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Thanks so much, I’ll look into it!

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Costco is a couple hours away…but I intend on stocking up on Kirkland dry food next time we to (since Diamond makes them, and the dogs are on DN – similar ingredients.). I think our little tiny Walmart finally started carrying PB, so I’ll have to look into that 🙂

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It sounds like everything is perfectly fine with him then… The furminator possibly was a little damaging, but dogs (all animals) constantly shed skin, so some dander here and there (as long as it isn’t paired with the scratching, and Bru’s doesn’t seem to be) is totally normal.
Give Bru a big hug for me! =D

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I know this is a very old thread, but I read through it. Very very interesting food for thought….if I had the money and option, I’d quit feeding kibble, and start buying only hand-raised meat that has had a good life, as I am very very compassionate about animals (especially after getting a pet cow…he’ll never ever end up on the dinner plate.), but I just could never ever feed a natural scavenger/predator a meat-free, or even low-meat diet. Period.

I know some people on here are defending veg by saying how healthy their dogs are. Yes, I believe your dogs are healthier than many kibble-fed pooches, but that’s because the food that they /do/ get is /truly/ quality… The excuse for “meat” in many Kibbles is waaaaay worse than any of these vegan diets, I’d say.

If you feed your dog a veg diet (and I know a person or two in real life who do, and they have healthy dogs), then I’m not going to shame you or tell you to quit, but I will always believe that animal protein is what dogs need and crave the most, and even if I were to become vegetarian myself, I’d never make my dogs do it….they don’t know that “oh, this food is cruelty free! Good. I didn’t want to harm that squirrel anyway! Those poor cows and chickens! How do other dogs stomach that stuff?!?”

Again, sorry for posting on such an old one….but I find this controversial subject to be very very interesting. It’s like we all /know/ dogs need meat, but it’s something that will never quite be settled…

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Ah I’ve heard great things about Tractor Supply. There aren’t any around here at all though 🙁

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Thanks Sandy….testing one out *crosses fingers*…. Yay! It worked!

• This reply was modified 10 years, 1 month ago by Shasta220.
• This reply was modified 10 years, 1 month ago by Shasta220.

[Shasta220]

Ah yes, I forgot Patty’s fact there: it’s also gonna depend hugely on breed and size. Definitely sounds like Bruno has medium-short hair.

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If you’re on a good kibble, maybe you could just soak it for a few minutes in water to soften it up (you can even mush it up). I’ve known many many dogs to get picky when they get canned – then they won’t want to go back to dry once they’re mature.

Be sure that when you switch, do it gradually – mix just a little canned in with the dry at a time.

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I will have to agree – the only Walmart brand I’d ever trust is Pure Balance. Although I believe Ol’ Roy tubs are rated 3.5 stars on here. If you can’t find PB, possibly try finding a nearby feed store or even try online shopping? I really would avoid anything by Purina…

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I’ve not dealt with weight problems much, but the only logical thing I could think of is to get some extra fat and protein in there. Possibly adding coconut/fish oils and raw meats? Abady sounds like a good additive as well.

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I’d say his fur is short. Terriers/Chihuahuas in general have short hair. Personally, I’d consider “short” to be anything under maybe 1-2 inches, then “medium” might be 2-4″, and long is anything past that. It does sound more like a skin-damage issue rather than diet (because you take INCREDIBLE care of what goes in his bowl, I’d say!). Do you ever notice him scratch himself, or does he get “scratchy” petting by people? If I scratch my lab too much (and that’s her fave way to be pet, she’d let you do it all day! Between the scratching and the butt-thumping, she’s in doggie heaven LOL!), then sometimes she’ll get a little flaky.

If it’s not too much, I honestly wouldn’t be super concerned about it unless it gets out of hand and appears overly damaging. Keeping up with anti-dandruff shampoos/conditioners are definitely good as well.

