that you have to be a professional in a particular field for you to understand it. That’s crap!!

For a little dog, I recommend Farmina, NutriSource Small and Medium Breed, Amicus, Nature’s Variety Instinct, Brother’s Complete, Canine Caviar, and if you are feeding a rotational diet, Nature’s Logic.

[evan v]

Hello there, I just got a maltipoo. He is over a little over a year old. The previous owner was feeding him Iams adult small breed. The dog food industry sure has changed over the years. It’s been a while since I’ve had a dog. With that being said I went online and googled “best dog food” and started learning a lot about dog food in general. Anyways I was wondering what are some good dog foods you would recommend? I have already read all about diamond products and trying to stay away from them. But the funny thing is I know people are still feeding it and when I was checkin out some of the local pet stores in my area I saw 3 out of 5 people walk into a store, go right to the TOTW section, pick up a bag and then proceed to check out. On the other hand the other two people bought BB and Nutro. I got to talk to the lady that bought BB and long story short she said her German Shepard dog is doing so much better on it.

Lastly while I was at a local store one guy said since hes a small dog the high protein diets are not very good for him. He said small dogs can get kidney and liver failure. So I’m looking into something that’s low in protein. Also the guy seemed to already know a little bit about this website. He said the guy that does all the reviews is a dentist. At that time I didn’t know that. LoL. I just love coming on here and looking at the the ingredients from all the different dog foods and like I said before what are some good dog foods you would recommend? Thanks!

[Dori]

Hi Akari. I swear by Perfect Form but from what I’m reading if this is an ongoing issue you would have to give Ginger the correct dose of Perfect Form with every meal. She’s small so it wouldn’t be much. Personally I think she’s having a food intolerance issue. I tried researching some of the foods you’re feeding her and most, if not all, contain some type of poultry in the ingredient list. It could be that she does well for a little while but with the addition of a canned as a topper that has more of whatever ingredient she is having an issue with which may or may not be in her kibble, it’s more than her gut can tolerate. If I were you I would attempt to find a food (dry and canned) that does not contain any poultry whatsoever and no white potatoes. White potatoes and tomatoes are high inflammatory foods and are probably also causing issues with her old age arthritic symptoms. That’s the reason Hannah gets no foods with white potatoes, rice and tomato. Also, there are dogs that cannot tolerate white potatoes yet do fine with sweet potatoes. I wish I could be of more help but I really do believe that the diarrhea has to do with her foods. As I said, find a kibble with NO poultry of any sort and a canned with no poultry of any sort. Feed her only those foods for a couple of weeks without rotating anything else into her diet and see how she does. Also, what treats if any is she getting from you or any other person that thinks she’s just too cute and needs a treat?

[Marta J]

Hi All, New to the forum and I’m so glad I found it. We are getting a Westie Puppy in a few weeks and I’d like to transition him to a better quality dog food. The breeder we are getting the puppy from is feeding him a lower quality food (I can’t remember the exact name but it’s one of the big box companies). I’ve read enough to know that I won’t be feeding him Blue Buffalo (seeing some negative reviews).
Any opinions on Orijen or Now Fresh brands?
I’ve read that there are some positive reviews for Wellness core small breed.
I’d like to stick with grain free & price isn’t an issue. I’m in Canada and I’m sure I have access to same brands as the US.
Thank you 🙂

[InkedMarie]

I soak got however long it takes to get my raw fed dogs food ready & add supplements. If you are on FB, message Farmina there, you’ll get a faster response.

C4C, the calories/feeding amounts are on the bag, I can’t find them on the site but I feed less.

[Kristin C]

I think it depends on what else you feed. If you only feed kibble then it might be a good idea to add water for the hydration. If you feed dehydrated you are (usually) already adding water. And if you feed raw there’s naturally moisture in the meat. Freeze dried can be fed dry or with water I guess but I always add water. I feed mostly raw so when I’m at home I don’t add water to the few kibble meals per week. Right now we are on vacation so I added water to the kibble meals we fed at the hotels.

[InkedMarie]

There are various options for raw. You can buy pre made raw at the store; the ones I like are Primal & Vital Essentials. If you go to the review side, put raw food into the search and read up on them.

Darwins is pre made raw that is shipped to you. Google for the website, they offer a trial package at a good price.

You can do your own raw, BARF or prey model. Prey model has no fruits or veggies. That is what I feed but I feed it ground. I buy the bony ground from Hare Today and some from Reel Raw. I buy some boneless from Hare but most of it locally.

[dakcmumm]

Thank you all for your inputs. I am the mommy of 2 mini dachshunds. My Sophie is 12 years old and Louis (rescued in April of this year) is 8. I have been feeding Sophie Lotus grain free kibble turkey and fish and Louis Merrick canned food. Louis has no teeth left due to neglect prior to his adoption. Louis has very bad odor everytime I kiss him and he sheds like crazy. Also his eyes always have some kind of discharge. Even though Sophie’s health is OK, I still think that she is not at her best. Sophie licks her paws a lot and needs to loose a few pounds. Anyway, after I read Dr. Martin Goldstein’s and Dr. Pirtcain’s books I cried so much and decided to switch my babies to raw food. I have been looking for supplements and was tempted to order Dinovite. But I stopped after I read your reviews on this forum.
Thank you again for extending yourself and post your experiences with the product so that other people can learn from you. I am so desperate now to what supplement I should try. I know there is no perfect of anything. But I want to educate myself as much as possible and find a good enough supplement that I want to try on my babies. I will give them a fast starting tomorrow before switch them over to raw food diet.
I am a new member to this forum. I will talk to all of you again soon.

[Merry G]

I read that when you lower the protein the phosphorus is lowered also because it’s contained in the meat protein. I found a canned dog food that has a .8% of protein and according the the article I read, that’s a good low range.
She doesn’t like that KD Science Diet dog food! I don’t either! It’s rubbery and I don’t like the added ingredients. And not too long after I was feeding it to her she got really sick with throwing up and then refusing to eat. I had to fix chicken broth and crackers for her, lol like ya would for a kid! A few days later she was fine and now she’s as frisky as a pup.
I have a very picky boxer so getting her to eat something good for her is a real challenge. I boil and then fry or bake chicken for her and add yellow potatoes, carrots and celery. And it’s seasoned with some rosemary, sage, a bit of ginger and salt and it tastes good to me so I always hope she’s not in her “diva mode” and will chow down on it! lolol Dogs! How they get US trained to suit them! 🙂

The dog foods I saw that were made from fish used salmon. I’m going to see if my girl will eat tuna fish. She won’t eat food that I put fish oil in. So maybe she’ll get her omegas with tuna instead.
I had to laugh at the Vet when he asked if Sage drinks alot of water or more than usual. Fer cripes sake I said to him. We live in the DESERT and we ALL drink more water than people in the flatlands or moisture rich areas do!
But sigh…it made me paranoid so now I pay too much attention to the amount of water she drinks which is no more than she always did, lol. I’m looking for things that aren’t there because of this diagnoses.

[crazy4cats]

My cats are pretty fascinated with my 20 gallon fish tank also and get on top of it quite often. I’m shocked they have not ended up in it yet!

Well, it’s been about a month already since my cat, Casper’s, blocked urinary tract emergency already. I can’t believe it! I’m still feeding mostly canned prescription canned food. I also feed him a little Royal Canin Rx kibble as well, as he is a crunchy addict. It took me months to get him to eat canned after adopting him from the shelter. Unfortunately, I’m feeding the other three mostly the prescription as well. But, they get a little regular kibble. They eat the Rx canned better than Casper. Which means they are all peeing twice as much as they used to. Somehow the food dilutes the urine and also makes them more thirsty, encouraging them to drink more. I probably need to add another litter box. (yuck)

He goes in tomorrow for a follow up urinalysis to see if his new food and drugs are keeping him clean and clear! It’s hard to keep track of who is doing what in the boxes, but when I do catch him in one, I listen for the sweet sound of rushing pee! LOL! So far so good. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow’s test results. I’m hoping to be able to switch to some regular food somewhere down the road. The prescription food is definitely more expensive than it should be considering the ingredients.

