[pugmomsandy]

I give one scoop of Mercola Bladder Support which has 75 mg of d-mannose and 75 mg of cranberry and other supplements. I’ve also given a 250 mg capsule of just d-mannose a couple times a week.

[pugmomsandy]

You can give a supplement with dl-methionine like Wysong Biotic ph (-) or Swanson Pet High Alkaline Lawn Aid or similar product, and cranberry/d-mannose to help with the urine pH and urinary tract health.

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

[pugmomsandy]

You might check out Victor Dog Food, Nutrisource, Simply Nourish, and 4Health.

[pugmomsandy]

This might help you a bit:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+2114&aid=400

When there is an infection, the bacteria release an enzyme and the pH of urine is changed to where crystals can start coming together into a stone. Crystals normally don’t form a stone in normal urine pH.

I also have dogs with crystals but no infection. I always give some canned food and some urinary health supplements.

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

[pugmomsandy]

I actually haven’t seen a beef neck bone before, but I have given my pugs a cut up pork neck. I thought it was rather hard so I don’t give them anymore. For your size dogs, I might give chicken thighs/drumsticks/wings/necks/feet or duck necks/feet and small pork baby back ribs.

[pugmomsandy]

You can warm the oil and drizzle it right in their food bowl or let them lick the glob right off the spoon. 1/2 – 1 teaspoon per 10 lbs. I give the smaller dose but I also feed raw sardines or use a krill oil supplement. I also use a coconut-based shampoo like Earthbath, although my dogs rarely get a bath.

[pugmomsandy]

Dr. Mike is putting the finishing touches on that review and a couple others. It should be posted shortly.

[pugmomsandy]

You can give them a green superfood supplement also.

[pugmomsandy]

You can try switching to a fish-based food (that would hopefully have more omega-3 in it). You can also give a fish oil supplement, or feed sardines a couple times a week, and also give coconut oil.

[pugmomsandy]

The kibble you’re seeking is going to be hard to find for sure! You might check out Nature’s Variety Instinct Limited Ingredient Diet or Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diet and Canidae Pure, and California Natural, Purina Beyond Simply 9, Pro Pac (original line).

[pugmomsandy]

Nutrisource small/med breed puppy, Nutrisource grain free Lamb, Nature’s Select Hi-Pro, Amicus, Nature’s Logic, Simply Nourish Small Breed.

[pugmomsandy]

I don’t feed Dr Tim’s (too stocked up right now on dog food), but the 15 yr old eats a similar profile in kibble and even eats more protein and fat than that when I give him some raw food or canned food.

[pugmomsandy]

Your senior beagle can eat this food. Just keep track of her weight and reduce her portion if needed. For some dogs, less carbs actually helps them loose or maintain weight. It does for all of mine, young and old. My oldest is 15 yrs.

[pugmomsandy]

Check out Victor dog food. Comes in 40-50 lb bags. I saw a large bag of regular food for $33 at the feed store a couple weeks ago. They also have grain free food and you can buy this online. victordogfood.com

[pugmomsandy]

I’ve been using Halo Herbal Dip (can be made into a spray) for the past two years and either feed Bug Off Garlic or Flea Free Supplement. There are also natural products out there with rose geranium it (like Sentry Natural Defense) or you can purchase rose geranium essential oil.

[pugmomsandy]

Exciting and overwhelming and indecisive are all correct! That’s how I ended up buying 400 lbs on my first order! It lasted a year! This weekend I’m only getting 40 lbs.

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

[pugmomsandy]

No, it would not be too much fish with added sardines. Just like it would not be too much chicken if you added some real chicken as a topper for a chicken kibble. As far as the large portions are concerned, that’s where a big freezer comes in handy and a grinder. You could purchase various meaty bones and cases of organs and muscle meat and then use them according to the recipe you choose. X lbs of necks, X lbs muscle meat, X lbs organs, etc. Or you could start with a Premix where you only add in muscle meat (ground chicken or beef or pork, etc) and the Premix and some oil. The Premix has vitamins. When I order by the case, I prefer 2 lb chubs over 5 or 10 lb chubs but I have small dogs.