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One of the things I read about was garlic. That is one of the more confusing ingredients to me. Half of the people I talk to about it say it’s great for your dog in small amounts, other people say to avoid it as it causes this this and this… What are your guys’ thoughts on it? (That site rated, I think, all garlic products as 5-star.)

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I would probably agree with smaller, more consistent amounts of Omegas. My lab used to get the same problem – greasy skin AND dandruff. I figured “oh she’s just a lab, the grease is normal.” So I increased her fish oil intake. It somewhat helped with the dandruff, but then she has really nasty skin. Now she’s on a good routine and almost never gets the dandruff or grease.

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I don’t know too much…but I read an article once of someone who added activated charcoal and chlorophyll to fix bad breath. I personally haven’t tried it myself (my dogs get kinda smelly breath too, especially after their raw eggs, so I got into the habit of regular brushing/water additives/gel/etc.). I definitely understand not wanting to risk a food switch again. Hope you find something that works!

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An open mind is for sure the best! No matter how long you’ve done something, you should always be determined to learn something new about it. I learn from my dogs almost every day…and I surprised myself by learning something about music again today (I’ve been studying piano for 12 years, and thought I pretty much knew everything about rhythm. I was proven totally wrong today LOL!)

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Aww wow, Alexsandra. I’m so sorry you have to deal with that! I’ve never dealt with anything that severe…it’s great that you manage to hold your own ground though! Sounds like Bruno definitely gets an amazing diet!

I seriously ignore how long people have owned/dealt with dogs. If you haven’t taken time to learn things, then you don’t know anything! Like me? I’ve only been training for a little while, and there’s a local trainer around who’s been in business 40+ years, but has always done it the exact same way. Sure, she’s the most popular (solely b/c she’s the most well-known)…but honestly I’m not a fan of her methods at all. For me, I change my method depending on the dog, as every dog is going to be different.

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I’ve not dealt with UTI in dogs (my cat has it though. She was on meds which helped, but ultimately it’s due to the fact that she is an EXTREMELY picky eater, so it’s impossible to get anything healthful into her), so I’m not sure what food to recommend. Cranberries sounds good, but they also make various UT supplements, I wonder if adding one or two of those might help?

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That’s great, Jan! 😀 I really wish we had the funds to add a small dog. I’ve never owned one under 40lb (or one over 90lb, hahaha!). I hope Sir Rupert adjusts quickly and everybody else gets along with him! So happy to you!

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Bumping and following this one. 😉 I definitely know there are! I’m not experienced enough to recommend anything yet though…what does your dog eat? If it’s a very well-balanced home made/raw diet, then he shouldn’t need too much extra.

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Patty, I was guessing the “norm” of about 1tsp per 10lb of dog. Wow, half can does sound like quite the amount! Don’t want tooooo much fiber in there. O.o

Thanks for those links, Sandy! Very helpful!

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Jastech, I honestly don’t always trust Nylabone. I’ve heard some pretty weird stories about them, and if you have a super strong chewer, a plastic bone probably isn’t the best thing for your dog to be tearing pieces off of.

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I know raw bones are the best, but I’ll face it: two of my dogs don’t like raw meat NEARLY as much as cooked, so the raw bone (off of the deer/elk we hunt usually) just stays outside in their kennel, and starts to stink the place up. So we end up smoking the bones (using our own wood chips…) #1. The dogs seem to like it more #2. It’s a lot easier to leave the extra ones on the shelf when they’re smoked (and there’s no room in the freezer to hold extra raw bones usually).
I wonder if smoking them just long enough to preserve the meat-scraps would keep the bone at the same “texture”?

We learned the truth of weight-bearing bones the hard way. Poor Cassy has a nice big hole in her head now, LOL!

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@pugsmomsandy How do you attach photos? XD

Congrats on the rescue. Sounds like you’re definitely on the right track diet-wise. Thank you SOOOOO much for rescuing! <3

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It definitely will always be tough to see all of those people who think Beneful, Science Diet, etc. is great for their dog simply because of the fancy name, catchy commercials, or pretty pictures. I will say though, I do understand having to feed a lower quality food if you’re on a tight budget…so I am a lot less likely to chew out a family with 6 kids and 3 dogs for giving their dogs Dog Chow or something, as opposed to a retired person with one little dog who gives them SD, Beneful, etc.

