[Christie B]

OK, I just visited their site…$460/ mo. to feed my two dogs. I mean I wish I had money like that to spend. But I was also concerned about the ingredients. A lot of Legumes and Potatoes

Turkey, Parsnips, Chickpeas…
Crude Protein 9% min
Crude Fat 5% min
Crude Fiber 1.5% max
Moisture 72% max

Beef, Lentils, Sweet Potato…
Crude Protein 11% min
Crude Fat 8% min
Crude Fiber 1.7% max
Moisture 66% max

Pork, Sweet Potato, Potato…
Crude Protein 11% min
Crude Fat 7% min
Crude Fiber 1% max
Moisture 72% max

[Christie B]

Joanne – right now they eat Merrick Classic Beef Recipe Kibble with Merrick Big Texas Steak Tips Canned as a topper (I split the can between the two of them).

I usually buy the biggest bag and then if there haven’t been any issues, then I buy another and then rotate afterwards.

The previous rotation was Canidae Multi-Protein All Life Stages Kibble. Both dogs hated it…I had to sprinkle a bit of cheese on it just to get them to eat. It was a total waste.

Before that it was Instinct by Nature’s Variety Be Natural Chicken & Brown Rice

The rotation before that was Blue Buffalo Adult Lamb & Brown Rice Formula.

The rotation before that was ProPlan Large Breed Senior Bright Mind (I had my 4 year old dog finishing the bag of Blue Buffalo Lamb). Surprisingly, my big guy wasn’t a fan of the Purina ProPlan formula, so I only used the 1 bag before switching.

I started to keep a record of when his drooling episodes occurred, to see if there was a pattern.
3/2- Purina (chicken) , 3/9 Purina (chicken) , 4/11 (turkey), 5/15 Canidae (multi protein)/Be Natural (Chicken) during transitioning

I may have missed one or two in between, but they only seem to occur 1-2 times per month.

I’m pretty sure he had an episode while on the current Merrick Beef and Green Peas w/ Ancient Grains

I avoid chicken now (which is hard because it seems like so many formulas list chicken as a secondary protein ingredient).

I try to stick to beef or fish since they don’t generally add chicken. I also try to limit potatoes because my vet told me that they can be hard to digest and lead to stomach upset. I’m not quite sold on Merrick using Peas as their 3rd ingredient. I’d prefer it to be lower on the list.

I have a storage container with a lid to help keep the food fresh. I used to dump the food in directly, but I learned that it’s better to keep it in the original bag and put the bag inside the container in case any issues with recalls come up so you can check the bag for the manufacturing info. The only time I noticed ‘bad’ food was a bag of Purina Pro Plan from like 9 years ago when my dog was a pup. I didn’t notice until the container was almost empty, but it was infested with Pantry Moths and larvae/worms. Unsightly but harmless.

• This reply was modified 6 years ago by Christie B.
• This reply was modified 6 years ago by Christie B.

[Christie B]

Not quite sure what I have all figured out since my question was about whether eating the same food for long periods of time can cause stomach issues.

If it’s about the grass eating, I added it to specify that in addition to eating grass to induce vomiting when their stomachs are upset (which for my 1 dog is 1-2 times per month and the other almost never has any issues), my dogs usually eat grass daily. Which is something I had the vet check out and confirm that they were healthy and it was fine.

But thank you for the Fromm recommendation! Is there a particular Fromm formula that works best for you?

[Christie B]

I’ve had the worms in the bag of Purina food! I store my food in a plastic container with a lid and I was surprised to randomly find a moth fly out every so often when I opened it to feed my dog. It wasn’t until I got to the bottom of the bag that I finally noticed the small wriggly waxworms crawling about.

So the waxworms turn into Flour or Meal Moths and they generally find their way into food during packaging and storage. It can happen with an brand of food. Each female moth can lay up to 400 eggs. And when the conditions are right, your food is infested with worms. And they eat the food over the course of 2-3 months the chow down on the kibble until they cocoon for 2 weeks and emerge as moths. And the cycle continues.

