[Dog_Obsessed]

I agree that it is good to get him settled on a food before starting rotation. Adding fresh foods is also a great idea. I always have to “do the math” while transitioning, luckily I like math. 🙂 I don’t think it really matters that much exactly how much food is given if it is just for a week or two, but I like to figure it out anyway.

[Dog_Obsessed]

At moments like this I am glad that I don’t do football. 🙂

[Dog_Obsessed]

I agree with everything C4C said. 🙂

[Dog_Obsessed]

Orijen and Acana are great foods, much better than Royal Canin. Make sure the food says “puppy” or “all life stages” on it. As for how to transition, the answer is very slowly, over at least a week, longer if he needs it. Also, diet rotation is a good idea, because no food is perfect. Here is some more info about that: /frequently-asked-questions/diet-rotation-for-dogs/
Remember to slowly transition to each new food. 😀
You should probably keep using puppy foods (you can still rotate, as long as they are all puppy foods) until she is about 6 months old, and then you can transition to adult food.

[Dog_Obsessed]

That does not look like a high-quality food at all. Pure Balance is good, but you said they didn’t like it. Possible they would like a different formula better? Also, when ordering online, is is shipping you’re concerned about, or the price of the food itself?

[Dog_Obsessed]

You’re welcome! 😀

[Dog_Obsessed]

I’m so sorry for your loss. Thank you so much for taking on a senior and giving her the best life possible for 2 years.

[Dog_Obsessed]

@Dori YAY!!! So glad to here that! 😀

[Dog_Obsessed]

I have used Earthbath Orange Oil shampoo and Vet’s Best Hypoallergenic formula, and I’m thrilled with both. I also got some Nature’s Miracle Skunk Oder Remover shampoo last week, because we seem to have a sudden overpopulation of skunks in our area. Lily hasn’t been sprayed yet, (knock on wood!) but I figured it was a good thing to have on hand.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Tonight I opened a can of Wellness CORE Venison, Beef, and Lamb. It was devoured as usual (That is, the something like 2 teaspoons I use for a topper!) I also got my Chewy order today, which contain some poop bags (irrelevant), some Wellness cat treats, some Yaky Charms (Doggy popcorn made out of Himalayan cheese), and a supergreen supplement by Ark Naturals. I am going to double-check with the vet that it is okay to use the supplement for daily use. I haven’t tried the treats yet, because I have an open bag of THK Pecks and Superior Farms Venison Itty Bitties, but I will update when we’ve tried them!

[Dog_Obsessed]

Lily also does the twirling thing when she’s exited. Maybe it’s a fluffy dog thing? Anyway, I’ve never had Lily flat out refuse food since she started liking food. If she did I would also suspect something wrong with either her or the food, but I haven’t really tried enough foods to know for sure.

[Dog_Obsessed]

That sounds like me lol.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Lily will eat almost anything, but she has a funny way about trying new things. She’ll put it in her mouth and spit it out a few times before devouring it. That’s funny, about Dweezle and bananas. I once had a foster dog that loved all food except carrots. Go figure.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Lol, Lily is always a bit hesitant about THK at first. She’ll sniff if and look at me like “This is food?” and then she’ll dive in and lick the bowl clean. 😀

[Dog_Obsessed]

Happy birthday Haley! Sounds like some great meals! 😀

[Dog_Obsessed]

Sorry I wasn’t on earlier, I had a busy day today and a busy week ahead of me. Anyway, thank you so much everyone for all the replies! I will definitely email some of these companies and call Nature’s Logic, though probably not till the weekend. I will also ask for samples at the store this weekend, as I will be there anyway to get more canned food. 😀

[Dog_Obsessed]

Thanks! Lots of ideas! I should also keep in mind that Nulo sent you coupons, because I get their foods regularly, and that Fromm has a guarantee, because I decided not to use the bag of food I got from them that wasn’t working well.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Thank you so much for adopting! I agree that both Orijen and Acana are great foods, and that you should transition slowly. Get some of the food she was eating at the shelter/foster/previous home to use during transition. Also, I would suggest rotational feeding, since no food is perfect. Here is some more info on that: /frequently-asked-questions/diet-rotation-for-dogs/
Always transition slowly with rotation as well. Good luck!

[Dog_Obsessed]

Today I gave Lily a tiny bit of THK Force and Embark, and a spoonful of yogurt. I was going to do the yogurt as the only topper and feed more of it, but I would need to feed almost four tablespoons to get 40 calories, the amount she gets for toppers. That seemed like waaay too much to give when she’s never had the stuff before, so I just gave her about two teaspoons with the THK.

[Dog_Obsessed]

You’re welcome! Don’t let this discourage you from trying new things, it’s really great that you’re giving them variety. You might want to stay away from rice in processed food for a while, and then add it back to see if that’s the problem.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Yeah, a tsp twice a day is usually good. I agree with DogFoodie about removing the new foods. You probably don’t want to add any more new stuff until he is stable (normal stool), and then make sure to do it slowly.

[Dog_Obsessed]

It certainly sounds like he could be reacting to the rice. For diarrhea, many people here including me swear by THK’s Perfect Form. It is available online and at some pet stores. If the loose stools continue, or have blood in them, or something else that seems wrong, then call your vet.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I agree that this would be great! One thing that could help with the sorting is the Dog Food Wizard, which was created by another DFA user: http://www.dogfoodwizard.com

[Dog_Obsessed]

The Dog Food Wizard is a tool for dogs with allergies made by Rachel, another user on DFA: http://www.dogfoodwizard.com
You still have to read the ingredients, because sometimes there are errors, but it its a good place to start.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Oh, there actually was a recall.

[Dog_Obsessed]

@Sandy Whoa! How on earth did you get it to do that?!

