[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Try chicken leg quarters. I’ve read of some people taking vice grips and using it to hold an end of the bone to help slow the dog down as well.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Would you show me where I said “don’t take your dog to the vet”? What? You can’t? That’s because I didn’t. I was responding directly to her question. Never once did she say she was not going to go to the vet.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I would ask the company for the actual calcium levels. There’s a calculator on this site you can use to then see if it is suitable for giant breed dogs. Some people also insist that giant breed dogs should never be on a puppy food. I would do a bit more research and at the very least, find a company that has a longer history making dog food than American Journey.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Would you stop trying to invoke nothing but fear into every single poster on here? If someone has the time and the means to do a well prepared homemade diet, then they should! Skeptvet is not the end all be all and there are plenty of resources to help formulate a proper diet for a dog. Clearly this poster does not want to feed a 100% processed diet and is trying to do the best for her dog. In another article skeptvet goes on to say he does NOT disapprove of homemade diets and thinks they could be better than kibbled diets IF prepared correctly. Which can be done if a nutritionist is consulted.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

If you’re on Facebook join the group K9 nutrition. They’re all very helpful.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

What kind of dog is it?

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Look into balanceit dot com. I would also look and see if you can find any books written by veterinary nutritionists. I would also use the search feature on this page and search “cancer diets” and see if anyone has covered this before.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Instinct isn’t a bad food. It has freeze dried in it, not true raw food. Maybe try a different formula within the brand you’re on, Instinct has MANY to choose from.

In regards to anon101’s suggestion to read that link regarding milk thistle, the author misinterpreted the Cochrane review. It was stated in the review that EVERY trial assessed was of low quality so no judgement could be made. skeptvet took that as “low quality trials showed benefit, high quality showed negatives”. as this was not mentioned once in the Cochrane review, I would take it with a grain of salt. Listen to your vet. Something anon101 always tells people to do unless it disagrees with his beliefs.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

And they’re listed at different weights per size, not all the same “255 grams”

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I have several 11”, 8”, and 4” no hide at home and they all weighted out to exactly what the label says…and all of the ones on the shelf at my store weigh out to what’s stated on the label…

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Senior food isn’t necessarily a bad thing! It tends to be lower in calorie and fat so sometimes, depending on the brand, you can feed close to the same amount you were feeding of the regular adult food. It can be dangerous to cut back too far on some foods because they may not be getting all of the nutrients they need for their size. When my guy was laid up with an injury, I fed him Canidae Platinum to help manage his weight until he was cleared to at least start swimming.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I run a retail store, and as far as the Kentucky Acana goes none of my customers have voiced a complaint, and the line has only grown dramatically in my store. I personally love their Heritage Free run poultry formula. My dogs do fantastic on it and it is our personal #1 seller in the store. I also really like the Canidae ALS. It is a multimeat food and a lot of rescues in our area use it as their food of choice since it is easy for most dogs to digest. Some dogs don’t do well on too rich of a food, but owners want to stay grain free. In that case I like Under the Sun or Whole Earth Farms.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Zeek screams at the sight of nail clippers. Tyrion lets out one pee squirt when it’s teeth time. Quite humorous actually.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

If you’re trying the homemade thing, i’d see if your vet has a nutritionist or a recipe plan that they like that is suitable for large breed puppies. You can also use balanceit.com. Are you trying to stay grain free? If not, Fromm gold makes a large breed puppy food that is good for sensitive stomachs. It’s in a bright blue bag.

In regards to the probiotic, my cats were once given Purina Fortiflora. They loved it and two responded very well, one had loose stools (even worse after the probiotic). I gave it a shot for a couple of weeks because it can take time for the good bacteria to colonize. After that I had to find one that had more strains in it, as Fortiflora only had 1. Usually brewer’s yeast is used as an appetite enhancer (many cats can’t resist it) which may be what you’re smelling. The dog formula uses it as well and is also only 1 strain of probiotic.

What kibble foods did your vet suggest?