It’s not a ‘dog food’ issue. Almost every grain silo worldwide has insect issues, including Meal moths. Most are treated with food grade Diatomaceous Earth or something equivalent. It’s not that the food is spoiled. It’s that some insect got dumped into the bag along with the kibble, settled down and decided to have a family.

It only take one female to ruin a bag of food. The worms are harmless, but I wouldn’t make my dog eat them.

Petco did refund me the bag of food.

[Christie B]

I already discussed grass eating with my vet. Some dogs just like to eat grass he said, his dogs included. However, he cautioned that if you have a dog that normally does not eat grass, then eating grass is a sign that the dog has a stomach issue and is trying to induce vomiting.

My mother’s dog never ate grass. But all of a sudden she’s eating grass, vomiting, eating more grass, vomiting, licking floors/carpet…

She needed surgery because she had an intestinal blockage. Turns out she was sneaking in the back room and started to literally eat the fibers of a throw rug. The vet saved the contents of her stomach. It was unreal how much stuff was in there. It literally looked like she had swallowed a mop head.

But my dogs have always eaten grass. Actually, my 1 dog always ate grass from the time I adopted him. When I adopted my other dog 6 years later, she never ate grass (she was 14 weeks old when I adopted her). She would follow my older guy around and do what he did. She started to copy his grass eating habits. Now they go out together…it’s amusing to watch.

And yes, they’ve also eaten it with an upset stomach to induce vomiting or I’ll notice it in their poop.

But sometimes they’re just hanging out in the backyard running around and playing and wind up wandering over to some taller blades that the lawnmower missed and lazily chew away.

My vet said it’s fine as long as their blood results are good and they appear to be eating fine. And when my big guy has an upset stomach episode I can tell by his body language that it’s going to be a bad night for him

[Christie B]

I did speak to animal control. I confirmed that his left ear was tipped and they told me 99% of the time that it’s a neutered feral cat. They don’t trap unless it’s for sterilization, not just to check for a microchip since the chance that it’s a pet is pretty slim. And they said that since the cat is bolting immediately upon seeing me, that he’s probably feral.

I guess, if anything, I can leave dry food out instead of wet. I have a deck box I can place it on top of (it prevented the opossum from getting at the food).

[Christie B]

crazy4cats- I’ve tried both Friskies and Fancy Feast… no luck. I had asked my vet after my cat’s hospital stay if he had to be on a specific urinary health formula and she said no. She didn’t think crystals were the culprit, but wanted to be cautious and add more hydration to his diet.

I do have a fountain that my cats and dogs drink from.

@Bobby dog- no they were the cat soups/bisques in pouches.

For the past 2-3 months, a stray cat has wandered through my backyard at night. He comes and goes, often 3-4 visits from 11pm-6am. A FB community I belong to regarding feral and stray cats asked me to put out food to lure him to my back door to see if his ear is tipped. I did and now he’s always looking for a midnight snack.

I buy Petsmart’s store brand for the feral, usually a variety pack of chunks in gravy. I put the food outside around 11.
My cat is very interested in the smell when I open the cans. Last night, I put the bowl down and he went to town on the food. I put out another bowl for the stray outside.

I tried feeding him the same food this morning, he wasn’t as interested. I’m at a loss.

And it doesn’t help that sometimes Mr. Stray decides to not visit, so I wind up wasting a can of food on him too.

[Christie B]

On the topic of “the big 4”, I think it’s important to go beyond the parent company and look at the ingredients on the bag to determine what food you should buy. Some product lines within a company are better than others. I don’t think you can rank Dog Chow the same as Pro Plan or Pedigree the same as Nutro.

