[Kristin C]

Haven’t tried it yet but I have a bag of See Spot Live Longer Dinner Mix I’m going to use next time I make raw food.

[Kristin C]

Thanks for the picture 4FF. Looks dehydrated to me so I probably won’t try it. Sojo’s dehydrated comes out like it goes in which I don’t like at all, doesn’t digest well. A 2 lb bag of Sojo’s Complete is 14.99 but that’s with no meat. So as Dori said BDN would be less expensive. I keep coming back to making my own raw food and adding a supplement that meets AAFCO standards. But that doesn’t work too well on a 2 week vacation.

[Kristin C]

I heard back from BDN and they did not provide the reconstituted nutritional analysis nor did they answering whether they’ve through feeding trials. I was mostly wondering if this is really a raw product but I think it’s dehydrated based upon their pricing. I agree that it should be used rotationally. I may try it but can anyone tell me if it reconstitutes to a mushy substance or are there chunks and hard pieces (like Sojo’s). I tried Orijen freeze dried which I like but it’s too expensive to feed on a regular basis. I am looking for options when I travel because I feed mostly raw.

[Kristin C]

Hey T – sounds like you got a lot of varied responses here. If it was me, I’d stick with whatever is working right now (kibble?). Then add one thing each week to see if it works. I personally would not feed more than meat or fruit and vegetables (already puréed). If your dog is experiencing digestive problems after eating “Human” food it may be because he is eating a low quality kibble.

[Kristin C]

I would be careful about using this as your primary food source. It looks like a dehydrated product to me, although I am waiting to hear back about their reconstituted analysis. If you feed a variety I am sure it’s fine.

[Kristin C]

What are you feeding him? I have one dog who is pretty sensitive. When her stools are loose I give her some canned pumpkin and that clears it up. I have been adding green tripe to her diet which I think helps. I find she does better if I feed her raw food, versus kibble. In fact, I started feeding her raw because I was beside myself on all her barfing and diarrhea while on kibble. If you are integrating healthier, whole food into his kibble diet maybe take it a bit slower. It’s no different than a human used to eating processed food and getting an upset stomach when he eats a salad.

[Kristin C]

Hi Holly-I know you posted this a while ago and have probably figured some of this out. I feed my dogs mostly raw, but I think if you are using this only as a kibble topper and not more than 25% of their diet you can use whatever’s left over from dinner. I personally would avoid the fatty part of the meat. I use a ratio of 80% meat/organs, 5% fruit/veg purée, 15% sweet potato or pumpkin. You might want to omit the rice as that’s probably already in the kibble, if not another carb. Eggs are good, as is a little fish oil, vitamin e and yogurt. Any cooked meat is fine. I avoid pork and fish because I feed raw. There’s a book called See Spot Live Longer that has a few pages on how to supplement your kibble FYI.

[Kristin C]

Thanks for mentioning BDN Cindy. I have not heard of it and am very interested so I emailed them with a few questions. I’m afraid their pricing might be too good to be true though. I’ve been using Darwin’s for the last few months and their trial was worth it, but they’re changing their formula and not offering any samples so I cancelled after my first auto shipment. Plus their meat turns brown in the frig and that can’t be good. My homemade raw stays nice and pink unless it’s older. I see you’ve queried on BDN on another post so I’ll keep my eye out for anyone else chiming in on whether they add supplements to it. I may just try it as “supplemental” feeding.

[Kristin C]

Hi Cindy – I have recently used Orijen Adult Freeze Dried. It took about a half hour to soak and get to the consistency I was looking for. My dogs loved it and since I sometimes feed Orijen Kibble they had no digestion issues. It is expensive but I am looking for something to use on vacation since I feed primarily raw.

As for the Sojo’s, I have tried the Complete grain free mix where you have to add in raw meat. I find that it comes out much like it goes in, it doesn’t digest well. I end up soaking the Sojo’s then putting it in a food processor with my raw meat. I am going to use it up but won’t buy again.

Hope that helps!

[Kristin C]

Hi Dori – thanks for answering my question. Hope your ice cream outing was enjoyable.

So you don’t rely on a certified nutrition expert to analyze what you feed your girls? Joking:) Sounds like you feed a variety and they are doing well. My husband told me the other day we have our own “trial” going at our house. Our older dog, 4 and 1/2 years, seems to be very hearty. Our 1 year old has been delicate since she found us. I think I have found a system that works for her and my older dog enjoys the benefits too. I may try a nutrition consult at some point just to be sure, but I don’t feed myself a balanced diet all the time and I’m still alive.

[Kristin C]

Hmmm! It’s just a very small bald spot on her back leg. My husband’s not clear now on whether the vet called it a hot spot. She used to get them when we first got her at the beginning of the year. She’s very anxious at times so when she gnaws I attribute it to her nervousness. I’ve wondered if her armpits are a friction rash, being the summer, hot and humid. She runs a lot and has short hair, although it’s thick in spots it’s thin under her legs.

[Kristin C]

Thanks for the diagnostic tree Aimee. It is helpful, although I don’t think my dog’s rash looks like the pictures. Am going to let the meds run their course and go from there.

Dori-I don’t feed my dogs grains but I will take the poultry elimination into consideration if the rash goes away and returns. I started her on raw because she was constantly throwing up and pooping out (diarrhea) chicken kibble for weeks and weeks. I figured it was something in the kibble other than chicken though. May I ask what you feed your dogs?

[Kristin C]

Thanks for responding! She went on the meds last night after watching the rash ourselves for 2 weeks. At first we thought it was from the harness we left on her one weekend we went camping. There is some hair loss and grayish discoloration. At this point it’s definitely not worse, it’s better than when I first noticed it but took her to the vet because it’s not going away entirely. She has one hot spot on her back leg. I have added some additional fish oil plus coconut oil to her food at this point but not going to do anything else right now, not even the consult. Thanks for the input on that.

Dori-thanks for the info on your dog. I will keep that in mind if this rash goes away and then comes back. Guess I was just wondering if I am doing too much variety, the vet seemed to think so.

I’m not a fan of the medical community myself. I actually like our vet but was irritated she didn’t do any troubleshooting on this rash. Since my husband took her to the appointment I am letting him take the lead. I actually wonder if it was a harness rash she scratched, ran through all the woods at our house and got some bug in her system. She’s a very sensitive dog.

[Kristin C]

As a follow up, I feed Darwin’s and Nature’s Variety raw and Orijen 6 Fish kibble. I usually add cottage cheese or yogurt to the kibble meals. My homemade consists of 65% meat, 10% organ, 5% liver, 15% pumpkin or sweet potato, 5% veggie pulp from my juicer, plus eggs. I add a half teaspoon eggshell per each pound of meat and some fish oil and vitamin e. RMBs consist of chicken backs, turkey or duck necks. My homemade is chicken and beef, beef I can get more variety of organs. Sometimes I use a pre-mix (Sojos grain free) if I don’t have time for the veggie pulp. I usually give 1 or 2 small dried beef trachea during the week too, not too many other treats.

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