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Hey all,
Recently, we switched our dog from a prescription dog food to a high quality kibble. The only issue we have had since then, is that she's been regurgitating some of her food; in some cases, hours later. Initially, we were worried, but her energy levels and elimination is fine and consistent.
In addition to the regurgitation, she would drink tons of water (and pee considerably more.) My guess was, she was compensating for the dry food. After noticing that, I began soaking her food in water. Initially, I would add some water to the kibble and feed it right away. Her behavior didn't really change (still burping hours later.) However, the longer I soaked the kibble, the better she got.
At about 2 hrs, the kibble wasn't fully constituted (still hard at core; I may not have added enough water.) At around 4-6 hrs, it was soft all the way through. I'm sure this is kibble specific or possibly symptomatic of grain-free high-protein kibbles. What amazed me is that around 4-6 hours, the volume of the kibble had grown maybe 2-3 times (will try to get a photo later of the difference.) After seeing that, we split her meals into three a day (vs two.)
Wellness Core Grain Free Reduced Fat
Left: Untouched, Right: Soaked in water (~ 4hrs)
I'm guessing that it takes a while for kibble to be reconstituted when wet. Adding water, and then directly feeding, doesn't allow the kibble to soak long enough for it to fully expand. I imagine that in these scenarios, the water is absorbed (and expelled from the body) quicker than the kibble can absorb it. At that point, it expands in her stomach; causing the regurgitation. When we allowed the kibble to soak (and fully expand) before feeding, our dog seemed to do alot better. Little/No burping. Less water consumption (post-eating.) Less peeing.
Just something I noticed.
Thoughts?
Last edited by Randmness; 02-10-2014 at 08:44 AM..
i did this all the time when i kibble fed (and now if im short on meat an dhave to kibble meal...) i started because bloat terrifies me and it makes sence that a dry compacted food would swell in the stomach over time.
We used to use Wellness until all three of our dogs became ill.
I don't think this product is as good as it used to be now that it was bought out.
If you smell the dog food and it smells rancid/no good.
Wellness also had a moisture problem/too much and the food was getting moldy and many dogs got ill.
We always buy our dog food in smaller bags so they are fresher.
Now we buy Taste of the Wild. We supplement it with Probiotics chicken and green beans and they get Glycoflex 11.
I really think the best dog food is what people make from human food with supplements.
The only concern I would have with this is any potential problems with their teeth. As long as you are either following a good brushing routine or they have good bones or something to chew on, there should be no issues.
The only concern I would have with this is any potential problems with their teeth. As long as you are either following a good brushing routine or they have good bones or something to chew on, there should be no issues.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but kibble isn't hard enough to clean teeth. Brushing, bones, etc would still be necessary.
It's natural for kibble to expand when it's in the stomach. That's no new discovery. Your dog is probably regurgitating it because her stomach is becoming overfull once it swells from the stomach juices. That doesn't mean you need to add water and moisten it ahead of time. It means you might be overfeeding her. Try giving smaller amounts of kibble.
I wouldn't soak her kibble hours before feeding her. Once it's wet, bacteria starts to form just like it does for unrefrigerated people food.
Also, watering dry kibble can cause bloat, especially if the kibble contains citric acid as a preservative. With all types of food, make sure she's not active one hour before eating and two hours after eating.
Kibble isn't evil. If her regurgitating continues, there might be allergies at play here even though you're feeding high quality kibble. Try to switch to an exotic limited ingredient kibble.
If you feed a kibble that's oven baked, it won't swell in water. There are only a few, and most aren't easy to find. They include Avoderm oven baked (It says oven baked on the label. Most of their foods are extruded as most kibbles are.) Lotus, Evolve, and Flint River Ranch.
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(..of the dog, not more kibble..)
