[julez4you]

Hi all,
I have a 10 week old Dane pup that I recently transitioned from Purina to a quality grain kibble. There were some hiccups along the way- but he seems to be tolerating the new food now, so my next move is to try and transition him over to something like THK Love formula, but I’ve heard from others that some dogs experience a lot of waste when on THK. Has anyone had this experience- in particular with the Love formula? I know this formula is meant to be higher in meat inclusion than some of the others- and is also one of their grain-free formulas. Just concerning as we are still very much in the potty training phase, so more stools is worrisome. Also- have always thought that quality in means less out- so perplexed why a higher meat protein raw formula would cause this?

Thanks for any input!

[Hound Dog Mom]

Hi Julie –

My older female Gertie was started on THK when she came home at 8 weeks and at THK until she was 8 months old (this is when I transitioned her to raw). I fed her a rotation of Love, Thrive, Zeal and Embark – always had a box of each on hand and switched formulas daily. I added roughly 20% Tripett (canned green tripe) to each meal to increase the fat and protein levels and offset the somewhat high level of calcium in the Embark. I did notice an increase in stool volume and frequency (I have seen this with all dehydrated-type foods I’ve used). I’m not 100% certain why this occurs, there have been several conversations about this on the review section though. I suspect it has something to do with the fact that most companies use raw vegetables (and they dehydrate them at low enough temperatures that they remain raw), the fact that many companies use “chunks” of vegetables and the high fiber content of most dehydrated foods. If you try the food and have problems some things you could try would be to run the food through a food processor prior to feeding to break down the vegetables (one posted has reported that this helps – I’ve never tried it), supplement with digestive enzymes that include cellulase or mix the THK with a high meat canned food (such as Tripett).

[InkedMarie]

I’m a THK feeder. Not all of my dogs had more frequent stool but I think half did. For me, it’s not a big deal. If it caused loose stools, yes but more frequent? No. JMO

[julez4you]

Thanks for the replies. I wouldn’t be so concerned with frequency if we weren’t still in the potty training phase- it’s just makes it a little more intense. And the volume concern only has to do with my perception that if he has lots of waste, perhaps his body isn’t processing all it could/ needs to.

I believe it’s a good food, and definitely better than just kibble, but right now I’m only using it as a topper and his waste is more frequent, more abundant, and a bit mushy.

I hope it regulates as I would like to switch him over 100%. Maybe I will try the Trippet. I’ve just always been scared to open the can 🙂

[pugmomsandy]

I’ve been feeding dehydrated food to my foster since January and I give it with digestive enzymes and probiotics and he has two stools a day. I have used Zeal and now Thrive.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 9 months ago by pugmomsandy.

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