[croeber]

I adopted my rescue lab mix 4 years ago and she’s been on Merrick that entire time. When I got her she was 5 years old, skinny and picky about food. She’s currently eating Merrick Grain Free and she really likes it. I supplement with some canned, sometimes scrambled eggs, yogurt, a few veggies etc. But I know Merrick isn’t perfect so wanted to switch it up. It seems like there are terrible experiences with every food out there. Orijen was really expensive. Earthbound is highly rated here but the fish variety was on the 10 worst list on Clean label project. I’ve thought about Solid Gold or Nature’s Variety, then I stumble upon negative aspects and bad experiences. My head is spinning.
She’s happy and healthy. So must I really continue research for a food to switch her to just to mix things up?

[Susie]

I wonder too. I use 3 varieties of Honest Kitchen but don’t change brands

[Susan]

Hi Croeber,
I think it is really important to rotate between diiferent brands & feed a diffferent meat protein source & different ingredients, a rotational diet allows a beter chance of providing a more complete & balanced diet, while most dog food sold has been balanced to meet nutritional guidelines there’s always a chance that one brand might be a little deficient in a nutrient compared to another brand, by rotating a variety of foods your pet is less likely to suffer any deficiencies & rotating helps strengthen the dogs immune system & may reduce the risk off allergies or sypmtoms developing later on as teh y age this is very important for young animals…
You know your girl does well on Merrick so now look for another brand with a different protein source & different ingrdients but stay around the same protein % & fat % it doesnt have to be exactly the same fat & protein 1-3% higher or lower… some people rotate with the same brand that’s not a good idea, say that brand has toxins or high contaminates in their fish formula then the other formulas may also have the fish meal or whatever is in that brands meats etc so best to look for another brand it doesn’t have to be real expessive to be really good, look at “Clean Label Project” pet food testings some of the very expensive brands had the highest toxins & Purina got 4-5 stars ause of the lean meats tehy buy, Turkey & Chicken are suppose to be very clean meats….

I can’t be too fussy with what I feed my boy, I have to feed him what agrees with him, he was a rescue I rescued at age 4, he suffers with IBD, Skin Allergies & food intolerances, vets & his nutritionist said he probably was feed the same cheap Aldis dog food & when he was reacting with diarrhea & vomiting the owner didn’t bother changing his food or the owner changed & feed another poor quality brand that had the ingredients he was sensitive too & was reacting too, he is a prime example of a dog feed a very poor diet & was never introduced to a lot of different foods…probably why he ended up at the pound cause of his IBD, when I got him he was pooing blood & weeing blood, vet said the weeing blood would have been from being used for breeding..
I’m feed “Taste Of The Wild” Sierra Mountain, Roasted Lamb grain free with Lamb meal, sweet potato, potato, peas, egg, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, formula, TOTW Roasted Lamb is Patches go to kibble that he does the best on so far…
I’ve just finished introducing Hills Science Diet, Sensitive Skin formula it’s a grain formula with rice, corn, pork meal & egg formula, I’m trying this in my rotation cause it has Pork Meal & Hills gave me a free voucher-$140, my IBD boy does really well on his cooked Pork rissoles & Sweet potato, so when I saw Hills had a Pork meal formula I had to try it & see how he does on it & he’s doing really wll he gets bad acid reflux so its very hard finding foods that agrees with his stomach & he doesn’t grind his teeth & doesn’t swollow & swollow & lick his lips, I was rotating & feed “Canidae” Pure Wild Boar & I tried the Pure Meadow Senior, “Canidae has some really good grain free & grain kibbles….
I have to give treats instead of adding foods to his kibble, he gets 1-2 freeze dried, “K-9 Natural” Green Lipped Mussels, the mussel shell is high in Glucosamine & Chondroitin for his joints & bones.
“Love Em” Mini Cookies Chicken Liver & Cranberry with DHA for immune support biscuits an Australian Brand, I’ve just started these, he was getting peeled apple pieces, he gets his Yakult probiotic drink, he gets about 1/4 of the Yakult probiotic drink in between feeds when his stomach acids are low so they dont kill the live bacteria in te probiotic & I drink the rest of te Yakult drink, he gets his yogurt ice cream only about 1 teaspoon after his dinner & if I’m running late or on the computer he tells me about his ice cream yogurt he whinges & barks at me till I get it out of the freezer. I can’t remember what else he gets at teh moment, I’ve had him 5 yrs this November & he has tried heaps & different brand kibbles & foods the Australian kibble brands are really good but some are way to high in protein & fat for him, no vet diets have worked for Patch, TOTW has been the best dry kibble so far that covers all his health problems, I’ve strengthen his gut (immune system) heaps since I got him 5 yrs ago he was always very sick before, but now he has a beautiful shinny coat, he is very healthy runs, jumps acts like a puppy doesnt seem to have any arthritis yet, (fingers X) he’ll be 9 years old on the 20th Novemeber & it’s the same day I rescued him 5 years ago his “Got You Day” he was being Put To Sleep on his birthday..