Our BDog hasn’t been on here much. I sure hope she’s not buried in snow!

[Michael H]

Visited the butcher today. I found I can get beef heart at 2.29/lb from the butcher, so I may end up going there weekly for some and maybe grind it in with another meat myself. I have a gimpy grinder that can do meat, not bone though. They do bone in grinding, but can’t offer it until deer season is over. Wish they had any pastured/grassfed meats, but at least its promised they don’t use sodium/broth injected items.

They also had frozen cows brain there! Not sure if they’d go for that, haha.

So from them I found I have access to:
Organs-beef heart/liver/brain, chicken liver/unsure of hearts/gizzards(is this meaty or organ?), possibly spleen I think if they can order it.

RMB-bone in chicken parts, turkey necks/wings, assorted ribs. Other necks, trachea, chicken feet, etc. are still hard to find. Bernie is a gulper so I’m not sure what size to even use-too small and no chewing action, too big and he may choke on it. Zuli is a gnawer and has great teeth already, 3yo and never needed a dental.

I forgot to mention that between us boarding guest dogs from our home, and another cat present from my sister in law who lives with us, I may just be able to raw feed for the first meal of the day, while everyone else is put away. Either that, or have RMB meals in the morning, since I’m assuming they’ll take a while to chow down and everyone else will go nuts if they sense what’s going on.

Do you think my ‘bases’ may be covered if I did raw in the AM and a good freeze dried in the PM?

[Michael H]

Hi everyone!

We have 2 dogs:

Bernie, 9y M allergic-to-life Basset Hound
Zuli, 3y F Lab Mix

and our cat:
Sophie, 8y F Mackeral Tabby, borderline diabetic

Due to both Bernie and Sophie’s above issues, it seems like my best option at this point would be to try raw feeding. The dogs both enjoy the occasional chicken wing or turkey neck, but I have not yet tried feeding it as a whole diet. The cat, who was originally an outdoor stray who did hunt for her sustenance, does accept things like turkey and pepperoni, but for most of her life has been on dry food…which is probably why she had the October diagnosis for diabetes. She is near impossible to catch (the yearly vet visit can take us anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour to capture her-we’ve blocked off hiding spaces as we find them over the years, though once she actually broke INTO the wall to hide) and has a lack of scruff, and at this point I’m really fearing the ability to be able to administer insulin consistently. So, it seems that a diet change may be my only help with this. For Bernie, I can control what goes into the food, and avoid his allergens altogether.

I work from home, so cooking and preparing isn’t a big deal. I handle raw meat for my own consumption so that doesn’t bother me, and I’m very versed in the realm of preventing cross contamination.

My access to pastured/organic items is limited to either very far drives or possible home delivery (have to order a LOT at a time to make the shipping be affordable). For the delivery [ReelRaw] they do have a lot of variety, which is nice, but seems the most expensive option that I’ve come across ($300/mo for all pets, around 50lb of items, still cheaper than whole foods). I do have a butcher shop somewhat nearby, but the only organs they carry or process is beef heart, and the variety of RMB’s I can get aren’t much, as well as they do not carry any pastured/organic meats.

Upon my research, I’m finding a lot of conflicting information. It seems that on one side everyone is pro supplements to add to the meals, which I’m hesitant to do so, as I’m of the perspective to not take any synthetic or multivitamins myself since I feel I’m literally peeing the money away, and rather get what I need from whole foods. I know dogs cant digest fruit/veg well, as anytime I’ve given a piece I find it the next day pretty much intact in their waste. We do own a masticating juicer, so that is an option. I’ve come across some freeze dried foods (Big Dog Natural) that say they ferment the veg to make them bioavailable, which is interesting, though I’m unsure if it’s still too high-carb for Bernie. It could all be a bunch of hogwash as well. I do agree with adding omega 3/sardines at meal time, as I feel that the fats are too delicate for any processing procedure.

Then there’s all the premixes available with vitamins, minerals, kale, sweet potatoes, etc. (Urban Wolf, THK, SSLL Dinner Mix). It’s hard to find a premix without one of Bernie’s proposed allergens in it, and to be honest I’d rather keep the carb count for him down as much as possible, as Bassets are already yeast factories, and Sophie needs as little carb as possible-I don’t think I’ve come across mixes for cats anyways. What dog eats kale in the wild anyways? I have a hard time getting it down myself…lol.

On the other side, I’ve come across a few companies that don’t use added vitamins/minerals (Answers, ReelRaw), stating it’s complete/balanced as is, or with Answers, their own products they (conveniently) suggest to add, which is goat’s milk yogurt, or buy their combination product with veg, clay, cultured things, etc. Bernie is borderline allergic to cow dairy, so I’m unsure if he can even have that anyways. I’ve tried kefir with him before, but the yeast didn’t get any better, and would occasionally have putrid gas as well.

Bernie is currently on Orijen, which he does seem more energetic and less itchy, however the gas has been atrocious, and even though he’s not been really red and itchy on it, still is having a yeast issue (underarms, ears, back of legs). This is a dog that sleeps 14 hours a day on those areas, so not much air is circulating. The gas has gotten better by feeding him less of it, but it can still clear a room. I think it’s due to the lentils/chickpeas-while he’s not allergic to them, doesn’t mean he can digest them well.

So to end my novella for how, I’ll boil it down to some questions:

-Do you feel that the supplements are needed if I use the cheaper conventional meat from the butcher? Or would possibly they be getting enough if I splurge for the pastured meats/organs/rmb? It’s doubtful I can afford both the pastured and supplements.

-Do you feel premixes are worth it, and would make the conventional meat balanced? (again, may not be able to do both pastured + mixes)

-How important do you feel variety in meats is? If I shop locally, I only really have access to beef, chicken, and pork, which I myself am even tired of, haha. Most any recreational or RMB’s I can find in the area are meant for soups and have very little meat left on them. With delivery I can get many more options, but I pay out the wazoo for it.

-Would maybe just doing the freeze dried route be the best idea? Between the issues above and our cat, I’m also leaning towards this route. I’ve also heard that cats don’t dig cool meat very much, and as its the winter now I don’t want Sophie to lose any weight form refusing food. The 2 dogs will eat anything so I’m not worried there. I know I have to avoid giving Sophie all ground meat due to taurine loss. My wife also would rather rip off her eyebrows than touch raw meat, so if it comes a time when I cannot feed them, I’d have to have an alternative on hand anyways.

Thanks for any input!

[Gloria K]

I’ve been reading the comments on this particular subject and want to add my two cents worth. For those of you who don’t know, I just adopted Mickey, a rescue shelter dog, one-year-old terrier mix, 11 pounds. This dog drinks no water whatsoever EVER! I could not imagine how this dog was surviving without water and yet urinating at least two or three times a day. I went so far as to measure the water that I gave him, 1 cup into his water bowl, waited 24 hours then poured it back into the measuring cup – still one cup. Yesterday I looked outside while making my bed and there was Mickey drinking out of my koi pond. THAT’s were he’s getting his water from. I have an excellent filter and a UV light so the pond is crystal clear, no algae, however I’m concerned as to whether this could hurt him or not. I may have to cordon off the pond until he learns not to drink out of it. What do you think- could this have hurt him? And how can you tell when a dog has crystals in his urine?

[theBCnut]

I read lots of super green supplement labels and ordered my own ingredients from swansonvitamins.com. There are a couple commercial ones I’ve used in the past, but they all have things Micah can’t have, so now I just make my own. Right now he is getting alfalfa, kelp, and spirulina, plus blueberries. When looking for a commercial one, I look for one that doesn’t have green tea and is organic.

[theBCnut]

First, please don’t settle on one food. Go over to the review side and do a search for the article on rotational feeding.

For the first couple weeks, feed him exactly the way the breeder was feeding him. That way, the only big stressor on your pup will be the adjustment to his new living arrangements. After he has fully adjusted, then start transitioning to the new food. I would only add one new food at a time, so if there is any issue, you know what is causing it. Transition slowly, but know that if you do go with a rotational diet, soon you won’t have to transition at all to switch to a new food.