Ingredients are important. 3 Chicken Formula Dry Food Ingredients Lists:

GROUND WHOLE GRAIN CORN, POULTRY BY-PRODUCT MEAL (SOURCE OF GLUCOSAMINE AND CHONDROITIN SULFATE), CORN GLUTEN MEAL, ANIMAL FAT (SOURCE OF OMEGA 6 FATTY ACIDS [PRESERVED WITH BHA & CITRIC ACID]), MEAT AND BONE MEAL (SOURCE OF CALCIUM), SOYBEAN MEAL, GROUND WHOLE GRAIN WHEAT, BREWERS RICE, NATURAL FLAVOR, CHICKEN BY-PRODUCT MEAL, DRIED PLAIN BEET PULP, SALT, CALCIUM CARBONATE, POTASSIUM CHLORIDE, CHOLINE CHLORIDE, DRIED PEAS, ZINC SULFATE, DL-METHIONINE, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE, VITAMIN E SUPPLEMENT, NIACIN [VITAMIN B3], BIOTIN, DRIED CARROTS, L-TRYPTOPHAN, BHA & CITRIC ACID (A PRESERVATIVE), BLUE 2, YELLOW 5, YELLOW 6, d-CALCIUM PANTOTHENATE [SOURCE OF VITAMIN B5], RIBOFLAVIN SUPPLEMENT [VITAMIN B2], RED 40, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE [VITAMIN B6], COPPER SULFATE, SODIUM SELENITE, POTASSIUM IODIDE, VITAMIN A SUPPLEMENT, THIAMINE MONONITRATE [VITAMIN B1], VITAMIN B12 SUPPLEMENT, VITAMIN D3 SUPPLEMENT, FOLIC ACID

Chicken, brewers rice, poultry by-product meal (source of glucosamine), corn gluten meal, whole grain wheat, whole grain corn, oat meal, medium-chain triglyceride vegetable oil, pea fiber, dried egg product, natural flavor, fish oil, barley, fish meal (source of glucosamine), L-Arginine, mono and dicalcium phosphate, potassium chloride, salt, Vitamin E supplement, potassium citrate, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, manganese sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, calcium pantothenate, Vitamin B-12 supplement, copper sulfate, riboflavin supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, garlic oil, folic acid, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), Vitamin D-3 supplement, calcium iodate, biotin, choline chloride, and sodium selenite

Chicken, Chicken Meal, Pearled Barley, Brown Rice, White Rice, Oatmeal, Beet Pulp, Chicken Fat, Menhaden Fish Meal, Flaxseed, Dried Whole Egg, Cheese, Brewers Dried Yeast, Salt, Calcium Sulfate, Potassium Chloride, Monocalcium Phosphate, DL-Methionine, L-Tryptophan, Taurine, Chicory Root Extract, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Sodium Selenite, Sorbic Acid (Preservative), Vitamins, Minerals, Probiotics.

So the first one is a mess of “poor quality” ingredients and artificial colors. I would give that food a hard pass every day. In fact, I know someone with a Lab who has fed this food for the dog’s entire life. This 10 year old has a lot of joint and mobility issues.

The second one has the dreaded by-product label (at least it’s poultry and not ‘meat’ ) and lots of grains. Fish meal can be found a ways down the list for a boost of glucosamine.

The third has chicken and chicken meal as the first two ingredients, a plus for sure… and then Barley, rice, more rice and oatmeal follow…not ideal.

Are any of these GREAT food choices?

Every single time I go to the pet store, I wander the aisles reading ingredients lists. All I see are legumes and potatoes. Are they causing DCM? There’s no concrete evidence one way or the other yet. Was the my dog doing fine on Chicken and Rice for the first few years of his life before I found this website and gasped at the low rating his food received? Absolutely. Did I switch the grain free after reading through these forums? Sure did. Has he done ok with switch, all these years later? Nope. He’s developed allergies and sensitivities. But is it because of grain free formulas? I haven’t found concrete evidence proving that x and y caused the issues.

It’s a learning process to find what works best for your dog. Some can’t have grains, some can. My vet suggests feeding him boiled chicken and white rice when he’s not feeling well. Is my vet stupid or just telling me what he knows from his 30+ years of experience might help my dog. Has he called grain free food evil? No, but he cautions against it only because the inclusion of legumes and potatoes are ‘relatively’ new to animal nutrition and there isn’t enough research and studies done to prove that they are safe in the long term.