Even on my family’s tight budget, we found it’s overall just as cheap to get a 3-4 star food (Diamond products, Nutra Nuggets, etc,) than a 1-2 star, because you feed your dogs much less of the quality food. I still couldn’t believe it – when we switched my young 90lb boy, he ate 1/3 the amount of food with NO weight change.

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Aleksandra, that’s great you were able to convince at least a person or two to upgrade! I doubt I will be able to, as I’m just a teenager and these people are retired. A topic as touchy as dog food needs a lot of respect before I would dare mess with it. I’ve only met these people one time, so I haven’t really had the chance to build up their respect for me. I’m hoping to be able to give them the link to this website and keep my fingers crossed that one click will lead to another. That’s exactly how it happened for me. My parents only bought the cheap food for our dogs, and it was showing on our poor senior lab. I bought a bag of Wenaewe food (it was a steal, only 30$ for 30lb…if I’d bought it from the website, it’d be 90$/30lb), so googled “Wenaewe reviews” and found this site. I was HOOKED! I started looking up every food that I’ve fed (or even thought of feeding) my dogs, and realized that price has /almost/ nothing to do with quality.

Now after a few months of hanging out on here, I feel like I know a thing or two about dog nutrition, and it’s great! =D so if I can get other people to even spend 10min digging on here, they’ll probably change as well.

That’s so great to hear the success story of your friend switching her food. I know my success story is almost unbelievable! Our poor Lab was on Dog Chow, Pedigree, and Ol’ Roy…she was developing disgusting skin/ear infections. It got to the point where we didn’t even want to pet her b/c she smelled so bad and was so flaky. Took her to a vet and got some meds to temporarily clear it up, then I saved up and bought her a bag of much better food. I’m not kidding: she acted as good as she did 5 years ago, and her sour-nasty-foul odor turned into nothing more than a very light “doggie” smell if you buried your nose in her fur… She got soft and fairly shiny, and now her ear infections are gone for good (she still has scarring/wax buildup that I have to manage though). If we didn’t switch her last year, I don’t even know if she’d be alive today!

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Just curious, do you remember how you worded the explanation of Beneful?

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Ah yes, switching can be a bummer if not done gradually. If I drop any bugs in this person’s ear, it’d definitely be saying something like “I found ____ website to be really interesting and learned a lot about dog food.” And if I was to follow my temptation of feeding the pup my food, I’d only add 10-20% of my food into her daily junk. Thanks for the warning though 🙂

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The above suggestions were great. Only one of my dogs actually chews his food, and he has the biggest Kibbles available too. Spreading out his food, brain teasers, etc are wonderful ways to slow down the eating. Occasionally, for my fast-eater, he will get his daily food handed to him 1-2 pieces at a time while I’m playing with him or something.

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Our food is stored outside in the wood shed, we keep it in an air-tight container. Usually we use up a 40lb bag in 3-4wks. I’d definitely agree – in warmer weather, it should get used up sooner. I’m on the Oregon coast, so it stays 40-60* most of the year, and the wood shed will keep the food an extra 10* cooler usually.

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I’d agree with the others, check with their website and possibly shoot them an email/phone call. Add extra supplements or other canned foods if it’s a concern, and if Nature’s Logic has different protein sources, then try to switch out the varieties if you can. That’ll help “fill in the gaps.” Also I can never emphasize oral hygeine enough for a dog who has nothing but soft food…dogs on canned (for some reason, especially small dogs) tend to get icky teeth fast.

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I’ve not done too much research as to most and least affordable, but if you’re not opposed to foods made by Diamond, I believe a couple of their varieties (DN small breed puppy and Extreme Athlete) are 5 star, and usually it’s about $1.50/lb. There are quite a few others that are relatively affordable, but you’ll probably be looking around at least 2-3$/lb. Some TotW and Victor foods are 5-star as well.