Yes, use canned foods, and dehydrated, and freeze dried, and if you can handle it, even raw.

The benefits of using canned are in the moisture content and the meat content. Canned is closer to a natural diet. However, be aware that some canned food companies under report their fat level by a huge amount and dogs that are at risk for pancreatitis can become deathly ill from eating some of these foods, so read the review before buying canned, and pay attention to what is said about the fat level down in explanation. If you are only using it as a topper, it probably won’t matter, but if you ever have a reason to feed a whole meal of the canned you are using, it is something to be aware of.

[theBCnut]

They do not know what the Chinese chicken breeders did to the chickens or what the processors did to the chicken to make it lethal. I read all 82 pages of the FDA report. They tested the jerky for everything they have a test for and even created new tests to test the jerky, but they never found anything that should have caused those problems. There are still things they suspect, but they have no way to test for. It could be something that the chickens were fed or something that was added afterward. Nobody this side of the ocean knows, and nobody that side of the ocean is saying either. No, there is nothing about jerky treats that makes them harder to process.

I really think the problem is that they come from a country that does not value life, so they don’t care what they do to treats for dogs, and especially American dogs. Frankly, if I lived somewhere where dogs got more expensive treats than what I got paid, I probably wouldn’t care either.

[Susan]

Hi Cathy what are you feeding him at the moment?
Try a limited ingredient food with low fat%, has the vet put him on Hills ID
low fat GI restore wet tin food the fat% is only 8.5% fat dry matter so if it was a kibble the fat is only 8.5% cause it has already been converted…
commercial wet tin foods are higher in fat that can cause sloppy poos unless u can find one
thats around 1-2% fat in wet food.. Have a look at the Wellness Simple limited ingredients
kibbles, I tried the Simple Lamb & Oatmeal & Duck & Oatmeal kibbles, Simple does have grainfree kibbles aswell…Simple also have wet tin food but the fat% is high around 7-8% fat if they were a kibble the fat % would be around 38% fat.. the one with the lowest fat% is the Wellness Petite Entrees mini fillets 2% fat in wet
here’s the Wellness range
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/recipes.aspx?pet=dog&ft=1#Complete

[Peter S]

Hi, I’m trying to figure out which way to test my 3-yr old lab for food sensitivity(s). I’m referring to an actual blood/saliva type of test and not a food-rotation/elimination type of test. I recently read about Dr Dodds’ Nutriscan saliva test and the limited (biased ?) online reviews I saw were pretty much all positive, but then I asked my local vet about it and she said that the test wasn’t reliable enough. I have also heard about some sort of “muscle-testing” but haven’t yet followed up with any research about that. I’m hoping that the very knowledgeable posters here at DFA can help me out with some advice on this topic !

[Kersi B]

Hello everybody!

I am new here and tried to find some informations on my own, but I am lost…

I move from Germany to California this January and take my 6-year-old Chihuahua (3kg or 6,6p weight) with me.
He already has a light cardiac insufficiency, but the doc said that he doesn’t need any medicine yet.
Here in Germany I feed him with wet (in the late afternoon), dry (he has a extra bowl with some in case he is hungry) and own-cooked food (as often as I can instead of wet food). His treats are 100% dry meat only. And I give him Vitamin K1 and homeopathic Crataegus supplements to his food to strengthen his heart.
But none of the brands I am feeding him right now are available in the US.
So could you please help me to find the brands with the highest quality but affordable for a student? Thank you so much! <3 :*

• This topic was modified 11 years, 4 months ago by Kersi B.

[Akari_32]

I did find a shop near by-ish that has it, according to the website. Can’t wait to get it!

So heres a deal I’m hoping to try out soon. Naturella sent me a ton of $10 off $25 a purchase coupons for PetLand. PetCo should take these. I also have a $10 Natural Balance PetSupermarket coupon, which PetCo takes. Then I have two $3 off any size bag 4.5lbs or larger of Natural Balance Ultra manufacturer coupons (one from Naturella!). PetCo has the Small Bites formula for $29.99.

Should this work, I will have a 12.5 lb bag of Natural Balance Ultra for $9.09. Not bad! I would like to see if they’ll price match Pet Supermarket for me, since they have it for $28.99, which would make it $8.02, and me *very* happy. The sale price online for PetCo does say $26.99, but I’m not sure if thats in-store, too, since PetCo is freaking stupid and can’t just have the same sale price in-store and online. That would just be too easy.

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/D60C9619-BD1A-4BC1-B22F-D2808FAD9238_zps2be9yufo.jpg

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/7D268BB6-EFA0-4965-945E-1CEF3EF6CF90_zpsnszbungi.jpg

I also scored a 4 lb bag of Wellness Simple Small Breed Salmon and Potato (didn’t even know that was a thing!!) and a 4 lb bag of Wellness CORE Puppy for $2.46 and $2.48 respectively at Pet Supermarket the other day! The Simple was on clearance for $11.97 (they say it was in the wrong spot, because it rang up at $17-something, but the tag on shelf was right– I don’t think it was in their system properly, but they gave it to me anyways), and the CORE was marked down 20% for an upcoming expiration date. Used a $5 off PetSmart coupon and $5 off Wellness Coupon for each of them. The CORE I’m using now, using it to spread out Haley and Dweezle’s other food (also Wellness, but its the Toy Breed kind lol), since the expiration date is in a few weeks. I’ve used it twice, and its half gone already, so no worries there! The Simple I’ll try out for Ginger, since its small kibbles. Yay!

*edit*

So I just looked through PetCo’s flier and the Natural Balance IS on sale for $26.99. That means I could very well get it for $5.88 a bag!!!!!!! Holy geez! I know where I’ll be going in the morning!

• This reply was modified 11 years, 4 months ago by Akari_32.

[Hound Dog Mom]

Hi Michael –

The reviews for Pinnacle products can be found here .

To see others’ opinions of Blue Buffalo you may wish to read through the user comments that follow the product reviews.

If you’re looking for budget friendly options here is our list of recommended budget friendly foods.

If you’re looking for a puppy food, here is our list of recommended puppy foods (it includes a list of foods appropriate for large and giant breeds).

Hope that helps.

[Naturella]

BCnut and Dori, thank you for taking the time to read through and answer my hidden question! I thought they are fatty formations too, but I didn’t think they could disappear like that! By the time they took her to the vet where she gets her grooming, they were gone and he had nothing to feel for! I am so happy that they trust and let me feed their dog as I see fit – I am very appreciative of it, and I try to be very cautious with what I buy for them, as long as it’s fairly good and a good deal. Basically I wouldn’t feed her something I wouldn’t feed Bruno. To my knowledge she has no known allergies (but she does have fleas and they use a topical… Yuck) but I prefer to give her grain free for as long as I can. The Wysong bag is not grain-free but I like the overall makeup of the food, so I hope she does well on it. I have also brought her a bunch of chews and she loved her lamb ear, and is now working on a stingray tail. She also has a split antler laying around. I am pretty excited she is responding so well to everything so far.

As for Zach, I don’t know much about bumps but I would do as the BCnut suggested. Just get them checked out.

[Naturella]

Hello, all!

I know we all have a passion for dog health and love to spread the word to other dog lovers. This thread can be for our success stories, if anyone cares to share.