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

The problem I have with this study is that it was done on dogs that already had underlying health issues with regards to some paralysis. It doesn’t seem to be done on a group of healthy dogs with no prior health concerns. I think that plays a big role into diet, whether raw or conventional. And why the big hit on chicken necks? Do turkey necks not have the same response then? Or raw chicken breast? In regards to campylobacter, I once discussed this with 4 vets in my town. None support raw feeding, but as a retailer I sell raw food and it is extremely popular in my town. None had a positive test result for campylobacter on a raw fed dog (that the owner had disclosed was raw fed). I am not against raw feeding, but also feed kibble, just for background

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I would also like to add that the K9 nutrition Facebook page is a good resource. Lots of different types of feeders are on there and have done their methods for decades

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I like Acana but it can be rich for some dogs. Wellness is a good food, but I lean more towards their CORE line. Solid Gold is a good food as well. I’ve also used Fromm in my rotation with good results. Canidae is a good middle of the road option, cheaper than some but still high quality. If your dog can tolerate it and has no health issues, I’m an advocate for rotational feeding. But at the end of the day, what works for mine won’t always work for others.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Maybe look into Canidae? Or try contacting Merrick directly, as they are the owners and makers of WEF. Fromm has great customer service and has always answered my questions quickly, and depending on what you specifically want in a food, they have options for most price points. Classic is chicken and rice, but 33#s will run about $36. Their Four star grain in line should all be under $60. Grain free will be more.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I would look for something fish or duck based. Under the Sun is still an affordable food but has a fish option. WEF also has a fish and a duck option.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I would look up K9 Nutrition on Facebook. There are a lot of people on there that make homemade diets and use recipes that were created with the help of their vets.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

My two dogs love the Honest Kitchen Pro Bloom. It’s powdered goat’s milk and has probiotics in it. You mix it with warm water and put it over their food.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Or you can order from Fromm’s own website.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I’ve known many people who have used Under the Sun Whitefish as a weight management food. There’s a dachshund rescue that often sees seniors come in severely overweight and that is the food they use for their chunky guys. It seems to work well for them.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

It could be anything, from the way it was stored at the store to a tiny hole you couldn’t see and moisture got in. Same thing will happen to foods within the best buy date if there is a hole in the bag.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Corn silk has also been noted to be helpful with UTI’s. Because of the long drives to any vet in the area I live, many vets recommend keeping corn silk on hand to give at first immediate sign of straining until they can get them into the vet, which should be done ASAP. How large is the dog? Increasing the water content of the food may be helpful

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Try the regular Fromm Large Breed. They have one with grain in it and it is much easier on some sensitive stomachs.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

It seems to help motion sickness in one of my cats. In the other, I use it to calm some of his aggression he shows at night.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Canidae Pure has a senior and a weight management that works well for a lot of dogs. It’s easy on most stomachs

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

That one but sometimes the 13oz cans go on sale. That’s where you get the best deal.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I like freeze dried treats. They’re very limited in ingredients usually and you can rip them into smaller pieces. I also love the Plato brand of jerky’s but without knowing the trigger it’s hard to pinpoint the problem ingredient. I don’t remember the brand but my store sells stuff called Chicken Bark and Beef Bark (even a Roo and Shark Bark!) that’s one or two ingredients and made in Texas. They’re crunchy

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Did I say pour it on the dog, let alone open wounds? No. I also said itchy areas, not open wounds.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I think Merrick has a puppy beef, but depending on the size of the puppy it may not be suitable.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

If you can find the California naturals and she does wel on it, stock up because it’s being discontinued. We can already no longer get it in south Texas. If you can’t find Malasab for some reason online, Keto-C works very well also. It’s for dogs but my husband even uses it for psoriasis on his scalp. A rescue group in this area had a very yeasty dog and had some luck temporarily treating with apple cider vinegar sprayed on the itchy areas.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Earthborn has a new line called Venture that is pretty limited as far as ingredients go. It’s not my favorite long term food but it may be helpful in narrowing down what the dog isn’t tolerating.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Every single time someone has voiced a concern about dog food allergies, your immediate response is that it’s likely not the food and you need to go to a vet. There’s no agenda. Just summarizing the same spiel you give to most posters here.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I think Dave’s Pet makes a fairly reasonably priced canned food. Sometimes you can find the Whole Earth Farms pate on sale for very cheap. I find that I can get a little further out of those because it’s a fairly dry pate and if you add a little water to it, it makes a nice soup.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

There is lots of GOOD information on these forums. What are you currently feeding her? Start by finding something that is a single source protein, or at the very least remove corn and chicken first. I usually like something with duck to start with.