I’ve not tried a vast variety of foods myself, as I don’t have access to a whole lot, so I can’t tell you what /the/ best balance of price/quality will be.

Hope you find something that works for your dogs and your wallet!

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I think she just changed her name to “theBCnut”

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Ah, sounds like cats are quite the problem causes LOL! Usually we buy small enough packs of meat that they don’t need to be frozen, she eats them before they go bad (if I ever add organs, then they usually get frozen since one package lasts a looooong time for Ms. Picky Britches). Millie is our raw eater, refusing ANY commercial foods, then her younger brother, Panda, loves his dry (it’s hilarious – he’s always been on the dirt cheap dry food and /only/ liked his Cat Chow. We finally switched to Chicken Soup, and it took him a few days to adjust. We still keep cat chow around as treats for the ducks/chickens, and when we left a scoop of it out, Panda was there munching away on the food! The little dork prefers the cheap taste over quality lol). Then Maddy is the least picky, she doesn’t like raw, but that’s fine since she eats canned daily.

Well, I will just have to keep playing around with proportions for the goofy kitty.

Does anyone know how to post pictures? I’d love to show her to you guys, she is a very very unique kitty. Cream/chocolate tortoiseshell and has a perfectly split face (half white, half brown). Big blue eyes, white feet.

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Glad to hear he’s still doing fine 🙂 I don’t get concerned whenever my dogs get into something sweet, and they’ve even consumed small amounts of chocolate accidentally without any side effects. I wouldn’t get concerned until he eats a vast amount of sugar (like he gets into a whole box of cookies or something).

Best wishes! Hope you survive the “loss” of an hour’s sleep this Spring Forward xP I barely manage every year!

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Honestly, I wouldn’t get too concerned. Just keep an eye on him, and if he acts weird then go ahead and take him in. I never give my dogs sugar, but I honestly don’t think a couple tablespoons would /kill/ a dog, as they make TONS of dog treats w sugar (it really annoys me – why the heck do they make strawberry and peanut butter flavored dog treats, complete w a sugary cream filling that smells good enough for me to eat? Dogs seriously have different tastes than people, ugh.) and I know many dogs who eat them daily and are still alive.

I’ll be perfectly honest though, I really don’t know what sugar does that’s hazardous to their health (other than the horrid breath lol).

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I don’t know too much about fish, but whenever we go fishing, we cook the whole fish in tin foil and give our dogs the remainders. Usually we gut the fish and throw the remainders away, but I’m sure if you cooked it then it’d be fine.

I honestly would never feed my dogs raw fish, as my lab has come within a few hours of death from eating a raw fish, and my dad once had a Dalmatian that died from eating a live fish.

Sorry for adding a question – but can anyone explain to me how/when/why raw fish can kill dogs, and if it’s ever safe to give a raw fish to a dog? The vet explained it when we took our dog in, but that was almost 10yrs ago, so I honestly can’t remember a thing he said.

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Ah that clarifies this “question” for me as well. I knew chicken and meal, but wasn’t sure what dehydrated referred to. I try to make sure my Kibbles have at least the first two as meat ingredients (I think their current food is meat, then meat meal…chicken/lamb/beef usually, I swap out the varieties)

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DaneMom, giant breeds are definitely my favorite overall (okay, right next to a good APBT or Staffie rescue). I’ve ALWAYS wanted a Borzoi as well! If only I could find a practical reason to get one, hahaha. Maybe one day there will be one as a rescue pup though, never know! 😀

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Sandy, I doubt she’d eat tripe. We don’t have access to it anywhere to see, but if she’s refused all other organs we offered, I doubt she’d eat it.

I’ve not tried giving her feeder animals…I honestly doubt we’d buy live animals for her, I’m far too squeamish. Occasionally when she goes outside and catches a bird/mouse, she’ll eat most of it, but usually not.