For me, I have several (3, really). I think you have heard them before, but one is a close friend of mine who used to feed Shep and is now a crazy dog food lady like me, feeding 3.5-5-star foods, rotating all the time, and giving canned or THK as toppers. Another friend used to feed whatever Walmart carries and is cheap, so Beneful, Pedigree and the like. Now she feeds Victor, TOTW (every once in a while), Holistic Health Extension and Pure Balance, with various canned as toppers. The third story is the lady I babysit for and they used to feed their dog Kibbles ‘N’ Bits, Beneful, Iams, etc, and now I am in charge of their dog’s menu and I also shop the dog food for them on a budget, so she ate 3 bags of Dogswell LiveFree and is about to start a Wysong bag. She also had 2 bumps on or really close to her ribs before I started her food change, and I almost can’t believe it, but I can’t feel those bumps anymore! Is that even possible? I don’t know. I plan to get her 3-4 bags of various Earthborn Holistic next and maybe a bag of something else to stick in the middle. I’ll see what deals there may be around Black Friday online and in stores. She’s also been on a daily teaspoon of coconut oil for about a week now, and also I advised the family to use it as a “leave-in conditioner” after bathing her, so she gets it on her skin and coat as well. In a month or so she should have nice, healthy, shiny coat, in addition to loving her food and being more energetic. I want to introduce her also to having a lightly cooked or raw egg once a week and maybe some sardines too. I will take it slow though – I want them to notice the benefits of coconut oil first so that they know I am not doing crazy experiments with their dog, lol.

[Merry G]

I don’t understand how a dog’s BUN numbers can be elevated either by dehydration or a sign of kidney problems. You’d think that they wouldn’t even mention dehydration! He did tell me that she can live with it for quite some time before it worsens but didn’t say how quickly it can progress or what to watch for. She doesn’t really like the KD Science Diet and I found some dog food online that has low protein and I ordered a case hoping she’ll be happy eating it. I don’t mind making my own food for her. I’ve been boiling and crock potting chicken for her for more than a year because she decided regular dog food was beneath her “diva dignity.” I mix it with brown rice sometimes and she gets the broth and carrots too.
I like to squirt a bit of fish oil in her bowl but that dog can sniff it out and then she will not eat it!
I would have no problem cooking her whatever kind of food would be good for her I’m pretty much used to it now.

I read a paper written by a Vet about putting a dog on low protein food in the early stages of renal failure. His name is Kenneth Bovee, DVM, MmedSc, (Dept of Clinical Studies, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.) It reads kind of dry and technical but I did my best to understand it. It seems that there’s quite a controversy about if a low protein diet actually helps but Vets have been told it works so they’ve been recommending it for a long time.
I’ve read about herbal supplements that can help the kidneys function better, or “cure” renal failure but I don’t believe there’s a cure!

I appreciate all your feedback and I hope that I can help Sage live the rest of her time with us in a painless, quality way. I still marvel at what a dog can add to one’s life and how completely smitten we can become over them! I’ve had 4 boxers in my life and I’ve loved every one of them equally and my life was enriched by their love.

http://www.dogfoodscoop.com/support-files/bovee_protein_renal.pdf

[Mike Sagman]

Hi Kaye K,

Thanks for your question.

As I explained in the video, we have reduced more than 950 reviews and 4,100 individual recipes to (currently) just 21 brands – including the dozens of product lines many of those brands make available. And for each of those selections, we also include much of the important detail that’s missing from the label.

This includes ingredient sources, country of origin, recall histories, product availability, quality control and safety practices of the company, test and hold methods and much more.

You can find all this information by simply clicking on the links to each Editor’s Choice brand whenever you’re logged in to the private member’s area.

Information like this is obtained via calls, interviews and data scraping. So, as you’d expect, it took our research team thousands of hours to collect and sort through all that data in order to make the recommended brands you find in Editor’s Choice available and updated on a routine cyclical nature.

However, it would be far beyond the scope of our service to provide this kind of in-depth analysis and tracking for each of the thousands of other products reviewed on our website for the small fee we charge for membership (about 1.00 per month).

Unfortunately, the only other way to get this information (for all the other non-Editor’s Choice brands, too) would be for you to make these calls to the relevant companies and ask these questions yourself. I realize this would be a lot of work. However, there’s just no easy way I’m aware of to do this.

That’s why we created Editor’s Choice, in the first place. We wanted to make it easy for our paid members find a great dog food quickly. So, if you simply choose one of our monthly recommendations, we’ve already done all this hard work for you.

In closing, let me again say thanks for being a member. It’s support from caring dog lovers like you that make it possible for us to make our website available without paid advertising from manufacturers — and the influence paid ads would almost certainly bring from the pet food industry.

If you have any other questions about what’s included in your membership, please feel free to contact Member Support.

Hope this helps.

[theBCnut]

Yes, I’ve seen this in sooooo many dogs. She has been on garbage for so long that her body can’t tolerate too much good nutrition.

First of all, find her a good probiotic and give her a small dose every day for a really good long time. Mercola has a good one. It is more expensive but it has a good number of different strains and that’s important right now. If you go through a couple jars of it, you should be good to switch to a cheaper brand after that.

Second, I’m sorry to say this, but put her back on the Beneful for a couple weeks. When her system has completely calmed down, start her on 1/4 new food and 3/4 Beneful. Leave her on that for a full month and see if her stools stay consistent the whole time. If they don’t, then she may have a food intolerance to something in the new food and that’s why the intermitant problems. You will need to pick a new food with very different ingredients and start over. If her stools stay consistent, after a month, start giving half Beneful and half new food. You probably should decrease the amount she is getting at this point because the new food is most likely higher calorie and that alone can cause stool issues. Leave her on that for at least 2 weeks, a month would probably be better unless her stools are just really, really good the whole time. Then go to 1/4 Beneful and 3/4 new food. Again decrease the amount you feed. If stools get loose at all, back up to the previous stage and leave her there longer, if they stay great, then 2 weeks at that amount or until the Beneful is gone, then you should be good to go 100% new food. Decrease food and watch her weight. Keep giving the probiotics at least 2 weeks after she is totally on the new food, if not forever, and then you can decrease the amount of probiotics to just twice a week.

Third, read up on the benefits of feeding a rotational diet and decide on the next food you want to switch her to. Each switch will get easier and easier until you don’t have to transition at all anymore. Good luck!

[neezerfan]

OK, I’ll jump in here. You’re right, Linda, there is no straight answer. First of all, I don’t feed kibble. I think it’s too processed, too high in carbs and not species appropriate. But then I have 2 small dogs and not 3 big ones so that keeps finances more out of the decision.

For one dog, I feed him a combo of Darwin’s raw and a few types of canned I like. Fromm, Whole Earth Farms, Nature’s Instinct and Ziwipeak are my favorites. I also add in fresh human food when available. Plain meat and cooked veggies.

My other dog has food intolerances so he is now eating Royal Canin potato and venison canned food. If you had told me a year ago I would feed this I would have said you were crazy but it’s been a savior for him. After 3 months on this I’m slowly adding other brands of venison food to see how it works for him.

So, it is a matter of what works best for each individual dog. You read and learn and makes some choices of good quality foods, and see what works!

BTW, is there really a food that labs won’t eat? LOL!

[Bobby dog]

You are very welcome!

Not sure if the fish you bought is cooked or not, but do not feed raw salmon or trout to the dogs because they may contain bacteria that causes death in dogs. Good idea to puree it if you are uncertain about the bones, better safe than sorry.

You will really find that PDF useful. On top of it being packed with great info, it’s an easy read and written so that you can reference info easily. Your questions about food and portions should be answered in there. I don’t feed the ABC diet in one day, I feed all the extras throughout the week as toppers. Please ask if you can’t find what you are looking for; someone here should be able to help.

It does sound like a yeasty skin issue. Dandruff is much better than open sores so the Malesab must have helped. How do you stand budget wise with purchasing more shampoo? I found another budget friendly option for shampoo if you are interested.

My dog had a bad yeast infection last year. It took 8 months of consistent care and tweaking his diet to rid him of it. Changing his diet was integral in the healing process. If at all possible getting them off Ol’ Roy will be the most help. I know it’s not up to you, but if your uncle could at least switch to a food without chemicals, dyes, and meat & bone meal it would be a step in the right direction. With the added fresh foods you are improving their diets regardless, however by eliminating the chemicals etc. I believe you would see their health continue to improve. You might have a fighting chance to prove your point because more than likely some of the issues the dog had a few months ago will show up again after a few weeks back on Ol’ Roy.

I was feeding Bobby a canned food along the lines of Ol’ Roy that contained chemical preservatives and dyes, the kibble I fed was not bad. He had a skin infection so I took him to the Vet. During the visit my Vet discussed the importance of a healthy diet and suggested I stop feeding that canned food and choose another. When I eliminated it from his diet I saw an improvement in his skin within two weeks. That gave me the incentive to find out what else I could do for him.