He told me that he’s always given his dogs Pro Plan but have never pushed me to purchase any of the big 4 brands. In fact, he said the best thing I can do is read the ingredients list myself. And to transition food properly. And if my dog has issues after eating 1-2 bags of a food, to look at the current ingredients and find a food that’s different.

[Christie B]

Ugh. I was afraid of that. I originally did copy the post (I always do when I post because every once in a while it doesn’t go through). But I was at work when I wrote this post and after I copied it, I got distracted by a customer and then I copied something else to send in a text to a coworker, before realizing that there was a problem with my forum post.

It was such a long post too.

[Christie B]

anon, I did specifically ask for the vet I trusted. I was completely surprised when a different vet walked in the door. Had they told me that they were switching me when they called to confirm the appointment, I would have rescheduled.

If the doctor wanted to come to work so badly after having shoulder surgery then they should have made sure to stick her with smaller, easier to manage animals.

I thought about emailing the vet I wanted, so I could relay all of my concerns that weren’t addressed. Maybe he’ll do the right thing and do another exam himself.

[Christie B]

Yeah, I put the majority of the recipe topper in the freezer. Maybe I’ll be able to use it for my other dog in the future. As for my big guy, he was mopey this morning and gulping, coughing and shaking his head and rubbing his face and sure enough when I checked his ears…yeast infection.

It doesn’t seem to matter what food I put him on. I try different proteins, grains, grain free, limited ingredients….it makes my head spin. I try a new food…seems great. A few weeks later back to the drawing board. It seems to get worse with age.

Do I really go back and try the low quality brand he ate years ago with no issues? Do some dogs just not do well on good quality food?

These are the ingredients for the vet recommended food:

Chicken, brewers rice, poultry by-product meal (source of glucosamine), corn gluten meal, whole grain wheat, whole grain corn, oat meal, medium-chain triglyceride vegetable oil, pea fiber, dried egg product, natural flavor, fish oil, barley, fish meal (source of glucosamine), L-Arginine, mono and dicalcium phosphate, potassium chloride, salt, Vitamin E supplement, potassium citrate, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, manganese sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, calcium pantothenate, Vitamin B-12 supplement, copper sulfate, riboflavin supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, garlic oil, folic acid, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), Vitamin D-3 supplement, calcium iodate, biotin, choline chloride, and sodium selenite

I hate to try it, but I hate how the Benedryl my vet recommends for the symptoms knocks him out. He sleeps during the day while I’m at work, I don’t want him conked out when I’m home to play with him. And he absolutely hates when I have to clean out his ears. The more I try to make the healthier choice, the more it backfires.

Is it bad to try and see?

[Christie B]

Eh, I don’t know if the current topper that I made is going to work. Dogs love it, yeaterday after dinner, my dog started to lick his chops and drool. I gave him a Pepcid and thankfully he didn’t go full blown miserable drool machine. He slept fine, and ate his food this morning. Then right before I left for work, I notice that he was doing that gulping/I’m about to vomit motions. So I let him out and he made a beeline for dead grass to eat. I felt bad needing to leave, but have him Pepcid and crosses my fingers that I wouldn’t have to clean up vomit when I got back home. I checked on him periodically through the day with the pet cam. He was excited to see me when I got home. Fed him, but used a bit of canned salmon instead of the homemade food. And a short time ago he made the vomit gagging routine but no vomit.

Maybe the toppers are too rich for him to stomach.

Back to the drawing board.

[Christie B]

Susan,

I went to Judy Morgan’s youtube channel/. Walking around the supermarket today, I noticed that bonesless chicken thighs and trimmed cubed steak were on sale, so I decided to try her stew receipe. Couldn’t fit EVERYTHING she puts in it into my Insta Pot/Slow Cooker. But since hers is balanced as a meal and I’m using it as a topper that it should be okay as it.
I used: The chicken thighs, cubed steak and some chicken livers (I was looking for gizzards and hearts, but they were out of stock). Red Cabbage, Butternut Squash, Zucchini, Pears, Blueberries, Lemon, Parsley, Broccoli Florets, Red Bell Pepper- She basically says to use all colors of the rainbow. I did buy the Kale she used in hers, but it didn’t fit in the pot.