I knew about taurine and how important it is…I’d look into buying a supplement of it, but gosh she is so dang picky, I just don’t know if she’d accept it. Where is taurine naturally sourced from? Is it an animal-product?

I’ve thought about commercial raw, but we don’t have access to it here, and I sincerely doubt she’d eat it, as she detects any extra stuff we grind in her meat (egg yolks, supplements, etc.)

Gosh I feel so bad for her though! Her pickiness is keeping her from being the healthiest she can be… -_-

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I’m a fan of a different dog every day of the week it seems. I like herding breeds a lot, but when I finally got one, I ended up with this ultra anxious dog-aggressive critter. I love him, and know he’s not your average example for an Aussie/Kelpie, but I doubt I’ll get a herder again unless I get something that needs to be herded.

Mutts I will probably always have, I’ve never had a purebred (my lab is the closest. She’s half GSD, but there’s not a trace of it in her looks or personality – she just has a not-so-soft bite is all).

I’m ultimately a sucker for bully and giant breeds. I love anything with a square head, loyal heart, and silly disposition (I owned an APBT/Rott/Lab, and he had all those qualities. He only lived to be 2, but he was the most memorable dog I’ll ever have)

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I tend to avoid Eukanaba, as it’s not very quality. The suggestions of Victor and other GF foods were good, then adding digestive supplements (like probiotics and fiber from pumpkin). My boy used to go a LOT too. He made 6-10 full-sized piles daily. We moved him to a better quality food without all those junky fillers, and he went down to 2-4 piles daily.

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And with the fish – I know many people give their dogs oily fish 1-3x per week. I think it’s usually sardines.

About anything good and oily is good though. Sardine, salmon, krill, algae, coconut, and my dogs get flax oil as well (although they don’t absorb it as well as with fish oils). Just be a little careful not to go too overboard, as it could produce a greasy coat after a while. I know someone who gives her 50lb dogs 4 capsules of fish oil daily AND 2-4tbsp olive oil. They’re in tip-top shape and don’t stink, but leave a bit of a film after you pet them a while.

I, personally, also swear by raw eggs. My lab, who’s suffered a dull drab coat and awful skin conditions all her life, gets a whole raw egg daily. She is looking much much better.

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Sounds like you’ve already got some ideas for foods to try – I don’t know that many brands personally, so I usually say it’s safe to go with 4-5 star brands.

As for the skin. I wouldn’t expect a bath to help much, as soaps tend to strip the coat even more, unless they’re medicated and designed for dry skin (when my dog is super dry, I use an oil-based organic shampoo. Sometimes it’s almost too much though, and my dog doesn’t feel clean at all).

Some things to look into: possibly tests for food allergies? As almost all skin problems have something to do with food, sadly. It could be chicken, grains, tomatoes, fish, the list goes on. I’d try getting him on coconut oil – organic extra virgin cold pressed, about 1tbsp per 30lbs. That stuff has been known as a miracle worker around these parts! Salmon oil is very good, too. Keep that up, 🙂

Fiber additions – most people add a big spoonful of pumpkin (canned is fine) to their dogs food. If there’s no improvement in his morning routine, then possibly try some probiotic supplements as well.

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I’d agree with crazy4cats, I think you should try to find a super quality nutrient-dense kibble, then add their favorite meat (cooked or raw, however they like it). Try canned foods, or make your own broth by boiling chicken bones (or just adding some water to any of the juices after cooking the meat). It will add moisture and flavor to the food, two pluses for picky pups.

That’s good that you took away treats. It might help them realize “Oh… This weird stuff in my bowl is actually food? I think I should eat it!” My boy used to be a picky picky eater, he’d go without food for up to 3 days, simply because he didn’t like the brand/flavor. I would quit giving him his daily biscuits, and he’d go back to eating. He wasn’t overweight at all either – as it sounds like your dogs are on the thin side as well.

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Big shout out to ya for being a stay at home mom. They really are a dying breed, and frowned upon these days (heck knows why! They work just as hard, if not harder than anyone who has a regular job!)

