[jakes mom]

The best idea would be to switch to raw foods, little to no carbs. For dry, I like Wellness Core.

[jakes mom]

I agree with Marie, give her anything she wants. Make sure whatever you give her has a good amount of protein. Some people say older dogs need less but unless she has kidney problems you don’t need to decrease the protein as they age. You may want to look into some raw foods. They come frozen but are nice and soft once thawed. Some brands are Stella and Chewy, Primal, Natural Instinct. Another thought would be Honest Kitchen foods, they’re dried into a powder and you mix with water. They would be nice and “mushy” for Coco Bean to eat. Same for Primal dried foods. Comes in a bag of chunks and you crumble up as many chunks as you want, add some water and serve. You can vary the chunkiness to her liking by the way you crumble it up. I used that for my 20yo cat who also had bad teeth and too frail to put under for a dental. Good luck!
PS, kibble doesn’t clean teeth, that’s a myth. You wouldn’t skip brushing your teeth because you ate some crackers, would you? Same idea.

[jakes mom]

I get HW meds through Drs. Foster & Smith pharmacy. I just get the RX from my vet and send it in. I wouldn’t trust just any online pharmacy but feel comfortable with them. Have used them for several pet meds over the years including heart disease meds, and thyroid meds. Better prices than the vet, plus he doesn’t carry the meds I use for heartworm now.

[jakes mom]

I’d definitely keep it in the fridge at least, would be ok to put back in the freezer if you’re not planning to give it to him again for a few days.

[jakes mom]

Sorry, a little late chiming in here. You might have more luck switching your dog if you mix the new with the old. That’s a good idea even if the dog’s not picky, just to let her tummy adjust. Every day or 2 replace some of the Beneful with the new food. Go slowly, just a taste of the new to start and keep increasing. She’ll get used to the smell and taste of the new brand.

[jakes mom]

Good luck, most dogs will accept it if you go slowly. Might not like it, but will put up with whatever their strange human wants, lol.

[jakes mom]

Sure, that’s why you need to do your research and know your dog and what kind of a chewer he is. Which is why I suggested Texasnitowl do some reading on the raw food forum.

[jakes mom]

Don’t start with a brush, start with just putting a finger in his mouth with a bit of the paste, just let him lick it. When he’s ok with that you can try a bit of gauze around your finger and “brush” with that. Work up to the brush, always letting him sniff and lick every new thing you introduce. You may need to try several flavors to find something he likes. I use a paste I make myself with just a bit of baking soda and some coconut oil. Coconut oil is very healthy for a lot of reasons. I use a finger brush , I feel I have more control with that rather than a regular brush. Don’t worry about getting the whole tooth, the outside is more important than trying to get to the inside surface.
There are also some additives you may want to look into that are supposed to prevent the plaque from attaching to the tooth to begin with, they’re made of a seaweed extract. Not a substitute but in addition to brushing. You just sprinkle on food each day.
Last but not least, a raw bone to chew is a great toothbrush if you’re open to that. There’s a lot of good info here on feeding raw bones for dental health. My guy gets a bone at least twice a week. He’s 12 and has never had a dental.

[jakes mom]

Papain is also found in pineapple, I’ve heard feeding some pineapple to the dog can stop the poop eating. Worth a try, if nothing else your dogs get some nice fresh pineapple as a treat. I’d definitely change their diet to a better quality food, too. As C4D said, be sure to do it slowly to avoid GI upset.

[jakes mom]

Don’t worry about spoilage, you can keep it in the freezer and take out a few days worth to keep in the fridge. Even frozen you can shake out small chunks from the bag and they’ll thaw quickly. Cut the loaf into meal-sized slices and freeze in a ziplock bag. My guy likes it but doesn’t go thru it in 7 days so freezing works for us.
You may want to consider feeding a rotation diet, lots of benefits to it including your girl not getting bored with her meals. Enjoy your pup!

[jakes mom]

No disrespect intended, Rick, great sales pitch but I’m not buying.