I can’t answer your questions about enzymes, I don’t use them. Having no teeth would not necessarily be a reason to add enzymes. There was a very interesting conversation on the review side about using enzymes and whether or not they even survive the stomach. This did not pertain to enzymes used for pancreatic issues. Maybe someone else will be able to answer your questions.

I love the results I get from probiotics; wish I started using them long ago. I feed my cat kefir 3x/wk and my dog daily. I upped Bobby’s dose of probiotics when he had a yeasty skin relapse a month ago. When I feel he’s back on track I probably will feed it every other day. I think your choice of probiotics is a good one. Even though I am feeding kefir, it is more out of convenience for me since Bobby and the cats are doing well and like it. Kefir is very affordable, but I think your choice is more economical in the long run and you get more strains of probiotics. Write back with the weights of the dogs who will be getting them, I have info on dosage for human probiotics.

Canned food is much easier for dogs to digest since it is not as processed as dry food. There are several budget friendly canned foods out there. Depending on if they have teeth pulled mixing kibble with canned is an option too. At this point I am guessing it depends on what your Uncle decides to feed them. At the very least, you can add enough water to kibble prior to feeding them to make it a canned consistency if necessary.

I am not sure about specific exercises for arthritis & hip dysplasia. Keeping arthritic animals slim and fit is extremely important. The fish you are adding to their food is really good for arthritic pets! Try searching the forum for this topic and hopefully someone with experience on this subject will stop by.

[Bobby dog]

Dogs can do ok with no teeth. Their diet should be adjusted since digestion of food begins in the mouth. Soft diets are fine.

The variety of fish should be fine I am just thinking about the proper portions…you know what they say about too much of a good thing. The eggs were another extra that might need to be tweaked.

I never transition Bobby to a new food, he always does fine. The need for or length of time needed for a food transition depends on the dog. I was more interested in how they did and it sounds like they are like Bobby, ready and willing to eat anything and do fine!

If you feel it’s yeasty skin, what does her skin look like? Is there an odor to her?

I was wondering about there teeth and thought maybe they were chewing something that was inappropriate.

Good idea to monitor chewing activities. I give Bobby a beef tendon once/week.

I know I am a broken record, but the “ABC” download has all the info for feeding the extras. I think those extras are going to be great for those pups!!!!

[Bobby dog]

I am glad you stopped by with an update! It sounds like you are doing everything within your means to help these dogs. Other than a change in diet and seeking medical attention for their teeth, I still recommend probiotics if it is feasible. I listed some suggestions for them in my previous post.

Were the dogs able to transition to Pure Balance without any digestive upsets?

Does she have yeasty skin or just itchy from allergies?

What is the can size of the sardines you are feeding? About how many cans/week are you feeding each dog?

Healthy teeth and gums are very important for all of us; when they are unhealthy it can lead to other diseases. I would certainly address the situation in my dog. The only suggestion I have are for the owners to seek medical care ASAP. Do they have trouble eating kibble? Are the dogs given anything to chew?

I really recommend Steve Brown’s download, “See Spot Live Longer the ABC Way.” It will help you with what you are trying to achieve for these dogs economically. More importantly, it is specific as to the quantities/types of fresh foods to feed and keeping the diet balanced; it would also benefit your dog regardless of the quality of kibble he currently eats!
http://www.seespotlivelonger.com/home/sll/page_41/see_spot_live_longer_the_abc_way___electronic_down.html

Here’s a DFA thread about adding toppers:
/forums/topic/toppersadded-nutrition/

Too many raw egg whites can interfere with the absorption of biotin; egg whites contain avidin which binds with biotin preventing dogs from absorbing it. Lightly cooking some of the eggs you feed or just the whites can remedy this. Dogs the size of Labs should probably be fed about 4 – 5 eggs per week depending on their body condition and weight. Check out this thread for some suggestions from theBCnut on feeding eggs:
/forums/topic/how-many-eggs-shell-or-no-shell/

Other canned fish you can feed is mackerel or wild pink Alaskan salmon; avoid tuna due to possible contaminates. Be sure to feed only fish packed in water with no salt added.

You can try foot baths & rinses. Below are links to several different baths & rinses that would help with skin and coat issues. If you decide to try the povidone iodine solution foot bath or rinse, since the dogs go outside, rinse with clean water afterwards because it makes the skin sensitive to the sun:
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/10/25/dog-foot-bath.aspx
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/05/03/eating-these-foods-can-make-your-dog-itch-like-crazy.aspx
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2009/12/16/thirty-seconds-to-relieve-your-pets-itchy-paws.aspx
http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/15_01/features/Pet-Uses-Of-Apple-Cider-Vinegar_20435-1.html?pg=3

Ol’ Roy is definitely not my choice for a healthy food, but it sounds like it’s your uncle’s. Keep encouraging him to rotate and hopefully feed a better food. Other places to look for affordable dog food are whole sale clubs, hardware, large animal feed, and garden supply stores.

If your uncle will not invest in better food, maybe you can try to research some kibbles that are in the same price range that don’t contain as many undesirable ingredients, chemicals, and dyes. One brand that comes to mind is PMI Nutrition; they make three grades of dog food. I often read comments from people on hunting dog forums recommending their Red Flannel line, their lowest grade of food. I don’t recommend this food, but perhaps it (or another similar food) could be considered the lesser of two evils.

Here is PMI’s website with a store locator:
http://www.pminutrition.com/main.html

DFA review:
/dog-food-reviews/red-flannel-dog-food/

[Jenny Rellick]

My dog, Leo, was like yours–begging for more food. He went from 62 lbs. down to 50 lbs.over the course of a year on a grain-free dry food. Here are my 4 tips for dog weight loss:

1. Feed the calories for your dog’s ideal weight, not her current weight: Leo gets 725 calories per day, including treats, and has gotten that amount since he hit 62 lbs.. Use The Dog Food Calculator on this site’s home page to figure out you dog’s caloric needs, entering an estimated ideal weight in pounds from your vet or from a time before your dog was overweight, and for activity level, select “overweight.” Leo’s food is 500 calories per cup, and I feed him 1 and 1/3 cups per day, for 650 calories from a high protein dog food. I leave 75 calories for other food, and because the grain-free food I use is so nutritious, I am confident he is well-nourished with the small quantity. Leo gets 2 meals of 2/3 cups, measured with a measuring cup (never eye-ball the quantity.)

2. Pump up the volume with warm water: Use a big, flat-bottom bowl to spread the kibble out, and add enough warm water to just cover the kibble, letting it steep on the counter for a minute or two.. Some kibble swells to make it more filling, and even if your part kibble doesn’t swell much, you are making a tasty broth to drink without adding calories. The water makes the meal take longer to eat, and tricks Leo into drinking extra water, which is necessary for weight loss. My dog goes crazy fpr the aroma while it steeps. Many vets recommend canned dog food for weight loss for exactly these benefits I provide by adding warm water to dry food. My way is much less expensive.

3. Feed green beans liberally with every meal. You can use frozen or salt-free canned (never give salted canned vegetables to a dog.) Of all the vegetables, green beans have an extremely low caloric density but, when cooked (canned green beans are pre-cooked and can be fed directly,) they are appealing to dogs. My dog won’t eat cabbage, lettuce, or celery, but he loves green beans. He gets 1/2 cup at each meal, stirred into the steeped kibble. This adds about 20 calories per meal, but he feels very satisfied with each meal, gets plenty of fiber for bowel regularity, and thinks I am preparing something special for him at each meal. He watches each step, and if I leave the kitchen while the kibble is steeping, he barks and cries as if to say, “you are forgetting to finish cooking my dinner!” If he starts begging before I put the green beans in, I show him the bowl and say, “Don’t you want green beans?” He barks and cries until I add the green beans! If I run out of green beans, he looks so disappointed. When I get back from the store, he goes to his bowl and waits just to get his half cup of green beans by itself.