[pugmomsandy]

My small adult, indoor, lapdog pugs eat 6 oz per day (if they were full time raw feeding). Raw feeding amounts generally go by the dog’s weight but you still have to adjust for age and activity. Feeding 2% is generally for maintenance, puppies can require 4-8%. How I balance my raw is trying to make recipes close to the 80/10/10 ratio. Preymodelraw dot com has an article giving bone content of cuts of meat so I do some math and see how much muscle/organs I need to add to X amount of necks (mostly bone). But that’s after trying out the recipes from “Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats” and feeling comfortable with making my own. The book has some great info even if you don’t use the recipes, I would still recommend it.

[pugmomsandy]

Katie J,

“Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats” has a recipe modified for pups. It also includes a recipe for a vitamin/mineral supplement.

[pugmomsandy]

There’s a Contact Us link down at the bottom of the page to submit a brand to review. Also, it helps when the company has a public website with all the information on it, especially the ingredient list and guaranteed analysis of all recipes available.

[pugmomsandy]

A fat supplement could be a tablespoon or two of olive oil or coconut oil or even fish oil or combo oils. Oils are fat and calories and have over 100 calories per tablespoon. A dry addition just to add overall calories could be Abady’s granular food. It has nearly 800 calories per cup so you could add in a couple tablespoons of that. A canned food high in fat is Nature’s Logic Lamb or Rabbit. They have more fat than protein hence the lower rating (not because it has lots of red colored ingredients). Hound & Gatos canned chicken and pork recipes are also high in fat (40% plus). You can also make some “satin balls” and send it to the trainer to feed.

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

[pugmomsandy]

You might check out Hound & Gatos or Grandma Lucy’s Pureformance or Artisan lines, and Wellness Simple Lamb & Oatmeal.

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

[pugmomsandy]

So far I’ve only used CarnivoreRaw from Young Again Pet Food. It’s a powder so there’s no chunks at all. They have a product with calcium and without (for people who grind meat with bones like me).

I’ve used regular Grandma Lucy’s, not the premix, and preferred the texture of it compared to Honest Kitchen.

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

[pugmomsandy]

It’s on the To-Do List already!

[pugmomsandy]

I agree with aquariangt. 30% protein is pretty average, not high. Pinnacle Peak Protein is 42% and Epigen is 60% for comparison.

[pugmomsandy]

Dori,
Grandma Lucy’s has organic freeze dried treats. Sometimes I use Wagatha’s.

[pugmomsandy]

Kathy K,

My pugs enjoy (consumable) tripe chews (Only Natural Pet tripe spring chews), tendon chews (Merrick flossies), and occasional bully sticks, dried trachea, Himalayan dog chews (hard yak cheese), chicken feet and pork ribs.

Other non-consumable chews they enjoy are beef ribs, cow hoof, marrow bones and my house shoes.

[pugmomsandy]

If you haven’t been through the DFA Library yet, there are some helpful articles there about how to choose dog food, ingredients, ingredient labels, canine nutrition, etc.

/helpful-dog-food-articles/

For me personally, I chose 1) a small kibble, 2) generally not less than 30% protein for kibble, 3) gluten free, 4) not less than 36% protein dry matter for wet food, 5) no by-products/sugar/food color/BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin/sodium nitrite, and I generally do not buy from the large corporations (the ones that also make candy bars and toothpaste and other household items).

Also, I feel diet variety and rotation is important so pick various proteins and types of foods (raw, canned, frozen, dehydrated/freeze dried, kibble).

[pugmomsandy]

Hi everyone!

Dr. Mike is working on the issue on the Review side. Disqus made an automatic update yesterday (don’t we just love automatic software updates to Disqus) and there seems to be a problem with it. Hopefully, it will get resolved soon.

[pugmomsandy]

We usually have Nutrisource grain free Lamb in our rotation. We’ve been feeding Merrick canned foods as well for several years and haven’t had any problems. My dogs also eat Wellness stews.

