[Mary N]

I never heard of it as well.

You are working in a store that promotes that brand? Maybe you could talk with your supervisor, he should know a bit more about the products in the store.

[Mary N]

Switching to homemade dog food is an expensive investment but there is something that you can do to make it a bit cheaper and that is buying in bulk.

You should invest in a good freezer where you can store a big amounts of meat, like 200-300lb and that will save you money. If you buy huge amounts of meat you can get it at a discount.

[Mary N]

I agree with cannoli, you should invest in a good blender! 🙂

And it is a great idea to mix in coconut oil well within the mix so that in case your dog doesn’t like it can still enjoy its benefits 🙂

[Mary N]

I would suggest going with the diet the vet recommended but however keep on digging and understanding this medical issue.

This will help you in this battle and it will help you make the right choices for your dog.

Make sure that your dog gets a lot of water and always soak the dry kibble in the water as that will make your dog intake additional water amounts.

[Mary N]

Hi Jessica,

I didnt post in this thread before but I just read it whole now.

That vet was just an idiot for attacking your for nothing. Thank god you managed to get it all sorted out and for getting great lab results.

I would suggest you just one thing thou. Add more variety in your dog food, try adding beef, hare or venison sometimes 🙂

[Mary N]

I think that you should just try soaking it in for a longer period of time and the quality of the kibble will determine how much water will it absorb.

I think that the more quality kibble will absorb less water because if the meat content is higher in the kibble it will be more dense and harder to be water down.

While if the grains are present in the kibble it will be much easier for water to be absorbed and the kibble will swoll up

[Mary N]

Honestly, no diet can “fix” your dog.

Your dog has a need to move because it is strong as an ox and it is in its prime young days. You need to spend her energy and then just watch how she will calm down.

Get her to walk, run, fetch, get her on treadmill or all of the above.

Feed her high-quality protein based diet as you already do. Don’t reduce her diet portions or switch to a less energetic food. What your dog needs is a lot of food and a lot of exercise.

It is just that type of a breed plus it is young 🙂

[Mary N]

@Cannoli

Thank you for a very long reply 😀

That is a very smart thing you did, checking the yelp reviews.

However I didn’t ask about mine or yours veterinarian, my question was generally about veterinarians across the country.

But I see what you are saying. There will always be people (not just vets lol) that are looking to dry your wallet and give a bad service in return. So the wisest thing you can do is check how their previous work did before.

@InkMarie That is exactly what I was talking about. Why are certain formulas “magical” ? If their ingredients are nothing special and are found in other foods as well.

@goldenstar I am so sad to hear that 🙁 I am sure you and your vet did your best to save your doggie..

@Susan My vet didn’t recommend me dog food for a medical condition but for general food consumption.. My dog currently thanks to god has no health problems and I hope it will stay that way forever

[Mary N]

What was your idea of selling them? Like manufacturing them and selling them on a large scale?

That takes a lot of work but it is achievable if you are willing to devote yourself 🙂

I personally make home made treats from ingredients like honey and pumpkin because my dogs love them.

But you should consult with your veterinarian for them to explain you who and where further to go with your idea. You need to fulfill what law says as well so as someone mentioned above, you should also consult with a Lawyer but it is probably best if it is someone who works in a pet industry. Hope I helped! 🙂

[Mary N]

Thank you everyone for your replies!

Now I feel a bit better about feeding my dogs with vet recommended food brands.

Will email this topic to my friend who had me encouraged to write it in a first place and I will expect her to add anything if she feels that it is necessary.

Thank you for recommending resources I will make sure to read them all before jumping to any further conclusions.

[Mary N]

If you go with senior dog food try and find something that has a great amount of protein. If you want your Labrador to keep on developing and getting stronger then he is going to need an extra amount of protein.

Like someone said above, I would also suggest that you include some raw diet plans as that would increase the amount of protein your Labrador can use to build more muscle and overall more mass. But stick with lean protein sources like beef for example

[Mary N]

I like what anon101 said above.

If you are suspecting or know that your dog might have some medical condition the best thing you can do is visit a vet nutritionist and talk with them.

Make sure that you find the right solution for your pet’s health, your wallet, and your dogs taste! 🙂

There are many ways to achieve this and if you were looking for a variety of opinions you got them in here but still if your dogs health is in any way jeopardized you should talk with nutritionist for your dog 🙂

[Mary N]

Hi Krista,

There are many dogs who are fed like that and they do just fine. But what you will want is to make regular vet visits because in case of any health complication that model of simple dry dog food nutrition just might not work. And it is important to know your dog’ health at all times if you are just feeding dry dog food.

I would recommend you to feed your dog with at least some home made food from time to time, it will help your dog to stay healthier and happier.

Here are some simple homemade dog food recipes:

DIY Homemade Dog Food

[Mary N]

Like Cannoli above me said, I would prefer to go full natural. Most of the dehydrated food is not really fresh. That is why they dehydrate it in the first place, to preserve it lasting for longer.

This might be more difficult but you will feel at peace when it comes to your Yorkie nutrition 🙂

[Mary N]

Hi Mary any updates on your GSD?

Did you find any good dog food?

I forgot to ask you in my previous message above, does your dog have problems with food when it comes to taste?

[Mary N]

Maybe the beef slice was too difficult to chew?
What dog breed is it?

[Mary N]

This is probably the worst thing I read on the internet in a long long time…
Many bad things happen to people and our beloved pets.. But this.. Losing your companion because of some pill that’s made to chase away the fleas.. And in a such a painful way.. Seven weeks of torture, that is beyond horrifying.

I will never feed my dogs any pills for fleas again. After reading this forum post I went ahead and researched this and there are so many things that ca go wrong with such a “regular” pill. Most of us will not even wonder how dangerous can an oral flea medication be.

Maybe you should read about some grief after losing a dog tips:
http://www.petlosshelp.org/10commonquestions.html

Most important thing is not to blame yourself.. After all, you just wanted to help your poor dog 🙁

[Mary N]

If the reason she is putting on more weight is of medical nature, then you should consider a treatment for it.

If she is a rescue dog and didn’t want to eat for a year, it could be that she is suffering from some stress 🙁

Also, how about searching for a dog food which contains similar ingredients as that one but with a lower amount of fat and calories in general?

If the increased weight is not a medical issue then you should exercise her much more, it could be that her metabolism needs some activity in order to start using that food she intakes. But I am afraid that the problem is medical..

If she has lack of appetite and can’t seem to control weight then that just speaks that something is off..

have your vet do the blood work too and check the hormone levels.

[Mary N]

I agree that you must check this with the vet. There can be so many different issues causing a poor appetite in dogs.
Just check these out:
http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/guide/dog-not-eating-possible-causes-and-appetite-solutions

And I assure you that the list goes on and on. Do the blood work and check out what might be a problem.

Also if it turns out that everything is well, which I hope it will, then you can try some things to amplify the smell of the dog’s food.

Like adding homemade food. I see that you wouldn’t want to cook it yourself, but you can make a bunch and add just a little bit to your dog’s bowl every day. That might work.

Also, make sure that your dog is tired enough and he will eat better.

Still, you can’t do much without the vet visit. If there is some health problem involved you would only be making it worse by exercising your dog of feeding it homemade mix.

[Mary N]

I think it might be normal, maybe her gut is readjusting to a new diet. It takes some time for changes to occur.

I don’t know if high fiber can be a problem, usually, dogs with sensitive stomachs should be fed with high fiber.

Did you see a vet for this problem?

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