I have it set for 4 hours on the slow cooker setting, to give some time to take a portion out to let it cool before dinner. I used 5 cups of water so hopefully I’ll get a good amount of broth to freeze. I’ll have to remove the meat and shred it all then mix it back with the fruits and veggies and hopefully the moisture will soften the kibble and make it more palatable.

Since the kibble is nutritionally balanced, I don’t have to worry about missing anything. I’ll have to see if it’s more economical than canned food as a topper. If 1 can = 2-3 meals between the two dogs, then I’d need 5-7 cans per week. That’s roughly $15-21 on a decent brand canned food @ $3 a can.

[Christie B]

I think Joanne meant that dogs tend to be allergic to the animal protein and not the grains. And that grain free foods use grain substitutes like legumes and potatoes, which are also foods wolves typically wouldn’t eat.

Although some dogs can display intolerance to anything in their food, including grains.

I know my dog doesn’t do well with lentils, chickpeas, or peas if they’re listed too high on the ingredients list.

[Christie B]

Hi Susan,

Thanks for the recipes. I’d prefer to make my own toppers and put my crockpot to use. If I don’t put anything on their kibble and leave it out, they’ll eventually get hungry enough to eat it. Today, I really confused them. I was running late to work so I put a whole large carrot in each bowl as both a “topper” and a daytime “treat” and I just peeked in on them 2 hours later on my petcam and neither bowl has been touched yet.

I bet by the time I get home later tonight, there will be carrot bits all over my carpet.

I used to boil (which I’ve been told time and time again kills the nutrients) skinless, boneless chicken thighs, but my big guy has food intolerance. I find a food that’s 5 star rated, and they hate it and refuse to eat it. I go back to my least favorite Blue Buffalo kibble and they gobble it right up. So I decide not to fight it, because there are worse foods out there. And both dogs devoured it up , no toppers needed. I was amazed. I went through a bag of Chicken. But I wanted something senior or large breed for my 10 year old, and they have a Senior Large Breed but it’s chicken and if I stay too long with one protein, issues arise. So I tried their Large Breed Adult Lamb and their regular Adult lamb. Dogs loved it for a few days, but then didn’t show much interest. Had to add a topper. Now not even through 1/4 of the bag, the itching starts. It’s a big bag. Is it the lamb? Ugh. It’s a never ending cycle of trial and error. I’m watching him for the next few days to see if it’s a fluke.

If it’s not and I have to switch him to another food, maybe fish this time, how terrible would it be to feed my smaller dog the large breed bag of lamb so I don’t waste it all? She’s about 45-50 lbs. (though she should probably be 35-40 at ideal weight).

Any brand have a senior large breed fish kibble? The BB senior and large breed guaranteed analysis % were similar, I just went with the large breed for the extra chondroitin and glucosamine

[Christie B]

Didn’t Nestle buy out Merrick a few years ago as well?

[Christie B]

I don’t even know why you haven’t seen your puppy in 2 days…where was it? Don’t you feed it 2-3 times a day?

I can understand postponing annual wellness exams a few months because of losing a job. But an medical emergency, like the one you’re describing, requires vet assistance immediately. If you can’t afford to treat a dog that is that sick, then you should consider surrendering it to a rescue or organization that can get it the help it needs. What you’re describing doesn’t sound like something that will resolve itself on it’s own. Pale gums are an indicator that something is seriously wrong. Inability to stand, sit upright, or walk is an indicator that something is seriously wrong. This dog needs medical attention before it’s too late.

[Christie B]

Thanks.

I’ve been researching different ways to introduce and transition to raw (or at the very least away from kibble to something canned or refrigerated). Cost is killer. Two dogs, weighing 120 lbs and 45-50 lbs, equate to a lot of food.

My vet is 110% against raw diets, even long term cooked diets. He’s all Purina Pro Plan, all the time. He doesn’t even like that I’ve given my dogs supplements since normal kibble has everything they’d possible need.