[pugmomsandy]

Merrick’s canned recipe “Working Dog Stew” also has tripe in it as does Ziwipeak and they’re both balanced diets.

[pugmomsandy]

All of the above. I would personally consider 3 star foods ok, 4 star foods better, and 5 star foods as very good. The food gets a higher star rating when it has more meat in it (and less red colored ingredients), but that doesn’t mean there is not a good 3 star food – meaning one that doesn’t have alot of red colored ingredients listed. A 3 star food can have good ingredients and just be lower in meat. There is a large spectrum for dog foods. So a food starting somewhere in the middle of this spectrum is still recommended.

But a dog food is only really good if your dog does well on it. Some of my fosters don’t do well on 5 star foods. They eat 3.5-4.5 star foods.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 10 months ago by pugmomsandy.

[pugmomsandy]

Nutrisource is $50 or less for the large bags and I believe Victor is as well.

[pugmomsandy]

Tripett, Weruva (we mostly use the non-chicken flavors), Merrick

[pugmomsandy]

It comes in ground (like ground flaxseed) in a canister or in a bite size about the width of a quarter but 1/2 inch thick (last time I used it).

[pugmomsandy]

That site has a “yeast starvation diet” recipe too. And the recipes call for only 2 supplements!

[pugmomsandy]

Have you looked into feeding canned food? I would think canned food is cheaper than commercial raw. There are some canned foods with very few ingredients (like Hound & Gatos or Merrick 96%) and can be bought online. And there’s the simple recipes at homemadedogfood.com. Are premixes in your budget?

[pugmomsandy]

Like kibble, canned foods can be served as a meal. Canned food is less processed than kibble and the fact that it has alot of moisture is better than kibble. If you want to feed canned food the majority of the time, be sure to check that it is NOT “for supplemental or intermittent feeding only”. As far as feeding one can at a time or not, it depends on how many calories your dog needs per meal.

If the canned food says it’s for supplemental feeding only, then use it as a mixer with another “complete and balanced” food like most kibbles as it doesn’t have all the vitamins and minerals to make a complete diet.

[pugmomsandy]

My dogs really liked it. They already eat raw though but I would sprinkle it on their kibble. I sprinkled some on some of my foster food before too and they liked it too. No GI issues. It’s quick and convenient to use. I used the Raw Boost treats as well.

[pugmomsandy]

Some dogs who are sensitive to chicken (or other ingredient) and even to certain levels of fat (high fat diet or even marrow from a bone) can have softer than normal stools. If you don’t think chicken or fat is an issue since they have been on raw for a while, try giving them a RMB to eat a couple times a week like a chicken wing or a neck. The higher bone content usually firms up the stool. If you want to try non-chicken, then a duck neck split between them or a pork baby back rib (just one) should do. Generally speaking the amount of bone in a raw diet should be 10% but some do better on a little more. A whole chicken is around 30% bone. I’ve made a batch of raw food with 10% and 30% and none of the dogs had an issue and all their stools were firm. I did notice when they ate a RMB or a higher amount of bone from ground raw that their stools were firmer and more like large pebbles. Or you could try feeding another protein like beef incase they have developed a chicken sensitivity over time. My dogs have been eating raw for about 3 years and haven’t had any soft stool issues, not even after consuming the marrow from a marrow bone. For fiber, I’ve used pumpkin but then went on to use ground psyllium or chia seeds.

[pugmomsandy]

It’s on the To-Do List to review. The list is long!

[pugmomsandy]

Are you feeding homemade with bones (or other source of calcium) or commercially made raw?

[pugmomsandy]

Here is the 43 lb (originally) on the left. He was 39 lbs in this picture, then the 28 lb pug and then my 23 lb pug.

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u651/pugmomsandy/IMG_7406_zps14e96bc5.jpg

It can be done (pug weight loss without diet food). One of mine gained 10 lbs (to be 38 lbs) the year after neutering then lost it all the next couple of years.

