# Need help with dog food please!!!



## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

Have you checked into the Natural Balance. They have a limited ingredient foods that might help. 
http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/dogformulas/allergy.html

I know you have been reading alot but I dont know if you have read this site. It has some great information on it. One of the things:
You can also increase the protein levels in whatever diet you feed by adding some fresh, high-protein foods, such as meat, eggs, yogurt, cottage cheese, and canned fish with bones (jack mackerel, pink salmon, sardines). 
Here is the site:http://www.dogaware.com/dogfeeding.html


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

BeauShel said:


> Have you checked into the Natural Balance. They have a limited ingredient foods that might help.


Thanks for your thoughts. I am familiar with natural balance. We used the duck and potato food when we did his elimination diet. It solved the itchiness, but not the soft stool and boy his gas was bad enough to drive you out of the room!!! So once we determined his allergies we switched to their lamb and rice formula, and after about a week he refused to eat it...just didn't like it. They do have an ultra active formula with a higher protein level, so that could be an option. And thanks for the links!


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Doodle said:


> So why not stop here since it's working, right? Well, a sane person probably would, but there is this little voice in my head telling me I should maybe be concerned that the CN is on the lower end of the scale for protein and high in grains (rice is the second and third ingredients)...not only for overall health but also because of how prone our babies are to cancer.


I know there's a big anti-grain bias out there, but I've never seen any solid scientific data that solidly links rice or any other grain with canine cancer. If the dog is healthy, embrace the food that has made him that way. Making his food richer with protein supplements or changing yet again is likely to disrupt his GI tract and put you back at square one. Chronically bad stools are a lot more deleterious to a dog's health than ingredients that have a long, highly scrutinized track record of safety.


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

tippykayak said:


> Making his food richer with protein supplements or changing yet again is likely to disrupt his GI tract and put you back at square one.


Yes, I've thought of that too. You make a very good point.


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## Bock (Jun 23, 2008)

Doodle said:


> So we switched him to California natural chix and rice thinking maybe he'd do better on a more limited ingredient food with his allergies. He's been on the CN for about a month and a half, and his stools are definately better (everything else is ok too). We just started adding some pumpkin and a probiotic and now they're actually quite good. So why not stop here since it's working, right? Well, a sane person probably would, but there is this little voice in my head telling me I should maybe be concerned that the CN is on the lower end of the scale for protein and high in grains (rice is the second and third ingredients)..


I had this same thinking about the low protein in CN. One thing that made my feel better is if you look at the company's website that makes CN, Naturapet, it says that 80% of all the protein comes from meat. So while rice is the 2nd and 3rd ingredient, I take it that there is quite a bit of the first ingredient (the meat) within the food. 

You may also want to look into Healthwise. It is made by the same company that makes CN and has much high protein levels, 26%-28% I believe. I am currently using CN and will be trying Healthwise Lamb for my next bag for the higher protein and calories. Healthwise also has very few ingredients compared to most other dog foods (although slightly more ingredients than CN). I believe Healthwise is also a bit cheaper than CN.


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## Hiker (Mar 29, 2009)

Some people supplement the CN with the High Protein canned EVO Reduced Fat. I agree though, why mess with it if it is working?


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

Thanks again to everyone for your thoughts....all great ideas!


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## MyCodyBoy (Sep 27, 2008)

I can't say enough about Wellness. They have a Core diet as well as a Super5mix that has some grains(but not corn)
Cody had bad ear and skin problems and is doing very well on the large breed puppy Super5mix. 

Check out Wellness's website for ingrediants of all ther diffrent kinds of food and also check out the dog food analysis website for their point of view.
http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/index.php


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

In my opinion, its not worth getting the digestive track messed up. It takes a while for the unseen damage to heal after chronic gastro issues. If he is doing well, then I wouldn't change it.


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## Solas Goldens (Nov 10, 2007)

I have been dealing with similar issues. If you have found a combination that is working leave it alone. I'm still struggling with Jake. Although better since switched to a lamb and Rice formula he is still having symptoms. Good Luck!


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

There are lots of articles here www.greatdanelady.com She is a canine nutritionist and former Ball State Univ prof. All sorts of health/nutrition topics are covered....


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## bwoz (Jul 12, 2007)

I sympathize with you. The food we've fed for years changed formula so I've done so much research my head is still spinning. Really I think you should go out there and read as much as you can about canine nutrition and try to choose a philosophy that you are comfortable with. Then you can just start to narrow it down from there. I've been feeding a new food for about six weeks now and although there is a HUGE improvement, I still am just waiting for Banner to get back the skin and coat that I know he was at before. My only humble opinion is that if you are feeding a good quality diet you really shouldn't have to supplement much. It's usually more expensive to do so anyway. But again, that could depend on the individual dog too. Good luck. It's exhausting but worth it in the end!


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## bwoz (Jul 12, 2007)

By the way, I forgot to mention that your Brady is a handsome boy. Wouldn't be a Patriots fan now would you? :


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

I just learned the hard way to stick with what is working!!! My boy had a glorious gorgeous coat on Nature's Variety salmon. The cost went through the roof so I researched and changed to Natural Balance Fish and Sweet potato. Now my boy is itching like crazy, going bald... I am sick that I did this!!!! he is back on NV and seems to have less shedding today.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it!!!!!


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

Hi everyone and thank you so much for your opinions. To update since I first started this thread, Brady's stools have begun fluctuating again (I guess I spoke too soon when I said they're good now). Over the week, they're reasonable (fully formed but a bit soft to pick up) probably 4-5 days. The other 2-3 days they start out formed and go mushy about half way through (mushy meaning they don't hold their form and they're very messy to pick up)-sorry for being graphic. We don't give him many treats and very very very little people food. So given this, I don't think we're at the "good" point yet. When it's time for a new bag of food, I was thinking of trying the Wellness core (high protein, grain free) to see how he does on that (and hoping the high protein doesn't make it worse). I've read and talked to people who were having similar problems and said their dogs do great on Core. But then yesterday I was reading an article in the Whole Dog Journal that was discussing low fact diets for dogs with pancreatitis, IBD, and they said that with ANY dog with "digestive issues" it's worth trying a lower fat food to see if the stools improve. I swear he shows signs of irritable bowel syndrome (there have been a couple of times where he has gotten stressed because I'm really upset about something, and a short time later he'll go and be really mushy). So now I'm thinking maybe that's a route to try. I just don't know...I keep researching and researching and just get more overwhelmed. But I think I've narrowed it down to these 2 choices. Now to decide which one I try first.....


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

Have you thought about a prescription dog food just to get things stablized? It might be a benefit to get the system regulated first and then try foods.


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

Lucky's mom said:


> Have you thought about a prescription dog food just to get things stablized? It might be a benefit to get the system regulated first and then try foods.


That's a good point...I'll have to talk to my vet about that.


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

bwoz said:


> Wouldn't be a Patriots fan now would you? :


Yes, we are. But actually we didn't name him after Tom Brady...my husband was looking through a list of "dog names" and Brady just seemed to fit. But our Brady did also have a limp in his left front leg last season due to pano, so we got a lot of jokes that it was the same leg that Tom Brady injured.....


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## Hiker (Mar 29, 2009)

I just learned that the Cal. Nat. Lamb Meal and Rice Puppy formula has the same ingredients as the adult food, but a higher protein and fat content. Apparently a number of people use this for their grown dogs. I am going to give it a try for sure.


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