10 yr old Chihuahua - what food to give?

This topic has 4 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 7 years, 2 months ago by Susan W.

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January 27, 2017 at 10:48 pm #94102 Report Abuse
Erin Z
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Hi all,

So i’ve been lurking this site for a while. I apologize if this question has already been answered but I am too tired to take the time to search through the forum. I’ve always been confused about what to feed my 10 year old, 7.5 lb female chihuahua. I currently feed her blue buffalo senior small breed and she’s been fine on this. However, I have read bad reports and I want to change it to something more high quality. My dog Chloe is very healthy and has no health problems. I take her to regular vet visits (i’m a vet tech) and I’m planning on getting her senior wellness blood/urine panel as well as yearly dental done in the next several months. She might be a TAD bit overweight but not by much. She isn’t very active but has spurts of energy. On a daily basis, I take her on 10 minute walks (or go hiking with her) and will play with her and her toys.

I just want the BEST brand of dog food for senior small breed dogs. She isn’t prone to health issues and isn’t sensitive to different brands. I don’t mind the cost and I want to give her the best food I can possibly give to prolong her life and maybe give her some more energy in her step (she’s not lethargic, but has been getting less active as the years go by which I know can be normal ). What are your recommendations? Thanks!
- This topic was modified 7 years, 2 months ago by Erin Z.
January 27, 2017 at 10:55 pm #94106 Report Abuse

Susie
Member

I am interested in this as well. I have a 10 yr old Chi also. I’ve been feeding him The Honest Kitchen Kindly base mix and adding boiled turkey. I have Zeal (fish) on order because I want to try variety. Mine has IBD (not sure which one as we haven’t done major testing) so I wanted something with good ingredients and nothing funky. It is really high in fiber which is why I’m wanting to try Thr fish. High fiber isn’t the best for IBD. Anyway, you may look into THK. I’ve fed several brands of frozen raw which they did well on but the canned foods we have tried didn’t go over so well. We hated Weruva and Zignature. Looking forward to what others recommended. As far as yours lacking energy, you may want to check her b12 level. Mine had a very low level and since supplementing he’s so much perkier and playful.

January 28, 2017 at 4:33 am #94111 Report Abuse

Susan
Participant

Hi,
the best foods to feed any dog is fresh whole healthy foods, try & replace 1 kibble meal with a healthy balance cooked meal or start adding 2 tables spoons of fresh foods to the kibble, they have proven by adding 2 tablespoon of fresh foods to kibble reduces the chances of your dog getting cancer, add whatever your eating for dinner add to the kibble as long as it’s not a hot curry & onions.. or make a little bit extra & don’t feed any kibble for dinner….

Look up Dr Judy Morgan DMV on You-Tube she has balanced easy to cook meals, she uses The Honest Kitchen base meals in some of her recipes..
3 simple recipes, go to 2.24mins if you want to skip the intro…

January 28, 2017 at 1:27 pm #94120 Report Abuse

anonymous
Member

I would not make any drastic or sudden changes to a a senior dog’s diet, especially if the senior wellness checkup, including labs (recommended to be done at age 7) comes back within normal limits, including the dental.
I would schedule the checkup asap rather than in a few months and listen to your vet’s recommendations.
PS: Rule out medical problems first, don’t assume that behavioral changes, lack of energy, changes in appetite and such are age related.
Lab work is the best diagnostic tool that the vets have, you can’t tell by looking. You may be able to catch disorders early when they are more likely be receptive to treatment.

February 1, 2017 at 5:03 pm #94199 Report Abuse

Susan W
Member

Hi!
I have a 12 y-o Golden w/no issues, and an 8 y-o mutt who has a very sensitive tummy. I have also been caring for my mom’s 11 y-o schnauzer mix who doesn’t seem to have digestive issues but she does have allergies. About 2 years ago I got a bag of 4Health that was moldy. The vendor exchanged the bag but I didn’t trust the food anymore and started making my own. THEN I got to where I didn’t have time to make my own anymore so I started doing research. I found a list of 15 companies who had never had a recall on BarkPost. It’s a list from 2014 (I think) but by the time I read it, 2 of those on the list had recalls. I contacted 7 of the companies from the list, never heard from one, got email coupons for up to $2 off from 5 companies, and got a nice email from VeRUS Pet Foods asking if I had any concerns about my dogs’ health, etc. so they could send me samples of their recommended dog food. They sent me free samples, they answered questions for me, and they won my undying devotion. My dogs are HEALTHY and they love this food.
I can be more specific about my mom’s dog because it has been more recent. She’s a little old lady dog for a little old lady. When she came to me, Greta pooped 4 to 6 times a day and they were occasionally just little pellet poops. After switching her to VeRUS, she poops twice a day, and they are good, solid, productive poops that have good color & aren’t soft or runny. Watching Greta’s poops for evidence of improvement on her new food has kind of turned me into a poop aficionado – gross, but… She has also become more energetic and bouncy.
I started feeding VeRUS about 2 years ago and they STILL haven’t had a recall. They’re an American company, kind of small, but they’re smart and they care. They even have a non-profit that benefits veterans & rescue dogs.
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