Selecting A New Dog Food (diarrhea, shedding, natural, puppy)
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Well, got up this morning and my boy was limping because he now has a cyst between his toes which is often caused by allergies! Is it his food, who knows, but after all these hours and hours of agonizing over a new food, I am putting him back on his old food as we haven't had this problem before in the 8 months we have had him. He has been on canned mushy food for the past 2 weeks after surgery on his palate (Oh, the joys of owning a bulldog!) and goes to the vet today for post-op check. He had been on Victor Senior/Healthy weight with no problems so will go back to that and see how we do...., fingers crossed. Bulldogs are prone to these cysts (of course). These poor dogs, I hate what breeders and fashion have done to them. Anyway, if this continues, then it may be time to rethink the food situation.
I used to feed Taste of the Wild to my border collies - they loved it. But now my old girl is 15 with kidney problems, so we're working out whether she needs a prescription diet or is better off with me cooking for her. I had her on the regular Costco brand for about the last year.
My Catahoula gets gassy from most of the high end foods I've tried on him. Costco's grain-free food settled his stomach right down and has a pretty decent rating on dogfoodadvisor.com - and yes, I am also delighted with the price. He also gets regular snacks from whatever veggies I'm cooking in the kitchen
I had my late bulldog mix on Costco brand and he liked it but gas was a problem so we had to switch! He was a pretty picky eater too. That is when I went to Victors and he and my two now have done well on it.
I just got back from the vet and he says the cyst is probably allergies, environmental in all likely-hood as he is seeing a lot of symptoms right now with other dogs. I am still going to put him back on the Victors for a while, get everything settled down after his bout of surgeries and give myself more time to find another food that I can maybe rotate with.
I really appreciate reading everyone's opinions on the different foods.
My vet is extremely knowledgable about dog foods and is very good about determining which foods will work for any given dog and that dogs needs. Before I got my dog, I spent dozens of hours researching foods. I wanted only the best and was willing to pay the premium. My puppy ended up having so many issues in the first six months. Several bouts of coccydia, non-stop diarrhea. No joke, there was not one single solid poops for six months. It was maddening and I was bleeding money on the dog. My vet suggested Purina One but I was extremely reluctant to even give it a try and just kept bringing the dog in for his diarrhea issues. Finally my vet gave me a large sample of the Purina One food and over the course of a week, dog's poops finally became normal. Even better, my dog's mood dramatically improved.
I've talked with a lot of other people who use my vet and several of them have noted that the vet is like a dog food whisperer. He just seems to know the right food to prescribe. Sometimes I still feel concerned that I'm feeding my dog a lower quality food, but reminding myself of how awful those six months were for myself and my dog helps me get over it.
I had my late bulldog mix on Costco brand and he liked it but gas was a problem so we had to switch! He was a pretty picky eater too. That is when I went to Victors and he and my two now have done well on it.
I just got back from the vet and he says the cyst is probably allergies, environmental in all likely-hood as he is seeing a lot of symptoms right now with other dogs. I am still going to put him back on the Victors for a while, get everything settled down after his bout of surgeries and give myself more time to find another food that I can maybe rotate with.
I really appreciate reading everyone's opinions on the different foods.
A duck and pea food blend might be worth trying. It has been GREAT for the 2 cats I've known with food allergies (mine and a friend's) that manifested as raw spots on their skin. (Really gross and "moist" - *shudder*)
The other option is to cook for the dog. A blend of veggies and organic meats - throw 'em in the slow cooker, blend 'em up and freeze them. Dole out accordingly.
I'm about to start doing that for my elderly BC as soon as the vet hands me a definitive diagnosis.
I do in fact have my cat on Duck and Pea because of allergies and he has done very well, no more problems. He had rubbed his face red raw in a couple of spots before that. We are in the middle of tree pollen season here and we don't think it is food at this point. That line of thinking could change but in the mean time I am going back to the tried and true food that he was on. If things get worse, plan B!