[Christie B]

Hi madima,

I have a 120 lb. 10 year old American Bulldog mix and 4 year old 45-50 lb. Catahoula mix. Like your two dogs, they have different nutritional needs. I’ve tried to find a food that both can eat (since they literally will investigate each other’s food bowls during feeding time).

My senior dog had had issues with chicken and it’s really hard to find a Large breed Senior formula that doesn’t use chicken. And the ones that do are grain free and tend to use lentils or chickpeas in the first 5 ingredients and my dog winds up with stomach issues when he eats food with those ingredients. He did okay on CANIDAE Grain-Free PURE Meadow Senior Formula for a while.

I haven’t had a puppy in a while so I can’t recommend any large breed puppy formulas.

As for toppers, I rotate between canned salmon or sardines, eggs, boiled boneless chicken thighs or sometimes canned dog food [type that’s 96% *insert protein form*] when it’s on sale… not too much of it because I’m trying get these guys to lose some lbs. I used to buy Stella & Chewy’a meal mixers or Instinct Rawboost mixers, but they were just too expensive in the long run.

[Christie B]

I’ve been on a crazy food journey with my dog. When I first adopted him 9 years ago, the kill shelter that I got him from tole me that he was full grown (40 pounds). That was far from the truth as he’s currently 120 pounds. My vet suggested Purina Pro Plan Large Breed Puppy for two years, followed by Pro Plan Large Breed Adult. My dog always had issues though with loose stools and itchy skin/biting paws/ear infections. I transitioned him to Blue Buffalo Large Breed Fish kibble and he did really well. Then I read about grain free and how it was so much better, so I came to this site to find the best foods. I read all these comments regarding Blue Buffalo and quickly started to look at their ” 5 star rated grain free” foods.

I’ve tried them all.

I’ve given each of them at least 6 months with proper transitioning. I always had issues. I’d go to the vet, he’d tell me to go off of the grain free and go back to Purina. But I can read the bag myself and it doesn’t look healthy at all. Blood results were normal. I’ve tried different proteins (chicken seemed to cause more issues). TOTW, Nutro, Instinct, Merrick, Solid Gold, Fromms, the list goes long.

I can’t even say that it has anything to do with grain free. Only, he’s been off it for a few months now and he’s eating right, has firm stools, and no skin issues. I’m at a loss. I explicitly chose foods from the 5 star list and now his food is rated 3.5 stars and he’s doing well, but I feel guilty giving him something perceived as ‘not good’.

@Patti_S – I do like the 96% single protein canned foods. I rotate using them as a topper with some canned salmon.

[Christie B]

Chewing paws could point to an allergy or sensitivity to something in her food. After years of trial and error with sampling foods, I realized that my dog Chance would do well on any food…for a while. But after a while (usually on my 2nd or 3rd bag of the same food), he would start chewing on his feet, shaking his head, licking his legs, drooling excessively. My vet said allergies and told me to give him Benedryl.

I found out that if I switched his food to a different animal protein after 2 bags, or whenever I saw him start to chew his paws, (always transitioning properly) the chewing would stop.

[Christie B]

@susan, I walked through Petco and looked at practically every bag of food they had. All the large breed formulas were chicken based. Almost all of the senior formulas were chicken based. The only one I could find is Nutro lamb based senior food.

What kind of issues did your dog have with Nutro brand?

And would you choose a large breed formula over a senior formula?

Petco’s resident “food expert” asked what I was looking for when I went there the other day. I told him that I’m trying to transition away from chicken for the next rotation. They didn’t have a senior formula that wasn’t chicken based, but he showed me a Merrick bag that was high in protein and had 1200 mg/kg Glucosamine and 1200 mg/kg Chondroitin. I bought a small bag, just to see. I mixed a tiny bit in with their regular food. Neither dogs were interested at all, but eventually ate some of it. They literally turned away from the open bag.