4. Give very small treats. Except for 2 regular Greenies per week (90 calories each,) Leo gets tiny treats for going potty the right way or listening well. They are about 1/2 the size of the tip of my pinky finger. Most dogs will enjoy one treat three times more than they enjoy three treats all at once. Liver biscotti treats are Leo’s favorite tiny treat. Zuke’s mini naturals are also a convenient size. You could chop up human cold cuts or pepperoni and keep them as treats in the refrigerator. If your dog loves to chew for a long time, antlers are great because only a small amount is ingested or digested at a time, and your dog will burn calories by chewing. Elk antlers seem to be a good size and wear down just fast enough for Leo to get flavor and satisfaction from his efforts. Marrow bones from cattle are similarly good chews for dogs, but bully sticks, pig’s ears, raw hide, and the like present a choking hazard, can cause bowel blockages, have empty calories, and often contain chemicals. By the way, my dog loves his Greenies so much that they serve as his emergency recall reward. For the emergency recall reward, don’t worry about calories!

[Dog_Obsessed]

I couldn’t understand it either, but the same thing happened to me last week while doing research on Magnesium, so I though there was just a bunch of technical stuff in it. I reread it and it still makes no sense though, except for the last paragraph.

I opened a Chrome incognito window and searched the site on google, I can tell from the google description it is the site of a Parson Russell Terrier breeder. For all I know it could have information about how to feed a home cooked diet, but it seems to basically be commercial spam.

[Naturella]

Hey, all!

I know, I know, long time…

Well, the talk is over and went as expected. Complete breakdown and crash on my Mom’s side. Dad too. He hasn’t even seen the video yet – she told him, which I didn’t want to happen… She may have told him her version of it, not what it actually says…

Anyway. They were both pretty devastated. My Mom’s focus is on the fact I didn’t tell them or ask their opinion. I already know their opinion and wouldn’t have taken it anyway. She didn’t really hear that I want to try to work on a better relationship. But it’s normal. She’s in shock…

I just hope that one day we will be able to actually talk about things honestly and openly. I hope time helps. They can have all the time they need.

So yeah. I’m okay. Just emotionally drained. Not devastated… Just hope this was the worst… My Grandma still doesn’t know. My mom is supposed to be telling her tomorrow. IDK how that’s going to go. So it will be pretty bad (hopefully only reasonably bad) here for a few days, but like I said, I hope time helps…

Thank you all for checking on me! I really, really appreciate it.

And BCnut, Brian and I will go have a nice dinner somewhere now… I think it’s better to do after the endeavor…

P.S. I am happy I did this. I feel so much stronger, albeit my mother called me “cruel”. I am not a perfect person, and I make some bad choices and bad actions, but I don’t see myself as an inherently bad or cruel person. She was in affect, so it’s okay. But I think this was good. I hope so.

[InkedMarie]

If you’re looking for canned, I have a thread “let’s talk canned” in the nutrition forum. Lots of good priced ideas there.

[Mary L]

An important step in the system to order the removal of contaminated dog food will give the FDA the power of the newly proposed law, policy and penalties for violation of the notice requirement for the product.
This is an important step in the control of potentially contaminated feed dogs did not exist inherent dangers that can deliver power to the FDA.

Powers of the new federal law, the FDA:

• Require contaminated dog food recall dog food immediately. Currently, the FDA voluntarily recalls contaminated dog food dog food from the store to remove the product has to wait for the company.

• Tampering with the dog food products currently on the market occurs when an initial notification in the system. FDA does not know this information system to collect data and without waiting for the makers of dog food on the market is evident as soon as they report the problem will be enhanced by working with the animals and other organizations. Dog food manufacturers to ensure the existence of a problem for a few weeks before the current food crisis spread its poisonous tentacles dogs. These delays the health of thousands of dogs worldwide endangers.

• Federal labeling requirements for the implementation of dog food. Currently, dog food to meet the requirements for the label is too lax or virtually impossible.

• FDA regulation of food imports and improve energy. Dog Food Recall the current reporting poisoning in dogs, causing kidney failure and death in China is almost nonexistent and the lax regulation of protein expression and other imported ingredients suppliers.

The FDA is currently less than 1.5% of all food imports are inspected. There is a new certification program safety and to allow FDA to inspect your plants to export to the United States that the Company will be required. The Company can not comply with their certification revoked and the use of its products for use in dog food or people not eligible for shipment to the United Sates.
Until that day comes, one of the best ways to assure that your dog is eating a healthy and nutritious diet is to prepare a homemade dog food diet. It’s easy and your dog’s health and your purse will both be thankful. To learn more about the necessity of feeding your dog a healthy and natural diet visit: http://www.pratsals.com

• This topic was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by Mary L.
• This topic was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by Mary L.
• This topic was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by Mary L.

[Xiu-Xiu]

First time dog owner with no experience. I have a 6 month old, 7 lb Japanese chin for over 2 months now. Breeder had him on Diamond lamb and rice. So I picked up a 30lb bag because that was the smallest bag they had at the time. I would give him 1/4 cup of plain kibbles in the morning and a 1/4 cup at dinner and topped it off with a Natures recipe(tub) different favor each day. Everyday he would always get really excited for his dinner and always went back to lick his empty bowl. So far no problems whatsoever with his health or poo. 

My vet thinks that Diamond is not as bad as people make it sound.  So I’m getting mixed opinions,  and I read a lot of bad reps about the brand. 

I like the idea of getting him on rotation. I don’t care how much it costs, as long as he’ll be healthy in the long run. I have a couple of brands that I’d like him to try from your 5 star list. I chose these brands because of the ingredients and based on the breed forum recommendations:

Canidae

Merrick

Orijen

Wellness core

So the first brand I tried is Candied pure element (lamb) grain free. I really like what’s listed on the label. But my boy seems to not agree with me. He had a couple of kibbles and walked away. He would not touch his kibbles all through the day. He kept going back to sniff and walked away. Dinner time (he’s always excited as usual) so I mixed it with his wet food like always (Nature recipe), he would eat/lick off the wet food and spit out the kibbles. 

This is weird because my boy would never reject anything I’ve given him, he would eat anything out of my hands. Am I making the wrong choice here? Any recommendations would be highly appreciated, because I would like him to be off Diamond if it’s not good for him.

[URL=http://s1373.photobucket.com/user/tirado_319/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20141011_131717_zps024480c6.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag393/tirado_319/Mobile%20Uploads/20141011_131717_zps024480c6.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[URL=http://s1373.photobucket.com/user/tirado_319/media/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_20141031_180322_zps28262968.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag393/tirado_319/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_20141031_180322_zps28262968.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[Peter S]

What is your opinion (if any) on the positive/negative aspects of legumes (lentils, and different forms of peas such as split pea, chickpeas, pea protein etc) being used high-up on the ingredient list of many “high quality” (usually grain-free)dogfoods ?

Recently I read somewhere online that legumes contain or produce something called “phytates” which can be detrimental (possibly inflammatory ?) to some dogs’ health.

The main reason I ask is that a few of the brands that I have been researching lately (to possibly feed to my 2 adult labs) contain what looks to be a fair to significant amount of legumes. The specific brands to which I’m referring are Horizon Legacy & Pulsar , and a couple of Canine Caviar’s formulas.

[Naturella]

Dog_Obsessed, thank you. Over the years sharing it has become easy (living it, now, that’s another story, lol…), except to my parents, obviously, because I am very scared of the possible worst case scenario outcomes of telling them that I am married and this whole thing overall, BUT it has to happen eventually, or at least start happening as I foresee it as a long process, but it has to start somewhere. I am willing to accept my parents’ decisions, and them, as they are, even if they choose not to change, as I believe nobody is capable of forcing change onto others that resist it. I would never shun them or stop talking to them or anything. I just HOPE that we can have a better relationship overall, between us and with my husband… I love my parents and grandparents, and all they have done for me, solicited or not, and I will always love them. I just need us to do better at some things if we can, and know if we can’t so that I can plan accordingly and work on myself in order to consider, but not let their sometimes unreasonable opinions of things affect how I do things.