Well, got up this morning and my boy was limping because he now has a cyst between his toes which is often caused by allergies! Is it his food, who knows, but after all these hours and hours of agonizing over a new food, I am putting him back on his old food as we haven't had this problem before in the 8 months we have had him. He has been on canned mushy food for the past 2 weeks after surgery on his palate (Oh, the joys of owning a bulldog!) and goes to the vet today for post-op check. He had been on Victor Senior/Healthy weight with no problems so will go back to that and see how we do...., fingers crossed. Bulldogs are prone to these cysts (of course). These poor dogs, I hate what breeders and fashion have done to them. Anyway, if this continues, then it may be time to rethink the food situation.
Ouch, sorry he's not feeling well. So Victor Senior Healthy Weight. Let's pull it up and see what it looks like just for fun and an example:
I like to use the manufacturer's website when looking at ingredients and analysis, assuming it has the most up to date ingredient list. I used to just look at all of them at Petsmart/Petco/Chewy websites to compare but then found a Royal Canine product that didn't have accurate info, so, switched to going to the manufacturer's sites.
I wouldn't call it grain free. Rice, millet, oatmeal. I gotta look up tocopherols, lot of pomace of what looks like good ingredients, I think that's leftover from other processing or product. I like the meat and fish meals! Good stuff!
I like to use the manufacturer's website when looking at ingredients and analysis, assuming it has the most up to date ingredient list. I used to just look at all of them at Petsmart/Petco/Chewy websites to compare but then found a Royal Canine product that didn't have accurate info, so, switched to going to the manufacturer's sites.
I wouldn't call it grain free. Rice, millet, oatmeal. I gotta look up tocopherols, lot of pomace of what looks like good ingredients, I think that's leftover from other processing or product. I like the meat and fish meals! Good stuff!
No, not completely grain free but free of corn, wheat, soy, gluten and GMO free. 3 of my dogs have been on it and so far so good. There has been some talk about Rosemary causing seizures in dogs but nothing has been proven. I called the company and asked them about the amount and they said it is miniscule compared to all the other ingredients. It is used as a preservative.
From the Dog Food Advisor:
I’ve heard rosemary extract causes seizures. Is this true?
Rosemary is frequently used in dog food as a natural anti-oxidant and preservative. It’s also considered an anti-cancer agent. However, we’ve never been able to find any scientific studies linking rosemary extract with seizures in dogs. We’ve only found mention of its potential relationship in humans. And then, only rarely in subjects prone to epileptic seizures in the first place.
You can really drive yourself round the bend trying to find the 'perfect' dog food. I think as long as we don't feed rubbish or feed at the very least a 3 star food, although not perfect by a long shot, you are doing OK. Let's face it, some people really can't afford an expensive dog food but they love their dogs and do the best they can. BUT, a lot of people are also not educated at all about what they are feeding their pets and think they are doing well by buying Ole Roy or the equivalent. Yuck!
Have used Iams ProActive Health Adult Mini Chunks for decades and multiple generations of dogs. I feed it to puppies as well as my older dogs. I have never had an issue with it.
Iams is not a good dog food, but that's your choice. My friend thinks Iams killed his 3 cats...all in one year~!
Quote:
Originally Posted by MarkFromSea
Small dogs so budget isn't a biggy for us, they just don't eat all that much all that fast. I want value, that is, I don't want to overpay for what I get. $2-4 per pound is expected for the types of kibble I've researched. We tried orijen before we got the second dog, the yorkie didn't care for it but it is a quality food. Acana is on the list to try at some point, same company, same quality, fewer ingredients.
Larger breeds would make a bigger dent in the wallet for sure.
Acana is too rich of a food for a Yorkie, at least my Vet told me that when my Yorkie had bloody stools from Acana from the start.
Quote:
Originally Posted by fresnochili
That's what I feed my doberman. She loves it. I for some reason tried Blue Buffalo,
I guess cause everyone was raving abt it. Bad Move. Dog did not like it. Gave her loose stools too.
She finally would just turn up her nose and walk away when I put it in her bowl.
So back to Kirkland. Stools are better and her overall mood, too.
Blue Buffalo is not what they say it is. First the food comes from China. Secondly, there is an ingredient in the food that is making dogs sick that they won't tell the public. Lastly, I switched my dog from it when he had issues from it.
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