[jakes mom]

You said the dog was diagnosed with a lipoma so I’m assuming the vet did a fine needle aspiration? There are some fatty growths that may be cancerous but a true lipoma isn’t so don’t panic. They’re very common, most vets don’t even bother to remove them unless they’re in an awkward place and causing trouble. For example, under the “armpit” and causing mobility issues. It will most likely continue to grow. Wouldn’t hurt to slim the dog down if it’s overweight but other than that, don’t worry about it.

[jakes mom]

Thank you, Jamie. I personally do not eat meat but I feed it to my animals. I believe they need that type of protein to thrive. I have a house full of geriatric animals, a 12 year old dog and 4 cats between the ages of 15 and 20. I have to think I’m doing something right.

[jakes mom]

I don’t think adding a little hot water would hurt. Just make sure the cats get that water,too. You may leech some water soluble vitamins from the food into the water as it thaws.

[jakes mom]

From the ingredients I’d guess it would rate maybe 3 stars on DFA.

[jakes mom]

Were you using a new bag of food when he started to refuse? Might be something about that bag he didn’t like, a bad batch? Or if the bag was in use, perhaps it was starting to get a little stale, or oils going rancid? Something that we wouldn’t notice , a slight odor for example, might be enough to turn him off. Wouldn’t hurt to try a new bag if you really want to keep him on the TOTW. Otherwise, many of us feed a rotation diet so getting him something new isn’t a bad idea anyway.

[jakes mom]

I don’t think there’s any reason to change food just because a dog is getting older. If he’s healthy just leave him on the food he’s doing well on now. My guy is 11 and still just eating regular adult food. I agree with the above posters, tho. I give my dog fresh food along with his kibble. Eggs, a bit of meat or chicken, lightly steamed vegies, coconut oil, sardines (packed in water) are all good choices.

[jakes mom]

Not sure what your question is. Do you want vitamins to supplement a vegan/vegetarian pet food? No dog should be on such a food in my opinion. They need protein from meat. They may survive on veg based food but they will not thrive.
A healthy dog eating appropriate food does not need vitamin supplements.

[jakes mom]

It is a myth that kibbles clean teeth. Would you eat cookies instead of brushing your teeth? Same idea.
Look into Pro-Den Plaque off, you sprinkle on their food. I have used it with success and have heard the same from others. No matter what else you add to food or water, you need to brush their teeth. I use coconut oil and a bit of baking soda. Most dogs like coco oil and it has many benefits. I use a finger brush, kind of looks like a sewing thimble, my dog tolerates that better than a regular brush. Could also try wrapping some gauze around your finger and rubbing with that. Keep trying, dental care is so important, especially with small dogs.

[jakes mom]

I try to sneak treats to Dustin, too, but even if Jake is sleeping he always hears the bag being opened and appears in the kitchen! Other cats not big on cat treats, tho.

[jakes mom]

C4C, sorry to hear kitty’s not keeping weight on. Have you had blood work lately? Maybe it’s time for a dose change? They should stabilize and gain or at least not be losing once they’re on the right dose. Maybe you can find something extra special that she loves, just for her? Even if it’s “junk food”, lol!

[jakes mom]

C4C, I know what you mean about the expense of freeze dried! Only Dustin will eat it so not super expensive for me to give it to him. Being hyper-t, I like to give him extra food when he asks for it. He’s not shy about it, lol. If I’m not paying attention he pulls the cabinet doors open, bang…bang… Brat! He’s kind of dog-like, he follows me into the kitchen and throws himself against my legs. They all get canned twice a day and he gets food as often as possible. Gotta keep that weight on!

[jakes mom]

Diane, welcome! Have you tried feeding raw? Or freeze-dried or dehydrated food? Something like Primal freeze-dried nuggets, or Honest Kitchen? Might be easier on his tummy. I have a “geriatric ward”, lol. My 20yo loves the Primal nuggets, just crumble it up and mix with a little water. Check out Honest Kitchen, too, they have samples so you can see what flavors your guys like.

[jakes mom]

Yikes! This is pretty awful. Very unbalanced and dangerous long term.