Akari, if they would try to get to know him, I would listen to their concerns… Except, they have not… But, it is okay for now.

I really think it is the anticipation of this event that makes me a little off, and I don’t want to toot any horns of my own about “yay, I’m in an interracial relationship, I am so open besides my culture/country of origin”, it is more about trying to fix a moderately to highly unhealthy relationship between my family members – myself, the family that I am creating, and the family I already have. I just feel like this is a battle I have to lead alone for the most part, so it just felt nice to have a bit of a cheer here and there from friends close and far. Not that my husband is not supportive – he rocks, and he is my rock (and a ton of other wonderful things that my mom supposedly believes he is, but also believes we would never last because of society), but for this one, at least for some parts of it, I feel like I have to go in alone. And that’s terrifying, but okay at the same time. Like I said, I am okay (for the most part), and plan to be. 🙂

[LeatherLadySam]

I CAN NOT READ ALL OF NORMAL TYPING CAUSE I AM VISUALLY IMPAIRED! DOES DOUBLE SPACING BETWEEN WORDS HELP, INKEDMARIE?

MY VET KNOWS OF MY LIMITED DISABILITY INCOME? WE BOTH KNEW I COULD NOT AFFORD A NECROPSY. I HAD ALREADY RACKED UP A $200.+ BILL & NOW OWE CLOSE TO $300. NECROPSY ALONE COSTS $300?

I CAN NOT EVEN PROVE MAINTAINENCE BY DIAMOND WAS SHIPPED TO WA. STATE, CAUSE I BOUGHT IT HERE BUT DIAMOND DOES NOT LIST THEIR RECALLED MAINTAINENCE FOOD FROM 2012 OF EVER BEING SHIPPED!

I ONLY BOUGHT MAINTAINENCE BY DIAMOND SINCE HARLY COMING TO LIVE WITH ME IN 2010. VET SAID LONG TERM TOXISITY CAUSED THE LIVER FAILURE! MY HOMADE FOOD COOKED AT LEAST. 3 HOURS AFTER ITS SECOUND OR LAST. TIME OR CONTINUES COOKING!

I AM. SO. HEART. BROKEN & TOTALLY LOST NOT TO MENTION NOT ONLY HAVING MY PAIN MEDS CUT, CAUSE I DO NOT HAVE CANCER,, WA. STATE LAW IS, NON CANCER CHRONIC PAIN PATIENTS. ARE NOT LEGALLY ABLE TO TAKE MORE THAN 120MG OF OPIOIDS A DAY! I HAVE 3 OF THE MOST PAINFULL NEURO DISEASES, RSD REFLEX SYMPATHETIC DYSTROPHY, POST HERPETIC NEUROLOGY,, AFTER AFFECTS OF. SHINGLES, FIBROMYALGIA, MAJORITY OF DISKS BULGING OR HERNIATED. & DEGENERATING WITH ARITHITIS. SP? MY. BODY BURNS 24/7/ 365. BEING CUT. FROM BASICALLY BOUT HALF MY MEDS & HARLY SAVED MY LIFE MORE THAN ONCE CAUSE OF HEMAPLEGIC MIGRAINES & THE MILD FORM OF LOCKED-IN SYNDROME, MINE IS MY BRAIN CAN DEAL WITH ONLY. SO MUCH PAIN & IT SHUTS DOWN MY BODY ALSO NON24 I CAN NOT TELL DAY FROM. NIGHT!

SORRY. BUT HARLY. WAS. MY LIFE, I DOUBT IL. LIVE. A YR NOW WITHOUT HIM & ALL HE. DID FOR. ME!
SORRY FOR RAMBLING! HARLY WAS. LITTERALLY EVERYTHING TO MY LIFE, HE ALERTED ME TO MY PAIN BEFORE IT WOULD HIT ME!

[Naturella]

God Almighty, it is back. Take two.

Personal story of my life, made as short as possible:

I am an only child of an overprotective and codependent mother who “lives for me” (and, I think, vicariously through me). She is a lawyer not by choice – after the fall of Communism in Bulgaria she was forced to become one to survive (financially), so she is professionally damaged from defending criminals (law back then over there was not divided by field as it is here), who have also threatened her with my safety/life to get what they need in defense terms. I was mostly raised by my maternal grandparents from age 8 months to 16 years, when I moved in with my parents. I still saw my parents most evenings and spent most weekends and parts of the summer holidays with them. My maternal grandparents never truly liked nor accepted my dad and now that my grandfather is gone, and my grandma being disabled, my mom has to balance between work and the two households, when living together is not a healthy option (either my dad will kill my grandma or vice versa, lol. Hopefully figuratively).

I have been raised with a lot (for my country and culture) of American influence – Cartoon Network since age 6, MTV, Vh1 (not American, I know, oh well), American Girl Magazine, National Geographic, American penpals and chat pals, American movies, TV shows, Disney, music, and my mom’s American (Bulgarian Jews who escaped in WWII and came to live in the US) clients (for some real estate stuff in Bulgaria, not criminal clients), all of which happened since age 8 to age 18. I have always been groomed to come here to get my higher education, which I am doing, but I feel that my upbringing prepared me well and made it easy for me to adapt to the US and feel like I fit in well.

Now… In my country we don’t really have people of different races. I have only briefly met in person one black person before I came to the US. We have had and still have Roma (gypsies), who are of darker skin and generally discriminated against. Nowadays we have about 10 black and mixed people in my hometown. Maybe some more in other cities, plus some Syrian refugees. Anyway. I never knew I would, but I met and I fell in love with a black man here (of Caribbean descent). My mom let it pass as ok in the beginning, then about 8 months or so later she told me I need to break it off because neither my family (WHOLE family), neither anyone else, anywhere (not even in the US) would accept this, nor our children, we will both be discriminated against and suffer (and our children too). This happened in late May, 2010. Since then, not only did I not break up with the man, but I introduced him (virtually) to most of my friends and family in Bulgaria, who seem to like him and really want to meet him. I have met his family who seems to like/love me, and whom I love. My Mom has met him twice for about 5 minutes each time, and my Dad met him too and we three (without my mom) went to a sports bar. Dad and Brian had a good ole time. 🙂 Also, my Mom has said this about him: “I am sure that he is a wonderful person because I did not raise you to be with someone who isn’t.” I have also heard ALL kinds of other words from my mother’s mouth including how she would pity our kids if God forbid we have them; how I will LOSE my WHOLE family if I choose to be with him (to which I always respond that that would be their choice and it doesn’t have to happen like this, but to deaf ears it falls), how our relationship is imminently doomed as she reads statistics on that and sees what happens to two examples she has (both of bad relationships between Bulgarian women and men of another race and/or culture) and, the best one – how she has thought about even hurting herself at the thought of my imminent doom if I were to ever connect my life with a man of another race and/or culture, and how I will know she was right but she would be long gone by the time I realize it. In the meantime, I have begun living with this man (in 2012, but I only told her in January 2014, and her reaction was expected yet scary), I got engaged and married to this man.

Now… I want to try my chance at building a better, healthier relationship with my Mom (parents) and Grandma while they’re still alive, so I want to tell them the truth – that I got married, they did not know, nor were they invited, and I just hope that in time they will all learn to accept my decision and us as a family. And I hope to overall build a better, adult-like, honest and trusting relationship (but with boundaries) with my mom and wean her off of her codependency, if possible… But all of this will take time.

So, this is the gist of it. I plan to do it on Friday night – the end of my birth month. Just feels like it’s time.

Thank you all, again!

[Cyndi]

OMG!!! I am so f’n excited!! There is NO law in my state that says you have to have get a rabies vaccine. I never knew that! All those years vaccinating my doberman and he didn’t need it? Here is one of the articles I just read:

“Rabies vaccinations

Ohio law does not require rabies vaccination of dogs unless they have bitten someone and no proof of rabies vaccination is available. Dog bites are reported to the health department, and the dog is placed under quarantine for 10 days. Following the quarantine period, the dog owner must show proof of rabies vaccination.