The poster above does not believe food allergies exist, so you’re likely to get the same answer from them each time. At least 75% of the people who described your issue has seen results with a change in food. I would however talk to your vet and see if there’s anything you can do for immediate relief especially if the dog is itching itself raw.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Maybe look at Zignature Pork or Catfish, both get the 5* marker. They just came out with a goat and guineafowl formula, those may get the higher rating as well.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I think the problem with a 5* LID is that I’ve noticed most single meat sourced foods get knocked .5-1*. I once had a sales rep for a popular LID food tell me that the reason they came out with the multimeat formula in their line was to get the 5* rating on nutrition websites. No idea if this was actually true or not, but once that flavor was added, that one formula got a 5* rating, with all else being the same across foods.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

The normal Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy is a hair cheaper than the Heartland I believe. Canidae also has a large breed formula that is reasonably priced.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Haleycookie, if you’re trying to look on your mobile phone, it seems the mobile version is disabled. I found it by doing a search for dog food advisor recent comments. One appeared that was tagged for mobile and the other didn’t. That one worked.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I don’t have much to add but I second K9 Nutrition. They are all very helpful and one of the more laid back nutrition groups!

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I’ve used Go in the past with success. However each pet will react differently to it. I think you may need to try it and see how Furby does on it. I’m more comfortable with Go myself but I’ve had issues with the makers of TOTW in the past. I love the food, hate the company. But that’s on the US side. I’ve heard internationally they’re easier to get straightforward answers in response to questions

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Is Natural Balance sweet potato and venison still being made? I know there have been venison sourcing issues this year in some areas. Many people I know have done well on it.
Susan, does wet food ever help dogs with pancreatitis or IBD? The reason I ask is because her dog is smaller and it probably wouldn’t be too much of a headache to have it on an all wet diet. My big guy, Zeek, Shepherd mix, can eat kibble just fine (but serious gas on sweet potato foods I’ve done.) tyrion, the bitty dog, gets very constipated on kibble so I do all canned, raw, or freeze dried. I’ve tried all kibble varieties with him from Orijen to Natural Balance, TOTW, Canidae, Fromm, earthborn, etc.

Would canned help the opposite issue?

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I’ve said it before, some people posting replies here fail to realize that others come to sites like this to read about other people’s experiences with what works and doesn’t. Unfortunately, sometimes the examining vet doesn’t always have all of the answers. While it is always a good idea to run things by a vet, they may not always come to the same conclusions others have. If I had only listened to my vets, plural because i changed many times while dealing with this issue, my cat would be dead right now. They all missed what was truly wrong with him and it took me finding someone who had the same issue I had on a forum, and then going to the vet and telling them what I wanted them to prescribe (ended up being metronidazole for this particular issue).

I’m glad you’re finding people with some solutions to both your IBD and pancreatitis issue that your vet is being supportive. both are difficult problems and it helps having support groups you can turn to.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Under the Sun Whitefish is low, at about 11% fat. I think there’s a couple of the Canidae Pure’s that are very low fat, but I can’t recall the protein source. The one I’m thinking of had 8.5% fat but I think was chicken based. Pure Vita has a grain free venison with no peas or potatoes.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I think Earthborn’s Venture line has a couple novel protein sources that are potato and pea free. Are you trying to stay grain free? I’ve heard whitefish based foods have helped many dogs with IBD and some are very low fat. Is he a large dog?

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

If Merrick is too rich for your dog, but you still want to stay with the Purina companies, I would try Whole Earth Farms. Made in Merrick’s facility and is a little lower protein. If you aren’t married to that idea, I would suggest Under the Sun Whitefish. It’s very easy on the stomach during transitioning.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

Dark red with improvement after diet change sounds like a yeast problem. Some breeds are prone to blocked tear ducts though and that will cause discharge.

[Tyrionthebiscuit]

I have several customers who swear by Under the Sun Whitefish for anal gland problems. My own dog did well on Canidae Pure before I switched him to raw, and he consistently had anal gland problems at the foster’s house while being fed Earthborn. I’ve also heard of good results with people using Super Snouts balance GI or NaturVet No Scoot as a supplement.

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