[jakes mom]

I have an 11 year old beagle mix. He did fine on the BJ’s food (dry). I’ve used it as part of his rotation diet in the past but now he gets mostly raw.

[jakes mom]

Cancer. Hope your younger guys don’t get any of them. We know better now, feeding better, less vacc, etc. Any new animals in my future will get initial vac then titers, and raw food. I’ve had a lot of animals and a lot of medical problems, hyper and hypo thyroid, cancer, heart disease, seizure disorders, renal disease, male cats with crystals and blockages, one cat with vac-associated sarcoma….on and on. I believe now most of it could have been prevented.

[jakes mom]

Yes, C4C it is an epidemic! I’ve read a theory ( Dr. Becker?) that it may be due, at least in part, to fish cat food, all the iodine in fish. Even beef or chicken cat foods seem to have fish in there, somewhere. Sounds plausible to me. I’d forgotten about the transdermal meds, you told me about that before. Vet didn’t give me that option, I may ask when I talk to him again. I watch her eat her food with the med in it otherwise I’d have the same worry as you, somebody else eating it. I just give her a spoonful of food with her med, then she can join the gang for the rest of her meal. I’m bummed she’s hyper-t but I look at it this way, of the big 4 diseases of old cats, that’s the best one to have.

[jakes mom]

Thanks C4C, it’s a good site, I’ve been on it once or twice in the past but tend to get busy and forget about it. Lots of good info.
Kitty update, my 16yo girl has been diagnosed with hyper-t. Not surprised, I noticed she’d lost some weight when I returned from a week away from them all. One of those things you don’t notice when you see her every day I guess, but she looked thin to me when I got home. So now everybody will get weighed regularly! Anyway, she’s on the same meds as my 20yo, Dustin. Not a good pill taker so I hide it in a bite or 2 of canned food.
Other than that, everybody’s doing well. Sad that the warm weather and open windows will be gone soon. They love to sit at the windowsill and get some fresh air and watch the birds and squirrels.

[jakes mom]

Yep, I very rarely call off but it’s usually pet related when I do! 🙂

[jakes mom]

Have not seen the new FF line. I don’t look too much at the small cans, buy mostly the bigger sizes for my gang. Unless there’s a coupon involved, lol. My guys will eat pretty much anything but Wellness. Have tried several flavors and always end up giving most of it to Jake. Nice to have a furry trash can handy sometimes!
Too bad Dani has to stay away from beef. That cuts down your options! But glad you only had a sample of Primal and didn’t spend a lot of $$ on it.
Jake and I are pretty much back to normal after our skunk adventure. Back to work for me today and nobody told me I stunk, lol. And the house seemed ok when I came home tonite. No stinky smell when I opened the door.

[jakes mom]

OK C4C, not much of an update but here goes, lol.
Your new litter box sounds good! I never add used litter to a new box, tho, never had to. It seemed like somebody always wanted to be the first to christen the new one. Years ago I used a hard plastic kiddy pool as a litter box (when I had 13). I still remember Dustin working his way around the whole circle, peeing every foot or so!
I tried a bag of Stella and Chewy’s frozen raw chic for the cats, On sale, figured I’d give it a shot in case it was just Darwin’s they didn’t like for some reason. They didn’t like Instinct, either, but hope springs eternal I guess, lol. I have put it out a couple of times and it’s disappeared but don’t know who ate it. I’m assuming it was Dustin but haven’t been able to see. So I have that and a couple of Primal dehydrated raw flavors that he’ll eat. I figure I’ll pick up a small bag of those once in a while, just a little extra for him, he can use all the calories he can get.
The biggest news at my house is not cat related, tho. Poor Jake got skunked again on Monday am! We’d just gotten up, 445. He went out and came right back in, started rubbing his face all over the carpet. No, not again!!! So I had to call off work and spent the last couple of days cleaning. Tuesday was my usual day off luckily so have had 2 days to deodorize. Lots of vinegar and baking soda, lots of baths for Jake and showers for me. But he’s very pretty, lol. The peroxide in the skunk wash mixture made his white fur nice and bright!