But the gas was bad afterwards…both of them. So bad. I think it was too rich. Most of the “senior” formula labels had proteins at around 22-26% and fat at 10-12%. Merrick’s was 38% protein, 17% fat. I liked that it had the Glucosamine and Chondroitin, but I think the fat content was too high.

I’m not even going to bother continuing with it.

[Christie B]

@Susan Thanks for the advise. So far so good with his mobility. He still runs around and is pretty agile for a 10 year old large breed. I worry mostly about his front right leg, which is bowlegged. It doesn’t cause him any pain to stand or walk on it and he runs fine. I give him a senior Mobility Bites and Turmeric Curcumin supplements by zesty paws as a preventative.
The Mobility bites have 450mg of glucosamine HCL, 100mg of chondroitin sulfate and 5mg of hyaluronic acid per chew and he takes 3 per day.

My dog get sick whenever lentils or chickpeas are in the first few ingredients, so it’s hard finding a food that works (that he’ll actually eat). It was the biggest reasons I switched to Blue Buffalo. Most of the grain free recipes have chickpeas or lentil as a main ingredient.

I guess I could always try to feed the two dogs in two different rooms, but every single time they leave like 1/4 of their food and then sniff around and eat each other’s.

I’m trying to rotate proteins because we start to have issues once we stay on one too long. We’re just about done with chicken and I see the Pure Meadow lists chicken as the first ingredient.

I literally walked through Petsmart on Friday and read every label. So many grain free formulas listed lentils or chickpeas within the top four ingredients and when I found one that listed something like sweet potatoes, the main protein was chicken.

I was hoping to find something like lamb or duck. I know Merrick makes High Protein formulas, but I’ve heard some not so nice things about the brand. It rates good on this site. And I thought Merrick was going to run it’s operation independently from Nestle Purina. But I could be wrong. The internet is filled with conflicting stories. But at this point, if the food is decent and it’s working for the dogs, I should give it a try, right?

I hear horror stories about Blue Buffalo and Merrick on this site. I’d love to find a food that can be found in a local store like Petco or Petsmart (I live near both).

[Christie B]

@InkedMarie, I’m not exactly a fan of BB myself, but it seems to be the one brand that causes the least issues with my dog.

Over the past 10 years I’ve tried many of the brands recommended from this site: Wellness, Merrick, TOTW, Canidae, Acana, Instinct, Whole Earth Farms, Nulo…

Blue Buffalo is the only one they seem to want to eat. It drives me a bit crazy. But considering my vet keeps pushing Purina Pro Plan, BB seems like a step up from that.

My big guy isn’t overweight but losing a few pounds couldn’t hurt. The rep was saying that Adult formula has more protein than Senior food and as dogs age they require less protein. And since he’s over 100 pounds, he should be on a large breed formula.

[Christie B]

Thanks for the suggestions.

I had previously known what anon101 pointed out, but that didn’t factor in my decision to switch from grain free. And as dr. tim pointed out, allergies are to a specific protein in the food.

All I know is that he was fine when eating Blue Buffalo, but the reviews on this site (and others) steered me away. And I tried a variety of foods, and different proteins, to see what would work. And for 3 years none of them did. And I always stuck to 5 star rated foods from this site.

I just wasn’t sure if there was something in grain free foods that was used as a grain substitute that he could have been sensitive to.

He’s been back to Blue Buffalo for almost six months now with no issues. I was just curious why the ‘better’ foods didn’t work well for him.

[Christie B]

You’re right. I started writing something else and didn’t correct that sentence. My vet said 1mg per 1 lb. body weight. He said since my dog is so big to go out to Costco’s and buy a big bottle of human Benedryl because he’d need 5 pills twice daily. So yes, my mistake, he want me to give him 250 mg per day. I just think it’s a lot, but all internet searches show the 1 mg per 1 lb. dosage.

Once, when his itching was very bad, I gave him 3 pills. The itching stopped but he was completely lethargic for hours. I know when I take 1 pill, I’n ready for a nap a short time later. I didn’t trust going the 3-5 pill route in the morning when I’d have to leave him home alone to go to work.

[Author]

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