[pugmomsandy]

Also, the pugs gained muscle weight when fed the mod-high protein foods but they lost in size that’s why I usually suggest that people take body measurements. My fawn in the first photo has a 22 inch chest and 17 inch waist and 13 inch back but he is 22-23 lbs not 18 like a similarly sized foster pug is. I had one small foster who weighed only 13 lbs and I swear the wind blew her over several times! She was fragile, no muscle mass.

[pugmomsandy]

It depends on the size of the pug. They come in so many sizes now. I don’t have “standard” sized pugs, lol! My “normal size” pugs at age 6 eat 2/3 cup a day and weigh 22-24 lbs. My 10 yr old large pug eats a rounded 2/3 cup a day with treats and weighs 28-29 lbs. I’ve fed my “standard” sized fosters 2/3 cups a day. My 15 yr old xlarge (and I mean tall and long – showing some Mastiff traits) pug eats 1 cup day. I had a large female who looked optimal at 27-28 lbs as she was wideset – big head, chest and hips and short legs like a bulldog. And sometimes they get a little wet food on top of the kibble. If they were only eating kibble and canned regulary, they would get 1/3 can and 1/4 cup kibble. The younger ones I might feed 1 cup a day. For my personal ones, they eat such a variety. Dry and wet, raw and wet, just raw, just RMB.

This is one of my standard ones: looks great, but technically overweight (that’s why I don’t go by weight, I use body condition)

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u651/pugmomsandy/pictures%20for%20posting/plutoharness2_zps6d5c006c.jpg

This is a regular and large pug:

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u651/pugmomsandy/pictures%20for%20posting/0bd6f2d9-225c-454e-9521-122834da060d_zps44b288af.jpg

Here’s what I mean when I say they aren’t just “standard” size anymore! These are both adults:

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u651/pugmomsandy/pictures%20for%20posting/dooceyboss_zps22223e38.jpg

I’ve had obese ones here. And guess what – I fed them 2/3 cup of kibble to get them down. I’ve had a 43 lb pug before too. Down here in my area, it’s too hot now for outdoor fun. No walking or dog parks until October.

[pugmomsandy]

I have couch potato pugs and they eat at least 30% protein and regular fat kibble and get less than the recommended amount on the bag. They also eat raw food which is alot higher in protein too and much lower carbs than kibble and get around 6 oz per day. They have maintained their body shape this way and not by “light” or other “diet” foods.

[pugmomsandy]

This might help you: /frequently-asked-questions/rate-dog-food/

Alot of “senior” foods are low in protein so they get a mid-range rating. I’d just look for some that have few “red flagged” ingredients if you’re looking for a low protein food. The new school of thought is that seniors actually need more quality protein as they age, not less.

[pugmomsandy]

It depends on the size of the dog. For large/giant breeds, picking a food with the proper amount of calcium and phosphorus and proper calcium:phosporus ratio is more important than picking a food for “growth” or “all life stages” during the first year to 2 years. Large/giant breed pups need controlled amounts, where as toy/small or medium does not require the controlled amounts. You can be feeding too much calcium and phosphorus even though a food is rated for “growth” or “all life stages” during the large/giant breed puppy phase. So I would feed a large/giant breed pup a food with proper Ca/Phos for a year or two.

I deal with toy dogs so I would hypothetically switch as young as 8 months to “adult” food, but personally, I feed “all life stage” or “growth/puppy” food all the time to my toy dogs, even to seniors.

It is somewhat confusing and not as black and white as just “puppy” or “adult” food. If you have a large/giant breed pup, there is a forum topic for that:

/forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/

and there is a link to a document created by Hounddogmom with foods appropriate for large/giant breed pups in there. I think around page 15 and an updated list around pages 34-35. I haven’t looked in that topic for a while since I have only toy dogs!

• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by pugmomsandy.
• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by pugmomsandy.

[pugmomsandy]

Have you seen this yet?

/forums/topic/pictures-of-dogs-eating-raw-raw-meals/

[pugmomsandy]

Instinct and Instinct Raw Boost and Wellness Core Small Breed are very small kibbles. We use a variety of canned foods here which my dogs love equally – Merrick (all flavors), Hound & Gatos, Wellness Core and Stews.

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