Health departments in each county can require that dogs be vaccinated against rabies. In October, the Hamilton County Board of Health adopted a resolution that requires rabies vaccination for all dogs and cats more than three months old. The animal must be given a booster vaccination one year later, but subsequent boosters can be up to three years later.

Veterinarians are required to provide rabies tags to the animal owner and to keep records of rabies vaccinations that can be made available to the health commissioner on request. Dog and cat owners are also required to provide a copy of a rabies vaccination certificate to the health department upon request.

If a pet bites a person or another animal and is suspected of being rabid, the health commissioner can allow the owner to keep his pet in strict quarantine for a minimum of six months. If the animal dies during the quarantine, the head must be made available for rabies testing. If the animal does not show signs of rabies, it must be vaccinate at least a month before the end of the quarantine.

Animals must wear their tags; those that are found off their owner’s property without a tag can be impounded.”

I am so happy I could cry! NO MORE SHOTS FOR BAILEY!!! EVER!! Yay!

• This reply was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by Cyndi.

[LeatherLadySam]

I HAVE NO IDEAHOW TO PROVE THAT MY VET , DID NOT DO A NECROPSY CAUSE I COULD NOT AFFORD IT & I HAVE FED MAINTAINENCE BY DIAMOND UP TIL THIS YEAR, I THOUGHT HE WAS GETTING FST SO REC OMENDED HEALTH4 BEINGS HE WAS A MONTH OR SO FROM TURNING 5YEARS OLD. THE VET SAID HIS WEIGHT WAS RIGHT ON AT 68.2 LBS & SHE TREATED HIM FOR UNKNOW CAUSE OF RASH & PUS POCKETS ON HIS BACKSIDE. 6 WEEKS LATER I GOT HIM BACK IN WHEN HE STARTED TO VOMIT & NOT EATING & OVER NIGHT I KNEW HIS KEDNEIES WERE SHUTTING DOWN & BETWEEN THE 2 VISITS WE DID A UA ON HIM & WAS FINE. HE WAS DYING & I KNEW JUST 10 DAYS AFTER HIS 5TH DAY. EXCEPT WHEN WE WERE HOMELESS 9 MONTHS HE ATE ONLY MAINTAINENCE BY DIAMOND,BUT WHEN WE HAD A PLACE TO LIVE I DOUBLE COOKED CHICKEN & MADE DOG USING FROZEN VEGGIES, BRN RICE & OLD FASHED OATMEAL THAT WAS LAST TO ABSORB THE EXCESS WATER AS IT COOKED MY FORMER NEIGHBOR ATE A CONTAINER I GAVE FOR THEIR DOGS. I HAVE READ THE RECALLS & HAD TO GOOGLE THE MAINTAINENCE DOG FOOD BY DIAMOND RECALLED FOOD TO FIND THE 2012 RECALL. BUT THEY SAY WA. STATE DID NOT GET ANY SHIPPED HERE! THE LAST 2 BAGS I BOUGHTHEALTHY4. & IT HAS HAD A LOT OF RECALLS I FOUND. ANY IDEAS? HOW TO PROVE THE MY VET SAID WHAT CAUSED HIS KEDNEY FAILURE KILLED MY WORLD, HARLY! WE WERE INSEPERABLE AS HE WAS MY SERVICE DOG I HAVE NEVER SPENT THAT MUCH TIME WITH MY OWN SON EVEN BEFORE HE STARTED SCHOOL!I CANT PROVE HARLY ONLY ATE 1 FOOD ALONG WITH HALF HOMEMADE TO MAINTAINENCE! I WAS VERY STRICT MAKING HARLYS FOOD AS IF I WERE GOING TO EAT OR SERVE IT, IVE CANNED & FROZEN FOODS FOR YEARS, ANY IDEAS!?

[theBCnut]

I can’t post pictures here either, but if you go over to the review side, you can post pictures in the Off Topic thread.

[Edwina M]

My neighbor found a starved 6mth old Great Dane Puppy last Friday on the side of the road where there are many deep woods. He and I both RN’s but he is working and I am not so we are caring for him.

His coat is good, no fleas, no mange, his eyes bright and his ears clean but of course truly a skeleton looks like my mom said she did after 3.5 years in POW camps. It has only been a week and the space between his hindquarters is filling in not touching anymore. He is eating well and all functions are normal regarding to toileting. He is exceptionally smart and he is clean with his toileting.

The problem is his balance is kapoot. He is now hopping off on his hind quarters, his front quarters still have muscle from pulling himself along I suppose. We are wondering if he will ever walk again and when he is stronger we have a Vet to take him to. She said at this point he needs rest and the food, vitamins etc we are giving him is substantial. We are concerned that he won’t ever walk normally and it hurts us deeply. Since it has only been a week we will most certainly give it time and then see what the Vet says.

He is a wonderful dog and he would make a wonderful companion for someone. We can not possibly keep him, we have a small home and a small backyard and we already have two little dogs and several inside cats and several outside cats. We took all cats to Vets and fixed them when we first moved here. No more stray kittens around this area. We are willing to spend the money and time on this beautiful animal but hope to find a loving home eventually.

Please tell me about serious neurological damage that can come from starvation. He was on the brink of death never saw an animal in this shape. He is strong in the AM but by nightfall when we bring him in from his huge run cage he is falling over and not able to control his hind quarters.

Thank you.

[crazy4cats]

Hi All-
I’ve had a very rough couple of weeks. My Casper kitty somehow ended up with a urinary tract blockage. He jumped up on the bathroom counter and then tried to pee in the sink and failed and started crying a bit. He’s an extremely quiet cat, so I knew something was very wrong. He then started licking himself frantically. I had already had him to the vet as he had only been peeing in small amounts recently. He had some crystals and blood in his urine, so was put on antibiotics and prescription food that he wouldn’t eat. I took him to a walk in clinic and they took an X-ray which showed no stones, but they could not express his bladder so they deemed him blocked and catheterized him. I took him home with a catheter and brought him back the next morning. We did that another day as well. His bladder was having spasms and still couldn’t pee. They kept prescribing different muscle relaxers and pain meds to try to combat the spasms. I got fed up and took him to a fancy emergency hospital. They told me they had to redo the procedure “correctly” or should be euthanized. They are extremely expensive, but I couldn’t pull the plug. There was not a guarantee it would work as his bladder had been stretched out and damaged. he stayed there for 2 1/2 days. I got to visit him, however. Well, hooray, he’s been home for a week now on relaxers and prescription food. Doing pretty well. I have to keep him isolated to monitor his output, which is very difficult with three other cats and two dogs. So far so good. The prescription food looks hoerrible, but the vets swear by it. I’m afraid to take him off as I don’t want to go through this again! I was very surprised that he ended up with this condition as he eats canned food with every meal. After reading more, I’ve come to the conclusion that stress might be involved as well. So in conclusion, keep an eye on your kitties output. And, please take them to a reputable animal hospital if you have a serious concern! Also, keep feeding canned to keep those tracts cleared out. As I write this, my heart is very heavy as there was a terrible school shooting about 50 miles due north of us yesterday. When will this madness stop!

[theBCnut]

Sorry, I’ve forgotten, but did she also have an infection, or just crystals? If she had an infection, you should see improvement pretty quickly with the antibiotics and the d-mannose. So I would be looking into that, maybe not the right antibiotic. If she didn’t have an infection, the d-mannose shouldn’t help, and it will take time to get rid of the crystals.

Frequent urination in small amounts is normal because of the constant feeling of needing to go. I don’t know why there would be a big puddle by the door other than psychological issues. If it was while you were gone, I would assume she doesn’t want to use the doggy door when you aren’t home, for whatever reason, and is trying to hold it, but just can’t. It might help her to settle if you confine her while you are gone. Most anxious dogs do better if they have a denlike place where they feel safe when their people are gone. That’s one reason why crates are so popular among people that have lots of experience with dogs.

Not that it matters one way or another, because you can answer questions, but it’s easier for us to remember the whole story if all of it is on one thread, instead of starting a new one each time.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 5 months ago by theBCnut.