[jakes mom]

Gloria K., thanks for this recipe, sounds yummy. I know Jake will love them.

[jakes mom]

The easiest thing to do would be to buy treats made by a good 4 or 5 star dog food brand. If they make quality kibble I think I’d assume they’d make quality treats. Also fruits and vegies (most are ok) in small pieces. Or use a different flavor of your usual kibble as treats. If he usually eats chicken dog food, for example, buy a small bag of beef or lamb or whatever, and toss a few to him for a treat. No hot dogs, lunch meats, etc. Lots of chemicals, nitrites, in that stuff. You could also buy a small bag of cat food or treats. Cat food is very high protein and most dogs I know love to steal cat food, lol. Buying a small bag of a totally different food is an option, too. Try raw, freeze dried or dehydrated dog food. Anything new and different will be a treat as far as your dog is concerned.

[jakes mom]

C4C, I tried the cat food from know better a few months ago when I was trying to transition the brats to raw. Easy to do, good fast delivery. Of course the cats didn’t eat it but Jake enjoyed it very much, lol. Let me know if you try it, I might add it to Jake’s rotation. Right now he’s eating a bit of everything, NV kibble and frozen raw, a few other quality kibble brands, raw meaty bones. And as you know, he’ll be finishing up the Darwin’s cat food!

[jakes mom]

Sounds like you’re giving him a lot of different things all at once. All good for him but many of them are potential allergens. I would slow down a little. many people on here have dogs with chicken/fowl allergy so I’d stop the chicken for sure right now. I would also stop feeding Blue anything. You’ll see lots of complaints about that brand on this site. Put Blue in the search bar. You may need to go back to whatever he was eating when you got him if he was ok while eating that, even if it wasn’t a great quality. Start adding a new food, and only one, and wait a week or so, see how he reacts. Then add another food, see what happens. This way you can tell what’s bothering him. As far as the stool, start him on a probiotic. My dog can eat whatever is put in front of him but some dogs with a more sensitive stomach may need a little help with the transition. Some dogs have trouble especially going from, say, a 2 star food right to a 4 or 5 star. Go slow, you can work your way up to good kibble and raw. Good luck, hope this helped.

[jakes mom]

Pitlove, I don’t remember where I saw that, but thought it sounded logical. Just thought I’d mention it as another reason dogs might eat grass that’s nothing to be worried about.

[jakes mom]

Thanks, C4C 🙂

[jakes mom]

My dog eats grass occasionally, too. He also eats a little lettuce when I’m making salad. I just think he likes the taste, never thought any more about it. No pesticides in my lawn so I don’t worry about it.
I’ve also read that dogs can’t “clear their throats” like we do. Some dogs will eat grass, not to induce vomiting exactly, but to help them cough up any mucus that may be in the back of their throats, like from a seasonal type allergy or something like that.

[jakes mom]

My understanding is that a dog’s GI tract is shorter and stomach acid is more acidic than human’s, this makes it safer for them to eat raw stuff without getting sick. My dog eats raw and loves raw meaty bones, has never been sick. Nor have I gotten sick by feeding it. Just wash hands and keep kitchen clean. Also, don’t forget that the government (FDA) has their nose into regulating pet food. Companies may have to issue “CYA” recalls even tho there’s really no danger to the dog.
That said, nothing’s right for all dogs and people. If you aren’t comfortable with the raw feeding, there are plenty of other options for you like cooking a homemade diet for your dog. Or just feeding a good quality canned food or kibble, altho those are prone to recalls, too. Nothing is 100% safe in life. You just do the best you can.