Anyway, I have one unopened bag of kibble (Nature’s Logic), one 4lb box of THK Thrive, an open bag of Fromm that I’m probably not going to keep using, and 3 cans of food. This is about 2 months worth of dry and a few weeks of toppers.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I’m sure you have some coupons stacked up, but just for comparison the price on chewy is $9.99 for a small bag of salmon and $11.94 for a small bag of lamb. 😉

[Dog_Obsessed]

Huh?

[Dog_Obsessed]

I had decided not to use Nutrisca because it was made by Dogswell, and they had had jerky treat issues. It’s probably fine for rotation though.

[Dog_Obsessed]

OMG, cuteness overload! I get the exact same look while freezing Lily’s wet food. Or cooking. Or…eating. 🙂

[Dog_Obsessed]

I just found this topic. I was thinking about the whole Zukes thing after the discussion on the coupons thread, and wondering if I should use them again. As far as I know there have been no formula or manufacturing changes, I’m just worried because Purina has been involved in so many recalls, including the jerky ones. Thoughts anyone?

[Dog_Obsessed]

I totally support your decision to use the JM for Ginger. It is one of the better PVD foods, and it sounds like it is helping her enormously. As for the Zukes, I used to used them but stopped after I heard they had been bought. If their ingredients don’t change, and they continue to be made and sourced in the USA, then I would really like to keep using them, because they rock! It’s the country of manufacturing that I’m most freaked out about, with all the jerky recalls and stuff. I over worry about everything though, lol.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Sorry he isn’t feeling well. 🙁 One thing that could help is adding a digestive enzyme, such as THK Perfect Form. I sometimes use it for Lily when I have to transition her fast.

[Dog_Obsessed]

That’s so cool! I’m still not using Purina, but I’ll keep it in mind.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Some dogs are intolerant of rice in kibble, but can eat it fresh. It can be the other way around, too. Also, it could be that she is intolerant of another ingredient in the PB Chicken and Rice. Has she ever eaten any other kibble containing rice?

[Dog_Obsessed]

I fostered for about a year before adopting Lily, and I would totally get the names confused when I had close to back-to-back fosters. It was an incredibly challenging and rewarding experience.

[Dog_Obsessed]

1. Also not thrilled that salmon isn’t the first ingredient, but they don’t look too bad. I wouldn’t feed too many but they would be okay.

2. Personally, I like to avoid treats with unspecified glycerin. Here’s more about that: /dog-food-news/chinese-dog-treats-glycerin/ From what I understand, vegetable or other specific glycerin is fine, just the generic ingredient could be an issue, especially if it isn’t USA made.

3. These don’t look too bad, as long as your dogs have no issue with the cheese.

I would wait for other people’s opinions too, but there’s a start. 😀

• This reply was modified 9 years, 4 months ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Best wishes and prayers for you and your husband!

[Dog_Obsessed]

@Naturella Oh yeah lol it was fully cooked. I’m afraid of even commercial raw (even though I know I shouldn’t be.), so no way am I doing homemade raw at this point. 😛

@Peggy It’s great that you’re cooking some fresh food for them! Have they liked eggs when they ate them in the past? Maybe that was why. Anyway, skipping a meal won’t hurt them, and I’m glad they liked their dinner! 😀

[Dog_Obsessed]

Lily had a half kibble-free meal today! I gave her 1/8 of a cup kibble, 1/8 of a cup fresh chicken, and 1/8 of a cup THK Preference. I didn’t want to give her to much new stuff at once, which is why I did only half the meal non-kibble. I also gave her some Perfect Form. The THK website says that the amount I fed should be the whole meal for a 1-10lb dog, but some quick calorie calculations told me that it should be more like double that for Lily. That’s why I fed the suggested per meal amount as half the meal. Did that make any sense? 😛

Anyway, Lily loved it! She ate it without hesitation and licked the bowl clean! I’m not totally sure if this is balanced or not, so it won’t be her normal food, but I intend to do it at other times, too.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I agree with everything BCnut said, and I also wanted to add that poultry by-product meal was found in one of their formulas that claimed to be by-product free. There were several other “labeling errors” also.

[Dog_Obsessed]

THK is a great food, so that is worth a shot. That’s funny, about the Freshpet. Oh, dogs. Good luck!

[Dog_Obsessed]

If the drainage is colored when it comes out, I would recommend taking him to the vet. It could be an infection. If he comes back with a clean bill of health, then you could look at the possibility of allergies and/or changing his food.

[Dog_Obsessed]

It sounds like you are doing the right thing and he is on the road to recovery! Just out of curiosity, what kibble were you feeding him before? Were you still feeding kibble after the tooth extraction? (I think you said this, I’m just trying to be sure.)

[Dog_Obsessed]

I am so sorry you had to go through this! Wet food will probably be easier to eat then dry food, so you could look around at some 4 and 5 star wet options and chose one to start with. I agree with DogFoodie about the baby food, just make sure that it does not contain onion or large amounts of garlic.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Most commercial peanut butter brands are pretty safe from what I understand. You can get sugar-free salt-free peanut butter, also. I wouldn’t do it in excess, but I don’t think it’s bad in small amounts.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I can generally remember things pretty well in groups of fours, which works well because four weeks is close to a month. A reminder is a good back up though.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Anything is progress! Lily also loves squeaky toys. Yesterday we took her to the park and she ran zoomies with her tennis ball the entire time. 😀

[Dog_Obsessed]

Thanks! The first time we gave her Heartguard she threw it up 15 minutes later, but I think that was because she just sort of swallowed it without chewing it much. She was always fine after that. I’ll be sure to mark the calendar, and I might as well set up an i-cal reminder too.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Yes, the pharmacist said to give with a full meal, which I did. Would it help to give her some Perfect Form now if I can get her to eat the stuff without food?

[Author]

Posts