Steve Brown was asked if you had to pick 1 food to add to your dogs diet to make it healthier what would you add & Steve said, “Mussels” you can buy them in the freezer section or buy freeze dried mussels, Mussels are very healthy they have Manganese, Iodine, Fats, Vitamin D he said alot of raw diets are short of Manganese, Iodine fats & Vitamin D so add about 1-2 mussels a day + 1 tablespoon salmon & a pinch of Kelp to your dogs diet….

Follow “Rodney Habib” on his face Book page, you’ll learn heaps about adding really good healthy fresh whole foods to your dogs diet…
Sounds like your doing a pretty good job already….

[anonymous]

@ croeber, @ Susie

I prefer to stay with one brand of kibble that agrees with the dog as a base. Zignature is my current favorite. I do add a topper and rotate the toppers depending on what I have on hand. I always add a splash of water to dry kibble.
In my experience, annual vet checkups are important. Some vets will recommend lab work at that time. If the dogs are in good shape, I wouldn’t make unnecessary changes to their diets. But, then I’m just going by my experience.
Sometimes it takes a week or two for an adverse reaction to a food to show up, then another week for the dog to stabilize. I’d rather avoid that 🙂
PS: Homeopathic views differ from traditional veterinary medicine, so you may get a variety of opinions when consulting the internet.

[anonymous]

@ croeber
Regarding the Clean Label Project, I assume you have seen this? https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/64mpty/we_are_the_clean_label_project_a_nonprofit_that/

Also, if you use the search engine here, you will see that this topic CLP has been discussed before.
By any chance, if you are receptive to science based veterinary medicine, go to skeptvet dot com (nothing is being sold there)
I have found the site very helpful, that is why I mentioned it.
Best of luck

[croeber]

I had just recently discovered CLP, so dug a little deeper today in other posts. And checked out the reddit.
Interested in science based vet medicine for sure. I will check out the site, thanks. Also hadn’t heard of Steve Brown before. So I definitely have plenty of reading and research to do!

[crazy4cats]

Hi croeber-

Have you seen this article in the review articles? /frequently-asked-questions/diet-rotation-for-dogs/

It lists some pros and cons of a diet rotation. I do like to change flavors of kibble frequently and also change brands occasionally as well for my dogs. I also add a variety of meal mixers in their food.

However, I have a cat with a medical condition and I stick with the same Rx kibble for him, but also add a variety of toppers to his kibble as well.

I absolutely do not think it is mandatory, especially with any health conditions or an older dog that may not tolerate it. I’d definitely take it slow if you give it a try. I no longer have to transition my dogs to a new kibble. Their tummies handle it with no problem. But, it wasn’t that way in the beginning.

Steve Brown has a download for around $3 that aids with healthy foods to mix in kibble.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

[Author]

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