[jakes mom]

Thanks for the support, guys. I was really disappointed. The probiotics I tried were Perfect Form, the GNC Superfood complex for cats and NaturVet . They didn’t like the first 2, and I thought they smelled like a chic bouill. cube. The NaturVet is a soft treat style, smelled like a chic treat. I crumbled a couple over the food every meal, of course they wouldn’t just eat one!
Luckily they aren’t picky about their canned, will eat whatever brand or flavor. I just stick to the pate, mostly. Partly because of the gravy ingred. and partly because they usually just lick off the gravy and leave the bits!
Jake is a lucky boy! He gets some raw now, frozen or dehydrated, he’ll eat everything! And a couple of the cats did eat some Darwin’s when I cooked it, but not twice in a row, geez! Brats! So that’s the plan, use up what I have on Jake, and cook some once in a while for the cats. I’m just glad I can use it up and not waste all that $$. Expensive experiment!
Nice to hear all of your seniors are still doing well. We try so hard to make them happy, don’t we!

[jakes mom]

OK guys, time for a raw update. Long story short, I’ve failed. Still only have one cat who will eat it at all. I’ve tried 3 different probiotics. They refuse to eat anything with 2 of the brands mixed in. The third brand has helped with Dustin’s sloppy poos, at least. I’ve tried raw and cooked a bit. I’ve re-read all the tips on raw sites. Watched videos by Dr. Becker about transitioning cats, very interesting if you haven’t seen them. She says cats have addictive personalities, very hard to make changes. Some cats take a year!
I just think my guys, all being geriatric, are too set in their ways. If they were younger I would persevere and keep at it. I’m concerned about them not eating well as they try to avoid any bites of canned that may have a bit of raw mixed in. I’ve weighed them and they’ve all lost a few ounces and that’s not acceptable to me. They’ve made it to ages 15-20 so I guess I won’t rock the boat. Jake will be a happy boy. I will use up the raw I have from this shipment, about 20#, geez! on him, and the one cat who likes it. Dang, really wanted this to work!

[jakes mom]

Maybe a dab of coco oil on her gums? Soothing and anti- lots of stuff. Hope she feels better soon.

[jakes mom]

I don’t have any trouble with my dog, either. Finish one bag and start the next. If your pup has a sensitive tummy, tho, you can add some probiotics or digestive supplements to help with any GI trouble short term. There’s a whole forum on supplements here.

[jakes mom]

why large breed food? what am I missing here, I don’t consider a corgi a large dog. Good brands, tho.

[jakes mom]

Thanks Bdog, I’m using Darwin’s for the cats, as you know! Just wondered if there was a reason nobody liked Darwin’s but that explains it! I should have read the comments more closely.

[jakes mom]

Nobody has mentioned Darwin’s, any reason in particular?

[jakes mom]

time for a trip to the vet. She’s kind of young for health issues like hypothyroid but some diseases can cause anxiety like you describe. Doubt it has anything to do with the new food, tho. Good luck.

[jakes mom]

Yeah, cats are weird sometimes, aren’t they? Mine won’t eat it in food, just like it on a plate to snack on.
I doubt your kitty is underweight, she’s been to the vet recently, hasn’t she? They’d have told you if she needed to gain a bit. My Julie has always been kind of “boney”, too. Only about 7# and I can feel her ribs, hips, etc. but she’s healthy and eats well. She’s in her mid teens and has been this weight pretty much as an adult. Genetics I guess? Some breeds, like Siamese, tend to be pretty slender. She’s a stray, who knows what’s in her lineage. She may gain more as she gets older, she’s still a kitten. As long as she has a clean bill of health from the vet, no worms, etc, I wouldn’t worry. The coco oil has 120 cal in a Tbl so she might gain a bit from that.

[jakes mom]

The “official” dose I’ve read is 1/4 tsp twice a day (or 1/2 once per day, lol) per 10# of animal. Honestly tho, I just smear a blob on a plate and give it to them, they all just lick what they want. When the cats are done, Jake gets to clean the plate. The cats are all older,as you know, and wt gain is not an issue for me as far as they’re concerned.

[jakes mom]

Pitlove, yes! Coco oil is good for cats. My guys love it, too. Same dose for cats or dogs. Just remember that it’s got a lot of calories so watch that. It’s one of the reasons I give it to my old hyper-t cat, good for his coat and extra calories for him.

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