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Here are tons of ideas: http://allrecipes.com/recipes/everyday-cooking/pet-food/pet-treats/
Just be careful…I’d try to avoid sugar/wheat, as those aren’t very good for a growing puppy, but it’d be easy to substitute or omit unnessecary ingredients.

Here are some wheat free ideas: http://www.crazycrumb.com/wheat-free-dog-treat-recipes.html

You can also just cut up chunks of meats, veggies, fruit, etc. And pop them in a dehydrator or oven. One I would like to try are sweet potato strips. You bake them until they’re chewy. Mmmmmm! Most dogs love sweet potatoes too.

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I have no help to offer, but I’m just following this threat pretty much for the heck of it. I have a form of IBS, (ironically, diarrhea is not involved, phew!) so I totally feel your doggie. The only things I’ve been told for mine is, obviously, to avoid certain foods, which it sounds like you’re already doing.
I guess you could say I might just have to try eating whatever kibble/supplements that’s helping your pooch out? LOL, not seriously.

Best wishes! 😀

[Shasta220]

I’ve never done home made diets, so I’m terribly sorry – I’m not much help. I completely understand though, I have a cat who is ultra picky. She will not touch ANY type of commercial food (we’ve tried dry, canned, flaked, pouched, refrigerated, you name it, she’s turned her nose up at.). We tried offering her nothing but cat food for a week straight, and she probably would have completely starved herself, she would NOT touch it.

She’s picky about her food now even, so she doesn’t get the nutrition she needs, and it’s showing sadly… I’m jumping on this thread to see what some suggestions might be.

The only way I could think of hiding extra nutrition into their food is by grinding it. I know organ meats and raw bones are important in a balanced diet. Maybe buying a supplemental powder (just general vitamins probably) and try adding that, maybe start with just 1/2 day’s worth, as many animals can detect the smell of it and refuse. Omegas are always one of my favorite additions. My dogs get it with fish oils (salmon, sardine, krill, I think even algae would work), and raw eggs – your dogs may prefer the taste of cooked.

Just play around with how much you can get in there without it being too detected. Possibly try coconut oil as well, it has tons of benefits. Try offering them a teaspoon of organic extra virgin cold-pressed coconut oil. It’s great for their skin, fur, teeth, digestion, and pretty much everything else! Most dogs like it, too.

Hopefully you’ll be able to figure out something that works out perfectly. Have you tried commercial dehydrated, refridgorated, or raw foods? They already have balanced nutrients, so you wouldn’t need to worry about many supplements.

And yes, dog nutrition is very very confusing. Research and reading forums seems to make it worse, as everyone has their own opinions and experiences… Plus, every dog is different, so what works miracles for my dog might do absolutely nothing for yours. Just keep trying to gain information though, I’m sure you’ll slowly start figuring it out. (I’m new to nutrition myself, but the more I’m on here, the more I learn!)

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Err…no. I’d say a huge laughing “No” to that brand. It’s a big name brand that’s after nothing more than your money, and to trick you! Breed specific food is a total waste, that’s for sure! But Marie, I’m sure you already know Royal C. is on the avoid list 😉

That canned food sounds great though. If it’s only 3% potato protein! I honestly wouldn’t worry about it much. Most dogs are lucky to get 70% meat protein, hah!

Edit: I said the huge no to the Royal Canin, that is. Definitely not a no on your requested brand 😀

• This reply was modified 10 years, 2 months ago by Shasta220.

[Shasta220]

I would DEFINITELY avoid Royal Canin, samaroberoi. It’s cheap filler food that has a fancy name, much like Hill’s Science, and even Eukanaba. Breed specific foods make me LAUGH (not the good kind, either). A dog’s nutritional needs is NOT based on his breed, that’s for sure! I mean, yes, an average husky will need more protein and calories than maybe a Bassett hound… But I’d honestly avoid any brand that is full of breed-specific food. A quality food will be good for almost every dog – regardless of the breed.

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